Records of the Loge des Neuf Soeurs in Paris, France, 1782-1806

Collection

Identifier: A1989-004

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Scope and Contents

This collection of original manuscripts, circulars, notices, extracts, addresses, and tableaus concerning Loge des Neuf Soeurs in Paris from 1782-1806 is bound as a book by Marquis de Pastoret. Included are several passages mentioning the role of Benjamin Franklin and the Freemasons in the American and French Revolutions, handwritten catechism for the now extinct Rite of Adoption, invitations, and other notes by Pastoret. Also includes two printed tableaus of lodge members.

Dates

Creation: 1782-1806

Creator

Freemasons. Loge des Neuf Soeurs (Paris, France) (Organization)
Pastoret, Claude Emmanuel Joseph Pierre, marquis de, 1755-1840 (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Materials in this collection may be governed by copyright. It is the responsibility of the researcher to identify and satisfy the holders of all copyrights. Please contact the Archivist regarding permission to publish material.

Biographical / Historical

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The Loge des Neuf Soeurs or Lodge of the Nine Muses was founded on March 11, 1776, immediately previous to the French Revolution, by a group of Freemasons under the leadership of Jerome de Lalande, most of them members of the main Paris lodge "Grand Orient." Applicants were selected according to their contributions to public life, to the arts and sciences, or else their promising future. The aims of the lodge included the furthering of humanity through the advancement of art and science, stimulation of public education, and protection of the unjustly accused. Benjamin Franklin was the second Venerable Master of the Lodge in 1779. During his two years of office, he had part in the organization of the Apollonian Society (1780) whose president became Antoine Court de Gebelin. It was an offspring of the lodge, with a special education program, including lectures and courses, which later developed into the famous Lycee of Paris.

French lawyer Claude Emmanuel Joseph Pierre de Pastoret (1756-1840) joined the lodge in 1782, became first Orator in 1783 and Venerable Master from 1787-1788. During that period, Pastoret was a Counsellor of the Court of Aids in Paris. Pastoret, together with Charles-Marguerite-Jean-Baptiste Mercier Dupaty, was for many years responsible for the reform of French penal law. After a varied career, he became the last Chancellor of France in 1829. Following the interruption of the revolutionary years, Pastoret was one of the first to join the reactivated lodge again in 1805, which was finally dissolved during the Revolution of 1848.

Full Extent

21 item/s

Language of Materials

French

Additional Description

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of the Supreme Council, 33°, Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite, Northern Masonic Jurisdiction, U.S.A.

Exhibition Text

From Looking Back, Moving Forward, Fifty Years of Collecting, 2024-2025:

Every year, Masonic lodges in France would send a tableau, or printed list of members, to the Grand Orient, their governing body. This tableau from the Lodge of Nine Sisters in Paris notes members’ names, occupations, and addresses. Members listed here include key figures from the American Revolution who were living in France at the time, such as Benjamin Franklin, his grandson, William Temple Franklin, naval hero John Paul Jones, and double-agent Edward Bancroft.

From To Fly to the Aid of Humanity: Benjamin Franklin and the Lodge of Nine Sisters, December 15, 2007-June 15, 2008:

Announcement for Fête Académique, May 1783

Pastoret, Venerable Master of the Lodge of Nine Sisters from 1788-1789, collected and bound documents that the Lodge produced in the late 1700s. These items include this announcement for a festival, held to celebrate the peace treaty between England and her former colonies co-hosted by Franklin and the Lodge of Nine Sisters. The invitation notes that allegorical images representing the glory of France, the Independence of America, and the philosophy of the Lodge will decorate the hall.

Tableau, 1782

Every year, each lodge in France would send a tableau, or printed list of its members, to the Grand Orient, the governing body of French lodges. Two additional pages continue this tableau, giving members’ names, civilian occupations, and addresses. Franklin, who served as Venerable Master of the Lodge from 1779-1781, is noted here as Past Master.

Tableau, 1783

The members listed on these two pages include some key figures from the American Revolution. In addition to Franklin, members of the Lodge included his grandson, William Temple Franklin, naval hero John Paul Jones, and double-agent Edward Bancroft, as well as artists Charles Monnet, François Godefroy, and Jean-Antoine Houdon.