Freemasonry in France (french: Franc-maçonnerie) has been influential on the worldwide Masonic movement due to its founding of

Continental Freemasonry Continental Freemasonry, otherwise known as Liberal Freemasonry, Latin Freemasonry, and Adogmatic Freemasonry, includes the Masonic lodges, primarily on the European continent, that recognize the Grand Orient de France (GOdF) or belong to CLIPS ...

. There are many and varied Masonic rites and obediences in France. The main male-only masonic organisations are the

Grande Loge de France Grande Loge de France (G∴L∴D∴F∴) is a Masonic obedience based in France. Its conception of Freemasonry is spiritual, traditional and initiatory. Its ritual is centred on the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite. It sees itself as occupying a ...

and the

Grande Loge Nationale Française The Grande Loge Nationale Française (GLNF) is a French Masonic Grand Lodge. It was founded in 1913, by two lodges, "Le Centre des Amis" Lodge splitting from Grand Orient de France and "L'Anglaise" lodge, an independent lodge based in Bordeaux. GL ...

, the main female-only organisation is the Women's Grand Lodge Of France, and the main mixed organisations are now the

Grand Orient de France The Grand Orient de France (GODF) is the oldest and largest of several Freemasonry, Freemasonic organizations based in France and is the oldest in Continental Europe (as it was formed out of an older Grand Lodge of France in 1773, and briefly ab ...

and

Le Droit Humain The International Order of Freemasonry ''Le Droit Humain'' is a global Masonic Order, membership of which is available to men and women on equal terms, regardless of nationality, religion or ethnicity. History The Order is founded on the an ...

Historiography

In the 18th century

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

and

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

were the two major centers of the French Freemasonry. Each of them hosted more than 20 lodges. Until the mid 20th century, the history of Freemasonry was excluded from classic-style history syllabi in universities. Particularly in France, Masonic historiography was thus almost entirely divided between authors who were vehemently pro- or anti-Freemasonry (with the former often being masons themselves). Since then, Freemasonry's political influence has diminished, and its historical conflict with France's Roman Catholic church (also now less politically powerful) has been if not resolved then at least appeased. This climate has been more favourable to the application of classic historical principles and methods to Masonic historiography, allowing it to develop and form a discipline of its own, "Masonology", devoted to a wider and more neutral study of the highly varied cultural and intellectual universe formed by European Freemasonry in general and French Freemasonry in particular. French Freemasonry offers the historian several documents (manuscripts, diplomas, engravings, caricatures, journal articles and other printed material) as well as a large number of objects relating to both ritual (Masonic aprons, tablets, vessels, medals) and everyday life (pipes, clocks, tobacco boxes and faience decorative art) that have been put on show in many museums and permanent exhibitions. However, the main sources in this area remain the manuscripts, especially the manuscripts cabinet at the

Bibliothèque nationale de France The Bibliothèque nationale de France (, 'National Library of France'; BnF) is the national library of France, located in Paris on two main sites known respectively as ''Richelieu'' and ''François-Mitterrand''. It is the national repository ...

and the municipal library of

. In 2001, the Russian government repatriated (among other things) all the Masonic archives which had been confiscated by the Nazis during their occupation of Europe - these had been held at Moscow since 1945.

Course

Ancien Régime

Origins

According to a tradition dating to 1777, the first Masonic lodge in France was founded in 1688 by the Royal Irish Regiment of Foot Guards, (later known as the Regiment of Walsh of the famed Irish Brigade of France ) which followed

James II of England James VII and II (14 October 1633 16 September 1701) was King of England and King of Ireland as James II, and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II, on 6 February 1685. He was deposed in the Gloriou ...

into exile, under the name "La Parfaite Égalité" of

Saint-Germain-en-Laye Saint-Germain-en-Laye () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France in north-central France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, from the centre of Paris. Inhabitants are called ''Saint-Germanois'' or ''Saint-Ge ...

. Historians think such an event is likely, but it can never be proved conclusively. The same can be said of the first lodge of English origin, "Amitié et Fraternité", founded in 1721 at

Dunkerque Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label=French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.traiteur Huré on rue des Boucheries, "in the manner of English societies", and mainly brought together Irishmen and Jacobite exiles. It is quite probable that it was this lodge that in 1732 received official patents from the Grand Lodge of London under the lodge-name "Saint Thomas", meeting at the sign of the "Louis d'Argent", still on the rue des Boucheries. In 1728, the Freemasons decided to recognise

Philip Wharton, 1st Duke of Wharton Philip Wharton, 1st Duke of Wharton (21 December 1698 – 31 May 1731) was a powerful Jacobite politician, was one of the few people in English history, and the first since the 15th century, to have been raised to a dukedom whilst still a mino ...

