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250 YEARS OF GLORY
(Collected
Material)
FREEMASONRY first arrived in India during the time of the
East India Company; Most Lodges of those days were military Lodges, which moved
with their Regiments. No details are available in the District Grand Lodge
relating to those Lodges. There may be some records available in the Grand Lodge
Library. But, for the purpose of this note it would be futile to attempt
original research. In respect of those long ago years of the dim and distant
past, it would suffice therefore to quote from the work of that great Masonic
historian, R F Gould whose “History of Freemasonry” is a standard book of
reference of the years from 1752, when Captain Edmund Pascal was appointed the
first Provincial Grand Master down to 1866 when this came to be designated “the
District Grand Lodge” This is what Gould has to say.
"1752 to 1840
The first Lodge on the Coromandel Coast was established
at Madras in 1752, shortly after that city had been restored to the English
under the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle. It is described in the lists as “at
Madras” in East India and it was first numbered 222, becoming 157 in 1755, 124
in 1770, 101 in 1780, and 102 in 1781,. It was erased from the register in 1790.
Canon C H. Malden, in his “History of Freemasonry on the Coast of
Coromandel”, thinks that, in all probability, Captain Edmund Pascal, who was
appointed Provincial Grand Master for that District on February 27, 1767,
founded the Lodge. He was an officer in the English Coast Army, the date of his
commission being October 30, 1751. He was also responsible for the foundation,
in 1765, of three Lodges, numbered respectively 353, 354 and 355. The first had
its location at Madras and the third at Trichinopoly, and Canon Malden thinks
that the second worked at Ellore on the East Coast, where there certainly was a
Lodge of which G.Westcott was Master for many years.
It was in the Trichinopoly Lodge that the last reigning
Nabob of the Carnatic, Omdat-ul-Omrah Bahadur, then the eldest son of the
reigning Nabob, was initiated in 1775 by Terence Gahagan, who returned to
England in the following year on account of his ill health. He attended a meeting of
Grand Lodge held on February 5, 1777 and reported the initiation, stating that
Omdat-ul-Omrah Bahadur professed a great veneration for the Society.
It was thereupon resolved that a complimentary letter
should be sent to His Highness, accompanied with a Masonic apron, elegantly
decorated, and a Book of Constitutions, bound in a most superb manner. This
apron and book cost 37 Pounds Sterling.
The letter and present were entrusted to the care of Sir
John Day, then going out as Advocate-General of Bengal, who executed his
commission to the universal satisfaction of the Society and the following letter
was written by him to His Highness as an introduction:
May it please your Highness, -The underwritten (having
been honoured with the commands of the Grand Lodge of Masons of Great Britain,
to convey to your Highness an apron and Book of Constitutions, as a testimony of
their respect for you, and your illustrious father, the steadfast friend and
ally of their Sovereign, as well as of the satisfaction they feel at seeing so
exalted a name enrolled among their order) intended to have executed the
commission with which he is charged in a manner that might best answer the
intentions of his constituents, and the dignity and importance of the occasion.
It so happens, however, that the late dissensions in this
Settlement have so effectually dissolved the ties of amity and confidence, which
once subsisted amongst them, that even the fraternal bond of Masonry has been
annihilated in the general wreck.
For this reason the lodge has so long discontinued its
meetings that it may be said to be now extinct. In this situation of things, it
being impossible to invest your Highness in full lodge, and with a splendour and
a solemnity suited to the dignity of your character, and the importance of the
commission he is honoured with, the underwritten hopes your Highness will
condescend to accept (in the only manner that remains) the pledge of amity and
respect from the Masons of Great Britain that accompanies this, and remains,
with the most profound respect.
Your
Highness’s
Most humble and devoted servant.
JOHN DAY
Omdat-ul-Omrah Bahadur returned an answer to the
Grand Lodge of England in the Persian Language, elegantly decorated and enclosed
in cloth of gold, which translated is as follows: -
To the Right Worshipful His Grace the Duke of Manchester,
Grand Master of the Illustrious and Benevolent Fraternity of Free and Accepted
Masons, under the Constitution of England and the Grand Lodge thereof.
Most honoured Sir and Brethren, - An early knowledge and
participation of the benefits arising to our house from its intimate union of
councils and interests with the British Nation and a deep veneration for the
laws, constitution and manners of the latter, have for many years of my life led
me to seize every opportunity of drawing the ties subsisting between us still
closer and closer.
By the accounts which have reached me of the principles
and practices of your Fraternity, nothing can be more pleasing to the Sovereign
Ruler of the Universe, whom we all, though in different ways adore, or more
honourable to His creatures, for they stand upon the broad basis of
indiscriminate and universal benevolence.
Under this conviction I have long wished to be admitted
of your Fraternity; and now that I am initiated, I consider the title of an
English Mason as one of the most honourable I possess, for it is at once a
cement to the friendship between your nation and me and confirms me the friend
of mankind.
I have received from the Advocate-General of Bengal, Sir
John Day, the very acceptable mark of attention and esteem with which you have
favoured me; it has been presented with every circumstance of deference and
respect that the situation of things here and the temper of the times would
admit of; and I do assure your Grace and Brethren at large that he has done
ample justice to the commission you have confided to him and has executed it in
such manner as to do honour to himself and to me.
I shall avail myself of a proper opportunity to convince
your Grace and the rest of Brethren that Omdat-ul-Omrah is not an unfeeling
Brother, or heedless of the precepts he has imbibed; and that, while he
testifies his love and esteem for his Brethren, by strengthening the hands of
humanity, he means to minister to the wants of the distressed.
May the common Father of all, the one omnipotent and
merciful God, take you into His holy keeping and give you health, peace and
length of years.
Prays your highly honoured and affectionate Brother.
OMDAT-UL-OMRAH BAHADUR
Madras
September 29, 1778.
This letter is still preserved in the Library and
Museum of the United Grand Lodge of England. Unhappily, in later years, when he
succeeded to the rule, the Nabob seems to have fallen from Masonic grace and
through his inattention to the just claims of dependents upon him much suffering
was caused, so much so that, in 1793, the Lodge of Perfect Unanimity, no No.150,
recorded:
With respect to the claims of our late Brother on the
Nabob, experience has shown that the solemn obligation of a Mason abd tge
adnibutuibs if Kidge, have weighted little orphans of a faithful Brother and
Servant.
