RobertCochraneThe Magisterof the Clan By Michael Howard

Illustrated by Rowan

In June 1966 a young man who used the nom-de-plume 'Robert Cochrane' took his own life in mysteriouscircumstances. He is of interest to the readers because

he was one of the most fascinating, enigmatic andcontroversial figures in the modern witchcraft revival. Bornin 1931 into a large family living in the siums of London,Cochrane had a violent temper and this got him into fightswith his peers in his youth. He spent his early working lifeas a blacksmith in a foundry and later, after he married andsettled down, he became a bargee on the narrow boatstransporting coai along the canal network. In the 1960sCochrane lived on a council estate in Slough, Berkshirewith his wife and young son and he worked as a typefacedesigner for a local company.

Robert Cochrane claimed that the narrow boat peoplepreserved elements of the 'Old Faith' in their culture andthat the folk art decorating their barges included symbolsof the Craft. It is possible this is where hefirst learnt about witchcraft or perhaps itwas through reading Robert Graves' bookThe White Goddess, which remained animportant influence on his beliefs throughouthis life. Cochrane claimed to be a hereditarywitch and that his family had practisedthe Craft for many generations back to atleast the 18th century. He said his great-grandfather had been the "Grand Masterof the Staffordshire witches", his fatherhad been a Horse Whisperer, his motherwas the Maid and scryer of an old coven inWindsor dating back to the Victorian periodand he was taught the secrets of the Craftas a child by his Aunt Lucy. Cochrane described himselfas "...a member of the People of Goda-the Clan of TubalCain." Locally, he said, they were known as 'witches', the'Good People1, 'Green Gowns', 'Horsemen' and 'wizards'.He also described himself as a 'pellar' - an old Cornishword for a cunning man or magician who expels spiritsCochrane also described himself as a "man of Od [Odin]"(Cochrane and Jones 2002:28).

Whether any of this is true or not cannot be proved. Manyof his critics believed that Cochrane made it all up. If hedid then, as Professor Ronald Hutton has commented, hemust have been a genius. There is some circumstantial

PAGAN DAWN Lammas 200;

evidence to suggest that Cochrane knew of or had contactwith traditional and hereditary witches (See Jones andCochrane 2002: 10, 109 and 169). Even if he did make itall up (and that seems highly unlikely when you look at theritual and mythic corpus of his tradition) he still left behinda practical legacy of traditional witchcraft that works andproduces tangible results. That is all that really matters.

In the early 1960s Cochrane founded his own group,'the Clan of Tubal Cain' to practice the Craft in the old

traditional way. It has also been called the'Royal Windsor Cuveen'. It worked outdoorsat Burnham Beeches in Berkshire, WitneyClumps in Oxfordshire, the Sussex Downs,Cheddar Gorge in Somerset and the BreconBeacons in South Wales. Black and hoodedrobes were worn and power was raisedby pacing or dancing in a circle around acentral fire. The ritual tools used included aknife, a cord, a stone, a cauldron, a humanskull, a cup or drinking horn and a forkedstaff called a stang. In the rituals the stangrepresented the presence of the HornedGod in the circle. At each of the four festivalscelebrating the Wheel of the Year it was

garlanded with the relevant seasonal flowers or foliage.Christianised names were used for each of the festivals i.e.Candlemass, May Eve, Lammas and Hallows.

The Clan revered a horned god of fire, craft, fertility anddeath who was identified with the biblical first blacksmithTubal Cain, the Canaanite fertility and storm god Baal andthe Saxon smith god Way/and. The female aspect wasrepresented by the Three Mothers' or ' Three Ladies'.They were a triplicity of goddesses who ruled Fate andcould be identified with the Wyrd Sisters of Anglo-Saxonmythology or the Norns from the Scandinavian pantheon.Cochrane always said that Fate was "the name of the true

17

witch goddess". The Clan also recognised other deitieswho were born from the womb of the goddess Nox or Nightat the beginning of creation. Four of these were the godsor kings who ruled the castles of the elements symbolicallyplaced at each quarter of the circle. In the east (fire) wasLucet (Lucifer?), in the west (water) Node (Nodens?), in thenorth Tettens (Tuetones?) and in the south (earth) Carenos(Cernunnos?).

