The Freemasons

To the layman, the Freemasons are a mysterious brotherhood. This book separates truth from myth. Follows the development of Freemasonry from the original Ôfreestone masons' -- carvers who were the elite of the skilled labor force -- through to its position today. Includes: the Ôgentlemen masons' & speculative lodges of the 18th cent., formation of the Grand Lodge in London in 1717, & the Papal Bull of 1738 condemning Freemasonry, which was the beginning of a 250-year war between the Freemasons & the Catholic Church. Details the role of the Freemasons in the Amer. Revol., their responsibility for the French Revol. & their persecution by the Nazis. Considers whether they will be able to adapt to modern developments in the 21st-cent. world.