Aleister Crowley

12 Oct 1875 – 1 Dec 1947

The Great Beast 666, Perabduro, Ankh-f-n-khonsu, the wickedest man in the world, Aleister Crowley was a noted – and controversial – occultist. He wrote widely, founded his own religious order, and designed a set of tarot cards that are still used today. He lived life according to his own dictum: ‘Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law.’ Aleister lived in Torquay during World War II and also visited the town.

“Twas at Torquay in Devon, land of stream and cream…, merry maids and proper men, tall fellows and bold… and of cider stronger and sweeter than your Norman can make for all his cunning; and this girl was a play-actress, rosy as the apples, and white as the cream, and soft as the air, and high-spirited as the folk, of that enchanted dukedom…” Aleister Crowley ‘Not the Life of Sir Roger Bloxham’

Aleister Crowley remains an influential figure among occultists. Variants of his Magical Order still exist throughout the world and his ‘Magick’ is still practiced. Yet, while some see Aleister as a figure to be revered, others just see him as a self-publicist, an exploiter and a fraud.

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