George R. Adams, 33°
Deputy of the Supreme Council, Orient of the District of Columbia
4611 Western Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20016–4339

The Royal Order of Scotland, USA, enjoys a very close relationship with Scottish Rite Freemasonry. The Order came into the United States in 1877 when Albert Pike was named the first Provincial Grand Master. The first meeting was in 1878. At that time there could be only 63 members, which refers to the 63 armed knights (perhaps original Knights Templar) who came to the assistance of Robert the Bruce at Bannockburn when he was sorely pressed and would otherwise have been defeated by Edward II of England. From the written records of the Order, we learn that its first appearance was, in a roundabout way, in London, England. In 1750, two Scotsmen from The Hague appeared before the governing body of the Royal Order, "Which had existed in London since at least 1741," and petitioned for a Provincial Grand Lodge to be established at The Hague. In 1767 the Grand Lodge and Grand Chapter of the Order were formed. From this humble beginning, the present-day Order grew into a Grand Body in Edinburgh to more than 76 Provincial Grand Lodges worldwide. The membership has grown significantly since 1878, and today the Provincial Grand Lodge of the United States, the largest Provincial Grand Lodge within the Order, boasts some 9,500 members. The current American Provincial Grand Master is R.W. Edward H. Fowler, Jr., 33°, a Past Grand Master of Masons in Pennsylvania with headquarters in Charleroi, Pennsylvania.

The Crown Jewel of the Order in the United States is its ritual. The Provincial Grand Lodge, USA, has in its archives the original manuscript in the handwriting of Albert Pike that is the oldest unchanged written Masonic ritual in existence today, with very minor modern-day revisions relating principally to penalties. The ritual consists of two Degrees, viz., the Order of Heredom of Kilwinning, which is conferred in a Chapter of the same name, and the Knights of the Rosy Cross, which is conferred in the Grand Lodge or a Provincial Grand Lodge. The word Heredom is considered to have been taken from the Hebrew word Harodim, meaning "The Rulers," and the name Kilwinning refers to the reestablishment of the Order by King Robert at Kilwinning, where he presided as the first Grand Master. The lectures of the first of the two Degrees provide a deep understanding of the symbolism and teaching contained in the Degrees of St. John's Masonry. The Degree of Rosy Cross was established by Robert the Bruce. This latter Degree resembles the Rose Crois degree of the Scottish Rite.

These Degrees, which adhere substantially to the original Pike manuscript, are poetic in rhythm and form and convey to the Candidates a unique historical and esoteric perspective of Freemasonry. The Royal Order of Scotland Degree Team, an experienced team of proficient ritualists, confers these Degrees several times a year in various venues throughout the country.

In Scotland, the prerequisite for being invited to be a member in the Order are that the Candidate must have been a Master Mason for five years, a Royal Arch Mason, a Trinitarian Christian, and have Masonic or civic accomplishments which deem him worthy to be honored among Masons. Subsequently, however, the rules here were changed to ally the Order with the Scottish Rite where it remains today. Because of the Scottish role, the Provincial Grand Master here may choose to waive the Scottish Rite requirement and usually does, if the Candidate is a Knight Templar.

The Grand Lodge of the Order is at Edinburgh, Scotland, and is presided over by the King of Scots as hereditary Grand Master. In times such as the present, when there is no King of Scots, Queen Elizabeth I of Scotland (II of England) being the ruling monarch, the Order is ruled by a Deputy Grand Master and Governor, who is currently Andrew Bruce, Lord Elgin, 15th Earl of Elgin and 17th Earl of Kincardine, a direct descendant of Robert the Bruce. The headquarters of the Order in Edinburgh is in the building housing Cannongate–Kilwinning Lodge No. 2 and is thought to be the oldest building in the world constructed purely for Masonic purposes, being built in 1736.

Like most Masonic organizations, the beginnings of this Order are shrouded in the mists of time. According to the traditions and Work of the Order, it was founded "on the holy top of Mount Moriah in the Kingdom of Judea." It then fell into disuse until the Battle of Bannockburn on June 24, 1314, when it was restored by King Robert the Bruce of Scotland to honor 63 knights who, with no prior notice, appeared on the field of battle as a mounted unit, quickly turned the tide, and defeated the English. This battlefield still exists to this day, 700 years later, and is still not encroached by society.

Petitions for membership are by invitation only and are handled through a Screening Committee in each state. For more information please write to: The Royal Order of Scotland, PO Box No. 11, Charleroi, PA, 15022–0011, call 724–489–0670, fax 724–489–0688, or visit their website at http://members.aol.com /YorkRiteFM/ROS.html.

Note: Special thanks to Ill. Charles S. Iversen, 33°, Past S.G.I.G. in the District of Columbia, and Ill. Richard B. Baldwin, 33°, Provincial Grand Secretary Emeritus and Provincial Junior Grand Warden, for their assistance in preparing the above article. Illustrious Brothers Iversen and Baldwin, like the author of this article, are members of the Royal Order Degree Team.

George R. Adams is a practicing estate planning attorney, Deputy of the Valley of Washington, Orient of the District of Columbia (effective 12/01/01), Past Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of the District of Columbia (1993), Provincial Grand Treasurer and member of the Degree Team of the Provincial Grand Lodge of the United States, Royal Order of Scotland, and author of the book A Trilogy: Inner Journey to the East, Meditations of a Master Mason Along the Way, and Masonry for the Millennium (1999).