The Allied Masonic Degrees are a group of five Degrees which at one time, were conferred under Craft Warrants.
Nowadays these are known as “Progressive Degrees”, but at one time they were called “Side Degrees” and it was common practice for a group of Brethren to take a Brother to one side after a Craft meeting and confer the Degree on him in a short ceremony, complete with passwords, pass grips etc.
The “Antients” allowed any Craft Lodge to work any Masonic Degree, but since the formation of the United Grand Lodge of England in 1813, only the three Craft degrees and the Royal Arch can be performed in Craft Lodges.
Many other Degrees continued to be worked though and several formed their own Supreme Grand Lodges (eg. Mark Masonry).
In 1879, The Grand Council of the Allied Masonic Degrees was formed to bring together and govern some of the remaining Degrees
These Degrees are:-
ST LAWRENCE THE MARTYR.
KNIGHT OF CONSTANTINOPLE.
GRAND TYLERS OF SOLOMON.
RED CROSS OF BABYLON.
GRAND HIGH PRIEST.
More information about these and other Degrees is given on our pages entitled "The Degrees" and "History".
In the Order of the Allied Masonic Degrees, each unit is called a Council and there are now more than 200 Councils worldwide.
In the District of Devon and Cornwall, there are Councils in the following towns:-
Barnstaple, Hayle, Tywardreath, Seaton, South Brent plus 3 Councils in Plymouth.
Candidates are required to be a Mark Master Mason and a Holy Royal Arch Companion in addition to being a Craft Mason.
Regalia worn includes the impressive group of 5 miniature jewels shown below.
Nowadays these are known as “Progressive Degrees”, but at one time they were called “Side Degrees” and it was common practice for a group of Brethren to take a Brother to one side after a Craft meeting and confer the Degree on him in a short ceremony, complete with passwords, pass grips etc.
The “Antients” allowed any Craft Lodge to work any Masonic Degree, but since the formation of the United Grand Lodge of England in 1813, only the three Craft degrees and the Royal Arch can be performed in Craft Lodges.
Many other Degrees continued to be worked though and several formed their own Supreme Grand Lodges (eg. Mark Masonry).
In 1879, The Grand Council of the Allied Masonic Degrees was formed to bring together and govern some of the remaining Degrees
These Degrees are:-
ST LAWRENCE THE MARTYR.
KNIGHT OF CONSTANTINOPLE.
GRAND TYLERS OF SOLOMON.
RED CROSS OF BABYLON.
GRAND HIGH PRIEST.
More information about these and other Degrees is given on our pages entitled "The Degrees" and "History".
In the Order of the Allied Masonic Degrees, each unit is called a Council and there are now more than 200 Councils worldwide.
In the District of Devon and Cornwall, there are Councils in the following towns:-
Barnstaple, Hayle, Tywardreath, Seaton, South Brent plus 3 Councils in Plymouth.
Candidates are required to be a Mark Master Mason and a Holy Royal Arch Companion in addition to being a Craft Mason.
Regalia worn includes the impressive group of 5 miniature jewels shown below.
A summary of the Allied Masonic Degrees by V.W. Bro. Jim Evans
In years gone by, many Masonic Orders were independent, indeed many were not recognized by any central body, and as such not regulated by any major governing bodies, to remedy this problem the then Grand Secretaries of the Craft, Mark, and Rose Croix established a Grand Council of the Allied Masonic Degrees.
Originally Councils were warranted to work five Orders, namely the Order of the Secret Monitor, Grand High Priest, St. Lawrence the Martyr, Red Cross of Babylon, and the Knights of Constantinople. In 1893 the Order of the Grand Tylers of Solomon was added, however in 1931 the degree of Secret Monitor, with the blessing of the Grand Council agreed to break away and become a separate Order in its own right. The other five degrees are still worked to the present day. The five degrees as worked to this present day are indeed most interesting:-
First we have the St. Lawrence the Martyr degree. In this degree all the administrative work is carried out, candidates admitted, and also the Installation of the new Worshipful Master, the actual ceremony of introducing a candidate into the St. Lawrence degree, is in self quite short, but most interesting. A comprehensive lecture given at the end of the ceremony is quite revealing, it gives an insight to Lawrence himself, and his relationship with the people of Rome
We then have The Grand Tylers of Solomon which was originally known as Select Masters of Twenty Seven when it was founded in America in 1893. This degree relates to the story of the accidental intrusion of a craftsman into an underground vault occupied by the three Grand Masters, who then decided his fate, again concluded by a comprehensive lecture of much interest.
The next degree is the Red Cross of Babylon, not to be confused with the Red Cross of Constantine, this degree is indeed most old; it has a close affinity with the Holy Royal Arch and the rebuilding of the second temple of Jerusalem with the candidate representing Zerubbabel the High Priest. It is performed in three parts, a new innovation to the ritual is the introduction of a very comprehensive explanation of the degree in the form of a lecture, part of which teaches us that our Masonic secrets are to be kept under all circumstance’s well within the compass of the teaching of this degree, quite a short lecture but most interesting.
