Britain, became an entity of similar threat and as a result banished from Britain, its influence and singularity replaced with a locally brewed one to fill the gap. In retrospect, it is exactly what British freemasonry is all about – an attempt to prevent the Order of the temple from exerting a political or religious influence on British subjects. The same cannot be for the Scottish version which apart from the historical affiliation with the French Crown and whose citizens had until recently, a right to French citizenship, has an independent traditional link with the ancient Templar influence in the country although not directly with the international Order which they abandoned.
The introduction of the so called speculative aspect of freemasonry by the Chevalier Ramsay, a tutor of the House of Stewart, is exactly what it says – pure speculation and provided it does not in any way imply or propagate that the organization is a genuine continuation of the Order of Knights Templar, there is no harm to whatever fantasies may be brought to the attention of its members, Whilst writing I have to admit that the interchange of members between both organizations during the 18th. And 19th centuries and a period in the early 20th.century when Masonic masters of the third degree were accepted into the Templar Order, the possibility exists that genuine secrets may have filtered through into the upper levels of the aristocracy, the monarchy and selected Masonic Grandmasters. If so these would have served the interests of the masons in the same way as it did the Templars and explain why the Church, whilst condemning it publicly, has flirted with it in the same way that it had done with the Templars after the so called suppression.