| | |  | History of the Lodge
In 1963 Thirty members of Greville Lodge
No. 4773 proposed to form a new Lodge
" Lodge of Warwick "
The proposed Master and Wardens
designate were :
W.Bro. Garnet Hartley Worshipful Master
W.Bro. George Jewell Senior Warden
W.Bro. Ian McMerdow Junior Warden
Following an application to Province ,
and the granting of a Warrant from Grand
Lodge preparations were made for the
Consecration ceremony.
By kind permission of the Earl of Warwick,
this was held at 4pm in the Great Hall of
Warwick Castle on 10th March 1965
with many distinguished Brethren in
attendance.
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The Provincial Grand Master The Right Worshipful The Reverend Michael
Clarke MA consecrated, dedicated and constituted Lodge of Warwick Number 8011 according to established custom
117 Brethren returned the short distance to Alderson House for a celebratory seven course Banquet of at a cost of
30 ’/ shillings per head *
* The Steward advises that this
offer is sadly no longer available |  |  | |  |
Seven Lodges now meet at Alderson
House located in the heart of Historic
Warwick, England .
The Lodge Banner features the Coat
of Arms of the town of Warwick. The
design has been in use by the Borough
of Warwick with only slight variations
since 1545 during the reign of
King Henry VIII
The Borough shield depicts a walled town .
A gated tower representing Warwick Castle
is flanked by two towers :Warwick`s East
and West gates which still stand today .
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 | Each gate is manned with a watchman
winding a horn. Between these two
towers rise the two spires of St. Mary`s
and St Nicholas Churches.
A six pointed star and a crescent moon
appear on either side of the outer towers.
Above the shield is a helmet with flowing
Rambrequin. Set upon the helmet is the
Black bear supporting a ragged staff.
This ancient and famous device has
been associated with Warwickshire for
centuries and has been the badge of the
Earls of Warwick since 1268.
The Latin motto “ Antiquum Obtinens “
is translated as “ Possessing antiquity “
or “ Holding fast to tradition “
The embroidered Lodge Banner itself
depicts this coat of arms along with the
Lodge name. This superb work was
hand made by Mrs Taylor and presented
to the Lodge by W. Bro. Jack Taylor.
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Each founder made a contribution to
equipping the Lodge.
Three Gavels for use by the Master
and Wardens were designed and hand
crafted using an oak beam rescued from
an old Georgian house – the beam was
estimated to be about 600 years old
and represented the antiquity of
Freemasonry.
The Gavels were also construction
using Gold , Silver , and Bronze used
for the Master , Senior and Junior
Warden respectively
Engravings on the Master’s Gavel
record the names of the Consecrating
Officers and First Worshipful Master
W.Bro. Garnet Hartley. |  |
 |  |  | | Taken from the publications : Freemasonry : An approach to Life and Your Questions Answered both published by The United Grand Lodge of England 1999 |
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Mr Elias Ashmole records in his diary that
he was initiated into a Lodge in Warrington
in October 1646.
This is the earliest documented ‘making ‘
of a Freemason .
The Grand Lodge of England was established
in 1717 by representatives of four London Lodges meeting at the Goose and Gridiron Tavern in Covent Garden , London.
By 1736 both Ireland and then Scotland had set
up Grand Lodges to regulate Freemasonry .
| | | All the Grand Lodges in the World trace themselves back to one or more of these Grand Lodges in the British Isles.
Many of the early Lodges were linked with the military . Over the centuries as the British Empire expanded so Freemasonry travelled to the four corners of the globe.
In America George Washington wore his Masonic regalia at the laying of the cornerstone to the Congress building.
Even today Masonic emblems still
appear on the U.S. Dollar bill.
The Grand Lodge of England is the highest authority of freemasonry in England and
Wales It regulates “ the Craft “ under our Grand Master H.R.H. The Duke of Kent .
|  |
 | What is Freemasonry ?
Freemasonry is the UK’s largest non-religious
fraternal charitable organisation.
It is not a secret society but Lodge meetings,
like those of many other groups, are private
and open to members only.
The rules and aims of Freemasonry are freely
available to the public from Grand Lodge.
Masonic meeting places are well known and
often used by the local community for
activities other than freemasonry.
Members are encouraged to speak openly
about Freemasonry and Grand Lodge has a
number of publications freely available
|  | | Secrets
The secrets in Freemasonry involve the
traditional modes of recognition of other
Masons.
These are not used indiscriminately
but solely as a test of membership –
such as when visiting a Lodge where
a member is unknown to their members.
Meetings
Our meetings are in two parts. As in
any association there is a certain
amount of administrative procedure
– minutes of the last meeting , proposing
and balloting for new members,
discussing and voting on financial
matters along with news & correspondence.
Following this at the Lodge of Warwick
there is always a formal dinner or Festive
Board.
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Are you a religious or political organisation ?
Emphatically not. Freemasonry requires a
belief in God ( or a Supreme Being ) and its
principles are common to many of the worlds
great religions.
Every candidate is urged to practice his religion
and to regard its Holy Book as the unerring
standard of truth.
However Freemasonry does not instruct its
members as to what their religion should be
| | | | | | Whilst individual freemasons will have their own political views , Freemasonry
as an organisation never expresses any Political views.
Discussion of both religion and politics
are strictly prohibited at Masonic meetings.
Who can join ?
Membership is open to Men of all faiths who are law abiding, of good character and who acknowledge a belief in God.
Freemasonry is a multi-racial and
multi-cultural organisation attracting
men of goodwill from all sectors of
the community.
Traditionally freemasonry has been
restricted to Men. Historically the early stonemasons were all male , and Lodges for centuries have carried on this tradition
Women are welcome to join a separate Grand Lodge exclusively for Women of which there are two in England and Wales. | | 
Pictured above
W.Bro. R.E. Essex P.Prov. G Swd B
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Freemasonry Today
Today there are some 320,000 Freemasons
in England and Wales. And worldwide there
are probably 5 million members.
Most Lodges meet between 5 – 7 times per year,and we help to raise substantial sums of money for Charities Including St. Johns Ambulance & RNLI.
Other charities have been founded by Freemasons such as The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution, The New Masonic Samaritan Fund, The Masonic Housing Association, The Royal Masonic Trust
for Girls and Boys, and the Grand Charity.
Records of all the money collected & distributed
are available from Grand Lodge however over the last decade ( since 1994 ) the total Charity funds collected by English Freemasonry amounts to over £100 Million Pounds | | | |
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 | | Provincial Grand Lodge of Warwickshire
Warwickshire Masonic Temple
2 Stirling Road, Edgbaston,
Birmingham B16 9SB
Telephone 0121 454 4422 | | | | | | | | | |  | | United Grand Lodge of England
Freemasons' Hall Great Queen Street
London WC2B 5AZ
Telephone 0171 831 9811
Tours are available of the Building please phone for details or visit the web site. | | | | | |
 | Disclaimer :
Please note we cannot guarantee that the links from this page have been approved by the United Grand Lodge of England or the Provincial Grand Lodge of Warwickshire. Neither can we guarantee that all the links from their pages are recognised by or approved by the United Grand Lodge of England or the Provincial Grand Lodge of Warwickshire. | | All images are © Copyright |
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