The Legacy of the New Israel Society

This chapter examines the legacy of the New Israel Society in Russia in the aftermath of Tadeusz Grabianka’s arrest and subsequent death in prison in October 1807. More specifically, it carries out a study of how two members of the New Israel Society—N. F. Pleshcheeva and A. A. Lenivtsev—were able to form a relatively tight-knit circle of like-minded millenarians that soon came to include the powerful government ministers A. N. Golitsyn and R. A. Koshelev. The chapter also examines the links between the so-called Pleshcheeva Circle and the well-known prophetess Barbara von Krüdener in the early 1820s.

Light from the North

This chapter explores the five-year period between 1802 and 1807 when key members of the Avignon Society relocated to St. Petersburg in Russia. It carries out an in-depth examination of the pivotal role played by Natal’ia Pleshcheeva, the widow of Sergei Pleshcheev, the first Russian initiate of the Avignon Society, in harbouring leaders of the society in her home between 1802 and 1805. The chapter also examines the time Grabianka spent in Galicia and Podolia between 1803 and 1805, prior to his arrival in the Russian capital, when he succeeded in recruiting a number of rich, pro-Russian members of the Polish nobility. The bulk of the chapter then focuses on Grabianka’s residence in St. Petersburg between August 1805 and his arrest in February 1807, when he oversaw the initiation of over sixty new members, from among the highest echelons of the Russian nobility, into what was now known as the New Israel Society.

In Search of Guidance

This chapter examines the eleven-month residence of Tadeusz Grabianka in London, between December 1785 and November 1786. It undertakes an in-depth study of the extraordinary series of twelve meetings that took place during this time between Grabianka and Samuel Best, known as the so-called Shoreditch Prophet and Poor-Help. These encounters were noted down by Grabianka and provide a fascinating insight into both his and Best’s prophetic and millenarian mindsets. It also reveals the wider prevalence of millenarianism in London and beyond at the time and, moreover, illustrates Best’s pivotal role in fomenting this sentiment. The chapter also analyses the close ties between Grabianka, Best, and the burgeoning Swedenborgian milieu in the English capital in the 1780s. In large measure, these links were facilitated by Benedict Chastanier and William Bousie, who rank as two of the foremost Anglo-French illuminists of the era, and who both went on to join the Avignon Society in the late 1780s.

The Prophetess Madame Bouche and the Triune of Emperor Alexander, A. N. Golitsyn, and R. A. Koshelev, 1810–1822

This chapter reveals the remarkable influence of Madame Bouche, a French prophetess and early member of the Avignon Society, on Emperor Alexander I of Russia. This is the first detailed examination of the key role played by Bouche at the imperial court between 1819 and 1821. Drawing extensively on archival evidence, it shows that Bouche remained in contact with former members of the Avignon Society into the early 1810s. By 1817 she had begun to write to Emperor Alexander to reveal to him his pivotal role in fulfilling a divine mission to bring peace to Europe. Bouche also continued the tradition of consulting the Holy Word at this time. Through an analysis of police records, the chapter shows that Bouche was able to secure the patronage of the Russian emperor as a result of her links to dukes Eugen-Friedrich and Ferdinand of Württemberg. Finally, the chapter undertakes an in-depth examination of Bouche’s remarkable two-year residence in Petersburg, where she acted as a prophetic adviser to Emperor Alexander and to two of his ministers, A. N. Goltisyn and R. A. Koshelev.

In the Beginning Was the (Holy) Word

This chapter explores the foundation of the society in Berlin in 1779, under the leadership of three figures: L.-J.-B-.P. Guyton de Morveau (known as “Brumore”), Thadeusz Grabianka, and Antoine-Joseph Pernety. Brumore played a pivotal role as the group’s oracle, practising arithmancy, or the “cabalistic science of numbers,” to provide members with divine advice from the so-called Holy Word. From the outset these oracular consultations were combined with a passion for alchemical experimentation. Moreover, this leading triumvirate soon created a lavish nine-day consecration ceremony that ranks as one of the most spectacular rites of its kind in the late eighteenth century. The remainder of the chapter focuses on the various endeavours undertaken by the society to concoct the philosophers’ stone in Berlin, Rheinsberg, and Podolia, as the three leaders soon dispersed to different locations. The chapter also explores the society’s early embrace of Swedenborgian doctrine, alongside the enthusiastic acceptance of a Podolian prophet from 1780.

