Le Grand Grimoire

Le Grand Grimoire holds the distinction of being the inaugural openly diabolic mass market grimoire. Various editions attribute the book to the years 1521, 1522, or even 1421. However, Owen Davies proposes that the initial edition might have come into existence around 1702, while a version in the Bibliothèque bleue could have emerged in 1750.

The Grand Grimoire, also known as Le Dragon Rouge or The Red Dragon, is a notorious black magic goetic grimoire that has intrigued occultists for centuries. The 19th-century French occultist Éliphas Lévi raised doubts about the authenticity of the contemporary edition of Le Dragon Rouge, suggesting it to be a mere counterfeit of a far more ancient and genuine Grand Grimoire.

The introductory chapter of the grimoire was reportedly written by Antonio Venitiana del Rabina, who claimed to have extracted the information from the original writings of King Solomon. The text draws heavily from the Clavicules du Roi Salomon, Par Armadel. Livre Troisieme, offering detailed guidance on how to summon and form a pact with Lucifuge Rofocale, the Prime Minister of Lucifer in Hell. Due to its sensational and perilous nature, mere possession of this grimoire was deemed tantamount to engaging in pact-making and consequently criminalized.

The name "Lucifugus" is derived from the Latin words lux (meaning "light; genitive lucis") and fugio (meaning "to flee"), essentially signifying "[he who] flees the light". Additionally, "Rofocal" could potentially be an anagram of "Focalar", the name of another significant demon who might be in Rofocale's servitude. Alternatively, the origin of "Rofocal" may be intimately connected to the nature of Lucifuge. Just as Lucifuge is the reverse of Lucifer (Latin for "light bearer"), the name "Rofocal" could be derived from "Lucifer" reversed - "Reficul".

The work in question is divided into two books, each holding significant importance in the practice of summoning and controlling supernatural entities. The initial book encompasses detailed instructions for the summoning process as well as the construction of essential tools to subjugate the demon to one's volition. The latter book is further segmented into the Sanctum Regnum and Secrets, de L’Art Magique du Grand Grimoire, bearing crucial knowledge about making pacts with demons and employing spells and rituals. Notably, the Sanctum Regnum permits one to command the spirit without the tools from the first book, albeit at a heightened risk, while Secrets presents simpler spells and rituals to be enacted subsequent to the initial ritual. Additionally, there are editions that feature a brief text, Le Secret Magique, où le Grand Art de pouvoir parler aux Morts, delving into the realm of necromancy.

This book mentions three higher demons, the same as the Grimorium Verum:

Lucifer, emperor

Beelzebub, prince

Astaroth, grand duke

It also mentions six lower demons:

Lucifuge Rofocale, prime minister

Satanachia, commander in chief (in French, “commandant en chef”, although Warwick translates it as “great general”)

Agaliarept, commandant

Fleurety, lieutenant-general

Sargatanas, brigadier-major

Nebiros, marshal and inspector general

In the 1989 motion picture Warlock, the talented actor Julian Sands portrays a cunning warlock on a quest to locate the three Grand Grimoires. It is believed that when united, these ancient tomes hold the sacred name of God. Throughout the film, the supernatural nature of the book is revealed, prompting it to be divided into three distinct sets of pages to thwart any potential misuse of its malevolent power.

For the video game Final Fantasy Tactics Advance (2003), the Grand Grimoire is a mystical tome that remarkably endured the deluge on Noah's Ark, yet with its significance lost to the passage of time. This enigmatic book is stumbled upon by one of the game's central figures, Mewt Randell, amidst the shelves of a secondhand book emporium. As its esoteric power unfurls, the book becomes a conduit, whisking the game's protagonists away to Ivalice, a fantastical realm that serves as the backdrop for various other installments in the Final Fantasy series.

The 2007 novel God's Demon by Wayne Barlowe features most of the named demons from the Grand Grimoire as characters, with Sargatanas as its protagonist. In its 2014-15 second season, the Fox TV series Sleepy Hollow presents the Grand Grimoire as once owned by the occultist John Dee and sought after by the malevolent warlock Solomon Kent. It eventually becomes possessed by one of the series' antagonists, Henry Parrish, and plays a part in the downfall of the protagonist Katrina Crane.

The perpetrator of the heinous crime involving Bibaa Henry and Nicole Smallman in Kingsbury, London in 2020, had performed a ritual invoking Lucifuge Rofocale before committing the tragic act. His misguided belief was that by offering their lives as a sacrifice to the demon, he would be bestowed with the fortune of winning a lottery.

Le Grand Grimoire from Wellcome 4666, p. 133-155 (Mid-18th C Manuscript)