They act in the shadows, they are extremely secretive and they practise ancient rituals. Secret societies play a far larger role in our everyday lives than we are aware of. Publications like those of bestselling author Dan Brown have brought them back into the limelight. The three-part documentary, ‘Secret Societies’, accompanies historian Dr Marian Füssel on his search for clues surrounding history’s most famous secret societies and conspiracy theories.

The secret brotherhood of the Illuminati was only active for ten years. They dreamed of having members of their brotherhood occupy crucial positions of power, thereby creating a new, fairer state. Banned as early as 1785, rumours that ‘the enlightened ones’ still exist in secret cannot be dispelled. Terra X investigates the legendary Illuminati brotherhood, also exploring other secret organizations that allegedly have their roots in Antiquity