Our history

The story behind our name and banner

Adapted from descriptions written in 1980 by W. Bro C H Pryce, Founder and first Master of Cae Glas Lodge. They also appear on the place-mats at our Festive Board, as a constant reminder of our origins.

The dining hall lit by candles, with tables laid for the Festive Board — Laid for the Festive Board at our December Festival, 2016

Why ‘Cae Glas’?

The Founders chose a name that belonged to Oswestry. Cae Glas is an open space in the heart of the town, now a public park whose fine gates are the town’s War Memorial.

With one of the town’s other Lodges having an Anglo-Saxon name and the other a Norman one, they felt that Oswestry’s connections with the Principality made a Welsh name fitting.

The land, about 10 acres in all, was once the estate of Cae Glas Mansion (since demolished), known for the two fine pillars at its front porch. It was sold to the Town Council for £6,000 in 1910 on condition that it became a public park, and the owner gave £200 towards the conversion.

What does it mean?

‘Green Field’

‘Cae’ is the Welsh for ‘field’, and ‘glas’ may be ‘green’ or ‘blue’, so this is the popular translation.

‘Blue Field’

This works too, if you remember that the famous Kentucky Blue Grass is in fact our Common Meadow Grass (Poa pratensis), which still grows in Cae Glas Park.

‘The field of the voice’?

Place names in a borderland often become distorted. The English could not pronounce the Welsh ‘ll’ and used a ‘k’ or ‘g’ instead, so ‘llais’ would become ‘klice’ or ‘glas’. Cae Glas lay outside the town walls, between the castle and town and the ancient monastic settlement of Whiteminster: a place where parleys or public meetings might be held. Could it have been ‘Caer’r llais’?

Reading the Lodge banner

Freemasons will be familiar with the significance of these symbols.

The pavement and pillars

At the centre, above the square and compasses, a squared pavement in perspective is flanked by the two great pillars of the Temple.

The gold above

The pavement is reflected in gold, implying the rays of the rising sun at the opening of the Lodge and of the setting sun at its closing.

The corn and green fields

Looking out past an ear of corn, green fields crossed by a stream recall the origin of the Lodge’s name and the beauty of Shropshire.

The mountains

In the distance, they remind us of Oswestry’s connections with Wales, the origin of our Province, and our brotherhood with our near neighbours.

The All-Seeing Eye

Placed in the ogee quatrefoil that serves as a window, it may observe without as well as within.

The name and number

Set against the sky above the quatrefoil, as a reminder of the heights to which members should endeavour to lift the honour and reputation of the Lodge.