As regards its interior organization, the order was es- tablished on the basis of the Society of Jesus, of -which, as we have already observed, Weishaupt had once been a member. In 1777 he had joined the freemasons. From the first it had been his aim to connect his new society with freemasonry, for the piurpose of giving it a firmer foundation, and with the ultimate object of final- ly absorbing the latter in the former. Knigge's activi- ty and enterprise finally succeeded in bringing the Illu. minati to be considered as freemasons by the craft, but this step made new enemies for the Illuminati, and ul- timately caused their overthrow. Knigge modelled the material organization of the society after that of free- masonry, dividing the members into three classes, each of which was again composed of several degrees. The first, a preparatory class, was composed of novices, Mi- nervites, and Illuminati minores. Any man eighteen years of age coidd become a novice, and on his conduct depended his promotion to the next degree, which could be effected after one, two, or three years. The second class, or that of freemasons, embraced apprentices, ma- sons, and master-masons, besides the two higlier grades of Illuminatus major and of Illuminatus dirigens, or Scottish knights. These latter had the control of the Minervite lodges. The third class, or that of the "3Iys- teries," was divided into higher and lesser mj'steries ; the latter embraced the priests and the regents, or mem- bers to whom had been imparted the mysterious aims of the society in regard to religion and politics. The initiation to the degree of regent was conducted with great solemnity, and was very impressive. The adepts of the higher mysteries were also of two degrees, the Maffnus and the Bex, to whom the princii)les of natu- ralism, republicanism, and socialism were further devel- oped. These were the Areopagites cf tlie order, and had no superiors but the secret council, presided over by the general of the order (Weishaupt), which composed the highest court of appeal for all members of the order.
A jealous feeling and contention for leadership which sprang up between Weishaupt and I^igge, and a cUffer- ence of opinion of the two greatest heads of the society on many points of organization and discipline, hastened the decline of the order, especially after Knigge had left it (July 1, 1784). As soon as the State and Church- cUsturbing tendency, which for a time had remained hidden, became knowm, the order was vehemently de- nounced. Jmie 22, 178-1, the elector of Bavaria issued an edict for its suppression. But the society continued to exist in secret. When, liowevcr, the authorities had succeeded in obtaiumg fiurtber evidences of the danger-
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498
ILLYRICUM
ous tendency of the order by securing some of tbe pa- pers of the" association (which they published), they punished the memtjers by fine, imprisonment, and exile. Many quit the country, among them Weishaupt (Feb. 16, 1785), on whose head a price had been set. He fled to Gotha (some say Halle), and resided there until his death, Nov. 18, 1830. Edicts Avere again published by the elector of Bavaria, March 2 and August 16, 1785, which, by the severe punishment which it threaten- ed to members, caused the rapid decline of the order, and they disappeared altogether towards the close of the last century (eighteenth). " Great importance was at one time attached to the order of the lUuminati, whose secret influence was regarded as a principal cause of many of the poUtical events of the time of the French Kevolution, and the works of Abbe Barruel and of Pro- fessor Kobison of Edinburgh upon this subject were ea- gerly read, but the highly exaggerated character of their views is now generally acknowledged." See Her- zog, Real- EncyUop. vi, 636; Chambers, Cyc/op. v, 519; Grosse Absichten d. Ordens d. Illuminaten, etc., von tier ehemaligen Mitgliedern (Munich, 1786) ; Nachtrag z. d. grossen Absichten (Mun. 1786) ; Grundsdtze, Verfassung u, Schicksale d. Illuminatenordens in Bayei-n (1786) ; Weishaupt, ^^ofo(7«e d. Illuminaten (Frank. 1786) ; same, Einleitung z. meiner Apologia (Frank. 1787) ; same, Bos verbesserte System d. Illuminaten, etc. (Frank. 1787) ; Philo's (Knigge's) Endliche Erkldruiig und Antwort, etc. (Hannov. 1788) ; Die neuen A rbeiten d. Sjmrtacus u. Philo in d. Illuminatemjrden, etc. (1794) ; Voss, Ueber d. IllumiHatenorden (1799) ; Einige Originalschriften d. Il- luminatenordens, etc., aufhdchsten Bejehl z. Druck bejor- dertQil\mc\i. 1787) ; Nachtragv. weiter-en Originalschrift- en, und der Illuminatensekte iiberhaiipt, etc. fMiinch. 1787); Henke, Kirchengesch. vii, 206 sq. ; Zeitschrijl f. hist. Theol. vi, art. ii ; Ersch und Gruber, A llgeni. Encyklop. sect, ii, xvi, 206 sq. ; Kaknis, German Protestantism, p. 59 sq. See Mystics. (J. H. W.)
Illumiuatio (sacramentum illuminatioiiis). See Illuminated.
Illumination, Art of. The art of illuminating manuscripts with gold and color seems to prevail in couiitries where the art of printing is unknown. It has been erroneously supposed to have been originated by Christianity ; it is certain, however, that under its sway it was brought to its known perfection. The time when the Christians first adapted the art of illumination it is impossible to determine definitely, but it most probably dates from the time when the ancient fashion of rolled manuscripts (comp. the article Tiiokah), which the Jews still preserve, was changed for the present book form. The earliest specimens extant are from the first half of the 2d century; and we find St. Jerome, no later than the 4th centiu-y, complaining of the abuse of filling up books with ornamental capital letters of an enormous size. In the 5th century many of the MSS. were illuminated, especially copies of the Gospels and other Scriptures. They were written on a blue ground in silver, with the name of God in gold. By the influence of Byzantine luxuT}' there were even produced some copies on a gilded gromitl in letters of black. One of the best specimens of the perfection to which the art had been brought in that century is the Codex A rgentens, or copy of the Gothic (Ulphilas's) version of the N. T. in letters of silver, with the initials in gold, now preserved in the royal librarj' at Upsala. It is also supposed that at that time the va- rious schools of illumination originated. " Eome had succumbed to barb.irian violence, and her arts, though decaying, still exerted an influence in this new style of painting, then in its infancy. That influence was natu- rally stronger in Italy, and therefore the early illumina- tions of the Italian school bear traces of the old Roman style. In France the same influence was manifest, mix- ed up with national peculiarities, and this school was consequently called the Franco-Roman." But, remark- able as it may appear, it is now found that Ireland was far in advance of other nations in the knowledge of this