Who are the Illuminati and what do they control?
https://theweek.com/62399/what-is-the-illuminati-and-what-does-it-control
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Faith in a secret society known as the Illuminati is one of the longest-running and most widespread
conspiracy theories of our time. It has become a "byword for a corrupt elite" influencing the world,
said indy100, and supposedly boasts Beyoncé, Madonna, Jay-Z and Donald Trump among its
members. The name is "so powerful that it has begun to rule TikTok", becoming last year's "most
talked-about counter-mainstream idea".
In 1776, Adam Weishaupt, a professor of natural and canon law at the University of Ingolstadt,
Bavaria, and a former Jesuit, founded a secret society that came to be called the Orden der Illuminati
– the "Order of the Illuminati".
To the outside world, Weishaupt appeared a "respectable professor", said National Geographic, but
he had always had a "restless" mind. He was educated at Jesuit school and was an "avid" reader at
home, "consuming" the latest books by French Enlightenment philosophers.
Like many at the time, Weishaupt came to believe "the monarchy and the church were repressing
freedom of thought", and that religious ideas were "no longer an adequate belief system to govern
modern societies". He wanted to find "another form of 'illumination', a set of ideas and practices
that could be applied to radically change the way European states were run".
At first, he thought about joining the Freemasons, which was expanding across Europe, but became
disillusioned. Instead, he decided to found his own society, "handpicking" five of his "most talented"
students to become members, said the BBC. The original name was Bund der Perfektibilisten, or the
"Covenant of Perfectibility", before he changed it to the Order of the Illuminati (literally the
"Illuminated Ones"), to reflect the enlightened ideals of its educated members.
The group's first meeting was in a forest in Ingolstodt, where they established the rules of the order.
Rituals included the use of aliases for anonymity and the adoption of symbols, including their
insignia: the Owl of Minerva, symbolising wisdom, sitting on top of a book. They also had three levels
for members: novices, minervals and illuminated minervals, in reference to the Roman goddess of
wisdom Minerva, "reflecting the order's aim to spread true knowledge, or illumination, about how
society, and the state, might be reshaped", said National Geographic.
From just a handful of members in 1776, the order quickly grew, numbering between 2,000 and
3,000 members by 1784, with lodges in Italy, France, Belgium, Holland, Denmark and Switzerland.
Members included doctors, lawyers and intellectuals, with notable names said to include the
German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, although this is disputed.
But the society didn't last long. In 1785, Karl Theodor, Duke of Bavaria, outlawed secret groups,
including the Illuminati. Two years later, the Duke declared an edict with harsher punishments for
members, including the death penalty. From 1785 onwards, the "historical record contains no
further activities of Weishaupt's Illuminati", said Britannica. Yet, the order has continued to figure
"prominently in conspiracy theories for centuries".
But it was the arrival of the internet that truly turned the idea of a global elite conspiring to rule the
world from a niche belief to a global conspiracy theory – making it "the least secret secret society in
the universe", wrote philosopher Julian Baggini in The Guardian.
If there is "one thing social media likes even more than conspiracy theories, it's Easter egg hunts:
searching for hidden clues", said indy100. "The Illuminati has those in abundance, most notably the
so-called 'Eye of Providence' – an eye set within a triangle, which happens to feature on the reverse
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of the American one-dollar bill". Other associated symbols include pentagrams, goats and the
number 666. Conspiracy theorists often analyse public events for "evidence" of Illuminati influence.
Illuminati believers also tout theories about the "New World Order", "a shadowy elite force" which,
they claim, wants to bring about a "totalitarian world government", said the Institute for Strategic
Dialogue. This "grand ongoing conspiracy" to exert control over the media, civil society and
democracy is often blamed for global events and disasters. Supporters of the New World Order
theory believe "even the powerful US government is now just a puppet government", overshadowed
and overpowered by the Order, said Modern Diplomacy.
Numerous pop-culture icons have been accused of having links to the Illuminati over the years,
including Madonna, Kim Kardashian and LeBron James. Beyoncé was accused of being a member
after making a diamond shape – a so-called Illuminati sign – with her hands during her performance
at the 2013 Super Bowl. Her husband Jay-Z is also said to be part of the order and allegedly hides its
symbols in his videos. Even Taylor Swift's love for the number 13 is seen as proof that she is a
member.
Some musicians seem to enjoy deliberately playing with symbols connected to secret societies. For
instance, Rihanna has incorporated Illuminati images into her music videos and even jokes about the
theories in the video for "S&M". It featured a montage of fake newspaper headlines, with one
declaring her "Princess of the Illuminati".