by Galbix Red and Gabriel López de Rojas


The creator of the Egyptian Freemasonry of Egyptian Rite was the Count Alexander of Cagliostro (1749-1796), born in Tunisi. He must not be identified with the mystifier Giuseppe Balsamo (1743-1795), the palermitano recruited by the Jesuits to personify and to throw the disrepute on the true Count of Cagliostro.

Alexander of Cagliostro was initiated to the secrets of the Egyptian Freemasonry by the mysterious Master Altothas in 1776, year of the foundation of the Illuminati Order. And few know that the summit of the Illuminati Order was constituted by six members: four were known (Weishaupt, von Knigge, Goethe, Herder) and two were secrets (Franklin and Cagliostro).

In effects a secret connection existed between the Illuminati Order of Weishaupt and the Egyptian Freemasonry of Cagliostro that was officially founded in 1785, year of the suppression of the Illuminati Order. Besides, Napoleone Bonaparte was initiated by Cagliostro to the Egyptian Freemasonry and the Masonic Rites of Memphis, of Misraïm and of Memphis-Misraïm come down from it.

Between 1810 and 1813, in Naples (Italy), the three brothers Bédarride (Michel, Marc and Joseph) received the Supreme Powers from the Order of Misraïm and they developed the Rite of Misraïm in France. They made it official in Paris in 1814. The Rite was composed of 90 degrees, taken from the Scottish freemasonry, from Martinism and other Masonic currents, and the last four degrees received the name of "Arcana Arcanorum."

In 1815, in Montauban (France), the Mother Lodge of the Rite of Memphis was constituted with the Grand Master Samuel Honis as head, whom followed, in 1816, Gabriel-Mathieu Marconis. In 1838, Jean Etienne Marconis de Nègre, son of this last one, took over the Rite of Memphis. The Rite, for J. E. Marconis de Nègre, was a continuation of the ancient Mysteries practised in the Antiquity, in India and in Egypt. The Constitutions of the Rite said: "... the masonic rite of Memphis is the continuation of the Mysteries of the Antiquity. The Rite taught the first men to pay homage to the divinity... ". The Rite of Memphis reached the 92 and 95 degrees.

In 1881, the Italian general Giuseppe Garibaldi reunified the Rites of Memphis and Misraïm and became the Grand Hierophante of both. After the death of Garibaldi, in 1882, the Rites entered in a "dark" period up to when, in 1890, various lodges of both Rites were federated and the Rite of Memphis-Misraïm appeared. In 1900, the Italian Ferdinando Francesco degli Oddi became Head of the Memphis-Misraïm and was replaced, by the English John Yarker, in 1902. The Rite reached the 97 degrees.

In 1902, the German Theodor Reuss established the Sovereign Sanctuary of Memphis-Misraïm in Germany and in 1913, after the death of Yarker, he became the International Head of the Rite. In 1924, T. Reuss passed to Eternal East and the succession was interrupted, except in the O.T.O. (Ordo Templi Orientis), the neotemplar order founded by Reuss, in 1905, in Germany. In reality, the O.T.O. had included the Rite of Memphis-Misraïm, although in a reduced version, where its principals degrees were incorporated.

In 1909, Theodor Reuss delivered a licence to the famous martinista Gerard Encauss (Papus). The successors of Papus were Charles Detré (Tedé), Jean Bricaud, Constant Chevillon, Charles-Henry Dupont and Robert Ambelain. In 1939, Jean Bricaud passed to the Eternal East and was followed by Chevillon. In 1944, Chevillon was murdered by the French collaborationists of nazional-socialism and was followed by Dupont. And, in 1960, Ambelain succeeded Dupont.

On November 14, 1973, the Italian Francesco Brunelli (1927-1982) was named by Robert Ambelain responsible for the Rite in Italy. On November 22, 1973, Francesco Brunelli (Nebo) - Grand Master of the Martinist Ancient and Traditional Order and of the Ancient and Primitive Rite of Memphis-Misraïm - was received with all honors in the Grand Lodge of Italy, to Palazzo Giustiniani. But the activity of the Rite in Italy and in the Grand Lodge of Italy was anecdotal in the seventies.

In 1981, Francesco Brunelli contacted the known Italian initiate Frank G. Ripel to restructure the Ancient and Primitive Rite of Memphis-Misraïm and the situation of the Rite was the following: 99º or International Head of the Egyptian Oriental Order of the Ancient and Primitive Rite of Memphis-Misraïm, 98º or Incognito Superior (from the degree VIIº to the XIIIº of the Order of the Rosa Mistica), 97º or Substitute of the International Head, 96º or National Head, 1º-95º or Operative Freemason (from the Iº to the VIº of the Order of the Rosa Mistica). In the renewed Egyptian Oriental Order of the Ancient and Primitive Rite of Memphis-Misraïm of which we are about to talk, from 1º to 95º, the 6 Alchemical Operations are found and associated to the degrees 1°-3º, 4º-33º, 34º-42º, 43º-63º, 64º-74º and 75º-95º.

