Freemasons Hall, in between Holborn and Covent Garden, is one of the finest Arts Deco building in England. The headquarters of the United Grand Lodge in England, which were built between 1927 and 1932 as a memorial to the freemasons who died during World War II, are fully open to the public.
A few things to know about Freemasons Hall
- Freemasons Hall is the main meeting place for Masonic lodges in London. It houses 22 masonry temples, including the imposing Grand Temple (capacity: 1,700 seats), which can be visited five times per day. Its mosaic ceiling is decorated with masonry symbols and with the four cardinal virtues -Prudence, Restraint, Courage and Justice- as well as with the arms of Prince Arthur, the youngest son of Queen Victoria, Grand Master from 1901 to 1939.
- The Freemasons Hall library which doubles up as a museum, is also open to the public, from Monday to Friday (10am until 5.00pm). The library stores a collection of masonry objects, such as pieces of furniture, clocks, jewellery, porcelain and currency, as well as items that belonged to famous English Freemasons, including Winston Churchill and the actor Peter Sellers.
- Freemasons Hall is a favourite with production companies, who frequently use the space for video clips, television series or movies (notably Basic Instinct 2). Freemasons Hall can also be hired for events such as film premieres (King Kong) and fashion shows (Julian MacDonald). The Grand Temple is also often used as a concert venue for its excellent acoustics.
Freemasons Hall: 60 Great Queen Street, WC2B (Covent Garden, Holborn)
Some facts on English freemasonry
- Considered as one of the most secret societies in the world, Freemasonry was founded in London in 1717 and has around 6 million members today, of which 330,000 are in England and 150,000 in Scotland and Ireland.
- Its teachings are based on the rules of the Book of Constitution which written in 1723, which promotes the existence of a “Supreme Being” and humanist principles inspired by Enlightenment philosophers.
- Since 2001 the English Freemasons have adopted a policy of openness towards the wider public. The Grand Lodge organised a charity marathon for its members in 2002, who were wearing t-shirts proclaiming “I am a Freemason”. For the past two years, they have led a recruitment campaign within universities, aiming to reduce the average age of the organisation.
- Five British monarchs (George IV, William IV, Edward IV and Edward VIII and George VI) were freemasons. Prince Edward -Duke of Kent and first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II- has been Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of England since 1967, a title that his father also held before him. A lodge was created in 2008 in Buckingham Palace to regroup all the Freemasons who live and work in Royal Palaces.
