Robert

Cochrane
The Magister
of the Clan

By Michael Howard
Illustrated by Rowan

n June 1966 a young man who used the nom-deplume 'Robert Cochrane' took his own life in mysterious
circumstances. He is of interest to the readers because
he was one of the most fascinating, enigmatic and
controversial figures in the modern witchcraft revival. Born
in 1931 into a large family living in the siums of London,
Cochrane had a violent temper and this got him into fights
with his peers in his youth. He spent his early working life
as a blacksmith in a foundry and later, after he married and
settled down, he became a bargee on the narrow boats
transporting coai along the canal network. In the 1960s
Cochrane lived on a council estate in Slough, Berkshire
with his wife and young son and he worked as a typeface
designer for a local company.

Robert Cochrane claimed that the narrow boat people

preserved elements of the 'Old Faith' in their culture and
that the folk art decorating their barges included symbols
of the Craft. It is possible this is where he
first learnt about witchcraft or perhaps it
was through reading Robert Graves' book
The White Goddess, which remained an
important influence on his beliefs throughout
his life. Cochrane claimed to be a hereditary
witch and that his family had practised
the Craft for many generations back to at
least the 18th century. He said his greatgrandfather had been the "Grand Master
of the Staffordshire witches", his father
had been a Horse Whisperer, his mother
was the Maid and scryer of an old coven in
Windsor dating back to the Victorian period
and he was taught the secrets of the Craft
as a child by his Aunt Lucy. Cochrane described himself
as "...a member of the People of Goda-the Clan of Tubal
Cain." 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 Cornish
word for a cunning man or magician who expels spirits
Cochrane 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. Many
of his critics believed that Cochrane made it all up. If he
did then, as Professor Ronald Hutton has commented, he
must have been a genius. There is some circumstantial

PAGAN DAWN Lammas 200;

evidence to suggest that Cochrane knew of or had contact

with traditional and hereditary witches (See Jones and
Cochrane 2002: 10, 109 and 169). Even if he did make it
all up (and that seems highly unlikely when you look at the
ritual and mythic corpus of his tradition) he still left behind
a practical legacy of traditional witchcraft that works and
produces 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 outdoors
at Burnham Beeches in Berkshire, Witney
Clumps in Oxfordshire, the Sussex Downs,
Cheddar Gorge in Somerset and the Brecon
Beacons in South Wales. Black and hooded
robes were worn and power was raised
by pacing or dancing in a circle around a
central fire. The ritual tools used included a
knife, a cord, a stone, a cauldron, a human
skull, a cup or drinking horn and a forked
staff called a stang. In the rituals the stang
represented the presence of the Horned
God in the circle. At each of the four festivals
celebrating 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 and
death who was identified with the biblical first blacksmith
Tubal Cain, the Canaanite fertility and storm god Baal and
the Saxon smith god Way/and. The female aspect was
represented by the Three Mothers' or' Three Ladies'.
They were a triplicity of goddesses who ruled Fate and
could be identified with the Wyrd Sisters of Anglo-Saxon
mythology 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 deities

who were born from the womb of the goddess Nox or Night
at the beginning of creation. Four of these were the gods
or kings who ruled the castles of the elements symbolically
placed at each quarter of the circle. In the east (fire) was
Lucet (Lucifer?), in the west (water) Node (Nodens?), in the
north Tettens (Tuetones?) and in the south (earth) Carenos
(Cernunnos?).

this union that the art of magick developed. This theme I

can also be found in faery lore, the biblical stories of the I
Garden of Eden and the Watchers or fallen angels, fairy |
tales, and the Arthurian legends. These are all myths ara
legends 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'.

Lucet was known as the 'Lord of the Morning Star' and

he was symbolised by the waxing sun. He was the young
Horned God or 'Child of Promise' born at the winter solstice
from the sacred marriage at Beltane between the Old
Homed God and the Goddess. He was described as a
being of light with wings of fire. Node was a sea god and
was regarded in the Clan mythos as the equivalent to
the once and future king. Arthur. Tettens was known as
the 'Lord of the Mound' and he was the ruler of the dead
symbolised by the waning sun. The Clan identified him
with the Greek trickster god of thieves and merchants
Hermes, with the Norse shamanic god of the runes Odin or
Woden and with the biblical first murderer Cain in his role
as the 'Man in the Moon'. All these deities were cultural
exemplars. Tettens was the patron of magicians, witches
and sorcerers and was described physically as small, dark
and cold. Finally, Carenos is the 'Lord of Animals' and the
God of the Woods. He is depicted as a human figure with
ram's horns. There were also four goddesses who were
queens of the elemental castles representing life, maternity,
wisdom and death and they were associated with the
phases of the moon.

