August 9, 2025 • 14 mins
In the 1850s an American secret society had designs to conquer Mexico. Here is their story.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:34):
Welcome to Mexico Unexplained, where we will explore the magic,
the mysteries and the miracles of Mexico. This series presents
information based partly on theory and conjecture. The podcaster's purpose
is to suggest some possible explanation, but not necessarily the
only ones to the subjects we will examine. Here is
your host, Robert Vitto.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
Welcome and move being beneath us two, episode number fourteen
of Mexico Unexplained, where we examine the magic, the mysteries
and the miracles of Mexico. I'm your host Robert Piddow.
Today on Mexico U Explained, we will examine a very
interesting era of history for both sides of the border,
(01:20):
and we will delve into the realm of secret societies
and behind the scenes plots of the powerful. Very few
people know of the Knights of the Golden Circle and
their grand plan to take over Mexico, enslave most of
its population and united with the Southern United States, Central America,
(01:42):
parts of South America, and the islands of the Caribbean.
So who were the Knights of the Golden Circle. The
organization formed some time in the eighteen fifties, and had
its origins in the Southern Rights Clubs or sr s
that sprung up throughout the United States in the eighteen thirties.
(02:05):
The mid nineteenth century in the US saw many secret societies.
It was almost fashionable to belong to one, and some
had interesting names. There was the Knights of the Columbian Star,
the American Knights, the Corps to Belgium, the Democratic Invincible Club,
(02:28):
the Knights of the Mighty Host, and the Knights of
the Circle of Honor, to name a few. Along with
a rise in freemasonry, a movement that would influence the
Knights of the Golden Circle. Like many of the secret
societies of the time, the Knights of the Golden Circle
had a secret set of bylaws, a secret membership roster
(02:52):
with supposed numbers into the tens of thousands, and a
secret sign from the Knight's own Man, published in eighteen
sixty one. The secret sign was made by making quote,
the forefinger and thumb of the right hands joined, while
with the rest of the hand upon the right eye
is touching with the middle finger. The answer is the
(03:16):
same with the left hand and left eye end quote.
The greeting sign was important because, as mentioned before the
member rules were kept secret. There are rumors that President
Franklin Pierce, John Wilkes Booth, and the outlaw Jesse James
were among the members of this group, along with many
(03:40):
wealthy and powerful Southern planters and politicians. The Knights were
organized into lodges called castles, and there were dozens of
these castles all over the United States, not just in
the South. Castles were divided up into three degrees, military, financial,
(04:00):
and leadership, each with their own secret rights and regalia.
To qualify for leadership in the organization, one must have
been American, born, a slave owner, Protestant, and have Southern sympathies.
The rank and file of the group, though, came from
many walks of life. Even the Cherokee leaders stand Weighty
(04:24):
along with many members of the Seminole and Muscogee Indian
tribes belonged to the Knights of the Golden Circle. Although
started by a man from Indiana named George Bickley, the
Knights we speak of had distinctly Southern leanings. They believed
in slavery and its expansion, and even wanted revival of
(04:45):
the Transatlantic slave trade. They combined their beliefs of the
expansion of slavery with an idea of manifest destiny. They
believed in the superiority of American angler Saxon Protestant culture
and wanted to spread that to new lands they would conquer.
(05:06):
The Golden Circle in the name of the group comes
from a curious geographical reference. Early in the group's founding,
the leaders picked Havana, Cuba, as the capital and physical
center of their new slave based empire, and drew a
golden circle around Cuba to include the southern US, Mexico,
(05:28):
Central America, and the Caribbean Islands, along with parts of
modern day Columbia and Venezuela. The conquest of these lands
would be incremental, beginning with Mexico, which seemed at the
time to be the easiest place to start. The Knight's founder,
(05:48):
George Bickley, was quite the charlatan and huckster and was
the perfect person to sell the plan of southern expansion.
He had claimed to be a medical doctor who had
been trained in England, but even the people at the
time had ways of finding out he had been lying
about his credentials. Because of his oratory skills and clarity
(06:11):
of vision for a new world ruled by the knights.
He appealed to the need for something greater in the
hearts of the men he tried to influence. His plan
to invade and conquer Mexico seems foolhardy now, but at
the time people thought that it would work and were
eager to get in on the ground floor of this endeavor.
(06:34):
Bickley told followers that he wanted to take an army
of sixteen thousand men across the border at Brownsville, Texas,
and marched to the city of Guanajato to establish his
capital there. After the countryside was secured, he wanted remaining
nights on the northern side of the Rio Grande to
(06:55):
drive free blacks from the States to Mexico, where they
would join them Mexican peon class as a massive new
group of slaves. Bickley promised the knights key positions in
the new government of Mexico, which would be subdivided into
twenty five new states. Each person who took part in
(07:16):
this expedition of conquest would receive six hundred and forty
acres of land and enough slaves to work the land.
Anyone professing the Roman Catholic religion would be excluded from
public life in Mexico and could not serve in the
new government. Bickley would rule as a monarch and would
(07:38):
solidify power in Mexico until he resigned or died. There
were strict stipulations for his successor, as he had no children.
Bickley's heir to the throne of Mexico needed to be
at least thirty years old, a Southerner, and a Protestant.
(07:58):
The successor would carry out the second phase of the
plan to complete the Circle and conquer Central America, the
north of South America, and the Caribbean Islands. As the
Knights of the Golden Circle was a very well funded organization,
the Spanish government was to be approached to buy Cuba first.
(08:20):
If Spain did not want to sell Cuba to the Knights,
they would attack the island and take it over by force.
It may seem hard to believe, but the Knights of
the Golden Circle had sympathizers and collaborators in Mexico, especially
in the north. Let's set the context for all of
(08:42):
this on the other side of the border. Between eighteen
fifty seven and eighteen sixty one, Mexico was embroiled in
what was called the War of Reform. Liberals wanted to
break the power of the Catholic Church and to decentralize
power to the states. Conservatives wanted a highly centralized government
(09:04):
ruling out of Mexico City and to keep the power
of the Church and the landholding elites intact. The conservatives
seemed to be winning, and eventually did when the Mexican
elite invited the Austrian Archduke Maximilian to rule over them
as Emperor. In the meantime, the liberals were doing everything
(09:26):
they could to break the power of the autocrats in
Mexico City. This is how the alliance began between the
Knights and the liberals of Northern Mexico. A major Mexican
player in the Golden Circle scheme was the governor of
the State of Juanahuato, Manuel do Laro Bartida. Governor do
(09:49):
Lardo invited Bickley to come to the state of Juanajuato
to set up his seat of power in the city
of Guanajuato. If Bickley could raise an army of sixteen
thousand men, Do v Lado said, the governor would provide
an additional sixteen thousand men to conquer the rest of
the country. No one really knows dov Lado's true intentions,
(10:12):
but it is suspected that he just wanted to use
the Knights for his own purposes, notably to overthrow the
Conservatives who were ruling from Mexico City. He knew that
Bickley's aim was to install himself as an absolute ruler
of Mexico, but went along with the plan anyway. Governor
(10:32):
Doblado promised the Knights half the annual taxes collected in
the state of Juanajuato, which amounted to eight hundred and
forty thousand dollars. The biggest part of Dovlado's offer included
taking out mortgages on all public property in the state
and surrendering the proceeds to the Knights. This amounted to
(10:56):
a total of twenty three million US dollars. Although the
offer seemed too good to be true, the invasion was
set for October sixth, eighteen sixty one. We know that
Mexico did not become part of a massive new slave empire,
So what happened. The invasion force assembled at the border
(11:19):
as indicated, but fell short of men because of the
outbreak of the American Civil War, thousands of men from
New Orleans never showed up, and with a much reduced force,
the Knights entered Mexico, only to be pushed back across
the Rio Grande. The governor of Juanajuato, Manueld Vlado, was
(11:42):
ousted by the Conservatives and forced to flee Mexico or
face firing squad. He died in New York City a
few years later. In eighteen sixty five, plans to conquer
Mexico were put on hold as the Knights of the
Golden Circle shifted their attention to help the newly formed
(12:04):
Confederate States of America. The different castles of the Knights
were still active in the Northern States and in parts
of California, and aided the South in intelligence gathering and sabotage.
