THE ANCIENT AND ACCEPTED RITE OR ROSE CROIX
History of the order
The Ancient and Accepted Rite is a Masonic Order of Degrees ‘beyond the Craft’. It is the culmination of a series of Masonic developments which followed the creation of the first Grand Lodge in London in 1717. Its origins lie in the ‘Rite of Perfection’, which emerged in Bordeaux in the mid eighteenth century. In France it travelled to the Caribbean islands of Dominique and Martinique with Stephen Morin, a prominent French Mason and West Indian merchant. Morin had been commissioned by the French Grand Lodge as its Inspector for the Higher Degrees in the New World. With the assistance of Henry Franken, a Jamaican resident who later became his deputy, the Rite developed into a system of 25 degrees subsequently known as ‘Morin’s Rite The 33 Degree system as we know it first appeared in Charleston, South Carolina, where in May 1801, the first Supreme Council of the Ancient and Accepted Rite of 33 Degrees was held. This became the Supreme Council of the Southern Jurisdiction of the United States of America, the Mother Council of the World as it legitimately proclaims itself today.
Degrees of the order
Secret Master (4th degree)
Perfect Master(5th degree)
Intimate Secretary(6th degree)
Provost and Judge(7th degree)
Intendant of the Building(8th degree)
Elu of the Nine(9th degree)
Elu of the Fifteen(10th degree)
Elu of the Twelve(11th degree)
Master Architect(12th degree)
Royal Arch of Solomon(13th degree)
Perfect Elu(14th degree)
Knight of the East, of the Sword, or of the Eagle(15th degree)
Prince of Jerusalem(16th degree)
Knight of the East and West(17th degree)
Knight Rose Croix(18th degree)
Grand Pontiff(19th degree)
Master of the Symbolic Lodge (20th degree)
Noachite(21th degree)
Knight Royal Axe, Prince of Libanus(22th degree)
Chief of the Tabernacle(23th degree)
Prince of the Tabernacle(24th degree)
Knight of the Brazen Serpent(25th degree)
Prince of Mercy(26th degree)
Knight Commander of the Temple(27th degree)
Knight of the Sun, or Prince Adept(28th degree)
Scottish Knight of Saint Andrew(29th degree)
Knight of Kadosh(30th degree)
Inspector Inquisitor(31 degree)
Master of the Royal Secret(32 degree)
Inspector General Honorary(33 degree)
Perfect Master(5th degree)
Intimate Secretary(6th degree)
Provost and Judge(7th degree)
Intendant of the Building(8th degree)
Elu of the Nine(9th degree)
Elu of the Fifteen(10th degree)
Elu of the Twelve(11th degree)
Master Architect(12th degree)
Royal Arch of Solomon(13th degree)
Perfect Elu(14th degree)
Knight of the East, of the Sword, or of the Eagle(15th degree)
Prince of Jerusalem(16th degree)
Knight of the East and West(17th degree)
Knight Rose Croix(18th degree)
Grand Pontiff(19th degree)
Master of the Symbolic Lodge (20th degree)
Noachite(21th degree)
Knight Royal Axe, Prince of Libanus(22th degree)
Chief of the Tabernacle(23th degree)
Prince of the Tabernacle(24th degree)
Knight of the Brazen Serpent(25th degree)
Prince of Mercy(26th degree)
Knight Commander of the Temple(27th degree)
Knight of the Sun, or Prince Adept(28th degree)
Scottish Knight of Saint Andrew(29th degree)
Knight of Kadosh(30th degree)
Inspector Inquisitor(31 degree)
Master of the Royal Secret(32 degree)
Inspector General Honorary(33 degree)