The Mysteries of Britain: Secret Rites and Traditions of Ancient Britain

The Mysteries of Britain examines reported secret rites, religious ideas and occult traditions associated with ancient Britain. Lewis Spence considers the cult of the dead, Celtic philosophy and the bardic material linked with Welsh traditions, including the Barddas and related legendary literature.

The book also follows mystical themes through medieval British writing, with chapters on the Grail, initiation and the secret tradition in rite and legend. Druidism, British mysticism and Irish traditions receive particular attention, while figures and motifs from Arthurian and Celtic lore appear within Spence’s wider interpretation of Britain’s religious past. Written from an early 20th-century occult and folkloric perspective, it presents these beliefs and traditions as subjects of historical speculation, ritual interpretation and legend.