What type of rituals did the Clan of Tubal Cain practice

during Cochrane's lifetime? The first thing to realise is t!
they were very different from anything found in modern C
Wiccan books. A description of one Hallows ritual atte
by the Cabbalistic magician William 'Bill' Gray has re<
been published and gives a good flavour of the ambieni
of the Cian. (Richardson and Claridge 2003:156-160)
Although the Clan was supposed to be a closed covine
this did not prevent Cochrane in his usual cavalier manni
inviting uninitiated outsiders to attend meetings as g
The initiated members did not accept this practice very
willingly and the presence of cowans at the rites caused j
some problems.

Cochrane taught that in ancient times there had been

a union between the Gods and humankind. It was from

The Hallows ritual mentioned above was held on

Newtimber Hill in Sussex. Such meets were held there
and on the Downs above Wilmington after Doreen Val
joined the covine and Cian members stayed at her flat
in Brighton afterwards. As each person climbed the hill
they picked up a stone to carry to the top. This, Gray sartj
represented the burdens of responsibility gathered dui
a lifetime. The stones were used either to build a small
cairn at the working site or to form a ring for the fire-pit.
Each member also carried a photograph of a deceased
love one, relative or friend. Once at the top of the hill
everyone had an allotted task to do in preparing the site ,
for the ritual, such as lighting the fire and setting up the
cauldron over it on a tripod. Cochrane as the 'Devil' or
Magister (Master) of the covine set up the stang. He plai
a wreath of evergreen foliage on it (probably yew leaves)!
with two crossed arrows and a reaping hook. The wreathT
symbolised eternal life, the arrows transformation and tl
sickle death.
The ritual proper began with the men pacing around the I
fire 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 if
the 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 Cochranefl
as the Devi! traditionally bringing up the re;
Widdershins dancing followed, the Maid w
into a trance and made a prophecy ad
a working known as Summoning!
the Spirit was performed.
The meet ended with tl
group adjourning to a
place outside the circle
where another fire was li
and a communal n
consumed.

Lammas 2007 PAGAN DAV

At rituals held at the full moon the covine performed a

unique version of 'Drawing down the Moon'. The cup was
filled with wine and the Lady or Maid held up a small mirror
to reflect the moonlight into it. While she was doing this
the covine paced the circle around her nine times deosil.
The Magister then stepped forward holding the knife in his
right hand and a lighted lantern in his left. He sharpened
the blade of the knife on the whetstone, plunged it into the
cup and stirred the wine three times with it. Drops of wine
were then splashed around the circle at each quarter. The
Magister kissed the Maid and then the cup was passed
around the circle with cakes or bread on a platter. The
following charm derived from a historical Scottish Craft
source was used: "In the Old One's name we eat this bread
with great terror and fearful dread. We drink this wine in
Our Lady's name and she'll gather us home again."
Bill Gray described the Clan rituals he had witnessed
as powerful events that "touched upon something deep
within the land and the psyche." Similar sentiments have
also been voiced by Marian Green, the editor of Quest
magazine, an ex-editor of Pagan Dawn and author of
many popular books on witchcraft and magick, who was
associated with the Clan. She has said:" Cochrane may
have not been all the things he claimed, or that have been
ciairned for or about him since his death, but he did really
know how to work with the forces of the land and with
time, and with elemental beings, in what still feels like an
authentic ancient way." (Jones and Cochrane 2001:37).
Controversially, Robert Cochrane did not accept the
modern neo-pagan idea that witchcraft was the survival
of a prehistoric Goddess-worshipping fertility cult...In fact
he was critical of present-day Wicca and Gerald Gardner.
Cochrane did not even believe that the Old Craft was
a pagan religion, although he did concede that it had
preserved elements of the old pre-Christian Mystery cults.
After his sudden death in 1966, Cochrane's widow passed
the 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 Winter
also continued its work under the auspices of a neo-pagan
group they formed in London called The Regency. The
Regency met and practiced in and around London in the
late 1960's and early 1970's, and held open public rituals
at Queen's Wood in Highgate, Northwest London and at
the Rollright Stones. These were attended by a 'Who's
Who' of the leading occultists of the time. White and Winter
retired to Shropshire in the late 1970s where The Regency
continued as a private group. Both have now passed over
to the spirit world, but rumours persist that a group is still
operating in some form or another on the Welsh Border.
In 1965 Cochrane had entered into correspondence with
an American called Joseph Wilson who lived in Kansas.
After Cochrane's death, Wilson circulated photocopies of
the letters to friends and existing covens he knew in the
States. Many who received the copies used them as a
basis for the teachings they passed on to their own initiates
to form the new 1734 Tradition. Copies were also published
on the Internet. Eventually Cochrane's widow officially

