Abstract:

This article deals with the development of historical enquiry into freemasonry since its origins to the current academic treatment. This development is divided into two general phases when freemasons researched their history themselves and when it during the Twentieth century became an academic subject. The major developmental lines in historiography are treated. It is argued that new archival findings will modify deeply rooted perceptions of historical events, exemplified by Anderson's account of the formation of the English grand lodge in 1717 and von Hunds initiation in Paris in 1742. Conclusively the article suggests a catalogue of research that still is to be done.

Author: Jan Snoek