The Freemasons
The most famous secret society in the world, Freemasonry traces its origins to medieval stonemason guilds. By the 18th century it counted among its members Voltaire, Mozart, George Washington and Benjamin Franklin.
The Illuminati
Founded in Bavaria in 1776 by Adam Weishaupt, the Bavarian Illuminati had a radical Enlightenment agenda: to oppose superstition and religious influence over public life. It was suppressed in 1785.
The Skull and Bones
A secretive student society at Yale University, founded in 1832. Its membership has included two US Presidents, CIA directors and Supreme Court justices.
The Priory of Sion
Made famous by Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code, the Priory of Sion was actually a French social club founded in 1956. Its claims to ancient lineage were entirely fabricated.
The Order of the Golden Dawn
A late 19th-century occultist society whose members included W.B. Yeats and Aleister Crowley. Its influence on Western occultism and modern fantasy literature has been immense.