Next we have the Grand High Priest, this degree is an amalgamation of two degrees originating from France and Germany over 200 years ago. It was worked in America very extensively, and it then made its way to England around the late 19th Century.
It is thought to be one of the first orders to be introduced into the fold of the Allied Order, it is a most beautiful degree, the principal officer, the High Priest has a most decorative breast plate on his chest. As a matter of interest, behind the Worshipful Masters chair at the Dartmouth Lodge is a portrait of the High Priest with his Breast plate, - look for it next time you visit the Lodge.
Knights of Constantinople, our next degree, in itself a most absorbing order, if we go back in time, it was quite customary for one Brother who had already taken this degree, especially in the USA where it had been worked since 1831, to take a Brother to one side, give him the token, grip and word, and there and then he was a qualified Knight of Constantinople. As such he was then himself empowered to make further Knights. The Order teaches equality and humility, the lecture in this degree is very explanatory of both these fine qualities. The 3 Councils at Plymouth Nos 33, 34, and 35 all with Time Immemorial status, work a special form of the degree of Knights of Constantinople which they bought with them when they joined the Allied Masonic Degree (AMD) in 1910. These Councils were originally formed at Plymouth in 1865 as Councils of Knights of Constantinople and they were under a Grand Council which issued a Certificate, they can therefore claim over 100 years of continuous existence. When that Grand Council ceased to function in 1910, they applied to join Grand Council A.M.D. When they were accepted they were given special permission to work their version of the Degree and to wear their own special apron. Their ceremony, which is only worked by the 3 Plymouth Councils, is unique and quite different from that used by all other Councils. The ceremony sets out to teach the same lessons as those in the other version as worked in all other Councils the world over. As a footnote to the degree of Knights of Constantinople, in April 2010 a very special meeting was held in Plymouth to commemorate the admission into the Grand Council of the Order of the Allied Masonic Degree, a most momentous occasion, attended by the Grand Master M. W.Brother Michael Edward Herbert, accompanied by many distinguished guests. To mark this landmark of history a team of dedicated masons from the 3 Plymouth Councils performed a most excellent ceremony of the Knights of Constantinople Plymouth working.
The Regalia of the Order consists of, on completion of the five Degrees, a set of miniature jewels, in the form of a bar from which are suspended the five individual jewels. However due to the cost of this miniature jewel bar, it is now more usual for Brethren to wear a composite jewel, it is gold in colour, pentangle in shape, with symbols of the five degrees incorporated on the face suspended from a green ribbon. The apron for the Plymouth Councils comprises of a composite apron of green complete with triangular flap and bordered with ribbon. Woven in the ribbon are the colours of the degree of St Lawrence the Martyr, Grand Tylers of Solomon, and Secret Monitor. The flap bears a silver gridiron, the St Lawrence emblem and in the centre of the apron is a St Andrews Cross (Red Cross of Babylon), superimposed on a passion cross (Knight of Constantinople), both embroidered in red silk and charged with a Jewish Mitre (Grand High Priest). The qualification to join this most wonderful degree is membership of the Holy Royal Arch, and also to be a Mark Master Mason.
In years gone by, many Masonic Orders were independent, indeed many were not recognized by any central body, and as such not regulated by any major governing bodies, to remedy this problem the then Grand Secretaries of the Craft, Mark, and Rose Croix established a Grand Council of the Allied Masonic Degrees.
Originally Councils were warranted to work five Orders, namely the Order of the Secret Monitor, Grand High Priest, St. Lawrence the Martyr, Red Cross of Babylon, and the Knights of Constantinople. In 1893 the Order of the Grand Tylers of Solomon was added, however in 1931 the degree of Secret Monitor, with the blessing of the Grand Council agreed to break away and become a separate Order in its own right. The other five degrees are still worked to the present day. The five degrees as worked to this present day are indeed most interesting:-
First we have the St. Lawrence the Martyr degree. In this degree all the administrative work is carried out, candidates admitted, and also the Installation of the new Worshipful Master, the actual ceremony of introducing a candidate into the St. Lawrence degree, is in self quite short, but most interesting. A comprehensive lecture given at the end of the ceremony is quite revealing, it gives an insight to Lawrence himself, and his relationship with the people of Rome
We then have The Grand Tylers of Solomon which was originally known as Select Masters of Twenty Seven when it was founded in America in 1893. This degree relates to the story of the accidental intrusion of a craftsman into an underground vault occupied by the three Grand Masters, who then decided his fate, again concluded by a comprehensive lecture of much interest.
The next degree is the Red Cross of Babylon, not to be confused with the Red Cross of Constantine, this degree is indeed most old; it has a close affinity with the Holy Royal Arch and the rebuilding of the second temple of Jerusalem with the candidate representing Zerubbabel the High Priest. It is performed in three parts, a new innovation to the ritual is the introduction of a very comprehensive explanation of the degree in the form of a lecture, part of which teaches us that our Masonic secrets are to be kept under all circumstance’s well within the compass of the teaching of this degree, quite a short lecture but most interesting.