Frank G. Ripel was at the head of the Egyptian Oriental Order of the Ancient and Primitive Rite of Memphis-Misraïm between 1981 and 1999, when he put it in "sleep."

At the end of March 2003, Frank G. Ripel, being Grand Master of the O.C.I. (Order of the Enlightened Knights) had a contact with the Spanish Gabriel López de Rojas, founder and Grand Master of the Illuminati Order, O.H.O. of the Societas O.T.O. (Ordo Templi Orientalis), 33º degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, maximum degree of a pair of Egyptian Rites. When Gabriel López de Rojas learned that the Egyptian Oriental Order of the Ancient and Primitive Rite of Memphis-Misraïm of Frank G. Ripel was in "sleep", proposed to Ripel "to wake it up again" and he accepted, making it to revive, on May 1, 2003, with the name of Egyptian Freemasonry of the Ancient and Primitive Rite of Memphis-Misraïm.

The Egyptian Freemasonry of the Ancient and Primitive Rite of Memphis and Misraïm is structured in the following form:

99º Grand Hierophante or International Head of the M.E.A.P.R.M.M. and of the O.C.I.:
Frank G. Ripel
99º Grand Hierophante or International Head of the M.E.A.P.R.M.M. ad Honorem:
Licio Gelli
98º Substitute of the International Head of the O.C.I.
Italian language: Galbix Red
98º National Head for Italy of the O.C.I.: Tiziana Dark
98º Incognitos Superiors (O.C.I.)
97º Substitute of the International Head of the M.E.A.P.R.M.M.
Italian language: Galbix Red. I.S. (98º O.C.I.)
96º National Head for Italy: Tiziana Dark
National Head for Bolivia: Ivan Hernandez Herrera
National Head for Argentine: Miguel Herschberg
National Head for Uruguay : Alexis Valadán
National Head for El Salvador: Carlos Mauricio López
National Head for Messico: Germán Cardona M�ller
National Head for Venezuela: Roberto Lorenzi
National Head for Paraguay: Javier Martinez Silvano
National Head for Chile: Jorge Labbe Isla
National Head for Colombia: Enrique Martínez Reyes
National Head for Ecuador: Victor Izurieta
National Head for Spain: Uriel Valls Girol
National Head for Brasil: Djalma Barbosa Gon�alves
National Head for Portugal: Fernando D'Eça Leal
National Head for California: King Solomon II
National Head for Ohio: Andrew Jon Rady
National Head for New Mexico: Robert Neal Cain Jr.
National Head for Louisiana: William A. Harrison
National Head for New Jersey: Felipe Castillo
National Head for Georgia: David Banks
National Head for Texas: R. Sterling Johnson
National Head for Maryland: Jim C. Gilmer II
National Head for Nebraska: Abel Acen Vidal
National Head for Virginia: Joseph Proctor
National Head for Alabama: Alfredo C. Palacol Jr
National Head for Florida: Olga Deulofeu
National Head for Colorado: Jerry L. Brumley
National Head for Canada: Darren Feetham
National Head for Great Britain: Parmjit Singh
National Head for Australia: Hector Cuellar-Castellanos
National Head for the Germany: Thomas Hill
National Head for France: Olivier Aka Bile
National Head for Belgium: Geoffrey Georges
National Head for Ivory Coast: Khalil Fady Abou
National Head for Angola: Kwenda Mbassi
National Head for Burkina: Ismael Ghazal
National Head for Republic of Croatia: Stjepan Basic
National Head for Republic of Serbia and Montenegro: Aleksandar Jovanovic
National Head for Republic of Slovenia: Aristid Havlicek
National Head for Jordan: Jamil M. N. Sultan
National Head for Liban: Mahdi Aljaafar
National Head for Roumania: Vladimir Radu Sauciuc
1º-95º Operative Freemasons.

Short Biography on Licio Gelli In 1980 Licio Gelli, through his constant relationships with the Royal House of Savoia Lucifero Falcone (Minister of the Royal House of Savioa) was honored the Earl title by the King Umberto II (the last King of Italy). Toward the end of the Seventies the Grand Orient of Italy, appointed Gelli as Venerable Master to direct and give back life to the Masonic Lodge "Propaganda 2" (P2), which was founded in 1895 by Grand Master Lemmi. In the Eighties the unfounded P2 scandal busted. Subsequently, the Venerable Master was acquitted of the accusations that were brought against him. In 1996 Commendatore Licio Gelli, for his activity in poetry and writing, proposed candidates from 59 structures - academies, university, Italians and foreigners cultural associations for the Nobel Prize for the Literature