Lucet was known as the 'Lord of the Morning Star' andhe was symbolised by the waxing sun. He was the youngHorned God or 'Child of Promise' born at the winter solsticefrom the sacred marriage at Beltane between the OldHomed God and the Goddess. He was described as abeing of light with wings of fire. Node was a sea god andwas regarded in the Clan mythos as the equivalent tothe once and future king. Arthur. Tettens was known asthe 'Lord of the Mound' and he was the ruler of the deadsymbolised by the waning sun. The Clan identified himwith the Greek trickster god of thieves and merchantsHermes, with the Norse shamanic god of the runes Odin orWoden and with the biblical first murderer Cain in his roleas the 'Man in the Moon'. All these deities were culturalexemplars. Tettens was the patron of magicians, witchesand sorcerers and was described physically as small, darkand cold. Finally, Carenos is the 'Lord of Animals' and theGod of the Woods. He is depicted as a human figure withram's horns. There were also four goddesses who werequeens of the elemental castles representing life, maternity,wisdom and death and they were associated with thephases of the moon.

Cochrane taught that in ancient times there had beena union between the Gods and humankind. It was from

this union that the art of magick developed. This theme Ican also be found in faery lore, the biblical stories of the IGarden of Eden and the Watchers or fallen angels, fairy |tales, and the Arthurian legends. These are all myths aralegends that are relevant to many Old Craft traditions,provide a further indication that at some stage in his earl!life Cochrane was in contact with those who were 'in the |know'.

What type of rituals did the Clan of Tubal Cain practiceduring Cochrane's lifetime? The first thing to realise is t!they were very different from anything found in modern CWiccan books. A description of one Hallows ritual atteby the Cabbalistic magician William 'Bill' Gray has re<been published and gives a good flavour of the ambieniof the Cian. (Richardson and Claridge 2003:156-160)Although the Clan was supposed to be a closed covinethis did not prevent Cochrane in his usual cavalier manniinviting uninitiated outsiders to attend meetings as gThe initiated members did not accept this practice verywillingly and the presence of cowans at the rites caused jsome problems.

The Hallows ritual mentioned above was held onNewtimber Hill in Sussex. Such meets were held thereand on the Downs above Wilmington after Doreen Valjoined the covine and Cian members stayed at her flatin Brighton afterwards. As each person climbed the hillthey picked up a stone to carry to the top. This, Gray sartjrepresented the burdens of responsibility gathered duia lifetime. The stones were used either to build a smallcairn at the working site or to form a ring for the fire-pit.Each member also carried a photograph of a deceasedlove one, relative or friend. Once at the top of the hilleveryone had an allotted task to do in preparing the site ,for the ritual, such as lighting the fire and setting up thecauldron over it on a tripod. Cochrane as the 'Devil' orMagister (Master) of the covine set up the stang. He plaia wreath of evergreen foliage on it (probably yew leaves)!with two crossed arrows and a reaping hook. The wreathTsymbolised eternal life, the arrows transformation and tlsickle death.

The ritual proper began with the men pacing around the Ifire chanting and plunging their knives into the cauldron. ]Then the women elevated a platter (symbolising the Grai"and dipped it into the liquid. A sword was then plunged ifthe boiling cauldron and the liquid was scattered to the ft^quarters using its blade. Everyone then entered the sm

of the two circles traced on the ground with Cochraneflas the Devi! traditionally bringing up the re;

Widdershins dancing followed, the Maid winto a trance and made a prophecy ad

a working known as Summoning!the Spirit was performed.

The meet ended with tlgroup adjourning to aplace outside the circlewhere another fire was liand a communal nconsumed.

