Chapter 2 · Study

Origins and Lineage

Print study sheet Read first, then practise.

Vocabulary · 9

Operative period: The era before the early 1700s, in which Masonry was the working trade of stone-masons organized into medieval and early-modern craft guilds.
Transition: The late-1600s shift in which non-operative members (gentlemen, scholars, clergy) were admitted into operative lodges, eventually transforming them into the speculative Fraternity.
Premier Grand Lodge of 1717: The first Grand Lodge of speculative Masonry, formed in London on St. John the Baptist's Day, 24 June 1717, by four Lodges meeting at the Goose and Gridiron Ale-House.
The Four Old Lodges: The four London Lodges that formed the Premier Grand Lodge: the Goose and Gridiron, the Crown, the Apple Tree, and the Rummer and Grapes.
Anderson's Constitutions: The first printed Masonic constitution, compiled by Rev. James Anderson and published by the Premier Grand Lodge in 1723, with a revised edition in 1738.
Regius Manuscript: The oldest known Masonic manuscript (ca. 1390), a poem of seventy-nine articles and points setting out the duties of an operative Mason.
Old Charges: A body of medieval and early-modern manuscripts which set out the legendary history of the craft and the duties of an operative Mason. Read to candidates before printed constitutions existed.
Antient / Modern split: The 18th-century division between the original Premier Grand Lodge (the "Moderns") and a rival Grand Lodge formed in 1751 (the "Antients"), reunited in 1813 as the United Grand Lodge of England.
Grand Lodge of New Mexico: The supreme Masonic body in the State of New Mexico, organized in 1877 by representatives of three Lodges holding charters from older jurisdictions.

Sequences · 1

Timeline of the Craft

Major milestones from operative origins to the Grand Lodge of New Mexico, in chronological order.

Regius Manuscript composed (ca. 1390)
Transition: non-operative members enter operative lodges (late 1600s)
Premier Grand Lodge formed in London (24 June 1717)
Anderson's Constitutions published (1723)
Antient Grand Lodge formed in England (1751)
United Grand Lodge of England constituted (1813)
Grand Lodge of New Mexico organized (1877)

Practice questions · 8

On what date was the Premier Grand Lodge formed in London?
- a. St. Andrew's Day, 30 November 1717
- b. St. John the Evangelist's Day, 27 December 1717
- c. St. John the Baptist's Day, 24 June 1717 ✓
- d. May Day, 1 May 1717
How many Lodges joined to form the Premier Grand Lodge?
- a. Two
- b. Three
- c. Four ✓
- d. Six
Which of the following is one of the original four London Lodges?
- a. The Lion and Lamb
- b. The Goose and Gridiron ✓
- c. The Plough and Anchor
- d. The Crown and Mitre
In what year was Anderson's Book of Constitutions first published?
- a. 1717
- b. 1723 ✓
- c. 1738
- d. 1751
Which manuscript is considered the oldest of the Old Charges?
- a. The Cooke Manuscript
- b. The Regius Manuscript ✓
- c. The Schaw Statutes
- d. The Inigo Jones Manuscript
What was the 1813 event that ended the Antient / Modern split in England?
- a. The dissolution of the Antient Grand Lodge
- b. The formation of the United Grand Lodge of England ✓
- c. A royal decree from George III
- d. The publication of a new edition of Anderson's Constitutions
In what year was the Grand Lodge of New Mexico organized?
- a. 1846
- b. 1862
- c. 1877 ✓
- d. 1912
What is meant by the "Transition" period in Masonic history?
- a. The move of Masonic records from manuscript to print
- b. The shift of working operative lodges into speculative bodies as non-operative members were admitted ✓
- c. The relocation of the Grand Lodge from London to Edinburgh
- d. The transition from the Old to the New Constitutions