The Grand Lodge of Cyprus, or in the Greek language, , is the sovereign governing body of freemasonry within the Republic of Cyprus. Its formal English name is "The Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of Cyprus, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons." While four of its constituent lodges are approaching 100 years of age, the Grand Lodge of Cyprus itself came into being on February 15, 2006. Thus it is one of the youngest grand lodges in the world.
The Grand Lodge of Cyprus is recognized internationally as the sovereign masonic authority of the Republic of Cyprus, which, in turn, is the sole state on the island recognized by both the United Nations and the European Union. The Grand Lodge of Cyprus was derived from originally Greek chartered lodges but now works in at least four languages, including Greek, English, German and Italian. Another group, now in amity with the Grand Lodge of Cypress, is the [http://www.cyprus-freemasons.org.cy District Grand Lodge of Cyprus], a unit of the United Grand Lodge of England and subordinate to the UGLE. Lodges of this District operate in English to serve mainly British citizens living on military bases or elsewhere on the island: Cyprus is a Commonwealth nation, and besides these military bases is a favored Mediterranean holiday and retirement destination for citizens of the UK.
In July 1974, Turkey invaded Cyprus and since then, approximately 33% of the republic's territory is under their military occupation, essentially the northern peninsula. Even though the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Cyprus covers the entire territory of the Republic, sufficient control cannot be exercised by them over the occupied areas due to the current status quo.
Hence, any masonic lodge operating in the occupied areas of the Republic of Cyprus is doing so without the authorization of the Grand Lodge of Cyprus; intervisitation from lodges belonging to the Grand Lodge of Cyprus is not permitted.
Lodges operating under the auspices of the Grand Lodge of Cyprus may be found throughout the non-occupied area of the island, including in Nicosia, Larnaca, Famagusta, Limassol and Pafos.
History
Freemasonry in Cyprus
Freemasonry in Cyprus may be traced back well into the Ottoman era over 200 years ago. Historical records place freemasons in the Larnaca district, where at that time all consulates were located. Coastal Larnaca was then considered the capital, and is a main port of the island. This is documented by the presence of graves bearing Masonic marks in the enclosure of the Church of Ayios Lazarus, also by the 1751 handwritten manuscript of Petrakis Karydes, and by an 1815 circular against Masons, written by the Archbishop of Cyprus, Kyprianos. It is believed that lodge meetings were held whenever there were sufficient brethren visiting as officers or passengers of ships in port to augment the Masons of the island. However, since Cyprus was then under Ottoman occupation, and even though there were Cypriot Masons who had joined the craft while studying abroad, it was not possible to create permanent lodges.
This period was marked by several competing claims for ownership of this much-trafficked and much-contested land. Control by the fraying Ottoman Empire ended when Cyprus was leased by the British Empire, with its administration beginning in 1878. In 1888, ten years after the British occupation of Cyprus, the United Grand Lodge of England established its first lodge in Cyprus, St. Paul Lodge number 2277, which is the mother of all lodges in Cyprus. The Grand Lodge of Greece followed in 1895 with Zenon Lodge number 18. Politically, Britain formally annexed Cyprus as a Crown Colony in 1925. Thirty five years later, on 16 August 1960, Cyprus attained independence and recognition by the UN, with the allowance of two independently administered military bases that remained under British control. As positive as this milestone seemed, independence has not been easy.
British colonial policies had promoted ethnic polarization. The British had applied the principle of "divide and rule", setting the two groups against each other to prevent combined action against colonial rule.Vassilis Fouskas, Heinz A. Richter, Cyprus and Europe: The Long Way Back, Bibliopolis, 2003, p. 77, 81, 164. Newly independent, these native factions vied for control. Cyprus' newly formed government attempted to mollify the demands of the restive and even combative native Cypriot parties, most of which were influenced by external meddling from either the Turkish government, the British, the US, or by Greece. (At the time, Greece was controlled by a coup with its own designs on the island.) After a tumultuous 14 years, two separate invasions were sponsored by the Turkish government in 1974, a land grab ostensibly aimed at protecting the 18.3% of the population that was ethnically Turkish."Cyprus: A Country Study" U.S Library of Congress. Ed. Eric Solsten. Washington: GPO for the Library of Congress, 1991. Web. 1 October 2010 US and British threats ended the incursion, but not before large amounts of territory were seized in the north of the island.
