On March 12, 1781, the lodge "Zur wahren Eintracht" ("True Concord"), which was originally a secession of the lodge "Zur gekrönten Hoffnung" ("Crowned Hope"), was initiated - a lodge that would show itself to be paramount for the further development of Freemasonry in Austria. It supported the establishment of new masons’ guilds in the provinces of the Habsburg monarchy and actively contributed there. The deputized Grand Master and ducal Saxe‐Weimar resident at the Viennese Court, Christian Bernhard von Isenflamm, envisaged the construction of an elite lodge, which could indeed be built. While at first, aulic surgeon Ignaz Fisher assumed the titular administration of the lodge - Isenflamm had refused a function due to his public status - later privy councilor Ignaz Edler von Born, who as Master of the Chair would soon advance the lodge to an elite association with a literary‐scientific inclination, joined with his circle. Born did not publicly support the establishment of an imperial academy in Vienna, because he wanted to realize the academic thought within Freemasonry. The lodge "Zur wahren Eintracht" especially lent itself to the achievement of this goal, because it had been headed from the beginning by men of the sciences. Under Joseph II, the Freemasons used the press well in order to gain a broader base of influence. However, because the Freemasons were not willing to be politically instrumented by Joseph II, Joseph II issued an imperial hand billet which reduced the number of lodges and with which the emperor hoped to bring the Freemasons under his control. The imperial hand billet resulted in a veritable flood of brochures which had already started in 1781 and now received fresh impetus. The disappointment of the Freemasons was immense and the imperial decree led to the demise of the lodges in Austria., Helmut Reinalter., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
Count Joseph of Auersperg (1767-1829) was a lawyer, the president of the Bohemian Land Court and a member of the Prague Masonic lodge "At the Truth and Unity at the three Crowned Pillars" (Zur Wahrheit und Einigkeit zu den drei gekrönten Säulen). After the so called Jacobin trials (1794-1795) the Masonry was forbidden in the Habsburg monarchy and the Masonic lodges stopped their activities in order to avoid the state persecution. Despite the official proscription of Masonic lodges count Auersperg attempted to renew this lodge. Auersperg made use of the atmosphere of the illusive political thaw after the defeat of the Austrian army in 1809. He managed to succeed in his efforts until 1812 when the Austrian police traced this activity on the grounds of opening and controlling his correspondence. The count was then punished by transfer to Brno to serve there as the president of the Appellate Court in Moravia. In Brno he entered the environment influenced by local masons who after the dissolution of their lodge channelled their activities to philanthropy, culture and organization of science. They initiated a plan to found the Moravian museum in Brno after the example of Joanneum in Graz in Styria. In the person of Auersperg these men found an ardent supporter of this idea. Auersperg participated in presenting the programme of the new museum to the MoravianSilesian Gubernium. The plan was approved by the authorities and Auersperg thus became one of the founders of this prominent institution. The harassment he suffered from the police regime and his overall case are illustrative of the methods used by the Austrian state against its real as well as supposed opponents. In his private correspondence with friends Auersperg made critical remarks about the situation at the Land Court in Prague, which was also revealed by the police and reported to the emperor. Moreover, the contacts Auers, Dušan Uhlíř., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy