The Rosicrucian Enlightenment Revisited [Paperback]

John Matthews (Author), Paul Bembridge (Author), Joscelyn Godwin (Author), Goodrick-Clarke (Author), Christopher Bamford (Author), Rafal Prinke (Author), Robert Powell (Author), Christopher McIntosh (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1999

It's nearly 30 years since historian Dame Frances Yates published her groundbreaking study The Rosicrucian Enlightement, and so brought academic rigour back to a subject which had for too long been almost the sole province of occultists who often confused fact and fancy. Yates placed the three main Rosicrucian manifestos, which first appeared in 1614-1616, in the context of their time and place--the marriage of Elizabeth, dauthter of James VI & I, to Fredrick, Elector Palatine, head of the German Protestant princes--and identified many of the key players in 17th-century hermetic thought. The Rosicrucian Enlightenment Revisited is a collection of papers given in Yates's honour at two conferences in the Czech Republic in 1995 and 1997, at which some of today's leading writers and academics in this field presented their latest research findings.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In 1972, British historian of the Renaissance Frances Yates published a remarkable book, The Rosicrucian Enlightenment. Yates narrated the tale of Frederick and Elizabeth, the Winter King and Queen of Bohemia, who ascended to the throne in the midst of a great spiritual revival. The key to this revival was the Rosicrucian manifestos, published in 1613, describing the journeys of a mysterious traveler named Christian Rosencrutz. On his travels he said that he had mastered the practices of magic and the entire Kabbalah, and he offered to teach these esoteric arts and wisdom to the West. When the authorities rejected Rosencrutz's offer, he is said to have formed the Fraternity of the Rosy Cross (the translation of Rosencrutz), an organization that offered its followers the opportunity to attain the hidden spiritual truth through the use of these arcane arts. The present volume gathers essays by a number of scholars and others interested in the Rosicrucian Enlightenment. These papers were read in 1995 at a conference in the Czech Republic intended to "honor the role of Central Europe in the spiritual history of the West" and to celebrate Yates's work. John Matthews (The Arthurian Tradition) explores the relationship between the Grail and the Rose. In a perceptive and detailed essay, Christopher Bamford, editor-in-chief of Lindisfarne Books, examines the roots of the Rosicrucian Enlightenment in Renaissance and Reformation thought. His discussion ranges over topics as diverse as St. Francis of Assisi and the alchemist Paracelsus. Other essays cover such topics as the emergence of Rosicrucian thought in Cromwell's court; the work of Sendivogius, the Polish alchemist; and the influence of Rosicrucian thought in contemporary culture. The texts of the Rosicrucian manifestos are also included in the collection. (June)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

A gathering of well-informed scholars provides a sober, sensible, and fascinating overview of the history of the Rosicrucian movement, still one of the most controversial and least understood byways of European philosophy and thought. The volume includes four of the foundational documents of the original Rosicrucians from the early 17th century and carries the Rosicrucians' influence down to the later 19th century. Highly recommended for collections strong in esoterica or the history of religions.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 267 pages
• Publisher: Lindisfarne Pr (April 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0940262843
• ISBN-13: 978-0940262843
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #492,861 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good, but not great selection of essays., November 5, 2001

By 

Joe Penn (Halle/Saale, Germany) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Rosicrucian Enlightenment Revisited (Paperback)

In light of recent documentary discoveries in a number of European archives, I had high hopes that this volume would further the body of research into the Rosicrucian movement. Ultimately, it did, but in ways I did not anticipate.

There are some essential works here (Joscelyn Godwin's excellent meditation on Michael Maier and Rafael T. Prinke's article on Michael Sendivogius immediately spring to mind: both of which demonstrate the varities of meaning Rosicrucianism took on to those who sought to perpetuate the movement in different contexts) but also much filler. Too many of the contributions collected in this volume re-state a body of knowledge familiar to all students of the subject. Due to the original format of these contributions (i.e., speeches) this knowledge is -understandably- not communicated in a particularly useful fashion.

Having said that, this volume is worth its price of entry. However the content is certainly a mixed bag.
Lastly, the translations of the Rosicrucian manifestos contained in this volume are those of Thomas Vaughan's mid 17th century edition of the Fama and Confessio .

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Enlightenment is eye opening, January 10, 2001

By 

Mark Stavish, The Institute for Hermetic Stud... (Wyoming, Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Rosicrucian Enlightenment Revisited (Paperback)

Before the 'New Age' there was the "Rosicrucian Enlightenment". At the beginning of the 17th century, a new awakening was heralded throughout Europe, announcing the universal reform of all known areas of human activity - religion, science, art, and society were to become one being. The chief proponents of this great awakening were the mysterious "Rosicrucians". Nearly 400 years after the first seeds of this movement were planted, over 100 students, authors, and scholars of traditional Western esotericism, of which Rosicrucianism is the foremost exponent, gathered in the medieval town of Czesky Krumolv in the Czech Republic, to discuss, explore, and in someway, reopen the 'Vault of Christian Rosencreutz' once again.

"The Rosicrucian Enlightenment Revisited" contains nine essays on the early Rosicrucian movement presented at this landmark conference sponsored in part by The New York Open Center, and copies of the first two Rosicrucian Manifestoes, the "Fama" and the "Confessio". It is a great read and ideal for anyone interested in what is truly the heart and soul of Western esotericism - the Rosicrucian Enlightenment.

5.0 out of 5 stars A well written journey, January 9, 2012

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humbert D'Orazio - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Rosicrucian Enlightenment Revisited (Paperback)

I am enjoying this purchase it is very clearly written. It gives you a clear view of the movement and its background. I would rate it highly. Unlike some books in this arena it is a good read. I enjoy anything written by the writers of this book. It was like reading Parabola magazine...