Some year later, Terence Gahagan was the bearer of a
personal letter from the Prince of Wales (afterwards George IV) to the Nabob,
but, apparently, no notice was taken even of that communication.
Captain Pascal appears to have appointed as Deputy
Provincial Grand Master, John Call, who was appointed to the rank of Captain in
December 1758 and took a leading part in the siege of Fort. St.George.
It is worthy of recollection that for a short period the
Presidency of Madras and its Dependencies were predominant over all the other
English settlements in India; and, during the latter half of the eighteenth
century, the continuous wars with the French and, afterwards, with Hyder Ali and
his son, caused the Carnatic to figure largely in Indian history.
In 1767 a fifth Lodge was warranted at Madras, being
described as “of Fort St.George, East Indies.” Its number was first 389,
being changed successively to 323, 254 and 255. It did not appear in the List
for 1770 and was erased on February 9, 1791.
On January 5, 1768, the Atholl Grand Lodge established a
Lodge – No.152 – at Fort St. George, recruited mainly, if not altogether,
from officers in the army, which received an impetus in consequence of the
break-up of Lodge No.353. This unit seems to have exercised the functions of a
Provincial Grand Lodge, in as much as, in addition to building a Masonic Hall,
it established a Charity Fund and granted Warrants, or Dispensations, for
subordinate Lodges. It was not until 1782, however, that a regular Provincial
Grand Master for the Coromandel Coast was appointed by the Atholl Grand Lodge in
the person of John Sykes, an attorney-at-law, the Master of Lodge No.152, but
the Warrant of his appointment never reached its destination. Prior to that
date-at the latter end of 1778-the Master and Past Master of the Lodge had been
constituted into a “Provincial Grand Committee for hearing petitions and
granting Dispensation for holding Lodges to such Brethren that may apply and be
deemed worthy.”
In 1785 there was the expression of a desire for Masonic
union on the part of the Atholl Masons in letter to the Earl of Antrim, dated
from Fort St. George on July 17, 1785, the Master and Officers of Lodge No.152
wrote:
We cannot but express our deepest concern that
Freemasonry should be unhappily divided into two different sects, but the terms
of Ancient and Modern, and that their respective laws strictly prohibit a free
communication with each other, we wish an union of the Craft could be effected,
the principles of both are the same, the difference therefore must be in their
manner of conducting the business of their respective societies, which do not
appear so essential as to prevent a scheme taking place that would cement the
Fraternity in universal harmony, and give it more the appearance of its divine
origin, that it at present bears.
On February 20, 1786, the Duke of Cumberland as
“Provincial Grand Master for the Coast of Coromandel, the Presidency of Madras
and parts adjacent” appointed Brigadier-General Mathew Horne and the Atholl
Brethren welcomed his suggestion that they should transfer their allegiance to
the older body. They surrendered their Atholl Warrant and a number of them
joined the Lodge of Perfect Unanimity, still in existence as No.150, which has
existed uninterruptedly since its constitution on October 7, 1786. Although 1786
is the date give in the Masonic Year Book, it is clear from a letter from Horne
to the Grand Master of England, dated January 16, 1785, quoted in full in Canon
Malden’s History, that he had held the office previously, but Freemasonry
generally had been abandoned, owing to the unsettled conditions of the times.
General Horne appointed Terence Gahagan as his Deputy Provincial Grand Master.
Gahagan had striven hard, in 1784, to secure the higher office, but
unsuccessfully. We are indebted to him, however, for a description of the
surrender of the Atholl Brethren. In a letter to the Grand Secretary of England,
dated October 9, 1786, he says:
I am very happy to inform you that previous to the
arrival of the Patent, I made no small exertions in bringing about a Union with
a set of gentlemen here who had acted under the Patronage of the Spurious Set
who assumed the title of Ancient Masons. My arguments have at length carried
conviction, and about three months ago they offered General Horne and me
unconditional terms to come under our authority, which we gladly accepted but
deferred the execution of it till the Patent arrived, since which General Horne
repaired to the Presidency of Madras, tho’300 miles distant (from
Trichinopoly), where I met him, and the 5th instant, we visited Prov.
Grand Lodge No.152, which was composed of some of the first characters in the
settlement, who in a very formal and
awful manner surrendered their constitution of York Masons, with all their
Jewels, Masonic Implements, & C., to Gen.Horne and me, and solicited our
Patronage under the G.L. of England, and on Saturday, the 7th inst a
Masonic assembly was convened at a very large elegant House for the purpose of
consecrating in due form the new Lodge as well as to proclaim our Authority,
which was done in ample form. After a regular procession, we marched round the
Hall 3 times with a Band of Music, and then entered in a solemn manner and
consecrated devoutly and installed in due form. As the ceremony had never been
performed in this part of the world, it was left to my management, and I take no
small share of satisfaction to myself in finding that the largest assembly of
Masonic Gentlemen, sixty and upwards, attended upon the occasion; and were
agreeably surprised, and extremely pleased at the ceremony.
The full programme of the procession is given by
Preston, in his Illustrations of Masonry, though he has wrongly placed the year
as 1787 instead of 1786.
At this period all the Lodges under the older Grand Lodge
of England seem to have been extinct; but, in 1786, the Carnatic Military Lodge,
No.488, was established at Arcot. In 1787, four Lodges were added to the roll,
viz., Perfect Harmony, St. Thomas Mount; Social Friendship, Madras;
Trichinopoly; and Social Friendship, St. Thomas Mount. Two other lodges were
already established – Stewards’ and Perfect Unanimity-which, according to
the loose practice of those days, were given the places on the list of two
earliest Madras Lodges and became, in 1790, No.102 and 233 respectively. The
Lodge of Perfect Unanimity is, as already stated, still in existence as No.150,
but the Stewards’ Lodge is extinct. The Grand Orient of France and a second,
Les Navigateurs Reunis, in 1790, constituted a Lodge of happy nomenclature, La
Fraternite Cosmopolite, at Pondicherry in 1786.
