{{Short description|18th Century secret society}} The '''Ancient Noble Order of the Gormogons''' was a short-lived 18th century secret society formed by expelled Freemason Philip Wharton. It left no records or accomplishments to indicate its true goal and purpose. From the group's few published articles it is thought that the society's primary objective was to hold up Freemasonry to ridicule.<ref>[http://freemasonry.bcy.ca/anti-masonry/gormogons.html Antient Noble Order of the Gormogons<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> During its brief existence it was accused of being a Jacobite-leaning group,<ref>Lyttle, Charles H. "[https://www.jstor.org/pss/3160805 Historical Bases of Rome's Conflict with Freemasonry]", ''Church History'', Vol. 9, No. 1. (Mar., 1940), pp. 3–23.</ref> perhaps because the first known Grandmaster (or ''Oecumenical Volgi'') was Andrew Michael Ramsay of Ayr, Scotland, a Jacobite of strong convictions.<ref>Carr. J. L. "[https://www.jstor.org/pss/3720400 Gorgons, Gormogons, Medusists and Masons]". ''The Modern Language Review''. Vol. 58, No. 1 (Jan., 1963), pp. 73–78.</ref> It also appears to have been a charitable organization, at least according to its surviving bylaws. There are also some surviving pendant badges, bearing their sign.<ref>[https://www.jstor.org/stable/877782 Sotheby's October 1974 catalogue], reproduced in ''The Burlington Magazine'', vol. 116, No. 858 (Sep., 1974), pp. i–lx.</ref>

==Possible etymology of the name== Jonathon Green suggests in ''Cassell’s Dictionary of Slang'' that, in the form ''gormagon'', the word is a blend of gorgon and dragon, while the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' describes the etymology as "meaningless: pseudo Chinese."<ref>{{citation|contribution=gormagon|contribution-url=http://dictionary.oed.com/cgi/entry/50097049|title=OED Online|edition=2nd|location=Oxford|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1989|access-date=26 March 2009|title-link=Oxford English Dictionary}}.</ref>

In ''The 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue'',<ref>{{citation|author=Francis Grose|title=The 1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue: Buckish Slang, University Wit and Pickpocket Eloquence|location=London|publisher=Senate|year=1994|isbn=1-85958-045-9 <!--(pbk.)-->|author-link=Francis Grose}}, a facsimile reprint of {{citation|author=Captain [Francis] Grose, comp.|title=Lexicon balatronicum|location=London|publisher=Printed for C. Chappel|year=1811}}.</ref> the word ''gormagon'' was humorously defined thus: "A monster with six eyes, three mouths, four arms, eight legs, five on one side and three on the other, three arses, two tarses [penises], and a **** upon its back." The compiler Francis Grose gave the game away in his dictionary entry by explaining that it was "a man on horseback, with a woman behind him".<ref>See {{citation|author=Captain [Francis] Grose|author2=Juliet Sutherland [''et al.''], eds.|title=1811 Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue &#91;EBook #5402&#93;|url=http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext04/dcvgr10.txt|location=Salt Lake City, Ut.|publisher=Project Gutenberg|date=April 2004|access-date=26 March 2009}}.</ref> (His "five legs on one side" description could be merely that the woman was riding side-saddle).

In a 1724 entry in ''The London Post'', the order was said to have been brought to London by a "Mandarin", who in turn initiated several "Gentlemen of Honor" into its ranks.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JnnXDQAAQBAJ&q=Gormogons&pg=PT50|title=Secret Societies: The Complete Guide to Histories, Rites, and Rituals|last=Redfern|first=Nick|date=2017-03-14|publisher=Visible Ink Press|isbn=9781578596461|language=en}}</ref> Scholars offer differing accounts as to when this order became extinct. For instance, it was proposed that it ended in 1738.<ref name=":0" /> Another account maintained that it survived until 1799, when an Act was passed in July 12th of that year suppressing all secret societies with the exemption of Freemasonry.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Triads|last1=Ward|first1=J. M. S.|last2=Stirling|first2=W. G.|publisher=Routledge|year=2006|isbn=9780710312044|location=Oxon|pages=126}}</ref>

==In popular culture== The Gormogons have been referenced in the TV show ''Bones''. Beginning with the season 3 premiere, "The Widow's Son in the Windshield", the Jeffersonian team investigated a cannibalistic serial killer they call Gormogon, for his obsession with secret societies and his targeting of the Knights of Columbus.

==See also==

* Secret society * Gormogon (Bones)

==References== {{reflist|2}}

{{PGLE}} {{Authority control}} Category:Organizations established in the 18th century Category:Anti-Masonry in the United Kingdom Category:Secret societies in the United Kingdom