Ritual , Secrecy , and Civil Society • Vol . 6 , No . 2 • Fall 2018 / Spring 2019
Anton von Geusau ’ s Conversations with Ramsay : An Inspection of his Original Diary
By Reinhard Markner 1
1
Given the scarcity of reliable information on Andrew Michael Ramsay ’ s connections with Freemasonry , Anton von Geusau ’ s records of the conversations he had with the chevalier in 1741 , two years before his death , are particularly precious . Their value has been appreciated by most Masonic scholars who have written on Ramsay , beginning with Friedrich Nicolai in 1782 . 2 Gustav Adolf Schiffmann , Robert F . Gould , and Wilhelm Begemann all paraphrased Geusau ’ s account when discussing Ramsay ’ s life and his ideas concerning Freemasonry ; so did George David Henderson in his seminal biography . 3
Anton von Geusau was born in Gandersheim on 28 August 1695 into an old Thuringian noble family . Ganders heim , a town belonging to the Duchy of Brunswick , half way between Hildesheim and Göttingen , was best known for its venerable abbey where Anton ’ s father , Günther von Geusau ( 1653 – 1701 ), was a member of the chapter . Having lost his father early in life , Anton was raised by his mother , Johanna Ursula née Baroness von Rhediger ( 1659 – 1718 ). Like his two elder brothers he went on to attend one of the two grammar schools recently founded by the industrious pietist August Hermann Francke ( 1663 – 1727 ) in Glaucha . He subsequently enrolled at the university in neighbouring Halle .
Upon Francke ’ s recommendation , Anton von Geusau was appointed , in 1716 , to serve as councillor to Count Henry XXIV of Reuss-Köstritz ( 1681 – 1748 ). Henry XXIV resided in the small Thuringian town of Köstritz , famous for its dark lager beer , and was subordinate to his elder brother , the ruling Count Henry XI of Reuss-Schleiz ( 1669 – 1726 ). ( The Reuss family , which governed much of the central German Vogtland region for centuries , is notorious for its habit of naming all male heirs Heinrich , regardless of which branch of the extended family they belong to . This makes for a rather awkward number ing system ; Thomas
1 University of Innsbruck .
2 See Friedrich Nicolai , Versuch über die Beschuldigungen , welche dem Tempelherrenorden gemacht worden , und über dessen Geheimniß , vol . 1 ( Berlin and Stettin : Nicolai , 2 1782 ), 226 – 236 .
3 See G [ ustav ] A [ dolf ] Schiffmann , Andreas Michael Ramsay : Eine Studie zur Geschichte der Freimaurerei ( Leipzig : Zechel , 1878 ); Wilhelm Begemann , Die Tempelherrn und die Freimaurer ( Berlin : Mittler , 1906 ), 23 – 48 ; G [ eorge ] D [ avid ] Henderson , Chevalier Ramsay ( London , Edinburgh , etc .: Nelson , 1952 ), 171 – 73 et passim .
27 doi : 10.18278 / rscs . 6.2.4