(1698–1731) as " grand-master of the Freemasons in France". Wharton was staying in Paris and Lyon from 1728 to 1729, and in 1723 had already become grandmaster of the Grand Lodge of London. His nomination as French grandmaster, prior to the transformation of the "Grand Lodge of London" into the "Grand Lodge of England in 1738", is considered by some historians as a point of departure for French Freemasonry and a declaration of its independence from British Freemasonry. He was succeeded as grandmaster of the French Freemasons by the Jacobites James Hector MacLean (1703-1750) and then Charles Radcliffe, Earl of Derwentwater (1693-1746). If the existence of a grandmaster in France is already attested in 1728, it took ten more years for a true assembly of representatives from all the "English" and "Scottish" lodges to form the first

on 24 June 1738 and set up Louis de Pardaillan de Gondrin (1707–1743), 2nd Duke of Antin, as "general and perpetual Grand Master in the kingdom of France". It was this Grand Lodge which gave birth to the French Masonic jurisdictions which still exist today.

1730s

In December 1736, the chevalier de Ramsay pronounced a discourse in which he propounded the idea of a

chivalric Chivalry, or the chivalric code, is an informal and varying code of conduct developed in Europe between 1170 and 1220. It was associated with the medieval Christian institution of knighthood; knights' and gentlemen's behaviours were governed b ...

origin for Freemasonry. This idea later had a definite influence on the instigation in French Freemasonry from 1740 to 1770 of a large number of Masonic Upper Degrees, which later regrouped around different Masonic rites. Plat maçonnique

The first revelation of Masonic secrets to the French public dates to 1737, and the following year these were published in the ''La Gazette de Hollande'' under the title ''La réception d'un frey-maçon'' ("The reception of a Freemason"), drawing on investigations by

René Hérault René Hérault, Seigneur de Fontaine-l'Abbé et de Vaucresson (23 April 1691 – 2 August 1740), simply known as René Hérault, and sometimes as René Hérault de Vaucresson, was a French magistrate and administrator who served as Lieuten ...

, lieutenant of police, and the testimony of a Miss Carton, a dancer at the Opéra, to whom a Mason had told the secrets. The police interest reflects the absolute monarchy's fears of the dangers it could incur from a "society admitting people of all estates, conditions, religions, and in which may be found a large number of foreigners". It therefore forbade "all traiteurs, cabaretiers, aubergistes and others from receiving the aforesaid assemblies of ''freys-maçons''". However, this did not stop them meeting, under the protection of figures from the high nobility, such as the duke of Antin. Other investigations occurred from 1740 to 1745, giving rise to highly detailed police reports that now constitute a precious source for historians of Freemasonry. These investigations were also accompanied by arrests and light sentences, until Freemasonry definitively became part of French social life, with condemnations and sentences emanating from the monarchy ending around the end of the 18th century. Philippe d'Orléans en grand-maitre du GOF

Philippe d'Orléans en grand-maitre du GOF

The year 1738 also saw the condemnation of Freemasonry in the papal bull

In eminenti apostolatus ''In eminenti apostolatus specula'' is a papal bull issued by Pope Clement XII on 28 April 1738, banning Catholics from becoming Freemasons. It arose from Jacobite-Hanoverian rivalry on the continent. Background Freemasonry had developed in Engl ...

Pope Clement XII Pope Clement XII ( la, Clemens XII; it, Clemente XII; 7 April 16526 February 1740), born Lorenzo Corsini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12 July 1730 to his death in February 1740. Clement presided over the ...

. This was the signal for a wave of anti-Masonic persecutions across European countries more loyal to the see of Rome, but not in France, where the bull was refused registration by the

Parliament of Paris The Parliament of Paris (french: Parlement de Paris) was the oldest ''parlement'' in the Kingdom of France, formed in the 14th century. It was fixed in Paris by Philip IV of France in 1302. The Parliament of Paris would hold sessions inside the ...

for political reasons (a bull had to be registered by the Parliament to take effect in France. French Freemasonry thus very quickly became mainly Catholic in composition, including several priests, and remained so until the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

1740 to 1788

In the 1740s an original and mixed-sex form of Freemasonry, known as " Masonry of Adoption" arose among the high French aristocracy, of which the duchess of Bourbon-Condé, sister of the duke of Chartres, was Grand Mistress. In 1743, after the death of the duke of Antin,

Louis de Bourbon-Condé (1709-1771) Louis de Bourbon (15 June 1709 – 16 June 1771) was a member of the cadet branch of the then reigning House of Bourbon. He is known for leading French forces in Germany during the Seven Years' War where he took command in 1758 following th ...