Next we have the Grand High Priest, this degree is an amalgamation of two degrees originating from France and Germany over 200 years ago. It was worked in America very extensively, and it then made its way to England around the late 19th Century.
It is thought to be one of the first orders to be introduced into the fold of the Allied Order, it is a most beautiful degree, the principal officer, the High Priest has a most decorative breast plate on his chest. As a matter of interest, behind the Worshipful Masters chair at the Dartmouth Lodge is a portrait of the High Priest with his Breast plate, - look for it next time you visit the Lodge.
Knights of Constantinople, our next degree, in itself a most absorbing order, if we go back in time, it was quite customary for one Brother who had already taken this degree, especially in the USA where it had been worked since 1831, to take a Brother to one side, give him the token, grip and word, and there and then he was a qualified Knight of Constantinople. As such he was then himself empowered to make further Knights. The Order teaches equality and humility, the lecture in this degree is very explanatory of both these fine qualities. The 3 Councils at Plymouth Nos 33, 34, and 35 all with Time Immemorial status, work a special form of the degree of Knights of Constantinople which they bought with them when they joined the Allied Masonic Degree (AMD) in 1910. These Councils were originally formed at Plymouth in 1865 as Councils of Knights of Constantinople and they were under a Grand Council which issued a Certificate, they can therefore claim over 100 years of continuous existence. When that Grand Council ceased to function in 1910, they applied to join Grand Council A.M.D. When they were accepted they were given special permission to work their version of the Degree and to wear their own special apron. Their ceremony, which is only worked by the 3 Plymouth Councils, is unique and quite different from that used by all other Councils. The ceremony sets out to teach the same lessons as those in the other version as worked in all other Councils the world over. As a footnote to the degree of Knights of Constantinople, in April 2010 a very special meeting was held in Plymouth to commemorate the admission into the Grand Council of the Order of the Allied Masonic Degree, a most momentous occasion, attended by the Grand Master M. W.Brother Michael Edward Herbert, accompanied by many distinguished guests. To mark this landmark of history a team of dedicated masons from the 3 Plymouth Councils performed a most excellent ceremony of the Knights of Constantinople Plymouth working.
The Regalia of the Order consists of, on completion of the five Degrees, a set of miniature jewels, in the form of a bar from which are suspended the five individual jewels. However due to the cost of this miniature jewel bar, it is now more usual for Brethren to wear a composite jewel, it is gold in colour, pentangle in shape, with symbols of the five degrees incorporated on the face suspended from a green ribbon. The apron for the Plymouth Councils comprises of a composite apron of green complete with triangular flap and bordered with ribbon. Woven in the ribbon are the colours of the degree of St Lawrence the Martyr, Grand Tylers of Solomon, and Secret Monitor. The flap bears a silver gridiron, the St Lawrence emblem and in the centre of the apron is a St Andrews Cross (Red Cross of Babylon), superimposed on a passion cross (Knight of Constantinople), both embroidered in red silk and charged with a Jewish Mitre (Grand High Priest). The qualification to join this most wonderful degree is membership of the Holy Royal Arch, and also to be a Mark Master Mason.
The Allied Masonic Degrees–Degrees of Significance. A talk by Bro. Michael O'Meara (May 2022)
Of the many “Extra- Craft” degrees, those five controlled by the Grand Council of the Order of the Allied Masonic Degrees are the least known; one must be a Mark Master and a Royal Arch Mason to be eligible and this double qualification will exclude many. There are also fewer private Allied Councils than there are lodges, or equivalent bodies, for the much larger orders of Mark and Royal Ark Mariners and even smaller orders, such as Royal and Select Masters.
The other aspect which can deter is that the degrees under Grand Council do not relate specifically to each other. Someone recently described them to me as “a bunch of rather secondary degrees which no one else really wanted and which should have been allowed to die out.” He is not a member of this Order and could not be more wrong! While these degrees do not belong in a sequence, all five contain masonically significant elements, with two of them being of great ritual importance.
In his epic poem ”The Task” (1785) the British poet William Cowper, has a line which reads “Variety is the very spice of life, that gives it all its flavour” But other expressions on a similar theme can be found as far back as the ancient Greeks and it is a view to which many of us would subscribe.
Variety is one of the great attractions of the Allied Masonic Degree. Of course, there are other Masonic orders with multiple degrees but, in these, they are progressive and have a common theme, as in the three Craft degrees. But in the Allied Masonic Degrees each of the five degrees is entirely separate and with a different theme
Why “Allied Degrees”?
