William Wynn Westcott
William Wynn Westcott (1848–1925) was an English physician, coroner and esoteric writer. He served as Supreme Magus of the SRIA from 1891 to 1925 and co-founded The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn in 1888.[1][2]
Education and early career
Westcott was born in Leamington Spa and was brought up by an uncle after the deaths of his parents. He studied at University College London and joined his uncle's medical practice at Martock in Somerset after obtaining his medical degree in 1871. His work there included public-health appointments as well as general practice. R. A. Gilbert's study of Westcott draws on his correspondence and a surviving autobiographical statement to describe these early years.[3]
Masonic and Rosicrucian work
Westcott became a Freemason in the Parrett and Axe Lodge in 1871 and entered Metropolitan College of the SRIA in 1880. He began the Metropolitan College Transactions in 1885. His esoteric publications included a translation of Sepher Yetzirah and the Collectanea Hermetica series.[1]
Westcott founded the SRIA High Council's library in 1889 and encouraged members to present research papers. Gilbert describes an approach to Masonic study that combined historical inquiry with an interest in esoteric interpretation. Those interests help explain the range of Westcott's publications; his accounts of the origins of esoteric societies still require the same scrutiny as other historical claims.[3]
Medical career and publications
His professional writing included Suicide: Its History, Literature, Jurisprudence, Causation, and Prevention (1885). Its title page identifies him as deputy coroner for Central Middlesex and joint author of the Extra Pharmacopoeia, documenting his medical work alongside his esoteric interests.[4]
The title page of the 1883 Extra Pharmacopoeia distinguishes William Martindale's pharmaceutical work from Westcott's contribution of references drawn from medical journals. Westcott later published Twelve Years' Experiences of a London Coroner, issued as an eighteen-page booklet in 1907. These publications document a professional readership quite separate from that of his occult books.[5][6]
The Golden Dawn and later life
Westcott established the Golden Dawn with Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers and William Robert Woodman. He withdrew from its leadership in 1897, while continuing his SRIA work. He retired to South Africa in 1920 and died in 1925.[1]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 SRIA Province of Greater London, ‘William Wynn Westcott’, biographical account and archival illustrations.
- ↑ Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia, ‘History of the Rosicrucian Society of England 1867’, including the list of Supreme Magi.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 R. A. Gilbert, “William Wynn Westcott and the Esoteric School of Masonic Research”, paper delivered to Quatuor Coronati Lodge, 19 February 1987; reproduced by the Grand Lodge of British Columbia and Yukon.
- ↑ W. Wynn Westcott, Suicide: Its History, Literature, Jurisprudence, Causation, and Prevention (London: H. K. Lewis, 1885), title page; Wellcome Images L0029903.
- ↑ William Martindale and W. Wynn Westcott, The Extra Pharmacopoeia of Unofficial Drugs and Chemical and Pharmaceutical Preparations (London: H. K. Lewis, 1883), title page.
- ↑ Wellcome Collection, Twelve years' experiences of a London coroner, catalogue record, 1907.
| Rosicrucian history and related societies | |
|---|---|
| Overview | Rosicrucians · Christian Rosencreutz · SRIA · Golden Dawn |
| Early texts | Fama · Confessio · Chymical Wedding |
| People | William Wynn Westcott · Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers · William Robert Woodman · Arthur Edward Waite · Pamela Colman Smith |
| Related reading | Comparing the traditions · All articles in this section |