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Pagan Pioneers: Founders, Elders, Leaders and Others
Alex
Sanders (1926-1988)
Written
and compiled by George Knowles.
Alex Sanders - the
“King of the Witches” as he became known - was responsible for founding the
Alexandrian Tradition of Wicca, now one of the main traditions of the
Wicca/Witchcraft movement. But his
reign was fraught with criticism and controversy. Alex Sanders was born
Orrel Alexander Carter on the 06th June 1926 at 56 Church
Road, Tranmere, Birkenhead. He
was the eldest of six children born to Orrell Alexander Carter, a
labourer and musician, and Hannah Jane Bibby, a domestic servant who later
became a professional foster mother. His
father was a sometimes music hall entertainer but suffered from alcoholism, and
soon after the birth of Alex, moved the family to Grape St in Manchester, there
he unofficially changed the family name to Sanders. Alex was
unaware of his official surname until he applied for a passport later in life,
at which time he officailly changed his name to Sanders by deed poll on
the 22nd October 1970. As a young boy Sanders
suffered with tuberculosis
and would regularly visit with his grandmother in Wales where he could benefit from the Welsh fresh air.
At the age of seven, he is believed to have happened upon his grandmother
“Mary Biddy” performing some sort of pagan ritual.
Taken by surprise she immediately swore young Sanders to secrecy, and
initiated him on the spot claiming, “Now, you are one of us”.
Thus he became her student and started on the path of the Old Religion.
Though he was an able schoolboy, practical considerations
curtailed his formal education at fourteen, and he subsequently worked for a
pharmaceutical company and for the John Rylands Library, as well as being
adopted for a time by a wealthy stockbroker.
On 17 July 1948 he married Doreen Stretton (b. 1928/9), a packer
of surgical plasters and the daughter of a foundry labourer, Joseph Herbert
Stretton. They had a son and a
daughter, but were divorced in 1953. Sanders was a natural psychic who learned all he could from his
grandmother. He claimed that she
gave him her “Book of Shadows” to copy and taught him all the rites and
magic of the witches including clairvoyance
by scrying in inky water and gazing using his grandmother’s crystal.
Sanders also claimed that following the Blitz during WWII, and just a few
months before her death at age 74, his grandmother conferred upon him the second
and third grade initiations involving ritual sex.
After her death he tried to contact other witches, and although he
failed in that effort, he continued with his studies while working for a time as
a healer in Spiritualist Churches under the pseudonym of Paul Dallas.
After the War ended
Sanders began working as an analytical chemist at a laboratory in Manchester,
were in 1947 he met and then married a co-worker called “Doreen”.
He was 21 at the time, she 19, and together they had two children “Paul
and Janice”. Sanders had wanted
more children but not Doreen, she also disapproved of his practicing Witchcraft.
Five years later the
marriage deteriorated and Doreen took the two children and left him.
According to his
later second wife Maxine, Sanders had been so grief-stricken that he cursed
Doreen with a fertility spell; when she later re-married she had three sets of
twins?? Depressed Sanders began
drinking; he drifted from one low paid job to another and indulged in sex with
both men and women. He started on
the left-hand path, worshiped the devil and studied “Abra-Melin” magic,
hoping to use it to gain wealth and fame. He
regularly boosted about his feats of magic and made some amazing claims.
One like “Aleister Crowley” before him, he claimed to have created a
“magical child”. He created it
during a rite of ritual masturbation with the aide of a male assistant.
He says, “the baby disappeared shortly after its creation and grew
up as a spirit called Michael”. “Michael” was the
spirit he used during trance work, and it was Michael (he claims) who was
responsible for forcing him to act badly at wild parties, to insult people, and
generally act in an abominable way. “Eventually
the spirit of Michael settled down and I was able to control it”, he says.
When channeling Sanders used a familiar entity called “Nick Demdike”,
who claimed to have been a persecuted witch from Lancaster during the trails of
the 17th century. In the early 60’s,
Sanders is reported to have sought entrance to some Gardnerian covens, including
that run by “Patricia and Arnold Crowther”, who refused to accept him.
Not to be put off so easily, he somehow managed to obtain a copy of the
Gardnerian Book of Shadows. This he
copied (badly from all accounts) and embellished it with a few of his own
amendments. He then used this as the bases to found his own coven,
claiming it to be a copy of his grandmother’s Book of Shadows. Sanders was a born showman who avidly courted publicity.
In September of 1962 he even succeeded in convincing the Manchester
Evening News to run a front-page article about Wicca.
As a result he soon attracted a large following.
During this period Sanders
and his coven worked from his home at 24 Egerton Road North, Chorlton-cum-Hardy,
Manchester. One of his
initiates was “Maxine Morris”, a Roman Catholic 20 years his junior.
