History Main / AncientConspiracy

This trope often has an interesting combination of CriticalResearchFailure and ShownTheirWork. On the one hand, many writers clearly have spent hours poring over books on history and symbolism and can throw out dozens of completely factual precedents and weave them into an interesting narrative. Then these same authors display a horribly deficient understanding of how the social sciences work. This can make for very frustrating instances where a writer's knowledgeability in one area is undermined by their ignorance in another.

* ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'':
** The Conspiracy from the Batman: ''Legends of the Dark Knight'' three-issue {{arc}} of the same name.
** The League of Assassins has existed for centuries, led by [[ComicBook/RasAlGhul Ra's Al Ghul,]] a man who remains immortal thanks to periodic use of Lazarus Pits. Their goal is to reduce the human population to more manageable levels as mankind is slowly destroying the ecosystem. As their name implies they also do a lot of assassinations. (In the oldest Ra's stories, the League was just the enforcement branch of the al-Ghul [[TheSyndicate Syndicate]], generally called "The Demon", but in recent years its name has basically taken over the entire organization.)

** Following the ComicBook/New52 reboot, a new secret organization was created for Bruce to deal and one alot closer to home: the [[ComicBook/NightOfTheOwls Court of Owls]]. A group consisting of some of [[OldMoney oldest families of Gotham]], they have been the secret power behind Gotham since ''colonial times''. They're so clever they ''convinced Batman himself'' that they were nothing but a myth (albeit, at a time where he was still new to the detective scene and [[NotMeThisTime mainly because of a crime they actually didn't do]]). In fact, they're so dangerous that they did not consider Batman much of a threat and hence why they didn't pursue him and left him a wreck when they tried to get him, thanks to their legion of guards, The Talons.
*** They also serve as a larger explanation for why Gotham is the way it is and Bruce's biggest opposition in trying to improve the city (hence why they only get involved when after the events of Final Crisis had Bruce live various lives in Gotham's differen eras, he becomes more proactive in improving the city.)

** We all know HYDRA as a terrorist outfit that aided the Nazi party, but as it turns out, they're the continuation of an ancient Egyptian cult (but their [[TakeOverTheWorld goals]] haven't changed much).

* ''Franchise/XMen'':

* As the page quote shows, ComicBook/TheQuestion in ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague Unlimited'' believes that a vast conspiracy has ruled the world for thousands of years, and are secretly responsible for virtually everything in human history. Given that many of the Question's wild theories [[ProperlyParanoid are proved correct]] and that there are [[ComicBook/VandalSavage several]] [[ComicBook/RasAlGhul characters]] in the DCAU that have ''lived'' for thousands of years, [[ParanoiaFuel he might well be right]].

%%* The Millennium Group in ''Series/{{Millennium}}'', at least as depicted in the show's second season.

*** The Thalmor are a [[ANaziByAnyOtherName fascistic]] Altmeri political party which dates back to the 1st Era. Originally formed to preserve the history and culture of the [[WitchSpecies Altmer (High Elves)]], they grew into a powerful [[FantasticRacism Altmer supremacist]] political party within the [[AntiHumanAlliance Aldmeri Dominion]] which eventually militarized. When [[TheConqueror Tiber Septim]] used the [[HumongousMecha Numidium]] to decimate the Aldmeri armies and sack their capital city ''[[CurbStompBattle in less than an hour of fighting]]'', the Thalmor retreated to the political shadows to wait out the Septim Empire. When the [[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion Oblivion Crisis]] struck, the Thalmor [[StealingTheCredit stole credit]] for ending it within their homeland, earning them populist support which allowed them to rise into the highest positions of the Altmeri government. They assassinated [[RegentForLife Potentate]] Ocato, who capably kept the Empire together for a decade after the crisis, severely destabilizing the Empire and sending it toward [[VestigialEmpire vestigial]] status. The Thalmor re-formed the Aldmeri Dominion of old, annexed neighboring Valenwood (homeland of the [[ForestRanger Bosmer (Wood Elves)]], and got Elsweyr (home of the [[CatFolk Khajiit]]) to join as a [[VoluntaryVassal client state]]. Over the next century, their power waxed while they also [[ManipulativeBastard manipulated]] events throughout the rest of Tamriel to further weaken the Empire, ultimately culminating in the [[GreatOffscreenWar Great War]]. Though they were driven back by the forces of the Empire, they did manage to [[WonTheWarLostThePeace force an imposing treaty]] (the White-Gold Concordat) on the Empire which served to destabilize it further leading up to the events of the game.

* The actual, documented Italian conspiracy known as Propaganda Due. Unlike many other such groups, it was illegal ''twice over'': Italian law says you can have a [[BrotherhoodOfFunnyHats secret society]] (that meets at a known place and time), but you can't have a ''secret'' society; and then the sacred tradition of Freemasonry, which is that whatever Grand Orient says, goes. Oh, yeah, this outfit was once a regular ol' Masonic lodge (Propaganda, Number Two) with Licio Gelli as Worshipful Master, but Grand Lodge revoked their charter. Evidently, Grand Orient knew perfectly well that Gelli was bad seed, what with him having fought on the side of the Fascists and said that his greatest ambition in life was to be [[ObviouslyEvil "a master of puppets"]]. So he [[StartMyOwn continued his puppeteering ways]], underground this time, along with a sordid association of friends and contacts. He misled the police about the bombing in Bologna (perpetrated by Fascists). Unlike regular Masons, who meet with bare faces and in decorated bricklayers' aprons, these people met masked, in black hooded robes. Ten years later, Gelli was found with [[WhatAnIdiot a numbered list of names]] and a '''very''' thorough [[PeoplesRepublicOfTyranny Plan for 'Democratic' Rebirth]] on his person (the latter involving the sudden, co-ordinated hostile takeover of mass media corporations with dirty money, to the end of broadcasting... yup, [[RunningJoke Fascist]] propaganda). The fact that he was a Fascist surprised people about as much as [[ExpospeakGag ''Ursus arctos'' using the forest as its toilet]]. The dirty money somewhat more so. The numbered list of 962 names, including the heads of every [[TheMenInBlack intelligence service]], the [[BlueBlood heir to the throne]], two hundred members of the Armed Forces, 44 [[SleazyPolitician Members of Parliament]], and Silvio Berlusconi... well, that ''was'' a surprise. Too bad that list contained both members of the conspiracy and the contents of Gelli's Filofax. Worse, the list began at '''1,000''', and Gelli said before he died, years later, that "it's all going according to Plan"... which means the conspiracy could still be out there. To what end? Was it the act of a man [[KnightTemplar desperate]] to prevent Italy descending into [[RedScare Communism]]? Was it just a group of sleazy men looking to give each other verbal hand jobs? Was it a deep state, a [[GovernmentConspiracy government from the shadows]]? '''Nobody knows'''.

* In season 4 of ''Anime/YuGiOh'' the villains are a group called Doma who play with this trope-while they own the richest, most secretive and most powerful company in the world and own a piece of every company on Earth, as well as having some measure of influence on the governments of countless nations, all of the members are fairly recent recruits, and [[OddlySmallOrganization there are only a handful of them]]. The sole exception is their leader, Dartz, who is [[Really700YearsOld really 10,000 years old]], is the former King of Atlantis, was present when the Pharaoh battled Bakura and Zorc in Ancient Egypt, and has been spending his immortal lifespan battling millions of people individually and [[YourSoulIsMine stealing their souls]] throughout the ages, with the ultimate aim of bringing about TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt.

