Calling all historians

BullDozer Harrell said:

A few more curious things to consider are that the single word Freemason in use today was not transcribed in Anderson's Constitution of 1723 nor in Preston's 'Illustrations of Masonry' 1772.
Both writers either wrote Masons as a single word, Free-Masons as a double word, Free& Accepted Masons as a triple word.
There is no instance of 'Freemasons' appearing in these works.
Also, the last and puzzling observation on the subject is that 41yrs later after Preston's work, it wasn't even a single word used in the 'Declaration of the Act of Union in 1813' created between both Antients& Moderns.

So when did we begin to use the single word, Freemason?

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FriendshipCube said:

(Eyewitness testimony of a brother follows from the Regius Manuscript, the oldest of the Old Charges, circa 1390.)

The Æthelstan Stone
Chronicles of The Court, the Year of Our Lord, 932
Recorded and Sealed by The Privy Secretary, England

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I stood in the presence of the His Royal Highness King Æthelstan of England in the Year of Our Lord 924. His court of Noble Master Masons had completed the building of the Court of Star Chamber with an Altar built for The Holy Book in the center of the Castle. Our King had placed The Holy Book upon the altar, displaying in due form, a square, and compass. We the Companions of the Court had gathered through good knowledge of geometry, in the ancient and noble craft of Masonry, for the Great Architect of the Universe.

Æthelstan's Castle was being restored on a high cliff, through our most ancient and Noble Art of Stonemasonry. Before entering His Court, we cleaned our tools, adorned lambskin aprons, and assembled before our Master. In the East was placed the landmark and relic of our order, the Æthelstan Stone, the Cosmic Ashlar of Æthelstans' court. An Ashlar is a stone that represents a soul. We Masons had held dear the Æthelstan Stone since before the time of Solomon the King. Since the time of Wise King Solomon, we had sought to re-establish, through rituals and degrees, the great work now operating in King Æthelstans' court.

In the South was placed a Perfect Ashlar, and in the West, was set a Rough Ashlar. There were two doors on either side of the altar, in the West of the Inner Court, and there were no windows into the Court of Star Chamber, whence stood the King. A royal decree had summoned the twelve chosen knights into the innermost sacred sanctum of King Æthelstans' Castle. The chamber was warm in the twilight of the setting sun. And it was guarded on both sides of the main door. The Court of Star Chamber was tiled beautifully, with a checkerboard floor, and permanent chairs for every Knight of the Order.

King Æthelstans' Gilded Throne was situated in the East of the Chamber. King Æthelstan stood to welcome the Royal Guards and the Knights of the Court. The King stood soberly at attention, with his sword sheathed, just East of the Altar, wearing His Royal Sash and Crown. Upon the Altar, he placed a lighted brass lamp, the only light visible in the darkened chamber. The guarded hall in which we were now sealed, smelled of the finest frankincense and myrrh, which had been a ceremonial offering upon the altar. Just as I entered the outer court, the guard had granted me the honor and duties of the chair in the South, and I was myself adorned with the proper sash. Thus began the ancient and noble Rite of King Æthelstan's Court, "That our swords and shields should function as a single body, for England."

King Æthelstan, The Son of Edward, was standing to inspect his knights on the East side of the Altar. The Knights gathered in a perfect semi-circle. King Æthelstan blessed the sacred host and prepared to administer Communion to the assembly of Knights. The Kings' hands were washed clean by the High Priest there adorned in white robes. The purest water ran over the Kings' hands and was dried clean with a white silk cloth, sewn in gold threads illustrating the ancient code of light. With The Holy Book, upon the Altar, were placed King Æthelstans' Stone, the Scrolls of Abraham, and an Encoded Parchment representing the Seven Laws of Noah.

The Seven Ancient Laws had been re-written and marked by the reigning King, in a mysterious ancient code of light. We knew that the King had sought, through the grace of God, to restore divine law and order across England, Rome, and Scotland... and to restore divine order as far and wide as The Ascended Hosts made possible. Even unto the Lands of Arabia, from whence came one of the gathered knights, had King Æthelstan sought to establish the Most Ancient Masonic Order. A dignified Persian Nobleman now among us, had risked life and limb for the enduring Court of King Æthelstan. He had ventured on horseback as far as Mecca, to retrieve a sacred stone, that according to the Holy Writ, had been granted from God in the earliest times. As a Mason, this Persian Nobleman, our friend, had entered and departed Mecca of good rapport. And He had returned bountiful in Gods' name, with the Cosmic Ashlar, which was before us, there resting upon the Altar.

