Knights of the Ancient Essenic Order

The Knights of the Ancient Essenic Order (K.A.E.O.), and its adjoining body the Essenic Army, was an American fraternal society, reputedly formed by Charles J. Weatherby in 1888 at Olympia, Washington or 1889 at Salt Lake City, Utah (but more likely in 1891). It was named for the Essenes, one of the "oldest confraternities of man", which was believed to have included John the Baptist and Jesus Christ, and eventually "fell into decadence in the Middle Ages and became extinct." The rites of the K.A.E.O. were almost certainly directly inspired by those of the Kassidean Knights, a similar order to which Weatherby belonged (as second-in-command to Edward A. Guilbert) that claimed to be a revival of the Essenes.

As with many orders of the time and character, one of the original administrative undertakings of the K.A.E.O. was the sale of insurance policies to paying members, which resulted in Weatherby being charged with mail fraud in July 1892. The order, however, denied that insurance was the purpose of their organisation, claiming a purely fraternal and social nature, and would later attribute the arrest to internecine "jealousies" and "malice to prevent [Weatherby's] further working." It would not be until 1920 that the order adopted bylaws to convert itself into a true fraternal benefit society.

Structure

 * See our page on K.A.E.O. Senates for index of local Senates

The Essenic Order was organised into local Senates, presided over by Excellent Senators (E.S.) and their officers, each local existing under the jurisdiction of Grand Senates on the state level, which, in turn, operated under the Supreme Senate, presided over by the Supreme Ruler, Supreme Senator, and their officers.

Resources

 * "Knights of the Essenic Order" (stichtingargus.nl) &mdash; outlines of rituals for the three degrees offered by the KAEO.
 * Photograph of the Knights of the Ancient Essenic Order, ca. 1900 (pastperfect-online.com) &mdash; likely Manchester Senate No. 604.