Kenneth Robert Henderson Mackenzie
Kenneth Robert Henderson Mackenzie (often abbreviated Kenneth RH Mackenzie ; born October 31, 1833 in Deptford near London ; died July 3, 1886 ) was a British translator, private scholar and occultist . Its importance today is based primarily on the somewhat unclear role that it played in founding the Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia and in the transmission of the so-called Cipher Manuscripts .
Life
Child prodigy and young scholar
Mackenzie was the son of doctor Rowland Hill Mackenzie and his wife Gertrude. When he was one year old, the family moved to Vienna, where the father worked in the maternity ward of the General Hospital . The family returned to England, presumably in the summer of 1840, and the father opened a general practitioner practice in London's West End .
The young Mackenzie grew up bilingual and was a particularly gifted child for languages. From 1851 contributions by the then 17-year-old began to appear in the journal Notes & Queries on various topics of antiquity and classical philology , which reveal an education that was unusual for his age. On March 1, 1851, A Word to the Literary Men of England appeared there , a call for the formation of a learned society with the task of searching for ancient Greek, Latin, Anglo-Saxon, Old Norse, and a dozen other ancient languages, and before its ruin to rescue.
Mackenzie's first independent work was the translation of Karl Richard Lepsius ' letters on the Prussian Expedition to Egypt a few months after the German original was published. In the notes and additions he wrote, he shows a remarkable knowledge of ancient languages, which may have contributed to the fact that in 1854 the then 20-year-old was accepted as a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London . Other learned societies of which Mackenzie became a member were the Ethnological Society of London (1864-1870), the Royal Asiatic Society (1855-1861). Karl RH Frick claims that Mackenzie studied humanities and law and also did his doctorate in both subjects, but that is unproven and is probably due solely to appropriate additions to names that Mackenzie used at times.
In the following years, Mackenzie's books, articles and translations appeared in quick succession. As early as 1851 he had created a translation of Herodot's homerbiography for his friend Theodore Alois Buckley for his translation of the Odyssey . Now he made further contributions to his books and in 1853 was published by Routledge Mackenzies own book on Burma ( Burmah and the Burmese ). He also translated Hans Christian Andersen from Danish and a translation of the popular book by Till Eulenspiegel appeared under the title The marvelous adventures and rare conceits of Master Tyll Owlglass . He had already read an edition of these stories as a child, as he remembers in the introduction.
occultism
In the late 1850s, Mackenzie's increased interest in esoteric and occult subjects was marked by the publication of The Biological Review , which dealt particularly with the fringes of medicine such as mesmerism and homeopathy , but saw only four editions.
William Wynn Westcott Mackenzie had early contact with a German or Austrian Rosicrucian-Masonic group, from which he was legitimized to found groups in England:
"Kenneth RH Mackenzie [...] had, during a stay in earlier life, been in communication with German Adepts who claimed a descent from previous generations of Rosicrucians. German Adepts had admitted him to some grades of their system, and had permitted him to attempt the foundation of a group of Rosicrucian students in England. "
“Kenneth RH Mackenzie [...] had contact with German adepts who were derived from older branches of the Rosicrucians during an earlier stay. German adepts had admitted him to some of the degrees in their system and allowed him to attempt to found a Rosicrucian study group in England. "
Westcott also mentions a Count Apponyi with whom Mackenzie is said to have had contact in Austria. It remains unclear whether this Count Apponyi was Anton von Apponyi or another member of the Austro-Hungarian diplomatic family.
Mackenzie's turn to the occult becomes manifest at the latest during a visit to Éliphas Lévi during a trip to France in December 1861. As the author of the Dogme et rituel de la haute magie (1856), Lévi was already an authority in the field of occultism. According to William Carpenter, however, Lévi was still quite unknown in England at the time. Mackenzie wrote an account of this encounter ( An account of what passed between Eliphas Levi Zahed, Occult Philosopher, and Baphometus [di Mackenzie], Astrologer and Spiritualist, in the City of Paris, December 1861). At that time he was acquainted with Frederick Hockley, a highly respected copyist of esoteric and magical manuscripts and well-known crystal seer in occult circles , in whom Mackenzie saw his teacher and leader in questions of occultism and spiritualism. Hockley had reservations, however. He writes about Mackenzie:
"I found him then a very young man [...], exceedingly desirous of investigating the Occult Sciences, and when sober one of the most companiable persons I ever met. Unfortunately his intemperate habits compelled me three different times to break off our friendship after 6 or 7 years endurance and since then he has once so grossly insulted me in a letter than I cannot possibly hold any communication with him. I regret this the more on a / c of his mother who is a most estimable lady and his uncle our esteemed Grand Secretary Bro. Hervey. "
“I got to know him as a very young man at the time […], extremely eager to explore occult knowledge and soberly one of the most agreeable people I have ever met. Unfortunately, his insolence forced me to break his friendship three times after I had endured it 6 or 7 years, and since then he has once insulted me in a letter so gross that I want nothing more to do with him. I regret this all the more for the sake of his mother, who is a very respectable lady, and his uncle, our esteemed Grand Secretary, Brother Hervey. "
The brother Hervey to whom Hockley is referring was John Morant Harvey, brother of Mackenzie's mother and Grand Secretary of the United Grand Lodge of England from 1868 to 1879. Mackenzie appears during the years between 1859 and 1870 when his literary production dried up and learned work of any kind is not verifiable, at least temporarily living with his uncle, which can be proven by entries in address books.
On June 17, 1872, he married Alexandrina Aydon, daughter of Enoch Harrison Aydon, an engineer and Freemason. By this point, Mackenzie had largely overcome his alcoholism.
Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia
Cipher manuscripts
Fonts
- Burmah and the Burmese. Routledge, London 1853, digitized .
