Antiquity, Lodge of

Antiquity, Lodge of. Commonly said to be the oldest lodge in England, though this appears only by inference. One of the Four Old Lodges that met in 1717 to form the premier Grand Lodge of England was described by Dr. Anderson (Constitutions of 1738, q.v.) as the Lodge which met at the Goose and Gridiron ale house in St. Paul’s Church-yard, and it headed his list of four. The matter of precedence of lodges began to be agitated at the meeting of the Grand Lodge in 1727, when it was ordered that the Grand Master and Grand Wardens inquire into the question. In that year, the Goose and Gridiron Lodge was listed at the top. The Lodge continued to meet at the same place until 1729, when it moved to the King’s (or Queen’s) Arms, London in the same locality, and it remained there for a long period. In the Engraved List of Lodges for 1725, at the roll call of 1727, and in the order fixing priority in 1729, it stood first. The Engraved List for 1729 showed the Lodge as organized in 1691. In 1760, it assumed the name West Indian and American Lodge and, in 1770, changed that to Lodge of Antiquity. At the Union of 1813 between the premier (Modern) Grand Lodge and the Ancient Grand Lodge, the numbers were assigned by lot, as the result of which, the Ancients’ Past Masters’ Lodge drew No. 1, and the lodges of the two bodies fell in alternately, so that Lodge of Antiquity drew No. 2, which it still retains. Since no other lodge has successfully contested the precedence of this Lodge it must be the oldest, though Alnwick Lodge and York Lodge had preserved minutes going back to 1701 and 1705, respectively, both of those lodges, however, subsequently expiring.

The members of Lodge of Antiquity have never been modest about advancing its claims of age, and their spirit was especially strong around 1770, when the Lodge adopted its present name and, about the same time, began to record in its minutes legends about Sir Christopher Wren (q.v.), England’s first and, for some years, greatest architect. It is claimed that Wren presented to the Lodge a mallet which Charles II used to level the foundation stone of St. Paul’s Cathedral and also three mahogany candlesticks. All such acts were done and minute entries made some or many years after the formation of the Grand Lodge, but such legends are supposed to be immune from too close scrutiny or analysis. There is some indication that the Lodge has been the victim of those who have had antiques for sale to which some Masonic legend could be attached, as shown by the minute entry for November 27, 1839, reciting that ”Mr. Elms, the architect gave the Lodge the opportunity of buying a set of Five Columns representing the five Orders of Architecture which belonged originally to Brother Sir Christopher Wren, and these were made use of by him at the time he presided over the Lodge of Antiquity as W. Mastr.” There is cogent evidence that Wren was not a Freemason. See WREN, SIR CHRISTOPHER.

William Preston (q.v.), who, between 1772 and 1774 became famous in English Masonry, visited Lodge of Antiquity, then No. 1, and was at the same meeting elected a member of the Lodge, since the regulations permitted one to belong to more than one lodge. At the next meeting, he was elected Master, which position he held for a number of years. He also became prominent in the Grand Lodge and was elected Deputy Grand Secretary. Preston’s advancement and fame probably provoked jealousy on the part of some members of the Lodge and, in 1777, a rather trivial incident led to serious repercussions. On St. John’s Day, Dec. 27, 1777, the Lodge planned to attend St. Dunstan’s Church but, due to a protest from the anti-Preston faction, only ten members attended, clothing themselves as Masons upon arriving in the vestry of the Church. After the service, they walked, still clothed Masonically, back to the lodge room which was just across the street. John Noorthouck and John Bottomly called this an unlawful public procession and complained to the Grand Lodge. A majority of the Lodge members, siding with Preston, signed a reply prepared by Preston in which they alleged that the Lodge possessed certain inherent privileges or immemorial rights (q.v.) which antedated the rights of the Grand Lodge and that, in some respects, the Lodge was independent of Grand Lodge control. The Grand Lodge naturally did not agree but, instead of simply overruling the plea, it required Preston to withdraw it and, upon his refusal, expelled him from Masonry. Preston thought better of the matter and, at the next Quarterly Communication of the Grand Lodge, he filed a signed renunciation of the doctrine and obtained recision of his expulsion, but the matter did not end there. The majority of Lodge of Antiquity, being Preston supporters, expelled Noorthouck and Bottomly and one other, whereupon, the Grand Lodge again expelled Preston for fomenting discord. On January 29, 1779, the Lodge refused to restore Noorthouck and Bottomly as demanded and withdrew from allegiance to the Grand Lodge of England, taking all furniture, jewels and records of the Lodge, and joined York Grand Lodge (q.v.). The remaining minority claiming to constitute Lodge of Antiquity, restored Noorthouck and Bottomly to membership, elected officers, and reaffirmed allegiance to Grand Lodge.

The new Lodge formed by Preston and his followers received, not merely a lodge charter, but a Deputation, dated March 29, 1779, constituting that Lodge The Grand Lodge of England South of the River Trent (q.v.), thereby obtaining jurisdiction, so far as York Grand Lodge could confer it, over the south half of England--possibly a little more than half. Preston remained under expulsion from the lodges subordinate to the Grand Lodge of England for about ten years, even resigning in 1781 from his own Lodge of Antiquity, but rejoining in 1786. Neither the Grand Lodge which Preston hoped to exploit, nor his faction, nor the other faction of the Lodge of Antiquity, prospered. Indeed, York Grand Lodge, itself, was tottering. By 1789, all participants in the affair were ready for reconciliation. In that year, both Preston and his branch of the Lodge petitioned for reinstatement, and the request was granted, with the understanding that the position which the Grand Lodge had continuously maintained was sustained and that all lodges stood on an equal footing, none having rights superior to those of the Grand Lodge.

Macoy Collector's Note: Coil’s detailed history of the Lodge of Antiquity highlights the complex dynamics of early Masonic governance and the famous schism led by William Preston.