, count of Clermont, prince of the blood and future member of the

Académie française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...

, succeeded him as "Grand Master of all regular lodges in France". He remained in office until his death in 1771. Around 1744 there were around 20 lodges in Paris and 20 in the provinces. Lodges in the provinces were most often founded by Masons out of Paris on business or via the intermediary of military lodges in regiments passing through a region - where a regiment with a military lodge left its winter quarters, it was common for it to leave behind the embryo of a new civil lodge there. The many expressions of military origin still used in Masonic banquets of today date to this time, such as the famous "canon" (cannon, meaning a glass) or "poudre forte" (strong gunpowder, meaning the wine). Château de Mongenan Temple maçonnique

In 1771,

Louis Philippe d'Orléans (1747-1793) Louis Philippe (6 October 1773 – 26 August 1850) was King of the French from 1830 to 1848, and the penultimate monarch of France. As Louis Philippe, Duke of Chartres, he distinguished himself commanding troops during the Revolutionary War ...

succeeded the comte de Clermont as grandmaster. Under his authority and with the support of the provincial lodges for action against the hegemony of the lodges in Paris, the Grande Loge de France was re-organised and in 1773 changed its name to the

, which accounted for 600 lodges. Only some "Vénérables", mainly Parisians, refused to give up being president-for-life of their lodges, resisting this reform by forming a "Grand Lodge of Clermont" which lasted until May 1799.

1789 to 1815

Revolution

After the French Revolution, the Jesuit

Augustin Barruel Augustin Barruel (October 2, 1741 – October 5, 1820) was a French publicist and Jesuit priest. He is now mostly known for setting forth the conspiracy theory involving the Bavarian Illuminati and the Jacobins in his book ''Memoirs Illustrating ...

wrote that Freemasons had actively prepared the 1789 revolution, which has been used to back theories of a Masonic plot. This thesis was often reprised later, notably during the

French Third Republic The French Third Republic (french: Troisième République, sometimes written as ) was the system of government adopted in France from 4 September 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed during the Franco-Prussian War, until 10 July 1940 ...

, by Catholic authors (using it to oppose both the Republic and Freemasonry) and by Freemasons (so as to reinforce their pro-Republican stance and their positive image with the Republican government). In reality, there were Freemasons in both the Republican and monarchical camps. The Duke of Luxembourg, right-hand man to the Grand Master and moving-force behind the creation of the Grand Orient de France, emigrated in July 1789 and an aristocratic lodge known as "La Concorde" fled from

Dijon Dijon (, , ) (dated) * it, Digione * la, Diviō or * lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920. The earlies ...

as early as August 1789. Having become " Philippe-Égalité", the Grand Master of the Grand Orient himself publicly renounced Freemasonry in 1793 shortly before being executed by

guillotine A guillotine is an apparatus designed for efficiently carrying out executions by beheading. The device consists of a tall, upright frame with a weighted and angled blade suspended at the top. The condemned person is secured with stocks at th ...

. Even though the Grand Orient proclaimed its attachment to the democratic form of government from January 1789 onwards, it was forced to cease its activities by the Terror between 1793 and 1796, and of the nearly 1000 lodges active on the eve of the Revolution only 75 were in a fit state to resume their activities in 1800. Nevertheless, by their functioning in the years before the Revolution, these lodges had assumed a certain independence from the State and the Church, probably giving rise to new aspirations. Among active Freemasons in the Revolutionary period were

Mirabeau Mirabeau may refer to: People and characters * Mirabeau B. Lamar (1798–1859), second President of the Republic of Texas French nobility * Victor de Riqueti, marquis de Mirabeau (1715–1789), French physiocrat * Honoré Gabriel Riqueti, com ...

Choderlos de Laclos Pierre Ambroise François Choderlos de Laclos (; 18 October 1741 – 5 September 1803) was a French novelist, official, Freemason and army general, best known for writing the epistolary novel ''Les Liaisons dangereuses'' (''Dangerous Liaisons'' ...

and Rouget de l'Isle, writer of the national anthem "

La Marseillaise "La Marseillaise" is the national anthem of France. The song was written in 1792 by Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle in Strasbourg after the declaration of war by France against Austria, and was originally titled "Chant de guerre pour l'Armée du R ...

