Jack Leon Bracelin (2 June 1926 – 28 July 1981) was an English high priest of Gardnerian Wicca. He was an influential figure in the early history of

Neopagan Modern paganism, also known as contemporary paganism and neopaganism, is a term for a religion or family of religions influenced by the various historical pre-Christian beliefs of pre-modern peoples in Europe and adjacent areas of North Afric ...

religion, having been initiated into the craft by

Doreen Valiente Doreen Edith Dominy Valiente (4 January 1922 – 1 September 1999) was an English Wiccan who was responsible for writing much of the early religious liturgy within the tradition of Gardnerian Wicca. An author and poet, she also published five b ...

in 1956. He was a member of the

Bricket Wood coven The Bricket Wood coven, or Hertfordshire coven Page 289 is a coven of Gardnerian witches founded in the 1940s by Gerald Gardner. It is notable for being the first coven in the Gardnerian line, though having its supposed origins in the pre-Gardne ...

Early life

Jack Leon Bracelin was born 2 June 1926 in the Edmonton registration district of Essex, England. He was a son of Leon Enrique Bracelin and his wife Gertrude Alice Bunyard.Research by W. Wallworth, 2021 His parents were married on 11 February 1922 in St. Mark's Church in Peckham, Surrey (Southwark). His father was an Engineer. In everyday life and in the books that mentioned him, he was known as "Jack Bracelin". The Bracelin family originally came from Ireland. One family tree on Ancestry.com has what would be Jack Bracelin's Great Great Grandfather, a William Bracelin being born in 1791 Ireland and died in 1861 in Cumberland, England. J. L. Bracelin was in the Palestine Police department for the period of 19 February 1947 to 16 November 1947 and was awarded a medal for the service. (From the original record) Name of Department - Police. Roll Original: Number: 1475 - Rank: B/Const - Name: Bracelin J. L. - Full period of Qualifying service in Palestine, From: 19.2.47 - To: 16.11.47. This was shortly before the end of the British Mandate in Palestine. Prior to being initiated into the craft, Bracelin had worked for the British police in

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

and had later worked for a paint company.

Wicca

In 1956, Bracelin was initiated into

Wicca Wicca () is a modern Pagan religion. Scholars of religion categorise it as both a new religious movement and as part of the occultist stream of Western esotericism. It was developed in England during the first half of the 20th century and was ...

through the Bricket Wood coven by the High Priestess

. In 1959 Bracelin met the

Sufi Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, ...

writer and practitioner

Idries Shah Idries Shah (; hi, इदरीस शाह, ps, ادريس شاه, ur, ; 16 June 1924 – 23 November 1996), also known as Idris Shah, né Sayed Idries el- Hashimi (Arabic: سيد إدريس هاشمي) and by the pen name Ark ...

at a table in the Cosmo Restaurant in

Swiss Cottage Swiss Cottage is an area of Hampstead in the London Borough of Camden, England. It is centred on the junction of Avenue Road and Finchley Road and includes Swiss Cottage tube station. Swiss Cottage lies north-northwest of Charing Cross. Th ...

, North London. Shah was interested in Wicca, and Bracelin introduced him to Gardner. Shah wrote Gardner's official biography, ''Gerald Gardner: Witch'', which was published by his own company, Octagon Press, in 1960. However, he used Bracelin's name as a pseudonym because he did not want to cause confusion amongst his Sufi students and friends as to his interest in a different religion. Bracelin was one of the beneficiaries of Gardner's estate at his death, along with

Monique Wilson Monica Anne Esteva Wilson (born May 4, 1970), usually credited as Monique Wilson, is a Filipina singer, actress, and women's rights activist. She began her professional career at the age of nine. At 18, she gained recognition as the understudy f ...

and Patricia Crowther. Bracelin himself inherited enough of the

naturist club A naturist resort or nudist resort is an establishment that provides accommodation (or at least camping space) and other amenities for guests in a context where they are invited to practise naturism – that is, a lifestyle of non-sexual soci ...

that he could take it over.

Post-Wicca

Bracelin later resigned from being the Bricket Wood coven's High Priest, and soon left the coven itself, because, according to coven member Frederic Lamond, "he asked himself whether the

Book of Shadows A Book of Shadows is a book containing religious text and instructions for magical rituals found within the Neopagan religion of Wicca. Since its conception in the 1970s, it has made its way into many pagan practices and paths. The most famous ...

' simplified ceremonial magic rituals expressed his own religious feelings, and concluded they did not". In 1966 he married a young woman in a ceremony held in a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

church, which many members of the Wica felt showed that he had turned his back on the craft. However, Bracelin continued to allow the coven to meet at the Witches' cottage, on the condition that they paid rent on the plot of land upon which it was situated. In 1975, Bracelin tried to get them to pay for the nudist club's electricity as well, which the coven members were unwilling to do, and so they sold their plot to another nudist. Bracelin was a supporter of the

hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to different countries around ...

movement of the 1960s and 1970s, believing that it embodied the "life-affirming Goddess values" in its "true expression". Partially for this reason, he opened a

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

in the West End of

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, but it was a financial failure. In June 1976, Bracelin, by then in financial difficulties, was forced to sell the nudist club, though the new owners agreed to pay him a small pension.

Death

Bracelin died on 28 July 1981 in the St. Albans registration district of Hertfordshire. From the Probate entry in the index is the following: "Bracelin, Jack Leon of Chalet Suntan Fiveacres Country Club Fiveacres Avenue Bricket Wood Herts died 28 July 1981 Probate Oxford 14 January 1982." (the actual record is coming soon, will add more later) Bracelin retired to live in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

, and it was here that he died in 1983 of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

. The two statements about date and place of death are contradictory.

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bracelin, Jack L. 1993 deaths English Wiccans Gardnerian Wiccans 1926 births