After her initiation, they handfasted and she became his High Priestess.
In June 1967 the Sanders’ moved to Clanricarde Gardens, London, which
became their base for the next six years. They
were formally married in a civil ceremony at the Kensington register office on
May Day 1968, and had two children, Maya (b. 1967) and Victor (b. 1972).
On his marriage certificate, Sanders gave his rank or profession as
“lecturer in comparative religion”. From their new home the Sanders’ ran a London coven and taught training classes, he claimed to have initiated more than 1,623 witches working in 100 covens around the country, all-practicing what had become known as the Alexandrian Tradition. At one meeting, a gathering of sixteen of his covens, Sanders was bestowed with the title of “King of the Witches”. Sanders frequently appeared in ritual photos as robed or wearing only a loincloth while Witches surrounding him were naked. His explanation for this was that the old “Witch laws” required that the Elder of a coven should be easily identifiable from the other coven members.
Alex
Sanders leadin a "skyclad" dance during a sabbat ritual.
In 1968-69, Sanders
with Maxine appeared in, and gave technical advice on a film called “Legend of
the Witches”. During the press
preview of the film, they met with and were introduced to “Stewart Farrar”,
then a reporter for the Reveille newspaper.
Stewart would later be initiated by Maxine, and move on to become famous
himself as a witch and author. In 1972 Maxine gave
birth to another child, a son they named “Victor”, but then just a year
later in 1973 they separated. Sanders
moved to Sussex were he remained in relative obscurity until he died on the 30th
April 1988 after a long battle with lung cancer. His funeral was a mass media event, Witches and Pagans from
all over the country attended to pay their respects. During the course of the funeral a pre-recorded tape was
played in which he declared that his son “Victor” should succeed him as
“King of the Witches”. Victor Sanders had no
desire to take up the title and later left the country for the United States.
Maxine stay on in London and continued to run their coven and teach the
craft with her half-brother “David Goddard” acting as her High Priest.
A short time after his funeral, a “Witches Council of Elders” was
convened formed mainly from the Alexandrian tradition. They decided
there would be no successor to the “King of Witches” and the title was
discontinued. Without doubt Alex
Sanders was a controversial and flamboyant man, who without scruples plagiarized
the work of others to embellish he own. Whither he did so with malice, remains a question?
Personally I don’t think so. More
I assume through innocuous indifference, and mainly for the benefit of his
students, even though it resulted in criticism from many in the craft.
He was also without doubt a very skilled witch, and powerful magician,
whose contribution to the newly evolving movement, brought witchcraft back into
the public arena and changed the face of Wicca. He helped to influence many newcomers entering the craft and
Alexandrian Wicca remains today one of the largest traditions of the
contemporary Wicca/Witchcraft movement. End.
Sources:
The Encyclopedia of Witches &Witchcraft - by Rosemary Ellen Guiley.
Encyclopedia of Wicca & Witchcraft - By Raven Grimassi A Witches' Bible - By Janet and Stewart Farrar What Witches Do - By Stewart Farrar Man, Myth and Magic -
Edited by Richard Cavendish Triumph of the Moon - Ronald Hutton
First published on the 04th May 2001, 21:12:38 © George Knowles
Best wishes and Blessed Be
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Site Contents - Links to all Pages
A Universal Message:
Let there be peace in the world - Where have all the flowers gone?
About me: My Personal Page / My Place in England / My Family Tree (Ancestry)
Wicca & Witchcraft
Wicca/Witchcraft / What is Wicca / What is Magick
Traditional Writings:
The Wiccan Rede / Charge of the Goddess / Charge of the God / The Three-Fold Law (includes The Law of Power and The Four Powers of the Magus) / The Witches Chant / The Witches Creed / Descent of the Goddess / Drawing Down the Moon / The Great Rite Invocation / Invocation of the Horned God / The 13 Principles of Wiccan Belief / The Witches Rede of Chivalry / A Pledge to Pagan Spirituality
