HISTORY OF
GREEK FREEMASONRY
1.
The Beginning and Development of Freemasonry in Greece: From the First Lodges to the Establishment of Count Dionysius Roma
In Greece, Greek-speaking lodges began to be founded in 1780, while a similar organization to Freemasonry was founded at the same time in Vienna, under the name of “Good Exadels”. This organisation followed all the Masonic types and aimed at uniting all Christians in the Balkan countries with a view to fighting for their liberation from the Turkish yoke. The great Greek champion of freedom and later Ethnomartyr Regas Feraeus belonged to this organisation.
The Grand Lodge of Greece, the only legislator and director of Freemasonry in Greece, already from the beginning of the 19th century, never ceased to be vigilant for the progress, expansion and flourishing of the Masonic Brotherhood. Its structural constitution came as a natural consequence of the sometimes systematic and sometimes not so systematic operation of many informal and unofficial lodges in the wider Greek area as early as the middle of the 18th century. Its actual establishment should be seen not only as a necessary action for the organisation and coordination of the then existing lodges, but also as a result of the actual maturation of the tectonic phenomenon in the Greek communities.
Although the historical sources indicate that the first lodges of the Eastern Mediterranean must have probably operated in Constantinople and Smyrna, the geographical area in which Freemasonry in Greece was to become established, to develop and to be transformed, acquiring its own, separate and distinct identity, was the turbulent Venetian-occupied Ionian Islands. This development was not unconnected with the social, political and economic life of the Ionian Islands and with the personal activity of Count Dionysius Roma, the person who, through his tireless activity, made Freemasonry in Greece famous and established himself as its true founder.
2.
The Evolution of Freemasonry in Greece in the 19th Century: From the Unification of Lodges to Autonomy
Rome’s nationwide tectonic visions, which became clear as early as the end of the 18th century, were decisively supported by Napoleon’s Imperial Commissioner Mathieu de Lesseps, with whose help he succeeded in consolidating Corfu Freemasonry and bringing it together in 1810 into a single lodge under the name of ‘Bienfaisance et Philogénie Réunis’. The name is indicative of the orientation and objectives that Freemasonry in Greece began to adopt, which was intended not only to be limited to works of public utility, but also to extend its activities to include patriotic activities.
The natal act of the governing authority of Freemasonry in Greece was in 1811, when, on the occasion of the birth of Napoleon’s first son, Romas and other prominent Freemasons travelled to Paris, where they gained the recognition of the Grand Orient of France. Charged by his Masonic brothers to represent them before the French Masonic authorities, Romas filed a petition with the French Grand Orient, requesting the establishment of a United Hellenic Lodge, with its headquarters in Corfu. The request was immediately granted and Freemasonry in Greece acquired an unprecedented institutional status, which allowed it to develop dynamically and take on new dimensions, responding to the circumstances and honouring the esteem in which it was held by its European counterparts.
However, Rome’s success in 1811 did not stop there. The Count returned to the Ionian Islands, with all the relevant tectonic credentials, as well as a special diploma granting him and Mathieu de Lesseps the right to
to establish lodges of their own free will. These developments make it clear that Freemasonry in Greece was now in a position to begin its march towards autonomy. For Hellenic Freemasonry in Greece, 1811 marked not only the de facto institutional organisation and establishment of its administration, but also the beginning of a period in which the Brotherhood was to become firmly established and settled on the principles that would allow Freemasonry in the Ionian Islands to be treated as a purely Greek phenomenon, both in terms of its external characteristics and in terms of the internal content of its aspirations and aims. For reasons of Masonic antiquity, the Grand Lodge of Greece is recognised, on the basis of the above year of foundation, as having the corresponding hierarchical ranking among all the Canonical Grand Lodges, i.e. the Grand Lodge of Greece is one of the oldest Grand Lodges in the world.
3.
The Contribution of Freemasonry to the Greek Revolution and its Development until 1816
In the following years Freemasonry in Greece grew rapidly in the Ionian Islands, and its contribution to the Greek National Uprising was multifaceted and valuable. The ‘Enosis’ Lodge in Lefkada is historic, because it was there that Emmanuel Xanthos became immersed and it was there that he envisioned the idea of founding the ‘Society of Friends’ on a purely Masonic basis. Masons who were at the forefront of the 1821 Revolution included, among others, German of Old Patras, the Ecumenical Patriarch and Ethnic Martyr Gregory V, Theodoros Kolokotronis, Alexander Mavrokordatos, Alexander Ypsilantis, Nikolaos Ypsilantis, Alexander Murouzis, Ioannis Kapodistrias, etc.
