Ross Nichols
A poet and teacher who founded a Druid order in 1964 and worked with an eight-part year close to the Wheel of the Year.
1 min read · Updated 11 November 2026 · Last checked 11 November 2026
Life and work #
Ross Nichols (1902–1975) was a Cambridge academic and published poet. In 1964 he founded the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids, which his order describes as now the largest Druid organisation in the world.1
He was working with a similar eight-part year at about the time Gardner’s coven was, and the two men knew each other.2
His main work, The Book of Druidry, was published in 1990, fifteen years after his death.3
What to be careful about #
Most of what I have is from the order he founded, which is not an independent source. The popular story that he and Gardner settled the wheel at a naturist retreat is one for which I have found no source I would trust.
On this site #
See also: Gerald Gardner, Iolo Morganwg.
Notes
- Order of Bards, Ovates & Druids, ‘Ross Nichols – The Founder’. ↩
- Frederic Lamond, Fifty Years of Wicca (Green Magic, 2004), 16–17. As cited in standard summaries; I have not seen the book itself. ↩
- OBOD, on Ross Nichols. ↩
Modern works cited
- Frederic Lamond, Fifty Years of Wicca (Green Magic, 2004)
A memoir by a member of the Bricket Wood coven. I know it only as cited by others. - Order of Bards, Ovates & Druids, ‘Ross Nichols – The Founder’ — read online
The order's own account of its founder, so not an independent source.
Cite this page. The Garden, ‘Ross Nichols’, https://camelmaps.org/garden/person.php, last updated 11 November 2026, last checked 11 November 2026. What has changed.