The Origin of Freemasonry: The 1717 Theory Exploded (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798242834170)

Is Freemasonry a Modern Invention or an Ancient Order?

For years, critics and historians have rallied around the "1717 Theory"-the controversial claim that Speculative Masonry was fabricated by Dr. Desaguliers and Dr. Anderson during the founding of the Grand Lodge of England. In this trenchant and rigorously researched volume, Brother Chalmers I. Paton dismantles this hypothesis piece by piece, exposing it as historically baseless and logically flawed.

Paton argues that if the 1717 theory were true, the founders of modern Masonry would be nothing more than "consummate rascals" who perpetrated a motiveless fraud upon the world. Instead, he presents a compelling case for the fraternity's deep antiquity, drawing on a wealth of overlooked evidence:

• The Diaries of Elias Ashmole: Proving the existence of speculative lodges seventy years before the alleged "invention."

• The Scottish Charters: Revealing the hereditary patronage of the St. Clairs of Roslin dating back to the 15th century.

• The Locke Letter: Unearthing a manuscript attributed to Henry VI that speaks of a brotherhood already ancient in his time.

• The German Steinmetzen: Tracing the unbroken lineage of the craft from medieval guilds back to the Roman Collegia.

The Origin of Freemasonry is more than a defense of the Order's history; it is a restoration of its dignity. Paton invites the reader to look beyond the skeptics and rediscover a system of morality and brotherhood that has endured not for centuries, but for millennia.

"A definitive refutation of modern skepticism... Paton proves that the roots of the Craft run far deeper than the Apple-Tree Tavern."