Brigadier-General Horne resigned his office as Provincial
Grand Master in 1788 on his transfer to Trichinopoly, his resignation being
accepted with great regret by the Grand Lodge of England, a regret that was
accentuated when he passed away in December 1789. He was buried in the churched
at Trichinopoly, where a handsome tablet was erected to his memory.
General Horne was succeeded by John Chamier, a member of
the Madras Civil Services, a very enthusiastic Freemason, who held the office
until 1804, when he returned to England, where he died in 1810, after holding
the office of Senior Grand Warden of England in the previous year. Terence
Gahagan, who had been Deputy Provincial Grand Master since 1786, succeeded
Chamier. He had waited long for the preferment, which he had sought with much
assiduity. In 1812, when he returned to England, where he died in 1814, he
appointed Herbert Compton as acting Provincial Grand Master who became his
successor. Compton had the distinction of being the first Grand Superintendent
of Royal Arch Masonry in Madras, in which office he was succeeded, says Canon
Malden, by Richard Jebb, LL.D., although his name is absent from the list of
Grand Superintendents as given in the Masonic Year Book, who also ruled over the
Province as Provincial Grand Master from 1814 until his death in 1820. Between
1790 and 1812 four Lodges were added to the roll: Solid Friendship,
Trichinopoly, 1790; Unity, Peace and Concord, 1798; St.Andrew’s Union, 19th
Foot, 1802; and Philanthropists, 94th Foot, Scotch Brigade, at
Madras.
Richard Jebb was, of course, the first Provincial Grand
Master for the Coast of Coromandel appointed
after the Union of the Antient (Or Atholl) and Modern Grand Lodges, but it was
not until April 1815 that the official intimation of that Union was received at
that outpost. Jebb was succeeded by George Lys in 1820, who, however, was never
formally installed and, five years later, Compton again ruled over the Province.
The name of this worthy only disappears from the Freemasons’ Calendar in 1842,
and with it the provincial title, “Coast of Coromandel,” which was exchanged
for that of Madras over which Lord Elphinstone had been appointed Provincial
Grand Master in 1840. In 1866 Madras was designated a Distinct instead of a
Province, the latter term being reserved for the Provinces in England and Wales.
Other developments during the Period
Between 1814 and 1842 numerous Lodges were
warranted locally, but thirteen only, of which seven were in Madras itself,
secured places on the London register. There are, at the present time, (1950)
thirty-six Lodges on the register of England and five on that of Scotland within
the boundaries marked out for the English District, but the introduction of
Scottish Lodges into India will be referred to in the ensuing section.
The French Lodge at Pondicherry, Le Fratenite
Cosmopolite, was revived (or a new one established under the old title) in 1821.
Another, L’Union Indienne, was erected at the same station in 1851. At the
present date however, there exist throughout India and its dependencies no
Lodges other than those owing allegiance to the Grand Lodges of England and
Scotland.
The earliest Minute relating to Royal Arch Masonry occurs
in the proceedings of the Lodge of Perfect Unanimity, dated March 4, 1790 and
runs:
Read a letter from the Cosmopolitan Lodge at Pondicherry
acquainting us of the Zeal they have demonstrated from the Royal Arch by
promoting Brothers Robson and Giriffiths to a high degree.
Agreed that a letter be written to Cosmopolitan Lodge at
Pondicherry expressive of our attention for the regard they have demonstrated to
Brother Griffiths and Robson and further a mark of our attention that we have
referred their letter to the Lodge of the Royal Arch.
The Degree, however, was marked in a Chapter attached to
the lodge of Perfect Unanimity right from the time of its foundation in 1786,
although many years elapsed before a Royal Arch Chapter was regularly warranted
on the coast. About 1809 two Chapters were established in Madras-Benevolence
and School of Plato-but their Warrants were not issued until December 10,
1811. The first was formed by members of the Provincial Grand Lodge and the
second by the members of the Lodge of Perfect Unanimity.
In 1811, also, a Chapter, named St.George, which met at Fort St. George,
was formed from among the members of the Lodge Carnatic Military, which met as a
separate unit until July 1814, when it joined forces with the Chapter of
Benevolence. The only Chapter in this trio still in existence is the School of
Plato, which, Malden says, may fairly claim to be the oldest Colonial Royal Arch
Chapter now on the roll of the Supreme Grand Chapter of England.
The Mark Degree was worked by the Lodge of Perfect
Unanimity from August 1856, when the following resolution was adopted.
That the Mark Degree having been sanctioned by the Graand
Lodge of England, it be given as a separate Degree in this Lodge to any desirous
of it who have taken the degree of Fellow Craft.
The Lodge of Social Friendship also worked the Mark, Ark
Mariner and Excellent Master Degrees and had a Knight Templar Encampment
attached to it.
Some years back the 18* was worked by two of the Lodges
in Madras, I think in Perfect Unanimity and Pilgrims of Light, but without, as
far as I can discover, any Warrant from a Supreme Grand Council of the 33*. The
Degree has now long ceased to be worked in Madras.
On my arrival from Burma, where I had inaugurated the
Leeson Chapter under a Warrant from the Supreme Grand Council 33* for England
and Wales. I made every inquiry regarding these Chapters and found that even the
working had been incorrect.
There were some interesting local customs, particularly
in the Lodge of Perfect Unanimity. When the time for the election of Master came
round, the retiring ruler invariably proposed the Senior Warden as his
successor. The members then put forward another candidate and the votes of the
Brethren were then cast, the candidate securing the majority being, of course,
declared elected. He then nominated a Brother to take the office of Senior
Warden; the members brought forward a candidate in opposition and the ballot
again decided the issue. The same procedure was adopted for the election of
Junior Warden, Treasurer and Secretary, but the Master-elect appointed the
remaining officers. A similar custom seems to have been followed in
St.Andrew’s Union Lodge. The Lodge of Perfect Unanimity seems to have valued
Chaplains highly. On November 6, 1792, it admitted the Rev. Richard Hall Kerr,
D.D., as an honorary member and, shortly afterwards, he was appointed Grand
Chaplain at a monthly salary of thirty pagodas (a pagoda was of the value of
about seven shillings). The Provincial Grand Lodge demanded that the names of
all candidates should be submitted to that body before any subordinate Lodge
could proceed to confer any Degree, a rule that was the cause of much
irritation. The following extract from the Minute Book of the Carnatic Military
Lodge is somewhat amusing.
