(Redirected from Bavarian Illuminati)
The 'Illuminati' is the name that refers to several groups, both real and fictitious. Most commonly it refers specifically to the ''Bavarian Illuminati'', an
Enlightenment era
secret society founded in the late
eighteenth century. However, in modern times it refers to a purported conspiratorial organization which acts as a shadowy
hand behind the throne, allegedly controlling world affairs through present day
governments and
corporations, usually as a modern incarnation or continuation of the
Bavarian Illuminati. In this context, ''Illuminati'' is often used in reference to a
New World Order (NWO). Many
conspiracy theorists believe the Illuminati, ''The People of The Light'', or ''illuminated ones'', are the masterminds behind events that will lead to the establishment of such a New World Order.
In rarer cases, the Illuminati refers to an elite set of enlightened individuals who may not cooperate but are uniquely empowered by their enlightenment, much like the
intelligentsia classes of today are empowered by their education and intelligence. These are people who have become ''illuminated'' and have achieved a higher mystical understanding of the universe. Many secret societies and
mystical traditions are concerned with this kind of illumination or enlightenment, such as the
Rosicrucian Societies, the
Martinists and the original Bavarian Illuminati.
[1]
Origins
Pre-
Weishaupt origins are given to the
Alumbrados of
Spain and
Illuminés of
France. This claim holds in name and mystical concerns, but no solid historical lineage is known. Their practice of
mysticism and attempt at communion with God through meditation or sexual practices, along with claims of enlightenment while living, denote a seeming connection with later Illuminati groups. However claims of later connections to other organizations' familiarity with these early movements are unsubstantiated.
The Bavarian Illuminati
History
A movement of
freethinkers that were the most radical offshoot of
The Enlightenment — whose adherents were given the name ''Illuminati'' (but who called themselves "Perfectibilists") — was founded on
May 1,
1776 in
Ingolstadt (
Upper Bavaria), by Jesuit-taught
Adam Weishaupt (d.
1830), who was the first lay professor of
canon law. The group has also been called the ''Illuminati Order'', and the ''Bavarian Illuminati'', and the movement itself has been referred to as
Illuminism. In
1777,
Karl Theodor, Elector Palatine, succeeded as ruler of Bavaria. He was a proponent of
Enlightened Despotism and in
1784, his government banned all
secret societies, including the Illuminati.
While it was not legally allowed to operate, many influential intellectuals and progressive politicians counted themselves as members, including
Ferdinand of Brunswick and the diplomat Xavier von Zwack.
[2] Although a few
Freemasons were known to be members there is no evidence that it was supported by Freemasonry as an institution. Indeed, membership in the Illuminati, unlike that in Freemasonry, did not require belief in a
Supreme Being. As a result,
atheists having only the former organization open to them, congregated disproportionately in it; this over-representation, taken along with the Illuminati's largely
humanist and anti-clerical bent, likely accounts for many of the claims of
atheism leveled at the alleged world conspiracy of which the Illuminati supposedly remain a part.
The Illuminati's members pledged obedience to their superiors, and were divided into three main classes: the first, known as the ''Nursery'', encompassed the ascending degrees or offices of ''Preparation'', ''Novice'', ''Minerval'' and ''Illuminatus Minor''. The second, known as the ''Masonry'', consists of the ascending degrees of ''Illuminatus Major'' and ''Illuminatus dirigens''. It was also sometimes called ''Scotch Knight''. The third, designated the ''Mysteries'', was subdivided into the degrees of the ''Lesser Mysteries'' (''Presbyter'' and ''Regent'') and those of the ''Greater Mysteries'' (''Magus'' and ''Rex''). Relations with Masonic lodges were established at
Munich and
Freising in 1780 by Alexander Gibson and Joseph Vincent respectively.
The order had its branches in most countries of the European continent; it reportedly had around 2,000 members over the span of 10 years. The scheme had its attraction for literary men, such as
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and
Johann Gottfried Herder, and even for the reigning dukes of
Gotha and
Weimar. Internal rupture and panic over succession preceded its downfall, which was effected by The Secular Edict made by the Bavarian government in
1785.
Illuminati after 1790
Conspiracy theorists such as
David Icke and
Was Penre, have argued that the Bavarian Illuminati survived, possibly to this day, though very little reliable evidence can be found to support that Weishaupt's group survived into the 19th century. However, several groups have used the name Illuminati since to found their own rites, claiming to be the Illuminati, including the
Ordo Templi Orientis (OTO) of
Theodor Reuss and
Aleister Crowley (England),
[3] Grand Lodge Rockefeller of David Goldman (USA), Orden Illuminati
[4] of
Gabriel López de Rojas (Spain), The Illuminati Order
[5] and others.
Cultural effect
The Bavarian Illuminati have cast a long shadow in popular history thanks to the writings of their opponents; the allegations of
conspiracy that have coloured the image of the
Freemasons have practically opaqued that of the Illuminati. In
1797, Abbé
Augustin Barruél published ''Memoirs Illustrating the History of Jacobinism'' outlining a vivid
conspiracy theory involving the
Knights Templar, the
Rosicrucians, the
Jacobins and the Illuminati, during the course of which Barruél blamed all of what he regarded as the disasters of his times such as the
French Revolution on the said groups. A
Scottish Mason and professor of natural history named
John Robison started to publish ''Proofs of a Conspiracy Against all the Religions and Governments of Europe'' in
1798. Robison claimed to present evidence of an Illuminati conspiracy striving to replace all world religions with
humanism and all nations with a single world government.
