Secrets from the Dark Horizon: A Reader's Companion Guide (The Dark Horizon Trilogy Book 0)

by Duncan Simpson

  Hawksmoor’s Six London Churches

  St Alphege, Greenwich (1712–1714)

  St Mary Woolnoth, City of London (1716–1724)

  St Anne, Limehouse (1714–1730)

  St George-in-the-East, Wapping (1714–1729)

  Christchurch, Spitalfields (1714–1729)

  St George, Bloomsbury (1716–1731)

  Collaborations with John James

  St Luke Old Street (1727–1733)

  St John Horsleydown (1727–1733)

  Now regarded as one of the great masters of the English Baroque, he derived his style from a study of antiquity, particularly the seven ancient wonders of the world. He researched engravings of buildings from ancient Rome, Egypt and Greece and took his inspiration from ancient pagan traditions. He is known to have had a rich and eclectic library including books whose subjects ranged from Solomon’s Temple to the design of the great Islamic mosques.

  Hawksmoor’s churches are unsettling, brooding edifices to a pagan world. His buildings often employ architectural optical illusions that imbue them with an impression of size and weight much greater than their physical reality. Hawksmoor’s striking churches evoke powerful emotions and often awaken feelings of unease in the beholder.

  Unlike his mentor Wren, Hawksmoor had a reputation for being dour and reserved and left no pupils or contemporary apprentices to carry on his work. Considered as a maverick and not fully accepted by the establishment, he was somewhat embittered that his work did not receive the public attention that he thought it deserved. He never secured a senior Crown appointment and went to his grave feeling unfairly treated. Hawksmoor died of gout in his house at Milbank on 25 March 1736 and was buried at Shenley, Hertfordshire.

  It has taken nearly 250 years for Nicholas Hawksmoor to emerge from the shadows of Wren and Vanbrugh, but today he still remains an enigma. In contemporary fiction, the myth surrounding him has been further fuelled by writers such as Iain Sinclair, Peter Ackroyd and Alan Moore, whose work explores a possible connection with the troubled architect and the occult. Even now, Hawksmoor's churches have the power to disturb and disorientate the senses.

  Secret Fact

  Hawksmoor and his collaborator John James were both Freemasons. Hawksmoor was a member of a Masonic lodge in Ludgate Street (his membership was recorded in 1691, when he became Wren’s assistant), and James was member of the lodge at the Swan in East Street, Greenwich.

  Like Isaac Newton, Hawksmoor studied the biblical visions of the prophet Ezekiel to discern the physical design of Solomon’s Temple. He incorporated aspects of the Solomonic design into his buildings, such as the twisted columns and cube design at St Mary Woolnoth.

  PART 3:

  THE BACKGROUND FILES

  The Third Temple (Jerusalem)

  According to the Hebrew Bible, the magnificent First Temple was built in 957 BC by King Solomon; replacing the mobile Tabernacle as the sole place of Israelite sacrifice (Deuteronomy 12:2–27). The First Temple was totally destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BC.

  The building of the Second Temple was authorised by Cyrus the Great and began in 538 BC. It was completed 23 years later but was extensively updated and expanded by Herod the Great around 20 BC. The Romans destroyed the Second Temple in AD 70 during the Siege of Jerusalem. Rabbinical sources state that both the First and Second Temples were built on the same foundations, at the same location somewhere on the Temple Mount.

  Following the Muslim conquest of Jerusalem, an Islamic shrine called the Dome of the Rock was constructed on the alleged site of the Temple in AD 691. The Temple courtyard is also home to the al-Aqsa Mosque from roughly the same period.

  The Third Temple, or Ezekiel's Temple, is described in the Book of Ezekiel (chs. 40–42) as a house of prayer for all people. It is portrayed as the permanent dwelling place of the God of Israel and will be built on the site of Solomon’s first Temple.

  Orthodox Judaism (and some evangelical Christian groups) believe that a Third Temple should be rebuilt on Temple Mount and also believe in the resumption of Korban (sacrificial worship). There is, however, much disagreement about the details and timing as to when the rebuilding should take place. Some orthodox scholars and rabbinic authorities believe that the rebuilding should only occur in the era of the Jewish Messiah, whereas other minority sects believe that the endeavour should start as soon as possible. The most obvious obstacle to the building of the Third Temple is the presence of the al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock, which have been standing on top of the Temple Mount for over thirteen centuries.

  Secret Fact

  Recently a number of scholars and archaeologists have proposed the idea that the position of the Dome of the Rock may not be the actual site of the First and Second Temples at all. For obvious reasons, this is a topic of intense research and growing controversy. There are many debated sites, and two plausible alternatives are:

  1. ‘The Northern Conjecture’ (North of the Dome of the Rock):

  This hypothesis put forward by the physicist Dr Asher Kaufman proposes a site some 330 feet to the north. The Dome of the Rock is built on the bedrock of Mount Moriah, which extends for some distance to the north. This outcropping levels out at a point marked by a modest Islamic shrine known as ‘The Dome of the Tablets’ or ‘The Dome of the Spirits’, names that might suggest a connection with the Jewish Temple.