* The graphic novel ''Cryptocracy'' is not only about this, but actually uses the conspiracy as its protagonists. Specifically, it's stated that practically since the dawn of humanity, the Nine Families (all codenamed after Roman gods) have used their advanced technology and control of the world's cryptids to manipulate global politics and society as they see fit for the [[WellIntentionedExtremist greater good]] (for the most part; some just see themselves as superior to non-Family normal humans). Interestingly, they've actually encouraged the myth of TheIlluminati and other such conspiracy theories, making the very nature of this trope so outlandish that only the most fringe of groups will ever even believe in their existence, thus preserving their security.
* ''ComicBook/TheUltimates'': The Chitauri want to destroy the free will of the human race. They worked with the Nazis, but kept planning things in the shadows since their defeat.

* In the ''Manga/OnePiece'' story ''Fanfic/RerumDanarae'', the entire setup of the Navy, the Kumori clan/Dai Senmei and their direct allies is this – [[spoiler:with their knowledge of the Void Century and the Kumori’s control of the fealty/loyalty of the Navy, they are holding the World Government by its throat for the last 820+ years. With the rising arrogance/corruption of the World Government these days, the Dai Senmei are understandably irritated with them. The setup turns the Navy effectively into an NGOSuperpower, unknown to most people. They’re a mercenary military hired 820+ years ago by contract whose major condition was to give them “justice”.]]

* ''Anime/TheCastleOfCagliostro'' has the Cagliostro family's secret counterfeiting ring through which they've secretly controlled global economics for centuries.
%%* The Tarsus Club in ''Film/TheConspiracy''.
* The Brotherhood of Sleep, an order of Catholic priests who keep the secret of the canisters for centuries in ''Film/PrinceOfDarkness''
* In ''Film/{{Jumper}}'' there is an entire conspiracy revolving around killing teleporters and inventing technology to stop them.
* In ''Film/TheLegendOfZorro'', the Knights of Aragon have been secretly ruling Europe for centuries. They now view the growing power of the US as a threat to their dominance and seek to [[spoiler:arm the southern states and provoke a civil war]].
* ''Film/ThirteenSins'': The conspiracy theorist's notes imply that The Game has been run since Ancient Greece.

%%* The Society of the Evening Star from the ''Literature/{{Fablehaven}}'' series.

* Creator/VernorVinge's ''Literature/AFireUponTheDeep'' contains an extremely dormant trap setup by [[SealedEvilInACan the Blight]] the last time it was active, ''billions'' of years ago. [[spoiler:Those helpful Skroderiders everyone loves so much were uplifted specifically so that they would remain stable--neither transcend nor go extinct--and built with backdoor code so that the Blight could use them as slaves.]] Hexapodia is the key insight, after all.

* Subverted in Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson's ''Literature/{{Illuminatus}}'', in which it is ultimately revealed that [[labelnote:spoiler - click to reveal]]There is no ancient organization known as the Illuminati, and that the various groups throughout history that have been using that name have been acting completely independently. Moreover, its current incarnation (the one featured in the book) was actually founded with the express purpose of preventing such conspiracies by recruiting potential conspirators into one organization, where they can be conveniently monitored and manipulated. So ultimately, it's the conspirators who are getting the wool pulled over their eyes. And if that's not enough, it turns out that there actually ''is'' an ancient, all knowing conspiracy that has its roots going all the way back to Atlantis, but -- as it turns out -- it has no interest in human affairs whatsoever. Finally, [[spoiler: Fnord fnord fnord fnord fnord fnord fnord mushroom mushroom (The meaning of the previous statement will be published in heaven).]][[/labelnote]]

* The Grail Brotherhood from Creator/TadWilliams' ''Literature/{{Otherland}}''. It isn't that old (its leader and founding member is a mere 200 years old), but it fits all the other criteria.

* The House Targaryen from ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'', once masters of dragons, had served as the ruling family of the Seven Kingdoms for three centuries, during which [[spoiler:they attempted to resurrect the long-dead dragons (well dead for about 150-200 years as of the start of the series - Aegon conquered Westeros for the Targaryens using his dragons) and find TheChosenOne for at least a hundred years]]. As by the series standard, the family has not been portrayed as wholly good or evil, but some individuals frequently swerve to some extreme.

* ''Literature/Area51'': It's revealed that two factions from the Airlia, an alien species, have been plotting against each other and covertly warring with human stooges for thousands of years on Earth, along with keeping their existence unknown to most.
* ''Etoile de l'empire invisible'' and other books by French occultist Jean Parvulesco: The whole history and especially the Soviet Union and the second world war are mainly a result of a covert war between an ancient egyptian Cult of Horus and a Cult of seth. Main Players in that war are masonic lodges, german bankers, old royal bloodlines and so on. The culmination of this war of conspiracies was Vladimir Putins rise to power. Parvulescos Books are a cross between conspiracy Thrillers and explainations of real conspiracy theories the author believed.
* ''Literature/SpySchool'': Croatoan, the villains of the eighth book. In some ways they serve as a ContrastingSequelAntagonist to SPYDER (a relatively new organization OnlyInItForTheMoney). Croatoan is filled with Spanish zealots who were behind a series of FalseFlagOperation's (beginning with the disappearance of the Roanoke colony, which they blamed on the local Natives), initially to try and drive the other colonial powers out of the new world and then to try and topple the American government out of bitterness in the centuries afterwards (long after the actual Spanish government disavowed them). They were behind the Boston Tea Party to start the Revolutionary War, crashed the stock market in 1929, and burned the Capitol during the war of 1812. They also are behind the assassinations of Presidents Kennedy, [=McKinley=], Lincoln (giving John Wilkes Booth a NotSoFakePropWeapon and telling him that the assassination was [[AllPartOfAShow a play]]) and Harrison (who they poisoned with arsenic while managing to make it look like natural causes).
* ''Literature/{{Kull}}'': The Serpent People have been infiltrating then taking over human society for thousands of years, ever since humans overthrew them long ago when they ruled openly.
* ''Literature/{{Fablehaven}}'' has the Society of the Evening Star, dedicated to overthrowing preserves and with the eventual goal of [[spoiler: opening the demon prison Zzyzx and freeing the demons]]. They're an extremely old organization founded by [[spoiler: the Sphinx]], many centuries before the series began. [[spoiler: He is the leader of the Society at the same time as being the Captain of the Knights of the Dawn (the opponents of the Society) and a trusted consultant for the Conservator's Alliance (who seek to maintain and protect the preserves)]].

* ''Series/{{Timeless}}'': Rittenhouse has apparently been controlling America since the days of the Revolutionary War, and according to the Doc in episode 6, it was founded in 1778 [[spoiler:by a clockmaker named David Rittenhouse]]. The secret is held so tightly that even rumors of the existence of Rittenhouse are violently suppressed before they can spread. [[spoiler:This was Flynn's StartOfDarkness. While working as a contractor for the NSA, he found a series of large transactions between Rittenhouse and Mason Industries (to develop TimeTravel). Four days after he reported it to his boss, there was a home invasion, and his wife and daughter were killed. Flynn himself barely managed to escape and swore to avenge them. Since he has no idea who ordered the hit, his plan is to RetGone Rittenhouse using Mason's time machine, even if it means destroying the US. At the end of season 1, Lucy convinces her grandfather in 1954 to gather evidence against Rittenhouse. By the time they meet again in 2017, he has enough solid evidence to arrest all known members of the organization, although, it appears that Rittenhouse has a backup plan in place. She also gives Flynn the name of the man, who ordered the hit on his family, but Flynn is arrested before he can make use of the information. Throughout the season, Lucy learns that she's more intimately connected to Rittenhouse than she likes, as the Cahill family (her father's) is a longstanding member of Rittenhouse. The CliffHanger at the end also has her discover that her mother's family are also Rittenhouse members and that her conception was no accident]].

