The Sunday Telegraph

Why did so many Freemasons win the Victoria Cross?

- Roadshow Antiques Freemasons, Inside the

the day with 27 officers and 1,002 rank and file. Twentyfour hours later, 16 officers and 304 men survived. Six were awarded the Victoria Cross and secured their place in history as the “six before breakfast” heroes. But what is far less well known is that three of them – Captain Richard Willis, Major Cuthbert Bromley and Lance Corporal John Grimshaw – were Freemasons.

They are among 64 of the 628 recipients of the Victoria Cross during the First World War who, according to new research, were part of this secretive group.

The VC was created in 1856 to commend acts of valour following the Crimean War. It remains Britain’s highest military honour. Over the intervenin­g century and a half, there have been 1,354 awarded – the majority to soldiers of the Great War.

The number of Freemason recipients has taken years to uncover. Now, on April 25, a memorial to them will be unveiled outside Freemasons’ Hall in London – the site of the United Grand Lodge of England – by its Grand Master, the Duke of Kent. The impressive art deco hall was opened in 1933 in tribute to the fallen. A roll of honour bearing the names of some 3,000 Freemasons who died during the conflict already occupies pride of place. But the full extent of their bravery has never previously been revealed. “It’s very easy to find somebody who won the VC and very difficult to find out if they were a mason,” says historian Mark Smith, a medals expert and regular, who has been a Freemason for 15 years. He thinks the fact so many Freemasons received the VC is down to “the type of person who wants to become one. They are friendly and generous people, who have a sense of responsibi­lity.” The secretive society is having a bit of a moment: 2017 marks the 300th anniversar­y of the United Grand Lodge of England, and this month a new five-part documentar­y series,

airs on Sky. It was 1717 when a group of men got together at the Goose and Gridiron Tavern in St Paul’s Churchyard and agreed to establish the first Grand Lodge. It was to be non-sectarian and socially egalitaria­n. They took as their guiding metaphor the trade of stonemason­ry, hence the symbols of Freemasonr­y – the square, compass and apron.

The popularity of Freemasonr­y waxed and waned, peaking in the aftermath of the world wars. In the three years following the First World War, 350 lodges were establishe­d in England alone. Nowadays, the United Grand Lodge of England has 200,000 members, while those in Scotland and Ireland have some 150,000 – with millions more across the world.

As I sit with Brigadier Willie Shackell, 75, the Grand Secretary, in Freemasons’ Hall, he assures me there is nothing untoward. Yes, there are handshakes (different depending on seniority), rolled-up trousers and blindfolde­d initiation ceremonies, but he insists what they get up to is as normal as you would find down the local Conservati­ve Club. Men – and it is mostly men, despite two Grand Lodges for women – join for camaraderi­e, he says.

According to Shackell, who spent 34 years in the Army and has been a Freemason since he was 21, the new VC research displays the best elements of masonry: self-sacrifice and honour. “But there are still people who won’t publicly say they are Freemasons because they are worried about their employment. And if someone is against us, then it’s difficult to convince them otherwise.”

Shackell became involved in the VC project last June. The story that left the greatest mark on him, is that of stretcher bearer Thomas Edward Rendle, who rescued fallen comrades from a trench blasted by enemy howitzers in 1915. “He brought people back over a 24-hour period by lying on his back, putting his feet under their arms and pulling them to safety,” he says.

It is only fitting that such bravery will now never be forgotten.

 ??  ?? Brigadier Willie Shackell, Grand Secretary of United Grand Lodge of England
Brigadier Willie Shackell, Grand Secretary of United Grand Lodge of England
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