Conclusion

The conclusion to this book emphasises the important legacy of the Avignon Society in terms of its role in disseminating millenarian doctrine, in particular, throughout Europe for nearly half a century, between 1779 and 1822. It shows the lasting impact of the society by highlighting the remarkable impact of Madame Bouche on Emperor Alexander at a crucial moment in the history of Russia and Europe as a whole. At the same time, the conclusion also reminds the reader about the hostility shown towards the society by government authorities in Russia, the papal territories, and in revolutionary France. This opposition was based on disdain for heretical strands of religious enthusiasm, as well as a fear of the millenarian dynamic of the society, which was often viewed as undermining the pillars of authority. This anxiety about the revolutionary dynamic of the Avignon Society was exacerbated by a profound confusion about the supposed radical agenda of the group, which was often conflated with the atheistic doctrine of the Bavarian Illuminati.

Trials, Tribulations, and Transformation

This chapter examines the activity of the Illuminés d’Avignon during the era of revolutionary tumult that beset France. The society was weakened by internal schism in the wake of the arrest of Ottavio Cappelli and external upheaval. Nonetheless, Tadeusz Grabianka succeeded in preserving the nucleus of the group, including, most notably, A.-J. Pernety, until the latter’s death in 1796. The chapter also undertakes a study of the precarious tightrope Grabianka walked at this time, fostering cordial relations with the revolutionary authorities in Avignon but also acting as a royalist agent. By the late 1790s, it is evident that Grabianka had overseen something of a resurgence in the society’s fortunes, attracting a new generation of initiates. Yet this renewed activity did not last long. The chapter concludes by revealing that the society had effectively ceased to function by the end of 1799. Beset by financial problems, Grabianka travelled to Paris in 1802, where he resided for at least six months, before receiving a passport to travel to his native Podolia.

A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing?

Chapter 4 focuses on the important, but highly controversial contribution to the religious and associational dynamic of the society of Ottavio Cappelli, who fashioned himself as a prophet able to communicate with the archangels Gabriel and Raphael. It places a particular emphasis on a crucial period between the end of 1789 and November 1791, a two-year time frame that takes in Cappelli’s apogee in Rome in early 1790, when he was feted by all within the society as a true prophet. The chapter analyses Cappelli’s contentious attempts in 1790 to reconfigure the Avignon Society as a more conventional Roman Catholic sect, which began to sow seeds of discord among Protestant initiates. It also examines the impact of his arrest by the papal authorities, in September 1790, on not only his personal fate, but also on the fortunes of the society as a whole. His fall, which was confirmed by a seven-year prison sentence in November 1791, played a key role in causing a schism in the Avignon Society that almost tore the group asunder.

The Era of the Seven Brothers in Avignon, 1783–1790

This chapter focuses on what can be seen as a golden era in the history of the Avignon Society. Although dating from the time when A.-J. Pernety relocated to Valence in southern France, in late 1783, the era of the Seven Brothers only began when Grabianka arrived in Avignon in early 1787. Thenceforth, a leadership council of seven brothers was formed, and it remained intact until 1790. This three-year period began with a determined effort to promote the society among like-minded peers throughout Europe. This part of the book examines the society’s success in persuading illuminists from across Europe to travel to Avignon to be consecrated into the millenarian sect. The chapter mines the accounts left by those foreign travellers and provides new insights into the remarkable consecration rite practised in Avignon, as well as the everyday life of the society in the late 1780s. The chapter also analyses the seeds of discord that were planted in late 1787 by the arrival of Ottavio Cappelli in Avignon, whose influence as a purported prophet led the group to renounce its espousal of Swedenborgian doctrine in favour of an emphasis on a Marian cult.

Introduction

This opening section provides an overview of the significance of the Avignon Society in the context of the phenomenon of illuminism in Europe in the final quarter of the eighteenth century. It analyses the meanings of the terms illuminés and illuminism in order to explain the relevance of the Avignon Society to the history of this important expression of religious and esoteric sentiment during the Age of Enlightenment. It also includes a thorough review of the literature that outlines the various studies that have been conducted on the society since the late eighteenth century. The case is made that the history of the Avignon Society warrants more thorough and rigorous study.