The Past Provincial Grand Master of Leicestershire and Rutland RW Bro Derek Buswell celebrated 60 glorious years as a Freemason on 12th April 2018

At the meeting of the Lodge of the Flaming Torch No. 4874, the Provincial Grand Master David Hagger, supported by his Provincial Officers, presented Derek with a certificate celebrating his 60 years continuous service to Freemasonry.

Derek was Initiated into Freemasonry in the Lodge of the Flaming Torch on 10th April 1958 and was its Master in 1971.

He subsequently became Master of the Leicestershire and Rutland Lodge of Installed Masters No. 7896 in 1984 and the Lodge of Research No. 2429 in 1987. Derek was a Founder of the Gayton Taylor Lodge No. 9176 which meets in Leicester in 1986.

He is also an Honorary member of Chetene Lodge No. 9516 in the Province of Northamptonshire and Huntingdonshire and a joining member of of Good Neighbour Lodge No. 8378 in the Province of East Kent.

Derek was appointed Past Assistant Grand Director of Ceremonies at the Craft Annual Investiture in 1986, and was installed as Provincial Grand Master of Leicestershire and Rutland in 1989, continuing for 13 years until 2002.

During this time, Derek oversaw the 2001 Festival for the Grand Charity which raised £1.875 million, Freemasonry in the Community Week, the launch of Leicestershire and Rutland's Provincial website, the launch of the Leicester Square newsletter predecessor Masonic News and the first open day at Freemasons' Hall in Leicester followed by many future modernisations including the installation of stair lifts, a new heating system and the bar in the front lounge.

David Hagger said: 'It was a great pleasure for me as Provincial Grand Master on behalf of the Province to present Derek with a 60 year certificate of service. Derek has had a very distinguished career in Freemasonry, not only in this Province but also Freemasonry in general.

'His dedication to Freemasonry has been second to none. I wish him good health to enjoy many more happy years in Freemasonry.'

This sporting life

At the Installation Meeting of the Leicestershire and Rutland Lodge of Installed Masters No. 7896 on the 8th April 2016 the members and visitors were treated to an informative lecture on Freemasonry and Sport by W Bro Rex Hazeldine of the Lodge of Science and Art No. 8429

W Bro Rex, who trained as a Physical Education teacher and taught, coached, lectured in sport, health and exercise science for many years, highlighted the connections between his two great passions: Freemasonry and sport. He began with the comparisons between the two including the closeness, friendship, reliance on one another as part of a team and are guided, coached, taught by knowledgeable, experienced tutors.

The significant contribution made by Freemasons in establishing historic sports organisation such as the Football Association, Middlesex Cricket Club, Amateur Athletic Association and the Modern Olympic Games. There was also the critical contribution of the Reform Bill of 1832 in expanding schools which lead to 'games' being part of their ethos which was lead by Sir John George Lambton, Pro Grand Master.

W Bro Rex recounted the reasons why Manchester City adopted the light blue colour worn by a Master Mason, when the club, which was founded in 1880, was rescued from bankruptcy in 1894 by local Freemasons who requested the playing strip to be changed from red and black to the colour of a Master Mason.

He also mentioned a range of sports-based lodges including, the Sportsman’s Lodge No. 9440, British Sub-Aqua Lodge No. 8997, Flyfishers’ Lodge No. 9347, Silverstone Lodge No. 9877, Lodge of the Chevaliers de Fer No. 9732, Mike Hailwood Lodge No. 9839, Graham Milton Lodge No. 9796 and the Shotokan Karate Lodge No. 9752.

Special mention was made for lodges meeting in the Province of Leicestershire and Rutland: the Reynard Lodge No. 9285, which was formed by members of Stoneygate and Westleigh Rugby Football Clubs, and the Joey Dunlop Lodge of Mark Master Masons No. 1081 which meets in Lutterworth and was founded for those who are motorcycling enthusiasts.

The brethren were amazed by the number of high profile sportsmen who were Freemasons that had graced their respective sports: football (Alf Ramsey, Stanley Matthews, Jackie Milburn, Don Revie, Ron Greenwood, Sir Stanley Rous) rugby (Don White, Ron Jacobs, Eric Evans, Cliff Morgan), cricket (Len Hutton, Colin Cowdrey, Brian Statham, Clive Lloyd), motorsport (Donald Campbell, Joey Dunlop, Mike Hailwood), martial arts, boxing (Daniel Mendoza, James Figg, Sugar Ray Robinson, Jack Dempsey), and golf (Arnold Palmer).