In late eighteen sixty three, the group ousted the original
(12:24):
founder and changed its name to the Order of American Knights.
They changed their name again in eighteen sixty four, calling
themselves the Order of the Sons of Liberty. Members were
still called Knights, and all the previous secrecy was still
in effect. During its entire time of existence, the Knights
(12:49):
were well funded, initially getting money for their treasury from
wealthy Southern planters. When it was evident that the South
was losing the war, the mission of the organization shifted
once again. The money in the treasury was to be
saved and augmented to fund a future civil war to
(13:11):
restore the Confederacy, and after that a return to slavery,
and then a return to the original plan of the
group to conquer Mexico and other parts of Latin America
and the Caribbean. The future war chest was divided into
over five hundred different caches across the United States for
(13:32):
retrieval closer to the time of the planned war. As
the Old Knights died out and the group disbanded in
nineteen sixteen, most of the caches of gold and silver
coins were forgotten and remained scattered throughout the American countryside
to this day, either waiting for treasure hunters or waiting
(13:56):
for Dixie to rise again. Thank you once again for
listening to Mexico Unexplained. You can find references to this
lost treasure and more information on the nights of the
Golden Circle at our website, Mexico Unexplained dot com. Like
us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. If you
(14:18):
like the show, please consider.
Speaker 3 (14:20):
Making a donation to keep things going. No donation is
too small. Until next time, Thank you and gracias.
Speaker 1 (14:34):
Thank you, but listening to another episode of Mexico Unexplained
with host Robert Bitto. For show summary, relevant links, and commentary,
Please check out our website at Mexicounexplained dot com, Like
us on Facebook and be a part of the conversation.
Addie on sant Haste la Vista
Welcome to Mexico Unexplained, where we will explore the magic,
the mysteries and the miracles of Mexico. This series presents
information based partly on theory and conjecture. The podcaster's purpose
is to suggest some possible explanation, but not necessarily the
only ones to the subjects we will examine. Here is
your host, Robert Vitto.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
Welcome and move being beneath us two, episode number fourteen
of Mexico Unexplained, where we examine the magic, the mysteries
and the miracles of Mexico. I'm your host Robert Piddow.
Today on Mexico U Explained, we will examine a very
interesting era of history for both sides of the border,
(01:20):
and we will delve into the realm of secret societies
and behind the scenes plots of the powerful. Very few
people know of the Knights of the Golden Circle and
their grand plan to take over Mexico, enslave most of
its population and united with the Southern United States, Central America,
(01:42):
parts of South America, and the islands of the Caribbean.
So who were the Knights of the Golden Circle. The
organization formed some time in the eighteen fifties, and had
its origins in the Southern Rights Clubs or sr s
that sprung up throughout the United States in the eighteen thirties.
(02:05):
The mid nineteenth century in the US saw many secret societies.
It was almost fashionable to belong to one, and some
had interesting names. There was the Knights of the Columbian Star,
the American Knights, the Corps to Belgium, the Democratic Invincible Club,
(02:28):
the Knights of the Mighty Host, and the Knights of
the Circle of Honor, to name a few. Along with
a rise in freemasonry, a movement that would influence the
Knights of the Golden Circle. Like many of the secret
societies of the time, the Knights of the Golden Circle
had a secret set of bylaws, a secret membership roster
(02:52):
with supposed numbers into the tens of thousands, and a
secret sign from the Knight's own Man, published in eighteen
sixty one. The secret sign was made by making quote,
the forefinger and thumb of the right hands joined, while
with the rest of the hand upon the right eye
is touching with the middle finger. The answer is the
(03:16):
same with the left hand and left eye end quote.
