Filiki Eteria: Encyclopedia II - Filiki Eteria - The organisational structure

Filiki Eteria - The organisational structure

The whole structure of Philiki Etaireia was imitating the organisational models of Carbonarism and Freemasonry. The leading team was called the "Invisible Authority" and was surrounded at the first moment with such secret glamour that everybody believed that a lot of important personalities participated, not only Greeks but foreigners like Russian czar Alexander I. The reality was that during the start, the Invisible Authority was only the three founders. Then, from 1815 until 1818, five more were added and after Skoufas' death three more were added. In 1818 the Invisible Authority was renamed to "Authority of Twelve Apostles" and each Apostle shouldered the responsibility of a big region.

The whole structure was pyramid-like formed and in the top dominated the "Invisible Authority". No one knew it or had the right to ask who created it. Her commands were executed unquestioned, and members did not have right to make decisions. The society was called «Temple» and it had four levels of initiation: a) brothers or vlamides, b) the recommended, γ) the priests and d) the shepherds. The Priests were charged with the duty of initiation in the first two levels. When the Priest approached somebody, it was first to made sure of his patriotism and catechized him in the aims of society; the last stage was to put him under oath.

Afterwards the initiated were considered neophyte members of the society, with all the rights and obligations of his rank. The Priest immediately had the obligation to reveal all the marks of recognition between the Vlamides or Brothers. Vlamides and Recommended ignored the revolutionary aims of the organisation. They only knew that there existed a society that tried hard for the general good of the nation, which included in its ranks important personalities. This myth was propagated deliberately, in order to stimulate the morale of members and also to make proselytism easier.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "The organisational structure", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki