(1926* - 1988)
Founder of the Alexandrian tradition of Wicca. The asterisk on his birthdate indicates that it’s somewhat contested; though 1926 is the usual figure, one source claims 1929, and another claims the unlikely date of 1916. Sanders was known for his showmanship and grandiose claims; aside from his fanciful tale of his initiation, he also claimed the title “King of the Witches” (also the title of a 1969 book about him).
Sanders was known to have sought admittance to various Gardnerian covens during the early ’60s, but was apparently denied membership in nearly all of them. Apparently one coven did eventually admit him. Having access to the Gardnerian Book of Shadows, he seems to have copied most of it, altered other parts, and created his own tradition. To explain the source of his teachings, Sanders claimed that at age eight, he had come across his grandmother, a woman named Mary Biddy, stark naked in a ceremonial circle. According to Sanders’ tale, Biddy bade him remove his clothes and enter the circle with her. She then told him she was a hereditary Witch, told him to put his head down between his thighs, nicked his scrotum with her knife, and told him “You are one of us now,” swearing him to secrecy. According to Sanders, she later gave him her Book of Shadows to copy.
Sanders’ story is now known to be completely untrue, but it made for good news copy in the late ’60s, and fame came quickly for Sanders and his tradition. He soon initiated Maxine Morris, 20 years his junior, and married her shortly thereafter. (She was his second wife, and bore him two children before their divorce in 1973.) The initial flurry of publicity also attracted Janet and Stewart Farrar, whose publication of the well-written and -researched Eight Sabbats for Witches helped bring Alexandrianism a slightly more positive reputation.
However, even the Farrars’ help couldn’t keep the flamboyant and controversial Sanders from making lurid headlines. The Farrars eventually left Alexandrianism, preferring to be more “ecumenical” Witches. Though Alexandrianism is still popular in England, it never made much headway in the United States, and some commentators put the blame on Sanders’ showy lifestyle and grandiose claims.
Sanders is also said to have studied ceremonial magick before entering Wicca; this may account for the greater amount of ceremonial material in Alexandriansim, as compared to Gardnerianism.
A few articles on Sanders can be found at:
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