"Research is a delight," enthused Professor Andrew Prescott, Director of the Centre for Masonic Research at the University of Sheffield, " it was one of the attractions of taking the job; a major attraction. And," he added, "the Great Queen Street library is so beguiling that I could disappear into it for several years."
    Most academics had no idea that the largely untapped resources of the library of United Grand Lodge of England in Great Queen Street was available to them, let alone the treasures contained in provincial masonic libraries. Worse, they had little idea of the influence of Freemasonry on British society over the centuries. The recently opened Centre for Masonic Research at the University of Sheffield aims to change all this. Its first task is to establish Freemasonry as a subject of legitimate academic enquiry.
    Freemasonry has long been ignored by academics. Could this be deliberate? Professor Prescott demurs: "The more I look at it, I am aware that it has disappeared, not from sinister reasons, but from neglect." Academic historians were put off: there was the feeling that Freemasonry was not an historical issue; that the Library of United Grand Lodge of England was private and inaccessible; that one should be on the `inside’ to understand it. "But," stresses Professor Prescott, "a major factor is the lack of basic bibliographical aids of Freemasonry."
    A primary task of the Centre will be to address this lack. It will develop thematic and critical bibliographies – to inform scholars about references useful in particular areas. An introductory bibliography of Freemasonry will be up on the Centre’s website soon.

Masonic Scholarship

One of the problems of masonic scholarship, he explained, has been that while thorough, it is highly antiquarian, not anchored in the broader historical problems. It has been too focussed upon internal masonic matters with a particular obsession with origins. Rather, "historians frame questions of enquiry and then they look for how Freemasonry sheds light on these problems".
    Professor Prescott gave as an example, the Old Charges: he is particularly interested by these: for twenty years he was a curator in the department of manuscripts in the British Library, specialising in medieval historical manuscripts, chronicles and charters. Much work has been done by masonic historians on the categorisation of the many manuscripts of the Old Charges, "but", he adds, "there is hardly any discussion of how these Old Charges connect with what was happening with the guilds at the time."
    "The Old Charges, I think, can be placed in the tensions evident amongst the guilds in the 1380s and 1390s. There were serious disputes at the time between the journeymen – who wanted more power in the movement - and the masters." This tension contributed to the revolt of 1381.
    One of the major themes in British history in which Freemasonry has an important contributing role to play is in the study of the development of the concept of `Britishness’, which developed after the union of 1707. Academics have argued over the means by which this occurred and whether there were, in fact, any national institutions with strong provincial organisations which contributed. One of the few, was Freemasonry.
    The latter’s organisational structure was perhaps unique. It was disciplined centrally but with provincial organisations maintaining good record keeping and communications back to the centre. This eased the spread and maintenance of masonic ideals with the subsequent social influence. "Freemasons hold an important part of our cultural inheritance. We need more professionals to deal with it."
    Professor Prescott is rapidly extending the dialogue on Freemasonry within the academic community. Academics are becoming aware that they have missed something important. At a recent conference in Norway, Professor Prescott spoke to around 500 delegates on Freemasonry and the neglect of this cultural heritage. He reported an enormous and enthusiastic response.
    At the Centre, Professor Prescott needs first to build up an infrastructure and library resources, in addition, he is bringing academic speakers to Sheffield and aims to produce material addressing broader issues.
    Professor Prescott is not a Freemason; so has he obtained full access to material? And has he gained the specialist knowledge necessary to analyse it? "Freemasons have been so enthusiastic, and the Great Queen Street Library so supportive, that it has not been such a personal learning curve as I expected," he replied, adding that the agreement between the University and United Grand Lodge of England gives him the same access to documents as if he were a Freemason.
    But could there be a danger that masonic rituals might become cheapened in some way through scholarly analysis? This question does not need to be confronted for a long time yet: "There is so much at an historical level to be dealt with that there is no need to get into technicalities such as rituals."
    This Centre at Sheffield is clearly important. While it has funds for the next three years its long-term future is not yet secure. The Masonic community needs to put this important Professorial Chair onto a permanent basis.

Website for the Centre for Research into Freemasonry: www.shef.ac.uk/~crf.