- The Royal Masonic cyclopaedia of history, rites, symbolism, and biography: containing upwards of three thousand subjects, together with numerous original archaeological articles on topics never before treated in any similar work / edited by Kenneth RH Mackenzie, IX⁰, ("Cryptonymus") . J. Hogg, London 1877.
as editor or contributor:
- Theodore Alois Buckley: The Odyssey of Homer, with the Hymns, Epigrams, and Battles of the Frogs and Mice. Literally Translated, with Explanatory Notes. Henry Bohn. London 1851, digitized . Biographical introduction Life of Homer: Attributed to Herodotus.
- Theodore Alois Buckley: The Great Cities of the Ancient World, in their glory and their desolation. Routledge, London 1852. Chapter Beijing , America and Scandinavia .
- Theodore Alois Buckley: The great cities of the Middle ages or The landmarks of European civilization. Routledge, London 1853.
- Theodore Alois Buckley: The dawnings of genius exemplified and exhibited in the early lives of distinguished men. London 1853.
- Friedrich Wagner: Schamyl and Circassia. Chiefly from Materials collected by Dr. FW Edited, with Notes, by KRH Mackenzie. Routledge, London 1854. Original title: Shamyl as general, sultan and prophet and the Caucasus. Leipzig 1854.
- Johann Wilhelm Wolf : Fairy Tales, collected in the Odenwald by JWW Edited, with a preface by KRH Mackenzie. Routledge, London & New York 1855.
- The Biological Review: A Monthly Repertory of the Science of Life. 4 booklets. October 1858 - January 1859. Publisher.
- The Kneph. Official journal of the antient and primitive rite of Masonry. Published under the authority of the Sovereign Sanctuary for Great Britain and Ireland. Edited by… KRH Mackenzie. London 1881 f.
- Hans Christian Andersen : The Shoes of Fortune, and other fairy tales. … With a biographical sketch of Andersen by KRH Mackenzie, etc. John Hogg, London 1883.
Translations:
- Karl Richard Lepsius : Discoveries in Egypt, Ethiopia, and the peninsula of Sinai, in the years 1842-1845 during the mission sent out by… Frederick William IV of Prussia. Edited with notes by Kenneth RH Mackenzie. Richard Bentley, London 1852, digitized .
- Hans Christian Andersen: The Story of My Life; and In Sweden. Routledge, London 1852.
- The marvelous adventures and rare conceits of Master Tyll Owlglass. Newly collected,… and set forth in our English tongue by KRH Mackenzie… and adorned with many most diverting and cunning devices by A. Crowquill. Trübner & Co, London 1860 [1859], digitized . Translation of the 1519 edition of the Volksbuch by Johann Martin Lappenberg ( Doctor Thomas Murners Ulenspiegel . Weigel, Leipzig 1854), see p. XXI of Mackenzie's introduction.
- George Ezekiel : The Life of Bismarck, private and political; with descriptive notice of his ancestry… Translated and edited, with an introduction, explanatory notes, and appendices, by KRH Mackenzie. James Hogg & Son, London 1870, digitized .
literature
- Karl RH Frick : The enlightened. Part 2. Akademische Druck- und Verlagsanstalt, Graz 1978, ISBN 3-201-01062-6 , pp. 346-348.
- TM Greensill: A history of Rosicrucian thought and of the Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia. 2nd ed. Premier Metropolis, 2003, pp. 351-252 & passim, PDF .
- John Michael Greer: Encyclopedia of Secret Doctrines. Edited and supplemented by Frater VD Ansata, Munich 2005, ISBN 3778772708 , p. 433.
- Ellic Howe : Fringe Masonry in England 1870-85. In: Ars Quatuor Coronatorum, the Transactions of Quatuor Coronati Lodge No. 2076, UGLE Vol . 85 (1972), pp. 242-295, online .
- Harald Lamprecht : New Rosicrucians. A manual. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 2004, ISBN 3-525-56549-6 , pp. 62-65.
Individual evidence
- ↑ The date is known from a note from Christopher Cooke, who, like Crowley, was interested in astrology. Therefore, October 31, 1833, 10 a.m. can be considered reliable. See Howe: Fringe Masonry in England 1870-85. In: Ars Quatuor Coronatorum vol. 85 (1972), footnote 33.
- ^ Howe: Fringe Masonry in England 1870-85. In: Ars Quatuor Coronatorum vol. 85 (1972), footnote 35.
- ↑ Karl Richard Lepsius: Letters from Egypt, Ethiopia and the Sinai Peninsula, written in the years 1842 - 1845 during the scientific expedition carried out on the orders of Sr. Majesty of King Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia. Hertz, Berlin 1852.
- ↑ Frick: The enlightened. Part 2. Graz 1978, p. 347. Cf. Howe: Fringe Masonry in England 1870-85. In: Ars Quatuor Coronatorum vol. 85 (1972), footnote 46.
- ^ The marvelous adventures and rare conceits of Master Tyll Owlglass. London 1860, SI
- ^ William Wynn Westcott: History of the Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia, private print, London 1900, p. 6.
- ^ William Wynn Westcott: Data of the History of the Rosicrucians. JM Watkins for SRIA, London 1916, p. 8.
- ↑ Article in The Rosicrucian , January 1970, p. 83.
- ↑ Reprinted in The Rosicrucian , April 1873. The content is reproduced in part in Francis King: Ritual Magic in England. Spearman, London 1970, pp. 29-38.
- ^ Letter to Francis George Irwin dated March 23, 1873. Quoted in: Howe: Fringe Masonry in England 1870-85. In: Ars Quatuor Coronatorum vol. 85 (1972).
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Mackenzie, Kenneth Robert Henderson |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | British translator, private scholar and occultist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 31, 1833 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Deptford |
| DATE OF DEATH | July 3, 1886 |