". In the French

Egyptomania Egyptomania refers to a period of renewed interest in the culture of ancient Egypt sparked by Napoleon's Egyptian Campaign in the 19th century. Napoleon was accompanied by many scientists and scholars during this Campaign, which led to a large ...

which followed their invasion of Egypt in 1799, around 1810 the Rite of Misraïm and "Egyptian" Freemasonry appeared among French troops based in Italy, later spreading to France in 1814.

First Empire

The plebiscite of 6 November 1804 legitimized the

First French Empire The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental Eu ...

Napoleon I Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

. In the following days, Masons learned that his brother

Joseph Bonaparte it, Giuseppe-Napoleone Buonaparte es, José Napoleón Bonaparte , house = Bonaparte , father = Carlo Buonaparte , mother = Letizia Ramolino , birth_date = 7 January 1768 , birth_place = Corte, Corsica, Republic of ...

had been named Grand Master of the Grand Orient de France, with its administration effectively placed in the hand of

Jean-Jacques-Régis de Cambacérès Jean-Jacques-Régis de Cambacérès, Duke of Parma (, 18 October 17538 March 1824), was a French nobleman, lawyer, freemason and statesman during the French Revolution and the First Empire. He is best remembered as one of the authors of the N ...

. One legend states that Napoleon himself had been a Mason, but comments he made on

Saint Helena Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...

seem clear proof of the opposite: LogeAdoption

During the First Empire, the Grand Orient de France was under strict control from the political authorities and little by little gathered almost all of French Freemasonry (which had newly developed and quickly reached 1,200 lodges, mainly military ones) under its aegis. Nevertheless, in 1804 count Alexandre de Grasse-Tilly (1765–1845) came to France from his birthplace in the

Antilles The Antilles (; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Antiy; es, Antillas; french: Antilles; nl, Antillen; ht, Antiy; pap, Antias; Jamaican Patois: ''Antiliiz'') is an archipelago bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the south and west, the Gulf of Mex ...

with powers assigned him by the Supreme Council of Charleston, founded in 1802. He established a Supreme Council of France and contributed to the creation of a "General Scottish Grand Lodge of France", under the protection of Kellerman. State centralism demanded the merger of these two institutions, which happened some years later.

1815 to 1850

In 1814, at the start of the Bourbon Restoration, the count of Grasse-Tilly reawakened the conflict between the Grand Orient de France (wanting to be the unified centre of all French Freemasonry) and the Supreme Council of France (jealous of the independence of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite) which then lasted until the end of the century. The First Empire's final fall the following year majorly weakened French Freemasonry, which had been one of the Empire's key pillars, with the number of lodges falling to 300 around the end of the year 1820. Throughout the 19th century French Freemasonry little by little made itself more democratic and more politicised - several Freemasons were among the revolutionaries of the

July Revolution The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution (french: révolution de Juillet), Second French Revolution, or ("Three Glorious ays), was a second French Revolution after the first in 1789. It led to the overthrow of King ...

and, with the exceptions of

Lamartine Alphonse Marie Louis de Prat de Lamartine (; 21 October 179028 February 1869), was a French author, poet, and statesman who was instrumental in the foundation of the Second Republic and the continuation of the Tricolore as the flag of France. ...

and

Ledru-Rollin Alexandre Auguste Ledru-Rollin (; 2 February 1807 – 31 December 1874) was a French lawyer, politician and one of the leaders of the French Revolution of 1848. Youth The grandson of Nicolas Philippe Ledru, the celebrated quack doctor known ...

, all the members of the

provisional government A provisional government, also called an interim government, an emergency government, or a transitional government, is an emergency governmental authority set up to manage a political transition generally in the cases of a newly formed state or f ...

of 1848 were also Freemasons. Lodges also became more and more

anticlerical Anti-clericalism is opposition to religious authority, typically in social or political matters. Historical anti-clericalism has mainly been opposed to the influence of Roman Catholicism. Anti-clericalism is related to secularism, which seeks to ...

as Catholics left them in the wake of repeated papal excommunications (these had come into force in France through Napoleon's 1801

concordat A concordat is a convention between the Holy See and a sovereign state that defines the relationship between the Catholic Church and the state in matters that concern both,René Metz, ''What is Canon Law?'' (New York: Hawthorn Books, 1960 st Ed ...

