The Hell-Fire Clubs: A History of Anti-Morality

by Geoffrey Ashe

The Hell-Fire Clubs conjure up images of aristocratic rakes outraging respectability at every turn, cutting a swath through the village maidens and celebrating Black Masses. While all this is true, it is not the whole story. The author of this volume has assembled an account of the Clubs and of their antecedents and descendants. At the centre of the book is the principal brotherhood, known by the Hell-Fire name - Sir Francis Dashwood's notorious Monks of Medmenham, with their strange rituals and initiation rites, library of erotica and nun companions recruited from the brothels of London. From this maverick group flow such notable literary libertines as Horace Walpole and Lord Byron. Pre-dating Medmenham are the figures of Rabelais and John Dee, both expounding philosophies of "do what you will" or "anything goes". Geoffrey Ashe traces the influence of libertarian philosphies on the world of the Enlightenment, showing how they met the need for a secular morality at a time when Christianity faced the onslaught of rationalism and empiricism. He follows the libertarian tradition through de Sade and into the 20th century, with discussions of Aleister Crowley, Charles Manson and Timothy Leary, delving below the scandals to reveal the social and political impact of "doing your own thing" which has roots far deeper than the post-war permissive society.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Audiobook, Esoterica

256 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2000

About the author

Geoffrey Thomas Leslie Ashe is a British cultural historian, a writer of non-fiction books and novels.

Reviews

[Malum · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ashe says he wrote this book because there were no histories of hell-fire clubs. Well, now that he has written this book, there still aren't any.

Ashe's book is grossly mistitled. This book has barely anything to do with hell-fire clubs at all. What it really is is a collection of short biographies of many libertines and counter-culture figures and some discussion of classic horror and erotic fiction. Some people, like the Marquis de Sade, get quite a bit of the book's word count. Others, like LaVey, get a couple of lines. Whenever any of these individual's lives just happen to cross paths with a hell-fire club, Ashe usually dismisses it with "It was a secret club, so we don't know what went on there" and then moves on.

Some of the biographies were interesting and I learned about some new and interesting people, so it wasn't a total waste. If you are really looking for information on historic hell-fire clubs, though, you will have to look elsewhere.

[Sarah MacLean · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not nearly as useful for research purposes as I'd hoped...and I'm a bit flabbergasted by how a book on a topic that lends itself to scandal and salaciousness can be so...well...unsalacious.

[Nancy Oakes · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Rabelais' work Gargantua (which sadly, I have not yet read, but just ordered after reading this) , there is a section in which the author imagines a Utopian "abbey," named Theleme; the only rule of living there is "Do what you will." Ashe looks at this rule, and asks the question of what happened when people have tried living by this motto, both in reality and in fiction. Furthermore, he examines the question of libertinism being the same as liberty -- and the result is a look through a slice of history. I will tell you at the outset that this is not a book for the average reader, and it's not a titillating tell-all about the much misconstrued and notorious Hellfire Clubs.

Ashe takes the theme of Theleme through the book, looking into various individuals & organizations who have practiced the "do what you will" theme. Taking a road that leads from Rabelais, he examines John Dee and his assistant Edward Kelley, then moves to different erotic literature characters (and authors) of the 18th century, then the various Hell-fire Clubs, spending quite a bit of time with the one organized by Sir Francis Dashwood. His examination takes him into the world of politics, since most the highest-ranking members of this group were also members of government. Then it's on to Gothic literature, the Marquis de Sade, Lord Byron, Aleister Crowley, Anton LaVey (founder of the Church of Satan) and a wee bit about the "family" of Charles Manson.

Very well done, but it is important to realize that this is a book of history and as such, not something that a reader wants to choose lightly. It takes a while to get through it, but it is well worth it. I'd recommend it to anyone seriously interested in the topic, and anyone who is looking for a resource on the subject.

[Claudia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sorry, but this is basically a justification for powerful, white cis men to be pigs, and there is already too much of that in the present day to add a long, philosophical attempt for rationalizing it.

Also, the lengthy fragments of Sade and Rabelais are unnecessary. Those texts are easily available to anyone who wants to read them (I did in my teens, for God's sake! and found them a mix of boring and disgusting TBH) and they are here only as extra titillation :/

Yeah, sorry, not sorry. This is not my cup of tea.

