The Secret History of the Hell-Fire Clubs: From Rabelais and John Dee to Anton LaVey and Timothy Leary

by Geoffrey Ashe

An exploration of the origins, influences, and legacy of the scandalous Hell-Fire Clubs of the 18th century and beyond

• Reveals the club’s origins in the work of Rabelais and the magical practices of John Dee and how their motto, “Do What You Will,” deeply influenced Aleister Crowley

• Explores the cross-fertilization of liberty and libertinage within these clubs that influenced both U.S. and French Revolutions

• Examines the debaucherous activities and famous members of many Hell-Fire Clubs, including Sir Francis Dashwood’s Monks of Medmenham

Mention the Hell-Fire Clubs and you conjure up an image of aristocratic rakes cutting a swath through the village maidens. Which is true, but not the whole truth. The activities of these clubs of upper-class Englishmen revolved around not only debauchery but also blasphemy, ritual, quasi-magical pursuits, and political intrigue.

Providing a history of these infamous clubs, Geoffrey Ashe reveals their origins in the work of François Rabelais and the activities of John Dee. He shows how the Hell-Fire Clubs’ anything-goes philosophy of “Do what you will”--also Aleister Crowley’s famous motto--and community template were drawn directly from Rabelais. The author looks at the very first Hell-Fire Club, founded by Philip, Duke of Wharton, in 1720 and then at the Society of the Dilettanti, a fraternity formed in 1732. Ashe examines the life, travels, and influences of Sir Francis Dashwood, founding member of the Society of the Dilettanti and the scandalous Permissive Society at Medmenham, also known as the Monks of Medmenham. He also explores other Hell-Fire clubs the movement inspired throughout England, Scotland, and Ireland, including the violence-prone Mohocks and the Appalling Club. He shows how many illustrious figures of the day were members of these societies, such as Lord Byron. He also examines the rumors that Benjamin Franklin was a member, an allegation that can be neither confirmed nor denied.

Exploring the political and magical ideas that fueled this movement, the author shows how the cross-fertilization of liberty and libertinage within the Hell-Fire Clubs went on to influence both the U.S. and French revolutions, as well as the hippie movement of the 1960s, the Church of Satan founded by Anton LaVey, and the motorcycle club known as the Hells Angels. The legacy of the Hell-Fire Clubs continues to impact society, beckoning both elite and outsider to cast aside social norms and “do what you will.”

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Audiobook, Esoterica

304 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.