Second Empire

In 1851,

Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A nephew ...

put an end to the

Second French Republic The French Second Republic (french: Deuxième République Française or ), officially the French Republic (), was the republican government of France that existed between 1848 and 1852. It was established in February 1848, with the February Revo ...

and initiated the

Second French Empire The Second French Empire (; officially the French Empire, ), was the 18-year Empire, Imperial Bonapartist regime of Napoleon III from 14 January 1852 to 27 October 1870, between the French Second Republic, Second and the French Third Republic ...

. As his uncle had done before him, he offered his protection to French Freemasonry. He got the Grand Orient de France to agree to elect

Prince Murat Prince Murat is a Nobility of the First French Empire, French princely title that traces its origin back to 1804, when Emperor Napoleon granted the rank of Nobility of the First French Empire#Princes, ''prince français'' to his brother-in-law Joa ...

as its Grand Master but it did not wish to be represented by Murat. In 1862 they gained permission to elect a different representative and Napoleon III decided to name his successor himself - this was Maréchal Magnan, who was not already a Mason and so had to go through all 33 ranks of Scottish Rite Freemasonry in rapid succession to take up the post. The imperial decree had forgotten to mention the other French Masonic Rite, and so the "Scottish Rite", under the academician Jean Viennet (1777–1868), only just managed to maintain its independence. Two years later, the emperor newly authorised the Grand Orient to elect its Grand Master. Magnan was elected and remained Grand Master until his death in 1865 (the

archbishop of Paris The Archdiocese of Paris (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Parisiensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Paris'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. It is one of twenty-three archdioceses in France ...

gave Magnan's absolution before his coffin, which was draped with Masonic insignia, for which he was criticised by the Pope). Learning its lesson from this authoritarian period, the Grand Orient suppressed the role of Grand Master at the end of the Second Empire, putting its leadership instead in the hands of a "President of the Council of the Order". In 1869 there was a dispute between the Grand Orient and the Grand Lodge of Louisiana in the United States over recognizing a Lodge that the GLL did not recognize. This was a prelude to the schism of Continental Freemasonry.

Paris Commune

In 1870 the Grand Orient de France numbered around 18,000 Freemasons and the Scottish Rite around 6,000. March 1871 saw the start of the

Paris Commune The Paris Commune (french: Commune de Paris, ) was a revolutionary government that seized power in Paris, the capital of France, from 18 March to 28 May 1871. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard had defended ...

, in which Parisian Freemasons were heavily involved. Thirifocq, a militant socialist and member of the "le libre Examen" lodge of the Supreme Council of France, demanded that Masonic banners be set up on Paris's ramparts and that they should be "avenged" should they be torn by the bullets of the anti-Commune forces. Many Freemasons figured among the revolutionaries, including

Jules Vallès Jules Vallès (11 June 1832 – 14 February 1885) was a French journalist, author, and left-wing political activist. Early life Vallès was born in Le Puy-en-Velay, Haute-Loire. His father was a supervisor of studies (''pion''), later a teac ...

and

Élisée Reclus Jacques Élisée Reclus (; 15 March 18304 July 1905) was a French geographer, writer and anarchist. He produced his 19-volume masterwork, ''La Nouvelle Géographie universelle, la terre et les hommes'' ("Universal Geography"), over a period of ...

. On 29 April 1871 several thousand Freemasons of both obediences gathered behind dozens of banners for a large demonstration gathered before the Versaillan forces. This demonstration was followed by a meeting between two emissaries of the Commune (including Thirifocq) and

Adolphe Thiers Marie Joseph Louis Adolphe Thiers ( , ; 15 April 17973 September 1877) was a French statesman and historian. He was the second elected President of France and first President of the French Third Republic. Thiers was a key figure in the July Rev ...

, which ended in failure and in the crushing of the Commune by the Versaillans. Unlike the Parisian lodges, those in the provinces did not support the Commune, on whose fall the Grand Orient officially disavowed the action of the Parisian lodges and rallied to Thiers and the

, in which it was to play a leading role.

1875-1899

On 8 July 1875,

Jules Ferry Jules François Camille Ferry (; 5 April 183217 March 1893) was a French statesman and republican philosopher. He was one of the leaders of the Moderate Republicans and served as Prime Minister of France from 1880 to 1881 and 1883 to 1885. He ...

(future minister of public education of the republic) and

Émile Littré Émile Maximilien Paul Littré (; 1 February 18012 June 1881) was a French lexicographer, freemason and philosopher, best known for his '' Dictionnaire de la langue française'', commonly called . Biography Littré was born in Paris. His fathe ...

