Philanthropy in a Fez

The Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine is the case in the fraternal world where a deliberately light-hearted body became a serious charitable institution.

A sociable order

Founded in New York in 1870 by Walter Fleming and William Florence as a more convivial body for Freemasons, the order adopted a playful theme drawn from romantic images of the Middle East, with red fezzes, parades and festivities, and was historically open to Master Masons. Behind the theatrical public face it functions as an appendant Masonic organisation of fellowship.

The hospitals

What distinguishes the Shriners from other sociable orders is the network of Shriners Hospitals for Children, established in the twentieth century, which provide specialised paediatric care, historically at no cost to families, and are the reason the order is widely known beyond Freemasonry at all. The combination, an ornamental and jocular fraternity that also runs a substantial medical charity, is the defining feature of the order, and the philanthropy rather than the fez is what has kept it prominent.