Brother Twelve

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Brother Twelve, also known as Edward Arthur Wilson, was the leader of a religious movement called the Aquarian Foundation. Wilson was born in Birmingham, England and began his recruitment of followers in the UK, but soon moved his group to De Courcy Island off the coast of Vancouver Island. He attracted a large following of American devotees, many of whom came from California to live at his headquarters. Wilson was a charismatic individual and an eloquent speaker and writer. His movement was based on Theosophy. Notable visitors to the settlement included Group of Seven painter Lawren Harris, and Saturday Night magazine's literary editor William Arthur Deacon.

After many years of turmoil, during which Brother Twelve took two successive mistresses (one who believed herself to be the reincarnation of Isis), the other a sinister practitioner of ritual magic called Madame Z), the guru was successfully sued by former members of his group. Following the verdict, he escaped to Switzerland where he is believed to have died in 1934. See the Brother XII entry in Wikipedia for additional information.