W. Bro Stan Marut PPrJGD SLGR, of the Provincial Media Team and a member of Temple of Athene Lodge No 9541 the Research Lodge of the Province, considers what has been called clandestine freemasonry.
In a previous article “Freemasons Oppressed” – I alluded to the fact that I had wanted to look at the persecution of freemasonry by fascist and communist regimes in Europe and a renaissance in the post war period and also in Eastern Europe “post perestroika.” Middlesex Lodges have been visited by prominent members of overseas Grand Lodges including the Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of the Czech Republic. Also, there have been visitors from the National Grand Lodge of Romania and more recently a Middlesex Mason originally from North Macedonia was invited to return to his “native land” to attend a special Installation meeting with visitors from other Constitutions in the Balkans – https://middlesexfreemasons.org.uk/freemasons-oppressed/ I wanted to develop the theme of the fall and rise of freemasons in former Soviet Bloc countries. This has now become a work in hand. In the meantime, I have briefly looked at freemasonry in Germany and the existence of a so called clandestine freemasonry which existed in the earlier 20th century which I will come to.
Early Freemasonry In Germany
Freemasonry started in Germany during the second quarter of the Eighteenth century. It seems that were several Grand Lodges which defied all attempts at unification. However, before this there were Germans who were admitted to English freemasonry. Wikipedia will provide some background – “It was only on December 6th, 1737, that the Grand Master’s Deputies of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Electorate of Brandenburg Hamburg founded a lodge. This first German lodge was called Loge d’Hambourg but did not belong to any Grand Lodge. Its second Master went to the London Grand Lodge in 1743 and registered it as Lodge number 108, returning with the title of Provincial Grand Master. Later that year the Lodge was named Absalom zu den drei Nesseln. In 1738 Loge aux trois aigles blancs was founded in Dresden by Count Rutowski. It had such a large intake that two more Lodges emerged from it within two years”.
Freemasonry post-World War One in Germany was problematic with eight Grand Lodges. There is a link to a history of this particular period which can be found at https://skirret.com/papers/weimar.html
Clandestine Freemasonry
However, whilst researching that particular article I came across a short book which had the title “Nazi Clandestine Freemasonry”. The author of the book is an Australian Freemason with a German background, Henning A. Kloverkorn. Needless to say, this intrigued me, and I bought the book straight away. The existence of a “Nazi” freemasonry was perhaps a misnomer and meant to catch the eye. Nevertheless, there did exist for a time what we might call a form of freemasonry in the early 20th Century with its own particular ethos which had an appeal to a narrow group of people and was intended as a competitive alternative to “British Freemasonry”. This Order was called Germanenordern or Thule Society. Kloverkorn was able to access much of the information about the ritual of the Thule Society/Germanenordern from the secret archives of the Nazis in the German Historical Museum in Berlin and his revelation has been called a groundbreaking exposition of the secret initiation ritual of the Thule Society (Germanenorden), a pre-cursor of the National Socialist German Workers Party – Nationalsozialistiche Deutsche Arbeiter Partei. This is the author’s claim, but history books relating to the early 20th century German politics mention the Thule Society. However, my interest was purely in the ritual aspect. Important to say that there was absolutely no amity with UGLE and strictly there was nothing about the Thule Society that was in any way masonic in how we understand and practice our freemasonry in the UK.
Sinister Logo for the Organisation showing the swastika which was later used by Hitler but changed on its axis.
A quick Wikipedia search revealed that “The Thule Society (Thule-Gesellschaft), originally the Studiengruppe für Germanisches Altertum (‘Study Group for Germanic Antiquity’), was a German occultist and Völkisch group founded in Munich shortly after World War I, named after a mythical northern country in Greek legend. The society was notable chiefly as the organization that sponsored the Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (DAP; German Workers’ Party), which was later reorganized by Adolf Hitler into the National Socialist German Workers’ Party (NSDAP or Nazi Party). According to Hitler’s biographer Ian Kershaw, the organization’s “membership list … reads like a Who’s Who of early Nazi sympathizers and leading figures in Munich”, including Rudolf Hess (Deputy Fuhrer, Alfred Rosenberg (Head of the NSDAP Office of Foreign Affairs), Hans Frank (Governor of Auschwitz), Julius Lehmann (German Publisher), Gottfried Feder ( Early key member on NSDAP), Dietrich Eckart (Poet and volkisch poet), and Karl Harrer (founding member of the German Workers’ Party – DAP)”. This shows that the Germanenordern or Thule Society had an appeal to a so called intelligentsia. The critical thing is that this did not make reference to any Abrahamic theology and there is no Kings Solomon ‘s Temple, nor Hiram King of Tyre nor Hiram Abif. Its ethos was entirely derived on the notions of tribalism, nationalism and endogamy; this being the practice of forming close relationships with others of the same ethnicity or caste. This in itself would not have been peculiar to this group. The author states that this organisation used masonic attributes, customs and even nomenclature, including the blindfolding of candidates. This also extended to knocks using a gavel, secret words and grips and also the forming of a chain used in some masonic degrees which we may be familiar with. The knocks given by the Thule “masons” are ..-
But this emulation of freemasonry’s attributes was not confined to this particular Group, and others of a more benign ethos were established e.g., the Independent Order of Foresters, the Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes and others of kindred spirit whose aims were of a benevolent nature.