  2. ‘The Southern Conjecture’ (South of the Dome of the Rock):

  Proposed by Tuvia Sagiv, a prominent Tel Aviv architect who has carried out infrared scans of the Temple Mount. Sagiv proposes that the Temple was located to the south somewhere between the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa Mosque.

  Temple Mount is under the supervision and management of the Waqf, an ancient Islamic trust that controls and manages Islamic buildings and shrines around the old city of Jerusalem. Amazingly the Waqf has controlled access to the site since the Muslim reconquest of the Kingdom of Jerusalem in 1187. To the Waqf, the platform of Temple Mount is effectively a massive outdoor mosque sacred to Islam and as such should not be subject to systematic archaeological excavations.

  The Knights Templar

  The Knights Templar were an order of warrior monks that grew into one of the most powerful and secretive organisations in the medieval world. Within two centuries of their formation, they were in control of large swathes of land stretching from Scotland through Europe and into Asia. Famously dressed in a white mantle splayed with an eight-pointed blood-red cross, the Knights Templar became the storm-troopers of the Holy Land. Yet, their demise was even more dramatic than their rise: arrested in a series of clandestine raids, the Knights were accused of heresy, blasphemy, sodomy, idol worship and black magic. Their leaders were burned at the stake and the Order dissolved.

  Founded in 1118, just after the first crusader conquest of Jerusalem in 1099, their original objective was to protect Christian pilgrims travelling to the Holy Land. In 1128 at the Council of Troyes, they were officially recognised as a religious-military order. The knights took on monastic vows of poverty, chastity and obedience and were gradually transformed into a chivalric order of warrior monks. They were compelled to cut their hair but banned from cutting their beards, thus differentiating themselves from the general population. Diet, dress and washing regimes were rigorously controlled according to their monastic vows. Conduct during combat was also stringently prescribed. Templars were not allowed to retreat from the enemy unless they were outnumbered by at least three to one, and they were also compelled to fight to the death. Their discipline and fanatical zeal made them a feared fighting unit during the crusades.

  In 1139, Pope Innocent II issued a Papal Bull declaring that the Templars should owe allegiance to no other power than the Pope himself. Special privileges given by the Vatican, effectively made the Templars totally independent of the political and religious authorities of the day. Large numbers of young men flocked to join the glamorous new Order and vast donations of money and land began to rapidly swell the coffers. Despite
the fact that individual knights were bound to a vow of poverty, this did not prevent the Order from stockpiling extraordinary wealth. Within a year of the Council of Troyes, the Order held significant territory in France, England, Scotland, Flanders, Spain and Portugal. At their height, they were the most powerful organisation in Christendom, with the exception of the papacy.

  With power and fortune came arrogance and corruption, and soon they were in the sights of King Philip IV of France. With the help of the puppet Pope Clement V (who happened to be a Frenchman), the Order was disbanded in 1312, and their property and possessions were transferred to the more compliant Knights Hospitallers of the Order of St John. However, much of the Templar’s substantial fortune disappeared and still remains unaccounted for today. The Templars were accused of blasphemy and heresy, and the Order’s last Grand Master, Jacques De Molay, was burned at the stake on 18 March 1314.

  Secret Fact

  The writings of Guillaume of Tyre provide us with an account of the origins of the Order. Its founder was Hughes de Payen, a nobleman from the Champagne region of France. Hughes along with eight comrades at arms presented themselves to Baudouin I, the King of Jerusalem. Guillaume of Tyre records that their declared objective was ‘as far as their strength permitted, they should keep the roads and highways safe … with especial regard for the protection of pilgrims’.

  Apparently the king was so impressed with the credentials and worthy objective of the unsolicited visitors, he placed the entire wing of the royal palace at the knights’ disposal. Even though the knights had sworn oaths of poverty, they moved into the extravagant quarters. (Note that their emblem was of two knights riding on a single horse, emphasising the Order's poverty). The King of Jerusalem’s accommodation was built on the foundations of the Temple of Solomon, and this is where the Order derived its name The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon.

  Strangely, Guillaume de Tyre records that for the next nine years, the Order accepted no new members. Were they what they appeared to be? It seems fanciful to suppose that merely nine men could protect all the travelling routes of the Holy Land, along with the tens of thousands of pilgrims that followed them. If this was the aspiration of the Order, then surely they would have taken on new members?

  Baphomet

  Like so many of the stories about the Templar knights, the events surrounding their final downfall are shrouded in mystery. The Templars great wealth and power made them a target for King Philip IV of France. Realising that he could only seize their estates if they were condemned as heretics, Philip along with his puppet Pope Clement V accused the Templars of numerous heinous acts including spitting or trampling on the cross, worshipping demons, ridiculing the sacraments of the church, absolving each other of sins, secretly fraternising with Moslems, and encouraging homosexual acts between members, etc. These were amongst the common accusations levelled by the inquisition on any enemies of the state.

  However, during their trial, one charge emerged that was strangely unique to the Templars: It was claimed that the disgraced order secretly worshipped an object known as Baphomet. The descriptions of the Baphomet idol varied but seemed to centre on its being some form of head, sometimes with one face, sometimes with two; sometimes bearded, sometimes not; sometimes made of silver, and sometimes of wood. Due to the uniqueness of these descriptions and their persistence amongst the confessions of its members, some scholars believe that there might be a kernel of truth to this story.