(author of the eponymous dictionary) were initiated in the "la Clémente Amitié" lodge. The French Republic wished to open secular schools throughout its territory and so entered into an open conflict with the Catholic Church, which opposed the opening of secular schools. It was in this context that the Grand Orient, which at this time made its support for the Republic official, decided in 1877 to abolish its requirement that its members believe in the existence of God and the immortality of the soul and for its lodges to work "for the Glory of the Great Architect of the Universe". In theory each lodge remained free to choose whether or not to continue respecting this former ''

landmark A landmark is a recognizable natural or artificial feature used for navigation, a feature that stands out from its near environment and is often visible from long distances. In modern use, the term can also be applied to smaller structures or f ...

'' of Freemasonry, but (in a climate poisoned by 30 years of open conflict between the Republic and the former state religion of Catholicism) in practice all references to religion would be phased out of the rituals of the Grand Orient. The decision to admit Atheists was not universally approved in France and led, in 1894, to a schism in French Freemasonry. The lodges wishing to require a belief in Deity broke off from the Grand Orient and formed Grande Loge de France (the second organization of that name). As for the Scottish Rite of the Supreme Council of France, the traditional obligation was not suppressed, but Grand Commander Crémieux in 1876 brought back into force that his jurisdiction should not impose "any form to the Grand Architect of the Universe". The Supreme Council also faced a secession by lodges of the three upper degrees, which intended to move out from under its patronage. In the end it granted them their independence, merging them into the Grande Loge de France. From 1893 to 1899, France saw the formation of the first mixed-sex mainstream Masonic obedience, which rapidly became international - the Ordre mixte international du Droit humain, which also adopted the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite.

1900-present

1900-1918

French Freemasonry began the 20th century with the

Affaire Des Fiches The Affair of the Cards (french: Affaire des Fiches), sometimes called the Affair of the Casseroles,The appellation is certified by Paul Naudon1. In the slang of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, “casserole” meant someone who cooked to ...

, a scandal that left lasting traces and which bore witness to its implication in the politics of the era. It began in 1901 when general André, minister for war and Freemason, asked for the philosophical and religious convictions of some 27,000 officers, to help their advancement. Hundreds of Freemasons across the country sent in this information. In 1904 the press seized on the affair, causing a huge scandal and leading to the dismissal of general André. In 1913 two lodges ("le Centre des Amis" and the "Loge Anglaise 204") left the Grand Orient and founded the "National Independent and Regular Grand Lodge", which was immediately recognised by the

United Grand Lodge of England The United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) is the governing Masonic lodge for the majority of freemasons in England, Wales and the Commonwealth of Nations. Claiming descent from the Masonic grand lodge formed 24 June 1717 at the Goose & Gridiron T ...

and until the 1960s remained mainly driven by Englishmen or Americans resident in France. In 1948 changed its name to the

, which it still bears today. Though the pacifist current which appeared in France before World War I also manifested itself in Freemasonry, as in other countries this current disappeared with the start of the war and the first cabinet of the "

Union sacrée The Sacred Union (french: Union Sacrée, ) was a political truce in France in which the left-wing agreed, during World War I, not to oppose the government or call any strikes. Made in the name of patriotism, it stood in opposition to the pledge made ...

" included 9 Freemasons. An international conference in January 1917 held at the Grande Loge de France included many European obediences. It launched an appeal for the creation of the

League of Nations The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...

, and a similar conference in June that same year representatives from 16 Allied or neutral obediences at the Grand Orient de France had the same objectives.

1918-1945

After losses in the First World War, Freemasonry resumed its growth - the Grand Orient de France rose from 23,000 members in 1919 to 33,000 in the 1930s, whilst the Grande Loge de France rose from 6300 members to 16,000 in the same period. Although a request by

Antonio Graziadei Count Antonio Graziadei (5 January 1872 – 10 February 1953) was an Italian academic and politician. One of the co-founders of the Italian Communist Party, he was Professor of Political Economy at the Universities of Cagliari and Parma and ...

to specifically forbid members of the

Communist party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A ...

from also being Freemasons had been rejected as the condition seemed "too obvious", the continued masonic connections of many French communists led to a specific condemnation by

Leon Trotsky Lev Davidovich Bronstein. ( – 21 August 1940), better known as Leon Trotsky; uk, link= no, Лев Давидович Троцький; also transliterated ''Lyev'', ''Trotski'', ''Trotskij'', ''Trockij'' and ''Trotzky''. (), was a Russian ...

