MASONRY IN SPAIN

In Spain, Masonry was established with a certain delay due mainly to an almost immediate prohibition by the Inquisition in 1738 and an edict of Fernando VI in 1751. Carlos III took personally care of maintaining this prohibition in spite of his aspect of broad minded. In fact, while being King of Naples he had already taken care of prohibiting and punishing it with severe sorrows.

Even before than the Inquisition has had time to prohibit it, the Duke of Wharton, an English colonel in the service of the Crown of Spain, founded in Madrid in 1728 the Lodge of the Three Fleur- of- Lis or Matritense. This moreover, was the premiere Loge founded out of the British Isles and the following year it was recognized by the Grand Lodge of England but in 1768 it disappeared from the register because it carried too much time inactive.
Just like this foundation, the role of Masonry in Spain during all the 18th century was represented by foreign masons trained in their country of origin and ignoring the existing prohibition in Spain