Markland Mason

Last week Lodge Han Yang celebrated their 105th Anniversary with a Robert Burns Dinner.

Being over a hundred years old, Lodge Han Yang has a very rich history:

In the early years of the 20th century the non-official foreign population of Korea was, for the most part, limited to three general groups: the merchants, the miners, and the missionaries. Among this foreign population were a number of members of the Masonic Order. It is not definitely known who were the originators of the movement to establish an independent Masonic Lodge in Korea, but we do know that several meetings were held in Seoul during late 1907 and early 1908 at which steps were taken to prepare a petition to the Grand Lodge of Scotland.

The Grand Lodge considered the petition with favour and on November 5, 1908, issued a Charter for the new Lodge. The name, which had been recommended for the new Lodge, was Han Yang, one of the ancient Korean names for the capital city now known as Seoul. The Grand Lodge assigned the number 1048 to the new Lodge.

Although intermittently forced into darkness by the great challenges of the Japanese occupation, World War II and the Korean Conflict, more than a century later the Lodge continues to uphold the great guiding principles of the Craft: brotherly love, relief and truth.

Being a Robert Burns Dinner there was poetry, toasts and of course, haggis.

What a fantastic evening of fellowship, harmony and brotherly love!

To learn more about the history of Lodge Han Yang, click the link below. To learn more about Robert Burns, click here.

LaVergne, D. (2007). One Hundred Years of Freemasonry in Korea – A Brief History of Lodge Han Yang No. 1048 in Seoul. Seoul, Korea.