Formation of Supreme Grand Chapter

The Committee appointed to formulate Regulations worked quickly and presented a draft to Grand Chapter on 15 April 1817. They were accepted and set the seal on the future arrangement and development of the Grand Chapter. They also demonstrably marked the new relationship between the Craft and the Royal Arch and the interdependency of the two. To mark that interdependency:

certain designated Officers within the Grand Lodge, if properly qualified, automatically held equivalent office in Grand Chapter

Chapters were to be no longer independently chartered but were to be sponsored by a Lodge, to whose warrant the Chapter was to be attached, and whose number and, later, name they were to bear

Chapters with charters from the original Grand Chapter were to return those charters in exchange for a Charter attaching them to a Lodge of their choice

former Antients Lodges were to cease working the Royal Arch within their Lodges, the Royal Arch members petitioning for a Charter forming them into a Chapter attached to that Lodge

a preamble to the Regulations was to state that any matter not specifically covered therein was to be considered as being governed by the Book of Constitutions of the United Grand Lodge.
The Grand Chapter was to be comprised of the present and past Grand Officers, the three Principals of each Chapter and, for the first time, Past First Principals who remained subscribing members of English Chapters. The Grand Chapter was to meet four times a year, with Convocations in August, November and February and the Annual Investiture on the day following that of the Craft. In 1948 the August Convocation was moved to July, and in 1960 the July meeting was dispensed with. There rarely being much substantive business for Grand Chapter, the custom of having talks, demonstrations and organ recitals at the February and November Convocations grew up in the 1960s. In 2002 the February Convocation was dispensed with and Grand Chapter now meets on the second Wednesday in November and the day following the Annual Investiture of the Craft, with the Grand Principals retaining the power to summons an Emergency Convocation should need arise.

For the First time a Committee of General Purposes was appointed, to be comprised of members appointed by the First Grand Principal and others to be elected by Grand Chapter from amongst the present and past First Principals. The Committee was to have no executive powers but was to formulate policy and to enquire into and report on any matter referred to it by either the First Grand Principal or the Grand Chapter.

The prerogative of appointing Grand Superintendents was to remain personal to the First Grand Principal, but their powers were clearly defined. All Chapters within a Province or District were to come under the authority of the Grand Superintendent. He had to call a meeting of his Provincial or District Grand Chapter at least once a year, at which he was empowered to appoint Provincial or District Grand Officers. Appointments in Grand, Provincial and District Grand Chapters were only to active ranks. Appointments to past ranks were exceedingly rare. Towards the end of the 19th century limited appointments to past ranks were permitted as part of national or Masonic celebrations but the general awarding of and promotions in past ranks did not begin until the 1920s.