The History of Freemasonry in France: From its Origins to the Present Day

The Grand Orient of France (GODF), the oldest French Masonic obedience and the largest in continental Europe, receives the President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron, this Wednesday, November 8, on the occasion of these 250 years. Freemasonry, born on the eve of the French Revolution, has gone through the different regimes of French History and experienced several upheavals.

17th century: the emergence of Freemasonry

Heir to the masons’ guilds of the Middle Ages, Freemasonry began to take its current form from the 17th century, when in the United Kingdom, masons’ lodges accepted members from outside the profession. Members come together around shared ideas, such as “religious tolerance and the study of nature”.

The first lodges appeared in France around 1725, in a liberal and Anglophile context that appeared under the Regency, and initially only affected the aristocracy. Masonry then spread throughout France.

1773: the birth of the Grand Orient of France

While lodges are present in all major French cities, the general assembly of masonry has a common center and a recognized authority. It created a Grand Orient de France and introduced several major changes including the election of lodge officers and the representation of all lodges.

Count Louis-Philippe d’Orléans, the same one who voted for the death of King Louis XVI, took the lead. Masonic lodges “will naturally play a role in the events of 1789”assures the GODF on its site: “ We find Masons in all the debates, and in all camps, of the French Revolution. However, they are over-represented among the Girondins. »

1877: absolute freedom of conscience

In 1877, the Grand Orient removed the obligation for its members to refer to “the existence of God” and to “the immortality of the soul”. “This obligation of a religious nature was no longer respected in practice at a time when the intellectual elites were deeply marked by the philosophical agnosticism of Auguste Comte”explains the GODF on its site.

By adopting as a principle absolute freedom of conscience and by not imposing any belief or religion on its members, French masonry becomes “liberal” or “adogmatic”. It stands out from other lodges in the world which advocate belief in God.

Another contribution of modernity, the Grand Orient of France created in 1893 an obedience welcoming men and women on an equal footing.

1940: anti-Masonic laws

During the 20th century, the lodges supported the anticlerical policy led by the Third Republic, notably the expulsion of congregations in 1901 then the surveillance of Catholic officers revealed in the index card affair in 1904. French masonry then supported the various movements socialists, notably the Spanish Republicans or the Italian Democrats who refuse fascism.

Also, during the establishment of the Vichy regime, the Grand Orient, which then had 30,000 members, was largely identified with the Republic. It was dissolved by government decree in August 1940. Many masons were excluded from public service. Some are even hunted by the Gestapo. Masons joined the Resistance, particularly in the “Combat”, “Libération” and “Franc-Tireur” networks.

Post-war: refoundation

At the end of World War II, the GODF had fewer than 7,000 members. It gradually rebuilt itself from the 1950s and moved more to the left of the political spectrum. In May 68, he supported the student and worker movements. He also defends secularism at school.

“Today, the Grand Orient brings together more than 50,000 members registered in more than 1,390 lodges”according to the organization’s website.