What did the antients and modern disagree about?

The schism between the "Antients" and "Moderns" in Craft Masonry turned on ritual practices, degree structure, religious character, administrative governance, and social composition.

The primary dispute centered on ritual forms and landmarks. The Antients, established in 1751, alleged that the original 1717 Grand Lodge—which they labelled the Moderns—had introduced "new plans" and departed from established ancient customs 43. To prevent intrusion by Moderns into their meetings, the Antients altered certain modes of recognition, creating ritual differences that caused continuous friction between the two bodies 3.

The status of the Royal Arch degree formed another major point of contention. In the Royal Arch and Craft degrees, the Antients maintained that the Royal Arch was integral to the Master Mason degree, whereas the Moderns considered it a separate degree 3, as an article on the United Grand Lodge of England's website notes. This disagreement was settled at their reconciliation in December 1813, when the United Grand Lodge of England declared that pure ancient Masonry consisted of three degrees including the Holy Royal Arch 32.

Religious character also divided the rivals. The Moderns progressively removed explicit Christian references from Craft rituals to establish a universal, non-sectarian basis 14. Laurence Dermott and the Antients resisted this de-Christianization, keeping explicit Christian sentiments in their Constitutions and framing the Moderns as anti-religious 12.

Governance and social composition further widened the breach. Discontent had grown among Masons over administrative changes in the premier Grand Lodge, such as permitting the Grand Master to appoint Wardens and restricting the choice of Grand Officers to past Grand Stewards 4. Furthermore, as articles published by Quatuor Coronati Lodge and the United Grand Lodge of England record, while the Moderns' lodges consisted heavily of elite gentry, the Antients catered to lower-middle-class Masons and Irish immigrants, operating as mutual self-help societies with organized contribution systems to support sick members.