Origins & Early Life

Johann Adam Weishaupt (German: [ˈjoːhan ˈaːdam ˈvaɪshaʊpt]; 6 February 1748 – 18 November 1830) was a German philosopher, professor of civil law and later canon law, and founder of the Bavarian Illuminati. Adam Weishaupt was born on 6 February 1748 in Ingolstadt in the Electorate of Bavaria. Weishaupt's father Johann Georg Weishaupt (1717–1753) died when Adam was five years old. After his father's death he came under the tutelage of his godfather Johann Adam von Ickstatt who, like his father, was a professor of law at the University of Ingolstadt.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

Ickstatt was a proponent of the philosophy of Christian Wolff and of the Enlightenment, and he influenced the young Weishaupt with his rationalism. Weishaupt began his formal education at age seven at a Jesuit school. He later enrolled at the University of Ingolstadt and graduated in 1768 at age 20 with a doctorate of law. In 1772 he became a professor of law after conversion to Protestantism. The following year he married Afra Sausenhofer of Eichstätt.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

After Pope Clement XIV's suppression of the Society of Jesus in 1773, Weishaupt became a professor of canon law, a position that was held exclusively by the Jesuits until that...

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