The grand lodge of the Antients, formed in 1751, allowed its lodges to work virtually any masonic degree. The rituals of this immense variety of degrees were not in any sense uniform. In the remoter parts of England, not least Lancashire, and Yorkshire, in towns like Newcastle and Rochdale and in villages such as Bottoms, particular variations seem to have emerged; ports such as Bristol and Plymouth also developed their unique workings, as Bristol’s impressive Camp of Baldwyn still testifies, practicing inter alia which are now conferred nowhere else. Furthermore, many of the earliest travelling military lodges were warranted by the Antients and facilitated the spread of what we consider the “additional” degrees both to and from the continent of America. The latter years of the eighteenth Century and the first half of the nineteenth were masonically rich, but utterly chaotic. However, regular organisation of the many degrees soon commenced.
In 1791 the Knights Templar came together and in 1793 Thomas Dunkerley also organised the degree of Royal Ark Mariner, although in 1871 it came under the permanent supervision of the Mark. 1813 at last saw the unification of the Antients and the Moderns (the premier Grand Lodge of 1717) into the United Grand Lodge and in 1817 Supreme Grand Chapter was established to rule over the Royal Arch. In 1845 the Supreme Grand Council 33 deg was constituted, 1856 saw the formation of the Grand Mark Lodge and the Grand Council of Royal and Select Masters was warranted in 1873
The degrees of the Allied came together and underwent a variety of reorganisation, not least with respect to the Order of Holy Wisdom (Holy Royal Arch Knight Templar Priest). From 1879/1880 the Grand Council of the Allied Masonic Degrees formally came into being, at first controlled just four degrees. The new Grand Council’s purpose was twofold: to regularise what those involved at the time regarded as significant degrees outside the nationally recognised bodies, as well as to prevent the spread of those seen as less worthy. Today, the order of the Allied Masonic Degrees controls five degrees in over 150 councils all over the world.
It would be remis of me not to note ( Especially as we have both Provincial Grand Supreme Ruler and Past Provincial Grand Supreme Ruler in attendance) that the Order of the Secret Monitor was administer as part of the Allied Masonic Degree up until in 1931 when C.W. Napier-Clavering was in the favourable position of being Grand Supreme Ruler of the Secret Monitor and also Grand Master of the Allied Masonry. He then implemented an agreement transferring all rights to the Grand Council of the Order of the Secret Monitor and the degree was removed from the list of degrees of the Allied body.
St Laurence the Martyr
While candidates can take four of the degrees in any order – there really is no connection between them, nor any sense of philosophical progression one to another, each being complete and distinct – the first degree must be that of St Laurence the Martyr. It is in this degree that all business of an Allied council is conducted, and it is from a Lodge of St Laurence that a Board of Installed Masters qualifies the Master to rule over all five degrees.
St Laurence became important in Christendom after Philip II od Spain won his great battle of St Quentin against the French on 10th August 1557, the saints feast day. In gratitude he named his new palace-monastery, built near Madrid in the very centre of Spain. El Escorial. This translates as “the Place of Ashes” in reverent allusion to St Laurence’s martyrdom, with the gridiron, his symbol, everywhere displayed. The gridiron, not surprisingly, is the jewel of the masonic degree.
However, whilst the central character of the degree’s lecture is an early Christian saint, this is not a Christian degree in any sense. The Allied Degrees are open to masons of all faiths. Prayers are offered to the Great Disposer of All and the Volume of Sacred Law is opened at the Old Testament. St Laurence is honoured for his example, not for his specific beliefs: the degree teaches fortitude and hospatility.
What is important about St Laurence the Martyr is its possible link with our operative predecessors. Some form of this degree has been worked in England for over two hundred years, principally in Yorkshire and Lancashire. While claims made by some that it has medieval origins are currently unsubstantiated, it may well be that the present version is a perpetuation of an operative degree.
Grand Tilers of Solomon
The full title of this degree is Grand Tilers of Solomon, or Masons Elect of Twenty-Seven. The provenance of the degree is clearly established from the USA, hence the American spelling of Tyler. It did not join the Allied Degrees until 1893 when it was conferred on the then Grand Master, the Earl of Euston. It is remarkably similar in character to the Select master’s degree of the Cryptic series and relates the legend of an accidental intrusion of a mason into the Vault beneath the Temple. The central characters represent Solomon, Hiram, and Hiram Abif. The jewels ribbon is adorned with their crowns and a dagger held to strike, characteristic of the ceremony.
This degree also has much in common with the degree of Intimate Secretary, the 6th Degree of the Antient and Accepted Rite. For reasons of this similarity to other degrees, the Grand Tilers of Solomon has often been overlooked. However, the degree in its Allied form specifically teaches the mason admitted a Grand Tiler not to judge hastily of a man’s motives, not to blame others for his own carelessness, as well as to acknowledge his own mistakes and accept the consequences. In addition, one might well profitably speculate at a deeper meaning for the preservation of three such similar ceremonies. These “tyling” degrees may well emphasise the importance of preventing those involved in mystical as well as the need properly to prepare the candidate before embarking on an initiation ritual.
