Johannisloge Zur Eintracht

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Seal of the Johannisloge "Zur Eintracht", Berlin

The Johannisloge "Zur Eintracht" is a regular Masonic lodge founded on December 9, 1754 under the name "De La Concorde" in Berlin . It is the oldest still working daughter lodge of the Great National Mother Lodge "To the Three Worlds" (GNML "3WK") and one of the few German Masonic lodges that have been in existence without interruption since it was founded. Important representatives of the Enlightenment in Prussia worked in it .

history

Bijou Johannisloge "Zur Eintracht", Berlin

Lodge establishment

On March 16, 1754, the Freemasons Louis Gustine, Arnold Alexander Imbert, Benoit Taillandier, Johannes Juncker, Frederic, Alexandre Fromery and Jean Jacques Corneille Deleuze , who lived in Berlin, gathered to found a new St. John 's Lodge. They gave it the name "De La Concorde". In the following months, other members of the “Aux trois globes” lodge (later: Great National Mother Lodge “To the Three Worlds”) joined them. Among them Charles Étienne Jordan , one of the founders of the “Aux trois globes” lodge. Furthermore Pierre Dieu and Christian Konrad Hundertmarck.

The first year of the lodge

The relationship with the “Aux trois globes” lodge was difficult because it feared competition in Berlin. The Lodge "Zur Eintracht" wanted to be recognized as a subsidiary of the Lodge "Zu den Drei Weltkugeln". It was only after a long hesitation and under certain conditions that it was ready to build the new lodge. On behalf of the new lodge, its member Juncker turned to the lodge "To the three world balls". On September 24, 1754, she gave him the conditions under which she was ready to install the new lodge as a daughter lodge. In particular, the number of members was to remain limited to twelve brothers, and the new lodge was forbidden to undertake its own admissions or promotions. After the new lodge had accepted these conditions, it was issued a deed of foundation on December 9, 1754. The formal establishment took place under the direction of the presiding master of the mother box "To the three world balls" Jakob Friedrich von Bielfeld on January 4th, 1755. The December 9th, 1754 is therefore considered to be the official date of foundation.

The deed of foundation was lost during the prohibition of the Freemasons in 1935–1945. For this reason, the “Zur Eintracht” lodge was issued a replacement copy of the deed of foundation on November 16, 1974 by the Grand National Mother Lodge “To the Three Worlds”.

Separation from the mother's box and reunification

James Keith, 1724

The restrictions imposed on the “Zur Eintracht” lodge by the mother lodge stood in the way of a prosperous coexistence right from the start. When Baron von Rammelsberg was re-elected national grandmaster contrary to the rules in 1755, the “Zur Eintracht” lodge sided with the old national grandmaster Freiherr von Bielfeld and in 1756 renounced its mother box.

When the Deputy Provincial Grand Master of the North German Lodge of English teaching, the Berlin Governor Field Marshal Lord James of Keith learned of the rift, he asked the Lodge "Zur Eintracht" to act "for the best of peace". He promised the lodge that he would provide it with an English constitutional patent. This did not happen. Keith fell in the Battle of Hochkirch on October 14th, 1758. However, it can be doubted whether the English Grand Lodge would have granted such a patent to the Lodge "Zur Eintracht". The English grand lodge saw in Frederick II the “natural grand master in his states”, with which it alone would have been incumbent on Frederick II or the GNML “3WK” to grant a founding patent to a Masonic lodge.

In continuation of its independence, the “Zur Eintracht” lodge founded its own Scottish lodge called “De l'Harmonie” in 1758 . This Schottenloge received a constitutional patent from the Scottish Obermeister Margrave Karl von Brandenburg , against which the mother lodge "To the three world balls" protested sharply. Their protest was unsuccessful.

The dispute between the “Zur Eintracht” lodge and the mother lodge “To the three globes” found its climax and at the same time its end when the Magdeburg lodge “De la Félicité” (today: “Ferdinand zur Glückseligkeit”) was not the mother lodge “To the three Weltkugeln ”, but the lodge“ Zur Eintracht ”requested a constitutional patent, which the lodge granted on February 23, 1761. The mother lodge “To the Three Worlds” considered this to be inadmissible, since it alone was entitled to establish a lodge in Prussia. The disputes resulted in a compromise. The "Zur Eintracht" lodge was prepared to rejoin the "Zu den Drei Weltkugeln" mother lodge, if the mother lodge granted it a new patent without the previous restrictions, recognized it as the legitimate oldest daughter lodge and granted it the rights of a lawful and perfect Johannisloge approved; then she did not want to build any more daughter boxes. The constitution of the Magdeburg “De la Fídélité” had to be approved retrospectively. The mother lodge “To the three globes” agreed to this.

