Worshipful Brethren, Brethren
I thought it might be helpful to newer members to provide a brief explanation of the workings of Province and my own role as Provincial Grand Standard Bearer. No this is not AI generated.
Freemasonry in England, Wales, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands is overseen by the United Grand Lodge of England or UGLE for short. There are 48 Provinces of which The Lodge of Dawn 6511 is located in the Province of Yorkshire West Riding.
Our Province is then broken down into 5 Areas. Each Area is overseen by an Assistant Provincial Grand Master (APGM). The Provincial Grand Master (PGM), Deputy Provincial Grand Master (DepPGM)and the 5 APGMs are collectively known as the “Rulers”. The Lodge of Dawn is located in Area 5.
Along with the Rulers, Province will appoint Provincial Officers. These appointments are either “acting” or “honorary”. Think of them as Executive or Non-Executive Directors in terms of a commercial enterprise. The normal protocol for appointments is that 6 years after being the Worshipful Master of a lodge, appointments are granted although there are exceptions. Some of which are at the discretion of the PGM and the Rulers. The level of an appointment is normally related to an individual’s commitment within masonry, charitable work and other factors. Sometimes the acting rank will be specific to a skill set eg the Provincial Grand Treasurer is typically an accountant. Part of the function of a Lodge Liaison Officer (LLO) is to help with the appointment process.
The hierarchy of ranks and the number of acting appointments which an individual Province is allowed to make, is set out in the Book of Constitutions on page 34.
Our Province falls into 4000-4999 category.
https://www.ugle.org.uk/about-us/book-constitutions
Acting or honorary ranks can be identified by an individual’s title. An honorary rank will start with Past – eg Past Provincial Grand Director of Ceremonies or PPGDC for short. An acting rank will start with the term Provincial eg Provincial Grand Standard Bearer – ProvGStdB – which is my rank. Further up the ladder there are Grand Ranks issued by UGLE rather than Province.
Provincial collars and aprons are Dark Blue. The collar jewel and symbol in the middle of the apron badge identifies his rank. For instance, the symbol on my badge is two crossing Standards.
Provincial Officers will typically wear a black jacket, waistcoat and grey pinstripe trousers. This formal morning dress attire is meant to signify formality and respect, and another Provincial identifier.
To confuse matters there are 2 types of regalia, dress and undress. Dress regalia is more ornate with heavy gold trims and is meant to be worn on formal occasions. These days most Officers will just have one set, typically dress. Personally, I have both. On a normal lodge night I will wear my basic undress regalia. When on formal duty I wear dress regalia. Grand Officers can be identified by extra gold wreath embroidery on their dress collars and apron borders. Rulers wear a chain on their shoulders rather than a collar.
The Company of Provincial Grand Stewards are an exception. They can be appointed before the normal 6 year rule and given the rank of Past Provincial Grand Steward even though their ceremonial roles are active. Their regalia is red rather than dark blue and their appointment typically lasts 3 years. In our lodge Christian Higgins is a member of the Company.
Acting Provincial Stewards can also be appointed at their first Provincial appointment with a 12 month term. W.Bro Howard Barnett received such an appointment a few years ago.
The hierarchy of ranks is similar to the ranks or positions within a lodge. Some acting ranks are for one year, others for longer. But the general rule is that no one position should be for more than 5 years. This allows for continual motivation and promotion of individuals. Honorary ranks are permanent, but a further consideration for promotion is given 5 years after a prior appointment.
A couple of weeks ago I was lucky enough to be on duty during the Installation of an APGM. The new appointee, Malcolm Whiteley is now the APGM for our Area 5 and prior to his new role was the Provincial Grand Secretary. Hopefully we will see him visit the Lodge of Dawn in the very near future.
NJZ 21/01/2025
Joining The Lodge of Dawn
If you are not a Freemason and, having read the above, would like to find out more, read our Seven Reason to Join The Freemasons, our guide on ‘How to join The Freemasons‘ or our simple ‘What is Freemasonry?’ page.
And if you would like to join The Lodge of Dawn in Leeds, please feel free to get in touch via our ‘Contact Us’ page.