Resolved unanimously that henceforward no person
exercising the occupation of Gaoler, Bailiff, Turnkey, or any other whose
Livelihood arises from being actually and personally employed in restraining the
liberty of His Fellow Creatures, be admitted a member of this Lodge, with the
exception, (to prevent misconstruction) of any one who being a House-keeper in
Madras may be obliged to serve the office of Constable, as parochial duty in his
turn, when regularly chosen as such, for the usual terms; an office unavoidable
and which every one so situated is liable to; but no Person holding the last
mentioned employ as a substitute for another (for hire or otherwise) is by any
means to be admitted. Furthermore the exception equally applies to all military
men immediately employed as such, whose duties are of that nature, so as to
preclude them from always acting according to their own inclination, and who
cannot give way to the impulse of their own feelings, or resist the authority by
which they are commanded.
The old customs of St.John’s Day in winter and summer,
says Canon Malden, were regularly kept. On June 24 and December 27 it was the
practice for the Brethren to assemble at sunrise and to open the Lodge. The
officers for the ensuing six months were then installed. During the day the
meeting of the Provincial Grand Lodge was held and attended by the Masters and
Wardens of the subordinate Lodges. In the evening the Brethren reassembled, and
the business of the Provincial Grand Lodge was reported to those who had no
right to attend. At sunset the Lodge was closed, after the usual Masonic toasts
had been honoured.
The Lodge of Social Friendship appears to have visited
the sins of a wife upon a husband, according to the following extract from its
Minute Book:
Brother S having petitioned the lodge for advancement, it
was proposed and agreed to and accordingly put to the ballot, whether or not
Brother S, should be advanced, or even continued as a member of the lodge,
unless he put away his wife, she being convicted of having behaved in a loose
and indecent and scandalous manner in various instances, particularly during his
absence at Seringapatnam on command. The poll proved against him by 10 to 3, on
which he was directed to withdraw, and his name struck out of the lodge.
The Brethren of the District have always been stalwart
supporters of the Masonic Institutions and have organized their own local
Benevolent Funds. The Civil Orphan Asylum was founded in 1807, as the outcome of
a scheme drawn up by Dr.R.H.Kerr and placed before the members of the Lodge of
Perfect Unanimity in September 1800.
1840 to 1866
There is no recording of the happenings between 1840 to
1866 in the above narrative possibly because not much seems to have happened
during the provincial Grand Mastership of Lord
Elphinstone between 1840 to 1852 nor during that of Robert M.Williamson
between 1852 and 1856. In 1856 Colonel Willian Pitt MacDonald was appointed
Provincial District Master. During his term, five new Lodges were warranted of
which three survive to the present day – Lodge Mount (1862, numbered 826
(1863) and Lodge Bangalore No. 1043 (1864) and Lodge Anchor of Hope No.1093
(1865). Two Lodges were erased – Lodge Emulation, Nagapattinam, in 1868 and
Lodge Western Star, Cannanore in 1904.
1866 to 1900
In 1866 the Provincial Grand Lodge came to be styled as
the District Grand Lodge. Colonel William Pitt MacDonald, who was Provincial
Grand Master at the time, became the first District Grand Master. When he laid
down his office in 1867, a Lodge named after him got its Local and Grand Lodge
Warrant and was numbered 1198. In the seven years Arthur Mac Donald Ritchie was
District Grand Master (1867 – 1874) events of importance were the election of
H.E,
the Earl of Mayo as Honorary Member of the District Grand Lodge. Lodge of
Perfect Unanimity, No.150 received its warrant of confirmation in 1869 and Lodge
of Rock No.260 in 1874. Three new Lodges – Lodge of Faith Hope & Charity
No.1285 (1869), Lodge Mayo No.1406 (1872) and Lodge Deccan No.1444 (1873) –
were warranted. They continue to flourish to this day.
John Miller became District Grand Master in 1875. He held
the office for four years. The most outstanding event during this period was the
presentation of an address by the District Grand Lodge
to His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, the M.W. The Grand Master
(afterwards King Edward VII and Protector of the Craft). During his time four
new Lodges were warranted but all but Lodge Mysore No.1841 got erased in later
years. Lodge Mysore continues to function even now.
The next four years (1879 to 1883) were ruled by
Lt.Col.Aubery William Ogilive Saunders. In the year of his appointment, Lodge
John Miller No.1906 began to function from Royapuram in Madras under a Local
Warrant (Grand Lodge warrant obtained in 1881). To Saunders goes the credit of
starting the Madras Masonic Institution (1879). This Institution functioned
quite well till 1985 when it was merged into the District Grand Charity
established that year to consolidate and coordinate charitable activities in the
District.
Carnatic Lodge No.2031
The most important event in the history of the District,
insofar as Indians and the Craft are concerned, took place in 1883. That was the
warranting and consecration of Lodge Carnatic No.2031 ‘for the special benefit
and convenience of native gentlemen’.
The significance of this event can only be properly
appreciated against the background of the prejudice that prevailed till then
against the admission of Asiatics into Freemasonry.
Of our English Masonic forbears the Late W.Bro.G E Walker
in his Prestonian Lecture captioned “250 Years of Masonry in India” has this
to say:
“Bro. Heron Lepper has described the period as ‘a
brutal age that had crude ideas about tolerance and humane dealing and general
decency of conduct’; and indeed our Founding Fathers were a strange
combination of culture and coarseness, rugged individualism and sycophancy, good
taste and ostentation; they were chauvinistic and bigoted, truculent and
outspoken..
“And if this was the Englishman on his home ground, we
can well understand how his natural tetchiness would be aggravated in India by
the heat, the humidity, the velvet coats and high neck cloths and the quenching
of his thirst by his daily tipple of arrack-punch and a bottle (or more) of
Madeira”.
These were the men who brought with them Masonry into
India. No wonder they were opposed to letting the dark skinned into their fold.