Revolt against Strict Observance

When the Schottenloge of the GNML "3WK", the lodge "L'Union", joined the Strict Observance on March 5, 1767 , the mother lodge "Zu den Drei Weltkugeln" and the lodge "Zur Eintracht" joined. However, only ten of the 31 members worked in the high grades. 21 members did not allow themselves to be rectified, among them the long-time chairman Arnaud Alexandre Imbert. The connection didn't take long. As early as 1778 the lodge withdrew unofficially from the Strict Observance. After the Wilhelmsbad Congress of 1782, which heralded the end of the Strict Observance, the Lodge officially resigned from the Strict Observance on November 10, 1783.

Enlightenment and counter-enlightenment

As a regular Prussian lodge, the Zur Eintracht lodge did not pursue any political goals, but its ideals (civic virtues, religious tolerance, civic equality) coincided with the goals of the Enlightenment . In addition, the arcane discipline offered protection from state persecution, as far as it was to be feared. Important Freemasons promoted the spread of enlightenment ideas in other associations. 22.7% of the members of the Monday Club were also members of Berlin Masonic lodges. Among them Friedrich Nicolai (member of the Lodge Zur Eintracht), who temporarily chaired the association as a senior. Around 1760, with the Order of the Gold and Rosicrucians, the first Rosicrucian organization in the field of Freemasonry was founded. With its form of mystical irrationalism and illuminism, this order formed an antipole to the rational and modernist forces of the Enlightenment. Berlin Masonic lodges were increasingly infiltrated by members of the Rosicrucians. The presiding master of the Lodge Zur Eintracht, Johann Christian Anton Theden , was one of the founding and leadership groups of the Berlin Order of Gold and Rosicrucian. One in three of the 26 members of the Zur Eintracht Lodge, including the serving brother Johann Heinrich Taumeyer, was a Rosicrucian. This, and the imminent death of Frederick II , gave rise to fears that the lodge's attitude towards rational enlightenment would change. In 1783, Berlin enlighteners, including Friedrich Gedike , founded the Society of Friends of the Enlightenment ( Wednesday Society ). Six of the 24 members of the Wednesday Society were Freemasons, including Johann Erich Biester , Friedrich Gedike, Ernst Ferdinand Klein , Friedrich Nicolai, Carl August Struensee v. Carlsbach and Johann Friedrich Zöllner .

Time of National Socialism and the prohibition of Freemasonry in Germany

With the beginning of the Nazi dictatorship from 1933 and their efforts to ban Freemasonry, the lodge's work became increasingly difficult. Many members left the lodge because they feared professional disadvantages. The last work took place on July 9, 1935. On this day the lodge complied with the official request to dissolve itself. The remaining brothers met in private and organized an annual pork knuckle dinner together with the Society of Pankgraves , so that with a candle lit there, the idea of ​​the Freemasonry would be maintained.

New beginning in Berlin after 1945

Logenhaus Heerstrasse, Berlin

It was not until 1947 that the “Zur Eintracht” lodge was reactivated together with other lodges in West Germany and West Berlin. The GNML "3WK" acquired the former home of the Berlin businessman Max Feldheim, which was built from 1923 to 1924 according to plans by the architect Curt Leschnitzer. The listed villa was repaired and expanded from 2013 to 2014 according to plans by the architect Gerhard Schlotter for around 1.7 million euros. The lodge "Zur Eintracht" moved together with other lodges into the newly acquired lodge house of GNML "3WK" in Heerstrasse in Berlin-Westend .