in 1922, and an ultimatum that they should publicly sever such links by the new year. Most socialist Freemasons who had chosen the

French Communist Party The French Communist Party (french: Parti communiste français, ''PCF'' ; ) is a political party in France which advocates the principles of communism. The PCF is a member of the Party of the European Left, and its MEPs sit in the European Unit ...

after the split at the congress of Tours then left the party. Some of the lodges closed down in Russia by the Bolsheviks were re-formed in France by Russian refugees - "Astrée" within the Grande Loge, "l'étoile du Nord" and "la Russie libre" within the Grand Orient. In the inter-war period, French Freemasonry occupied a major place in the political appearance of the Republic and was strongly implicated in its struggles. It was thus particularly affected by the Republic's fall during the

Battle of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of French Third Rep ...

in 1940. The

Vichy regime Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its ter ...

and the German occupying forces united in October 1940 to organise an important anti-Masonic exhibition which toured throughout France. Its general theme affirmed the existence of a plot against France which had led to the country's fall and which according to the theses of the

Action française Action may refer to: * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video game Film * Action film, a genre of film * ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford * ''Action'' (1980 f ...

had been organised by "the Jew, the Protestant, the Mason and the Foreigner". A secret-societies service was set up in 1941, which studied articles confiscated from such societies and published "Les documents maçonniques", a review which saw in Freemasonry one of the principal causes of France's defeat. A law of 1941 also applied the "statute on the Jews" to Freemasons. An anti-Masonic film, titled " Forces occultes", was produced and shown in Paris in 1943. DiplomeMaçonnique1945

A thousand French Freemasons were also deported or killed during the Second World War, mostly for involvement in

French Resistance The French Resistance (french: La Résistance) was a collection of organisations that fought the German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi occupation of France and the Collaborationism, collaborationist Vichy France, Vichy régim ...

activities or due to their Jewish origins, with Masonic Temples pillaged and their archives confiscated. However, fellow-feeling that arose between Gaullists, Communists and Freemasons working in the Resistance against a common enemy meant that, in the post-war period, the Communist condemnation of Freemasonry diminished considerably in France. When lodges revived on the France's liberation, purge committees were often spontaneously put in place. However, the total number of active French Freemasons had fallen by two-thirds and French Freemasonry took twenty years to regain its pre-war numbers and never recovered the political and social influence it had had under the First Empire, during the 1848 Revolution and under the Third Republic, preferring instead to turn to philosophical reflections that became ever more spiritual in nature. Also in 1945, the Freemasons of the lodges of adoption within the Grande Loge de France formed a "Women's Masonic Union of France" ("Union maçonnique féminine de France"), which in 1952 became the

Grande Loge féminine de France The Women's Grand Lodge Of France (''Grande Loge féminine de France'') is the Grand Lodge of France's women-only Masonic lodges. History Starting in the 18th century, a system of Masonic cooperation by adoption came to attention of the Masons' w ...

. In 1959, this obedience abandoned the

rite of adoption The Rite of Adoption was a Masonic rite which appeared in France in the 18th century. Lodges of adoption were usually attached to regular craft lodges, but admitted the female relatives of Freemasons to a mixed lodge with its own ritual. The number ...

in favour of the Scottish Rite.

Postwar splits and unifications

In 1958, some brothers of the Grande Loge nationale française disagreed with its non-recognition of other French obediences and split to form the "Grande Loge nationale française dite « Opéra »", which has since then become the

Grande Loge traditionnelle et symbolique Opéra Grande means "large" or "great" in many of the Romance languages. It may also refer to: Places * Grande, Germany, a municipality in Germany *Grande Communications, a telecommunications firm based in Texas * Grande-Rivière (disambiguation) * Arr ...