As has been mentioned at the very beginning of this
narration, Omdat-ul-Omrah, the Nawab of Carnatic was the first Indian Mason
initiated in 1775. In the next 59 years there is no record of making of any
Indian Mason except the one in 1812 of Meer Bunde Ali Khan in Marine Lodge (now
No.232) meeting at Portishead, Somerset, England in the face of strong
opposition by certain brethren of the Lodge. In 1834 one Ibrahim Purkar was
initiated in Lodge of Hope in Ahmednagar and Mohamed Ismail Khan, Ambassador of
Oudh in 1836 in Lodge of
Friendship No.6 and immediately invested as Past Senior Grand Warden by
the Duke of Sussex himself.
Bro.Walker attributes this prejudice against admission of
Indians to ‘the class consciousness of the English especially in the
Presidency towns which were the seats of Government and where Masonry tended to
become dangerously stratified’. Even among themselves, they had what were
called ‘Inferior’ and ‘Subordinate’ lodges. Could mentions 13 Non
commissioned officers in Bombay who were “too poor to establish a Lodge of
their own and too modest to seek admittance in what they considered an
’aristocratic lodge’. It is also said they were invited to the
‘aristocratic lodge’ as guests but were offered refreshments downstairs –
and very properly walked out. This preoccupation with social gradations (it was
an English disease not so much a Scottish one) was forfeited in India by the
genuine belief that Genesis IX-25 was Scriptural warrant for the superiority of
Europeans over all dark skinned people.”
No wonder that notwithstanding the determination of the
Duke of Sussex (Grand Master) to make Masonry a genuinely Universal brotherhood,
‘let a man’s religion or mode of worship be what it may’, the attempt to
keep out Indians persisted, especially in Bengal where the Provincial Grand
Lodge had a byelaw (No.55) which prohibited the initiation of any Asiatic
without the Provincial Grand Masters personal approval. Madras does not seem to
have had such a byelaw and does not seem to have discriminated expressly against
Asiatics. Bombay was progressing, under the Scottish constitution, not English,
towards admission of more Indians. Bombay has also the distinction of setting up
the first Lodge expressly for the admission of Indians into the Craft-Lodge
Rising Star of Western India (1843)
In 1840, on a reference from Dr. John Grant, the
Provincial Grand Master of Bengal, the Grand Master, the Duke of Sussex ruled
that, ‘provided a man believes in the existence of the Great Architect of the
Universe and in futurity and extends that belief likewise to a state of rewards
and punishment hereafter, such a person is fully competent to be received as a
Brother.’
The final blow to the prejudice against Asiatics fell in
1860’s when the Grand Master struck down byelaw No.55 of Bengal and ruled that
‘It is the privilege of a Lodge, and one which cannot be interfered with, to
decide who it will receive-the required formalities being duly observed’.
In the more equable South, even before the happenings in
Bengal, Hindus were being initiated without fuss, the first were Bro. Ranganatha
Sastry in Perfect Unanimity and Bro. Murugesha Mudaliar in Universal Charity in
1857. Between 1855 and 1869 Universal Charity initiated (besides a Muslim and a
Parsee) a Mudaliar, a Chetty, a Pillai, a Naidu, an Iyengar and an Aiyar and
Lodge of Rock between 1863 and 1877 initiated seventeen Hindus of seven
different castes.
But, says Walker, ‘the increasing entry of Indians into
the Craft from 1860’s onwards did not mean that everything was sweetness and
light for ever after. Indian Masons are as capable of folly as their brethren
beneath the western sky. There were growing pains to be lived through. Besides,
the Europeans were clumsy or thoughtless and some Indians understandably
touchy,’
One of the most galling things for the Indians was ‘the
sorry habit of some mainly European Lodges of denying their few Indian members
the Master’s chair. For example, Ranganatha Sastry of PU was Junior Warden
1862 and Senior Warden 1863 but never Master.
One good result of this unbrotherly behaviour was the
birth of the Carnatic Lodge No.2031. However, in viewing the past we must, at
Walker warns, ‘always beware of applying twentieth century moral judgements to
eighteenth century behaviour. We have to understand the difference in
circumstances and temperament.’ The Carnatic Lodge was consecrated by the
Dy.District Grand Master Arthur Morell Saunders who soon become the District
Grand Master (1854).
1884 to 1901
During Arthur Morell Saunders rule 1884-88) only two
lodges were warranted. Lodge Kerala No.2188
warranted in 1886 and Lodge Southern Cross No.2298 in 1889 both happily
flourishing to this day.
Lord Connemara, Governor of Madras who became District
Grand Master in 1888 ruled only for 3 years and during his time, in 1888,
Lodge Pandyan No.2356 got a local warrant.
Lt. Col. G. M. J. Moore, who succeeded Lord Connemara in
1891 ruled till the close of the century and added six lodges to the District
viz., Lodge St. George No.2532 (1894) Lodge Coorg, No.2576 (1895), Lodge Waltair
No. 2522 (1895) Lodge Moore No.2710 (1896), Lord Minchin No.2710 (1897) and
Lodge United Services No.2736 (1898). Of them only Lodge Moore got erased in
1903.
Thus by the close of the century there were 20 Lodges
functioning in the District.
Into the 20th Century.
The new century started under good auspices with the
appointment of Lord Ampthill (Governor of Madras) as the District Grand Master.
It was during his time that the District Grand Lodge made a big move from the
modest Masonic Hall in Vepery to Mount Road, thanks to the generosity of the
Lodge of Perfect Unanimity and the support of Lord Ampthill. The PU handed over
its premises at Mohamed-e-Bagh at Pudupakkam, Mount Road to the District Grand
Lodge for a consideration of only Rs.5000 in cash and Rs.75000 in debentures on
which interest was payable only on Rs.10000, the balance of Rs.65000 being free
of interest. This self-effacing sacrifice of PU in the larger interests of the
Institution should be especially noted as it has a bearing on later developments
in regard to the present Freemasons Hall. The building was then renovated at a
cost of Rs.15000.
Lord Ampthill was succeeded by Herbert Bradley as
District Grand Master (1906-10). In that period two lodges were warranted –
Lodge Southern Brotherhood No.3311, (1908 ) and Lodge Salem No.3400, Salem
(1909), both of which are flourishing to this day.
In 1910, Sir Murray Hammick became the District Grand
Master. Only one of the four Lodges warranted during his time now remains viz.,
Lodge Ampthill No.3682.
