Sir Edward Letchworth (1833–1917) was a prominent figure in English

freemasonry Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

and author on the history of freemasonry.

Life

He was born in 1833 into a

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...

family originally from the

Letchworth Letchworth Garden City, commonly known as Letchworth, is a town in the North Hertfordshire district of Hertfordshire, England. It is noted for being the first garden city. The population at the time of the 2021 census was 33,990. Letchworth ...

area. He trained as a lawyer and was a keen volunteer soldier, serving in the Victoria Rifles from 1859 and from 1860 was an officer in the Middlesex Volunteers. Originally initiated into the Jerusalem Lodge in 1875, he became a member of several lodges, rising rapidly to the rank of Grand Steward and was President of the Board of Grand Stewards in 1881. He was a member of the

Garrick Club The Garrick Club is a private members' club in London, founded in 1831 as a club for "actors and men of refinement to meet on equal terms". It is one of the oldest members' clubs in the world. Its 1,500 members include many actors, writers, ...

. He was a Governor of

St Bartholomew's Hospital St Bartholomew's Hospital, commonly known as Barts, is a teaching hospital located in the City of London. It was founded in 1123 by Rahere, and is currently run by Barts Health NHS Trust. History Early history Barts was founded in 1123 by ...

and the

Foundling Hospital The Foundling Hospital (formally the Hospital for the Maintenance and Education of Exposed and Deserted Young Children) was a children's home in London, England, founded in 1739 by the philanthropy, philanthropic Captain (nautical), sea captain ...

. From 1882 (following the death of Secretary Shadwell Clarke in 1891) until 1915 he was Secretary of the United Grand Lodge of England, with offices at Freemason's Hall, Great Queen Street,

Holborn, London Holborn ( or ), an area in central London, covers the south-eastern part of the London Borough of Camden and a part (St Andrew Holborn (parish), St Andrew Holborn Below the Bars) of the Wards of the City of London, Ward of Farringdon Without i ...

. In 1914 Letchworth corresponded with Masons imprisoned at

Ruhleben internment camp Ruhleben internment camp was a civilian detention camp in Germany during World War I. It was located in Ruhleben, a former ''Folwark, Vorwerk'' manor to the west of Berlin. This area is now split between the districts of Spandau and Charlotten ...

near

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. During his period in office he attended the foundation of over 400 lodges. He died on 8 October 1917 aged 84 and is buried in

Brompton Cemetery Brompton Cemetery (originally the West of London and Westminster Cemetery) is since 1852 the first (and only) London cemetery to be Crown Estate, Crown property, managed by The Royal Parks, in West Brompton in the Royal Borough of Kensington a ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Artistic recognition

Much portrayed (and caricatured) artists creating his likeless include: *

Sir Leslie Ward Sir Leslie Matthew Ward (21 November 1851 – 15 May 1922) was a British portrait artist and caricaturist who over four decades painted 1,325 portraits which were regularly published by '' Vanity Fair'', under the pseudonyms "Spy" and "Drawl". ...

(as "Spy") *

John Dick Bowie John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second Ep ...

Walter William Ouless Walter William Ouless (21 September 1848 – 25 December 1933) was a British portrait painter from Jersey. He became an Associate of the Royal Academy (ARA) in 1877 and a full member (RA) in 1881. Life and career He was born in 1848 at 53 Para ...

Harry Furniss Harry Furniss (26 March 185414 January 1925) was a British illustrator. He established his career on the ''Illustrated London News'' before moving to '' Punch''. He also illustrated Lewis Carroll's novel '' Sylvie and Bruno''. Biography Althoug ...

Family

In 1902 (aged 69) he was married to Mary Constance (1851-1921), widow of Thomas Blaikie. They had no children.

Publications

*Constitutions of the Free and Accepted Masons (1896) *Constitutions of the Ancient Fraternity (1906) *United Grand Lodge of England: Constitutions of the Free and Accepted Masons (1911)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Letchworth, Edward 1833 births 1917 deaths English Freemasons Burials at Brompton Cemetery