The Rose Cross and the Age of Reason: Eighteenth-Century Rosicrucianism in Central Europe and Its Relationship to the Enlightenment

222 Pages·2011·17.69 MB·English

by  Christopher McIntosh

SPIRITUALITY / HISTORY M
c The Rose Cross
I
n
t
o
sh Age Reason
and the of
This new edition of Christopher McIntosh’s classic book on the Golden and
Rosy Cross order is eagerly awaited. The order stands out as one of the most
fascinating and influential of the high-degree Masonic and Illuminist groups
Eighteenth-Century Rosicrucianism in Central Europe
that mushroomed in Europe from the eighteenth century onward. Active mainly
and its Relationship to the Enlightenment
in the German-speaking lands, it recast the original Rosicrucian vision and
T
gave it renewed vitality. At one point it became politically influential when the
h
Prussian King, Frederick William II, was a member of the order. Historians have
e
often perceived the Golden and Rosy Cross as having had a conservative,

R
anti-Enlightenment agenda, but this study—drawing on rare German sources—
shows that the matter was more complex. The members of the order practiced o
alchemy and operated a degree system that was imitated by later orders, such s
e
as the Golden Dawn. Like the latter, the Golden and Rosy Cross exerted a wide

and enduring cultural influence. Both the alchemy of the order and its power- C
ful ritual system are insightfully described in Christopher McIntosh’s clear and
r
compelling style. o
s
s
Christopher McIntosh is a faculty member at the Centre for the Study of

Esotericism, University of Exeter, England. He is the author of Eliphas Lévi and a
n
the French Occult Revival, also published by SUNY Press. d

t
h
e
A volume in the SUNY series in Western Esoteric Traditions

A
David Appelbaum, editor
g
e

o
f

R
e
a
s
o
n
State University of
New York Press
www.sunypress.edu
Christopher McIntosh
THE ROSE CROSS
AND THE
AGE OF REASON
SUNY series in Western Esoteric Traditions
——————
David Appelbaum, editor
The Rose Cross
and the Age of Reason
Eighteenth-Century Rosicrucianism in Central Europe
and its Relationship to the Enlightenment
Christopher McIntosh
Cover image: Alchemist in his laboratory. From Geheime Figuren der Rosenkreuzer, aus
dem 16ten und 17ten Jahrhundert: aus einem alten Mscpt. Zum erstenmal ans Licht gestellt:
erstes -[drittes] Heft . Altona: J.D.A.Eckhardt, in Commission in der Heroldschen
Buchhandlung in Hamburg, 1785-[1788] . 3 v. in 1 : col. illus. ; 40 cm. Available at:
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/HistSciTech.GeheimeFiguren
Copyright © 1992 by E. J. Brill, Leiden, The Netherlands; copyright © 2011 by
Christopher McIntosh.
Published by State University of New York Press, Albany
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
No part of this book may be used or reproducted in any manner whatsoever without
written permission. No part of this book may be stored in a retrieval system or
transmitted in any form or by any means including electronic, electrostatic, magnetic
tape, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission
in writing of the publisher.
For information, contact State University of New York Press, Albany, NY
www.sunypress.edu
Production by Eileen Meehan
Marketing by Anne M. Valentine
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
McIntosh, Christopher, 1943–
The Rose Cross and the Age of Reason : eighteenth-century Rosicrucianism in
CentralEurope and its relationship to the Enlightenment / Christopher McIntosh.
p. cm. — (SUNY series in Western esoteric traditions)
Originally published: Leiden ; New York : Brill, 1992, in series: Brill’s studies in
intellectual history ; v. 29.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 189–194) and index.
ISBN 978-1-4384-3559-6 (hardcover : alk. paper)
1. Rosicrucians—Europe, Central—History—18th
century. 2. Enlightenment. I. Title.
BF1623.R7M34 2011
135'.43094309033—dc22 2010031937
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
CONTENTS
Preface vii
Foreword to the Second Edition ix
Introduction 1
1. The Enlightenment, the Aufklärung and Their Opponents 7
2. Rosicrucianism from Its Origins to the Early 18th Century 23
3. The Masonic Phase 39
4. The World of the Initiate 59
5. The Alchemy of the Gold- und Rosenkreuz 75
6. The Polemical Stance of the Gold- und Rosenkreuz 91
7. A Rosicrucian on the Prussian Throne 113
8. The Aufklärung Reaction and the Decline of the Gold- und
Rosenkreuz 133
9. Rosicrucianism in Poland and Russia 147
10. The Asiatic Brethren 161
11. Conclusion 179
A Note on Sources 185
Bibliography 189
Index 195
Illustrations 201