W Bro Rex said, 'I know from my research that there are few sports in which masonic athletes, coaches and administrators have not made their mark. Freemasonry has contributed to and influenced sport in so many ways and at all levels of participation and performance. In many cases, as I have tried to show, Freemasonry has provided an environment, a value system, a culture which has links and similarities with the world of sport.'

The newly installed Master, W Bro John Peberdy, thanked W Bro Rex on behalf of the brethren, for a very interesting, entertaining and informative talk.

On 30th November 2015, the Leicestershire and Rutland Lodge of Installed Masters No. 7896, which meets at Freemasons’s Hall, Leicester, received a lecture on the ‘Masonic Echoes in Gilbert and Sullivan’ by W Bro David Hughes.

W Bro David is someone rather well qualified to deliver it as not only is he a well known masonic researcher and current Master of the Lodge of Research No. 2429, but he has a long 'performing pedigree' in the Savoy Operas having commenced his on-stage life with them in 1961 at his school in Dudley. He subsequently went on to be a leading member of both the Liverpool and Cambridge University G and S Societies, and later becoming a regular stage director of the Operas in Leicester.

W Bro Hughes began by outlining the masonic careers of both Gilbert and Sullivan. Gilbert originally joined a masonic lodge in Scotland while he was a volunteer officer in Aberdeen, while Sullivan was initiated most appropriately into the Lodge of Harmony No. 255. Both were subsequently exalted into the Royal Arch and perfected in the Ancient and Accepted Rite.

Sadly, the masonic influence on the works of "G and S" have been neglected by their biographers, though most recently the tide seems to have turned in this respect, especially with regard to Sullivan where it is increasingly accepted that his membership of the Craft had an influence on all his output, and certainly assisted in moulding his character and conduct. It must also be remembered that Sullivan was a unique figure in English Freemasonry, being the only holder of Grand Rank as a Rosette appointment – but he did have friends in very high places in the person of the MW Grand Master His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales.

W Bro Hughes demonstrated that there are explicit masonic references in The Grand Duke of 1896, where one character states 'we are all tiled here'. Then in the Song of the Sausage Roll, reference is made to the giving and receiving of signs whereby one brother learns he may fully trust another.

However, it is rather through Gilbert's use of Topsy-Turvey arguments that the allusions become more plain. Gilbert used a dramatic method whereby everything is turned on its head so that it becomes its own opposite. Thus good is bad, bad is good, day is night and night is day, vice is virtue and virtue is vice and so on. By this means Gilbert constructs his satires. In The Grand Duke the Masonic satire hinges on a touring company of actors planning to overthrow a minor German prince. Thus Freemasonry which is most certainly not about the seizure of political power and the advancement of the private interests of its members is turned on its head to become exactly the opposite of itself.

Similarly in Ruddigore of 1887, masonic ritual is parodied both in words and music in telling the tale of a man who is condemned by an ancient curse to commit a crime each day or perish in agony which 'gets worse by degrees', inflicted on him by his ghostly ancestors who form a mock lodge for the purpose of making him make, not a daily advancement in masonic knowledge, but a daily descent into a life of crime and wrongdoing. Once again our beneficial and moral order is turned on its head to become its exact opposite for the purposes of satire.

At the close of the meeting, the Master of the lodge, W Bro Ian Johnson, thanked W Bro Hughes for an enlightening and entertaining talk.

VC Grave Concern charity receives £500 donation

At the Installation meeting of Leicestershire and Rutland Lodge of Installed Masters No. 7896 on Friday 10th April 2015 at Freemasons’ Hall, Leicester, the new Master, W Bro Ian Johnson presented £500 to guest speaker W Bro Granville Angell in support of his charity, VC Grave Concern, which restores and maintains the graves of holders of the Victoria Cross.

W Bro Ian Johnson was Installed by W Bro David Bull and continues the long line of distinguished brethren as Master of this prestigious lodge. At the meeting, the lodge was honoured to welcome W Bro Barrie Percival, Past Assistant Provincial Grand Master, PSGD, as the representative from the Provincial Grand Lodge of Leicestershire and Rutland.