Llewellyn Edison Buckley’s tenure as District Grand
Master (1914-21) was quite eventful notwithstanding the World War I. The
District Grand Lodge office was moved from Mount Road to rented premises in
Egmore and after moved into the present premises in Commander-in-Chief Road. It
used the building, which presently houses the DGL offices as the Temple. An
important event that took place during his time was the visit of HRH the Duke
Connaught, M.W.Grand Master to a District Grand Lodge meeting held at the
Banqueting Hall Madras in 1921. Lodge Cauvery No.3848 Tanjore was warranted in
1918 and Lodge Cochin No.4539, Cochin in 1921.
Archibald Campbell succeeded Buckley in 1922. By that
time plans to build a new and large temple at Commander-in-Chief Road were ready
and in 1923 its foundation stone was laid by H.E.Lord Willingdon, Governor of
Madras. In the same year, the foundation stone was also laid for a new Masonic
hall at Tanjore for Lodge Cauvery No.3848 and that building too was dedicated
later that year.
Archibald Campbell’s term was as eventful as it was
long-twelve years. It can be termed also the Decade of Building. For following
on the heels of Lodge Cauvery, Lodge Minchin No.2710, Trivandrum and Lodge
Ampthill No.3682, Coimbatore built and dedicated their temples in 1927 and 1928
respectively. Again in 1928, the Ghoshamahal Baradari in Hyderabad (Deccan) was
dedicated and consecrated. The New Freemasons Hall at Commander-in-Chief Road
was opened by H.E.Viscount Goschen, Governor of Madras on 27th
February 1925 and dedicated by the District Grand Master. In 1928 a deputation
of the UGLE visited Madras for a long sojourn of almost three weeks. The other
notable events of his term were the consecration of three new Lodges- Archibald
Campbell
No.4998 and Lodge Annamalai No.5015 (1928) the former happily in existence and active.
The crowning piece was the celebration of the Golden Jubilee of Carnatic Lodge
No.2031 on 25th October 1933.
George Townsend Boag, who succeeded Archibald Campbell,
was the last Englishman to adorn the throne of the District. He ruled for a
decade from 1936 to 1946. His term may be rightly called the Decade of Jubilees,
for as many as twelve Lodge celebrated their Jubilees. (Lodge Kerala No.2188 –
Golden (1936); Waltair No. 2592 – Silver (1937); St. Johns No.434 –
Centenary (1937); Murary Hammick No.3636 – Silver, (1938); Mysore
Lodge No.1841 – Diamond (1938); Southern Cross No.2298 – Golden
(1939); Lord Ampthill No.3682 – Silver (1939); John Miller No.1906 – Diamond
(1941); Lodge Cauvery No.3848 – Silver (1943); Lodge Goodwill No.465 –
Centenary (1944); Universal Charity No.273 – Centenary (1946). Also during his
time buildings of Salem Lodge No.3400 and Lodge Pandyan No.2359 were dedicated
in 1936 and 1939 respectively. One new Lodge, Lodge Quilon No.5839 was
consecrated in 1941. In consequence of the War, the District Grand Lodge moved
to Kilpauk in 1942 and returned to Freemasons Hall in 1946.
It is to be noted that between 1941, and 1961 only one
new Lodge – Lodge University No.7690 was consecrated. This, it would appear,
was not only because of the war but also because of the goings on in connection
with formation of a sovereign Grand Lodge for India."
The redoubtable TVM
This point of time in the history of the District can be
truly called the end of an epoch and the beginning of a new one. Just as George
Boag was the last Englishman to adorn the throne of the District, Muthukrishnan
Aiyar was the first Indian to become District Grand Master. But for the
intervention of World War II, the District may perhaps have had a couple of more
Lodges. But that was not to be. With the advent of Indian Independence, a pall
of uncertainty seems to have hung over the growth of Freemasonry under the UGLE.
The last Lodge to be warranted by UGLE in India was Lodge University No.7690 in
1960.
Tiruchandurai Venkatraman Muthukrishna Aiyar, ascended
the throne in 1947. He verily seems to have been the man of destiny for the
District Grand Lodge of Madras. It was due to his determined and inspiring
leadership that the District Grand Lodge survived 1961 and remained strong and
vibrant. His role in that crisis is detailed in the article. The 1961 ballot
resulted in 19 out of 37 lodges opting in favour of GLI and in Madras city 4 out
of 10.
From all accounts making the rounds, he was highly
respected and feared by all, more especially the Englishmen who prevailed in the
District during most years of his rule. He seems to have been such a keen and
observant DGM that if he had not made note of a brother, the latter was
considered just unlucky. His wit and knowledge are reputed to have held the
brethren of the District in utter awe.
During
his term, the District has had its full share of glory and joy in that
there were many jubilees. Among them: Lodge Minchin No.2710 – Golden Jubilee
(1947); Lodge Pandyan No.2356 Diamond Jubilee; Archibald Campbell Lodge No.4998
– Silver Jubilee (1954); Waltair Lodge No.2592 – Diamond Jubilee (1956);
Lodge Kerala No.2188 – 70th year (1956); Lodge Minchin No.2710 –
Diamond Jubilee (1957); Lodge Salem
No.3400 – Golden Jubilee (1958); Lodge Justitia No.3457 – Golden Jubilee
(1960); Lodge John Miller No. 1906 – Platinum Jubilee (1961); Lodge Anchor of
Hope No.1093 – Centenary (1966) and Lodge Quilon No.5839 – Silver Jubilee
(1966). Lodge Cochin dedicated it’s building on 23rd January 1966.
‘Muthanna’, as the brethren endearingly called him,
personally attended most of these functions in addition to visits to Lodges on
occasions. He was called to the Grand Lodge above on 9th October 1967.
To Muthukrishna Aiyar goes the credit for the institution
of what is called “Bar Stewards Dive” which is currently very popular among
the brethren and can be said to be unique to this District, the like of which
does not exist anywhere else. It started as a small conclave of senior brethren
close to the DGM to retire from labour to refreshment. More brethren were
admitted in due course with the express permission of the DGM. The Bar Stewards
Dive has a very expressive ritual emphasising camaraderie and charity.