PAGAN DAWN Lammas

!007

passed their copyright to Evan John Jones and they were

published in book form.
Controversy stili rages over Robert Cochrane's legacy over
forty years from his suicide. However, as the accounts
of the rituals witnessed by Bill Gray and Marian Green
testify, Cochrane's tradition produces dramatic magical
results such as spirit manifestations and changes in the
consciousness of the participants. Evan John Jones
freely admitted that Cochrane was a trickster who used
his so-called 'grey magic' to baffle and confuse people he
did not like. Jones also said that 99% of the workings of
the Ctan were "an illusion created by words, actions and
atmosphere". Even so "...the illusion stopped and reality
took over. From that part on things used to happen..."
(Richardson and Claridge 2003: 151). That after all is the
key to any practical system of witchcraft or magick, ancient
or modern. It proves that whatever its origins and pedigree
the Robert Cochrane tradition was and is genuine.

About the author:

Michael Howard is the editor of the witchcraft journal
The Cauldron, published since 1976, and the author
of over twenty books on the occult, runes, folklore
and magick. He was a student of the Luciferian Order
of the Morning Star in the 1960s, was initiated into
Gardnerian Wicca in 1969 and is currently an initiate
of the traditional witchcraft group known in the outer
as 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 the
Robert Cochrane Witchcraft Tradition, Evan John
Jones and Robert Cochrane. Edited by Michael
Howard (Capall Bann 2001).
The Robert Cochrane Letters: An Insight into Modern
Traditional Witchcraft, Robert Cochrane with Evan
John Jones. Edited and introduced by Michael Howard
(Capall Bann 2002),
The Old Sod: The Odd Life and Inner Work of William
G. Gray, Alan Richardson and Marcus Claridge
(ignotus press 2003),
Witchcraft: A Tradition Renewed, Evan John Jones
with Doreen Valiente {Robert Hale 1990).
Sacred Mask, Sacred Dance, Evan John Jones with
Chas S.Clifton {Llewellyn USA 1997),
'A Hereditary Witch's Revelations' by Robert Cochrane
in 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: A
History of Modern Pagan Witchcraft, Ronald Hutton
(Oxford University Press 1999).

19

JB''fM

L ^f^/^rmf

Penlack. Thi i,,ae 1

Maiden ashes were also used in Wiltshire

outside tire, never indoors.

went thus: 'Cut a piece off each finger and

toe nail and a piece oil' your hair. Get upon
the next Sunday morning before sunrise

Bought I would talk

jKjif^r hc..*/
special in Paganism,
many modern rituals are carried out in
forests, under the safety and prolectmg
boughs of the great trees lhal cover ihc
verdant green countryside throughout Ihe
land. Trees have their own spirit, the wood
nymph, sometimes culled dryads. They
should be respected. But the forest holds
many varieties of trees, each with their
own history, and customs. Some are lucky
some arc not. Many arc directly assuuak'd
with witches, fa ries and the Old Religion.
Spencer wrote in the Legend of Sir
Calidore:
But the Nymphs and Fairies on the bank
did sit
In the wood's shade which did the waterx
crown

association w Ib the Old Ways. Il is

unlucky to bum the wood indoors on the
hearth, indeed n many areas ofthe country
it was unlucky to lave even a twig indoors.
You had to ask permission from The Old
Lady ofthe Elder, before you could cut any
of the while elder blossom, and in many
places, before you would cut anything off
the tree at all. The Old Lady was not to be
disturbed, and at night it was best to stay
clear of the elder, and to not sleep under
the tree at anv time of Ihe day.
Whereas the elder is considered unlucky
the holly tree s a lucky tree, but the
branches must not be cut, many hedges
when cut leave the holly intact, rising aloft
above the level ofthe rest of the hedge. It
was a tree of pro ection, often a piece of
holly, would be put on the threshold, 10
journey country people would cany a stick
made from holly.
In the fural countryside great consideration
is given to the way trees arc cut. Willows
should be chopped or cleft with an adze,

10

Never use an iron saw, for that is unlucky.

