Three Thousand Years
The Grand Timeline
From Solomon's quarry to the open web — every link in the chain that bound us into Brotherhood.
- 01
957 BCE
King Solomon dedicates the First Temple
The legendary cradle of the Craft. Hiram of Tyre furnishes the cedar; Hiram Abiff is appointed Master of the Work.
- 02
586 BCE
First Temple destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar
Begins the Babylonian Captivity — the dispersion that seeds esoteric knowledge across the ancient world.
- 03
516 BCE
The Second Temple is completed
The labour celebrated in the Royal Arch degree.
- 04
70 CE
Second Temple destroyed by Titus
The Western Wall remains as the most sacred relic of Israel and a symbol echoed in every Lodge.
- 05
c. 1119
The Knights Templar founded in Jerusalem
Nine knights vow to protect pilgrims; over two centuries they amass wisdom from the Holy Land that legend says passes into the operative guilds.
- 06
1307
Templars suppressed by Philip IV of France
Many flee to Scotland under Robert the Bruce — providing one of the legendary roots of Scottish Freemasonry.
- 07
c. 1390
The Regius Manuscript written
The oldest known document of the Craft; a poem of 794 verses outlining the duties of operative Masons.
- 08
c. 1410
The Cooke Manuscript written
The second-oldest Masonic constitution, the source of much later ritual.
- 09
1646
Elias Ashmole initiated at Warrington
Earliest verified record of a non-operative ('speculative') Mason — the seed of modern Freemasonry.
- 10
1717
Premier Grand Lodge of England formed
Four London lodges unite at the Goose & Gridiron Tavern on St John the Baptist's Day. Modern Freemasonry begins.
- 11
1723
Anderson's Constitutions published
The first printed code of Masonic law; sets the religious neutrality and moral universality of the Craft.
- 12
1730
Prichard's 'Masonry Dissected' published
The first widely circulated exposure of the ritual — provoking a generation of further refinement.
- 13
1733
First American Lodge in Boston
St John's Lodge chartered in Massachusetts; the Craft enters the New World.
- 14
1752
George Washington initiated at Fredericksburg, VA
The first American president takes his EA degree on November 4; he will lay the cornerstone of the U.S. Capitol in full Masonic regalia in 1793.
- 15
1775
Prince Hall raised at African Lodge No. 1
The first African-American Freemason; founder of the Prince Hall jurisdiction that today numbers over 300,000 members.
- 16
1801
Supreme Council 33° founded in Charleston, SC
The Mother Council of the World; origin of the modern Scottish Rite.
- 17
1813
United Grand Lodge of England formed
The 'Antients' and 'Moderns' reconcile; the modern UGLE — mother lodge of much of the world — is born.
- 18
1843
Robert Morris founds Order of the Eastern Star
Adoptive degrees opened to women relatives of Master Masons.
- 19
1870
Shriners International founded in NYC
The fun-loving philanthropic arm of the Craft, by Walter Fleming and William Florence.
- 20
1882
Maria Deraismes initiated in France
Birth of Le Droit Humain — the first international mixed-sex Masonic obedience.
- 21
1922
First Shriners Hospital opens in Shreveport, LA
The Craft's greatest gift to the world's children begins its 100-year miracle.
- 22
1957
George Washington Masonic Memorial dedicated
Built by every Grand Lodge of the U.S. atop Shooter's Hill, Alexandria — the cathedral of American Masonry.
- 23
1989
PHA recognized by mainstream Grand Lodges
Beginning of the long reconciliation between mainstream and Prince Hall jurisdictions, finally achieved across most of the U.S. by the 2010s.
- 24
2017
UGLE celebrates 300 years
Three centuries of the modern Craft commemorated at the Royal Albert Hall before 4,000 Brethren.
- 25
2026
The Financial Masonic Temple consecrated
Grand Architect Matthew Jared Smith opens the Temple of Wealth Through Wisdom — the universal Masonic chamber on the open web.