On the initiative of the “Great East”, which, with Dionysius Roma as its Grand Master, was operating in Corfu and which contributed much to the struggle for the independence of the Greeks, the Masonic Lodge “Phoenix” was founded in 1811 in Moscow, with the cooperation of Ioannis Kapodistrias and
Alexandros Mavrokordatos. Also, the “Athena” Lodge was founded in Paris and then the “Society of Philomousons” in Vienna and Athens, where Masonic patriots worked, who later joined the “Society of Friends”.
In 1813, again under the auspices of Ioannis Kapodistrias, a Masonic Centre was founded in Paris, under the name of “Hellenoglosson Hotel”, in which Masonic work was closely associated with the secret preparation for the liberation of Greece. It was there that Athanasios Tsakalov, who, on his return to Moscow, also initiated Nikolaos Skoufas. In the same year, Athanasios Tsakalov and Nikolaos Skoufas, together with Emmanuel Xanthos, laid the foundations in Odessa, Russia, for the establishment of a ‘secret society’, which had as its aim the liberation of Greece from the Turks. In this way, on 14 September 1814, the
“Friendly Society” was created, in which numerous distinguished Greek patriots – Masons and non-Masons alike – joined, and who actively contributed, with material and moral means, to the achievement of the Nation’s Palligenesis, while at the same time many European Masonic Lodges offered enough money to achieve this sacred purpose.
In his historical essay on the Society of Friends, John Philemimes states, among other things: ‘The authors of the Society of Freemasons established many rules and applied them diligently to the spirit and passions of the nation’.
Acute and agile, Dionysius of Rome did not rest on French recognition and when the inevitable defeat of Napoleon dictated it, the Ionian Masons approached the new rulers of the area, the British. In this spirit, on 26 April 1816, the administration of Freemasonry in Greece adopted the name of the “Grand Anatolian Grand Orient of Greece” and elected as its Grand Master the holder of the same office of the United Grand Lodge of England, Prince Augustus Frederick, the youngest son of King George III of England and Duke of Sussex. Of particular importance was the election to the office of Additional Grand Master of the jurist, politician and Venerable Grand Master of the Bienfaisance et Philogénie Réunis Lodge, Angelos Halikiopoulos, who was invited to lead Freemasonry in Greece until 1823, when the Duke of Sussex formally accepted the title conferred on him, retaining it until his death in 1843.
4.
The Action of Freemasonry during the Greek Revolution and its Development after 1843
The Greek Revolution for independence did not find Freemasonry indifferent. Far from it; the Greater East of Greece took dynamic action, nurturing freedom fighters, propagating the positions of the Greek cause in Europe, and creating communication networks that carried information from both friendly powers and the enemy camp. Many of the organisers and fighters of the Greek Revolution held Masonic status or were associated with the Masonic circles of the time, while the leadership of Freemasonry in Greece limited its involvement in spiritual and philosophical pursuits and threw itself with sincere passion into the fire of war, offering resources, guidance and inspiration.
In the now independent Greek State, Freemasonry soon took root, as is attested by the operation of several lodges working throughout the country in the mid-19th century. However, with the loss of the great personalities, the fathers of Greek Freemasonry and the death of the Grand Master himself, the Grand Anatolian movement was doomed to decline. Of course, despite the fateful decentralization, developments proved that the Masonic phenomenon had taken root in Greek reality. Proof of this was that during this period, the lodges gradually adopted the Greek language and translated their formalities into Greek.
In 1843 the Great East ceased to function. But twenty years later, in 1863, a regular Masonic Lodge was founded in Athens under the name
“Panhellenic”, with the approval and under the auspices of the Grand Anatolian of Italy. Subsequently, other regular lodges were founded: the “Poseidonia” in Piraeus, the “Skoufas” in Chalkida, the “Archimedes” in Patras, the “Leonidou Poids” in Syros, the “Rigas Feraios” in Lamia, the “Progress” in Argos, etc.
These seven lodges were united in the year 1864 and asked the Grand Anatolian of Italy for permission to establish the independent Grand Anatolian of Greece. However, the Grand Orient of Italy refused, and only allowed the establishment of a Supreme Masonic Directorate in Athens, under its auspices, under the leadership of Professor Nikolaos Damaskinos of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and with the support of the academic and politician Dimitrios S. Mavrokordatos and the politician Spilios-Spyridon Antonopoulos.
This triumvirate, with Professor Ioannis Papadakis as an alternate member, worked decisively for the revival of the Brotherhood and hastened to found new lodges. The catalytic action of the new administration changed the facts and soon, in 1867, the Grand Orient of Italy recognized the independence of Freemasonry in Greece, at the head of which the new “Grand Orient of Greece” was formed in 1868, which, with the revision of the Masonic Constitution in 1936, was renamed the “Grand Lodge of Greece”.
