The Hell-Fire Clubs: Sex, Rakes And Libertines In Eighteenth-Century Europe

Mention the Hell-Fire Clubs and you conjure up an image of aristocratic rakes outraging respectability at every turn, cutting a swath through the village maidens and celebrating Black Masses. All of which is true as far as it goes, but not the whole truth. Geoffrey Ashe has assembled the most complete and accurate account of the Clubs and of their antecedents and descendants. At the centre is his account of the principal brotherhood known by the Hell-Fire name, Sir Francis Dashwood's notorious Monks of Medmenham, with their strange rituals and initiation rites, library of erotica and nun companions recruited from the brothels of London. From this maverick group flow such notable literary libertines as Horace Walpole and Lord Byron. Pre-dating Medmenham are the great figures of Rabelais and John Dee, both expounding philosophies based on the notion of 'Do What You Will' or 'anything goes'. Ashe traces the influence of libertarian philosophies on the world of the Enlightenment, showing how they met the need for a secular morality at a time when Christianity faced the onslaught of rationalism and empiricism.

He follows the libertarian tradition through de Sade and into the twentieth century, with discussions of Aleister Crowley, Charles Manson and Timothy Leary. Brilliantly readable and delving below the scandals to reveal the social and political impact of 'doing your own thing', which has roots far deeper than the post-war permissive society, The Hell-Fire Clubs will appeal to all those curious about the shock-tactics of moral outrage.