The British Enlightenment of the 17th and 18th centuries influenced Freemasonry's use of symbolic rituals, appreciation for beauty and emphasis on the pursuit of truth. During the religious and political wars that spread throughout Western Europe in the wake of the Protestant Reformation, intellectuals, artists, scientists and theologians were often forced to relocate in search of safety. Within cosmopolitan communities, public taverns and coffeehouses became popular places for cultured gentlemen to gather for intelligent and social discourse. For example, the Royal Society, founded about 1660, attracted such prominent men as Robert Boyle, Sir Isaac Newton, and Elias Ashmole. These men and many others slowly accumulated, organized and transformed disparate elements of knowledge into a system of scientific principles. Distinguished by its commitment to rational thought and scientific method, a new generation believed it could discover ways to gain personal improvement, bring order to society and understand the whole universe.