The greeting sign was important because, as mentioned before the
member rules were kept secret. There are rumors that President
Franklin Pierce, John Wilkes Booth, and the outlaw Jesse James
were among the members of this group, along with many
(03:40):
wealthy and powerful Southern planters and politicians. The Knights were
organized into lodges called castles, and there were dozens of
these castles all over the United States, not just in
the South. Castles were divided up into three degrees, military, financial,
(04:00):
and leadership, each with their own secret rights and regalia.
To qualify for leadership in the organization, one must have
been American, born, a slave owner, Protestant, and have Southern sympathies.
The rank and file of the group, though, came from
many walks of life. Even the Cherokee leaders stand Weighty
(04:24):
along with many members of the Seminole and Muscogee Indian
tribes belonged to the Knights of the Golden Circle. Although
started by a man from Indiana named George Bickley, the
Knights we speak of had distinctly Southern leanings. They believed
in slavery and its expansion, and even wanted revival of
(04:45):
the Transatlantic slave trade. They combined their beliefs of the
expansion of slavery with an idea of manifest destiny. They
believed in the superiority of American angler Saxon Protestant culture
and wanted to spread that to new lands they would conquer.
(05:06):
The Golden Circle in the name of the group comes
from a curious geographical reference. Early in the group's founding,
the leaders picked Havana, Cuba, as the capital and physical
center of their new slave based empire, and drew a
golden circle around Cuba to include the southern US, Mexico,
(05:28):
Central America, and the Caribbean Islands, along with parts of
modern day Columbia and Venezuela. The conquest of these lands
would be incremental, beginning with Mexico, which seemed at the
time to be the easiest place to start. The Knight's founder,
(05:48):
George Bickley, was quite the charlatan and huckster and was
the perfect person to sell the plan of southern expansion.
He had claimed to be a medical doctor who had
been trained in England, but even the people at the
time had ways of finding out he had been lying
about his credentials. Because of his oratory skills and clarity
(06:11):
of vision for a new world ruled by the knights.
He appealed to the need for something greater in the
hearts of the men he tried to influence. His plan
to invade and conquer Mexico seems foolhardy now, but at
the time people thought that it would work and were
eager to get in on the ground floor of this endeavor.
(06:34):
Bickley told followers that he wanted to take an army
of sixteen thousand men across the border at Brownsville, Texas,
and marched to the city of Guanajato to establish his
capital there. After the countryside was secured, he wanted remaining
nights on the northern side of the Rio Grande to
(06:55):
drive free blacks from the States to Mexico, where they
would join them Mexican peon class as a massive new
group of slaves. Bickley promised the knights key positions in
the new government of Mexico, which would be subdivided into
twenty five new states. Each person who took part in
(07:16):
this expedition of conquest would receive six hundred and forty
acres of land and enough slaves to work the land.
Anyone professing the Roman Catholic religion would be excluded from
public life in Mexico and could not serve in the
new government. Bickley would rule as a monarch and would
(07:38):
solidify power in Mexico until he resigned or died. There
were strict stipulations for his successor, as he had no children.
Bickley's heir to the throne of Mexico needed to be
at least thirty years old, a Southerner, and a Protestant.
(07:58):
The successor would carry out the second phase of the
plan to complete the Circle and conquer Central America, the
north of South America, and the Caribbean Islands. As the
Knights of the Golden Circle was a very well funded organization,
the Spanish government was to be approached to buy Cuba first.
(08:20):
If Spain did not want to sell Cuba to the Knights,
they would attack the island and take it over by force.