* The Camarilla (and also the Sabbat, and also the Followers of Set, and also many internal conspiracies within vampiric societies...) in ''TabletopGame/VampireTheMasquerade'' RPG. Vampires and ancient conspiracies generally go together like hand and glove, so this trope is often seen in vampire-related fiction/games/movies/what-have-you.
** The Mage/Vampire/Whatever conspiracies are so common in the old ''[[TabletopGame/OldWorldOfDarkness World of Darkness]]'' that it often seems like the Holocaust was the ONE event in history that was solely the work of normal humans (since none of the supernaturals want the "credit" for it). However, as these conspiracies oppose and counter each other, they often fail to really control anything.
** The Revised Edition, while {{retcon}}ning out the "True Black Hand" nonsense (specifically destroying them, reducing the extent of their influence, and debunking their beliefs), manages to deconstruct the trope fairly well. While the group in question had plenty of mortal and immortal "agents", the group itself was too fractional to do anything with them, and the agents themselves knew so little about the group in question that they were useless for anything important.
*** The 20th anniversary edition brings the Hand back, but {{reconstruct|ion}}ed. They're just barely cohesive enough that they can function as an organization, and they have a fair amount of influence over things, but they can't do everything they'd like, and they have to deal with opposition within and without. While they may well be sitting on potentially world-shaking secrets, even they don't know which are real and which aren't.
* The reboot ''TabletopGame/VampireTheRequiem'' does this as well, although the scale of its conspiracies is much more local. They mainly influence mortal society in small ways without any overarching scheme. Sometimes they mess with people just as a game.
* ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'' has the numena kings introduced in the ''Literature/OnslaughtCycle''. They're three of the five sorcerers who imprisoned the Primeval dragons of antiquity (they killed the other two), but unbeknownst to Dominaria they ruled from the continent of Otaria, and oh yeah, devised different means of resurrecting themselves among them and have revived themselves in the present day. Their goal is to usurp the power of [[MadGod Karona]] as they did the Primevals and TakeOverTheWorld as they did in ancient times.

* In another ''World of Darkness'' example, ''TabletopGame/GeistTheSinEaters'' has introduced tiers of organization for krewes, the "gangs" of the game. Tier 3 is the Conspiracy level, a national-to-global level death cult that's a strange mixture of religion, mystery cult, and political group. Subverted in that there's a reason they're ''Ancient'' Conspiracies -- no Tier 3 krewes exist in the present day of the setting. However, the core book does include sample Tier 3 krewes, such as an African tradition devoted to protecting the grave goods of the dead, a Hindu death cult that attacked the wicked, and a Soviet experiment in near-death experiences that eventually got taken over from within by the Sin-Eaters it generated.
* The fan-made expansion ''TabletopGame/GeniusTheTransgression'' has, among others, Lemuria -- an ancient conspiracy that [[VestigialEmpire ain't quite what it used to be]].
* And while we're discussing Creator/WhiteWolf- in [[{{TabletopGame/Exalted}} Shards of the Exalted Dream]], the point of The Modern Age is that [[spoiler:the Infernal Exalted rule the world from the shadows. The chapter does state that it's not important who is the conspiracy- the point is that there ''is'' a conspiracy.]]

* The Ascended from ''TabletopGame/FengShui'' are a conspiracy of animals that have taken human form in defiance of the natural order. They control everything in the 1850 and contemporary junctures since using TimeTravel to capture enough feng shui sites to cause a Critical Shift and evict the world's previous rulers, the Four Monarchs, to the Netherworld by pulling history out from under them. Because magic is the only thing that can revert these transformed animals back to their natural forms, one of their driving goals is to suppress magic, relying on the media and scientists to discredit those who try to prove that magic is real, and Pledged hit squads to kill known sorcerers and supernatural creatures. It doesn't exactly help that most sorcerers and supernatural creatures tend toward the evil persuasion themselves.
* The Kolat from ''TabletopGame/LegendOfTheFiveRings'' provide the obligatory shadowy conspiracy in that particular setting. Since the basic structure of Rokugan's society was set down by mystical beings from on high, the Kolat seeks to return control of the world to the hands of mortal men. Themselves specifically, lest they be mistaken for having purely noble intentions. Within the setting, doing away with the influence of the Kami would likely lead to an apocalyptic breakdown of the society.
* Take your pick of them in the ''TabletopGame/DarkMatter'' setting. Ancient conspiracy within ancient conspiracy facing off against other conspiracies. Aliens, humans, and odder things all conspiring for or against something or another. It's probably the main focus of the setting.
* The name says it all. This is also probably one of the best examples of this Trope in existence. What is it? None other than ''TabletopGame/{{GURPS}}'' Illuminati.
* ''TabletopGame/{{Paranoia}}'' is a game set in a post-apocalyptic, dystopian city where everything is controlled by The Computer. The Computer is extremely paranoid about ancient conspiracies and has the players hunt them down. Some of the conspiracies actually exist. Okay, a lot of them do. Unfortunately, the players are always part of [[FlockOfWolves at least one ancient conspiracy]], and have to hide this fact along with their mutant powers.
* [=ComStar=] is a pseudo-religious organization from ''TabletopGame/{{BattleTech}}'' that derives a lot of power from its monopoly on the interstellar communications network. However, the organization has also been hoarding [[LostTechnology LosTech]] for the past few centuries, hoping that it will give them an edge after the rest of the Inner Sphere bombs itself back into the Stone Age.
* ''TabletopGame/{{Eberron}}'': The Lords of Dust and the Chamber are conspiracies stretching back to the initial dragon-demon war, one of the earliest significant events after the creation of the world, both of whom mostly work through intermediaries since the greatest fiends are chained and a large number of dragons getting directly involved tends to cause inconvenient side effects such as mass destruction and the growth in power of the rakshasa rajah known as Tiamat. More recently, the Blood of Vol (dating back to the destruction of House Vol and the end of the elf-dragon war) and the Dreaming Dark (originating with the severing of direct Material Plane to Dal Quor connections) are at the very least ancient enough to predate the formation of Galifar by quite some time, although they're very modern compared to the Chamber and the Lords of Dust.
* ''TabletopGame/HollowEarthExpedition''. The Terra Arcanum is a secret organization created by the Atlanteans to prevent humanity from finding out about or entering the Hollow Earth. Over the centuries they have become a network of power brokers who control the Earth's leaders and institutions.
* The Powers in the Shadows in ''TabletopGame/AnimaBeyondFantasy'': Imperium (humans), the Technocracy (Sylvain -light elves-), and Illuminati (Duk'zarist -dark elves-). Each one of them controls a part of the world, [[SmallSecludedWorld isolated by magic of the others]] and ''in theory'', even [[WellIntentionedExtremist if their methods are debatable]] are there to watch and protect their people.
* The Cult of Transcendence in ''TabletopGame/DeltaGreen'' is an interesting example, simply because all the time it spent attempting to manipulate Europe from behind the scenes ''didn't work'' - its front organisations got taken apart on a regular basis, various wars ended up gutting it, and its unaging leaders tended to get out of touch and fixated on old grudges, most notably when they dedicated quite a lot of effort to finishing off the House of Habsburg long after they stopped being politically relevant. Following the First World War, they gave up on taking over the world and retooled themselves into a free-sprawling cult of Nyarlathotep, backing a whole bunch of groups in a bid to mess things up.
** The Kuen-Yuin are a straight example, being an ancient Chinese conspiracy formed by the descendants of the ancient priest caste of the Lloigor empire in Mu, they aim to create the Cruel Empire of Tsan-Chan, a dystopic totalitarian country that will exist 5000 years in the future after Cthulhu wakes from his slumber.

* In ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia,'' this is revealed when you find out that [[spoiler: the world religion is basically just a facade, constructed so a [[Really700YearsOld 4000-year-old child hero]] can create a human vessel in which to resurrect his dead sister.]]
* ''VideoGame/{{Exmortis}} 2'' has the main character seeking to save the final dredges of humanity in a post apocalyptic world ripped bare by monsters from hell. You solve the point and click puzzles, race the descending evil clouds of doom, follow the clues and scare yourself in the process, only to win and discover that [[spoiler:the bad guy you thought you were defeating was actually kicked out of his own cult centuries ago. You've been working to get rid of the Exmortis so that he can take over again with them out of the way. Out of the frying pan and into the furnace, in other words. [[ShootTheShaggyDog Oh, and your character dies anyway.]] Damn.]] (It's a point and click game, but you know).

* The La-Li-Lu-Le-Lo -- er, Patriots from ''VideoGame/MetalGear''. However [[spoiler:it turns out the Patriots are a fairly modern conspiracy formed in the 1970s which has rather taken on all the trappings of an ancient conspiracy as protective coloration, formed using the missing funds of another organization already on its last legs, The Philosophers, who themselves only dated back to around the beginning of the 20th century.]]

* In the ''VideoGame/MegaManZX'' series: [[spoiler:The very creation of the Biometal devices, even the ones made and used by the games' protagonists, turns out to be part of a vast plot put into motion over 200 years before the series takes place, courtesy of the second game's main villain, Master Albert--who is a key member of the city-state Innerpeace's governing body.]] Additionally, it's revealed during the course of the second game that [[spoiler:by design, all of the Biometals require a host with Master Albert's DNA to function. Indeed, Master Albert had been randomly seeding the general population with his DNA throughout the entirety of that 200 years.]] Alternately, this one could be viewed as something of an extended GambitRoulette.

* The Templar Order in ''Franchise/AssassinsCreed'', though it's questionable when one considers that everything you learn about the [[UsefulNotes/TheKnightsTemplar Templars]] being in control of the world is coming from their own deceitful mouths, and e-mails you can secretly read imply that they're not quite as powerful as they make themselves out to be. Meanwhile, the Assassins are a similarly ancient counter-conspiracy that exists to thwart the Templars.
** Every famous figure in history is a Templar/Assassin/Ally of either side. For the third variety, see Creator/LeonardoDaVinci. Yes, ''that'' Leonardo.
*** A few of the involved were just some poor schmucks or descendants of "[[{{Precursors}} Those Who Came Before]]", who, more or less unwittingly, got themselves rolled into the conspiracy. This group of people often caused some disruption to the balance of the power struggle, and would soon thereafter face a very untimely demise. People in this category includes [[UsefulNotes/{{Jesus}} Jesus Christ]] and UsefulNotes/JohnFKennedy.
** While their impact in the first seems minor, if Subject 16/[[spoiler:Clay Kaczmarek]] can be trusted then the involvement of Templars and opposition by Assassins is even wider-reaching than originally believed.
** Let's put it this way, the majority of the quote's page for the trope is taken from this series. Ancient conspiracies don't get much more ancient (or intricate, for that matter) than ''Assassin's Creed''. We're talking about a war that's been going on since CainAndAbel, where Cain was the first Templar and Abel had an Apple of Eden. You know Atlantis? Supposedly an ancient Isu city. A lot of gods and goddesses, both of mythology and actual religion, were just members of the Isu (e.g., Juno, Jupiter, Minerva, etc.). And that's not getting into the Hidden Ones and the Order of the Ancients, the precursors to the modern-day Assassin Brotherhood and Templar Order.

* The Inner Circle from ''VideoGame/MaxPayne''. Lampshaded by Max himself; a member of the circle, Alfred Woden, provides an in-depth description of the organization and its activities, following which Max [[DeadpanSnarker snarks]]: "[[YouWatchTooMuchX You've been watching too much]] ''[[Series/TheXFiles X-Files]]''."
** Come the second game, however, the Inner Circle turns out to be a NebulousCriminalConspiracy rather than an ancient conspiracy.
** It's also a GovernmentConspiracy, having senators among their ranks and being connected with top secret SuperSoldier projects like Valhalla.
* The Cabal from ''VideoGame/{{Blood}}''. They become more publicly known in the sequel, reforming after their god's death as [=CabalCo=].
* [[spoiler:Puritas Cordis]] from ''VideoGame/SecretFiles 2: Puritas Cordis''. It's unclear whether it was continued from the original, or collapsed and restructured, though.
* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII'' has a conspiracy of the gods to "straighten history's weave".
* ''VideoGame/TheConduit'' has a government organization that's been kept under wraps for centuries. Turns out that the current-day leader, John Adams, [[spoiler:is under alien authority (you hear him speaking with his superiors in the credits) and part of a centuries old plot to take over the world. On top of that, the ending credits reveal that Adams is a couple of centuries old himself, hinting that he may actually be ''the'' Founding Father John Adams, as well as an alien.]]
* The Disciples of Andraste from ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins''. Originally the followers of the setting's most important religious figure, [[MessianicArchetype Andraste]], they secreted away her ashes to Ferelden after her death at the hands of [[TheEmpire the Tevinter Imperium]]. For centuries they guarded the mountain temple where her ashes were kept. Interestingly, this ancient conspiracy lost its original purpose a long time ago and no longer care about guarding the Urn of Sacred Ashes. They have become an AxCrazy dragon cult who believe that their prophet has been reborn in the form of a [[OurDragonsAreDifferent high dragon]], who also makes its lair in the mountain temple. The PlayerCharacter has the option of assisting the cultists by defiling the Ashes, which they believe are somehow holding back the reborn "Andraste" from reaching her full power.
* ''VideoGame/EternalDarkness'' depicts a power struggle between a trio of {{Eldritch Abomination}}s known as the Ancients, and an in-story choice made by the player at the beginning of the game determines which of the three becomes the BigBad for the rest of the game. The rest of the story depicts the Ancient's [[TheDragon Dragon]] and his secret cult working behind the scenes over thousands of years, and at one point, they're depicted as being the ''real'' reason why a certain historical figure died.
* Midway through the first ''VideoGame/{{Drakensang}}'' game you find out that the BigBad [[spoiler: is working with the ancient Dragon Men serving the evil wyrm Andracor, and they plan to use the Adamantine Heart belonged to Andracor's father Umbracor to take over Aventuria and restore Andracor's powers.]]
* The [[LovecraftCountry rural New England]] [[TownWithADarkSecret town of]] ''VideoGame/{{Anchorhead}}'' is home to a [[spoiler:town-wide, nearly four-century-old]] {{Cult}} of {{Corrupt Hick}}s that worships and aims to summon an EldritchAbomination.
* The plot of ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'' has the player falling into one for the fate of the world and the First Fire.
* In ''VisualNovel/{{Rewrite}}'' The organization Gaia is controlling familiars and is trying to destroy humanity so that the planet can be saved. The organization Guardian is trying to stop them by whatever means necessary.
* In ''VideoGame/AzraelsTear'', the [[spoiler:Prieuré de Sion (think Priory of Sion from ''Literature/TheDavinciCode'', albeit different in details) believes it has a holy obligation to acquire the Holy Grail at a specific time and has devised a centuries-long plan to acquire it]].
* The plot of the ''VideoGame/LegacyOfKain'' series is very convoluted, but it all boils down to several conspiracies colliding with each other:
** First there's [[spoiler:the Hylden's conspiracy to break out of their ancient prison by bringing down the Pillars of Nosgoth.]]
** Second there's [[spoiler:the Elder God's conspiracy to exterminate the Vampires who can no longer feed him.]]
** Third there's [[spoiler:the conspiracy to bring into existence the Scion of Balance.]]
** Kain and Raziel have the misfortune of getting mixed up with all three. Kain because [[spoiler:he ''is'' the Scion of Balance and the one destined to defeat the Elder God and the Hylden]]. Raziel because [[spoiler:he is a living temporal paradox and thus the only being in existence who can ScrewDestiny.]]

