I am still working on my Pere Lachaise Cemetery project and thought I'd post a brief update on Susan Howard's query about the Avenue des Acacias and its possible connections to Freemasonry.

Although I haven't found a definite connection with the street's name and the Freemasons, I have confirmed that the Sprig of Acacia is an important symbol but largely used by the upper echelons of 'the Craft.' I hope to visit Paris again in the New Year and will keep an eye out for this symbol and instances of more common symbols like the Square, Compass and Ashlar etc.

My project is related to the Marshals of Empire and Marshal Gouvion-St-Cyr and Marshal Macdonald are both buried along this avenue. Interestingly, I came across the following passage in Napoleon's Marshals by David Chandler -

'...possibly the most significant event in St.-Cyr's life took place: his mother left home, never to return. She appears to have travelled to Lyons, where she joined the semi-mystic sect of the Martinistes, an offshoot of freemasonry. St-Cyr was to retain throughout his life a deep hatred of freemasonry. She took the name of St-Cyr in place of Gouvion. Deprived of a mother at the age of four, and soon losing both brothers, St-Cyr's childhood was far from happy.' (p120 and referenced to the biography C. d'Ainval, Gouvion Saint-Cyr, Copernic, 1981, p29)

Therefore, if there is a Freemasonry connection with the Av des Acacias, it is ironic that St Cyr is buried along it as he would have disapproved. Incidentally, his tomb is one of the most impressive and interesting of the 14 marshals buried or commemorated in the cemetery.

As an aside, members will probably know that there is considerable debate about whether Napoleon himself was a Freemason. Certainly many of the savants who travelled with him to Egypt were and Freemasonry flourished under his rule. There are numerous references to this on the internet such as http://www.napoleon-empire.com/freemason.php

I am yet to discover a Freemasonry symbol on any of the Marshals' or other soldiers' graves in Pere Lachaise and, as many are covered in heraldic and military symbols, I am guessing they would have been unable to resist adding related symbols if they had been members. However, lack of evidence is not proof. I hope this proves of some interest.

David