Seeds of Dissent The Origins of Anti-Masonry - Part 3 Revolution

by Midnight Freemason Emeritus Contributor

Steven L. Harrison, 33°, FMLR

Anti-Masonry did not see a lot of growth during the era of the American Revolution. Colonists were, after all, preoccupied with other things. It is also a well-known fact that many Freemasons – George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, John Hancock and a nearly endless list of others – supported the cause. Not only that, the Revolution was fought for liberty and equality, ideals that were consistent with those of the fraternity. The perceived secrecy added to the mystique of the order and most saw membership as a desirable enhancement to one's status.

Still, the same objections to the Craft that had always been there – suspicion of its secrecy, objections by organized religion, the perception of elitism, and rumors of conspiracies – continued to plague the Masons.

A few years after the American Revolution, the French Revolution came along and with it a complex relationship with Freemasonry. A number of factors including social inequality, financial problems due to the monarchy's extravagance, taxes, and the King's weak leadership led to public dissatisfaction culminating with the storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789.

The Enlightenment, with its ideas about reason and individual rights appealed to the populace and was also a factor leading to its discontent. These same ideals promulgated by the Enlightenment, were not at all inconsistent with progressive Masonic thinking, leading many prominent Freemasons to support the revolution. Among these were the Marquis de Lafayette (1757-1834), Georges Danton (1759-1794), Jean Sylvain Bailly (1736-1793), Count Volney (1757-1820), and Comte de Mirabeau (1749-1791).

The end of the revolution became a tumultuous period now known as the French Reign of Terror, characterized by extreme repression. The Committee on Public Safety sprang up in order to deal with threats to the revolution and the newly-formed republic. Although formed to suppress counter-revolutionary forces and protect the revolution, the Reign of Terror soon devolved into a violent force using accusations of treason to settle personal conflicts. 

Not all Freemasons supported the revolution, but many of them supported it initially until the violence of the Reign of Terror emerged. As such some of those same Masons who were supporters of the revolution were later declared its enemies. Danton and Bailly were both declared traitors and guillotined when they became disenchanted with the Committee's violent tactics. Mirabeau and Lafayette changed their views but escaped the wrath of the Reign of Terror. Pierre Samuel DuPont de Nemours (1739-1817), who also fell into this group, escaped the guillotine only because the head of the Reign of Terror, Maximilian Robespierre, was executed beforehand.1

Without the existence of definitive data, it is probably safe to assume Freemasons, more than not, supported both revolutions. In the case of the French Revolution, it is probable Masonic support did not extend to the Reign of Terror. In both cases, anti-Masonry may have been aligned with those in opposition to the revolutions or, later, part of Robespierre's terrorism.

1 Denslow, William, 10.000 Famous Freemasons, Volume IV Q-Z and supplement, Transactions of the Missouri Lodge of Research, Volume No. 17, 1960, © 1961, William R. Denslow, pp. 388-389

~SLH

Bro. Steve Harrison, 33° is Past Master of Liberty Lodge #31, Liberty, Missouri. He is also a Fellow and Past Master of the Missouri Lodge of Research. Among his other Masonic memberships is the St. Joseph Missouri Valley of the Scottish Rite, Liberty York Rite bodies, and Moila Shrine. He is also a member and Past Dean of the DeMolay Legion of Honor. Brother Harrison is a regular contributor to the Midnight Freemasons blog as well as several other Masonic publications. Brother Steve was Editor of the Missouri Freemason magazine for a decade and is a regular contributor to the Whence Came You podcast. Born in Indiana, he has a Master's Degree from Indiana University and is retired from a 35-year career in information technology. Steve and his wife Carolyn reside in northwest Missouri. He is the author of dozens of magazine articles and three books: Freemasonry Crosses the Mississippi, Freemasons — Tales From the Craft and Freemasons at Oak Island.

Murder And Treason Excepted - Revisit

by Midnight Freemason Contributor

Steven L. Harrison, 33°, FMLR

I recently produced a Benedict Arnold video for the Whence Came You podcast.  The gist of its message is this: had a wound Arnold received in the Revolutionary War's second Battle of Saratoga been fatal, he would today be considered a great American hero.  

Having been appointed commander of the fort at West Point, Arnold contacted British Major John Andre, offering to surrender the fort to the British in exchange for an unspecified high rank and £20,000 (Roughly £2.7 million or $4 million today) .  West Point was located on the Hudson River; had the British taken control of the fort they would have controlled the river and probably turned the tide in the Revolution to their favor.  The plan fell apart when Andre was caught and, on October 2, 1780, executed as a spy.  

