Knights & Freemasons

The Birth of Modern Freemasonry.

Edited by Michael R. Poll

Foreword by S. Brent Morris 

Legendary Masonic authors, Albert Mackey and Albert Pike take us on an amazing adventure from the days of the Crusades and the Knights Templar to the creation of modern Speculative Freemasonry in a collection of inspiring papers. Includes the rare, The Order of the Temple by Albert Pike.

Reviews

“Brother Poll is well known in scholarly Masonic circles as a writer, editor, and publisher. Dr. Morris is, of course, the editor of the Journal and of Heredom, the transactions of the Scottish Rite Research Society. His foreword is excellent, a clear capsulation of the historic and traditional approaches to Freemasonry and how great men change their opinions as their knowledge and understanding change. And the concept of the book is brilliant (wish I had thought of it): bring two of the greatest thinkers and students Masonry has ever produced into the same room (so to speak) and let them slug it out by seeing what each had to say on the topic.In this case, the topic is the Knights Templar and the origins of Masonry. We put this under the something old heading, because neither the question nor the opinions of Pike and Mackey are new. But the approach is, and I find new insights just in the juxtaposition. This is a good and comfortable book, crafted in an age when men knew words should glow like jewels in their settingsand both Pike and Mackey were master jewelers.”

–Jim Tresner,
The Scottish Rite Journal

“This is a good book to read and to have on hand in your library. The scholarship is excellent, and the work that went into compiling the information must have taken quite some time. What Brother Poll has done is to pose the question of what did Albert Pike and Albert Mackey have to say on the origin of Freemasonry? And then he proceeded to find the answer to his question by searching out their writings and compiling what they wrote so that we, decades later, can read their thoughts on this question without searching all this out for ourselves. By him doing this he saves us much time and effort even if we have all the writings of Pike and Mackey in our libraries, which most Masonic students don’t; because of the difficulty in locating the used volumes and then the cost of purchasing them. Brother Poll has hit on a great idea and I can see him doing this with other questions and possibly other writers from the past as well.
This book has the forward written by our good Brother S. Brent Morris, who is one of the best Masonic Scholars we have in Masonry today.
In this book you will find interesting information on the Crusades, the Knights Templar, and many names connected with the Templars you will recognize and enjoy learning about. This book also has information on the organization of the Grand Lodge of England and the transition from Operative to Speculative Freemasonry.
I think you will like reading this book, and I recommend it to every serious Masonic Student. It is not what I would call light reading, but it is well worth the time it takes to read. I can see using this book off and of for a reference book for years to come.”

Fraternally,
–Ed Halpaus
Grand Lodge Education Officer
The Grand Lodge of MN

Available at Kindle