An Intimate Look inside the Illuminati...!!!
By 1787 the Illuminati had enormous tentacles inside every branch of authority in Bavaria and greater Germany. The sheer size and scope of the conspiracy alarmed the Duke to no end. They had also spread into France, Italy, Austria, Poland and England - even to America, by their own account. In the third year of operation Weishaupt boasts to Zwack that they have more than a thousand initiates. [AB: 596] Knigge recruits an additional 500 [AB: 649] - mostly masons - very shortly after his initiation in 1780; and by the third edict against the Order the Illuminati were estimated to have between 2000 and 3000 members. [VS] John Robison compiles an interesting statistic concerning the different lodges and locations: Munich, Hesse (many), Ingolstadt, Buchenwerter, Frankfort, Monpeliard, Eichstatt, Stuttgart (3), Hanover, Carlsruhe, Brunswick, Anspach, Calbe, Neuwied (2), Magdeburg, Mentz (2), Cassel, Poland (many), Osnabrueck, Turin, Weimar, England (8), Upper Saxony (several), Scotland (2), Austria (14), Warsaw (2), Westphalia (several), Deuxponts, Heidelberg, Cousel, Mannheim, Treves (2), Strasburg (5), Aix-la-Chappelle (2), Spire, Bartschied, Worms, Bahrenberg, Düsseldorf, Switzerland (many), Rome, Cologne, Naples, Hannibal, Bonn (4), Livonia (many), Ancona, Courland (many), Florence, Franken Dahl, France, Alsace (many), Holland (many), Vienna (4), Dresden (4), America (several). [JR]
The whole plan for governing the Order is reprinted in Barruel's Memoirs …, pp. 541-78. It entails Weishaupt's instructions to his Regents, Local Superiors, Provincials and National Directors. The international character is stressed in a letter to the National Superiors: "In every nation there shall be a National Director associated and in direct communication with our Fathers, the first of whom holds the helm of the Order." [AB: 565] I have created a graphic based on the system described by Weishaupt:
At the helm of course was Weishaupt, the absolute dictator. In order to maintain complete secrecy he conceived a plan which would have been successful had the initiates carried it through without deviation. In two letters, first to Zwack and then to Baader, he explains:
"For the present, direct nobody to me but Cortez, that I may have some leisure to digest my speculations, and determine each one's place; for every thing depends on that. My operations with you shall be directed by the following table:
"Immediately under me I have two adepts, into whom I infuse my whole spirit; each of these corresponds with two others, and so on. By this method, and in the simplest way possible, I can inflame and put in motion thousands of men at once. It is by such means that orders are to be transmitted and political operations carried on."
Then to Baader, a few days later, he writes: "I have sent to Cato a table (schema) showing how one may methodically and without much trouble arrange a great multitude of men in the finest order possible. He will probably have shown it to you; if he has not, ask for it. Here is the figure (then follows the figure).
"The spirit of the first, of the most ardent, of the most profound adept daily and incessantly communicates itself to the two A, A; by the one to B, B; by the other to C, C: B B and C C communicate it to the eight following; these to the next sixteen, from thence to the thirty-two and so downwards. I have written a long explanation of it all to Cato. In a word, every man has his Aide-Major, by whose means he immediately acts on all the others. The whole force first issues from the center and then flows back again to it. Each one subjects, as it were, to his own person, two men whom he searches to the bottom, whom he observes, disposes, inflames, and drills, as it were, like recruits, that they may hereafter exercise and fire with the whole regiment. The same plan may be followed throughout all the degrees." [AB: 575; emphasis in original]
With that explanation we see the seeds of many revolutionary groups and the way to operate within cells - never apprehending the "unknown superiors" directing them from above.
Despite the confessions of a few Illuminati, secrecy was rigidly imposed and obeyed. From the very beginning, the initiate is thrust into a culture of total surveillance - on himself, his family and associates. We'll begin from the Novice degree to see how this was accomplished.