Various peace initiatives have been studied over the years, with non-aggression assured by the presence of UN observers in the fenced border between the two sides. Meanwhile, despite Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits an occupier from transferring or deporting parts of its own civilian population into an occupied territory, Turkey has systematically settled in excess of 100,000 of its citizens into the sparsely populated north, increasing the ratio of Turkish citizens living on the island. The situation remains peaceful, but watchful, awaiting a final resolution of the conflict.
Masonic control is not directly exercised in the Turkish Republic of North Cyprus (which declared itself an independent country in 1983) by the Grand Lodge of Cyprus, however, some Masons who are members of the Grand Lodge of Cyprus live in the TRNC. Moreover, the Grand Lodge of Turkey has three lodges in the TRNC. Today, the northern 37% of its land mass is the TRNC which is NOT recognized internationally except by the Republic of Turkey, 2-3% is controlled by the UN or leased by Britain's two military bases, and 59% remains under the authority of the Republic of Cyprus.
International Masonic protocol allows three or more regular Masonic lodges in every sovereign state the right to form a Grand Lodge, under which it would operate all willing lodges in its territory. Many of England's former colonies have seen formation of their own grand lodges, while by Masonic treaty still accepting lodges of earlier jurisdictions such as England, Ireland or Scotland. Shared territorial jurisdiction is allowable by mutual agreement.
Although the Republic of Cyprus was established in 1960, the Masons of Cyprus, for many reasons, primarily an emotional attachment to the existing control of their lodges by the Greek Grand Lodge, did not immediately move to form their own grand lodge. After several attempts, the Cypriots Masons, on 4 December 2005, eventually met in General Assembly and made the historic decision of establishing their own Grand Lodge of Cyprus, by an overwhelming majority.
Founding of the Grand Lodge of Cyprus
Founding members were the following Lodges, which until then, were under the auspices and constitution of the Grand Lodge of Greece:
ΚΙΜΩΝ or "KIMON", in Larnaca, founded in 1918 ΣΟΛΩΝ or "SOLON" in Nicosia, founded in 1921 ΚΙΝΥΡΑΣ or "KINYRAS" in Paphos, founded in 1923 ΕΥΑΓΟΡΑΣ or "EVAGORAS" in Famagusta, founded in 1928 and removed to Limassol in 1974 ΑΔΟΝΙΣ or "ADONIS" in Nicosia, founded in 1961 ΚΟΙΝΟΝ ΚΥΠΡΙΩΝ or "KINON KYPRION", Nicosia, founded in 1977 ΖΗΝΩΝ ("ZENON") Lodge of Limassol remained under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Greece, and PHOENIX of Nicosia opted to join the District Grand Lodge of Cyprus, organized in the 1980s as a unit of the United Grand Lodge of England, rather than the newly-forming Grand Lodge of Cyprus.
On 15 January 2006, the Grand Lodge of Cyprus held its first organizing meeting and elections, during which the following members were elected to become the first Grand Council:
Grand Master - M∴ W∴ Bro. Iacovos Vorkas Deputy Grand Master - R∴ W∴ Bro. Andreas Assiotis Grand Senior Warden - R∴ W∴ Bro. Panayiotis M. Joannou Grand Junior Warden - R∴ W∴ Bro. Savvas Pilacoutas also as Grand Junior Warden - R∴ W∴ Bro. Harutune Arakelian Grand Treasurer - R∴ W∴ Bro. Kyriakos Neocleous Grand Almoner - R∴ W∴ Bro. Antonis Neofytou Grand Director of Ceremonies - R∴ W∴ Bro. Athanasios Papadopoulos Grand Deacon - R∴ W∴ Bro. Panayiotis Vavlitis Grand Inner Guard - R∴ W∴ Bro. Christodoulos Kyperoundas Note that there have been several regular elections held since 2006, each ushering in several new grand officers.