* Even the Ancient Conspiracies in ''VideoGame/XenoGears'' get caught up in gigantic {{Gambit Pileup}}s. First off, you have [[spoiler: Deus, who engineered the human race to replace his broken parts after the wreck of the Eldridge, and having created Miang, the first woman, to herd mankind towards that purpose. Semi-separately, [[TheOmniscientCouncilOfVagueness Cain and the Gazelle Ministry]] found Solaris and quietly take control over the surface dwellers. Thirdly, the Wave Existence imprisoned in the Zohar is trying to get out of said artifact and return to its home dimension, using the -Contact- that is, Fei- to do so. Finally, you've got Krellian, who somehow manages to [[OutGambitted out-gambit]] ''everyone'', playing everyone off of everyone else with the intention of [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence following the Wave Existence home]] in a plan that takes 500 years to fulfill. ]]

* In ''VideoGame/KultHereticKingdoms'', the Order of the Veil was founded to secretly oppose the theocratic tyrant who ruled at the time, and more generally, to oppose all religion. In recent times, one of its five branches has stepped into the open to pursue the Order's goals in public: the Inquisition, which the protagonist joined before she knew about the larger organisation. The other four branches remain secret, and its members may hold prominent public posts.
* In the ''VideoGame/TrailsSeries'', the organization Ouroboros was founded to obtain the Seven Sacred Treasure of Aidios, known as the Sept-Terrion. Naturally, they're the villains of the [[MythArc overarching series.]]
* From ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerTiberianSeries'', we have The Brotherhood of Nod, a mixture between religious cult, rogue nation-state, MegaCorp, and paramilitary organization [[NGOSuperpower capable of taking on the GDI in battle.]] Its influence stretches back as far as [[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRedAlert World War II]], hinted to be stretching centuries further back (how one character noted that they've been biding their time for centuries, and now it's the time to reveal themselves), and if [[DarkMessiah Kane]] is to be believed, they have existed as far as human history itself.
* ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'':
** In ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind Morrowind]]'', nearly the entire plot of the main quest traces back to the [[WhenItAllBegan events surrounding the Battle of Red Mountain]][[note]]the [[RiddleForTheAges disappearance]] of the [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame Dwemer]], the [[DeityOfHumanOrigin ascension]] of [[PhysicalGod the Tribunal and Dagoth Ur]], [[OurGodsAreDifferent Azura]]'s (likely) curse on the Dunmer and her prophesy that Nerevar would be [[{{Reincarnation}} reincarnated]][[/note]] and the [[PlotTriggeringDeath death of Lord Nerevar]] some 4000 years prior. Due to his perceived treachery, House Dagoth, the Sixth House of the Dunmer led by [[BigBad Dagoth Ur]], was dissolved. The Sixth House Cult later formed in reverence and service to Lord Dagoth, who they (rightly) believed [[KingInTheMountain would return one day]]. In the years leading up to the events of the game itself, the Cult ramped up their activities, including assassinating Imperial officials. This is one part of the ("official") impetus for the Emperor ordering the PlayerCharacter to be sent to Vvardenfell.
** ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim Skyrim]]'':
*** The Dragon Cults formed in ancient times in service and reverence of the [[OurDragonsAreDifferent dragons]]. After the ancient Nord heroes manged to banish the leader of the dragons, [[BeastOfTheApocalypse Alduin]] (using an [[TomeOfEldritchLore Elder Scrolls]] to cast him out of the time stream), the remaining dragons were either slain or forced into hiding while the cultists and their [[SinisterMinister Dragon Priest]] leaders were persecuted, executed, and entombed in Skyrim's many ancient barrows. With the return of Alduin during the events of the game, he is not only [[ResurrectiveImmortality resurrecting]] the dragons, but the cultists as well.
*** The Thalmor are a [[ANaziByAnyOtherName fascistic]] Altmeri political party which dates back to the 1st Era. Originally formed to preserve the history and culture of the [[WitchSpecies Altmer (High Elves)]], they grew into a powerful [[FantasticRacism Altmer supremacist]] political party within the [[AntiHumanAlliance Aldmeri Dominion]] which eventually militarized. When [[TheConqueror Tiber Septim]] used the [[HumongousMecha Numidium]] to decimate the Aldmeri armies and sack their capital city ''[[CurbStompBattle in less than an hour of fighting]]'', the Thalmor retreated to the political shadows to wait out the Septim Empire. When the [[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion Oblivion Crisis]] struck, the Thalmor [[StealingTheCredit stole credit]] for ending it within their homeland, earning them populist support which allowed them to rise into the highest positions of the Altmeri government. They assassinated [[RegentForLife Potentate]] Ocato, who capably kept the Empire together for a decade after the crisis, severely destabilizing the Empire and sending it toward [[VestigialEmpire vestigial]] status. The Thalmor re-formed the Aldmeri Dominion of old, annexed neighboring Valenwood (homeland of the [[ForestRanger Bosmer (Wood Elves)]], and got Elsweyr (home of the [[CatFolk Khajiit]]) to join as a [[VoluntaryVassal client state]]. Over the next century, their power waxed while they also [[ManipulativeBastard manipulated]] events throughout the rest of Tamriel to further weaken the Empire, ultimately culminating in the [[GreatOffscreenWar Great War]]. Though they were driven back by the forces of the Empire, they did manage to [[WonTheWarLostThePeace force an imposing treaty]] (the White-Gold Concordat) on the Empire which served to destabilize it further leading up to the events of the game.
* In the Franchise/{{Nasuverse}}, one of the highest laws of magi is to keep to the Grand Order, a strict code that includes creating powerful Magic Crests and ensuring they are jealously kept within families, and ensuring that these Crests are passed down at all costs, while forbidding suicide under all circumstances. ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'' reveals all of these were invented by the BigBad Goetia, since in the distant past he created Crests and placed the 72 demons that formed him into several, spreading them into noble magi families and instituting the Grand Order to ensure they and the demons they carried would survive to the present day, allowing it to implement its plan to exterminate humanity. Virtually every aspect of magi society was crafted by Goetia as a trap.
* ''VideoGame/Payday2'''s final third of the game shifts the story from a heist simulator to a supernatural conspiracy where presidents are merely pawns, giant ghosts stalk the players, and the question of a millenium: why are supposedly WorthlessYellowRocks worth so damn much?
* In ''VideoGame/DeathEndReQuest'', there's Aphesis, a group that existed since the Middle Ages and are, during the events of the game, in control of damn near the entire ArtificialIntelligence industry due to having loads and loads of agents in Aggle Inc., the people who created the Alice Engine via knowledge of the Primitive Language. When they are starting to be found out or want to learn something from someone in particular, they send agents that hide their identities behind rabbit masks and hoodies to capture and torture them until they spill the beans. And, of course, they want to TakeOverTheWorld.
* ''VideoGame/TheGreatGaias'': Validus's immortal Gauf and Forlorn Society have infiltrated or compromised the leadership of several nations, including Greyhem, Sovereign, Sorbithia, Amanor, Porthul, and Osiris. [[spoiler:Their plan is to start a war between Greyhem and Sovereign, and then use the soldiers and the king of Greyhem as sacrifices to unseal the Validian Emperor, Maultor.]] They've been planning this ever since Eldromus Blackheart escaped the Abyss and killed the Warriors of Light centuries ago.
* ''{{VideoGame/Moonrise}}'': Living in a world of werewolves, vampires, and other ghoulies that go bump in the night, Lady Cassandra Mallory implies the Masquerade faction has, well, maintained {{Masquerade}} for centuries.
* ''VideoGame/AgeOfEmpiresIII'' has the Circle of Ossus, an ancient society that wields a lot of power in Europe. Their primary goal seems to be to find the Fountain of Youth in order to attain immortality. They've been around since long before the 16th century, as old cave paintings were found in 1565 on Malta that speak of the Circle. Their symbol is white animals (e.g. jaguars, wolves). The circle keeps returning throughouth the centuries, first in the late 16th century, then in mid-18th, and finally in the early 19th, when they're defeated for good. During the times they come back, the Circle's leaders are [[spoiler:Alain Magnan, Warwick, and Pierre Beaumont]].