Insinuators and Scrutators
The initiate is expected to recruit as many members as possible. A "Brother Insinuator" has as an ultimate goal the job of making new proselytes for the Order. Some are specifically giving this task, but as a general rule everyone is obliged and all the brethren are Insinuators with varying success. Moreover, the laws of the Order decree that each Insinuator is the superior over every new recruit he has brought to the cause. In this manner every Illuminatus "may form to himself a petty empire; and from his littleness, emerge to greatness and power." [AB: 415]
From the beginning he is instructed how to judge the character of those he might enlist. This process begins with himself, his immediate family and friends. Each Novice is giving a notebook with tables, which is to be kept and maintained as a journal; he is ordered to write down all his observations. His undertaking is to assiduously pry "into every thing that surrounds him, he must vigilantly observe all persons with whom he becomes acquainted, or whom he meets in company, without exception of relations, friends, enemies, or entire strangers; he must endeavour to discover their strong and their weak side; their passions and prejudices; their intimacies, and above all, their actions, interests, and fortune; in a word, every thing relating to them: and the remarks of every day he must enter in his Diary." [AB: 416]
A twofold advantage is gained from this information: first, by the Illuminati and its superiors; second, by the adept himself. Barruel eloquently describes the mutual benefit this scheme has for both parties: "Twice every month he will make a general statement of his observations, and he will transmit it to his superiors. By these means the Order will be informed what men, in every town or village, are friendly or inimical to it. The means of gaining over the one or destroying the other will naturally occur. With respect to the Insinuator, he will learn how to judge of those who are proper persons to be received or rejected, and he will carefully insert his reasons for the admission or rejection of those persons in his monthly statements." [Ibid. 416]
The Insinuator cannot pursue either Pagans or Jews, and above all he is to "shun the Ex-Jesuits like he would the plague." [AB, NW, VS] The Illuminati had a particular rabid hatred towards the Jesuits, beginning with Weishaupt's own disdain. A whole covert unit was constructed within the Minerval Academies to publish and disseminate anti-Jesuit material. They even had their own printer in Munich to produce new editions, at their own expense, of propaganda opposing the Jesuits. [AB: 586] Members who are schoolmasters and professors are commissioned to guard against the Jesuits, and to obtain the expulsion of all those discovered. [Ibid. 608] They had great success in this endeavour, and particularly in Ingolstadt:
"Through the intrigues of the Brethren the Jesuits have been dismissed from all the Professorships; we have entirely cleared the University of Ingolstadt of them."
"The Dowager Duchess has modeled her Institute for the Cadets entirely on the plan prepared by the Order. That house is under our inspection; all its Professors belong to our Order; five of its members have been well provided for, and all the pupils will be ours." [Zwack, on the progress of Illuminism; AB: 611, emphasis in original]
The trial period for a Novice could last from one to three years, depending on the age of the initiate. Secrecy is instilled from the start as the Novice receives his new alias; his characteristic or adoptive name. He is then tasked to write a history of his new patron, to help him understand the qualities and actions that he is to emulate. For Weishaupt, Spartacus is an apt alias; for Goethe, Abaris is particularly appropriate as well. 64 The Novice is also let in on the secret names applied to towns and regions. He learns that "Bavaria, the country of their founder, is denominated Achaia; Swabia, Pannonia; Franconia, Austria, and Tyrol are denoted by Illyria, Egypt, and Peloponnesus; Munich is called Athens; Bamberg, Antioch; Inspruck, Samos; Vienna in Austria, Rome; Wurtzburg, Carthage; Frankfort on the Mein becomes Thebes; and Heidelberg, Utica. Ingolstadt, the natal soil of the Order, was not sufficiently denoted by Ephesus; this privileged town was to be decorated with a more mysterious name, and the profound adepts bestowed on it that of Eleusis." [AB: 429; emphasis in original]
To the Illuminati the greatest of all study was the "knowledge of men." Weishaupt himself became very good at psychology and sociological manipulation. The Insinuator - by this time, his Brother Teacher - will examine everything the Novice has written in his journal; and exercises on ancient authors and the heroes of antiquity will help the Novice in constructing a proper outline of those around him. [AB: 431] All the while he is constantly pressed by his Superiors "to propose those whom he may think fit for the Order."
While studying the art of knowing himself and others, the Novice fills his journal with every detail; his age, occupation, country and place of residence; what he likes to study, the books in his library, secret writings he may possess; his revenue, his enemies, and reason thereof; outlines of his acquaintances, protectors and friends. [AB: 433] In all, there are seventeen columns to fill, [Ibid. 597] and a second table is subjoined which is reserved for complete descriptions of his family, particularly his father, mother and siblings. 65 The discourse to the next degree says it all: "for men may be turned to any thing by him who knows how to take advantage of their ruling passions." [Ibid. 449] And one might add, by taking advantage of his family's "ruling passions" as well.