The British, in turn, gave Arnold the rank of Brigadier General and reduced his payment to £6,315 (£850,000/$1.25 million), since the plot failed.  Arnold moved to England and lived in relative obscurity until his death in 1801.

The video itself, a short vignette which can be seen at http://bit.ly/1VnDgVZ, doesn't tell the full story.  In researching the piece, I discovered some additional things about Benedict Arnold worth sharing:

Arnold was an active member of Hiram Lodge 1, New Haven, Connecticut.  After his act of sedition, the Lodge struck his name from its records, as did other Lodges Arnold had visited.

Benedict Arnold's father was Benedict Arnold III.  He also had an older brother named... Benedict Arnold.  It was his family's tradition to have a son with that name in each generation.  His older brother died before he was born and the family gave him the same name.  His full name was, in fact, Benedict Arnold V.

Arnold was a deserter in the French-Indian war, even though under extenuating circumstances.  He received word his mother had contracted Yellow Fever and left the battlefield to be with her.  She died shortly after he returned home.

Arnold's first profession, at 21, was a shopkeeper, selling medicines and books.  

He became a trader, a profession made difficult by the taxes the British levied to maintain the colonies.  Subsequently, to avoid the taxes, he became a smuggler.

He was catapulted to hero status when, together with Ethan Allen, he captured Fort Ticonderoga early in the American Revolution.

He led  a march to Quebec in 1775, in an effort to capture the city and make Canada the 14^th colony!  When General Montgomery, who was supporting him, died, the mission failed.

Arnold again was considered a hero at the Battle of Valcour Island in the American Revolution.    He felt he should have been promoted as a result of this victory, but others were promoted over him, beginning his resentment toward the American cause.

He subsequently drove the British to the sea and was made a Major General.  With other less deserving men still superior to him, his resentment continued.

When General Horatio Gates hesitated to advance at Saratoga, Arnold took command and defeated the British.  Arnold was wounded in his left leg for the third time in his career.  He clearly was responsible for the victory but Gates snatched the glory and accepted British General Burgoyne's sword.  To add further insult, Arnold was placed under arrest for disobeying orders.  

In order to impress the father of Peggy Shipman, he purchased a 96 acre estate and subsequently married her.  The remaining money he owed on the estate sunk his finances.

When he cooked up his plot  to surrender West Point, he gave Major John Andre a pass to get him through American lines.  Andre was robbed.  When the robbers-turned-patriots discovered Andre was a spy, they arrested him and showed the pass to George Washington.  That tipped Washington off that Arnold was a traitor, and Washington immediately set out to arrest him.  Arnold escaped with only minutes to spare.  Although she knew about the plot, his wife Peggy somehow convinced Washington she was innocent.

The British made Benedict Arnold a Brigadier General in the British Army.  Americans hated him and the British resented him.  No one trusts a traitor.

An apocraphyl story claims George Washington was so angry at and so reviled Arnold he decreed his name should never be written down; subsequently he had the gravestones of Arnold's father and brother of the same name removed.  Indeed, records at Old Northtown Cemetery in Connecticut, where his father is buried, indicate "Gravestone removed in 1781."

Also, a marker known as the "Boot Monument" at Saratoga battlefield honors Arnold's heroism without naming him.  The boot commemorates the wound he received to his leg without otherwise recognizing a traitor.

The Boot Monument at Saratoga Battlefield honors 

Benedict Arnold, but does not mention his name.

In the end, Benedict Arnold regretted his seditious actions.  Knowing he was dying, he put on his former uniform and said, "Let me die in my old American uniform — The uniform in which I fought my battles.  God forgive me for ever putting on any other."

It may have been a noble thought, but it's doubtful anyone, including his former Brothers choose to forgive him.  After all, whether it be secrets or vile deeds, we Freemasons have a saying, "murder and treason excepted."

~SLH

Bro. Steve Harrison, 33°, is Past Master of Liberty Lodge #31, Liberty, Missouri. He is the editor of the Missouri Freemason magazine, author of the book Freemasonry Crosses the Mississippi, a Fellow of the Missouri Lodge of Research and also its Worshipful Master. He is a dual member of Kearney Lodge #311, St. Joseph Missouri Valley of the Scottish Rite, Liberty York Rite, Moila Shrine and a member and Past Dean of the DeMolay Legion of Honor. Brother Harrison is a regular contributor to the Midnight Freemasons blog as well as several other Masonic publications. His latest book, Freemasons: Tales From the Craft & Freemasons at Oak Island. Both are available on amazon.com.