The Templars and The Lodge?

Article © Stephen Dafoe & Dagobert's Revenge Magazine

A common held theory regarding the continuation of the Knights Templar under the guise of the Freemasons has been gaining in popularity. As a Freemason myself, I can state that the theory is not entirely accepted among members of the craft. Many have climbed onboard the Templar origin wagon, while many hold to the old belief that we are descended from the Medieval or even Biblical stone cutters. Those that follow the Stone Masons theory are generally older Brethren who have a hard time accepting anything new. For those who accept the Templar theory, it is largely held that the Templars fled to Scotland under the guise of stone cutters and established Masonry as a continuation, albeit a covert one of their order.

Before embarking on this discussion, I would like to add an opinion of my own that is shared by my co-author Alan Butler, regarding the Scottish Templar theory. While it is widely held that the Templar fleet disappeared into the night and set sail for the Scottish coastline, we contend that this is not likely to be the case on the pure basis of the rough north Sea and the type of ships primarily used by the Templars. The bulk of the ships were Mediterranean style Galleys that would not have stood the rough waves of the North Sea. Yes the Templars had other ships used for this purpose such as the Genoese-built ship, "the Falcon", but according to the transcripts of the Templar trials it was fifty Galleys that escaped. Galleys were best suited for traveling the coastline to places like Portugal where it is known that brother knights were accepted into King Denis' new order, "the Knights of Christ." Although it is not the providence of this article, Alan and I have our own view and theory of where many Templars fled to and it is across land to Switzerland where the forest Cantons had united into a union the very same year that the Crusading cause was lost with the fall of Acre in 1291.

With regard to the Scottish Templars, we think the Mass exodus theory takes away from the fact that there already were Templars in Scotland as there were some Templar Churches and Preceptories in the country. Not only this, it is quite possible that English Templars placing allegiance to their own order above their native land may have fled North in preparation for what would surely come. Still the popular theory is that of Scottish Templarism. The question remains where did this come to be connected with the Masonic Fraternity?

In their excellent book, "The Temple and the Lodge", Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh put forth the argument that the fleeing Templars went en masse to Scotland where they evolved into the Freemasons. While this theory is popular among researchers, readers and certainly Freemasons, it is not a new idea of the aforementioned authors. In fact the Masonic historian Albert Mackey and Arthur Edward Waite, the occultist and a Masonic Historian in his own right, were writing about this theory in the 1800's and it was not new then either. If not Baigent and Leigh, Mackey or even Waite, then who do we owe credit for the "Freemasons came from the Templars" theory? The answer to this question is actually two men. Andrew Michael Ramsey and Baron Karl Von Hund, whom we will look at in turn.

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