W Bro Ian was initiated into Lodge Semper Eadem No. 3091 in 1995 and became Master in its Centenary year in 2004. He served as Secretary for five years and is presently Director of Ceremonies. He was appointed Provincial Grand Mentor in 2009 and elected Provincial Grand Treasurer in 2011.

W Bro Ian joined the Leicestershire and Rutland Lodge of Installed Masters No. 7896 in 2005 and was appointed Junior Deacon in 2011. Having been a member of the Correspondence Circle since 1998, W Bro Ian became a full member of the Lodge of Research No. 2429 in 2011 and is presently Junior Deacon.

In 2015, W Bro Ian was appointed as a Past Assistant Grand Director of Ceremonies in the United Grand Lodge of England. He is also active in many side degrees, including the Royal Arch and Mark Master Masons.

Installing Master, W Bro David Bull said: 'W Bro Ian brings a wealth of masonic experience to this office and I am sure that under his leadership the lodge will have another rewarding year.'

W Bro Ian was pleased to appoint W Bros John Pebderdy and Anthony Wood as his Senior and Junior Wardens respectively.

After the Installation, W Bro Granville Angell, PAGPurs, who was the Prestonian Lecturer in 2006, gave a very interesting talk entitled Lest We Forget, encapsulating the courage, bravery and resolute self sacrifice with which Freemasons risked their lives in the service of king and country, focusing on those brethren who received the Victoria Cross.

His talk was based on his book The Great War 1914-1918 – Victoria Cross Freemasons which reveals the unique deeds of outstanding valour of the 91 Freemasons gathered by the author's meticulous research in over 17 countries uncovering previously unknown facts.

Top marks for Universities Scheme

It was a special occasion when six students at the University of Buckingham joined Grenville Lodge, No. 1787, which meets on the campus, at the same time. Among the guests at the initiation were Past Assistant Grand Master and President of the Universities Scheme David Williamson and Buckinghamshire PGM Gordon Robertson. Lodge Secretary Andrew Hough said, ‘I am pleased that increasing numbers of people are recognising the advantages of joining Freemasonry, which stresses friendship, decency and charity. It’s also great fun.’

Not to be outdone, Castle of Leicester Lodge, No. 7767, has also undertaken a sextuple initiation ceremony. It was a fitting day for Master Bryan Weston in his final meeting, having initiated 13 brethren in 2014. The lodge has seen a steady influx of candidates since joining the Universities Scheme in January 2013. Indeed, the ceremony came just days after the lodge conducted a quintuple passing in the Leicestershire and Rutland Lodge of Installed Masters, No. 7896.

On Tuesday 11th November 2014, the Castle of Leicester Lodge No. 7767 undertook an historic sextuple initiation ceremony at Freemason’s Hall, Leicester

This was the first time in the lodge’s history that six candidates were initiated in the same ceremony.

In his final meeting as master, W Bro Bryan Weston was in the Chair for the third initiation ceremony of his year in office, having now initiated 13 men into Freemasonry since February 2014.

A multiple ceremony was once again order of the day as Castle of Leicester Lodge has seen a steady influx of candidates since becoming the Universities' Scheme lodge for De Montfort University (DMU) in January 2013. Indeed, this ceremony came just 11 days after the lodge conducted a quintuple passing in the Leicestershire and Rutland Lodge of Installed Masters No. 7896.

The Lodge continues to attract candidates from a wide variety of backgrounds, and on this unique occasion the initiates included students, businessmen, and the retired, all having been attracted to join the Craft either via existing friends in the lodge or after learning more via its social media presence.

The meeting was well supported with 48 in attendance, a dozen of which were guests, including a student member from the Grand Orient of Brazil, who having arrived to study at DMU in September, completed his application on the very same evening in order that he may become a joining member and continue his masonic journey with the United Grand Lodge of England.

David Hagger has been installed as Provincial Grand Master for Leicestershire and Rutland by the Deputy Grand Master, Jonathan Spence. David is a member of the Royal Arch and the Mark, Royal Ark Mariners, Rose Croix and Red Cross of Constantine.

MASONIC CAREER
1972  Initiated, Highcross Lodge No. 4835
2000  Provincial Grand Secretary
2003  WM, Leicestershire & Rutland Lodge of Installed Masters, No. 7896
2005  Assistant Provincial Grand Master
2006  Past Senior Grand Deacon
2007  Deputy Provincial Grand Master
2008  Past Grand Sword Bearer