Hawthorn is a lucky tree. Village maypoles

were made from it. A sprig of hawthorn

pointed screw tip) bore a hole in the first

milk flow from the dairy herd. Twigs of the
wood would be placed hanging from
raters as protection against evil and bolts
of lightening. Sprigs of hawthorn were
carried as lucky mascots by girls in
wt'tlilina processions. Slrnnpclv Ihere was
a similar tradition that hawthorn twigs
were put into graves at funerals, to ensure
a safe journey into the Otherworld ofthe
Gods and Goddesses.
Sycamores were considered unlucky and
often called the 'the hanging tree'. The
horizontal branches were convenient for
hanging those caught for crimes they have
committed. In those far off days, the death
sentence was given for many offences,
such as pocketing, and the theft or small
items. Many people were hungry and stole
lo survive, and ended up on the gallows.

a painful hernia caused by babies crying.

then a common complaint. It would have
to be a maiden tree, that is once that had
never been pruned or pollarded, which was
a form of pruning involving the top ofthe
trees being cut off lo encourage growth. A
part of the chosen tree would be split, and
the affected young child passed naked
through, with his head towards Ihe sun..
The two parts of the tree would then be
bound together. As the tree healed, so
would the baby. In Cornwall the baby had
to he passed through the ash tree before
sunrise and before he/she had eaten, [n fact
in Cornwall passing babies through Lisli
trees was a popular remedy for many
childhood ailments.
The Ash offered protection against evil
spirits. 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.

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

There is weather lore about the ash and the
oak. both of which leaf at approximately
the same period, late April. There are many
variations across the country of which
below is just one version concerning the
harvest:
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 involving the elms. In
Cornwall near where there arc three old
elms planted by the lichgate at Mykir
Church. It was the custom for the local

able to hear the Devil himself, roaring in

hell. It is interesting to speculate, if this is
some ancient pagan custom involving Ihe
spirii of these grcui irces. sometimes
known as a dryad, from Ihe Greek dpus.
being demonised by the Church. There
were majestic elms on the road between St
Austcll and Pcntewan, which were unfortunately felled in 1910. But while they
were standing proud in the eround. most of
the day, as the clock struck twelve, they
were said lo march around their field.
The rowan or mountain ash, was known as
another lucky tree. Tts red berries brought
protection. The tree could be used in many
ways: a staff of rowan, a cross made of
rowan wood, even just the berries memselves. All could be used to ward off evil
spirits. A sprig would be placed on the
Highlands of Scotland all houses had a
rowan planted in their front garden to
protect them against malevolent beings.
[n Cumbria it was the custom to hang &
branch over slables and shippons, which

LAMMAS 2007

peMCAcle

Picture: Tree Sprite by Carmen Owen

JIM n
T the a
In this counry a sprig of rowan
with the cream in ihe churn 'ti
butler come'. Cows were givet
rowan especially when they '
mated wilh the local bull. Here
old couplet extolling the virt

lit

/, in,

The yew tree, so often found in churchyards was associated with the spirit of the
dead. Many mourners have claimed to see
the light of a deceased loved one, after
holding a branch of yew, with a v-shaped
notch and the opposite the end touching
the earth, with their left hand and kneeing
on their left knee and holding the knife thai
cut the yew. Their right elbow would be
placed on their righl knee, [heir r i a h t hand
over their left eye. Once this was done, by
looking through the notch and on the open
knife, the light and presence of their loved
ones would appear.
very
aled nil
death, and ghosts. Ghostly spirits would
shelter under the yew at night. In parts of
ihe West Country yew branches were
Hazels have been used for generations as a
wood for dowsing and water diving. The
Forked hazel twig twists and dips in the
hands of an experienced dowser where
have been found with hazel wamis placed
in them.
Woods full of trees, in rural areas were
used in many ways which mirrored the life
of those involved in the countryside. They
are special, magical, and lull of enchantment, to be honoured Now with the rebirth
of Paganism (hey can be given the glory
and respect they are entitled to. .
Well I have to go now. Enjoy this issue of
Pentaele. the magazine for free thinking
Pagans of all paths
Bles

peNTAcLe

LAMMAS 2007