History

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By the Right Worshipful Sir John Hill, Early Grand Master; Sir James Mearns, Deputy Early Grand Master; Sir William War, Captain General; Sir John Lawor, Grand Marshall; and Sir John Rogers, Standard-Bearer.

WHEREAS, our faithful and well beloved brethren, Sirs Knights Ferguson, Kelso, Henry and Mitchell, have besought us that we would empower them to form and establish an Encampment of High Knights Templars, and Knights of Malta, in the town of Kilmarnock in the County of Ayr. Therefore, duly weighting the Premises, and desirous to promote the Harmony and Union for which these Magnanimous and invincible Orders were originally instituted; and being convinced of the Fortitude and Skill of the above Sir Knight Companions, of whose valour and intrepidity we have had sufficient and amazing Trials: Do by this our Warrant Authorise and Commission them to hold an Encampment of High Knights Templars, to be held by them and their Successors, duly elected, agreeable to the Regulations of our Early Grand Encampment, with powers to make such private Laws, Rules and Orders, as from time to time they may deem necessary for the well-being and ordering of their Encampment. Reserving to ourselves and Successors, the Early Grand Master and Officers of the Early Grand Encampment of Ireland, the sole right of deciding all differences which shall be brought by Appeal before us.

In witness whereof we have put our Hands and Triangular Seal of our Encampment. Given in Dublin in the year of Masonry, 5810, and of Grace, 1810.

(Signed) JOSEPH HILL, E.G. Secretary

Renewed this Twentieth day of September, Eighteen Hundred and Seventy-Three.

(Signed) JAMES POLLOCK, E.G.C., Scotland

Confirmed and Granted to Glasgow by the E.G. E. of Scotland, 1873.

ENDORSEMENT:

I do hereby certify that this warrant has been legally renewed and granted to the City of Glasgow in the County of Lanark and entered on the Books of the Grand Encampment of Scotland.

(Signed) D.SPENCE, Grand Secretary.

ENDORSEMENT:

EDINBURGH, 15th September, 1909.

It is hereby declared that this Encampment does now hold of and under the Great Priory of the Religious and Military Order of the Temple and Malta in Scotland, in terms of the deed of Amalgamation of date 3rd April, 1909; and shall henceforth be governed, and be entitled to work in conformity with the Statutes of that Order; and that it is now and shall in future be known by the name of Glasgow St. John Preceptory; the Priory of Malta connected therewith, being named Glasgow St. John Priory.

(Signed) J.H. BALFOUR MELVILLE, Grand Secretary

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Some people think we're here under false pretences: there is some dubiety about the date of the founding of the Preceptory of St John Glasgow – or is it Glasgow St John's? Were we founded in 1805 or 1810? Great Priory have spoken – but perhaps we can pencil in another date five years hence…?

We seem to have been born courtesy of a warrant from the Early Grand Encampment of Ireland to "Glasgow"; subsequently we were consecrated St John Glasgow by the Grand Conclave of the Knights Templar of Scotland when a quest for a degree of independence (with permission from England) severed links with Ireland. I love the wording of our charter, which speaks of: "our faithful and well beloved brethren, Sir Knights Ferguson, Kelso, Henry and Mitchell, (who) have besought us that we would empower them to form and establish an Encampment of High Knights Templars, and Knights of Malta. Therefore, duly weighting the Premises, and desirous to promote the Harmony and Union for which these Magnanimous and invincible Orders were originally instituted; and being convinced of the Fortitude and Skill of the above Sir Knight Companions, of whose valour and intrepidity we have had sufficient and amazing Trials: Do by this our Warrant Authorise and Commission them to hold an Encampment of High Knights Templars, to be held by them and their Successors, with powers to make such private Laws, Rules and Orders, as from time to time they may deem necessary for the well-being and ordering of their Encampment…" and so on – don't you just identify with those first intrepid St John's Templars passing trials of valour: should we introduce these as tests for new applicants, do you think?

That in 1810, followed soon after by an "interesting" period when the Preceptory survived near extinction after being struck from the Roll in 1829; an attempt by a group in Girvan to take over the dormant position of St John's number 3 only failed because a member who had the charter in his possession refused to surrender it.

We struggled on after resurrection, going through some extremely rocky patches: at the turn of the 20th Century the future was in doubt: at one point in 1897 there is a plaintive reference to it having been "agreed not to open the Encampment as it would entail extra expense but to have a talk about the future working of the Encampment as we have not had a meeting for 17 months". By 1900 the Encampment was still active, yet there is an interesting reference to a meeting being devoted to "General Conversation on the Best ways & Means to Get the Members to take a Little More interest in the working of the Encampment".

