by Richard Allan Wagner
July 4, 2026
Prologue
Before there was such a thing as Freemasonry there was the Order of Operative Masons—these were the craft stone masons who built the magnificent cathedrals and castles of Europe, and were the first labor force to organize as a guild. As a condition of payment, Operative Masons were obliged to carve personal, identifying marks into the structures on which they labored.
by Christina G. Waldman
June 1, 2026
Review of Alfred Dodd, Francis Bacon’s Personal Life-Story, 2 vols in 1 (London: Rider, 1986 [vol 1, The Age of Elizabeth, (London: Rider, 1949 [1910]); vol 2, The Age of James, [London: Century Hutchinson, 1986]). 580 pp.
The first duty of a biographer is to get his facts right, not merely the facts he wishes to be known, but all the facts, to suppress none and to slur over nothing; and not to be afraid lest an untoward discovery might falsify his prepossessions.
Alfred Dodd, Francis Bacon’s Personal Life-Story, p. 10
A stated goal of Alfred Dodd (1879‒1953), an English man of letters, in writing Francis Bacon’s Personal Life-Story, was to provide a truer, more personal portrait of Bacon than previously provided. “I have found more than sufficient evidence to satisfy me personally that Francis Bacon’s actual achievements were wider and deeper than traditional scholarship is disposed to admit.” (13) By 1949, Dodd had already published extensively on Bacon-Shakespeare topics. His Shakespeare’s Sonnet-Diary would see ten printings (Liverpool: Daily Post Printers, first pub. 1931). The first edition of Life Story was published in 1910. For the 1949 edition, Dodd had intended to add a second volume, The Age of James. However, he suffered a severe stroke in 1949, necessitating the postponement of the publication of volume 2 until 1986 (see Irene Rowland’s note, front matter, and Edward D. Johnson’s foreword to volume 2).
by SirBacon.org
A.Phoenix breaks down the misleading research of Stratfordian biographer Sam Schoenbaum
By SirBacon.org
There are Baconian moments that simply feel special — and this is one of them.
This remarkable video follows the careful restoration of a treasured portrait of Sir Francis Bacon for Bacon400, revealing the extraordinary skill, patience, and reverence involved in bringing history back to life. From delicate cleaning and repair to its return to Gray’s Inn Hall, the journey is genuinely fascinating.
Even for those long familiar with Bacon, there is something moving about seeing his face emerge again through the hands of modern conservators. Highly recommended viewing.
Thank you to Plowden & Smith for this fascinating video! Their video and description are below:
We were honoured to be asked by the Francis Bacon Society to restore their treasured portrait of Sir Francis Bacon for #Bacon400 the 400th anniversary of Sir Francis Bacon’s death in 1626.
The portrait now hangs in Hall at @HonSocGraysInn where Katherine Gwyn, Archivist and Records Manager at Gray’s Inn, and Sally Gibbins, Principal at the Francis Bacon Society, talk about the importance of the portrait, and Bacon himself, to the Inn.
Our Paintings Conservator, Lily Down, shares her insights into the treatment of the painting from removing the artwork from its frame, the importance of cleaning the painting while keeping areas of damage safe, repairing the tear, and in-painting the areas of loss to make the painting complete.
00:00 – Introduction to Gray’s Inn
00:55 – Gray’s Inn Portrait Collection
02:20 – The legacy of Sir Francis Bacon
03:04 – Bacon400 and the portrait’s history
04:35 – Painting Conservation – Introduction
05:29 – Painting Conservation – Facing and cleaning the artwork
06:46 – Painting Conservation – Mending the tear
07:30 – Painting Conservation – Filling and in-painting
08:32 – Painting Conservation – Re-framing
09:51 – The portrait back at Gray’s Inn
by Michael Taylor
“But the Idols of the Marketplace are the most troublesome of all: idols which have crept into the understanding through the alliances of words and names.”
Novum Organum, Book I, Aphorism 59 (1620)
Aphorism 59 from Francis Bacon’s Novum Organum directly addresses his view of the “most troublesome” of the fallacies he categorised in his four Idols – are the idols of the marketplace:
“There are also Idols formed by the intercourse and association of men with each other, which I call Idols of the Market Place, on account of the commerce and consort of men there. For it is by discourse that men associate, and words are imposed according to the apprehension of the vulgar. And therefore the ill and unfit choice of words wonderfully obstructs the understanding.”
Idols of the marketplace are fallacies created by public discourse – people simply talking to people, as well as institutions communicating with the public through any means. Either way, people and institutions using and mis-using language and creating misunderstandings and false conclusions in the minds of others, is the basis for this idol, and deserves close analysis because of its pervasiveness – it is literally happening every day, to everyone on the planet, across all languages.
It deserves close analysis because we literally live in a sea of communication, and our (true or false) conclusions about reality are primarily formed by this sea influencing our worldview. No matter how much we seek to limit our access to this endless sea, any discourse between one person and another is an opportunity for misunderstandings to be communicated and accepted by the listener or reader.
Read more…>>
Sirbacon.org celebrates the Birthday of William Shakespeare (aka William Shaksper) the world’s most famous literary decoy with a new book & Video from A. Phoenix :
New A Phoenix work:
Based on a groundbreaking and revelatory new literary biography covering the virtually unknown part of Bacon’s early life and exploring the extraordinary developing mind that culminated in the Shakespeare works. It reveals Bacon’s royal origins and highlights how his formative years were heavily influenced by the formidably creative, intellectual and political environment of his foster family. Francis Bacon was writing poetry and drama from a very early age, developing his craft behind a series of literary masks as he became Shakespeare.
