Landmarks

What are the Ancient Landmarks and who defined them?

The Ancient Landmarks are the immemorial usages and unchangeable fundamental principles that define the fixed identity of Freemasonry. The term first appeared in print in George Payne's Regulations of 1721, published in the 1723 Book of Constitutions. In early lodge practice, the Book of Constitutions itself or the ritual were sometimes referred to as the Landmarks. Jurists later defined them as universal, unrepealable fundamentals existing from time immemorial, without which the fraternity would cease to be itself.

Mackey