Knights of Constantinople
All too frequently, one hears talk of “Side Degrees.” In addition to the questionable suggestion that these are less significant that the Craft, the description is simply wrong for these “additional” degrees. However, the Knights of Constantinople is a genuine side degree in that it was originally conferred by one brother taking another aside, probably after a meeting in another degree.in fact there is documentary evidence of such a practice exists for one Craft lodge – St Aubyn Lodge no 954 at Devonport after a regular lodge meeting when the Plymouth Version was introduced to the lodge as a “Side Degree” on 18th Jan 1865 it was the brethren of this lodge that” thereupon formed themselves into a council to propagate the degree and believing it to be the only council in England possessing the degree styled it the St Aubyn Grand Council of the knights of Constantinople.,
Its origin is uncertain, but the emphasis in its ritual on the equality of all men before God suggest an origin in the North of England, before it appeared in America, via Scotland, where it was being worked by 1830. Like St Laurence the Martyr, the operative flavour is also clear. Set in the courtyard of the palace of the Roman Emperor Constantine in the fourth century AD, the degree is quirky, quite humorous and can be noisy! Some masons find it silly and therefore see it as rather trivial, but many others appreciate the serious message as to humility which it contains: that true greatness is not to be found in rank and fortune, but rather in nobility of character and in a willingness to acknowledge that in others of whatever station in life. It is not who a man is, but what he does that is important. How ironic that masons of all people need to be constantly reminded of that most simple message.
The Plymouth Councils
As mentioned earlier, on or about 18th January 1865, a military brother, believed to have been Sgt F.G. Irwin, who had received this degree with different and much more elaborate working in Gibraltar, on his return to England introduced it to member of the St Aubyn (Craft) lodge at Devonport after a regular lodge meeting. In 1874, the St Aubyn Grand Council of Knights of Constantinople warranted the Red Cross Council also to meet at Devonport. On its concertation a Grand Council of Sovereigns of the Knights of Constantinople was established, and the St Aubyn Council reverted to the status of an ordinary council. The Grand Council of Sovereigns continued the policy of granting warrants to form sill more councils, including the Edgecumbe Council at Devonport in 1907. However, the movement began to languish and in 1910 the three surviving councils agreed to accept the sovereignty of the Grand Council of the Allied Masonic Degrees in London. They were granted Warrants of Conformation and were acknowledged as “Time Immemorial” councils on 21st April 1910 with an undertaking that they could continue to work this degree in their traditional form, which is restricted to Christian Brethren. They were also authorised by the Grand Council on 13th November 1911 to continue to wear their particular breast jewel and the distinctive composite apron of the degree.
The Red Cross of Babylon
This degree is of a most profound and mystical nature consisting of three parts. It commences in a Royal Arch Council in Jerusalem where the prelate presides over extensive readings from the book of Ezra and concludes at the Tribunal in Babylon of the Persian King Darius I. These two major scenes are linked by a short but important episode where the candidate is actually required to cross the bridge over a figurative river.
It should be noted in all major religion of the world, there is a tradition that the soul has to cross the river of death, usually over a bridge. Crossing the bridge is a symbolical representation of Death, while the subsequent experience of the candidate is emblematical of the Judgement of his soul. In the Church of St Peter and St Paul at Chaldon near Croydon, there is a large tempera painting of the “Ladder of Salvation” probably dating from about the year 1200, which includes a bridge with saw like railings, over which among those crossing is a mason with his working tools in his hand.
The legend of the Red Cross of Babylon is framed around the character of Zerubbabel who travels to the court of Darius seeking the return of the scared vessels looted from the Temple by Nebuchadnezzar in 597BC. His subsequent experience has an allusion to the judgement of the soul when his fidelity is put to the test by the King; yet his integrity is verified by his steadfastness and the episode closes with and intricate debate – recorded in the Book of Ezra – which establishes the divine attribute of Truth.
The Degree of the Red Cross of Babylon teaches us to keep inviolate our Masonic Secrets and to withstand all temptations to reveal them, however profitable those temptations may be. It emphasises the importance of Fidelity, Integrity, and Truth. Esoterically it is symbolic of the passage of an upright man from struggles overcome in this world to well-earned honour in the next
The Holy Order of the Grand High Priest
The ceremony is undoubtedly incredibly old, but the date of its earliest working and even its country of origin have not been definitely established. Indeed, the abrupt transition in our ritual from the blessing of Abram, the Mesopotamian immigrant, by Melchizedek, the Canaanite Priest-King, to the consecration four centuries later of Aaron the Levite, the first Jewish High Priest, suggests that the present version of the ceremony, may be a combination of elements of two distinct degrees.
Melchizedek is a mysterious figure whose ancestry and posterity are unknown; he appears in person in the Volume of the Scared Law only in three verses (18-20) of the passage read by the Chaplain from Chapter 14 of the Book of Genesis. He is mentioned rather casually therein as King of Salem and the Priest of the Most High God and then disappears from the Old Testament except for a mention in Psalm 110. His importance is that, unlike the other kings who had engaged in the local wars and carried off Abram’s nephew, he was also a priest.