Lt.Col. Gurdial Singh Gill
TVM was succeeded by another
eminent Indian those days – Lt.Col.Gurdial Singh Gill. The “Colonel” as he
was endearingly called was of a very kindly disposition, averse to clashes. The
most difficult problem he had to face was the aggressive demands of the RGL in
respect of the Masonic property in Madras. The basic understanding in the
formation of the GLI was that properties owned by Lodges would go with the
Lodges and that the side owning the property would make it available for the use
of the other side on non-discriminatory terms. In Madras the majority of Lodges
(6 to 4) opted to remain under the UGLE and the 6 included Lodge of Perfect
Unanimity, which, as has been recorded earlier, had provided the bulk of funds
for the acquisition of the property. The property should logically have remained
with the English Constitution. The RGL although originally content to receive a
share or the cash assets reversed its stand and staked a claim for part
ownership of the buildings. They rushed to the court with a suit pressing this
claim. Col.Gill was unlike TVM and did not relish a conflict. On the advise of
some members of the District Board of General Purposes, who were in both camps
and who perhaps feared that leading members of the judiciary were top ranking
members of the RGL, Col.Gill yielded to a compromise. The original proposal to
form a Trust with two trustees from the DGL and one from the RGL was later
watered down to one from each, albeit with majority of 4 to 3 infavour of the
DGL in the Premises Committee, which was to administer the property.
But otherwise the relationship between the DGL and the
RGL till recently has been without friction.
During Col.Gill’s time (1967-80) the District had its
share of Jubilee celebrations and happy Investiture and half-yearly meetings.
Lodge Kerala No.2188 celebrated its 80th year in 1967; Lodge Pitt
MacDonald No.1198 its Centenary in 1967; Lodge Golconda its Golden Jubilee in
1968; Lodge & Chapter Southern Brotherhood No.3311 its Golden Jubilee in
1969;Lodge Minchin No.2710 its Platinum Jubilee in 1972 Lodge Ampthill No. 3682
its Diamond Jubilee in 1974; Lodge Kerala No.2188, again, its 90th
Anniversary and John Miller Lodge .
Masonic Memories of Madras…
My recollections of Madras District begin and end in the
1950s.
In those days there were 36 Lodges in the District, in
place of the present 18, since the Grand Lodge of India was not inaugurated
until 1961.
The ritual worked was Emulation, though many Brethren
developed a liking for the Nigerian Ritual (now defunct), which, because of its
descriptive annotation, then enjoyed special though unofficial popularity. From
time to time the District organised festivals in which a ceremony or lecture was
worked by a varied team drawn from all the Madras Lodges. Thus the Master might
be drawn from Lodge A, the S.W from Lodge B, the J W from Lodge C, and so on.
These festivals were admirable opportunities for developing friendships between
Brethren of different Lodges. Also from a District point of view, they promoted
uniformity of working throughout the District.
In this period, Madras had few hotels to provide venues
for Masonic dinners. The Connemara Hotel was about the only one conveniently
near to Freemasons’ Hall, though the Oceanic was also tried. Often the
Brethren would repair to the Madras club (the ‘new’ one opposite
St.George’s Cathedral). The important thing in those prohibition years was
that the venue should include a ‘permit room’ for those entitled to imbibe
alcoholic drinks. Thus although Freemasons’ Hall had (still has?) kitchens and
cooking facilities, they were then very considerably underused.
In the 1950s there were many European Brethren in Madras,
and it was customary for them to go on U.K. leave during the hot weather (May
– September) leaving their Lodges to operate with the few Brethren remaining.
I can recall being raised in December 1950, made Steward at the P.U Installation
in the following January, and then asked to serve as acting unpaid Junior Deacon
from May to September while the official J.D enjoyed his U.K. vacation. The same
thing happened in subsequent years. We certainly were given early encouragement
to get to grips with the ritual and be prepared to assume any office at a
moment’s notice. In P.U, the hot whether absences got so pronounced that the
Lodge altered its byelaws to abolish meetings between May and September.
At this time, three Lodges – Perfect Unanimity No.150,
Pitt Macdonald No.1198 and St. George No.2532 – were European in composition,
but with the development of India as an economically independent country these
have now found good and capable Indian Masons to carry on old traditions.
·
D.J.Carpenter, PM. Nos. 150 & 7891, P.Pr.SGD (Sussex)
I was initiated in the Lodge of Perfect Unanimity on the
6th December 1948 and I well remember the impressive manner in which
the initiation ceremony was conducted by W.Bro. J.A.Mickelson.
Not long after I became Secretary of the Lodge, when it
was explained to me that it was an unwritten rule that members of PU had to
serve as Secretary before being elected to the Master’s Chair – so the
sooner the better1 I eventually became Master in 1956, and then again in 1964.
As regards my Madras District activities, I was appointed
D G Supdt. Of works in 1965 and 1966 (acting rank) and P D Junior Grand Warden
in 1980. As a District Officer I very much enjoyed attending meetings of
District Grand Lodge, not least when we met at Cochin, and other locations
outside Madras, and the social arrangements were always most enjoyable.
Reverting back to my Perfect Unanimity days it was
customary to open the Lodge at 8 a.m. in the morning of Installation days and
then call off-followed by breakfast at the Connemara Hotel, which included
consumption of Kippers and Brandy. After retiring from India, as a Director of
Parry & Co., I on several occasions brought out Kippers from the U.K. so
that the custom could be continued. I thought this was worth a mention in
lighter vein1
I very much enjoyed visiting Madras in September 1991,
and attending a Meeting of the Lodge of Perfect Unanimity, and am hoping to
visit again later this year probably in September. In the meantime, may I convey
to the District Grand Lodge of Madras my most cordial greetings on this historic
occasion of the 225th Anniversary, which I am sure, will be a highly
successful and a memorable occasion.
Sincerely and fraternally,
C F M Baldwin, PDJGW (Madras)
Masonic Memories of Madras. . .
I came to South India in May 1944 having been posted to
the Queen Victoria’s Own Madras Sappers and Miners Depot in Bangalore arriving
as a raw Lieutenant and an even newer Fellow craft Freemason, having been
initiated into the Lodge of Joppa No.188 in the February of that year. My stay
in Bangalore was short, but I remember vividly my introduction to Freemasonry in
India—a visit to Lodge Southern Brotherhood No.3311. Little did I know at that
time what influence the District Grand Lodge of Madras would have on my Masonic
career.