It may seem hard to believe, but the Knights of
the Golden Circle had sympathizers and collaborators in Mexico, especially
in the north. Let's set the context for all of
(08:42):
this on the other side of the border. Between eighteen
fifty seven and eighteen sixty one, Mexico was embroiled in
what was called the War of Reform. Liberals wanted to
break the power of the Catholic Church and to decentralize
power to the states. Conservatives wanted a highly centralized government
(09:04):
ruling out of Mexico City and to keep the power
of the Church and the landholding elites intact. The conservatives
seemed to be winning, and eventually did when the Mexican
elite invited the Austrian Archduke Maximilian to rule over them
as Emperor. In the meantime, the liberals were doing everything
(09:26):
they could to break the power of the autocrats in
Mexico City. This is how the alliance began between the
Knights and the liberals of Northern Mexico. A major Mexican
player in the Golden Circle scheme was the governor of
the State of Juanahuato, Manuel do Laro Bartida. Governor do
(09:49):
Lardo invited Bickley to come to the state of Juanajuato
to set up his seat of power in the city
of Guanajuato. If Bickley could raise an army of sixteen
thousand men, Do v Lado said, the governor would provide
an additional sixteen thousand men to conquer the rest of
the country. No one really knows dov Lado's true intentions,
(10:12):
but it is suspected that he just wanted to use
the Knights for his own purposes, notably to overthrow the
Conservatives who were ruling from Mexico City. He knew that
Bickley's aim was to install himself as an absolute ruler
of Mexico, but went along with the plan anyway. Governor
(10:32):
Doblado promised the Knights half the annual taxes collected in
the state of Juanajuato, which amounted to eight hundred and
forty thousand dollars. The biggest part of Dovlado's offer included
taking out mortgages on all public property in the state
and surrendering the proceeds to the Knights. This amounted to
(10:56):
a total of twenty three million US dollars. Although the
offer seemed too good to be true, the invasion was
set for October sixth, eighteen sixty one. We know that
Mexico did not become part of a massive new slave empire,
So what happened. The invasion force assembled at the border
(11:19):
as indicated, but fell short of men because of the
outbreak of the American Civil War, thousands of men from
New Orleans never showed up, and with a much reduced force,
the Knights entered Mexico, only to be pushed back across
the Rio Grande. The governor of Juanajuato, Manueld Vlado, was
(11:42):
ousted by the Conservatives and forced to flee Mexico or
face firing squad. He died in New York City a
few years later. In eighteen sixty five, plans to conquer
Mexico were put on hold as the Knights of the
Golden Circle shifted their attention to help the newly formed
(12:04):
Confederate States of America. The different castles of the Knights
were still active in the Northern States and in parts
of California, and aided the South in intelligence gathering and sabotage.
In late eighteen sixty three, the group ousted the original
(12:24):
founder and changed its name to the Order of American Knights.
They changed their name again in eighteen sixty four, calling
themselves the Order of the Sons of Liberty. Members were
still called Knights, and all the previous secrecy was still
in effect. During its entire time of existence, the Knights
(12:49):
were well funded, initially getting money for their treasury from
wealthy Southern planters. When it was evident that the South
was losing the war, the mission of the organization shifted
once again. The money in the treasury was to be
saved and augmented to fund a future civil war to
(13:11):
restore the Confederacy, and after that a return to slavery,
and then a return to the original plan of the
group to conquer Mexico and other parts of Latin America
and the Caribbean. The future war chest was divided into
over five hundred different caches across the United States for
(13:32):
retrieval closer to the time of the planned war. As
the Old Knights died out and the group disbanded in
nineteen sixteen, most of the caches of gold and silver
coins were forgotten and remained scattered throughout the American countryside
to this day, either waiting for treasure hunters or waiting
(13:56):
for Dixie to rise again. Thank you once again for
listening to Mexico Unexplained. You can find references to this
lost treasure and more information on the nights of the
Golden Circle at our website, Mexico Unexplained dot com. Like
us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. If you
(14:18):
like the show, please consider.
Speaker 3 (14:20):
Making a donation to keep things going. No donation is
too small. Until next time, Thank you and gracias.
Speaker 1 (14:34):
Thank you, but listening to another episode of Mexico Unexplained
with host Robert Bitto. For show summary, relevant links, and commentary,
Please check out our website at Mexicounexplained dot com, Like
us on Facebook and be a part of the conversation.
Addie on sant Haste la Vista
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