The Order carries us toward more philosophical aspects of Masonic thinking. The candidate is left in no doubt that he is set apart for high duties and responsibilities in life, both as a Mason and as a man: he is taught that, to carry them out, he is called upon to dedicate himself to the service of the Most High God and also to that of his fellow men.
There is undoubtedly a history of interaction between different elements of the Melchizedek degrees, the Priestly Order, the Holy Royal Arch Knight Templar Priest Order, and the Order of Holy Wisdom. It is also interesting to note that, following an agreement between our Grand Council and the Knight Grand Cross in Newcastle in 1896, from then until 1924 our Grand Council had control of all three interacting elements of these “Priestly Degrees”.
Hence is it truly a degree which justifies its place in our order today as preserving a historical connection with other orders as well as having both undoubted intrinsic merits, and also a somewhat mysterious past.
Conclusion
So, in conclusion each of the degrees of the Order teaches a particular moral lesson or related set of moral lessons. These may be briefly summarised as
St Laurence the Martyr teaches us Fortitude and Hospitality
Knights of Constantinople teaches us Humility
Grand Tilers of Solomon teaches us Duty and Responsibility
Red Cross of Babylon teaches us Fidelity, Integrity, and Truth
Grand High Priest teaches us Service and Dedication
I think you will all agree that the five degrees currently administered by the Allied Council, while all separate and distinct nevertheless allow us to form a deeper understand of not only the Craft but of ourselves and our place within the world.
Michael O’Meara 2022
Acknowledgements
Bro Roger Christmas for the original paper with I used and added to.
Of the many “Extra- Craft” degrees, those five controlled by the Grand Council of the Order of the Allied Masonic Degrees are the least known; one must be a Mark Master and a Royal Arch Mason to be eligible and this double qualification will exclude many. There are also fewer private Allied Councils than there are lodges, or equivalent bodies, for the much larger orders of Mark and Royal Ark Mariners and even smaller orders, such as Royal and Select Masters.
The other aspect which can deter is that the degrees under Grand Council do not relate specifically to each other. Someone recently described them to me as “a bunch of rather secondary degrees which no one else really wanted and which should have been allowed to die out.” He is not a member of this Order and could not be more wrong! While these degrees do not belong in a sequence, all five contain masonically significant elements, with two of them being of great ritual importance.
In his epic poem ”The Task” (1785) the British poet William Cowper, has a line which reads “Variety is the very spice of life, that gives it all its flavour” But other expressions on a similar theme can be found as far back as the ancient Greeks and it is a view to which many of us would subscribe.
Variety is one of the great attractions of the Allied Masonic Degree. Of course, there are other Masonic orders with multiple degrees but, in these, they are progressive and have a common theme, as in the three Craft degrees. But in the Allied Masonic Degrees each of the five degrees is entirely separate and with a different theme
Why “Allied Degrees”?
The grand lodge of the Antients, formed in 1751, allowed its lodges to work virtually any masonic degree. The rituals of this immense variety of degrees were not in any sense uniform. In the remoter parts of England, not least Lancashire, and Yorkshire, in towns like Newcastle and Rochdale and in villages such as Bottoms, particular variations seem to have emerged; ports such as Bristol and Plymouth also developed their unique workings, as Bristol’s impressive Camp of Baldwyn still testifies, practicing inter alia which are now conferred nowhere else. Furthermore, many of the earliest travelling military lodges were warranted by the Antients and facilitated the spread of what we consider the “additional” degrees both to and from the continent of America. The latter years of the eighteenth Century and the first half of the nineteenth were masonically rich, but utterly chaotic. However, regular organisation of the many degrees soon commenced.
In 1791 the Knights Templar came together and in 1793 Thomas Dunkerley also organised the degree of Royal Ark Mariner, although in 1871 it came under the permanent supervision of the Mark. 1813 at last saw the unification of the Antients and the Moderns (the premier Grand Lodge of 1717) into the United Grand Lodge and in 1817 Supreme Grand Chapter was established to rule over the Royal Arch. In 1845 the Supreme Grand Council 33 deg was constituted, 1856 saw the formation of the Grand Mark Lodge and the Grand Council of Royal and Select Masters was warranted in 1873
The degrees of the Allied came together and underwent a variety of reorganisation, not least with respect to the Order of Holy Wisdom (Holy Royal Arch Knight Templar Priest). From 1879/1880 the Grand Council of the Allied Masonic Degrees formally came into being, at first controlled just four degrees. The new Grand Council’s purpose was twofold: to regularise what those involved at the time regarded as significant degrees outside the nationally recognised bodies, as well as to prevent the spread of those seen as less worthy. Today, the order of the Allied Masonic Degrees controls five degrees in over 150 councils all over the world.
