{"product_id":"the-craft","title":"The Craft","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Convincingly researched and thoroughly entertaining' -\u003c\/b\u003e \u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eWall Street Journal\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE TIMES\u003c\/i\u003e BEST BOOKS OF 2020\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'This book shows that, despite rumours of demon dwarfs, piano-playing crocodiles and world domination, the real story of the Freemasons is one of male eccentricity.'\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'\u003ci\u003eThe Craft\u003c\/i\u003e is a superb book that often reads like an adventure novel. It's informative, fascinating and often very funny. The depth of research is awe-inspiring, but what really makes this book is the author's visceral understanding of what constitutes a good story.' - \u003ci\u003eThe Times \u003c\/i\u003eBook of the Week\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'[John Dickie] takes on this sensational subject with a wry turn of phrase and the cool judgment of a fine historian... I enjoyed this book enormously. Dickie's gaze is both wide and penetrating. He makes a persuasive case for masonry's historic importance.' - Dominic Sandbrook, \u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e'\u003ci\u003eThe Craft\u003c\/i\u003e is a shadow history of modernity. Though more sober than most lodge meetings, it is, like its subject, ingenious and frequently bizarre... \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Craft\u003c\/i\u003e is well-crafted and sensible, making good use of English archives which have only recently been opened.' - \u003ci\u003eSpectator\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cbr\u003e***\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eInsiders call it 'the Craft'. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTo the rest of us, Freemasonry is mysterious and suspect. Yet its story is peopled by some of the most distinguished men of the last three centuries: Winston Churchill and Walt Disney; Wolfgang Mozart and Shaquille O'Neal; Benjamin Franklin and Buzz Aldrin; Rudyard Kipling and 'Buffalo Bill' Cody; Duke Ellington and the Duke of Wellington.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFounded in London in 1717 as a set of character-forming ideals and a way of binding men in fellowship, Freemasonry proved so addictive that within two decades it had spread across the globe. Masonic influence became pervasive. Under George Washington, the Craft became a creed for the new American nation. Masonic networks held the British empire together. Under Napoleon, the Craft became a tool of authoritarianism and then a cover for revolutionary conspiracy. Both the Mormon Church and the Sicilian mafia owe their origins to Freemasonry.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Masons were as feared as they were influential. In the eyes of the Catholic Church, Freemasonry has always been a den of devil-worshippers. For Hitler, Mussolini and Franco the Lodges spread the diseases of pacifism, socialism and Jewish influence, so had to be crushed.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eProfessor Dickie's \u003ci\u003eThe Craft\u003c\/i\u003e is a surprising and enthralling exploration of a movement that not only helped to forge modern society, but still has substantial contemporary influence. With 400,000 members in Britain, over a million in the USA, and around six million across the world, understanding the role of Freemasonry is as important now as it has ever been.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Buchserien.de","offers":[{"title":"Neuware","offer_id":54029573816658,"sku":"9781473658226","price":17.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0615\/7002\/3593\/files\/unnamed_b6c66d3d-588d-428b-b988-73ef51426233.jpg?v=1784319616","url":"https:\/\/www.buchserien.de\/products\/the-craft","provider":"Buchserien.de","version":"1.0","type":"link"}