<p>Masonry is the most widely spread Fraternity in the world today,&nbsp;yet its origins remain shrouded in myth and conjecture.&nbsp;In his latest book, writer and researcher Ray Hudson delves deeply into the true genesis of the Craft.&nbsp;Using information gleaned from more than 35 years as an active mason (holding senior positions in all the mainstream Masonic Orders, plus many other specialist groups) he rejects the most widely held view - that the system emanated from Medieval builders or the Guilds of working men. &nbsp;Citing numerous references and examples, Hudson shows how the basic tenets of Freemasonry were brought from the East to the West through the auspices of the Knights Templar, and how the suppression of the Order in 1307 led to the birth of Freemasonry as we know it today. &nbsp;His thesis is vastly strengthened by the inclusion of a previously unpublished paper on the little-known <em>Order of St. Sophia</em>, ' its connection to both the Cistercian Order ' Knights Templar, and written by&nbsp;John, Baron von Hoff,&nbsp;a former Master of this most recondite order, whose family have held positions of honour therein since at least 1500 AD.</p>