Correspondence Tables:
Incense / Candles / Colours / Magickal Days / Stones and Gems / Elements and Elementals
Traditions:
Traditions Part 1 - Alexandrian Wicca / Aquarian Tabernacle Church (ATC) / Ár Ndraíocht Féin (ADF) / Blue Star Wicca / British Traditional (Druidic Witchcraft) / Celtic Wicca / Ceremonial Magic / Chaos Magic / Church and School of Wicca / Circle Sanctuary / Covenant of the Goddess (COG) / Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans (CUUPS) / Cyber Wicca / Dianic Wicca / Eclectic Wicca / Feri Wicca /
Traditions Part 2 - Gardnerian Wicca / Georgian Tradition / Henge of Keltria / Hereditary Witchcraft / Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn (H.O.G.D.) / Kitchen Witch (Hedge Witch) / Minoan Brotherhood and Minoan Sisterhood Tradition / Nordic Paganism / Pagan Federation / Pectic-Wita / Seax-Wica / Shamanism / Solitary / Strega / Sylvan Tradition / Vodoun or Voodoo / Witches League of Public Awareness (WLPA) /
Other things of interest:
Gods and Goddesses (Greek
Mythology) / Esbats &
Full Moons / Links
to Personal Friends & Resources / Wicca/Witchcraft
Resources / What's a spell? /
Circle Casting and
Sacred Space / Pentagram
- Pentacle / Marks
of a Witch / The Witches
Power / The Witches Hat
/ An
esoteric guide to visiting London / Satanism
/ Pow-wow
/ The
Unitarian Universalist Association / Numerology: Part 1
/ Part 2 / Part
3 / A
history of the Malleus Maleficarum: includes: Pope
Innocent VIII /
The
papal Bull /
The
Malleus Maleficarum /
An extract from the Malleus Maleficarum
/ The letter of approbation
/ Johann
Nider’s Formicarius /
Jacob
Sprenger /
Heinrich Kramer /
Stefano Infessura
/ Montague Summers /
The Waldenses
/ The Albigenses
/
The Hussites / The
Native American Sun Dance
/ Shielding (Occult
and Psychic Protection) /
Sabbats and Festivals:
The Sabbats in History and Mythology / Samhain (October 31st) / Yule (December 21st) / Imbolc (February 2nd) / Ostara (March 21st) / Beltane (April 30th) / Litha (June 21st) / Lammas/Lughnasadh (August 1st) / Mabon (September 21st)
Rituals contributed by Crone:
Samhain / Yule / Imbolc / Ostara / Beltane / Litha / Lammas / Mabon
Tools:
Tools of a Witch / The Besom (Broom) / Poppets and Dolls / Pendulums / Cauldron Magick / Mirror Gazing
Animals:
Animals in Witchcraft (The Witches Familiar and Totem Animals) / Antelope / Bats / Crow / Fox / Frog and Toads / Goat / Honeybee / Kangaroo / Lion / Owl / Phoenix / Rabbits and Hares / Raven / Robin Redbreast / Sheep / Spider / Squirrel / Swans / Unicorn / Wild Boar / Wolf / Serpent / Pig / Stag / Horse / Mouse / Cat / Rats / Unicorn
Trees:
In Worship of Trees - Myths, Lore and the Celtic Tree Calendar. For descriptions and correspondences of the thirteen sacred trees of Wicca/Witchcraft see the following: Birch / Rowan / Ash / Alder / Willow / Hawthorn / Oak / Holly / Hazel / Vine / Ivy / Reed / Elder
Sacred Sites:
Mystical Sacred Sites - Stonehenge / Glastonbury Tor / Malta - The Hypogeum of Hal Saflieni / Avebury / Cerne Abbas - The Chalk Giant / Ireland - Newgrange /
Rocks and Stones:
Stones - History, Myths and Lore
Articles contributed by Patricia Jean Martin:
Apophyllite / Amber / Amethyst / Aquamarine / Aragonite / Aventurine / Black Tourmaline / Bloodstone / Calcite / Carnelian / Celestite / Citrine / Chrysanthemum Stone / Diamond / Emerald / Fluorite / Garnet / Hematite / Herkimer Diamond / Labradorite / Lapis Lazuli / Malachite / Moonstone / Obsidian / Opal / Pyrite / Quartz (Rock Crystal) / Rose Quartz / Ruby / Selenite / Seraphinite / Silver and Gold / Smoky Quartz / Sodalite / Sunstone / Thunderegg / Tree Agate / Zebra Marble
Wisdom and Inspiration:
Knowledge vs Wisdom by Ardriana Cahill / I Talk to the Trees / Awakening / The Witch in You / A Tale of the Woods / I have a Dream by Martin Luther King /
Articles and Stories about Witchcraft:
Murdered by Witchcraft / The Fairy Witch of Clonmel / A Battleship, U-boat, and a Witch / The Troll-Tear (A story for Children) / Goody Hawkins - The Wise Goodwife / The Story of Jack-O-Lantern / The Murder of the Hammersmith Ghost / Josephine Gray (The Infamous Black Widow) / The Two Brothers - Light and Dark
Old Masters of Academia: (Our Ancestors)
Pliny the Elder / Hesiod / Pythagoras / Paracelsus / Abramelin the Mage / Archimedes / Agrippa / Socrates / Aristotle