More recently,
Antony C. Sutton suggested that the secret society
Skull and Bones was founded as the American branch of the Illuminati;
[6] others think
Scroll and Key had Illuminati origins, as well. Writer
Robert Gillette claimed that these Illuminati ultimately intend to establish a
world government through
assassination,
bribery,
blackmail, the control of
banks and other financial powers, the
infiltration of
governments,
mind control, and by causing
wars and
revolution to move their own people into higher positions in the
political hierarchy.
Thomas Jefferson, on the other hand, claimed they intended to spread information and the principles of true
morality. He attributed the secrecy of the Illuminati to what he called "the
tyranny of a
despot and
priests" referring to the governments and religious beliefs of the time.
Both sides seem to agree that the enemies of the Illuminati were the
monarchs of
Europe and the
Church; Barruél claimed that the
French revolution in 1789 was engineered and controlled by the Illuminati through the Jacobins, and later theorists even claimed that the Illuminati were responsible for the
Russian Revolution of 1917, although the order was officially defunct prior to 1789. Few historians give credence to these views; they regard such claims as the products of over-fertile imaginations.
Conspiracy theorists highlight an alleged link between the Illuminati and Freemasonry. They also suggest that the United States' founding fathers—some of whom were Freemasons—were rife with corruption from the Illuminati, and that the symbols of the
All-seeing Eye and the unfinished pyramid in the
Great Seal of the United States are an example of the Illuminati's ever-present watchful eye over Americans.
While Weishaupt's group did not survive into the
19th century, several groups have since used the name ''Illuminati'' to found their own rites, claiming to be ''the'' Illuminati. Groups describing themselves as Illuminati say they have members and chapters throughout the world.
According to
Principia Discordia, the Bavarian Illuminati were revived or rediscovered in the
20th century under the leadership of Mordecai Malignatus.
The
British writer
David Icke also claims that the Illuminati secretly manipulate world events, citing bloodline connections between the
British Royal Family, the Windsors and Mountbattens, and
United States Presidents and, he says, a connection to the Illuminati.
The idea of a secret brotherhood known as the Illuminati is currently deep-rooted in popular culture. The Illuminati were for example used in the fiction novel by
Dan Brown called ''
Angels & Demons''. According to Brown the Illuminati was originally founded by scientists, amongst others
Galileo Galilei, who had become infuriated with the refusal of the
Catholic Church to accept their work, merely condemning their research as heresy. Interestingly enough, the poet
John Milton is also included by Brown.
See also
★
Committee of 300
★
Illuminati in popular culture
★
Illuminati Scare
★
John Todd
Notes
1. Daraul, Arkon, ''A History of Secret Societies'', London Octagon 1983 (originally London: Muller, 1961) ISBN 0863040241
2. page from cesnur.org
3. page from cyberlink.ch
4. Ordeniluminati.com
5. illuminati-order.com
6. Sutton, Antony C. - ''America's Secret Establishment: An Introduction to the Order of Skull & Bones'' (Trine Day, LLC, 2003)
References
★ "Babylon: Secret Rituals of Illuminati"'' Leilah Publications, LLC (March 23, 2007) ISBN 141965456X
★
1911 Encyclopædia Britannica:'' "Illuminati"''
★
Behold a Pale Horse, , Milton William, Cooper, Light Technology Publications, 1991, ISBN 0-929385-22-5
★ The Cosmic Conspiracy — Deyo, Stan (Adventures Unlimited Press, Illinois, 1994)
★ The Illuminati 666 — Sutton, Josiah William (Teach Services, Inc, New York, 1983).
★ Proof of a Conspiracy Against all the Religions and Governments of Europe —
Robison, John A.M. (New York, 1798)
★ Die Korrespondenz des Illuminatenordens. Bd. 1, 1776–81. Ed. by Reinhard Markner, Monika Neugebauer-Wölk and Hermann Schüttler. - Tübingen, Max Niemeyer, 2005. - ISBN 3-484-10881-9
★ Radical Enlightenment: Philosophy and the Making of Modernity 1650–1750. Israel, Jonathan I. (Oxford University Press, USA; New Ed edition, 2002).
★ They Cast No Shadows: A Collection of essays on the Illuminati, revisionist history and suppressed technology —
Desborough, Brian(Writers Club Press/ iUniverse.com, 2002) ISBN 0-595-21957-8
★ Nyarlathotep, Frater & Jesse Lindsay: ''Ardeth - The Made Vampire''. Lulu Press, 2006. ISBN 978-1-84728-516-4
★
A Culture of Conspiracy: Apocalyptic Visions in Contemporary America, Barkun, Michael, , , University of California Press, Berkeley, 2003, ISBN 0-520-23805-2
★
Architects of Fear: Conspiracy Theories and Paranoia in American Politics, , George, Johnson, Jeremy P. Tarcher, Inc., 1983, ISBN 0-87477-275-3
External links
★
Complete text of 'Proofs of a Conspiracy...' by John Robison (1797) at sacred-texts.com
★
''Illuminati Conspiracy Part One: A Precise Exegesis on the Available Evidence'' by Terry Melanson
★
''The Enlightenment, Freemasonry, and The Illuminati'' by Conrad Goeringer
★
''A Bavarian Illuminati Primer'' by Trevor W. McKeown
★
alt.illuminati FAQ
★
The Catholic Encyclopedia entry on Illuminati
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