This new body delayed in electing its Grand Master, as it found it necessary to find a figure of great emigration to take the chair. The most suitable candidate was Dimitrios Rodokanakis, whose origin and high international prestige made him ideal for the office. Rodokanakis was invited from Great Britain to Greece and soon proved himself worthy of the reputation that accompanied him. The highly active new head of Freemasonry in Greece travelled in person for eight months throughout the country and visited the living lodges, in order to identify their pathologies and to foster a climate of unanimity and unanimity among the Greek Freemasons. Shortly thereafter, on October 22, 1872, at the first Grand General Assembly of the Grand Anatolian Order of Greece, Rhodokanakis was elected unanimously as the first Grand Master. Two days later Rodokanakis constituted the “Supreme Hellenic Council of the 33rd Degree”, which he took charge of as “Supreme Grand Brigadier”, making himself the only person in the history of Freemasonry in Greece, who served at the same time as Prefect of both the Council and Freemasonry of the elevated Masonic degrees of the Scottish Press.
5.
The Evolution of Freemasonry in Greece until 1989
By the dawn of the 20th century, Freemasonry in Greece had to face a number of difficult circumstances. The Freemasons were several times targeted by extreme conservative circles, while internal issues arose which almost obscured the spiritual work of the Brotherhood. Nevertheless, it would not be right, but rather unfair, to mark the course of Freemasonry from the mid-19th century to the first quarter of the 20th century as a period of inactivity. Through adversity, Freemasonry in Greece was steeled and, above all, crystallised, settling into its structure, character and identity. Throughout these difficult years, the Great East and then the Grand Lodge of Greece made Athens the undisputed centre of Greek Freemasonry, while always maintaining close relations with the periphery, securing numerous international recognitions and establishing its spiritual teachings and the content of its rituals. At the same time, it definitively established its administrative and operational system, clearly separating the leadership of Conciliar Freemasonry, consisting of the ranks of Disciple, Partner and Master, from the augmented ranks of the Secret Master (4th) to the Supreme Grand Inspector General (33rd), which would henceforth be under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge and the Supreme Council, respectively.
The constant state of war in Greece in the first decades of the 20th century did not find the Masonic world unmoved, which was quick to reinforce the national struggles. In the midst of these turbulent years, the then Grand Anatolian and later Grand Lodge of Greece, developed and presented a great social work, while some of the country’s most prominent personalities graced the Lodges under its auspices. This development was crowned by its administrative strengthening and reorganization, which led to the establishment of the Masonic Foundation in 1928 and its final renaming as the Grand Lodge of Greece in 1936. On the other hand, participation in the defence of the ideals of the homeland came at a heavy price, with the Grand Lodge suffering, together with the whole of Greek society, under the harsh German occupation and being forced to leave the building in which it was housed and to compulsorily cease its operation, for the only time in history, during the period 1941-1945.
In later years, Freemasonry in Greece succeeded in healing the wounds inflicted by the Second World War and entered a phase of restructuring and general flourishing. After the war and with the restoration of peace, Greek Freemasonry was reconstituted and gradually developed a high level of spiritual work. In this context, the Masonic Bulletin ‘Pythagoras’, which was first published in 1882 and since then has changed its titles until 2023, when the first issue of what is now the Masonic Bulletin ‘Gnomes’ was published. On 3 March 1945, the first post-war meeting of the Grand Council of the Grand Lodge of Greece was convened and the consolidation of the Masonic body and the resumption of the work of the Lodges was planned.
Soon, the administration of Freemasonry in Greece moved to its headquarters, in the two-storey building that was then purchased at the junction of Acharnon and Surmelis streets in Athens, and in its place the magnificent Masonic Hall of Athens was erected, in fulfilment of the goals of the founders of the Masonic Foundation in 1928, where it is housed to this day.
During this period, under the guidance of the Grand Master Alexandros Tzazopoulos, the structure and content of the Masonic rites were finalized, while the social contribution of Greek Freemasonry experienced the extraordinary expansion that established its charitable character, which the Grand Lodge of Greece honours to this day. Freemasonry in Greece was quick to respond to the needs of a Greek society beset by external and internal conflicts, political upheavals and economic hardship. The foundation of the night schools of secondary education ‘Melis’ and ‘Phoenix’, and the children’s hospital ‘The Theotokos’, as well as the dynamic support of the work of the ‘Hellenic Anti-Cancer Society’ and the ‘S.O.S. Association’.
