On June 19th, 2020, the Albert Pike Memorial located in Washington, D.C., was toppled and burned by protestors in front of the Metropolitan Police Department headquarters as a response to the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25th, 2020.
What is the Context of the Monument?
The Albert Pike Memorial was a statue located at the corner of Indiana Avenue and 3rd Street. This monument included Brigadier Confederate Leader Albert Pike, who was also assumed to be a member of the Ku Klux Klan, standing eleven feet tall on a granite pedestal. At the front of the pedestal, a woman who acts as a metaphor for the Goddess of Masonry holds the banner of the Scottish Rite.
Brigadier General Albert Pike statue in Washington, D.C., Cliff, CC BY 2.0
Albert Pike’s memorial has stirred opposition ever since it was planned due to his suspected ties with the Ku Klux Klan and being affiliated with the Confederacy. Even if Pike wasn’t involved with the Klan, he still believed that races should not mix. The Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite constructed this statue to commemorate Pike’s Freemason days and to recognize his influence over the Masons in the Southern Jurisdiction. Surprisingly, there was no connection between this memorial and Albert Pike’s time as a Confederate general and brigadier.
Who Was Albert Pike?
Albert Pike was an American author, poet, orator, editor, lawyer, jurist, and general in the Confederate States Army. From 1864 to 1865, he held the position of associate justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court while living in exile. In the Trans-Mississippi Theater, he had previously commanded the District of Indian Territory as a senior general in the Confederate States Army. As a result, he was appointed the Confederacy’s commissioner of Indian affairs and later promoted to brigadier general. From 1859 until 1891, Pike held the position of Sovereign Grand Commander of the Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite in the Southern Jurisdiction, USA.
“Pike, Albert,” Matthew Benjamin Brady / Levin Corbin Handy, Public Domain
Albert Pike also founded the Know-Nothing Party in 1850, which promoted anti-immigration policies and claimed that using slaves was more “efficient than farm labor.” It took him just over two years as a Confederate commander before he was accused of embezzling money and allowing his men to slaughter Union soldiers after a battle in 1862.
How Does Freemasonry Corelate With Pike?
The analogy of the Goddess of Masonry figure on the memorial relates to Albert Pike’s connection with the Scottish Rite. Pike happened to be the Master Builder of the fraternal organization within Freemasonry, and was responsible for a great majority of its current progress. He became a Mason in 1850, and became very active in the York Rite. He received the 32 degrees of Masonry in 1853 and was immediately interested in every aspect of the Scottish Rite branch of Freemasonry.
Within the Scottish Rite branch of Freemasonry, a Freemason who has reached a noteworthy milestone in their journey is known as a 32nd degree Mason.
“When I am dead, I wish my monument to be builded only in the hearts and memories of my Brethren of the Ancient and Accepted Rite, and my name to be remembered by them in every country, no matter what language men speak there, when the light of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite shall shine and its Oracles of Truth and Wisdom be reverently listened to.”
Albert Pike, 33*, Sovereign grand commander, s.j., 1859-91
Pike’s philosophy and revisions have inspired Supreme Councils worldwide, and his writings were noted as the most astute and profound in the history of Freemasonry.
What Was the Background of the Statue?
The memorial itself depicted Albert Pike as a Freemason, not as a soldier, which was why permission was granted by Congress for the statue to be erected. The memorial was initially budgeted $5,000 to be made by Italian-American sculptor Gaetano Trentanove, but it ended up costing three times that amount, according to the records of the Scottish Rite.
To the Freemasons of the Scottish Rite, Albert Pike was a hero. It wasn’t until years later when the Freemasons found out about all of the things Pike has done in his lifetime. In fact, the Freemasons supported for the statue’s removal after Albert Pike’s wrongdoings came to light.
“That Albert Pike statue is up here only because the Freemasons erected it, and Albert Pike was a Freemason. To the credit of the Freemasons, they joined me in wanting the statue to be taken down and I give them all due credit to that.”
Congresswoman Eleanor holmes norton
A rally to remove the statue took place in front of the memorial on August 17th, 2017, which was three years before the statue was toppled and ignited aflame.
Communities have united for years to demand the removal of this statue from the district. People from many backgrounds have come together in response to the destruction of the Albert Pike Memorial, making history that will go on forever.
References
“Albert Pike Memorial (1901-2020) – Albert Pike Memorial Was the Only Statue of a Confederate General in DC until It Was Torn down by Protesters in June 2020.” DC Historic Sites. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Kelly, John. “Why Is Confederate General Albert Pike Memorialized at Judiciary Square? – The Washington Post.” The Washington Post. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
“Brigadier General Albert Pike Memorial (U.S. National Park Service).” National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
“Albert Pike Memorial.” Wikiwand. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
“Albert Pike.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 15 Apr. 2024.
Kelly, John. “Why Is Confederate General Albert Pike Memorialized at Judiciary Square? – The Washington Post.” The Washington Post. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Tokens, Masonic. “About Albert Pike.” MASONIC TOKENS, 10 July 2017.
Hoyos, Arturo de. “Albert Pike’s The Book of the Words.” Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, S.J., U.S.A. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
“What Is the Supreme Council?” Scottish Rite, NMJ. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Schultz, Kyley. “Who Was Confederate General Albert Pike, and Why Was His Statue in DC in the First Place?” WUSA9, 20 June 2020. Accessed 22 Apr. 2024.
