The Masonic Assassination of Captain Morgan
Type the words “Captain Morgan” into any search engine and you’ll find pages dedicated to ‘Captain Morgan’s Spiced Rum‘before you come across anything to do with Captain William Morgan. This unsung hero was one of the first to shed light on the inner workings of Masonic lodges by writing a book exposing Masonic rituals. This book would end up costing him his life and would change the face of American politics for several years after his death.
The oath of a Freemason has a stiff penalty for revealing the secrets of Freemasonry:
…have their throats slit, their tongues pulled out by the roots, and their bodies buried in the rough sands of the sea, at the low tide mark, where the tide rises and falls twice in twenty-four hours.
Early life
Born in 1774 in Virginia, Captain Morgan claimed to have served in the army during a conflict between the United States and the British Empire in 1812 that lasted three years, however, there are doubts about this claim as there are no records that include a ‘Captain William Morgan’. ‘ From that moment. When he was young, he was aptly taken on as an apprentice stonemason (also known as a mason).
Captain Morgan and the Royal Arch Degree of Freemasonry
Captain Morgan received the Royal Arch Degree from the Western Star Chapter in 1825, however, as there are no records of his original entry into a Masonic Lodge as an Entered Apprentice, Masons have claimed that he was not actually a Mason at all. By their nature, Masonic lodges must be free from prying ears, known to Masons as ‘cows‘ or spies. Morgan was said to have worked his way into a Masonic Lodge by pressuring an associate to give him a guarantee for the purpose of eavesdropping on meetings.
Whether this is true or not, it is known that he regularly attended meetings and was an active member of the Fraternal Order. There is no doubt then that he would have had an inside perspective, watching, learning and listening to the Masonic rituals that were performed many times.
However, as time went on, suspicions began to grow to the point where the Batavian Masonic Lodge refused membership in a new Royal Arch Chapter of the Lodge. Furious, Captain Morgan made it known publicly that he was going to expose the Masons by writing a book, possibly the first of its kind, called: ‘Illustrations of Freemasonry’. This book would describe the details of the first 3 degrees of Freemasonry, namely; the entered apprentice, the fellow craftsman andmaster mason, these inner workings of Masonic lodges are the same ‘secrets’ to which the oath of a Mason applies. The Freemasons retaliated and the controversy became known as:
‘The Morgan Affair’
Anxious about the repercussions of such exposure and the need to protect their secrets, the Freemasons retaliated. Captain Morgan was officially denounced by the Batavian Masonic Lodge and the printing house where his book was to be published mysteriously burned to the ground. What happened next was so shocking that it radically altered the face of American politics for several years. While Freemasons vehemently deny the claims, many accept what follows as a true account of events. On September 11, 1826, Morgan was arrested after Masons alleged that he owed a debt. A man claiming to be a friend of the Captain posted bail for him and led him out into the autumn night. Captain Morgan was carried into the Niagara River and drowned. A body did not wash up on shore for many months.
“…to bury the body in the rough sands of the sea, at the low-tide mark”
By this time he had decomposed beyond recognition and needed a forensic report to confirm his identity. The report stated that the cause of death was suffocation due to drowning.
In an effort to silence the captain, the Freemasons had inadvertently shone more attention than Morgan could have commanded in life. A panic gripped America as awareness of the Freemason Conspiracy came to light; especially in the political field. Realizing that neither Republicans nor Democrats were free from Masonic membership, a new third force emerged as a direct reaction to the perceived threat to democracy. The Anti-Masonic Party gained much support at first, but this gradually faded, while the Freemasons remain strong in numbers and establishment.
In memory of…
Despite being overshadowed by a rum-drinking pirate, Captain William Morgan is still remembered today for his contribution in helping to expose the secrets of the Freemasons. Today in Batavia there is a great monument dedicated to the memory of the Captain, containing the story of his brutal passing etched in stone for all to see and never to be forgotten by future generations. Thanks to the efforts of Captain Morgan, we now know much more about Masonic ritual and Masons in general. There have been many exposed over the years, Masons and non-Masons alike, and many others have lost their lives in the process. Much has been revealed through these efforts, but much more remains hidden in mystery.