The creation and operation of a special Guest House called “Guest House and Patient Care Home” in Kato Kifissia was a great work of the brilliant Masons, Alexandros Tzazopoulou and Georgios Katsafadou, for cancer patients who came from the Greek Province and lacked the means of residence in Athens, in order to undergo special treatment in the two large Anti-Cancer Hospitals,
“Agios Savas” and “Metaxas”. This hostel was in time extended to a new building complex, equipped, staffed with medical and nursing personnel and operated as a single cancer hospital under the name ‘Agii Anargyroi’ until 1986. Since then it has been integrated into the National Health System and operated as the ‘General Prefectural Oncological Hospital of Kato Kifissia’.
6.
The Modern Evolution of Freemasonry in Greece
In May 1989, the blood donation offer that had been started, but had been dormant during the time of Grand Master Alexandros Tzazopoulos, was revived. Since 1989, the institution of Voluntary Blood Donation was established by the Brothers of Athens and Piraeus, on the initiative of the then Venerable of the “Byzantion” Lodge, Brother Costis Dimitriadis, and since then, blood donations have been made twice a year, in May and December, for the benefit of children suffering from Mediterranean Anemia.
In 1995, the Masonic Foundation donated a modern, fully equipped “Mobile Blood Collection Unit” to the Aghia Sophia Children’s Hospital in order to cover the hospital’s blood collection needs more fully. The result has been spectacular since the acquisition of the Mobile Unit, which is marketed under the sign “DONATION OF THE TECTOR’S INSTITUTION”, has increased the total annual number of blood units offered.
By May 2023, 64 blood donations have been carried out under the supervision of the Aghia Sophia Children’s Hospital, which manages the blood units (bottles) offered, and in total more than 15,000 bottles of blood have been collected.
The Masonic Foundation is in constant contact with the National Transplant Agency, where dozens of Masons have been registered as organ donors, together with their family members. Since 2014, with the “Contributors” Association, founded by brothers of the Byzantine Lodge, who have been pioneers in spreading the idea of donation in general and, more specifically, its highest expression, which is the selfless donation of human body grafts for the benefit of our fellow human beings and bone marrow transplantation.
In 1976, the second major Masonic type was introduced in Greece, that of York, which since 1993 has been under the auspices of the Grand Lodge of Greece. In the aftermath of the upheaval that followed from mismanagement, in 1986, Masons from six normally affiliated lodges disaffiliated the Grand Lodge of Greece and subsequently formed a new body, under the name of the ‘National Grand Lodge of Greece’. Despite the legal establishment and temporary recognition of this body, it has become internationally clear that the criteria for tectonic regularity and recognition have never been met. The ‘National Grand Lodge of Greece’ was established on its own in a territory where the Grand Lodge of Greece existed, duly established and legally established since 1811, as the sole Tectonic Authority. This fact is not accepted by the internationally established, ancient tectonic tradition and boundary laws and is expressly prohibited by the fact that another Grand Lodge already existed in the geographical area of Greece.
The efforts, motivated by altruistic motives, to reunite the brothers of the “National Grand Lodge of Greece” through a merger by absorption into one Grand Lodge in 2019 proved fruitless, however, the Grand Lodge of Greece is still hopeful that the gap created by these few new brothers who do not draw a mental succession from the mother Grand Lodge and feel that they belong to another foreign body, will one day be bridged and the value code of sincere brotherly love of the Masons throughout the world will prevail, overcoming any malicious or selfish obstacle.
7.
Contemporary Situation and Humanitarian Work of the Grand Lodge of Greece
Today, the Grand Lodge of Greece of the Ancient Free and Accepted Freemasons, as it is called by a 1988 decision, with 120 lodges throughout the Greek Territory (and Masonic Jurisdiction) under its auspices, remains the dominant administrative entity of the ancient Greek Freemasonry. At this point it should be noted that unfortunate events that scandalized the Masonic body in 2015 acted as a catalyst for the administrative and economic restructuring and modernization of the Grand Lodge of Greece, a process that had already begun in 2013. Following a complete overhaul of all its organisational structures, the Grand Lodge of Greece has installed a modern and integrated computerised system for the secretarial, accounting and fiscal operation of its entities, with systematic internal control, thus implementing a system of sound and sound financial management under conditions of absolute transparency.
The governing bodies of the Grand Lodge of Greece, maintaining excellent relations with the Tectonic powers of the succeeding degrees and enjoying the highest esteem, respect and recognition of more than 200 Grand Lodges around the world, continue to offer extremely important humanitarian work for Greek society, but also protect in every way and from every malicious action the Greek Masons, strengthening their efforts for the moral and spiritual improvement of themselves and the whole of humanity and guiding them on the paths of Virtue, Morality and Justice.