PREFACE
This book is one of a number of works in which I have explored what
can loosely be called the “Gnostic” undercurrents of western civilization.
The Rosicrucian movement is one of those undercurrents. The present
study deals with the revival of Rosicrucianism during the era of the
Enlightenment, focusing mainly on the German-speaking realm. It re-
examines the “Counter-Enlightenment” label that historians have often
attached to this movement, and discusses the role played by the Rosicrucian
revival in culture, politics, religion and science.
The work was originally written as a doctoral thesis in history at the
University of Oxford, where it was presented in 1989 under the title The
Rosicrucian Revival and the German Counter-Enlightenment. Apart from
some relatively minor changes, the text remains substantially the same.
It is a pleasure to express my gratitude to those who have helped me
during the preparation of this work. I include also the names of those
(cid:90)(cid:75)(cid:82)(cid:3)(cid:75)(cid:68)(cid:89)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:86)(cid:76)(cid:81)(cid:70)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:71)(cid:76)(cid:72)(cid:71)(cid:17)(cid:3)(cid:44)(cid:81)(cid:86)(cid:87)(cid:76)(cid:87)(cid:88)(cid:87)(cid:76)(cid:82)(cid:81)(cid:68)(cid:79)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:73)(cid:191)(cid:79)(cid:76)(cid:68)(cid:87)(cid:76)(cid:82)(cid:81)(cid:86)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:85)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:74)(cid:76)(cid:89)(cid:72)(cid:81)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:86)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:92)(cid:3)(cid:90)(cid:72)(cid:85)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:87)(cid:3)
the time. Throughout the research and writing, my then wife Katherine
gave me steadfast moral support, empathy and many valuable comments
(cid:68)(cid:81)(cid:71)(cid:3)(cid:72)(cid:81)(cid:70)(cid:82)(cid:88)(cid:85)(cid:68)(cid:74)(cid:72)(cid:71)(cid:3)(cid:80)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:85)(cid:82)(cid:88)(cid:74)(cid:75)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:71)(cid:76)(cid:73)(cid:191)(cid:70)(cid:88)(cid:79)(cid:87)(cid:3)(cid:83)(cid:68)(cid:87)(cid:70)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:86)(cid:17)(cid:3)(cid:39)(cid:85)(cid:17)(cid:3)(cid:53)(cid:17)(cid:45)(cid:17)(cid:58)(cid:17)(cid:3)(cid:40)(cid:89)(cid:68)(cid:81)(cid:86)(cid:15)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)
Brasenose College, Oxford, was as wise and insightful a supervisor as I
could have wished for. Professor Ludwig Hammermayer of the University
of Munich was a generous mentor, reading and commenting on the
manuscript, supplying me with much essential secondary material and
cheering me with his enthusiasm for the project. Dr. Eckhart Hellmuth of
the German Historical Institute, London, was also generous with his time
and expert advice.
Other scholars whose help and support I much appreciate are: Professor
Antoine Faivre of the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Paris; Dr. P.G.M.
Dickson of St. Catherine’s College, Oxford; Sir Isaiah Berlin, of All Souls
College, Oxford; Dr. David Sorkin of St. Antony’s College, Oxford; Dr.
T.C.W. Blanning of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge; Dr. Lawrence