Later on, in the Minor Illuminatus degree, Weishaupt admonishes: "Assiduously observe every Brother entrusted to your care; watch him particularly on all occasions where he may be tempted not to be what he ought to be." [AB: 448] Weishaupt is seeking to create the perfect spy in each of them. Upon admission to the Major Illuminatus degree the candidate is told of the code "Nosce te ipsum" (know thyself), and when another Brother pronounces it he is supposed to reply "Nosce alios" (know others). [Ibid. 455] In this degree, the spying is taken to a whole other level. The candidate is told to scrutinize his inferiors in the form of questions about his physiognomy; his countenance; his gait; his language; his education - and each topic has multiple questions to elicit precise descriptions. The "Scrutators," in order to answer the questions posed, gather the facts when the target least expects it. Amazingly, they actually go so far as to follow their prey into his bedroom, "where they will learn whether he is a hard sleeper, whether he dreams, and whether he talks when dreaming; whether he is easily or with difficulty awakened; and should he be suddenly, forcibly, or unexpectedly awakened from his sleep, what impression would it make on him?" [Ibid. 455-56]
It is also in the Major Illuminatus degree that the candidate delivers up a sealed history of his life. This is then compared with the tables already in the possession of his superiors - the complete picture drawn up of his person. And if it coincides with the surveillance conducted he is then admitted into the deeper mysteries. [AB: 456] By this time the adept is well accustomed to the investigations, and no objection would be forthcoming. The all-seeing eye of the Order had become habitual.
The whole plan for governing the Order is reprinted in Barruel's Memoirs …, pp. 541-78. It entails Weishaupt's instructions to his Regents, Local Superiors, Provincials and National Directors. The international character is stressed in a letter to the National Superiors: "In every nation there shall be a National Director associated and in direct communication with our Fathers, the first of whom holds the helm of the Order." [AB: 565] I have created a graphic based on the system described by Weishaupt:
At the helm of course was Weishaupt, the absolute dictator. In order to maintain complete secrecy he conceived a plan which would have been successful had the initiates carried it through without deviation. In two letters, first to Zwack and then to Baader, he explains:
"For the present, direct nobody to me but Cortez, that I may have some leisure to digest my speculations, and determine each one's place; for every thing depends on that. My operations with you shall be directed by the following table:
"Immediately under me I have two adepts, into whom I infuse my whole spirit; each of these corresponds with two others, and so on. By this method, and in the simplest way possible, I can inflame and put in motion thousands of men at once. It is by such means that orders are to be transmitted and political operations carried on."
Then to Baader, a few days later, he writes: "I have sent to Cato a table (schema) showing how one may methodically and without much trouble arrange a great multitude of men in the finest order possible. He will probably have shown it to you; if he has not, ask for it. Here is the figure (then follows the figure).
"The spirit of the first, of the most ardent, of the most profound adept daily and incessantly communicates itself to the two A, A; by the one to B, B; by the other to C, C: B B and C C communicate it to the eight following; these to the next sixteen, from thence to the thirty-two and so downwards. I have written a long explanation of it all to Cato. In a word, every man has his Aide-Major, by whose means he immediately acts on all the others. The whole force first issues from the center and then flows back again to it. Each one subjects, as it were, to his own person, two men whom he searches to the bottom, whom he observes, disposes, inflames, and drills, as it were, like recruits, that they may hereafter exercise and fire with the whole regiment. The same plan may be followed throughout all the degrees." [AB: 575; emphasis in original]
With that explanation we see the seeds of many revolutionary groups and the way to operate within cells - never apprehending the "unknown superiors" directing them from above.
Despite the confessions of a few Illuminati, secrecy was rigidly imposed and obeyed. From the very beginning, the initiate is thrust into a culture of total surveillance - on himself, his family and associates. We'll begin from the Novice degree to see how this was accomplished.
Insinuators and Scrutators
The initiate is expected to recruit as many members as possible. A "Brother Insinuator" has as an ultimate goal the job of making new proselytes for the Order. Some are specifically giving this task, but as a general rule everyone is obliged and all the brethren are Insinuators with varying success. Moreover, the laws of the Order decree that each Insinuator is the superior over every new recruit he has brought to the cause. In this manner every Illuminatus "may form to himself a petty empire; and from his littleness, emerge to greatness and power." [AB: 415]
From the beginning he is instructed how to judge the character of those he might enlist. This process begins with himself, his immediate family and friends. Each Novice is giving a notebook with tables, which is to be kept and maintained as a journal; he is ordered to write down all his observations. His undertaking is to assiduously pry "into every thing that surrounds him, he must vigilantly observe all persons with whom he becomes acquainted, or whom he meets in company, without exception of relations, friends, enemies, or entire strangers; he must endeavour to discover their strong and their weak side; their passions and prejudices; their intimacies, and above all, their actions, interests, and fortune; in a word, every thing relating to them: and the remarks of every day he must enter in his Diary." [AB: 416]
A twofold advantage is gained from this information: first, by the Illuminati and its superiors; second, by the adept himself. Barruel eloquently describes the mutual benefit this scheme has for both parties: "Twice every month he will make a general statement of his observations, and he will transmit it to his superiors. By these means the Order will be informed what men, in every town or village, are friendly or inimical to it. The means of gaining over the one or destroying the other will naturally occur. With respect to the Insinuator, he will learn how to judge of those who are proper persons to be received or rejected, and he will carefully insert his reasons for the admission or rejection of those persons in his monthly statements." [Ibid. 416]
The Insinuator cannot pursue either Pagans or Jews, and above all he is to "shun the Ex-Jesuits like he would the plague." [AB, NW, VS] The Illuminati had a particular rabid hatred towards the Jesuits, beginning with Weishaupt's own disdain. A whole covert unit was constructed within the Minerval Academies to publish and disseminate anti-Jesuit material. They even had their own printer in Munich to produce new editions, at their own expense, of propaganda opposing the Jesuits. [AB: 586] Members who are schoolmasters and professors are commissioned to guard against the Jesuits, and to obtain the expulsion of all those discovered. [Ibid. 608] They had great success in this endeavour, and particularly in Ingolstadt:
"Through the intrigues of the Brethren the Jesuits have been dismissed from all the Professorships; we have entirely cleared the University of Ingolstadt of them."
