Weishaupt was banished from Bavaria, and after 1785, no historical records exist of the group's continued activities.
: At its peak, the group had between 650 and 2,500 members, including notable figures like the writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. The Suppression illiminate
The society did not last long. In , the Bavarian government, under Elector Karl Theodor, issued an edict banning secret societies. Weishaupt was banished from Bavaria, and after 1785,
Authorities discovered documents that defended , leading to the group's forced disbandment. In , the Bavarian government, under Elector Karl
: Today, the "Illuminati" is often linked to the New World Order, with skeptics and theorists pointing to symbols like the "All-Seeing Eye" on the U.S. dollar bill as "evidence" of their control, even though the symbol has no historical link to Weishaupt's group.
The was founded on May 1, 1776, by Adam Weishaupt , a professor of law at the University of Ingolstadt.
: Influenced by the Freemasons, the order used a hierarchical system of degrees and internal discipline to ensure secrecy.