[Charlie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It gives more history, politics and information besides just the Hell-Fire Clubs. A good general resource for Hell-Fire. A great source for politics involved during that time and surrounding the Hell-Fire members.

[Wendy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have a reissue of this book titled "The Secret History of the Hell-Fire Clubs" which states of the cover "From Rabelais and John Dee to Anton LaVey and Timothy Leary" & this statement is entirely misleading. In this book of 269 pages, LaVey is mentioned on 2 pages, Leary on 1 page, & Dee on 9 pages. I bought this book to read more about these fascinating characters so feel cheated. Rabelais gets a whole chapter but I'd never heard of him & his works sound obviously dated & ridiculous. The tone of Ashe's book smacks of "aren't they naughty English boys" & is discreet to a stupefying degree. I quit after 80 pages...I'll read the 8 pages on Crowley then toss this disappointment in the recycling. Bah.

[Rowena Eddy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is quite dry, and the absence of concrete information on the 17th and 18th century is a major problem. I think it is mis titled and should be something more like 'a history of libertarian philosophy'. Not as catchy , though.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

For work.

[Jerky Leboeuf · Rating 5 out of 5]

The edition of this book that I read had the eye-catching title "Do What You Will: A History of Anti-Morality". The Crowley reference caught my eye in the library one day and, now that I have read this book, I am quite glad that it did. Ashe presents an engrossing and scholarly exploration of what he refers to as anti-morality in the British Isles and on the European Continent, beginning with French Renaissance writer Rabelais' conception of the Abbey of Thelema in his Gargantua and Pantagruel, continuing on through the court of Elizabeth I in the personages of the occultish Doctor Dee and his ne'er do well assistant Edward Kelley, on past the various Hell Fire Clubs of the 18th century, touching on the Marquis de Sade, then addressing the 19th century Gothic Plunge into Romanticism before positing a thesis on the 20th century iteration of this age old trope... all the while providing succinct accounts of the political milieu in which these attempts at transcendence via trespass took place. This is, to my reckoning, somewhat of a lost classic waiting to be rediscovered. A thoughtful and balanced exposition on a subject that often falls prey either to sensationalistic over-credulity or worse, finger-wagging condemnations. Highly recommended... if you can find it!

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

A historical essay on libertinism which explores the various manifestations of Rabelais's Law of Theleme, "Do what you will" translated to the modern era as "anything goes." The man body of the essay explores the history of the Hell Fire Clubs and the most infamous of them all, the Monks of Medenham. Founded by Sir Francis Dashwood, its membership included some of the heavyweight political figures of the era. Rather than a detailed expose of their activities though, Ashe explores the political and cultural impact of the Hell Fire Clubs, and discusses whether the Law of Theleme has any long-term impact on public Liberty or whether it remains a localised "behind closed doors" concept. Ashe continues with de Sade and Byron, but the twentieth century discussion on libertinism is extremely limited; the post-WW1 and 1920 eras are bypassed completely in favour of a brief examination of Charles Manson and Timothy Leary.

[Chandrashekar Gangaraju · Rating 3 out of 5]

The title should have been Rabelais' Theleme, it's modern versions, literature and politics. There is a bit too much harking back to Theleme throughout the book which did not feel very genuine. More than half of the book is about Medmenam, it's members, their involvement in politics, their biographies that it could have been a book on its own. A good read though particularly the first few chapters.

[Old-Barbarossa · Rating 2 out of 5]

As interesting as it was, had some dull chapters on mid 1700 politics (how he managed it I don’t know, the period is bonkers with the 7 Years War, Jacobite rebellions, mad Spaniards). On the hole (saucy Hellfire pun) not bad but could have been better.

[Tim Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very sober account of the hellfire clubs and their antecedents and later followers. My only regret is it did not mention the Norwich hellfire club I was researching - I'll just have to use my inagination

[Claude Daniels]

More studies of the little secrets, I find it interesting...

[Noah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Do what thou wilt! Not as dirty as I expected. Less sex and more Hanoverian political intrigue. Still interesting as a broad overview of "anti-morality".

[Stuart · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was getting a bit bored but the topic is so prescient to modern day conspiracies that it ended up being an interesting and enlightening read.