Adolphus Frederick Alexander Woodford (1821–1887) was the eldest son of

Alexander George Woodford Field Marshal Sir Alexander George Woodford, GCB, KCMG (15 June 1782 – 26 August 1870), was a British Army officer. After taking part in the Anglo-Russian invasion of Holland, he served in most of the battles of the Napoleonic Wars. During th ...

, a career soldier who was already a hero of Waterloo, and would rise to Field Marshal, ending his days in command of

Chelsea Hospital The Royal Hospital Chelsea is an Old Soldiers' retirement home and nursing home for some 300 veterans of the British Army. Founded as an almshouse — the ancient sense of the word "hospital" — by King Charles II in 1682, it is a site ...

. After a short stay in the

Coldstream Guards The Coldstream Guards is the oldest continuously serving regular regiment in the British Army. As part of the Household Division, one of its principal roles is the protection of the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, monarchy; due to this, it often ...

, Adolphus entered the

Anglican Church Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

, having the living of

Swillington Swillington is a village and civil parish near Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough. It is situated east from Leeds city centre, north of the River Aire, and is surrounded by streams including Fleaking ...

from 1847 to 1872. On leaving the Army, he also became a Freemason, rising to become Grand Chaplain in 1863, commuting from Yorkshire to his London duties.John A. Seed, AFA Woodford, Ars Quatuor Coronatorum 93, 1980, pp 118–128 After moving to London, his editorship of the ''Freemason'' ignited an interest in the study of Masonic history, and led to the establishment of

Quatuor Coronati Lodge ''Quatuor Coronati Lodge No. 2076'' (its Latin title meaning '' Four Crowned Ones'') is a Masonic Lodge in London dedicated to Masonic research. Founded in 1886, the Lodge meets at Freemasons' Hall, Great Queen Street. The name of the Lodge i ...

, dedicated to masonic research. Woodford was the first Immediate Past Master of the lodge, and as such convened the lodge for much of its first two years, during the frequent absences of

Charles Warren Sir Charles Warren (7 February 1840 – 21 January 1927) was a British Army officer of the Royal Engineers. He was one of the earliest European archaeologists of the Biblical Holy Land, and particularly of the Temple Mount. Much of his military ...

, the master. Just before his death, towards the end of 1887, he passed on a set of coded papers which resulted in the establishment of the

Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn (), more commonly the Golden Dawn (), was a secret society devoted to the study and practice of occult Hermeticism and metaphysics during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Known as a magical order, ...

Birth, Army and Vocation

Adolphus Woodford was born on 9 July 1821. His father was already a distinguished soldier, and as eldest son he was named after the Colonel-in-Chief of his father's regiment, the

. It seems a natural progression for Adolphus to have become an officer in the same regiment. He was gazetted as a lieutenant on 25 December 1838, but resigned on 23 April 1841. His father was, by this time, Governor-general of

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

, and it was there, on 9 February 1842, that Adolphus was initiated into his father's lodge, the Lodge of Friendship No 345 (now the Royal Lodge of Friendship No 278). He took the customary three degrees of Entered Apprentice, Fellowcraft and Master Mason, and is known to have attended nine meetings of the lodge in total, before returning to England in the autumn, matriculating at the

University of Durham Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by royal charter in 1837. It was the first recognised university to ...

to study Theology.R. F. Gould, Obituary of the Rev. A. F. A. Woodford, Ars Quatuor Coronatorum, vol 1, 1888, pp 174–176 He was awarded his Bachelor of Arts in 1846, and

Licentiate of Theology Licentiate may refer to: *Licentiate (degree), a degree below a PhD granted by universities in some countries; may indicate a medical doctor qualification in the UK and other countries. *Licentiate (Pontifical Degree), second cycle of ecclesiastic ...

in 1847. Meanwhile, he joined Marquis of Granby Lodge No 146 (now 124), and served two years as Master. His second year as master, 1847, also saw him appointed Provincial Grand Chaplain for the County of Durham. His academic achievements, while less than impressive, saw him ordained Priest that same year, and appointed Rector of St. Mary's Church, Swillington, where he would remain for the next twenty-five years.

