The Sons of St. George

Book excerpt: This book tells the intriguing history of a little-known secret society, known as the Order of the Sons of St. George - a fraternal organisation - whose members have helped shape what is widely recognised today as the Anglo-American 'Special Relationship'. It was founded by English migrants in the United States during the year 1870 - initially as a self-defence league - to protect Englishmen and their families from the murderous outrages of an Irish criminal gang known as the Molly Maguires. The order was later credited with having helped defeat the terrorist band, after which it quickly expanded, establishing a network of lodges amongst the English diaspora throughout North America. The brotherhood soon turned into a cultural organisation, with the object of celebrating and preserving the Anglo-Protestant identity of its members. It also became a benevolent society, with an insurance programme for the benefit and welfare of its members and their families. At its peak it boasted more than 500 lodges, and around 45,000 members, which included not only thousands of working men, but city mayors, councillors, police chiefs, newspaper editors, state senators, British consular and embassy staff, and also members of Britain's secret intelligence agencies. Throughout the one-hundred year history of this mysterious order, its members have involved themselves in numerous - sometimes clandestine - activities, with a view to strengthen the ties of friendship between Great Britain and the Untied States. Some have accused the society of being part of a broader political conspiracy, which ultimately led to the United States entering both World Wars on the side of the British. This fascinating expos� brings to light the activities of this secretive society, and explores the impact that its members have had on Anglo-American bilateral diplomacy, and consequently, global geopolitical events. In the modern-age, many English people feel they have lost their national identity and culture. This book shows that in the recent-past, the English had very strong sense of their own unique Anglo-Protestant identity. Englishmen who migrated to the United States formed the Sons of St. George as a means to celebrate and preserve this national-identity.