Editing Augustin Barruel (section)

==The French Revolution and the conspiracy theory==
{{Conservatism in France|Intellectuals}}
Barruel, a [[Jesuit]] exiled from France,<ref name="s989v"/> using some ideas plagiarized from [[John Robison (physicist)|John Robison]], peddled a [[conspiracy theory]] that Jews, [[Freemasons]] and [[Illuminati]] want to demolish all monarchies plus the Vatican, in order to establish a World Republic.<ref name="s989">{{cite book | last2=Bogdan | first2=Henrik | last1=Snoek | first1=Jan A.M. | editor-last1=Bogdan | editor-first1=Henrik | editor-last2=Snoek | editor-first2=Jan A.M. | title=Handbook of Freemasonry | publisher=Brill | series=Brill Handbooks on Contemporary Religion | year=2014 | isbn=978-90-04-27312-2 | chapter=The History of Freemasonry: An Overview | chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=x033AwAAQBAJ&pg=PA28 | access-date=12 August 2024 | page=28}}</ref> But Barruel did not accuse all Freemasons, and considered himself to be a Freemason.<ref name="s989u">{{cite book | last1=Porset | first1=Charles | editor-last1=Bogdan | editor-first1=Henrik | editor-last2=Snoek | editor-first2=Jan A.M. | title=Handbook of Freemasonry | publisher=Brill | series=Brill Handbooks on Contemporary Religion | year=2014 | isbn=978-90-04-27312-2 | chapter=Masonic Historiography | chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=x033AwAAQBAJ&pg=PA121 | access-date=12 August 2024 | pages=121}}</ref> Barruel accused the [[Knight Templars]] that they secretly survived and they have infiltrated Freemasonry in order to destroy Christianity.<ref name="s989v">{{cite book | last1=Pelt | first1=Robert Jan van | authorlink=Robert Jan van Pelt | editor-last1=Bogdan | editor-first1=Henrik | editor-last2=Snoek | editor-first2=Jan A.M. | title=Handbook of Freemasonry | publisher=Brill | series=Brill Handbooks on Contemporary Religion | year=2014 | isbn=978-90-04-27312-2 | chapter=Freemasonry and Judaism | chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=x033AwAAQBAJ&pg=PA197 | access-date=12 August 2024 | page=197}}</ref>

Barruel's original idea was to depict Jews as engaged in a global conspiracy, a driving force of world history (till then the general consensus was that the Jews are too powerless to do that).{{sfn|Pelt|2014|p=198}} Later, Barruel refrained from republishing his book "fearing that it would lead to a massacre of the Jews."{{sfn|Pelt|2014|p=199}}

The storm of the [[French Revolution]] had in the meantime forced Barruel to seek refuge in England, where he became [[almoner]] to the refugee [[Prince of Conti]]. Here he wrote in 1793 the ''Histoire du Clergé pendant la Revolution Française'' ("History of the Clergy during the French Revolution"). He dedicated the work to the English nation in recognition of the hospitality that it had shown toward the unfortunate French ecclesiastics. It has been translated into German, Italian, Spanish, Polish, and English. The English version went through several editions and did much to strengthen the British nation in its opposition to French revolutionary principles. While in London, Barruel published an English work, ''A Dissertation on Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction in the Catholic Church.'' But none of his works attracted so much attention as his ''[[Memoirs Illustrating the History of Jacobinism]].''

His basic idea was that of a conspiracy with the aim of [[Dechristianisation of France during the French Revolution|overthrowing Christianity]]—or more to the point, any and all forms of political and social organization based on conformity to the moral teachings of the [[Roman Catholic Church]]. Barruel's conspiracy is notable for suggesting an association between the [[Occult]], the [[Age of Enlightenment|French Enlightenment]], and Freemasons. He thereby associated [[Paganism]] with Enlightenment thought, a trend followed by some later reactionary thinkers and even contemporary intellectual historians.<ref>{{Cite book | last = Josephson-Storm | first = Jason | title = The Myth of Disenchantment: Magic, Modernity, and the Birth of the Human Sciences | location = Chicago | publisher = University of Chicago Press | date = 2017 |page = 58 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=xZ5yDgAAQBAJ | isbn = 978-0-226-40336-6 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book | last = Gay | first = Peter | title = The Enlightenment: The Rise of Modern Paganism | location = New York | publisher = W. W. Norton | date = 1995 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=jVsxAAAAQBAJ | isbn = 0393313026 | series = Enlightenment an Interpretation | volume = 1 | edition = revised}}</ref>

It inspired John Robison, who had been working independently on his own conspiracy theory, to extend his book ''Proofs of a Conspiracy Against all the Religions and Governments of Europe'' and include several quotations from Barruel.<ref>Firminger, W. K. [https://archive.org/stream/arsquatuorcorona50free#page/30/mode/2up “The Romances of Robison and Barruel,”] ''Ars Quatuor Coronatorum,'' Vol. I. W. J. Parrett, Ltd. Margate, 1940.</ref> Barruel and Robison were friends.<ref name="s989"/>