Lammas 2007 PAGAN DAV

At rituals held at the full moon the covine performed aunique version of 'Drawing down the Moon'. The cup wasfilled with wine and the Lady or Maid held up a small mirrorto reflect the moonlight into it. While she was doing thisthe covine paced the circle around her nine times deosil.The Magister then stepped forward holding the knife in hisright hand and a lighted lantern in his left. He sharpenedthe blade of the knife on the whetstone, plunged it into thecup and stirred the wine three times with it. Drops of winewere then splashed around the circle at each quarter. TheMagister kissed the Maid and then the cup was passedaround the circle with cakes or bread on a platter. Thefollowing charm derived from a historical Scottish Craftsource was used: "In the Old One's name we eat this breadwith great terror and fearful dread. We drink this wine inOur Lady's name and she'll gather us home again."

Bill Gray described the Clan rituals he had witnessedas powerful events that "touched upon something deepwithin the land and the psyche." Similar sentiments havealso been voiced by Marian Green, the editor of Questmagazine, an ex-editor of Pagan Dawn and author ofmany popular books on witchcraft and magick, who wasassociated with the Clan. She has said:" Cochrane mayhave not been all the things he claimed, or that have beenciairned for or about him since his death, but he did reallyknow how to work with the forces of the land and withtime, and with elemental beings, in what still feels like anauthentic ancient way." (Jones and Cochrane 2001:37).

Controversially, Robert Cochrane did not accept themodern neo-pagan idea that witchcraft was the survivalof a prehistoric Goddess-worshipping fertility cult...In facthe was critical of present-day Wicca and Gerald Gardner.Cochrane did not even believe that the Old Craft wasa pagan religion, although he did concede that it hadpreserved elements of the old pre-Christian Mystery cults.

After his sudden death in 1966, Cochrane's widow passedthe authority of the Clan to one of its leading members,a retired soldier and engineer called Evan John Jones.However, two other members of the old covine, Ronald'Chalky' White and George 'Bang Bang' Stannard Winteralso continued its work under the auspices of a neo-pagangroup they formed in London called The Regency. TheRegency met and practiced in and around London in thelate 1960's and early 1970's, and held open public ritualsat Queen's Wood in Highgate, Northwest London and atthe Rollright Stones. These were attended by a 'Who'sWho' of the leading occultists of the time. White and Winterretired to Shropshire in the late 1970s where The Regencycontinued as a private group. Both have now passed overto the spirit world, but rumours persist that a group is stilloperating in some form or another on the Welsh Border.

In 1965 Cochrane had entered into correspondence withan American called Joseph Wilson who lived in Kansas.After Cochrane's death, Wilson circulated photocopies ofthe letters to friends and existing covens he knew in theStates. Many who received the copies used them as abasis for the teachings they passed on to their own initiatesto form the new 1734 Tradition. Copies were also publishedon the Internet. Eventually Cochrane's widow officially

passed their copyright to Evan John Jones and they werepublished in book form.

Controversy stili rages over Robert Cochrane's legacy overforty years from his suicide. However, as the accountsof the rituals witnessed by Bill Gray and Marian Greentestify, Cochrane's tradition produces dramatic magicalresults such as spirit manifestations and changes in theconsciousness of the participants. Evan John Jonesfreely admitted that Cochrane was a trickster who usedhis so-called 'grey magic' to baffle and confuse people hedid not like. Jones also said that 99% of the workings ofthe Ctan were "an illusion created by words, actions andatmosphere". Even so "...the illusion stopped and realitytook over. From that part on things used to happen..."(Richardson and Claridge 2003: 151). That after all is thekey to any practical system of witchcraft or magick, ancientor modern. It proves that whatever its origins and pedigreethe Robert Cochrane tradition was and is genuine.

