Mackey A G - Encylopedia of Freemasonry - The Grand Masonic ...

402 KNIGHT
KNIGHT
embassy of Zerubbabel and four other Jewish
chiefs to the court of Darius to obtain the
protection of that monarch from the encroachments
of the Samaritans, who interrupted the
labors in the reconstruction of the Temple,
constitutes the legend of the Red Cross Degree .
The history of this embassy is found in the
eleventh book of the Antiquities of Josephus,
whence the Masonic ritualists have undoubtedly
taken it . The only authority of Josephus
is the apocryphal record of Esdras, and
the authenticity of the whole transaction is
doubted or denied by modern historians . The
legend is as follows : After the death of Cyrus,
the Jews, who had been released by him
from their captivity, and permitted to return
to Jerusalem, for the purpose of rebuilding
the Temple, found themselves obstructed in
the undertaking by the neighboring nations,
and especially by the Samaritans . Hereupon
they sent an embassy, at the head of
which was their prince, Zerubbabel, to Darius,
the successor of Cyrus, to crave his interposition
and protection . Zerubbabel awaiting
a favorable opportunity, succeeded not only
in obtaining his request, but also in renewing
the friendship which formerly existed between
the king and himself. In commemoration of
these events, Darius is said to have instituted
a new order, and called it the Knights of the
East . They afterward assumed their present
name from the red cross borne in their banners.
Webb, or whoever else introduced it
into the American Templar system, undoubtedly
took it from the Sixteenth Degree, or
Prince of Jerusalem of the Ancient and Accepted
Rite . It has, within a few years, been
carried into England, under the title of the
"Red Cross of Babylon ." In New Brunswick,
it has been connected with Cryptic Masonry .
It is there as much out of place as it is in a
Commandery of Knights Templar. Its only
true connection is with the Royal Arch Degree .
Knight of the Red Eagle . (Chevalier de
l'Aigle rouge.) The Thirty-ninth Degree
of the Rite of Mizraim . The red eagle forms
a part of the arms of the House of Brandenburg,
and the Order of Knights of the Red
Eagle was instituted, in 1705, by George
William, hereditary Prince of Bayreuth. In
1792, it was placed among the Prussian orders .
The Masonic degree has no connection with
the political order . The Mizraimites appropriated
all titles that they fancied .
Knight of the Rose . (Chevalier de la
Rose .) The Order of the Knights and Ladies
of the Rose (Chevaliers et Chevalieres de la Rose)
was an order of adoptive or androgynous Masonry,
invented in France toward the close of
the eighteenth century . M . de Chaumont,
the Masonic secretary of the Due de Chartres,
was its author . The princi al seat of the
order was at Paris . The hallof meeting was
called the Temple of Love. It was ornamented
with garlands of flowers, and hung
round with escutcheons on which were painted
various devices and emblems of gallantry .
There were two presiding officers, a male and
female, who were styled the Hierophant and
the High Priestess . The former initiated men,
and the latter, women. In the initiations,
the Hierophant was assisted by a conductor
or deacon called Sentiment, and the High
Priestess by a conductress or deaconess called
Discretion . The members received the title
of Knights and Nymphs. The Knights wore
a crown of myrtle, the Nymphs, a crown of
roses . The Hierophant and High Priestess
wore in addition, a rose-colored scarf, on
which were embroidered two doves within a
wreath of myrtle. During the time of initiation,
the hall was lit with a single dull taper
but afterward it was brilliantly illuminated
by numerous wax candles .
When a candidate was to be initiated, he
or she was taken in charge, according to the
sex, by the conductor or conductress, divested
of all weapons, jewels, or money, hoodwinked,
loaded with chains, and in this condition conducted
to the door of the Temple of Love,
where admission was demanded by two
knocks . Brother Sentiment then introduced
the candidate by order of the Hierophant or
High Priestess, and he or she was asked his
or her name, country, condition of life, and,
lastly, what he or she was seeking. To this
the answer was, "Happiness ."
The next question proposed was, " What is
your age ? " The candidate, if a male, replied,
"The age to love" ; if a female, " The age to
please and to love ."
The candidates were then interrogated concerning
their private opinions and conduct in
relation to matters of gallantry . The chains
were then taken from them, and they were
invested with garlands of flowers which were
called "the chains of love ." In this condition
they were made to traverse the apartment
from one extremity to another, and then back
in a contrary direction, over a path inscribed
with love-knots. The following obligation
was then administered :
"I promise and swear by the Grand Master
of the Universe never to reveal the secrets of
the Order of the Rose ; and should I fail in this
my vow, may the mysteries I shall receive add
nothing to my pleasures, and instead of the
roses of happiness may I find nothing but the
thorns of repentance ."
The candidates were then conducted to the
mysterious groves in the neighborhood of the
Temple of Love, where the Knights received a
crown of myrtle, and the Nymphs a simple
rose. During this time a soft, melodious
march was played by the orchestra . After
this, the candidates were conducted to the
altar of mystery, placed at the foot of the
Hierophant's throne, and there incense was
offered up to Venus and her son . If it was a
Knight who had been initiated, he now exchanged
his crown of myrtle for the rose of the
last initiated Nymph ; and if a Nymph, she
exchanged her rose for the myrtle crown of
Brother Sentiment . The Hierophant now
read a copy of verses in honor of the god of
Mystery, and the bandage was at length
taken from the eyes of the candidate . Delicious
music and brilliant lights now added