Unveiling Illuminism: The Rise and Fall of Adam Weishaupt’s Secret Order
The article "Illuminism," published in the New York Dispatch on February 16, 1873, offers a historical glimpse into the enigmatic Order of the Illuminati, a secret society founded by Adam Weishaupt in 1776.1 This piece, aimed at clarifying the often-misunderstood term for Masonic readers, details the origins, objectives, and eventual dissolution of the Illuminati, alongside its connections to other figures and esoteric movements. Below, we provide brief biographies of Adam Weishaupt and other notable individuals mentioned in the article, followed by a full transcript of the original text.
Adam Weishaupt (1748–1830): Born in Ingolstadt, Bavaria, Johann Adam Weishaupt was a German philosopher and professor who founded the Order of the Illuminati. Educated at the University of Ingolstadt, he became a professor extraordinarius of law by 1772 and later held a chair in natural and canon law. A rationalist and critic of religious orthodoxy, particularly the Jesuits, Weishaupt established the Illuminati to promote enlightenment ideals of morality and virtue through a secret society modeled partly on Freemasonry and Jesuit structures. Facing clerical opposition, he lost his professorship in 1785 and fled to Gotha, where he continued writing on philosophy and his order until his death.
Giuseppe Balsamo (Count Cagliostro, 1743–1795): Born in Palermo, Sicily, Giuseppe Balsamo, alias Count Alessandro di Cagliostro, was a notorious charlatan, occultist, and adventurer. Linked to various esoteric movements, including the Illuminees of Avignon, Cagliostro’s flamboyant claims of mystical powers and his involvement in scandals, such as the Affair of the Diamond Necklace, made him a controversial figure. His connection to Illuminism remains speculative, but his reputation as a fraudulent mystic casts doubt on his role.
Benedict Chastanier: A French physician and occultist, Chastanier was associated with the Illuminees of Avignon, a mystical order influenced by the teachings of Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin and Emanuel Swedenborg. He contributed to the development of theosophical rites within Illuminism’s offshoots.
Count Zinnendorf: Likely referring to Johann Wilhelm von Zinnendorf, a German nobleman and Freemason, he was a Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Germany. His name is tied to a modified Masonic rite that incorporated Illuminist elements, blending traditional Freemasonry with esoteric degrees.
Abbe Pernetti: A librarian to the King of Prussia, Pernetti is credited with founding the Illuminees of Avignon in 1779. Little is known of his personal life, but his role as a scholar and occultist connected him to the mystical currents of the era.
St. Martin, St. Germain, Mesmer, Chevalier Savalette de la Lange, Marquise de Thome, and Raymond: These figures, briefly mentioned, were prominent in 18th-century esoteric and Masonic circles. Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin was a French mystic whose theosophical writings influenced Illuminist offshoots. Count de Saint-Germain, a mysterious adventurer, claimed alchemical and mystical knowledge. Franz Mesmer, a German physician, developed mesmerism, a precursor to hypnotism, often linked to occult practices. Chevalier Savalette de la Lange was a French Freemason involved in esoteric rites, while Marquise de Thome and Raymond are less documented but associated with Illuminist or Masonic groups.
ILLUMINISM.
The words Illuminati, Illuminism, and its kindred derivations, are so often met with in the works of Masonic writers, and appear to be so little understood by the masses of Masons generally, that a short resume of the institution—its objects and foundation—may be of interest to the readers of the DISPATCH.
The word Illuminati signifies “the enlightened,” and was applied to a secret order, founded in 1776, by Adam Weishaupt, who was a professor extraordinarius of law at the town of Ingolstadt, Bavaria, the object being, as alleged, for mutual assistance in obtaining a higher degree of morality and virtue. When in its most flourishing condition, the society, which was entitled “Order of the Illuminati,” contained about two thousand members, among whom were many of distinguished talent and high rank. The constitution and organization were taken partly from the Jesuits, and partly from the order of Freemasons; some writers, however, asserting that Illuminism was but an offshoot of the Swedenborgh rite of Masonry, of which it is claimed Weishaupt was a member.
Weishaupt was born at Ingolstadt, in 1748, and pursued his studies at the university there located, being, in 1772, a professor extraordinarius, and in 1775 a professor of natural and canon law.