As of the 28th of May, 2022 with the unanimous decision of its members, ΖΗΝΩΝ ("ZENON") Lodge of Limassol joined the Grand Lodge of Cyprus.
Consecration
The Grand Lodge of Cyprus was legally constituted and founded by the Grand Lodge of Greece, the Grand Lodge of Austria, and the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania on October 8, 2006. Members of the following jurisdictions were also present for the ceremony:
Significant Events Since Founding
Steady Growth
The Grand Lodge of Cyprus has experienced steady growth since its founding, a trend that has increased with the expansion of recognition by other international bodies of freemasons and with 2010's normalization of relations with the United Grand Lodge of England and with their District Grand Lodge of Cyprus. The Grand Lodge of Cyprus is now made up of 14 lodges. In addition to Greek, specific lodges conduct their meetings in English, German, Italian, or other languages as noted: ΚΙΜΩΝ or "KIMON" #1, Larnaca, Founding lodge of the Grand Lodge of Cyprus ΣΟΛΩΝ or "SOLON" #2, Nicosia, Founding lodge of the Grand Lodge of Cyprus ΚΙΝΥΡΑΣ or "KINYRAS" #3, Paphos, Founding lodge of the Grand Lodge of Cyprus ΕΥΑΓΟΡΑΣ or "EVAGORAS" #4, Limassol, Founding lodge of the Grand Lodge of Cyprus ΑΔΟΝΙΣ or "ADONIS" #5, Nicosia, Founding lodge of the Grand Lodge of Cyprus ΚΟΙΝΟΝ ΚΥΠΡΙΩΝ or "KINON KYPRION" #6, Nicosia, Founding lodge of the Grand Lodge of Cyprus "GOETHE" #7, in Larnaca, German speaking "GIUSEPPE GARIBALDI" #8, Nicosia, Italian speaking "ACROPOLIS AMATHUSIA" #9, Limassol "HIRAM ABIF" #10, Nicosia "SALINA" #11, Larnaca, English speaking "STRICT OBSERVANCE 'Old 73' " #12, Limassol, English Speaking "ST. ANDREWS" #13, Limassol, English Speaking "PERSEAS" #14, Nicosia, English Speaking "UNITY" #15, Limassol ΖΗΝΩΝ or "ZENON" #18, Limassol
Celebrations and International Conferences
The Fifth Anniversary of the founding of the Grand Lodge of Cyprus was celebrated with a meeting and banquet for members and guests in Nicosia on 5–6 November 2011.
A scholarly symposium on freemasonry, the 10th European Masonic Meeting, was held in the city of Paphos on 26–28 October 2012, bringing together 212 freemasons from 14 countries.
Lodge Halls or Temples
The Grand Lodge of Cyprus maintains four lodge halls or temples, at the following locations:
Larnaca Lodge Hall The home of KIMON, GOETHE, and SALINA Lodges Zachariadou 10 Larnaca
Nicosia Lodge Hall (Main Temple) The home of SOLON, ADONIS, KINON KYPRION, GIUSEPPE GARIBALDI, HIRAM ABIF and PERSEUS Lodges Freemason’s Hall – Main Temple Onasagorou Street 59A, 1011 Nicosia
Paphos Lodge Hall The home of KINYRAS Lodge Ermou 5 Paphos
Limassol Lodge Hall The home of EVAGORAS, ACROPOLIS AMATHUSIA, STRICT OBEDIENCE '73', ST. ANDREWS, and UNITY Lodges Vasileos Constantinou 62 Limassol
Shared Masonic Control