It would be remis of me not to note ( Especially as we have both Provincial Grand Supreme Ruler and Past Provincial Grand Supreme Ruler in attendance) that the Order of the Secret Monitor was administer as part of the Allied Masonic Degree up until in 1931 when C.W. Napier-Clavering was in the favourable position of being Grand Supreme Ruler of the Secret Monitor and also Grand Master of the Allied Masonry. He then implemented an agreement transferring all rights to the Grand Council of the Order of the Secret Monitor and the degree was removed from the list of degrees of the Allied body.
St Laurence the Martyr
While candidates can take four of the degrees in any order – there really is no connection between them, nor any sense of philosophical progression one to another, each being complete and distinct – the first degree must be that of St Laurence the Martyr. It is in this degree that all business of an Allied council is conducted, and it is from a Lodge of St Laurence that a Board of Installed Masters qualifies the Master to rule over all five degrees.
St Laurence became important in Christendom after Philip II od Spain won his great battle of St Quentin against the French on 10th August 1557, the saints feast day. In gratitude he named his new palace-monastery, built near Madrid in the very centre of Spain. El Escorial. This translates as “the Place of Ashes” in reverent allusion to St Laurence’s martyrdom, with the gridiron, his symbol, everywhere displayed. The gridiron, not surprisingly, is the jewel of the masonic degree.
However, whilst the central character of the degree’s lecture is an early Christian saint, this is not a Christian degree in any sense. The Allied Degrees are open to masons of all faiths. Prayers are offered to the Great Disposer of All and the Volume of Sacred Law is opened at the Old Testament. St Laurence is honoured for his example, not for his specific beliefs: the degree teaches fortitude and hospatility.
What is important about St Laurence the Martyr is its possible link with our operative predecessors. Some form of this degree has been worked in England for over two hundred years, principally in Yorkshire and Lancashire. While claims made by some that it has medieval origins are currently unsubstantiated, it may well be that the present version is a perpetuation of an operative degree.
Grand Tilers of Solomon
The full title of this degree is Grand Tilers of Solomon, or Masons Elect of Twenty-Seven. The provenance of the degree is clearly established from the USA, hence the American spelling of Tyler. It did not join the Allied Degrees until 1893 when it was conferred on the then Grand Master, the Earl of Euston. It is remarkably similar in character to the Select master’s degree of the Cryptic series and relates the legend of an accidental intrusion of a mason into the Vault beneath the Temple. The central characters represent Solomon, Hiram, and Hiram Abif. The jewels ribbon is adorned with their crowns and a dagger held to strike, characteristic of the ceremony.
This degree also has much in common with the degree of Intimate Secretary, the 6th Degree of the Antient and Accepted Rite. For reasons of this similarity to other degrees, the Grand Tilers of Solomon has often been overlooked. However, the degree in its Allied form specifically teaches the mason admitted a Grand Tiler not to judge hastily of a man’s motives, not to blame others for his own carelessness, as well as to acknowledge his own mistakes and accept the consequences. In addition, one might well profitably speculate at a deeper meaning for the preservation of three such similar ceremonies. These “tyling” degrees may well emphasise the importance of preventing those involved in mystical as well as the need properly to prepare the candidate before embarking on an initiation ritual.
Knights of Constantinople
All too frequently, one hears talk of “Side Degrees.” In addition to the questionable suggestion that these are less significant that the Craft, the description is simply wrong for these “additional” degrees. However, the Knights of Constantinople is a genuine side degree in that it was originally conferred by one brother taking another aside, probably after a meeting in another degree.in fact there is documentary evidence of such a practice exists for one Craft lodge – St Aubyn Lodge no 954 at Devonport after a regular lodge meeting when the Plymouth Version was introduced to the lodge as a “Side Degree” on 18th Jan 1865 it was the brethren of this lodge that” thereupon formed themselves into a council to propagate the degree and believing it to be the only council in England possessing the degree styled it the St Aubyn Grand Council of the knights of Constantinople.,
Its origin is uncertain, but the emphasis in its ritual on the equality of all men before God suggest an origin in the North of England, before it appeared in America, via Scotland, where it was being worked by 1830. Like St Laurence the Martyr, the operative flavour is also clear. Set in the courtyard of the palace of the Roman Emperor Constantine in the fourth century AD, the degree is quirky, quite humorous and can be noisy! Some masons find it silly and therefore see it as rather trivial, but many others appreciate the serious message as to humility which it contains: that true greatness is not to be found in rank and fortune, but rather in nobility of character and in a willingness to acknowledge that in others of whatever station in life. It is not who a man is, but what he does that is important. How ironic that masons of all people need to be constantly reminded of that most simple message.
