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Behind the blue door of Hauley Lodge 797 lies a world that few have entered but, about which, many have strong preconceptions.
It’s the home of the Dartmouth Freemasons and, as part of a national drive, is looking to dispel the myths that have grown up about the society.
Dr Jim Murray, secretary of the Hauley Lodge and one time master, said: “We are not a secret society, more a society with some secrets - such as the handshakes and passwords which are kept within the Masonic brotherhood, although they are purely symbolic now.
“People think there is something sinister happening behind our doors which is not true and we’ve definitely given literature a run for its money! Most recently, novelist Dan Brown has had a field day with his conspiracy theories.
“During the recent art exhibition at Dartmouth’s Regatta, we had posters advertising visits to the lodge and people were quite reticent to come – I saw people hovering in the archway outside and then walking away. But those that did come in were really interested and relieved to see we’re just a friendly fraternity.”
The Freemasons began with the stonemasons of the early Middle Ages. In the days before degrees and formal qualifications they would pass on their craft skills and, once learnt, the mason would be shown the infamous secret handshakes and passwords – to demonstrate their proficiency to their next master on a building project.Up until the Second World War the Freemasons, far from being a ‘secret society’, actually operated very publicly.
Jim said: “The laying of a building’s cornerstone was often done through a Masonic ceremony with a parade and the Grand Master opening the building."
However, the Nazis partly blamed the Freemasons for losing World War One and tried to track them down. A lot of Freemasons were rounded up and many died in the infamous Nazi concentration camps, including the Grand Master of Dutch Masonry.
Jim added: “With the fear of a Nazi occupation, Freemasons in the UK kept their heads below the parapet. And they’ve tended to stay that way since – at least up until now when the Duke of Kent, Grand Master of the English and Welsh lodges, has called for Freemasonry to be more open.”
The Dartmouth lodge, in Lower Street, is the 797th registered lodge in the country. The group has been part of the Dartmouth community for more than 150 years and has strong links with the maritime history of the town. Due to these links they have traditionally held more regular meetings than most lodges, so that seafarers get more of a chance to attend.
The three-storey townhouse was left to them by a member in 1926. The ground floor houses a refectory and bar and the temple, where meetings and ceremonies take place, is on the first floor.The décor of the temple is a cornucopia of imagery and symbols – many of them recognisable from images in stories and films that have surrounded this society.
From the black and white chequered carpet – representing light and darkness/ happiness and sorrow/ good and evil – to the ‘all seeing eye’ in the centre of the ceiling, the same as the one on the back of the US dollar bill.
Jim explained: “The ‘all seeing eye’ is the eye of God, or supreme being. Its presence reminds masons that their actions are always being judged.
“It found its way onto the dollar bill because presidents Benjamin Franklin and George Washington, as well as many of the founding fathers, were big Freemasons.”
The walls are also decorated with many pictures, including symbols denoting the three central tenets of freemasonry - faith symbolised by a cross and crescent; hope symbolised by an anchor; and charity symbolised by a bowl.
On the floor sits a rough piece of stone, which signifies the roughness of the apprentice when he enters the Masons. And then there is the perfect ‘ashlar’ – a smooth cut stone – which the apprentice becomes through ‘labour & study’.
There is also a model of the universal symbols of Freemasons – the compass, square, plumb line and level.
Jim said: “Our symbols signify the life of a Freemason – the compass for measuring our lives; the square to perfect it; the level signifies equality and the plumb line for uprightness and obeyance to our code of morals.
“Freemasonry is very much about equality. There are Masonic sisterhoods too and anyone over the age of 21 can join, regardless of nationality, colour or creed. There are Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Buddhist and mixed faith lodges around the world. Freemasonry is not a religion, but to be a member one has to believe in a form purer than man, a supreme being.”
Symbolic ceremonies are performed as members move up through the lodge. These ceremonies include references to the first known temple, Solomon’s Temple, in Jerusalem.
The symbolism continues to the regalia, which members wear at meetings – including an apron and white gloves from their stonemasons’ roots, as well as a sash and collar.
Jim admits that all the symbolism adds to the mystery of the society: “The lodges and ceremonies can be intimidating to outsiders but really we’re just a friendly society, there to look after each other.
“Freemasons also resent any approach to utilise freemasonry for business favours – something we have often been accused of – but our moral code does not allow for that.”
There are presently over 80 masons in Dartmouth, 4,000 in Devon, 350,000 in UK and millions worldwide.
The Royal family has traditionally included members, most notably Edward VII and VIII, George VI and Prince Philip. The armed forces also feature heavily, throughout the world.
Jim added: “There is a rumour that the US War of Independence got off to a slow start because both sides were Freemasons and they didn’t want to shoot at each other!”
Jim joined the Freemasons in his marine engineer grandfather’s footsteps.He has travelled throughout the world in his career as a doctor and head of medical research and has also been an active member of the Rotterdam lodge in the Netherlands.
He said: “For me it is a universal friendship thing. Wherever I go in the world I have friends.“Within the Dartmouth brotherhood we have doctors, directors, recycling managers, chefs and taxi drivers. Due to the BRNC, we have a number of ex Marine Bandsmen. It is all about brotherhood and fraternity nowadays. In the 17th and 18th centuries it was more middle class but not now.
“We became a lot more cosmopolitan when members from across the armed forces started to join. Because of the equal status of all at the lodge, a private can well become master of the lodge above a general.”
Another major aspect of Freemasonry is charity.
Jim said: “After the National Lottery we are the biggest provider of general charity funds. We don’t rattle tins, or do any public fundraising, but raise money from within our membership – through annual subscriptions, and collections and raffles at meetings and dinners.”
This year the Dartmouth Freemasons donated £1,500 to Children’s Hospice South West. The English & Welsh Masons have, for example, donated to the Royal College of Surgeons, York Minster fire appeal and £50,000 to the Red Cross to assist in the recent Somerset levels floods.
The Freemasons also fund their own internal charities, including a ‘Girls and Boys’ charity, which helps fund education for poor and orphaned children of Masonic families, for which Masons in Devon have raised over £3m over the past 5 years.
Monthly meetings last around one and a half hours and consist of charity giving, ceremonies for those going to the next degree and lectures on aspects of Freemasonry.
Traditionally people asked to become Freemasons but now it is more likely that people not only apply directly but could also be recruited by existing members. And the door at Hauley Lodge is always open to new members.
First published By the Dart October 2014