(cid:37)(cid:85)(cid:82)(cid:70)(cid:78)(cid:79)(cid:76)(cid:86)(cid:86)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)(cid:48)(cid:68)(cid:74)(cid:71)(cid:68)(cid:79)(cid:72)(cid:81)(cid:3)(cid:38)(cid:82)(cid:79)(cid:79)(cid:72)(cid:74)(cid:72)(cid:15)(cid:3)(cid:50)(cid:91)(cid:73)(cid:82)(cid:85)(cid:71)(cid:30)(cid:3)(cid:51)(cid:85)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:72)(cid:86)(cid:86)(cid:82)(cid:85)(cid:3)(cid:45)(cid:82)(cid:86)(cid:70)(cid:72)(cid:79)(cid:92)(cid:81)(cid:3)(cid:42)(cid:82)(cid:71)(cid:90)(cid:76)(cid:81)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)
Colgate University, New York; Professor Helmut Reinalter of the University
of Innsbruck; Dr. Edith Rosenstrauch-Königsberg of Vienna, Professor
Ernst Wangermann of the University of Salzburg; Rafal Prinke of Poznan,
viii PREFACE
(cid:51)(cid:82)(cid:79)(cid:68)(cid:81)(cid:71)(cid:30)(cid:3)(cid:39)(cid:85)(cid:17)(cid:3)(cid:45)(cid:76)(cid:85)(cid:76)(cid:3)(cid:46)(cid:85)(cid:82)(cid:88)(cid:83)(cid:68)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)(cid:37)(cid:85)(cid:81)(cid:82)(cid:15)(cid:3)(cid:54)(cid:79)(cid:82)(cid:89)(cid:68)(cid:78)(cid:76)(cid:68)(cid:30)(cid:3)(cid:51)(cid:85)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:72)(cid:86)(cid:86)(cid:82)(cid:85)(cid:3)(cid:36)(cid:69)(cid:69)(cid:82)(cid:87)(cid:87)(cid:3)(cid:42)(cid:79)(cid:72)(cid:68)(cid:86)(cid:82)(cid:81)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)
(cid:37)(cid:85)(cid:82)(cid:90)(cid:81)(cid:3)(cid:56)(cid:81)(cid:76)(cid:89)(cid:72)(cid:85)(cid:86)(cid:76)(cid:87)(cid:92)(cid:15)(cid:3)(cid:51)(cid:85)(cid:82)(cid:89)(cid:76)(cid:71)(cid:72)(cid:81)(cid:70)(cid:72)(cid:15)(cid:3)(cid:53)(cid:75)(cid:82)(cid:71)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:44)(cid:86)(cid:79)(cid:68)(cid:81)(cid:71)(cid:30)(cid:3)(cid:45)(cid:72)(cid:68)(cid:81)(cid:16)(cid:51)(cid:68)(cid:86)(cid:70)(cid:68)(cid:79)(cid:3)(cid:53)(cid:88)(cid:74)(cid:74)(cid:76)(cid:88)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)(cid:51)(cid:68)(cid:85)(cid:76)(cid:86)(cid:30)(cid:3)
Dr. Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke; and Dr. Christina Rathgeber.
Equally importantly, I must thank the librarians and archivists without
whom this work could never have been written. Among these a special debt
of gratitude is due to Mr. B. Croiset van Uchelen, Librarian of the Grand
Lodge of the Netherlands at the Hague, who helped me to mine his library’s
(cid:86)(cid:88)(cid:83)(cid:72)(cid:85)(cid:69)(cid:3)(cid:70)(cid:82)(cid:79)(cid:79)(cid:72)(cid:70)(cid:87)(cid:76)(cid:82)(cid:81)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:81)(cid:71)(cid:3)(cid:74)(cid:68)(cid:89)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:80)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:69)(cid:72)(cid:81)(cid:72)(cid:191)(cid:87)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)(cid:75)(cid:76)(cid:86)(cid:3)(cid:72)(cid:81)(cid:70)(cid:92)(cid:70)(cid:79)(cid:82)(cid:83)(cid:72)(cid:71)(cid:76)(cid:70)(cid:3)(cid:78)(cid:81)(cid:82)(cid:90)(cid:79)(cid:72)(cid:71)(cid:74)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)
Masonic history. In the same category I must thank the following: Herbert
Schneider, Librarian of the Deutsches Freimaurer-Museum, Bayreuth; Dr.
(cid:53)(cid:72)(cid:74)(cid:76)(cid:81)(cid:68)(cid:3)(cid:48)(cid:68)(cid:75)(cid:79)(cid:78)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:54)(cid:87)(cid:68)(cid:68)(cid:87)(cid:86)(cid:69)(cid:76)(cid:69)(cid:79)(cid:76)(cid:82)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:78)(cid:3)(cid:51)(cid:85)(cid:72)(cid:88)(cid:533)(cid:76)(cid:86)(cid:70)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:85)(cid:3)(cid:46)(cid:88)(cid:79)(cid:87)(cid:88)(cid:85)(cid:69)(cid:72)(cid:86)(cid:76)(cid:87)(cid:93)(cid:15)(cid:3)(cid:37)(cid:72)(cid:85)(cid:79)(cid:76)(cid:81)(cid:30)(cid:3)