Biographies
A "Who's Who" of Witches, Pagans and other associated People (Ancient, Past and Present)
(Departed Pagan Pioneers, Founders, Elders and Others)
Pagan
Pioneers: Founders, Elders, Leaders and Others
Aidan A Kelly / Albertus Magnus - “Albert the Great” / Aleister Crowley - “The Great Beast” / Alex Sanders - “King of the Witches” / Alison Harlow / Allan Bennett - the Ven. Ananda Metteyya / Allan Kardec (Spiritism) / Alphonsus de Spina / Amber K / Ann Moura / Anna Franklin / Anodea Judith / Anton Szandor LaVey / Arnold Crowther / Arthur Edward Waite / Austin Osman Spare / Balthasar Bekker / Biddy Early / Barbara Vickers / Bridget Cleary - The Fairy Witch of Clonmel / Carl " Llewellyn" Weschcke / Cecil Hugh Williamson / Charles Godfrey Leland / Charles Walton / Christopher Penczak / Christina Oakley Harrington / Cornelius Loos / Damh the Bard - "Dave Smith" / Dion Fortune / Dolores Aschroft-Nowicki / Donald Michael Kraig / Doreen Valiente / Dorothy Morrison / Dr. John Dee & Edward Kelly / Dr. Leo Louis Martello / Edain McCoy / Edward Fitch / Eleanor Ray Bone - “Matriarch of British Witchcraft” / Eliphas Levi / Ernest Thompson Seton / Ernest Westlake / Fiona Horne / Frederick McLaren Adams - Feraferia / Friedrich von Spee / Francis Barrett / Gavin and Yvonne Frost and the School and Church of Wicca / Gerald B. Gardner - The father of contemporary Witchcraft / Gwydion Pendderwen / Hans Holzer / Helen Duncan / Herman Slater - Horrible Herman / Heinrich Kramer / Isaac Bonewits / Israel Regardie / Ivo Domínguez Jr. / Jack Whiteside Parsons - Rocket Science and Magick / James "Cunning" Murrell - The Master of Witches / Janet Farrar and Gavin Bone / Jean Bodin / Jessie Wicker Bell - “Lady Sheba” / Johann Weyer / Johannes Junius - "The Burgomaster of Bamberg" / Johann Georg Fuchs von Dornheim - the “Hexenbrenner” (witch burner) / John Belham-Payne / John George Hohman - "Pow-wow" / John Gerard / John Gordon Hargrave and the Kibbo Kith Kindred / John Michael Greer / John Score / Joseph “Bearwalker” Wilson / Joseph John Campbell / Karl von Eckartshausen / Lady Gwen Thompson - and "The Rede of the Wiccae" / Laurie Cabot - "the Official Witch of Salem" / Lewis Spence / Lodovico Maria Sinistrari / Ludwig Lavater / Madeline Montalban and the Order of the Morning Star / Margaret Alice Murray / Margot Adler / Michael Howard and the UK "Cauldron Magazine" / Margaret St. Clair - the “Sign of the Labrys” / Marie Laveau - " the Voodoo Queen of New Orleans" / Marion Weinstein / Martin Antoine Del Rio / Matthew Hopkins - “The Witch-Finder General” / Michael A. Aquino - and The Temple of Set / Monique Wilson / Montague Summers / Nicholas Culpeper / Nicholas Remy / M. R. Sellars / Mrs. Maud Grieve - "A Modern Herbal" / Oberon Zell-Ravenheart and Morning Glory / Old Dorothy Clutterbuck / Old George Pickingill / Olivia Durdin-Robertson - co-founder of the Fellowship of Isis / Paddy Slade / Pamela Colman-Smith / Patricia Crowther / Patricia Monaghan / Patricia “Trish” Telesco / Paul Foster Case and the “Builders of the Adytum” mystery school / Peter Binsfeld / Philip Heselton / Raven Grimassi / Raymond Buckland / Reginald Scot / Richard Baxter / Robert Cochrane / Robert ‘von Ranke’ Graves and the "The White Goddess" / Rosaleen Norton - “The Witch of Kings Cross” / Rossell Hope Robbins / Ross Nichols and the " Order of Bards, Ovates & Druids" (OBOD) / Rudolf Steiner / Sabrina Underwood - "The Ink Witch" / Scott Cunningham / Selena Fox - founder of "Circle Sanctuary" / Silver Ravenwolf / Sir Francis Dashwood / Sir James George Frazer and the " The Golden Bough" / S.L. MacGregor Mathers and the “Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn” / Starhawk / Stewart Farrar / Sybil Leek / Ted Andrews / The Mather Family - (includes: Richard Mather, Increase Mather and Cotton Mather ) / Thomas Ady / T. Thorn Coyle / Vera Chapman / Victor & Cora Anderson and the " Feri Tradition" / Vivianne Crowley / Walter Brown Gibson / Walter Ernest Butler / William Butler Yeats / Zsuzsanna Budapest /
Many of the above biographies are briefs and far from complete. If you know about any of these individuals and can help with additional information, please contact me privately at my email address below. Many thanks for reading :-)
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