New foundation of the lodge "Ferdinand zur Glückseligkeit"

Bijou of the "Ferdinand zur Glückseligkeit" lodge, photo by Jens Rusch

Like all German Masonic lodges, the Marburg lodge "Ferdinand zur Glückseligkeit" was forced to stop its work after 1933. On December 29, 1933, the lodge was forced to dissolve itself and lost all of its property. While Freemasonry was permitted again in the territory of the Federal Republic and Berlin / West from 1946, it remained forbidden in the territory of the GDR. Only after the reunification was the "Ferdinand zur Glückseligkeit" lodge able to continue its work. In 1991 the members of the "Zur Eintracht" lodge began to reactivate the "Ferdinand zur Glückseligkeit" lodge, and on November 3, 1991 the lodge was "put back into operation".

structure

Although the lodge "Zur Eintracht" as a subsidiary of the GNML "3WK" was granted the rights of a legal person by the royal "Confirmations Patent and Protectorium" of November 9, 1796 and the imperial "Supreme Order" of December 31, 1899 , and this legal capacity was not granted the forced release in 1935 went out, it is today because of the change in the law for old law associations as a registered association with the district court Charlottenburg in Berlin in the register of associations registered.

The box is headed by the master of the chair and the two overseers. These form the board of the association and represent it externally in all matters.

Known members

literature

  • Karlheinz Gerlach: The Freemasons in old Prussia 1738–1806: The lodges in Berlin . Studienverlag Innsbruck 2014, ISBN 978-3-7065-5199-1
  • Franz August v. Etzel : History of the Great National Mother Lodge of the Prussian States called to the three world globes, Berlin 1867 . Google Books
  • Philipp Lincke: History of the Ferdinand Lodge for Happiness in the Orient in Magdeburg, Magdeburg 1825 ( digital collection )
  • Eugen Lennhoff, Oskar Posner, Dieter A. Binder: Internationales Freemaurerlexikon. Revised and expanded new edition of the 1932 edition, Munich 2003, ISBN 3-7766-2161-3 .
  • Ferdinand Runkel: History of Freemasonry Edition Lempertz, Bonn 2006, ISBN 3-933070-96-1 .

Web links

Remarks

  1. ↑ The first subsidiary lodge founded by the GNML "3WK" was the lodge founded in 1741 by Duke Carl Friedrich von Sachsen-Meiningen with the name "Aux Trois Boussoles" (German: "To the three compasses"). After the death of Carl Friedrich in 1743, this lodge was dissolved again. Other lodges such as the "To the three skeletons" in Wroclaw stopped their work or merged them with other lodges.
  2. ↑ The lodge had to stop its work due to the National Socialist rule. However, this coercive act did not remove their legal personality. see. BGH, judgment of November 17, 1955

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Karlheinz Gerlach: The members of the Berlin Masonic Lodge 'Zur Eintracht' 1754-1815 in 260 years of Johannisloge zur Eintracht, p. 151. Johanniskoge zur Eintracht eV, 2014, accessed on May 3, 2015 . (PDF 4.5 MB)
  2. ↑ Wolfgang Hasleder: 260 Years of Johannislohe zur Eintracht, p. 11. Zur Eintracht eV, 2014, accessed on May 9, 2015 .
  3. ↑ Gerlach p. 148
  4. ^ Karl August Varnhagen von Ense: Life of Field Marshal Jakob Keith , 1844, pp. 253 and 257.
  5. ↑ v. Etzel p. 8
  6. ↑ Gerlach p. 150
  7. ↑ Gerlach p. 150
  8. ↑ Gerlach p. 154
  9. ↑ Gerke p. 24
  10. ↑ Gerke p. 25
  11. ↑ Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke : The Occult Roots of National Socialism. Marix, Wiesbaden 2004, p. 57 and p. 125.
  12. ↑ Gerke p. 152
  13. ↑ Gerke p. 25
  14. ↑ Ralf Sotscheck: 250 years "Zur Eintracht". Zur Eintracht eV, accessed on May 20, 2015 . (PDF 1.75 MB)
  15. ^ Gerhard Schlotter: Heerstrasse 28. BASD-Gerhard Schlotter, Architects, accessed on January 9, 2015 . (PDF, 5.3 MB)
  16. ^ History of the Lodge. “Ferdinand zur Glückseligkeit” eV, accessed on May 9, 2015 .
  17. ↑ Federal Court of Justice (BGH): Judgment of November 17, 1955. Jurion, accessed on April 28, 2015 .

Coordinates: 52 ° 30 '32.9 "  N , 13 ° 15' 44.4"  E