Returning to India as a Civilian after hostilities had
ended, I passed through Madras in 1949 and was entertained as a visitor by
Brother George Hambling at The Lodge of Perfect Unanimity No.150. No. Masonic
Indophile could fail to have been impressed by the History of this Lodge and the
part its early Brethren played in helping to bring peace and order into South
India. I was therefore delighted to be accepted as a Joining Member when in 1954
I was posted to Madras. Sadly, ICI saw fit to re-post me to Calcutta in 1957,
but not before PU honoured me with the Mastership of the Lodge, ICI, thankfully,
had second thoughts and returned me to Madras in 1960 where I remained until my
retirement from India in 1965.
My memories are far too numerous to be recorded here, but
all of them are happy ones:
…That inspite of Brother Rudyard Kipling’s
“We dursen’t give no banquets lest a Brother’s caste were
broke…” I recall with delight the installation Banquets at the Connemara
Hotel, where there were full Vegetarian and non-vegetearian menus, often washed
down in those prohibition days with copious drafts of Bangalore Beer and
Parry’s Gin1.
…Of Opening Lodge PU Installation Day at 8.00 a.m.;
carrying out all items on a Agenda prior to the installation Ceremony, Calling
off, going to Breakfast all the Connemara and eating kippers specially imported
for the occasion!
… Of the District Grand Master of beloved memory, R W
Bro.T V Muthukrishnan Ayyar, well into his ninth decade, being wheeled into
District Grand Lodge by an Assistant District Grand Director of Ceremonies,
Wor.Bro.‘Bunny’ Austin, who was familiarly known as the District Grand
Nursemaid, and whose pleasure it was to attempt to run the wheelchair into my
back as I carried the DGM’s Sword into the Temple!
…At the great pleasure in the District when, in 1961,
the majority of Lodges decided to remain under the auspices of the Grand Lodge
of England, and the support and assistance afforded by the District, its
Officers and Staff to the infant Regional Grand Lodge of Southern India.
… Of the dignity of the District Grand Lodge Meetings,
particularly when held up-country, where the Brethren pulled out all the stops,
to ensure that the impression which their guests took back with them was one of
pride in their hosts.
…And finally, of the friendship shown to me and to
other ‘strangers in a strange land’, by our Indian Brethren.
May Freemasonry continue to flourish in South India and
in peace, and may the Masonic District of Madras continue until time with us
shall be no more.
…My warmest fraternal greetings to all Freemasons in
the District, particularly those who remember.
Harold Hayman, OBE, PADGC, PDG Swd.Br. (Madras)
The most important event, however, took place in 1978,
when the then, R.W the Deputy Grand Master, R W Bro.Rt.Hon. Lord Cornwallis
accompanied by Lady Cornwallis paid an official visit to the District between 15th
and 19th November. He
attended the installation meetings of John Miller Lodge, Madras and Lodge
Southern Brotherhood, Bangalore. The brethren of the latter took the
distinguished visitors on a sight seeing tour and entertained them at a Ladies
Nite.
In 1980, R W Bro. Sir James Stubbs the Grand Secretary
and Lady Stubbs visited the District between 25th and 30th
November. They went round to Bangalore, Ooty and Cochin. In Bangalore, R W Bro.
Stubbs attended a meeting of Southern Brotherhood. Likewise he attended a
meeting of Lodge of Faith Hope and Charity No.1285 followed by a Ladies Nite
in honour of Lady Stubbs.
Col. Gill laid down his office as DGM in December 1980.
On 10th May 1982 he was called to the Grand Lodge above.
The undaunted spirit of TVM and patient endeavours of
Col.Gill enabled the District to emerge unscathed by the division of 1961. If
anything the District grew in stature and strength developing exemplary
discipline and pride, zeal and enthusiasm. The annual and half-yearly meetings
increasingly became occasions of great decorum and dignity and, literally,
festivals of fraternal union.
R.W. Bro. Arumana Parameswaran Tampi who succeeded Lt.
Col. Gurdial Singh Gill as District Grand Master in September 1981 ruled the
District with grace and distinction for two decades until he resigned his
office, in January 2001, on account of advancing years.
In 1997 R.W. Bro. Tampi was conferred the Grand Master’s Order of
Service to Masonry, the first recipient in the District of Madras of this
coveted honour restricted to about 10 distinguished Masons in
the entire World, a well-deserved recognition of two decades of devoted
service to Masonry in general, and to this District in particular.
During his stewardship of the District many milestones
were reached such as the merger of
all the separate District Charities into one District Grand Charity Fund Trust
(1985), a visit by M.W. Bro. Rt. Hon. Lord Fiennes Cornwallis Pro Grand Master
in 1986 when he attended a number of Lodge Meetings in the District and more
particularly graced the bi-centenary celebrations of the Lodge of Perfect
Unanimity and in this connection, unveiled a commemorative plaque at
Freemasons’ Hall, in November 1986.
In 1988 Rt. Wor. Bro. A.P. Tampi was felicitated on his
completing 50 years in Masonry and that year also saw the District’s first
Newsletter named “The Coromandel Courier”
launched. In that year also
R.W. Bro. Tampi installed R.W.Bro. Archibald Edwards as R.W. District Grand
Master of Bengal.
In 1994 M.W. Bro. Rt. Hon. Barry Lord Farnham, Pro Grand
Master, accompanied by Lady Farnham visited the District.
In 1995 R.W. Bro. Tampi’s 84th birthday was celebrated.
In 1998 during R.W. Bro. Tampi’s eventful tenure, the
foundation stone for the Senior Citizens’ Masonic Village was laid by M.W.
Bro. Lord Cornwallis ably assisted by R.W.D.G.M. and Lord Cornwallis most
graciously permitted the proposed facility to be named after him.
He was succeeded in February 2001 by R.W. Bro. Kumar
Ravindra Nath Menon, who was, until
his installation as DGM, the District Grand Secretary for a period of five years
preceding. R.W.Bro. Menon has
launched the District into the information age by promoting this Website and is
determined to preserve the ancient
landmarks of our order, while giving it modern vestments and more open
communications.
We march forward with confidence towards our third
centennial in this Masonic District of Madras which extends from Hyderabad in
the Deccan to the State of Kerala.
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