Originally, membership in the Order was limited to Scotsmen or those of Scottish descent, but later the privilege was extended to Master Masons of other nationalities. The Order has now, besides Provincial Grand Lodges in Scotland and in England, Provincial Grand Lodges all over the world, including the United States of America where the Order is very highly prized, and is not conferred on anyone who has not received either the Thirty-second Degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, although this may be waived if the petitioner is a Knight Templar.
The Order is one which is, from its historical associations, particularly interesting to Scotsmen, and each year on the 4th of July (old style), the anniversary of the day on which the Battle of Bannockburn was fought, the Grand Lodge of the Order, as well as some of the Provincial Grand Lodges, continue the ancient custom of the Order by holding a festival, at which the Toast to the Immortal Memory of King Robert the Bruce, the hero of Bannockburn and Restorer of the Order is proposed in an oration by one of the Brethren, and honoured in silence. The Degrees of the Order are most beautiful and impressive, and inculcate the three great principles of Freemasonry – Brotherly Love, Relief and Truth.