* ''Webcomic/KevinAndKell'' has the Great Bird Conspiracy, which featured the birds of the K&Kverse doing its best to civilize the various animal people of Domain and ran things in the background via seemingly subservient jobs as teacher or secretary. Once it was made [=Y2K=] compatible, the GBC left the machinations to a computer program designed to do that job for them, allowing them to retire.

* In ''Webcomic/TheInexplicableAdventuresOfBob,'' Earth has been legally owned by the Nemesite Empire since the extinction of the dinosaurs. They're aware of the rise of humankind, but they still consider us wildlife largely beneath their notice. That is a ''good'' thing, because the day that they ''do'' decide to declare us full citizens of the Empire, the sovereignty of every nation on Earth will become meaningless, and a war will probably follow.

* Various Website/YouTube conspiracy videos are full of information about various ancient conspiracies, from the Illuminati to the Freemasons to the Bilderberg Group and the New World Order, for anyone who is interested in listening to that sort of thing, and all of various [[UnreliableNarrator questionable degrees of believability]], and usually overlapping with [[ConspiracyKitchenSink subjects like chemtrails, 2012, and shapeshifting aliens for bonus fun]]. And if you believe these things (some of the evidence isn't... toootally unconvincing) you can file them under RealLife too.

* Music/DoctorSteel believes (whether in actuality or whether it's part of the crazy act is anyone's guess) that the world is controlled by a cabal of alien "Illuminati".
* Website/CollegeHumor: According to the "truthumentary" ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zbl-vMN2gzo Deceptive Deceptions,]]'' the world is now, has always been, and will forever be controlled by a shadowy elite who trump the government, the Freemasons, and the Illuminati combined: [[spoiler:The College Humor staff]].
* The Southern Cross Organization in ''WebAnimation/InfernoCop'' is an over-the-top parody. Doing things seemingly ForTheEvulz, controlling the whole country, having mysterious code names and [[InTheHood wearing cloaks with large hoods]]. They even have a symbol they brandish their people with.

* Parodied with the Stonecutters in ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', a world-wide group who claim to have fought since ancient times to "split the rock of ignorance that obscures the light of knowledge and truth", along with a few other tall claims (robbing cavefish of their sight, rigging every Oscar night). Mostly what they do is just hang out and get drunk.
* Parodied by ''WesternAnimation/AmericanDad'' with the Illuminutty, a group attempting to keep the secret that [[spoiler:George Washington Carver wasn't the one who really invented Peanut Butter. It was actually Abraham Lincoln's wife who invented it as some bizarre ingredient for calling on spirits. The conspiracy intended to give credit of the invention to an African American to help rebuild race relations after the Civil War, but the plan was delayed due to Lincoln's assassination, and didn't come to fruition until years later when the credit was given to Carver, who did in fact invent all the other peanut stuff, he just hadn't thought of mashing them up and putting them on bread for some reason.]]
* Subverted in ''WesternAnimation/HuntikSecretsAndSeekers''. The main villainous organization--unoriginally called "The Organization"--purports to be a centuries-old secret society with roots in the royal courts of medieval Europe. Zhalia later discovers that they are in reality less than sixty years old and only claimed to be older in order to cover up the fact that [[spoiler:most of their members were [[SlaveMooks brainwashed]] into joining by [[BigBad the Professor]].]]

* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'': The Order of White Lotus is the Secret Society of [[OldMaster Badass Grandpas]], spread out across all three nations.

* Season 4 of ''WesternAnimation/CarmenSandiego'' reveals that [[NebulousEvilOrganization V.I.L.E.]] as we know it is just the latest incarnation of a criminal conspiracy that's existed since the Middle Ages.

* The Secret Monarchy of the World in Ed Brubaker's ''ComicBook/{{Sleeper}}'' is a BigBadWannabe Conspiracy. [[RidiculouslyHumanRobot TAO]] learned of them and became intrigued by their mission (which, predictably, is dominating the world), but upon joining them found them to be riddled by the usual human flaws he had come to disdain.

* NBC's ''Series/{{Dracula}}'' features the titular count going up against the Order of the Dragon, a group of aristocrats who have pulled the strings of Western civilization since the Dark Ages, and are responsible for him becoming a vampire in the first place.

* ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' reveals that [[spoiler:Black Zetsu has been using ''the entire world'' since the time of the Sage of the Six Paths, all in his pursuit of reviving Kaguya. He was responsible for the Senju-Uchiha feud by manipulating Indra into attacking his younger brother Ashura, and then altered the tablet left behind by the Sage to make the Uchiha Clan his pawns. Since then, he has watched over their descendants, until he found Madara, someone capable of awakening the Rinnegan, and saved his life after he lost to Hashirama at the Valley of the End. He then used Madara's Moon's Eye Plan to help resurrect Kaguya -- a plan which also created Tobi, who caused the Kyuubi Attack (including the death of his own sensei and his wife), the Bloodline Massacres of Kiri, the Uchiha Clan Massacre, and the formation of the Akatsuki, and God knows what else. Black Zetsu is all but responsible for ''all of ninja history''.]]

** The second Yliaster comes about when a three-man BigBadEnsemble uses their powers to take over and CosmicRetcon the previous origin out of existence, with the new origin being that they were a relatively new organization with possibly a few members (the ones involved with the Dark Signers) ''inspired'' by the original Star Dragon King. In its new incarnation, the founders of the organization are actually four [[WellIntentionedExtremist well-intentioned extremists]] from the future; having harnessed the ability to TimeTravel with the intention of going back and preventing the [[ApocalypseHow global catastrophe that led to the devastated future in which they are the only surviviors]]. This change in depictions was the result of some [[RealLifeWritesThePlot behind-the-scenes difficulties]]: one of the voice actresses had been fired from the show due to her involvement with a cult that had been getting bad press recently; to avoid any scandal, the series producers removed references to cult-like activity, rewriting Yliaster with a more Sci-Fi origin and a more antagonistic role.