The renowned Mason, Nobleman, and Knight, had previously told a story of coming across a learned poet in Mecca, who had granted him admission to the Noble Shrine, the Ka'aba. Therein, our Nobleman had witnessed firsthand, the reading of the Poetic Suras making up the Noble Koran. The presiding Court in Mecca had poetically instructed our Nobleman and Mason, to "Pay the worker his wages before his sweat dries." Our Nobleman had then, through the providence of God, taken the Cosmic Ashlar with him on horseback and rode for 2976 miles, NorthWest, to England, trotting at an average of 4 miles per hour. Upon returning from his encounter at the Mystic Shrine, our Persian Nobleman had been properly greeted as a brother at the gates of King Æthelstan's castle. He was brought in and thanked by the coins of King Æthelstans' realm in exchange for the coins he had earned in Mecca. For returning bountiful with the sacred stone, he was granted a Lordship in Æthelstans's Kingdom, which soon brought him into a position of Knighthood and Protection by the Court through the Grace of God.

King Æthelstans' Court of Star Chamber was sealed from both sides of the door, by the inner and outer guards. Whence properly sealed, the King invoked the presence of Arch Angels Michael and Gabriel and prayed that God would grant Peace, through the indwelling of His Spirit. We the knights then arose to form a semi-circle, opening towards the East before the Altar of the Æthelstans' Court of Star Chamber. There we sang our most ancient Ode, the Song of Solomon, from Chapter Five, "This is my beloved; this is my friend, O' ye daughters of Jerusalem."

The High Priest then commenced in prayer before us, "Heavenly Father and Creator, who has given us life and being, aid us to perform the duties which Thy law and our vows impose upon us. Thou hast vouchsafed to call us Thy children, and doth graciously permit us to call thee, Father. May Thy name be our Glory and our confidence, our defense and guard, our strength, our dignity, and the motive of our obedience. May it confirm and sustain us in our good resolutions, and make us steadfast never to desert our posts of duty. Let our bodies be chaste, our thoughts are pure, our words be gentle, and our lives be useful and innocent, to the honor and praise of this, your secret court of servants. Look upon us with mercy; forgive our imperfections, and accept with compassion the service we may render to the cause of justice, truth and common humanity. To Thee be all Glory and honor forever and ever, Amen."

The twelve knights bowed together with one knee before the Altar, answering to the High Priest together,
"AMEN."

The Hight Priest then spoke again, saying, "The great name Æthelstan means "Noble Stone." Through time; the Æthelstan Stone has been called the Cosmic Ashlar, or the Blackstone of Mecca from the Noble Shrine. It was known of to the Prophets Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Solomon, Jesus, and Mohammed. The Most Noble Stone is also a stone that represents a universal soul, the very soul of the Holy Ghost. Æthelstans' name symbolizes the ancient, high, and Noble stone that has come to represent His enduring Order. Our Brother Knight in the West Chair spoke, "So be it then... conduct the new initiates, and imprint upon the tablets of their memories a knowledge of the duties together we are to assume. With full knowledge obtained through this court, we are to protect the innocent and punish the guilty. We are to labor in the cause of justice, truth, and common humanity. We are to unite in the inseparable bonds of this Court and be invested with sacred knowledge from the cornerstone of Mohammed's Holy Shrine, where He first placed King Æthelstans' Stone in the year 632 of our Lord. Today we hold to our Noble Cause, with a just observance of the tenets of our faith. Let the teachings be engraven upon our hearts. Let the rewards and punishments be administered, in the name of King Æthelstan of England, abiding in the Eternal Will of God. For him, whoso seeketh the constant faith has taught right direction. So let us work in this Masonic Art, to purify one another through this our most ancient work. And let us take on the old duty of Nobility since the Time of King Solomon, from whom we have been invested this sacred Cosmic Ashlar... Let us swear upon our hearts to obey the Seven Laws of Noah, and submit to the decrees of this Court of Star Chamber, in the presence of King Æthelstan, and by the direct order of King Solomon. May God strengthen our sound resolutions. God Almighty teaches us to exercise whatsoever powers we possess with gentleness and moderation, for the benefit of humanity, and to the Glory of His Son. May God aid us to be faithful and loyal; frank and sincere, and teach us the mysteries of perfect peace and happiness. May God wash our hands in the waters of innocence and cleanse ourselves of the snares of sin and vice. May God make us free from the stains of iniquity, that the work of Gods' right hand, will operate among us, granting us true fidelity, and courage. May God give us divine love and grace. And so where there are prophecies against us, they will fail. Where there are tongues, they will cease. Where there is knowledge, it will be done away. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. For when that which is perfect has come, that which is in part will be done away. And now we see in a mirror dimly, but then, it will be face to face, abiding in true faith, hope, and love. So when the Son of Man returns in His Glory, the Angels of God shall come with him. The Son of Man shall sit on the Glorious Throne, as King. And before Him shall be brought together all the people of the world. He shall divide them, and make them stand apart, just as the Shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He shall put his sheep on his right hand, and the goats on his left. Then the King shall say to those on his right hand, "Come, ye whom my Father has blessed; come and take the Kingdom which God had made ready for you."

