202 FROM THE ART OF BUILDING TO THE ART OF THINKING
In England, the role of mother lodge was long held by the Old
Lodge of York, which could demonstrate seniority based on its earlier
organization. Its legend states that its constitution goes back to the
charter of Edwin in 926, which is why the Old Lodge of York refused
to recognize the authority of the Grand Lodge of England, when the lat-
ter was instituted in London in 1717.
Considerable progress toward organization was achieved at the
beginning of the sixteenth century. In 1509 Cardinal Wolsey, then chan-
cellor, united the corporations of masons and other associations of the
building trade into a grand guild for which Saint John would be the
patron saint.^22
In 1567, after Sir Thomas Sackvill resigned as master of the masons
of York, the confraternity formed two branches, one for northern
England that was dependent on the York Lodge, whose master was the
earl of Bedford, the other for the south, which recognized the jurisdic-
tion of the London Lodge and its master, Thomas Gresham.^23
It was only after the meeting of the Masonic Assembly of York on
December 27, 1663, a time in which Freemasonry had already become
speculative, that the title of grand master was sanctioned, although it
conferred no administrative authority on the figure thus designated. In
fact, the person in this role could be only a "protector," granting his
patronage to the corporation. The powers of the grand master were not
actually created until 1717, with the Grand Lodge of London.
According to legend, the first grand master or "protector" was
Henri Jermyn, earl of Saint Alban, who at the same time was named to
and decorated into the Order of Bath during a session over which King
Charles II presided. His successors were Thomas Savafe, earl of Rovers
(1666); George Villiers, duke of Buckingham (1674); Henri Benoit, earl
of Arlington (1679); Sir Christopher Wren, the famous architect
(1685); Charles Lennox, duke of Richmond (1695); and Christopher
Wren again (1698).^24 In 1702, the same year he resigned his duties as
superintendet of the royal buildings, Wren ceased to play the role of
grand master and was not replaced. Nonetheless, he alone, undoubt-
edly because of his position and duties, exercised direct professional
authority over the masons, though it seems he had only just been initi-
ated as a Freemason in 1691.