300TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE 1723 CONSTITUTIONS A Universal Celebration

by Akram R. Elias | Past Grand Master

This year marks the Tricentennial (Tercentenary) of the 1723 Constitutions of the Free-Masons (referred to as “The 1723 Constitutions”), first published in London in 1723. This is an occasion not only for celebration, but also for reflection and strategic repositioning.

Historical Background

(https://www.1723constitutions.com/)

The 1723 Constitutions divides into three principal sections: a traditional (if affected) history of freemasonry which places the Craft within a literary historical context; Charges to which all freemasons are expected to adhere, unarguably the most significant component; and the General Regulations governing the administration of Grand Lodge and Masonic Lodges. Masonic songs celebrate the Master of the Lodge, his Wardens,

Fellowcraft, and Entered Apprentices; and an Approbation lists the Grand Officers and Masters and Wardens of twenty lodges. The book begins with a dedication to the 2nd Duke of Montagu, the first noble Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of England, by Jean Theophilus Desaguliers, a former Grand Master).

As RWB Ric Berman, Past Master of Quatuor Coronati Lodge, # 2076 (the premier lodge of Masonic research), put it: “The Constitutions is similar in structure to the Old Charges that governed medieval (and later) stonemasons’ lodges. This was intentional. It positioned the 1723 Constitutions and the Grand Lodge of England as a continuation of that which preceded it, a technique that affords legitimacy in tradition-based societies. But the ideas promoted by the Grand Lodge of England were not mediaeval. They were new and materially different.”

It is important to note that the 1723 Constitutions is among Freemasonry’s most important documents, but not only in England. In 1730, it was taken by the Grand Lodge of Ireland as the model for the Irish Constitutions. It was re-printed verbatim by Benjamin Franklin in 1734 for use in America. It was translated and circulated widely throughout Europe in the 1730s and 1740s. And in the 1750s, via the Irish Constitutions, it provided the basis for Ahiman Rezon, the Constitutions of the Antients Grand Lodge, and, after Independence, of America’s State Grand Lodges.

Marking The Anniversary In 2023

Freemasons’ Hall located at 60 Great Queen St, London WC2B 5AZ, United Kingdom. Completed in 1933 as a memorial to the thousands of Freemasons who died in the First World War, Freemasons’ Hall is recognized as one of the finest Art Deco buildings in England.

The 1723 Constitutions were a precious English gift to modern human civilization. They provided the blueprint for a well-organized structure of Freemasonry, thus enabling the latter to spread worldwide and influence in different, and at times unique ways, the development of many societies and nations around the globe.

To mark this important anniversary, the United Grand Lodge of England, the Grand Lodge of Washington, D.C., and the Grande Loge Nationale Française (GLNF) have partnered to organize in 2023 a series of events in England, Washington, D.C. and Paris.

London

The celebration was kicked off at an Especial Meeting of the United Grand Lodge of England held at Freemasons’ Hall in London on January 31, 2023.

More than 1,600 attended the Especial Meeting, including Grand Masters and Representatives from American and European Grand Lodges, and the Grand Masters of the Order of Women Freemasons and HFAF – Freemasonry for Women.

The program, titled The 1723 Constitutions: Inventing the Future, featured:

• The premiering of a short video on the composition of the 1723 Constitutions, produced by Matthew Mitchell and narrated by Derek Jacobi. It can be viewed on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OndJsIvBaxE

• A presentation on the legacy of the 1723 Constitutions by Ric Berman, Past Master of Quatuor Coronati Lodge No. 2076

• The 2023 Prestonian Lecture presented by Akram R. Elias, Past Grand Master of Washington, D.C., titled The 1723 Constitutions: The Indispensable Trowel –Cementing America’s Foundations.

Paris

On March 25, 2023, the GLNF hosted a one-day international conference at the Palais Brongniart in Paris, France.

The program included the following presentations:

• A Way of Light, an illuminated documentary by JeanLuc Leguay & Jean-Bomémond Leguay

• Introduction to the book Masonic Constitutions of the 18th Century by its author Gérard Icart, Grand Chancellor of the GLNF

• The influences of the Anderson’s Constitutions on Freemasonry in France in the 18th Century by Olivier Badot

• Cross-Portraits: James Anderson and Jean Théophile Desaguliers by Thierry Zarcone

• Freemasonry in Europe in the 18th Century: From Anderson’s Constitutions to the climax of the decades 1770/80 by Yves HivertMesseca

• Freemasonry in the XVIIIth Century, witness of the dialogue of religions and Lights by Jacques Noël Pérès

• Black and white philosophizing: the speculative contents of the Anderson’s Constitutions by Bruno Pinchard

Washington, D.C.

On June 23-24, 2023, the Grand Lodge of Washington, D.C. held a universal brotherhood celebration marking the 300th Anniversary of the 1723 Constitutions with the participation of 19 U.S. Grand Lodges and the United Grand Lodge of England, led by its Pro Grand Master, Most Worshipful Brother Jonathan Spence.

ACTIVITIES INCLUDED:

• Congressional Breakfast on the Hill

• Universal Lodge Meeting followed by a Festive Board at the George Washington Masonic National Memorial

• Presentations on and roundtable discussion of the Legacy of the 1723 Constitutions at Mount Vernon

• Wreaths Laying Ceremony at the Tomb of George Washington at Mount Vernon

• Universal Brotherhood Banquet with presentation of the Medal of Freedom

Cambridge (England)

The anniversary celebrations come back to England with a 3-day conference organized by Quatuor Coronati Lodge at Queens’ College, the University of Cambridge. This will be a unique event to celebrate the Tercentenary of the 1723 Constitutions with a world-class line-up of Masonic and academic speakers to discuss and debate over three days (September 22-24, 2023). The agenda of the conference and information on how to register can be found at:

A Moment For Reflection

A Tercentenary is an occasion not only for celebration, but also for reflection and strategic repositioning. The 1723 Constitutions are not a relic of the past. They are a living document that defines and safeguards the structure of the lodge as a sacred space wherein Masonic ritual can be then performed for the purpose of graduating Free-Masons, i.e., Free Builders of better selves, stronger communities, and a wiser humanity.

Happy 300th Anniversary!  https://www.1723constitutions.com/events/conferences-seminars/

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