Ritual , Secrecy , and Civil Society
declares , “‘ There is not a single place where you will be a stranger ; you will find brothers and friends everywhere ; you have become citizens of the entire world .”’
This Grand Tour begins as a component of British youth culture . It allows young aristocrats , and later rich members of the bourgeoisie , to discover Europe . This grand initiation-trip is imitated and spreads throughout all of Europe . It allows for the education of these young people , under the guidance of a tutor-governor . It was a journey that combined stays in large European university cities with visits to tasteful destinations . Paris , Geneva , Florence , and Naples are obligatory stops . Other , less important cities with vibrant cultures or economies can also be stopovers : Lille , Bordeaux , Strasbourg , Dijon . More commercial considerations are also hidden in the midst of purely cultural ones , establishing bonds with Europe ' s traders , merchants , and bankers .
With unmatched fame during the eighteenth century , Voltaire provides a chance to measure the effects of this wayfaring sociability . Throughout Europe , he is an emblem of the philosophical sojourn . A Parisian , he has traveled through the surrounding territories of Enlightenment civilization from its center and toward the north , in particular to Amsterdam , London , Berlin ; the master of Ferney turns into Europe ' s innkeeper . People come from all over Europe to meet the Oracle ! King Voltaire sees his career crowned by his initiation at a venerable age into Paris ' s prestigious Neuf Sœurs lodge . 91 His only great rival , renowned across Europe , is named Mozart . 92
Freemasonry : Vector of Exchange With Freemasonry , mobility is rediscovered as a way to catalyze dreams of reconciliation among peoples and to trust in the sensitivity of human relations . The brothers are at the heart of the Enlightenment world ' s exchanges . 93 Pierre-Yves Beaurepaire ’ s 94 recent , now classic work shows that Enlightenment Europe became a sort of universal lodge . The network of Masonic workshops intersects with the theory of cosmopolitanism and the reality of international trade . It is trade itself that justifies Freemasonry and enables it . It finds its legend , its myths , and its reference-points in it . The founding fathers are pilgrims without a sanctuary who draw inspiration from Ramsay ' s ideas to go beyond differences and construct the homeland of the human race . 95 Depending on how extroverted or closed a lodge is , foreigners find a hospitable refuge there . Bonds of solidarity are woven and the number of visitors increases everywhere .
Freemasonry provides a special place for the arts and for artists ; all , or at least part , of its messages bring a musical sensibility into play . Artistic and musical milieus , which cannot be observed in detail , nevertheless provide a chance to examine a vibrant movement governed by the learning of codes of values , styles , and manners whose adoption reconfigures relations with the public , the range of expectations and desires , as well as listening possibilities . We can trace the reasons for and the consequences of this : they emerge from a shared future for artists , arising from their apprenticeship in the lodges . Comparing the musical mobility [ mobilités musicales ] and artistic mobility [ mobilités artistiques ] of artists on the Grand Tour makes it possible to nuance ideas about flows of exchange . The addition of different styles from the Northern , Eastern , or
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 91 Charles Porset , Voltaire Franc-maçon ( La Rochelle : Rumeur des âges , 1995 ), 52 p . 92 Philippe Autexier , Mozart ( Paris : H . Champion , 1984 ), 212 p . 93 Daniel Roche , Les Républicains des Lettres . Gens de culture et Lumières au XVIIIe siècle ( Paris :
Fayard , 1988 ), 393 p . 94 Beaurepaire , L ’ autre et le Frère . 95 René Pomeau , L ’ Europe des Lumières . Cosmopolitisme et unité européenne au 18 e siècle ( Paris :
Stock , 1966 ), 240 p .
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