Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes is a social and benevolent fraternal organisation open to men. Its aim is to aid members in need and their families, and the families of deceased members as well as to support other charitable groups.
According to theThe Grand Council Website, "The Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes was believed to have been founded at a time during the sixteenth century when societies were frowned upon, indeed you could have lost your head. It is said that Queen Elizabeth the 1st, being satisfied that we were not a threat to either the monarchy or society in general, presented us with a Banner, which enabled us to meet without fear or favour, and to this day when ever a Lodge meets, politics and religion may not be discussed."
The first lodge was founded in London in 1822. It was founded by staff from the Theatre Royal who had been denied membership of another Order known as the City of Lushington. Previously everyone working in the theatre was allowed access to the latter Order. However, at some point in the early 19th century membership was restricted so that only people who actually appeared on stage could become members, thus excluding backstage staff. It is unknown why they chose the name of the Order.
The Order has never received a Royal charter, even though for many years it has been known as the Royal Antediluvian Order. It is thought that the Order had been given the title "Loyal" towards the end of the 19th century when questions started arising concerning a great number of private societies and clubs, and that the title became "Royal" over time. The Order was, however, allowed to register itself under the Royal Warrant Act in the early 20th century because it had already been using the title "Royal".
It is thought that there was some illicit adoption of quasi-masonic traditions by the Order; as there are some similarities with Masonic rites and modes of conduct—however the Order is not Masonic, and has never had any official relationship with Freemasonry.
There are four degrees of membership within the organisation
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- Brother (1st degree)
- Certified Primo (2nd degree)
- Knight Order of Merit (Knight or Sir) (3rd degree)
- Roll Of Honour (Right Honourable) (4th degree)
While administratively the organisation operates in three tiers
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- Minor Lodge
- Provincial Grand Lodge
- Grand Lodge
also
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- Roll of Honour Assembly
- Knights Chapter
- Examining Council
The order is split into a number of Banners. The largest of these being The Grand Lodge of England (GLE), followed by the Grand Council (GC). Although there are minor differences in the naming of some lodge officers and in some rituals, the principals of the Order are the same for all Banners. Members of one Banner may become members of lodges in another Banner. This is known as interaffiliation.