The Plymouth Councils
As mentioned earlier, on or about 18th January 1865, a military brother, believed to have been Sgt F.G. Irwin, who had received this degree with different and much more elaborate working in Gibraltar, on his return to England introduced it to member of the St Aubyn (Craft) lodge at Devonport after a regular lodge meeting. In 1874, the St Aubyn Grand Council of Knights of Constantinople warranted the Red Cross Council also to meet at Devonport. On its concertation a Grand Council of Sovereigns of the Knights of Constantinople was established, and the St Aubyn Council reverted to the status of an ordinary council. The Grand Council of Sovereigns continued the policy of granting warrants to form sill more councils, including the Edgecumbe Council at Devonport in 1907. However, the movement began to languish and in 1910 the three surviving councils agreed to accept the sovereignty of the Grand Council of the Allied Masonic Degrees in London. They were granted Warrants of Conformation and were acknowledged as “Time Immemorial” councils on 21st April 1910 with an undertaking that they could continue to work this degree in their traditional form, which is restricted to Christian Brethren. They were also authorised by the Grand Council on 13th November 1911 to continue to wear their particular breast jewel and the distinctive composite apron of the degree.
The Red Cross of Babylon
This degree is of a most profound and mystical nature consisting of three parts. It commences in a Royal Arch Council in Jerusalem where the prelate presides over extensive readings from the book of Ezra and concludes at the Tribunal in Babylon of the Persian King Darius I. These two major scenes are linked by a short but important episode where the candidate is actually required to cross the bridge over a figurative river.
It should be noted in all major religion of the world, there is a tradition that the soul has to cross the river of death, usually over a bridge. Crossing the bridge is a symbolical representation of Death, while the subsequent experience of the candidate is emblematical of the Judgement of his soul. In the Church of St Peter and St Paul at Chaldon near Croydon, there is a large tempera painting of the “Ladder of Salvation” probably dating from about the year 1200, which includes a bridge with saw like railings, over which among those crossing is a mason with his working tools in his hand.
The legend of the Red Cross of Babylon is framed around the character of Zerubbabel who travels to the court of Darius seeking the return of the scared vessels looted from the Temple by Nebuchadnezzar in 597BC. His subsequent experience has an allusion to the judgement of the soul when his fidelity is put to the test by the King; yet his integrity is verified by his steadfastness and the episode closes with and intricate debate – recorded in the Book of Ezra – which establishes the divine attribute of Truth.
The Degree of the Red Cross of Babylon teaches us to keep inviolate our Masonic Secrets and to withstand all temptations to reveal them, however profitable those temptations may be. It emphasises the importance of Fidelity, Integrity, and Truth. Esoterically it is symbolic of the passage of an upright man from struggles overcome in this world to well-earned honour in the next
The Holy Order of the Grand High Priest
The ceremony is undoubtedly incredibly old, but the date of its earliest working and even its country of origin have not been definitely established. Indeed, the abrupt transition in our ritual from the blessing of Abram, the Mesopotamian immigrant, by Melchizedek, the Canaanite Priest-King, to the consecration four centuries later of Aaron the Levite, the first Jewish High Priest, suggests that the present version of the ceremony, may be a combination of elements of two distinct degrees.
Melchizedek is a mysterious figure whose ancestry and posterity are unknown; he appears in person in the Volume of the Scared Law only in three verses (18-20) of the passage read by the Chaplain from Chapter 14 of the Book of Genesis. He is mentioned rather casually therein as King of Salem and the Priest of the Most High God and then disappears from the Old Testament except for a mention in Psalm 110. His importance is that, unlike the other kings who had engaged in the local wars and carried off Abram’s nephew, he was also a priest.
The Order carries us toward more philosophical aspects of Masonic thinking. The candidate is left in no doubt that he is set apart for high duties and responsibilities in life, both as a Mason and as a man: he is taught that, to carry them out, he is called upon to dedicate himself to the service of the Most High God and also to that of his fellow men.
There is undoubtedly a history of interaction between different elements of the Melchizedek degrees, the Priestly Order, the Holy Royal Arch Knight Templar Priest Order, and the Order of Holy Wisdom. It is also interesting to note that, following an agreement between our Grand Council and the Knight Grand Cross in Newcastle in 1896, from then until 1924 our Grand Council had control of all three interacting elements of these “Priestly Degrees”.
Hence is it truly a degree which justifies its place in our order today as preserving a historical connection with other orders as well as having both undoubted intrinsic merits, and also a somewhat mysterious past.
Conclusion
So, in conclusion each of the degrees of the Order teaches a particular moral lesson or related set of moral lessons. These may be briefly summarised as
St Laurence the Martyr teaches us Fortitude and Hospitality
Knights of Constantinople teaches us Humility
Grand Tilers of Solomon teaches us Duty and Responsibility
Red Cross of Babylon teaches us Fidelity, Integrity, and Truth
Grand High Priest teaches us Service and Dedication
I think you will all agree that the five degrees currently administered by the Allied Council, while all separate and distinct nevertheless allow us to form a deeper understand of not only the Craft but of ourselves and our place within the world.
Michael O’Meara 2022
Acknowledgements
Bro Roger Christmas for the original paper with I used and added to.
The 5 miniature jewels are shown on the left, but members can choose to wear the composite jewel shown on the right suspended from a green ribbon instead.