* The homunculi in ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist''.
** In the manga/second anime [[spoiler: Homunculus/Father is both the [[MonsterProgenitor founder]] and [[TheManBehindTheMan leader]] of said Ancient Conspiracy which is also part GovernmentConspiracy. As with Dante below, his plan is to live forever, but by [[GodhoodSeeker becoming God]].]]
** In the [[Anime/FullmetalAlchemist first anime]] [[spoiler: Dante runs a conspiracy dating back to a quasi-dark age, which manipulates the highest levels of the nation's government. Her plan is simply to use the philosopher stone and transfer herself to a new body to live forever, starting genocides if she has to.]]

* ''Webcomic/{{Narbonic}}'' has "the Dave Conspiracy."

* In ''Webcomic/{{Sinfest}}'', [[http://www.sinfest.net/view.php?date=2007-12-14 Lil' E claims Genesis is a coverup by such a conspiracy]].

** The League of Assassins has existed for centuries, led by [[ComicBook/RasAlGhul Ra's Al Ghul,]] a man who remains immortal thanks to periodic use of Lazarus Pits. Their goal is to reduce the human population to more manageable levels as mankind is slowly destroying the ecosystem. As their name implies they also do a lot of assassinations.

* In ''Webcomic/{{Sinfest}}'', [[http://www.sinfest.net/view.php?date=2007-12-14 Lil' E claims Genesis is a coverup by such a conspiracy.]]

* Parodied with the Stonecutters in ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', a world-wide group who claim to have fought since ancient times to "split the rock of ignorance that obscures the light of knowledge and truth", along with a few other tall claims (robing cavefish of their sight, rigging every Oscar night). Mostly what they do is just hang out and get drunk.
* Parodied by ''WesternAnimation/AmericanDad'' with the Illuminutty, a group attempting to keep the secret that [[spoiler:George Washington Carver wasn't the one who really invented Peanut Butter. It was actually Abraham Lincoln's wife who invented it as some bizarre ingredient for calling on spirits. The conspiracy intended to give credit of the invention to an African American to help rebuild race relations after the Civil War, but the plan was delayed due to Lincolns death, and didn't come to fruition until years later when the credit was given to Carver, who did in fact invent all the other peanut stuff, he just hadn't thought of mashing them up and putting them on bread for some reason.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'' has an ancient conspiracy that is "only" about a century old in the form of the Red Lotus, an offshoot of the White Lotus with different ideas of how to bring balance to the world. The Red Lotus believes that the governments and ruling institutions of the world are hopelessly corrupt and must be utterly destroyed. [[spoiler: This extends to every organization and political representative which enforces order, including the Avatar.]]

* Real life conspiracies tend to be much shorter in time, much smaller in scale, and much less successful. Almost always they are found out after less than a decade by someone spilling the beans or their own incompetence. However, complex political upheaval (such as the French Revolution) or real life conspiracies being exposed (such as Watergate) tend to make people more open to believing more far fetched stories. This is why most "classic" Ancient Conspiracies date to the late 18th century (Illuminati, the Freemasons, the Jesuits) or the 1960s (Kennedy assassination, Vietnam, things involving Castro).

* Nearly all autocratic governments either believe or promote the belief that they are surrounded by organized, powerful enemies at all sides, no matter how much influence they gather. This has the benefit of justifying their existence as well as giving them a solid reason to act outside of established laws and norms. After all, if you're surrounded by enemies, arbitrary actions that break the law are justified by the need for self-preservation. This is how the word "dictatorship" got its negative connotation: it's a government that's run as if it is in a constant state of emergency. Originally, it was an emergency government appointed by the Roman Senate when things got out of hand enough that they viewed themselves as in some incapable to deal with it. After Sulla then Ceasar made themselves perpetual dictators, it started the current connotation.

** [[spoiler:The leaders of the government know the truth about the outside world, they've convinced the rest of the populace to stay within the walls and die at their commands, and they're willing to murder all their citizens to create a Titan enslavement machine if it means they don't have to face the Naziland known as the Kingdom of Marley. And their king is a body double who is also senile.]]

** The League of Assassins has existed for centuries, led by [[Comicbook/RasAlGhul Ra's Al Ghul,]] a man who remains immortal thanks to periodic use of Lazarus Pits. Their goal is to reduce the human population to more manageable levels as mankind is slowly destroying the ecosystem. As their name implies they also do a lot of assassinations.
** Following the ComicBook/{{New 52}} reboot, a new secret organization was created for Bruce to deal and one alot closer to home: the [[ComicBook/NightOfTheOwls Court of Owls]]. A group consisting of some of [[OldMoney oldest families of Gotham]], they have been the secret power behind Gotham since ''colonial times''. They're so clever they ''convinced Batman himself'' that they were nothing but a myth (albeit, at a time where he was still new to the detective scene and [[NotMeThisTime mainly because of a crime they actually didn't do]]). In fact, they're so dangerous that they did not consider Batman much of a threat and hence why they didn't pursue him and left him a wreck when they tried to get him, thanks to their legion of guards, The Talons.

* The Circles from the ''FanFic/DevaSeries'', who have suppressed much magic development on Earth.
* In ''FanFic/TheDifferenceOneManCanMake'', [[spoiler:The Maesters of Citadel have actively tried to eliminate Magic and its influence from the world for centuries, with the exception of Marwyn the Magician and possibly other Maesters who still try to study Magic.]]

* ''Manga/{{Evangelion 303}}'': Seele has been manipulating world politics for centuries in order to try to keep a power balance between countries, consistently supporting the military or political underdog.

* More traditional versions are a part of the Katawa Shoujo fanfic FanFic/HisaoandKenjiMasterDetectives.

* Both played straight and subverted in ''FanFic/SonicXDarkChaos''. The backstory runs on the idea that both Christianity and Islam are nothing more than fronts for the Angel Federation. However, [[spoiler: Maledict's gigantic "Ultimate Weapon" gambit to defeat the Angels is less than a century old]].
* ''Fanfic/SOE2LoneHeirOfKrypton'': As ''Comicbook/{{Supergirl}}'', Asuka must fight against giant monsters, alien beings, an evil cult and an ancient secret society comprised of old madmen whose goal consists in killing everybody and merging their souls to give birth a new god. Said secret society is not happy with the unforeseen appearance of a super-powered girl coming along out of nowhere and interfering with their plans.

* ''FanFic/TheRavensPlan'' reveals that [[spoiler: a cabal within the Maesters have been manipulating events for millennia to control the development of Westerosi society, repress knowledge of magic, and (more recently) bring down the Targaryen dynasty]]. Having discovered this shortly before the old timeline ended, Sam and a group of Reach lords spread the word and spearhead a purge of all those involved.

%%* Trystero, a mail-based (and possibly imagined) conspiracy in Creator/ThomasPynchon's ''Literature/{{The Crying of Lot 49}}''.

* As long as we're on the TabletopGame/NewWorldOfDarkness, there are so ''many'' ancient conspiracies in ''Tabletopgame/HunterTheVigil'' that it's hard to keep them straight. In fact, the largest possible organization of hunters is commonly called a "conspiracy." Ones that best fit the criteria include: the Aegis Kai Doru, relic hunters who date back to Ancient Greece; the Ascending Ones, Arabic alchemists who use the drug trade to fuel their quest against the darkness; the Cheiron Group, a recent {{megacorp}}oration with some very occluded origins who [[TheydCutYouUp perform medical experiments of supernaturals]] to [[strike:better mankind]] increase their profit margins; the Lucifuge, made up of self-proclaimed children of the Devil who seek to fight against Hell and all its works; and the Malleus Maleficarum, the Catholic Church's black bag group.