About the author:Michael Howard is the editor of the witchcraft journalThe Cauldron, published since 1976, and the authorof over twenty books on the occult, runes, folkloreand magick. He was a student of the Luciferian Orderof the Morning Star in the 1960s, was initiated intoGardnerian Wicca in 1969 and is currently an initiateof the traditional witchcraft group known in the outeras the Cultus Sabbati. He can be contacted at mike@the-cauldron.fsnet.co.uk or by writing to BM Cauldron,London, WC1N 3XX, England.

Bibliography and further reading:The Roebuck in the Thicket: An Anthology of theRobert Cochrane Witchcraft Tradition, Evan JohnJones and Robert Cochrane. Edited by MichaelHoward (Capall Bann 2001).

The Robert Cochrane Letters: An Insight into ModernTraditional Witchcraft, Robert Cochrane with EvanJohn Jones. Edited and introduced by Michael Howard(Capall Bann 2002),

The Old Sod: The Odd Life and Inner Work of WilliamG. Gray, Alan Richardson and Marcus Claridge(ignotus press 2003),

Witchcraft: A Tradition Renewed, Evan John Joneswith Doreen Valiente {Robert Hale 1990).

Sacred Mask, Sacred Dance, Evan John Jones withChas S.Clifton {Llewellyn USA 1997),

'A Hereditary Witch's Revelations' by Robert Cochranein Witchcraft, the Sixth Sense - and Us, Justine Glass(Neville Spearman 1965),

'Robert Cochrane, Magister' in Rebirth of Witchcraft,Doreen Valiente (Robert Hale 1989)

'The Man in Black' in The Triumph of the Moon: AHistory of Modern Pagan Witchcraft, Ronald Hutton(Oxford University Press 1999).

PAGAN DAWN Lammas !00719

JB''fM Penlack. Thi» i,,ae 1L ^f^/^rmf Bought I would talk

jKjif^r ««hc.°.*/»special in Paganism,

many modern rituals are carried out inforests, under the safety and prolectmgboughs of the great trees lhal cover ihcverdant green countryside throughout Iheland. Trees have their own spirit, the woodnymph, sometimes culled dryads. Theyshould be respected. But the forest holdsmany varieties of trees, each with theirown history, and customs. Some are luckysome arc not. Many arc directly assuuak'dwith witches, fa ries and the Old Religion.

Spencer wrote in the Legend of SirCalidore:

But the Nymphs and Fairies on the bankdid sit

In the wood's shade which did the waterxcrown

association w Ib the Old Ways. Il isunlucky to bum the wood indoors on thehearth, indeed n many areas ofthe countryit was unlucky to lave even a twig indoors.You had to ask permission from The OldLady ofthe Elder, before you could cut anyof the while elder blossom, and in manyplaces, before you would cut anything offthe tree at all. The Old Lady was not to bedisturbed, and at night it was best to stayclear of the elder, and to not sleep underthe tree at anv time of Ihe day.

Whereas the elder is considered unluckythe holly tree s a lucky tree, but thebranches must not be cut, many hedgeswhen cut leave the holly intact, rising aloftabove the level ofthe rest of the hedge. Itwas a tree of pro ection, often a piece ofholly, would be put on the threshold, 10

journey country people would cany a stickmade from holly.

In the fural countryside great considerationis given to the way trees arc cut. Willowsshould be chopped or cleft with an adze,

Never use an iron saw, for that is unlucky.

outside tire, never indoors.

Hawthorn is a lucky tree. Village maypoleswere made from it. A sprig of hawthorn

milk flow from the dairy herd. Twigs of thewood would be placed hanging fromraters as protection against evil and boltsof l ightening. Sprigs of hawthorn werecarried as lucky mascots by girls inwt'tlilina processions. Slrnnpclv Ihere wasa similar tradition that hawthorn twigswere put into graves at funerals, to ensurea safe journey into the Otherworld oftheGods and Goddesses.

