Hidden Centres: The Rise and Fall of the Secret Societies
Jaap Kloosterman
Summary:Among the central concerns of early nineteenth-century European statesmen was the sudden flowering of new and dangerous organizations collectively known as the secret societies. But by the end of the century, in politics the term‘secret society’ was principally used by Catholics to denounce what they saw as Masonic-led governments in Southern Europe. This development and its perception together constitute an interesting chapter in the history of European associations and political life.
https://iisg.nl/collections/secretsocieties/secrsoc-moscow.pdf