We answered once more to the High Priest together saying, "AMEN."

Each of us twelve then circumnavigated the Altar seven times, and each of us kissed The Sacred Æthelstan Stone. King Æthelstan then spoke once more, "The Noble Stone represents at once a Kingdom in Heaven and a perfect geometrical cube. It came from paradise and was handed by the Angel Gabriel to Abraham and Ishmael when they were building the first Noble Shrine, the first Ka'aba. At this time the sacred stone was snow white, reminiscent of the Perfect Ashlar. Kissing The Æthelstan Stone is the ceremony undertaken to absolve you of all sin, and purify you in the light of God. The guardians of the Cosmic Ashlar are set to guard the secrets of its sacred place from the unsanctified. Near Three Hundred Years Ago, Mohammed came and restored its ancient dedication to God. And then, this very stone resting before you was taken by one of our Knights of the Court of Star Chamber, for safe keeping in England, until Heaven permits and grants it purpose once again on earth."

We answered to King Æthelstan together saying,
"AMEN."

The Persian Nobleman standing among us was then ordered to speak with candor, in the English tongue. He dutifully spake, "The Blackstone in Mecca, we replaced with twelve smaller fragments of stone, now residing inside the Ka'aba. Sealed in cement, surrounded by a portal of silver, rest the pieces of the lesser Noble Stone. The true Cosmic Ashlar we hold here, within these walls, in Æthelstar Castle, for England. First bestowed by Arch Angel Gabriel, Our Ancient and Noble Order brought, through the Power of God, to this Star Chamber Court, what will henceforth be known as The Æthelstan Stone. We have placed a cloth of white silk upon it, in the East, with the His Throne. The old Great Hall is to be restored. For the house has been gathered together once more, in the name of the Eternal and Almighty God."

We answered the Persian Nobleman together, saying,
"AMEEN."

The King then spake unto us, "You are summoned to the great feast of Æthelstanr Court, that the Vinyards of the Lord may strengthen you in Spirit and Body."

We answered to King Æthelstan together saying,
"AMEN."

We then feasted upon the supper of the lamb and ate of the bread, and tasted of the vineyards of the Lord. Ceremonial dancing in the greater hall continued through the night. Gradually we retired to our stately homes in a state of merriment and renewal in faith, coupled with maidens chosen by the King, for the ritual dancing. From that night on, the songs of the peaceful troubadours we call friends went out and were sung across all the lands, in the name of Great King Æthelstan.

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Notes:
1.) In 1066, King William used the power of King Æthelstans Stone to defeat Harold II at the Battle of Hastings.
2) For 299 years, the Æthelstan Stone lay hidden in the basement of All Saints Church, in Maidstone, England.
3) The Æthelstan Stone is now in possession of the Monarchy of Great Britain and is the property of the Court of Star Chamber, the sacred body administering honors, titles, and special duties to all the subjects of the British Empire.

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FriendshipCube said:

King Æthelstans Stone is from The Regius Manuscript:
http://www.freemasons-freemasonry.com/regius.html
(The Oldest Masonic Document, The British Museum)

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FriendshipCube said:

The Regius Manuscript, the oldest of the Old Charges, circa 1390, is written in Olde English.

"In this manner, through good knowledge of geometry,
Began the fist craft of masonry,
The clerk of geometry in Egyptian land,
In Egypt, he taught it full wide,
In divers lands on every side;
Many years afterward, I understand,
Before the craft came into this land.
This craft came into England, as I now say,
In the time of good King Æthelstans' day."

In other words, Masonry grew out of geometry, was taught in Egypt by Euclid, and was brought to England at the time of King Æthelstan.

Historian David Stevenson notes, "If studied in search of the historical truth about the origins of the mason craft, the Old Charges may be dismissed as rubbish, impressive exercises in the dubious skills of name-dropping and creative chronology. But in so far as they reflect the craft's image of itself, they should not be dismissed with ridicule." Stevenson is commending the moral sentiment of the fairy tale I wrote based on the Regius Manuscript.

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coachn said:

BTW - That Old English sure is very readable.

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FriendshipCube said:

Stevenson is commending the moral sentiment of the fairy tale I wrote based on the Regius Manuscript.

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