Sycamores were considered unlucky andoften called the 'the hanging tree'. Thehorizontal branches were convenient forhanging those caught for crimes they havecommitted. In those far off days, the deathsentence was given for many offences,such as pocketing, and the theft or smallitems. Many people were hungry and stolelo survive, and ended up on the gallows.

a painful hernia caused by babies crying.then a common complaint. It would haveto be a maiden tree, that is once that hadnever been pruned or pollarded, which wasa form of pruning involving the top ofthetrees being cut off lo encourage growth. Apart of the chosen tree would be split, andthe affected young child passed nakedthrough, with his head towards Ihe sun..The two parts of the tree would then bebound together. As the tree healed, sowould the baby. In Cornwall the baby hadto he passed through the ash tree beforesunrise and before he/she had eaten, [n factin Cornwall passing babies through Lislitrees was a popular remedy for manychildhood ailments.

The Ash offered protection against evilspirits. Many a charm was made from the

ash is recorded in this verse.

Even ash, I thee do pluck.Hoping thus to meet gnatt luck:

If no hid! gel fmm thee.I shall wish ihee on the tree.

Maiden ashes were also used in Wiltshire

went thus: 'Cut a piece off each finger andtoe na i l and a piece oil' your hair. Get uponthe next Sunday morning before sunrise

pointed screw tip) bore a hole in the first

nails and hair in; then peg the hole up."

There is weather lore about the ash and theoak. both of which leaf at approximatelythe same period, late April. There are manyvariations across the country of whichbelow is just one version concerning theharvest:

When Ihe ncik come on! before the ash,There will he fine weather in harvest;

Bui when Ike ask comes mi! hefore the oak.The harvest will he wet.

There is folklore i nvo lv ing the elms. InCornwall near where there arc three oldelms planted by the lichgate at MykirChurch. It was the custom for the local

able to hear the Devil himself, roaring inhell. It is interesting to speculate, if this issome ancient pagan custom involving Ihespirii of these grcui irces. sometimesknown as a dryad, from Ihe Greek dpus.being demonised by the Church. Therewere majestic elms on the road between StAustcll and Pcntewan, which were unfor-tunately felled in 1910. But while theywere standing proud in the eround. most ofthe day, as the clock struck twelve, theywere said lo march around their field.

The rowan or mountain ash, was known asanother lucky tree. Tts red berries broughtprotection. The tree could be used in manyways: a staff of rowan, a cross made ofrowan wood, even just the berries mem-selves. All could be used to ward off evilspirits. A sprig would be placed on the

Highlands of Scotland all houses had arowan planted in their front garden toprotect them against malevolent beings.

[n Cumbria it was the custom to hang &branch over slables and shippons, which

10 LAMMAS 2007 peMCAcle

Picture: Tree Sprite by Carmen Owen

•JIM n T the aIn this counry a sprig of rowanwith the cream in ihe churn 'tibutler come'. Cows were givetrowan especially when they 'mated wilh the local bull. Hereold couplet extolling the virt

l i t /,• in,

The yew tree, so often found in church-yards was associated with the spirit of thedead. Many mourners have claimed to seethe light of a deceased loved one, afterholding a branch of yew, with a v-shapednotch and the opposite the end touchingthe earth, with their left hand and kneeingon their left knee and holding the knife thaicut the yew. Their right elbow would beplaced on their righl knee, [heir r i a h t handover their left eye. Once this was done, bylooking through the notch and on the openknife, the light and presence of their lovedones would appear.

very aled • nil

death, and ghosts. Ghostly spirits wouldshelter under the yew at night. In parts ofihe West Country yew branches were

Hazels have been used for generations as awood for dowsing and water diving. TheForked hazel twig twists and dips in thehands of an experienced dowser where

have been found with hazel wamis placedin them.Woods full of trees, in rural areas wereused in many ways which mirrored the lifeof those involved in the countryside. Theyare special, magical, and lu l l of enchant-ment, to be honoured Now with the rebirthof Paganism (hey can be given the gloryand respect they are entitled to. .Well I have to go now. Enjoy this issue ofPentaele. the magazine for free thinkingPagans of all paths

Bles

peNTAcLe LAMMAS 2007