(GLTSO). In 1964, the Grande Loge de France signed an accord with the Grand Orient de France which provoked a break within itself and within the Supreme Council ''of'' France. Grand Commander Charles Riandey, accompanied by hundreds of brothers, thus left the Supreme Council to form another under the aegis of the Grande Loge nationale française, known as the "Supreme Council ''for'' France". Since the 1970s, there have been several splits which have given rise to many small obediences, as well as many micro-obediences and independent lodges. Though the seriousness of some of them is unanimously recognised, others' conformity to Masonic traditions is not always well-established. Some authors see in this tendency a reflection of the individualist atomisation and rejection of institutions which (according to them) now characterises modern-day French society. On 20 February 2002 the Grand Masters, Grand Mistresses and Presidents of nine Masonic obediences met in Paris to sign the founding text of "French Freemasonry" ("Maçonnerie française"), an expression originated as a 'brandname' by the Grand Orient de France. Its text went as follows : In October 2002, this collection of obediences created the ''Masonic Institute of France'' (''Institut maçonnique de France'', or ''IMF''), with the aim of "promoting the cultural image of French Freemasonry across the historic, literary and artistic inheritance and its diversity" and of "rediscovering, deepening and making better-known to all interested members of the public the cultural and ethical values of Freemasonry". The IMF is both a foundation for Masonic culture and a study and research centre. It organises an annual salon on Mason books and awards a literary prize to an author who is not a Mason but defends ideas and values close to those of Freemasonry. However, in July 2006, the Grande Loge de France decided to leave the association formed in 2002 and the

decided to annul the 'brand name' "Maçonnerie Française" with the INPI. In France, there are some 11 Grand Lodges, few of which officially recognize the legitimacy of the others. However, in June 2005, the

and the

took steps to improve their fraternal working relations by signing a "Protocole Administratif", allowing them to cooperate with each other at a level below official recognition.

Obediences

* Grand Lodge Mondial of Misraïm * Women's Grand Lodge Of France *

Universal Mixed Grand Lodge The Universal Mixed Grand Lodge (french: Grande Loge mixte universelle, ''GLMU'') is a French Masonic jurisdiction, formed by a split in the French federation of ''Le Droit Humain'' by those who felt that this jurisdiction's Supreme Council was to ...

* Mixed Grand Lodge of France *Grand Loge Ecossaise de France *Grande Loge Traditionnelle et Symbolique Opéra ( French Wiki) *Loge Nationale Française ( French Wiki) *Grande Loge Unie de France

Critiques and scandals

In the 18th century, the Pope banned Freemasonry, for reasons linked to the situation in Tuscany that were more political than religious. The relevant bull, ''

'' was not however registered by the

parliament of Paris The Parliament of Paris (french: Parlement de Paris) was the oldest ''parlement'' in the Kingdom of France, formed in the 14th century. It was fixed in Paris by Philip IV of France in 1302. The Parliament of Paris would hold sessions inside the ...

and was never enacted in France. At the end of the 19th century, in the struggle between the French Republic and the Catholic Church, Freemasonry and its then-powerful networks definitively backed the state, leading to the

, and even came to be called "the church of the Republic".

References

Bibliography

Works used in this article

* * * * * * * * * *

Documentaries

*''Grand Orient les frères invisibles'' - script by Alain Moreau, directed by Patrick Cabouat, produced by France 5 / Program 33.

Other authorities in this area

* Cumming, Ian. "Freemasonry and Education in Eighteenth Century France." ''History of Education Journal'' (1954): 118-123
online
* Halpern, Avner. "Freemasonry and party building in late 19th-Century France." ''Modern & Contemporary France'' 10.2 (2002): 197-210. * Jacob, Margaret C. ''Living the Enlightenment: Freemasonry and Politics in Eighteenth-Century Europe'' (1991
excerpt
* Jacob, Margaret C. ''The Origins of Freemasonry: Facts and Fictions'' (U of Pennsylvania Press, 2007). * Jacob, Margaret, and Matthew Crow. "Freemasonry and the Enlightenment." in ''Handbook of Freemasonry'' (Brill, 2014) pp. 100-116
online
* Jacob, Margaret. "The Radical Enlightenment and Freemasonry: where we are now." ''REHMLAC: Revista de Estudios Históricos de la Masonería Latinoamericana y Caribeña'' 1 (2013): 11–2
online
* Jaunaux, Laurent
''Concise History of the French Regular Freemasonry''
Philalethe Society, 2001 * Loiselle, Kenneth. "Freemasonry and the Catholic Enlightenment in Eighteenth-Century France." '' Journal of Modern History'' 94.3 (2022): 499-536
online
* Loiselle, Kenneth. "Living the Enlightenment in an Age of Revolution: Freemasonry in Bordeaux 1788-1794)." ''French History'' 24.1 (2010): 60-81
online
* Snoek Jan A.M. and Henrik Bogdan. "The History of Freemasonry: An Overview" in Bogdan and Snoek, eds. ''Handbook of Freemasonry'' (Brill, 2014) ch. 2 pp 13-32
online

In French

* Pierre Chevallier, ''Histoire de la franc-maçonnerie française'', 3 volumes, Fayard, 1974. {{DEFAULTSORT:Freemasonry In France