As a framework for his grandiose assertion of being both the Great Monarch prophesied by Nostradamus and a Merovingian pretender , Plantard further claimed the Priory of Sion was engaged in a centuries-long benevolent conspiracy to install a secret bloodline of the Merovingian dynasty on the thrones of France and the rest of Europe. After attracting varying degrees of public attention from the late s to the s, the mythical history of the Priory of Sion was exposed as a ludibrium β an elaborate hoax in the form of an esoteric puzzle β created by Plantard as part of his unsuccessful stratagem to become a respected, influential and wealthy player in French esotericist and monarchist circles.
Pieces of evidence presented in support of the historical existence and activities of the Priory of Sion before , such as the so-called Dossiers Secrets d'Henri Lobineau , were discovered to have been forged and then planted in various locations around France by Plantard and his accomplices. Despite the "Priory of Sion mysteries" having been exhaustively debunked by journalists and scholars as France's greatest 20th-century literary hoax , [ 6 ] [ 7 ] [ 8 ] many conspiracy theorists still persist in believing that the Priory of Sion was a millennium-old cabal concealing a religiously subversive secret.
A few independent researchers outside of academia claim, based on alleged insider information, that the Priory of Sion continues to operate as a conspiratorial secret society to this day. The fraternal organisation was founded in the town of Annemasse , Haute-Savoie , in eastern France in Bonhomme was the President while Plantard was the Secretary General.
The choice of the name "Sion" was based on a popular local feature, a hill south of Annemasse in France, known as Mont Sion, where the founders intended to establish a spiritual retreat center.
The statutes of the Priory of Sion indicate its purpose was to allow and encourage members to engage in studies and mutual aid. The articles of the association expressed the goal of creating a Traditionalist Catholic chivalric order. Article 7 of the statutes of the Priory of Sion stated that its members were expected "to carry out good deeds, to help the Roman Catholic Church, teach the truth, defend the weak and the oppressed".