Read: Becoming Shakespeare: The Making of a Genius
Short video highlighting the key points:
By SirBacon.org
It’s now 400 years ago that on this day April 9th 1626, history observes that Sir Francis Bacon left this world. But did he really die?
What do we know that challenges the historical record?
A. Phoenix’s research reveals compelling historical evidence & circumstances that Bacon had a remarkable plan up his sleeve in order to protect his life from dire political realities while extending his life’s mission. We invite you to read the PDF below and to view the video.
SirBacon.org/FRANCIS BACONS DEATH.pdf
Also the Francis Bacon Society of London is hosting a year long series of events throughout 2026 that Celebrate and Inform the Life and Work of Sir Francis Bacon. See: Bacon 400 Events – The Francis Bacon Society
By SirBacon.org
“Bacon-Masonry” by George. V. Tudhope (1954)
https://SirBacon.org/tudhope.htm
Listen to the discussion based excerpts from the book Bacon Masonry (1954) and the article “That Masonic Lost Word” in Baconiana (1957), George V. Tudhope’s central message is that Francis Bacon was the secret “original designer” and “Father” of Speculative Freemasonry.
Tudhope argues that Bacon created the fraternity as a vehicle to preserve and advance human learning, concealing profound truths within its rituals and symbols. His specific arguments include:
1. The “Lost Word” is Light (Knowledge) Tudhope claims to reveal the “name and meaning” of the Masonic Lost Word, which he identifies as “Light”. Meaning: He interprets “Light” not merely as physical illumination, but as knowledge, memory, and wisdom.
Origin: He links this to the biblical creation (“Let there be light”), arguing that this command planted the “seeds of memory” and marked the birth of the first “temple of the mind”. Purpose: The search for this “Light” represents the quest to discover all the arts and sciences concealed in Universal Nature.
2. Freemasonry Imitates the “Divine Plan” Tudhope asserts that Bacon designed Freemasonry to imitate God’s method of hiding truth to encourage human discovery. He cites King Solomon’s Proverb (Prov. 25:2): “The Glory of God is to conceal a thing, but the Glory of a King is to find it out”.
Just as the Creator concealed secrets in nature, Bacon “cunningly lost or hidden” a Word within Freemasonry to stimulate men to search for knowledge. Tudhope draws parallels between Freemasonry and Bacon’s interpretation of the ancient fable of “Pan,” arguing that the “Fraternity of Pan” (seekers of nature) was the prototype for Bacon’s Freemasonry.
3. The “Great Instauration” as Masonic Ritual Tudhope connects Bacon’s philosophical life work, the Great Instauration (defined as a “restoration after decay”), directly to Masonic ritual.
He argues that the Masonic allegory of “raising the Master” is synonymous with Bacon’s Instauration: both represent the restoration of knowledge that has been lost or buried.
4. Bacon’s Royal Lineage Tudhope also claims that Bacon concealed his identity as a Prince of England within his works.
Analyzing the title page of the 1624 Paris edition of Bacon’s De Augmentis, Tudhope interprets the letters “IM” and accompanying symbols (a Mason’s mark, a fleur-de-lis, and a coronet) to mean: “I am an Operative Mason” and “I am a Prince”.
He concludes that Bacon was the secret son of Queen Elizabeth. In summary, Tudhope’s message is that Francis Bacon founded Freemasonry to guide humanity “from darkness into light” and that the fraternity’s ultimate goal is the retrieval of all knowledge concealed in the universe.
New book by A. Phoenix
Francis Bacon and his Spenserian Mask
This book shows that Francis Bacon was the actual author of the works traditionally attributed to Edmund Spenser. The work provides a detailed examination of Bacon’s hidden involvement in Elizabethan literature, claiming he utilised various “literary masks” to disseminate secret political and philosophical messages. Central to this theory are the cryptographic devices, anagrams, and numerical ciphers embedded within titles such as The Shepheardes Calender and The Faerie Queene. The book also explores Bacon as the secret son of Queen Elizabeth, using his poetry to navigate the dangerous complexities of the royal succession and his disinherited status. Furthermore, it highlights Bacon’s foundational role in Rosicrucianism and Freemasonry, suggesting these societies were instruments for his broader intellectual and philanthropic ambitions. Ultimately, the material portrays Bacon as a polymathic genius who orchestrated a vast “conspiracy of silence” to conceal his multifaceted influence on English history.
Read the Book here:
Francis Bacon and His Literary Mask Edmund Spenser
2 Minute video exploring the key points here:
By SirBacon.org
Did Bacon and Shakespeare think the same on the subject of Love or did they think differently?
Robert Theobald offers a deep dive into the matter
https://sirbacon.org/theobaldlove.htm
and see Edwin Reed’s essay “Bacon and Shakespeare on Love“
https://sirbacon.org/reedlove.htm
This discussion examines the Baconian theory of authorship by comparing how Francis Bacon and William Shakespeare portray the concept of love. While critics like Tennyson argued that Bacon’s prose was too cold and pragmatic to have produced the romantic depth of the plays, the author contends that both writers actually view love as a weak passion that can disrupt one’s professional and public life. Through a detailed analysis of the historical plays, tragedies, and comedies, the source illustrates that Shakespeare frequently depicts love as a form of folly or distraction that must remain subordinate to business and statecraft. The author highlights striking linguistic and philosophical parallels between Bacon’s essays and specific dramatic scenes to suggest a shared intellectual identity. Ultimately, the text argues that the supposed ideological gap between the two men is an illusion, asserting that their identical treatment of love serves as evidence for their being the same person.