The title extraordinarius being one of distinguished honor, and as the professorship of cannon law had, until then, always been given to ordained clergymen, he, therefore, excited the jealously of the clergy, who attacked him, particularly as he had shown himself, although their pupil, the bitterest enemy of the Jesuits after their order had been abolished. In defense, he formed a connection with several able men, and strove to gain them over to his system of cosmopolitanism; and as he went to work openly, the public authorities did not believe his designs were dangerous. The Jesuits attacked him, therefore, more bitterly in private, and he, having obtained great fame by his lectures, to which students of all the faculties were attracted, made use of the opportunity to propagate his ideas, and for this purpose founded the Order of Illuminati. He subsequently, in 1785, in consequence of the persecutions of the Catholic clergy, lost his professorship, and went to Gotha, where he published several works, among which were the “Description and System of the Illuminati,” “Complete History of the Persecutions of the Illuminati,” and “Materials for the Advancement of the Knowledge of the World and Men.” In 1784 the society was dissolved by order of the Bavarian Government.
The name of Guiseppe Balsamo, better known to the world under the title of Count Cagliostro, has been often mentioned in connection with Illuminism; but as it has been well proven he was one of the greatest charlatans the world has produced, his claims and pretensions should be received with great doubt, but it is highly probable that he was a member of the Order called the “Illuminees of Avignon,” which was based upon the teachings of St. Martin, mixed with the Rite of Swedenborg. This Order of Illuminees is said to be the fabrication of manufacture of the Librarian of the King of Prussia, the Abbe Pernetti, and was founded in 1779, at Avignon, in the southeastern part of France, the city where Petrarch lived, and where he met his Laura, for whom his most beautiful verses were written.
The names of Benedict Chastanier, Count Zinnendorf, Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Germany; Marquise de Thome; St. Germain; Mesmer; Chevalier Savalette de la Lange, and Raymond have all been mentioned in connection with the several offshoots that have arisen from time to time from the Illuminism of Weishaupt.
In the Rite, as expounded by Chastanier, the degrees consisted of—1. Apprenti Theosoph (Apprentice); 2. Compagnon Theosoph (Journeyman); 3. Maitre Theosoph (Master); 4. Theosoph Illumine (Enlightened Brother); 5. Frere Bleu (Blue Brother); 6. Frere Rouge (Red Brother); 7. Ecossaise ou le Jerusalem Celeste (Sublime Scotch or Celestial Jerusalem); while that of Zinnendorf originally consisted of the three degree of the York Rite; Scotch Apprentice and Fellow Craft; Scotch Master; Confidant of St. John; and Elected Brother; but were subsequently changed by substituting for the Elected Brother the two degrees of Enlightened Brother of the South, and Vicarious Salomonis, or Most Wise Master of the Order. From these and its kindred branches of Illuminati arose the Order of Philates, or Philaletes, which became connected with the French revolution. Like all spurious Orders of Masonry, the Illuminati were short-lived, the only traces now left being those of a few meagre mentions by the historians of the day.
The story of the Illuminati, as detailed in the 1873 New York Dispatch article, reveals a fleeting yet provocative chapter in the history of secret societies, marked by lofty ideals, controversy, and suppression. Adam Weishaupt’s vision of enlightenment and moral reform, though short-lived in Bavaria, left a lasting imprint on the cultural imagination, sparking fascination and fear across continents. These anxieties transcended Europe, finding fertile ground in the early United States, where concerns about foreign influence and subversive ideologies gripped the young republic. A compelling example of this transatlantic paranoia is explored in the article "Illuminati Fears in Early America: The 1798 Correspondence Between G.W. Snyder and George Washington", which examines a Lutheran minister’s urgent warning to the first president about the Illuminati’s potential infiltration of American Freemasonry. This correspondence underscores how the specter of Weishaupt’s order fueled conspiracy theories amid the political turbulence of the 1790s, reflecting broader anxieties about the stability of the new nation. Together, these accounts illuminate the enduring allure and suspicion surrounding the Illuminati, a symbol of both enlightenment ambition and revolutionary dread.
"Illuminism," New York Dispatch, February 16, 1873, Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers, Library of Congress, https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn85026214/1873-02-16/ed-1/seq-3/.