Lean Times in England

Despite the initiation of Frederick Prince of Wales in 1737, Freemasonry had become unfashionable. Horace Walpole (diplomatist and brother was first prime minister), himself a member of the Craft, wrote on the 4th May, 1743: “The Free Masons are in so low repute now in England, that one has scarce heard the Proceedings at Vienna against them mentioned. I believe nothing but a persecution could bring them into vogue again here.”

This was the period of processions of Mock Masonry to cast ridicule on the Order. The witty thermometer of fashion has recorded the consequent fall in enthusiasm for the Craft among his own set, but proved a bad prophet about its future popularity in England.

It was left to the private Lodges to carry on as best they might, for neither Grand Master nor Grand Lodge was to do much to ensure a revival in twenty years yet to come. Lord Raymond was succeeded in April, 1740, by the Earl of Kintore, who was followed in 1741 by the Earl of Morton, who was followed by Lord Ward in 1742, and he by the Earl of Strathmore, who was followed by Lord Cranstoun.

None of these Scottish chiefs distinguished himself as an inspiring leader, to say the least of it; but the nadir of the Grand Lodge was probably reached in the time of Lord Byron, who was elected Grand Master on the 30th April, 1747, and continued in office till the 20th March, 1752, when he handed over to Lord Carysfort.

Lord Byron attended only three meetings of Grand Lodge because he was out of England for most of the time. Lord Carysfort did nothing else in particular, and was succeeded in 1754 by James Marquess of Carnarvon who also did nothing in particular (although was a better attender as a Past GM than a GM!) and was succeeded by Lord Aberdour on the 18th May, 1757.

The outward and visible signs of ten years of misrule, from 1742 till 1752, were obvious: no less than 45 Lodges in the Metropolitan area, amounting to about one-third of the total number, were struck off the roll during this period.

In 1735, GL made a ruling: any metropolitan Lodge which had failed to meet regularly for a year should be erased. [Perhaps this is something for many GLs to think about today. . .]

On 3rd April, 1743, it was decided to discontinue Masonic processions in public. In 1751, a rival GL called Ancients appeared but this is looking at the original GL (now called Moderns). In November, 1753, lodges were ordered to inquire into the characters of candidates; never to make and raise on one evening, except by dispensation.

It must be evident that none of these reforms, salutary though they were, would have appealed to the humbler class of Freemason, from which, as I believe, the bulk of the opposition to the Grand Lodge sprang. Processions were dear to the hearts of many Craftsmen; to fix a fairly high fee for initiation was to reduce the recruiting grounds of the poorer Lodges, and the great majority of them were poor.

Things began to look up with Lord Blaney GM 1764—67 (below) when he constituted 74 lodges although none were military. The Modern GL was against the Royal Arch degree as they generally viewed it as an Ancient working of their rivals. However, Lord Blaney was the first GM of the Moderns to encourage Modern masons to develop the RA degree. The 5th Duke of Beaufort took over as GM and the GLs worked towards the union in 1813.