Of all the books that I have written or edited this is probably the most important. Between approximately 1690 and 1719 Father Richard Augustine Hay (1661 – c.1736), a Roman Catholic priest who’s mother had married into the Rosslyn family after she was widowed, undertook the enormous task of transcribing all the documents that were stored in Rosslyn Castle. He intermingled his transcriptions with the oral history and traditions of the St. Clairs of Rosslyn and fortunately indeed are we that he did so for all the documents (Charters, marriage contracts, land transactions etc.) have since disappeared. An abbreviated version of this book was published in 1835 by James Maidment but was limited to only 120 copies and so is extremely rare. Researchers wishing to obtain details about the St. Clair family since their arrival in Scotland in 1307 had no choice but to visit specialist libraries. In 2002 the Grand Lodge of Scotland took the bold decision to reprint Maidment’s book. Although I was the editor the outstanding feature of the book is that for the first time all the Latin documents were translated into modern English by Brother John Wade. At last people could judge for themselves if what numerous popular authors claimed the Latin Charters etc. said regarding the Knights Templar, Rosslyn Chapel and Freemasonry were in fact correct.

This is not a ‘bedtime reading book’ but it is considered essential for those interested in Rosslyn Chapel, the St. Clair family, Freemasonry, the Knights Templar and a host of other subjects that have become inter-connected due to the efforts of popular authors. The hardback edition of the book sold out very quickly and there are a limited number of paperback editions still available but probably not for long.