The Ancient Grand Lodge of England, as it is known today, or The Grand Lodge of the Most Ancient and Honourable Fraternity of Free and Accepted Masons (according to the Old Constitutions granted by His Royal Highness Prince Edwin, at York, Anno Domini nine hundred and twenty six, and in the year of Masonry four thousand nine hundred and twenty six) as they described themselves on their warrants, was a rival Grand Lodge to the Premier Grand Lodge of England. It existed from 1751 until 1813 when the United Grand Lodge of England was created from the two Grand Lodges. They are now called the Antients, in contrast to the Moderns, the original Grand Lodge which its critics, notably Laurence Dermott, said had moved away from the ritual of Scotland, Ireland, and now the Antient Grand Lodge. This Grand Lodge was also informally called the Atholl Grand Lodge because the Third and Fourth Dukes of Atholl presided over it as Grand Masters for half of its 62-year existence.
Although the Grand Lodge never spelled Antient with a "t", the convention was followed by the Moderns, and continues to be used by United Grand Lodge. Some confusion arises from the Ancients' own documentation. Their seals are inscribed Grand Lodge in London of Free and Accepted Masons According to the Old Institution(s), while in their masonic certificates, issued to new members, they called themselves the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of England according to the Old Constitutions.
History
From about 1721, the new Grand Lodge which had been formed in London in 1717, and would soon spread to the rest of England, Wales, and abroad, pursued a policy of self-publicity and expansion that did not always sit well with other Freemasons. They abandoned the old methods of "drawing" lodges with chalk, (erased with a mop) in favour of tape and portable metal letters. In 1735 they refused admission to the Master and Wardens of an Irish lodge who claimed to be a deputation from Lord Kingston, then Grand Master of Ireland and past Grand Master of the English Grand Lodge. The Irish masons were offered admission if they would accept the English constitution, which they refused. In the 1730s the English Grand Lodge had changed their ritual to stay ahead of public exposures. During this period, London absorbed many economic migrants from Ireland. Those who were already masons were often repelled by the changes introduced by the English Grand Lodge, and either formed their own lodges, or joined one of the many unaffiliated lodges in the capital. In 1751, five of these, and a sixth that had just been formed, united to form a rival Grand Lodge, which quickly became an umbrella organisation for the other unaffiliated lodges in England.
This success must be seen as a triumph of the energy, wit, and sheer belligerence of their second Grand Secretary, Laurence Dermott. Most of what we know of him comes from the minutes of Grand Lodge and from his book of constitutions. The Grand Committee met on the first Wednesday of every month, and on 5 February 1752, Dermott replaced John Morgan as Grand Secretary. The next month he dealt with the "Leg of Mutton" masons, two men who had initiated masons into the Royal Arch for the price of a leg of mutton, but on examination by Dermott, knew nothing of the degree. They also claimed to teach a masonic method of achieving invisibility. In April he persuaded his brethren to replace Morgan's bye-laws with those of his own lodge in Dublin. June saw Dermott installing the Grand Officers. The lodge met as usual on Wednesday 2 September, and were treated to a lecture on their ritual by Dermott. Due to the change that year from the Julian to the Gregorian Calendar, the next day was Thursday 14 September, losing 11 days. The actual business of the lodge was conducted at an "emergency" meeting on the 14th, ensuring both dates appeared in the minutes.