The Rector of Swillington

In 1847

, to the south-east of

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

, was still a rural community, although mining was starting to assert itself as the driving force of the local economy. Woodford was still the Provincial Grand Chaplain in Durham, while completing structural work on his church in Yorkshire. It was not until 1854 that he joined Philanthropic Lodge No 382 (now 304). The next year he was appointed Provincial Grand Chaplain for West Yorkshire. He was master of Philanthropic in 1856 and 1858, and the lodge history asserts that it thrived during the years of his regular attendance. He re-wrote their ritual in a unique form, which was shared with five daughter and granddaughter lodges. He joined the Lodge of Antiquity in London in 1863, and that same year became Grand Chaplain of United Grand Lodge. While still Rector of Swillington, his new masonic duties took him to the consecration of many new lodges, and saw him deliver the oration at the laying of the foundation stone for the new extension to Freemason's Hall in Great Queen Street, London, the next year. In the same period, Woodford started to contribute articles on masonic history, starting with his researches into the old York lodges. He became known to local booksellers as he began to collect old manuscripts. 1871 saw Woodford as one of the signatories of a remonstrance against the Privy Council for upholding a conviction of an Anglican Vicar,

John Purchas John Purchas, (born at Cambridge, 14 July 1823; died at Brighton, 18 October 1872), was an author and a priest of the Church of England who was prosecuted for ritualist practices. Life He was the son of William Jardine Purchas RN and his wife Jan ...

, for the way in which he celebrated communion. The following year, he moved to London, resigning his living for a career in Masonic publishing.

The Writer

In London, Woodford settled into a busy career as a writer and researcher. Contributing essays to several publications and periodicals, he also edited the ''Freemason'' and the ''Masonic Magazine'', frequently contributing most of the copy himself. He compiled ''Kenning's Masonic Cyclopaedia'' for the publisher of the two magazines. Woodford used the ''Freemason'' in 1879 to oppose a move in Grand Lodge to enforce uniformity of ritual on its lodges. His own letter on the subject provoked much correspondence, convincing Grand Lodge of the groundswell of resistance to such a move. The last few years of his life were also occupied in collaboration with other Masonic researchers, such as Hughan and Gould, which eventually brought into being England's first research lodge, Quatuor Coronati. As acting Immediate Past Master, he guided the lodge through its first two years of existence, taking the chair in the frequent absences of the Master,

, then Metropolitan Commissioner of Police. It is plain from Gould's obituary that the rest of the lodge looked on him as a mentor.

Death and legacy

In December 1887, Woodford contracted

septicaemia Sepsis is a potentially life-threatening condition that arises when the body's response to infection causes injury to its own tissues and organs. This initial stage of sepsis is followed by suppression of the immune system. Common signs and s ...

from an untreated foot injury. He died on 23 December. He is seen as a pioneer of the ''Authentic'' school of masonic research, applying proper historical methodology in place of carelessly repeated fable. He earnestly collected and studied early masonic manuscripts, writing the introduction for Hughan's published collection. He contributed greatly to an understanding of the enigmatic history of the York lodges in the eighteenth century. His lasting legacy may be seen in the continued activity and influence of

, and the rational approach to masonic history. Lastly, he played at least some part in the establishment of the

, passing the cipher manuscripts from which it was founded to his friend

William Wynn Westcott William Wynn Westcott (17 December 1848 – 30 July 1925) was a British coroner, ceremonial magician, theosophist and Freemason born in Leamington, Warwickshire, England. He was a Supreme Magus (chief) of the S.R.I.A. and went on to co- ...

shortly before his death. He had already made a strong case that the mystic and philosophical elements which allowed Freemasonry to evolve from a purely operative to a speculative society were likely to have been imported from some aspects of the

Hermeticism Hermeticism, or Hermetism, is a philosophical and religious tradition rooted in the teachings attributed to Hermes Trismegistus, a syncretism, syncretic figure combining elements of the Greek god Hermes and the Egyptian god Thoth. This system e ...

practised during the Renaissance.A. F. A. Woodford, Freemasonry and Hermeticism, AQC vol 1, 1888, pp 38–43

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Woodford, Adolphus Frederick Alexander 1821 births 1887 deaths English Freemasons Alumni of University College, Durham