The Corporative Masonry of Great Britain 199
opportunity, which is the reason they can be found periodically
repeated in specific and varying circumstances, proof that they were
quickly forgotten. As an example, in 1436-1437, an edict was issued
restricting the privileges of the brotherhood of English masons; in 1495
King Henry VII banned the use of signs of recognition by masons and
confirmed the edicts of Henry VI.^16
It is perhaps risky to mention the legend according to which Queen
Elizabeth, because she was ineligible to be admitted into knowledge of
the mysteries, harbored suspicions of the masons, which their enemies
did not fail to encourage. Things reached such a point that orders were
given on December 27, 1561, day of the annual celebration of the York
Order, presided over by Sir Thomas Sackvill, to send soldiers to break
up the assembly. Complaints lodged by some of the most eminent
national figures convinced Elizabeth to end her opposition to the gath-
erings of members of the order. The queen eventually became a protec-
tor of the masonic brotherhood and confirmed the choice of Sir
Thomas Sackvill as master.^17
In contrast to the occasional interdiction, facts indicate that com-
panies of masons enjoyed a good deal of consideration at this time. The
Articles of London (1356) describe the corporation as "an enterprise
quite apt for leading (the work) to a successful conclusion." In 1417,
the Company of London received its official arms.^18 In 1427 and 1429,
the assemblies of York and Canterbury, respectively, received arms,
with the latter group held under the sponsorship of an archbishop.* In
1472, a new coat of arms was granted to The Hole Craft and
Fellowship of Masons of London, a privilege that it was the first among
guilds to obtain.^19
On June 24, 1502, the same Henry VII who had renewed the 1425
bill presided over the holding of a grand lodge in London on the occa-
sion of the laying of the first stone of Westminster Chapel.^20 This is the
second historical event, following the Saint John's day Assembly of
1427, where we find Saint John invoked.
A century later in 1586, at the dawn of speculative Freemasonry,
- It has even been claimed that King Henry IV was initiated into the masonic brother-
hood in 1442. His example would have been followed by all the lords of his court.
(Rebold, Histoire generate de la Franc-Maconnerie, 673.)