Shelley Klein - Most Evil Secret Societies in History

First published in Great Britain in 2005 by Michael OMara Books Limited

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This electronic edition published in 2011

ISBN: 978-1-84317-813-2 in EPub format

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ISBN: 978-1-84317-167-6 in hardback print format

Copyright Michael OMara Books 2005

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Jacket Images clockwise from top left:

Ku Klux Klan, Illustrated London News

Emblem of the Thule Society

Goddess Kali from Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie, 1913

Medmenham Abbey from an old engraving

Aleister Crowley from Magick: Book 4/Part II

Designed and typeset by Design 23

Ebook compilation by RefineCatch Limited, Bungay, Suffolk

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F or as long as man has been able to communicate with his fellow man, to create social hierarchies and organize mutually beneficial gatherings, he has also, or so it seems, been fascinated by the creation and presence of secret societies. Most of these are (and have always been) harmless organizations, groups of like-minded individuals with a common aim in mind. Mens dining clubs would fall into this category, or university fraternities, societies that at worst appeal to those interested in the advancement of mildly elitist views or strangely arcane beliefs. Some organizations, however, far from being innocent, instead harbor more sinister agendas, requiring blood oaths, total surrender of ones personal life or subjugation to a despotic leader. This collection is an attempt to gather a few of these secretive, shadowy groups together societies that have operated throughout the world in countries as diverse as Japan, America, Kenya, Germany, England, Switzerland and Italy.

Often, when talking of secret societies, it becomes immediately apparent that the organizations under discussion fall into recognizably different categories. So it is with the groups examined here. There is a marked difference between those societies harboring a political agenda (such as the Socialist Patients Collective, the Mau Mau, Odessa and the Hashishim) and those Doomsday organizations such as Aum Shinrikyo or the Order of the Solar Temple. Similarly, the Ku Klux Klan, whose main purpose was, and sadly still is, the advancement of highly racist views can, to some extent, be grouped with the Thule Society (with both groups belief in a perfect race) while the Tong and the Camorra belong under a general heading of organized crime. But what of such groups as the Hell Fire Club? How do they fit into the picture, and under which category do they fall?

In many respects the Hell Fire Club stands out in this collection by being the least evil. Formed in the eighteenth century by a group of highly influential men who liked to dabble in politics but whose main purpose in life was pure debauchery, they were, when compared to just about every other secret society in this collection, a relatively harmless group. That said, what the Hell Fire Club illustrated beautifully is mans seemingly insatiable desire to create an us-versus-them scenario by forming a group to which only a small number of chosen individuals can belong. This is clearly a central tenet of any secret society.

Argenteum Astrum Aleister Crowleys secretive organization is another prime example of this. Vaguely distasteful, unashamedly elitist and bordering on the insane, what Argenteum Astrum really signified was the desire of some individuals to be thought of as special, set apart from the majority, better than the rest. To satisfy this desire, the more impenetrable a groups teachings appear, and the more obscure or bizarre the initiation rites, the more attractive the group becomes. This rationale may go some way to explain why cults such as Aum Shinrikyo (whose initiation rituals were bizarre in the extreme) or the Order of the Solar Temple attracted such large numbers of followers. The teachings of these respective groups become a religion to their disciples, a means by which they will ultimately achieve immortality.

The Hashishim were no strangers to this notion, for they were convinced that by carrying out their role as assassin they would be rewarded with the eternal delights of paradise. Certain parallels can be drawn between this ancient cult and present-day suicide bombers although, whereas the former went to great lengths to kill only their desired target and not harm innocent bystanders, the same cannot be said of the modern-day terrorists. The Thugs in India, whose whole cult was built (initially at least) around the idea of achieving eternal glory by sacrificing innocent wayfarers to the goddess Kali, also eventually ceased the religious aspect of their teachings in favor of more self-serving ideals those of theft for personal gain.

Personal gain becomes something of a recurring theme when studying secret societies, whether it takes the form of enjoying of messiah-like status (as was the case with Aleister Crowley) or whether the cachet is fundamentally monetary, as with Aum Shinrikyos leader, Shoku Asahara. The Odessa organization might also fall into this category, having been set up primarily to aid Nazi war criminals after the end of World War II and, although it didnt operate perhaps quite so romantically as the novelist Frederick Forsyth suggests in The Odessa File, it was nonetheless a highly successful outfit, and one that enabled several high-ranking Nazi officers to escape the hangmans noose. There can be few better or more self-serving reasons to form a secret society than self-preservation, but when studying these organizations it quickly becomes apparent that the huge interest in groups such as Odessa exists for quite another reason that of pandering to our obsession with conspiracy theories. If Odessa existed, after all, surely other secret societies and their evil machinations could yet be influencing world politics?

In this respect there can be no secret society on earth that holds such fascination as the Illuminati. Unknown to most people until the publication of Dan Browns novel Angels and Demons in 2000, since the book hit the shops the publics appetite for information on this highly esoteric organization has reached monumental proportions. But why should this be, and what is it about this particular group that has caused such a global reaction?

The answer lies with the fact that Dan Brown is a marvellous weaver of stories and in Angels and Demons he has created the type of scenario beloved by so many of us a small group of people battling against a much larger, incredibly powerful organization, in this case the Catholic Church. This type of David and Goliath plot is as old as time itself; indeed it seems fundamental to mankinds psyche and so perhaps Dan Brown has released an emotional trigger within us all. But more than this, Brown has also tapped into the publics often deep-seated belief that all is not as it seems; that, behind the scenes, evil conspiracies are afoot; that the public is constantly being duped, lied to, lulled into a false sense of security and fed anything but the truth. Take, for instance, Hitlers suicide at the end of World War II or the first landing of man on the moon. Both events have had millions of words written about them asserting that neither episode took place. Hitler, or so many right-wing conspiracy theorists would have us believe, is alive and kicking somewhere in South America while the first moon landing, according to many people, actually took place in a TV studio after America was forced to abort the real flight due to technical problems. Wild, woolly and way-out conspiracy theories can be found around every corner.