The Ritual was read, and the WM did most of the work. Henning Klovekorn has given an example of the initiation ceremony, that is the acceptance by the candidate of the rigours of the Order. Below is an example given by the author of part of the Ceremony:
WM: Brother Master of Ceremonies, lead the searchers to Valhalla, open the gates, Odin lead and enlighten them.
The Master of Ceremonies knocks ..-
HEROLD: Who knocks?
MASTER OF CEREMONIES: The Master of Ceremonies with the Searchers.
HEROLD: For what are they searching?
MASTER OF CEREMONIES: They seek initiation into our union of trust, seek truth and wish to nourish authentic brotherly love.
The Candidates who are blindfolded enter the Lodge.
WM Knocks ..-
Then is read a Charge which mentions that the Society is a secret society but with no secrets and exists only to initiate like natured and like-minded blood related Germans to work and serve the German people in the protection and fostering of the indigenous Holy German Religion. And later:
WM: With the blood both positive and negative characteristics are transmitted from generation to generation. As we recognise the German bloodline is superior to any in the world, so we must recognise and act to protect this holy ancestral pedigree”.
There is a lot more but already it is apparent that there is sinister aspect to the ritual which later manifested itself into the horrors of the Third Reich. There is nothing remotely masonic about these sentiments. Later this mind set would become evident in persecution, the sacking and closing of Lodges and interment in concentration camps of freemasons.
The book Nazi Clandestine Freemasonry is available from Amazon – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Nazi-Clandestine-Freemasonry-Initiation-Ritual/dp/B09NPMPPKQ
Before that time there was also another quasi German Masonic organisation going back to the early part of the 19th century in the USA. This organisation named itself Hermann Söhne, or Sons of Hermann. It was a rebuff to the discrimination widely practised against German immigrants at that time. Reputedly, the name “Hermann” was selected when one of the organization’s founders said, in response to the anti-German prejudice, that what was needed was another Hermann, who would conquer the enemies of the Germans. Hermann (the Romans called him Arminius) is a German folk hero, who with his tribal forces, annihilated three Roman legions in the Battle of Teutoberg Forest in 9 A.D. It is said that over 20,000 Roman soldiers lost their lives. To many Germans he also is the symbol of manhood. This quasi masonic organisation had no links to what I earlier called Abrahamic theology and was based on historical events which surely empowered the Germanic people at the time.
As a brief aside, my Uncle “Albert” as he was called was taken from his home in Poland during the second world war to work in Germany. He remained in Germany after the war due to the turmoil in his home country and the “civil war” that was taking place in Poland between the anti-communist forces of the Polish Home Army who had formed the basis of partisan operations against the Nazis and the communist forces loyal to Stalin. He subsequently lived in a street in a town in Nord Rhein Westfalen called Arminius Strasse after the German hero Hermann. Now I have discovered the significance of the name.
Sons of Hermann Masonic History
A quick look at Wikipedia will tell you that “The Order of the Sons of Hermann has a rich history that intertwines with the broader Masonic tradition. Founded in New York City in 1840, the order has grown to include members of various heritage backgrounds and continues to provide mutual aid and insurance and has historically promoted the preservation of the German language and traditions and been involved in various events and organizations, including the Odd Fellows of which it is an offshoot. In 1896 there were Grand Lodges in California, Connecticut, Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington in addition to New York, as well as scattered members in 15 other states with a total membership of 90,000. A German-language account ten years after that mentions affiliates in Canada and in Germany itself. However, renewed anti-German sentiment with the outbreak of World War I led to the order’s sharp decline.”
However, it still exists today in Texas and there is a company named Hermann Sons Life which offers life assurance and pension plans based in San Antonio Texas.
The Ritual
Once again, the ritual has a masonic feel, and the “initiation” ceremony can be found on the internet. It consists of an Obligation as well as signs, tokens and words – https://www.stichtingargus.nl/vrijmetselarij/hermann_r.html
There is a lot more of interest about the tribulations of freemasons in Germany before, during and after the war the likes of which is not within the experience of us as freemasons today in the UK. There is already much to find on the internet using the right search words. Nevertheless, it is a plan to research other aspects of freemasonry and freemasons which have been subject to persecution in the 20th century and present this to members of the Province at some future date.