* Oh, where to ''begin'' in ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}''? The existence of Chaos and daemons is kept secret by the Inquisition from as many people as it can be, the Orks and Eldar were originally created to fight the Necrons, the C'Tan spliced the pariah gene into proto-humanity for later harvesting, God-Emperor only knows what's up with the Adeptus Mechanicus... the list goes on.

-->'''Stanton Dowd''': It's true that our organization stretches back to the Order of the Assassins, or Hashishim, but not in the way you might imagine. The order hasn't so much lasted as been continually revived. Adam Weishaupt started from scratch in Bavaria in 1776. But so did Thomas Jefferson a few years later. It's the IDEA that has lasted. The SYSTEM. Or the DESIRE, every thinking person's desire to give the world some decent organization. Cecil Rhodes, for instance. Absolutely no formal connection to the Illuminati at all, but one of the greatest visionaries of centralized power. Now we have the Rhodes Scholarships, which feed recruits right into the Council on Foreign Relations... A very powerful tool. In my opinion, the history of the human race has been one long succession of conspiracies. To deceive ourselves, we call the successful conspiracies 'governments.'

** ''Videogame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'' has the Star Cabal, a group of influential non-force sensitives that serve as the central antagonist of the Imperial Agent storyline who are dedicated to the eradication of Jedi and Sith-ruled governments and seek to plunge the world into another galactic war to wipe the slate clean. It's members include various characters featured in other storylines. The Genoharadan make a brief appearance in the Bounty Hunter storyline.

* The Inner Circle from ''VideoGame/MaxPayne''. Lampshaded by Max himself; a member of the circle, Alfred Woden, provides an in-depth description of the organization and its activities, following which Max [[DeadpanSnarker snarks]]: "[[YouWatchTooMuchX You've been watching too much]] [[Series/TheXFiles X-Files]]."

* ''VideoGame/EternalDarkness'' depicts a power struggle between a trio of [[EldritchAbomination Eldritch Abominations]] known as the Ancients, and an in-story choice made by the player at the beginning of the game determines which of the three becomes the BigBad for the rest of the game. The rest of the story depicts the Ancient's [[TheDragon Dragon]] and his secret cult working behind the scenes over thousands of years, and at one point, they're depicted as being the ''real'' reason why a certain historical figure died.

* The [[LovecraftCountry rural New England]] [[TownWithADarkSecret town of]] ''Videogame/{{Anchorhead}}'' is home to a [[spoiler:town-wide, nearly four-century-old]] {{Cult}} of [[CorruptHick Corrupt Hicks]] that worships and aims to summon an EldritchAbomination.

* The plot of the ''Videogame/LegacyOfKain'' series is very convoluted, but it all boils down to several conspiracies colliding with each other:

* Even the Ancient Conspiracies in ''VideoGame/XenoGears'' get caught up in gigantic [[GambitPileup Gambit Pileups.]] First off, you have [[spoiler: Deus, who engineered the human race to replace his broken parts after the wreck of the Eldridge, and having created Miang, the first woman, to herd mankind towards that purpose. Semi-separately, [[TheOmniscientCouncilOfVagueness Cain and the Gazelle Ministry]] found Solaris and quietly take control over the surface dwellers. Thirdly, the Wave Existence imprisoned in the Zohar is trying to get out of said artifact and return to its home dimension, using the -Contact- that is, Fei- to do so. Finally, you've got Krellian, who somehow manages to [[OutGambitted out-gambit]] ''everyone'', playing everyone off of everyone else with the intention of [[AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence following the Wave Existence home]] in a plan that takes 500 years to fulfill. ]]

* The organization of the same name in Webcomic/IronGate has been secretly fighting supernatural threats to humanity for centuries without any serious exposure to the general public.

** In the manga/second anime [[spoiler: Homunculus/Father is both the [[MonsterProgenitor founder]] and [[TheManBehindTheMan leader]] of said Ancient Conspiracy which is also part GovernmentConspiracy. As with Dante below, his plan is to live forever, but by [[AGodAmI becoming God]].]]

** The first Yliaster was an Illuminati-like cult founded 3000 years prior to the start of the series in South America. Their goal was to gain control over human society, and to use their power and influence to ensure humanity's survival in the cyclical DivineConflict between the BigGood Crimson Dragon and the EldritchAbomination Earthbound Immortals. The BigBad of the first arc is the leader of the organization, who seeks to [[AGodAmI become an all-powerful god]] so he can end the cycle once and for all.

* ''Literature/SpySchool'': Croatoan, the villains of the eighth book. In some ways they serve as a ContrastingSequelAntagonist to SPYDER (a relatively new organization OnlyInItForTheMoney). Croatoan is filled with Spanish zealots who were behind a series of FalseFlagOperation's (beginning with the disappearance of the Roanoke colony, which they blamed on the local Natives), initially to try and drive the other colonial powers out of the new world and then to try and topple the American government out of bitterness in the centuries afterwards (long after the actual Spanish government disavowed them). They were behind the Boston Tea Part y to start the Revolutionary War, crashed the stock market in 1929, and burned the Capitol during the war of 1812. They also are behind the assassinations of Presidents Kennedy, [=McKinley=], Lincoln (giving John Wilkes Booth a NotSoFakePropWeapon and telling him that the assassination was [[AllPartOfAShow a play]]) and Harrison (who they poisoned with arsenic while managing to make it look like natural causes).

** Following the ComicBook/{{New 52}} reboot, a new secret organizationw as created for Bruce to deal and one alot closer to home: the [[ComicBook/NightOfTheOwls Court of Owls]]. A group consisting of some of [[OldMoney oldest families of Gotham]], they have been the secret power behind Gotham since ''colonial times''. They're so clever they ''convinced Batman himself'' that they were nothing but a myth (albeit, at a time where he was still new to the detective scene and [[NotMeThisTime mainly because of a crime they actually didn't do]]). In fact, they're so dangerous that they did not consider Batman much of a threat and hence why they didn't pursue him and left him a wreck when they tried to get him, thanks to their legion of guards, The Talons.

The ancient conspiracy is a subtrope of TheConspiracy and a subset of the PowersThatBe. Contrast with the benevolent AncientTradition and the harmlessly benign BrotherhoodOfFunnyHats. The PathOfInspiration is a specific type of this, and [[HollywoodSatanism Hollywood Satanists]] may or may not be involved in the conspiracy. May be an NGOSuperpower. Not to be confused with the [[Literature/{{Xanth}} Adult Conspiracy]].

* As the page quote shows, ComicBook/TheQuestion in ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague Unlimited'' believes that a vast conspiracy has ruled the world for thousands of years, and are secretly responsible for virtually everything in human history. Given that many of the Question's wild theories [[ProperlyParanoid are proved correct]] and that there are [[ComicBook/VandalSavage several]] [[Characters/BatmanRoguesGallery characters]] in the DCAU that have ''lived'' for thousands of years, [[ParanoiaFuel he might well be right]].

* Nearly all autocratic governments either believe or promote the belief that they are surrounded by organized, powerful enemies at all sides, no matter how much influence they gather. This has the benefit of justifying their existence as well giving them a solid reason to act outside of established laws and norms. After all, if you're surrounded by enemies, arbitrary actions that break the law are justified by the need for self-preservation. This is how the word "dictatorship" got its negative connotation: it's a government that's run as if it is in a constant state of emergency.

* The basis of Creator/FrancisEDec's theories and mad rants was his conviction that a supercomputer called Worldwide Mad Deadly Communist Gangster Computer God runs one of these. He claims that the Computer God covered up most of the history prior to its inception, including existence of worldwide Slovene Empire, and that it interbred Slovenes with other people to make mankind stupid. [[ThroughTheEyesOfMadness Among other things]].