There are references in the old minute books to selling off some of the regalia to make ends meet: financial crises lurch into the books at odd intervals: there are very few happy Treasurers over the years – unlike today, of course.

But with the new century in 1900 came new hope, with talk of revival and expansion by amalgamation with other like-minded freemasons, the result of which was the Glasgow Preceptory of St John in a form more like today's.

Such enthusiasm was reflected in attendance at the Great Amalgamation when members were informed about "the cheap tickets from the Caledonian Railway Company and about a saloon being put on to the Edinburgh train for our convenience"; would the modern Scottish rail network be as accommodating nowadays, one wonders…?

Since then we have, admittedly, been through trials and tribulations. As well as cost, Temple masonry was not without its perils: at the December muster in 1961 "it was learned with regret that a well known frater had been assaulted and robbed after a Masonic meeting. The fraters expressed their sympathy with the frater by voting a sum of money to help cover his financial losses." Perhaps coincidentally, the subsequent years saw a vast swathe of policemen entering our ranks!

Also notable is the steady influx of candidates from the Argyll area: at one muster, three of four candidates came from the Oban area; at other times there followed applications from as far afield as Campbeltown and the Isle of Lewis: imagine the journey in the 1960's from the Isle of Lewis to attend meetings in Glasgow – true commitment, I think you'll agree. Having seen a steady stream of applicants from the Oban area, we helped to establish a daughter Preceptory in Oban, still going strong today, and represented here tonight.

We use the term frater, or "brother", which seems to encapsulate the essence of our order, Temple Freemasonry often being called "the friendly order". When the nights are fair drawing in, we may wonder why all these "men in black", carrying cases, wander the streets of darkest Bearsden when they could be at home watching Big Brother. In my view, they feel "at home" with their friends, enjoying the experience of others being introduced to traditional ritual that has, in our case, been honed over two hundred years of work by like-minded men over the centuries. The term is perhaps closer than the "usual" use of "brother" used to express equality and belonging in Freemasonry: to me it epitomises the sense of shared interest as well as purpose that binds us – and keeps this particular order so vigorous today in that so many want to travel geographically and masonically to meet people whose companionship we appreciate. "Friends" may well be God's apology for relations, but we do choose them to a certain extent: and the fact that so many are here tonight speaks volumes for the support we offer each other – in bad times as well as good.

It's been good to glance through the few old minute books we still possess, to go back the odd hundred years and meet like-minded men with the same sort of cares, triumphs and enthusiasm that can be seen today in those who come to St John's Preceptory. What also shines through the years is the idea of teamwork, a close-knit "band of brothers" working for a larger end. Of course there are fallings-out and squabbles as with any group – but here we are, two hundred years later…

In coming together tonight, we are made to represent participants at such a banquet as has been shared over and over again for two hundred years. The reality today in the Preceptory may well be more akin to the Masonic pie and cup of tea, but the thought and the link remains.

I tried to find some respected authority to give me a notable quotable snippet about Temple masonry; ominously, the first (and only one) I found in my trusty "Dictionary of Similes" was from the French author and philosopher Rabelais, who coined the expression to "Drink like a Templar knight". Not exactly a stunning endorsement of the fame of our forebears – although looking around me…

May I congratulate you, for the City's ready adoption of our Bicentenary as something we all agree is well worth a public celebration. There has been a great deal of organisation "behind the scenes" by some very helpful people. You have entertained us royally tonight, for which I thank you very much.

One of the great Christian virtues is charity, and our organisation has a proud record, since its inception, of helping others less fortunate than ourselves. It is thus especially fitting that my last, pleasant duty tonight is to hand over a cheque for the Lord Provost's Fund, knowing that it will be used wisely and well.

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The picture regarding degrees conferred is somewhat confused during this period, with references to Conclave work in 1893, and that "the Green and white degrees of the Council of Rites would be wrought here in this hall on the 1st Saturday of July" (1904) – a reference subsequently objected to, so that "our Eminent Commander rulled the sentance out of order and ordered its deletion from the minutes".

The working of both "High Knight Templar" and Priory degrees continues throughout this period, usually conferred on the same evening. Despite a resolution in 1904 "to give the degrees in twice instead of all on one night as at present" being passed unanimously, the "old" scheme of things soon crept back until the "change of government of the Order" firmly separated Preceptory from Priory in 1909.

The Encampment of St John Parkhead, No 21, met first at Parkhead Public Halls, then at the Masonic Hall in Ewing Place at Parkhead. In the early days it seemed to have a difficult time, with erratic attendances noted in the (sparse) minutes. Internal feuds seem to be hinted at, with one Knight minuted as having "moved that the recorder be instructed to write him (Grand Master Major Spence) expressing our regret at him not being present". In 1897 there is a plaintive reference to it having been "agreed not to open the Encampment as it would entail extra expense but to have a talk about the future working of the Encampment as we have not had a meeting for 17 months".

By 1900 the Encampment was still active, yet there is an interesting reference to a meeting being devoted to "General Conversation on the Best ways & Means to Get the Members to take a Little More interest in the working of the Encampment". Significantly, in 1901 there was talk of "the advisability of giving up our own Charter and joining hands with No 4 about to be revived in the City". The Recorder was ordered to "write Grand recorder annent Charter No 4 and also how we might aquire the right of working the higher degrees". The members subsequently agreed to apply for Charter No 4, and also to think about moving to "a more suitable Hall": St Mark's Hall at 213 Buchanan Street was "considered the most Convenient for all parts of the city and … there would be some chance of the Fairfield & Springburn Encampments uniting with us thereby forming one Strong and active Encampment in Glasgow".

The mood of optimism following the move to the Masonic Hall in Buchanan Street was summed up by the Recorder in the words "the Prospect being considered very Bright" at a meeting attended by the "Most eminent Grand Commander of the Temple and Malta in Scotland" – none other than the formerly-censured (now Colonel) Peter Spence!

It is interesting to compare finances at the turn of the century with the modern-day equivalents. For instance, in 1901 Life Membership fees were fixed at twelve shillings and sixpence (62 new pence); Test Fees were two shillings. A few years later there was a proposal to increase the fee for new entrants to thirty shillings – quite a sum when one reads that collection from the Knights present amounted to a handsome two shillings and ninepence; by 1907 the Initiation Fee was raised to seven guineas (seven pounds and seven shillings) – somewhat ahead of the rate of inflation, one suspects. Templar rings were sought by the Encampment, with "light" rings supplied by the dozen at ten shillings and sixpence each, " heavy" ones at twelve and six.

Despite the change of venue, the pious hope of increased activity failed at first to come to pass: despite a modest flow of new members, there were meetings cancelled, and some that could not proceed with business owing to the lack of a quorum. In 1903 there was "some talk of the possibility of having to look out for another place of meeting", and a decision to change the meeting night "from the 4th to the 3rd Friday", the latter "being considered unsuitable".

Yet the Encampment bounced back: 1906 saw a positive plethora of new Knights – sometimes seven new members being initiated in an evening. In 1908 the Encampment packed its tents and moved to the Masonic Halls, West Regent Street (an intimation from The Glasgow Masonic Hall Company, Limited, rather dubiously confirms the let to the "Nights Templar Encampment"). Intriguingly, we find a reference in the minutes of the October meeting that reads thus: "discussion at some length regarding our standing and origin also the proposed amalgamation was promoted", a precursor of the detailed discussions that concern the separation of Preceptory and Priory in March 1909, following the amalgamation of the Grand Encampment of Scotland with the Great Priory; it was minuted that "after said date the temple Grades will be conferred in a Preceptory and the Malta in a Priory and that the affairs of the one must be kept entirely separate and distinct from the other". The only degrees which could be worked were: in the Preceptory, the Esquire, the Knight Templar, and the Priestly Order of the Temple; in the Priory, the Mediterranean Pass and the Knight of Malta. The name "Encampment", with relative number, was to be dropped. The question of a new name was addressed: it was suggested that as "this Encampment had been dormant for some years and that it was resuscitated by the fraters of the St John Encampment, Parkhead, with the aid of some of the older members of No 4, and in view of there being already a Glasgow Preceptory and Priory … it would be a gracious act to recognise the services of those members of St John Encampment by calling ours the Glasgow Preceptory of St John and the Glasgow Priory of St John." Such was the enthusiasm for the ceremony of the great Amalgamation in Edinburgh that a Frater was tasked with ensuring that a large body of members of the new Preceptory and Priory should be able to attend; accordingly, he reported that "he had arranged about the cheap tickets with the Caledonian Railway Company and about a saloon being put on to the Edinburgh train for our convenience"; would Scotrail be as accommodating nowadays, one wonders…?

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1997	Alistair H. Grant
1999	Robert S. M. Stewart

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2006	John C. Gough
2008	Jack McCabe
2008	Robert A. D. Rankin
2008	Colin A. J. Rankin

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Pre-1910	W. McA. MacDonald
1946-1951	Robert W. Wilson

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1910	Archibald Lang
1924	Dr. Lewis MacLachlan
1943	William McA. Macdonald
1943	Robert W. Wilson
1953	Andrew Binnie