"The Dowager Duchess has modeled her Institute for the Cadets entirely on the plan prepared by the Order. That house is under our inspection; all its Professors belong to our Order; five of its members have been well provided for, and all the pupils will be ours." [Zwack, on the progress of Illuminism; AB: 611, emphasis in original]
The trial period for a Novice could last from one to three years, depending on the age of the initiate. Secrecy is instilled from the start as the Novice receives his new alias; his characteristic or adoptive name. He is then tasked to write a history of his new patron, to help him understand the qualities and actions that he is to emulate. For Weishaupt, Spartacus is an apt alias; for Goethe, Abaris is particularly appropriate as well. 64 The Novice is also let in on the secret names applied to towns and regions. He learns that "Bavaria, the country of their founder, is denominated Achaia; Swabia, Pannonia; Franconia, Austria, and Tyrol are denoted by Illyria, Egypt, and Peloponnesus; Munich is called Athens; Bamberg, Antioch; Inspruck, Samos; Vienna in Austria, Rome; Wurtzburg, Carthage; Frankfort on the Mein becomes Thebes; and Heidelberg, Utica. Ingolstadt, the natal soil of the Order, was not sufficiently denoted by Ephesus; this privileged town was to be decorated with a more mysterious name, and the profound adepts bestowed on it that of Eleusis." [AB: 429; emphasis in original]
To the Illuminati the greatest of all study was the "knowledge of men." Weishaupt himself became very good at psychology and sociological manipulation. The Insinuator - by this time, his Brother Teacher - will examine everything the Novice has written in his journal; and exercises on ancient authors and the heroes of antiquity will help the Novice in constructing a proper outline of those around him. [AB: 431] All the while he is constantly pressed by his Superiors "to propose those whom he may think fit for the Order."
While studying the art of knowing himself and others, the Novice fills his journal with every detail; his age, occupation, country and place of residence; what he likes to study, the books in his library, secret writings he may possess; his revenue, his enemies, and reason thereof; outlines of his acquaintances, protectors and friends. [AB: 433] In all, there are seventeen columns to fill, [Ibid. 597] and a second table is subjoined which is reserved for complete descriptions of his family, particularly his father, mother and siblings. 65 The discourse to the next degree says it all: "for men may be turned to any thing by him who knows how to take advantage of their ruling passions." [Ibid. 449] And one might add, by taking advantage of his family's "ruling passions" as well.
Later on, in the Minor Illuminatus degree, Weishaupt admonishes: "Assiduously observe every Brother entrusted to your care; watch him particularly on all occasions where he may be tempted not to be what he ought to be." [AB: 448] Weishaupt is seeking to create the perfect spy in each of them. Upon admission to the Major Illuminatus degree the candidate is told of the code "Nosce te ipsum" (know thyself), and when another Brother pronounces it he is supposed to reply "Nosce alios" (know others). [Ibid. 455] In this degree, the spying is taken to a whole other level. The candidate is told to scrutinize his inferiors in the form of questions about his physiognomy; his countenance; his gait; his language; his education - and each topic has multiple questions to elicit precise descriptions. The "Scrutators," in order to answer the questions posed, gather the facts when the target least expects it. Amazingly, they actually go so far as to follow their prey into his bedroom, "where they will learn whether he is a hard sleeper, whether he dreams, and whether he talks when dreaming; whether he is easily or with difficulty awakened; and should he be suddenly, forcibly, or unexpectedly awakened from his sleep, what impression would it make on him?" [Ibid. 455-56]
It is also in the Major Illuminatus degree that the candidate delivers up a sealed history of his life. This is then compared with the tables already in the possession of his superiors - the complete picture drawn up of his person. And if it coincides with the surveillance conducted he is then admitted into the deeper mysteries. [AB: 456] By this time the adept is well accustomed to the investigations, and no objection would be forthcoming. The all-seeing eye of the Order had become habitual.
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