the staff of the Haus-Hof- und Staatsarchiv and the Oesterreichische
Nationalbibliothek, Vienna, and of the Tiroler Landesarchiv, Innsbruck;
(cid:45)(cid:82)(cid:75)(cid:81)(cid:3)(cid:43)(cid:68)(cid:80)(cid:76)(cid:79)(cid:79)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:81)(cid:71)(cid:3)(cid:75)(cid:76)(cid:86)(cid:3)(cid:86)(cid:87)(cid:68)(cid:73)(cid:73)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:87)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:47)(cid:76)(cid:69)(cid:85)(cid:68)(cid:85)(cid:92)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:56)(cid:81)(cid:76)(cid:87)(cid:72)(cid:71)(cid:3)(cid:42)(cid:85)(cid:68)(cid:81)(cid:71)(cid:3)(cid:47)(cid:82)(cid:71)(cid:74)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)
England and Wales, London; the staff of the British Library, the Bodleian
Library, the Oxford History Faculty Library and the Taylor Institute Library,
Oxford.
I am grateful to the British Academy for awarding me a Major State
Studentship, and last but not least I must express my gratitude to the
Governing Body of my college, Christ Church, and to the Oxford University
Committee for Graduate Studies, both of whom provided grants for travel
and research.
Writing on a German subject in English involves making certain
decisions as to language and stylistic convention. I have translated nearly
all German quotations into English. Occasionally, for the sake of clarity,
I have inserted the original of a word or phrase in the square brackets in
the text, and in certain cases where the whole quotation was written in an
archaic or idiosyncratic German I have reproduced the original text in the
footnotes.
Proper names I have left in German unless they are very familiar (e.g.
Vienna, Munich, Silesia). Titles I have anglicized (e.g. Duke Eugen of
Württemberg) expect in certain cases (e.g. Landgraf).
When I use the word “Germany” I mean, roughly, the German-speaking
lands within the Holy Roman Empire.
FOREWORD TO THE SECOND EDITION
(cid:44)(cid:81)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:76)(cid:81)(cid:87)(cid:72)(cid:85)(cid:89)(cid:68)(cid:79)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:69)(cid:82)(cid:88)(cid:87)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:90)(cid:82)(cid:3)(cid:71)(cid:72)(cid:70)(cid:68)(cid:71)(cid:72)(cid:86)(cid:3)(cid:86)(cid:76)(cid:81)(cid:70)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:191)(cid:85)(cid:86)(cid:87)(cid:3)(cid:72)(cid:71)(cid:76)(cid:87)(cid:76)(cid:82)(cid:81)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:76)(cid:86)(cid:3)(cid:69)(cid:82)(cid:82)(cid:78)(cid:3)(cid:90)(cid:68)(cid:86)(cid:3)
published, some remarkable changes have taken place within the academic
world. At that time the study of history in Western universities tended
to be dominated by a school of thought which rejected everything that
it regarded as archaic, anti-progressive and irrational—including all the
traditions that could broadly be described as “esoteric.” When scholars did
write about these subjects they were expected to adopt a cynical tone of