  Secret Fact

  The etymology of the name has been the topic of much speculation, and many theories have been put forward.

  Some scholars believe it is a corruption of the name of the Islamic prophet ‘Mahomet’, or Mohammed in English. During their time in the Holy Land, The Templars fought alongside the Moslem sect the ‘Assassins’ and would have been exposed to many Islamic beliefs and customs.

  Another theory is that Baphomet is really a marrying of two Greek words: baptw, meaning baptism, mhtij, meaning wisdom. So perhaps the word points to a sort of ‘baptism of wisdom’.

  Freemasonry

  The secrets of Freemasonry are intimately linked with the building of Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem. The story of how Solomon recruited Hiram, King of Tyre, and his principal architect, Hiram Abif, is described in the first Book of Kings in the Bible and is the central mystery of Freemasonry.

  It is interesting to note that the emergence of speculative Freemasonry (the teaching and following of secret esoteric practices) occurred at roughly the same time as the building of the London churches after the 1711 Act of Parliament.

  According to Masonic history, the foundation of the Grand Lodge of England occurred on St John the Baptist's Day on 24 June 1717, when four existing ‘Old Lodges’ assembled at the Goose and Gridiron alehouse in St Paul's Churchyard in London.

  All four lodges were named after the public houses where they held their meetings:

  1. The Goose and Gridiron Alehouse in St Paul's Churchyard.

  (The lodge is now called Lodge of Antiquity No. 2 and is traditionally associated with Christopher Wren.)

  2. The Crown Alehouse in Parker's Lane near Drury Lane.

  3. The Apple-Tree Tavern in Charles Street, Covent Garden.

  (The lodge is now called Lodge of Fortitude and Old Cumberland No. 12)

  4. The Rummer and Grapes Tavern in Channel Row, Westminster.

  Secret Fact

  During the building of St Paul’s Cathedral (built between 1675 and 1710), Masons used a series of secret signs to identify themselves to other Masons. If Masons met in the street, they could signal their membership of a lodge by the following signs (now obsolete):

  Raising their hat with only the thumb and two fingers.

  Striking the inside of the little finger of the left hand three times with the forefinger of the right hand.

  Rubbing the right eye three times with two fingers.

  Picking up a stone from the ground and asking the person, ‘What does it smell of?’ The appropriate Masonic response being, ‘Neither of brass, iron, or any other metal, but of a Mason’.

  The Establishment of the Royal Society

  Founded in 1660 as the ‘Royal Society of London for the Improvement of Natural Knowledge’, the Royal Society is the oldest national scientific body of its kind in the world. Its associated publication, Philosophical Transactions, which established the important concepts of scientific priority and peer review, dates back to 1665, and is the oldest continuously published scientific journal in existence. Its function is to inform the Fellows of the Society and other lay readers of the latest scientific discoveries. The prevailing aim of the scientists who began the Society was to gain knowledge by experimental investigation based upon the scientific method of Francis Bacon. The motto of the Royal Society is ‘Nullius in verba’, or ‘Take nobody’s word for it’.

  The beginnings of the Royal Society can be traced back to around 1645. A prototype grouping of physicians and natural philosophers including Robert Boyle, John Wilkins, John Wallis, John Evelyn, Robert Hooke, Christopher Wren and William Petty began to meet at Gresham College and various other locations around London. The first ‘learned society’ meeting took place on 28 November 1660 with a talk by Christopher Wren, Gresham College’s Professor of Astronomy. The group soon received royal approval from Charles II, and in 1663 ‘The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge’ was established.

  The business of the Society was eclectic, with discussion on subjects as varied as astronomy, the nature of light, anatomy, horticulture, the launching of projectiles, the production of vomit, poisons, cartography, techniques of pistol shooting, gravity, compressed air and whether a spider could be captured within a circle of ground unicorn horns.

  The English mathematician Lord Brouncker was its first president, with Christopher Wren taking over the presidency in the early 1680s, followed by Samuel Pepys. The reputation of the society was greatly increased under the long presidency of S
ir Isaac Newton from 1703 until his death in 1727.

  Secret Fact

  The beginnings of both the Royal Society and speculative Freemasonry in London are interlinked through a group of common members. As enrolment into Masonic lodges grew after the establishment of the Grand Lodge in 1717, Freemasonry seems to have attracted significant new membership from the Fellows of the Royal Society. In 1723, out of the 200 members of the Royal Society, around a fifth were Freemasons.

  Prehistoric London (2,000 - 3,000 BC)

  The square mile known today as the ‘City of London’ contains millennia of human history buried within its soil. In this area once stood a fortified enclosure. The enclosure (or ‘Caer’) was arranged around two hillocks about 35 feet high and positioned either side of a stream. Today, the present street named Walbrook runs very close to the course of the stream. To the north was a swampy moorland stretching to the foot of an immense forest that was later known as the Middlesex Forest. Parts of this ancient forest still remain at Hampstead, Epping and Hainault.