Richard B. Spence
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2020.
Language
English
Description
In this episode that focuses on the worldwide impact of Aleister Crowley, Professor Spence highlights the murky connections between secret societies, occultism, and espionage. You may be surprised to see the number of world-changing events Crowley (credited with being "the wickedest man in the world") had his hands in.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2020.
Language
English
Description
Professor Spence introduces you to a crazy-sounding story about Aleister Crowley’s secret society, Ordo Templi Orientis, as he debates the merits of truth around it. From there, hear some fantastical stories about UFOs, the Priory of Sion, the American Heraldry Society, the Society of St. John of Jerusalem, and other groups and events developed from hoaxes designed to distract and mislead.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2020.
Language
English
Description
Willa Rhoads was 16 when she died. The discovery of her body five years after her death opened the door to a public awareness of the Divine Order of the Royal Arms of the Great Eleven, also known as the Blackburn Cult. Professor Spence uses this obscure story to introduce you to the idea that secret societies come in many forms and operate under many names.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2020.
Language
English
Description
The Freemasons don’t hide their existence. However, they did popularize the idea of secrecy: adopting a clandestine set of identifying factors, ensuring their rituals and initiations are complicated and intimidating, and even having a term for outsiders or non-members. Discover the multiple evolutions and adaptions of Freemasons, which have helped to keep this group shrouded in mystery.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2020.
Language
English
Description
In 24 eye-opening episodes by Professor Richard B. Spence, investigate the fascinating, mystifying, and sometimes disturbing world of brotherhoods, sisterhoods, orders, cults, and cabals that have influenced culture from ancient times to the present. With help from the archives of HISTORY®, you’ll gain insights into groups like the Illuminati, the Freemasons, the Mafia, and the Knights Templar.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2020.
Language
English
Description
Propaganda-Due, or P-2 , an Italian pseudo-Masonic organization, has been tied to a number of shady crimes and mysteries, including corruption, bribes, and even murder. Yet it was made up of senior military and police officers, parliament members, journalists, and the heads of all three of Italy’s intelligence agencies. Learn how this organization grew to include such important figures.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2020.
Language
English
Description
The 1930s saw economic crisis, the rise of Hitler, Stalinist terror, and the general decline of democracy. Were the events coincidence or consequences? Was there a hidden hand at work undermining democratic institutions and encouraging dictatorship? And was this hidden hand something called Synarchy? Dive into the movements and events that have been tied back to various Synarchy ideas.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2020.
Language
English
Description
Examine how the Black Dragons had a huge impact in pushing Japan into fanaticism, militarism, and a devastating war. Then, explore additional Asian-based groups, including the Green Dragons and the Genyosha (or Dark Ocean), and how they dabbled in everything from major bombings to a plan to assassinate Charlie Chaplin.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2020.
Language
English
Description
Explore the roots of the 28-year-old Adam Weishaupt’s secret society, the Order of Perfectibilists, which later became the Order of the Illuminati, or, in German, the Illuminatenordern: The Order of the Enlightened. Discover how Weishaupt envisioned nothing less than “A New World,” which necessitated destruction of Christianity and all other forms of religion.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2020.
Language
English
Description
Professor Spence turns his focus to the United States and uniquely American secret societies, including the sham group known as the U.S. Secret and Civil Service Society, Self-Supporting Branch. He also covers the disturbing emergence and evolution of the Ku Klux Klan. Discover how the secret societies that emerged during this period acted as a reflection of America at the turn of the century.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2020.
Language
English
Description
Were the Bolsheviks a political movement or a secret society? Dive into this question as you survey the rich history of governmental secret societies who combated revolutionary conspiracies with their own conspiracies. You will gain a vivid appreciation for the allure of the elite and the power of conspiracy, and you’ll see that there is no better active minority than a well-oiled secret society.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2020.
Language
English
Description
Get to know the elite secret societies that only recruited members who were already (or would likely be) rich or influential, including the Bohemian Club, the Schlaraffia, the Sath-Bhai or Asiatic Brethren, the FOGC, the Skull & Bones Society, and more. These primarily men-only clubs are rumored to have dabbled in black arts, unusual rituals, and conspiratorial agendas.