junto

A small, usually secret group united for a common interest.

A private council or assembly; a combination of persons openly or secretly engaged for a common purpose, especially of a political character; a club of partizans or intriguers; a faction; a cabal; specifically, in English history, a group of leading Whig politicians in the reigns of William III. and Anne, of whom the most important were Somers, Wharton, Russell, and Montague.

Synonyms Faction, Camarilla, etc. See cabal

A secret council to deliberate on affairs of government or politics; a number of men combined for party intrigue; a faction; a cabal

Archaic form of junta.

A club, originally used thus by Benjamin Franklin

a clique (often secret) that seeks power usually through intrigue