when did grand lodge first officially recognise the royal arch

The United Grand Lodge of England first officially recognized the Supreme Order of the Holy Royal Arch upon its formation at the Union of December 1813 12.

Under Article II of the Articles of Union agreed upon by the "Moderns" and "Ancients" Grand Lodges, it was formally declared that "pure Ancient Masonry consists of three degrees, and no more, viz. those of the Entered Apprentice, the Fellow-Craft, and the Master Mason; including the Supreme Order of the Holy Royal Arch" 13. Prior to this union, the premier Grand Lodge had persistently refused to recognize the Royal Arch, whereas the "Ancients" had adopted it as the fourth degree in their series 1.

Following the approval of the Articles of Union by the Craft in late 1813 2, the Royal Arch was accepted not as an additional degree, but as the perfection and complement of the Master Mason degree 2. The separate governing bodies of the Royal Arch subsequently amalgamated in March 1817 to form the United Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons of England, establishing that every chapter must be attached to a warranted Craft lodge 2.

The movement toward official recognition was driven principally by Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex, alongside the Earl of Moira and Waller Rodwell Wright 2.

The Earl of Moira initiated the diplomatic realignment in April 1810 by proposing the Duke of Sussex for membership in the Supreme Grand Chapter and signaling his intent to step down as First Principal in the Duke's favor 2. The Duke of Sussex was subsequently requested by acclamation to accept the office of First Grand Master of Royal Arch Masons 2.

At the same time, Waller Rodwell Wright was prominent in guiding the Grand Chapter; his contributions to the Order were considered so significant that the Supreme Grand Chapter voted him a gift of plate valued at three hundred guineas in gratitude for his services 2. On November 30, 1813, the Grand Chapter was formally informed by Companion Austin that the Duke of Sussex, acting as Grand Master of the "Moderns" Grand Lodge, had negotiated preliminary Articles of Union with his brother, the Duke of Kent, who led the "Ancients" 2.

Because those preliminary articles acknowledged the Royal Arch as the perfection of the Master's Degree, the Duke of Sussex commanded the Grand Chapter to convene so it could pass the necessary resolutions 2. The Grand Chapter unanimously granted the Duke of Sussex full and unlimited powers to negotiate and conclude the union on its behalf, directly leading to the formal union of the two Grand Chapters and the recognition embedded in Article II of the Articles of Union 21.