(cid:89)(cid:82)(cid:76)(cid:70)(cid:72)(cid:17)(cid:3)(cid:55)(cid:75)(cid:88)(cid:86)(cid:3)(cid:45)(cid:82)(cid:75)(cid:81)(cid:3)(cid:48)(cid:17)(cid:3)(cid:53)(cid:82)(cid:69)(cid:72)(cid:85)(cid:87)(cid:86)(cid:15)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:79)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:82)(cid:88)(cid:74)(cid:75)(cid:3)(cid:75)(cid:76)(cid:80)(cid:86)(cid:72)(cid:79)(cid:73)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:88)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:82)(cid:85)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:81)(cid:3)(cid:72)(cid:91)(cid:70)(cid:72)(cid:79)(cid:79)(cid:72)(cid:81)(cid:87)(cid:3)
and pioneering study entitled The Mythology of the Secret Societies, in
writing a friendly review of my book in the English Historical Review
(cid:11)(cid:45)(cid:88)(cid:81)(cid:72)(cid:15)(cid:3)(cid:20)(cid:28)(cid:28)(cid:25)(cid:12)(cid:15)(cid:3)(cid:85)(cid:72)(cid:80)(cid:68)(cid:85)(cid:78)(cid:72)(cid:71)(cid:29)(cid:3)(cid:179)(cid:47)(cid:76)(cid:78)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:86)(cid:82)(cid:3)(cid:80)(cid:88)(cid:70)(cid:75)(cid:3)(cid:76)(cid:81)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:75)(cid:76)(cid:71)(cid:71)(cid:72)(cid:81)(cid:3)(cid:90)(cid:82)(cid:85)(cid:79)(cid:71)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)(cid:86)(cid:72)(cid:70)(cid:85)(cid:72)(cid:87)(cid:3)
organizations of its age, Rosicrucianism is likely to remain of interest to
historians mainly as a registration of minds adrift from their moorings
and of the intellectual disorder of the age.” As long as this type of view
prevailed and phenomena such as Rosicrucianism were seen as mere
aberrations, much that was important in western thought was seen in a
distorted light or simply ignored. In recent decades, however, a whole
new academic discipline—the study of Western Esotericism—has become
(cid:191)(cid:85)(cid:80)(cid:79)(cid:92)(cid:3)(cid:72)(cid:86)(cid:87)(cid:68)(cid:69)(cid:79)(cid:76)(cid:86)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:71)(cid:15)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:81)(cid:71)(cid:3)(cid:90)(cid:76)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:76)(cid:81)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:76)(cid:86)(cid:3)(cid:71)(cid:76)(cid:86)(cid:70)(cid:76)(cid:83)(cid:79)(cid:76)(cid:81)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:75)(cid:76)(cid:86)(cid:87)(cid:82)(cid:85)(cid:92)(cid:3)(cid:82)(cid:73)(cid:3)(cid:41)(cid:85)(cid:72)(cid:72)(cid:80)(cid:68)(cid:86)(cid:82)(cid:81)(cid:85)(cid:92)(cid:15)(cid:3)
Rosicrucianism and related movements is recognized as a key element.
The appearance of the second edition of this book on the 18th-century
Gold- und Rosenkreuz (Golden and Rosy Cross) order is therefore timely,
and it is most appropriate that it should appear in the SUNY Press Series
in Western Esoteric Traditions.
The more we learn about the Golden and Rosy Cross, the more remarkable
it seems. As an organized body, it emerged under mysterious circumstances
around the 1760s—from earlier roots—and spread with astonishing speed
from its original breeding-ground in southern Germany and the Habsburg
territories to central and northern Europe and then as far east as Russia. At
its height it had a membership that probably ran into more than a thousand,
distributed over some 39 “circles” (as its lodges were called) covering a
vast area stretching from Vienna to Lübeck and from Aachen to Moscow
and operating a highly elaborate ritual and grade system, which included the
practice of alchemy. Its antecedents remain a mystery, but it is tempting to