GENERAL HISTORY
OF THE

CATHOLIC CHURCH:
FROM THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE CHRISTIAN ERA
TO THE TWENTIETH CENTURY.

BY

M. L’ABBE

J,

E. DARRAS.

THIRTEENTH EDITION.

WITH AN

INTRODUCTION AND NOTES
BY THE MOST REV. M. J. SPALDING. D. D,
ARCHBISHOP OF BALTIMORE.

VOL. IV.

NEW YORK:
P. J. KENEDY,
PCBLINIIER TO THE HOLY APOSTOLIC 8«,

EXCELSIOR CATHOLIC PUBLISHING HOUSE.
Nob. 3

and

δ Barclay St.

Copyright
1898
B' B- J. KENEDY,

CONTENTS.

SEVENTH PERIOD.
CHAPTER I.
Pontificate of Leo X. (March 11, a. d. 1513—December 1, 1521). 1. Gen
eral view of the seventh period.—2. State of the world at the death of
Julins II.—3. Election of Leo X.—4. Reinstatement of the Cardinals Carmjal and St. Severinns.—5. Reformatory canons of the Lnternn Connoil.—
6. Decree of the conncil concerning the press.—7. Decree on the Monti-dopiété.—8. Decrees for the pacification of Christian princes, and against the
errors of Pomponatius on the immortality of the soul.—9. Peace between
l«ouis ΧΠ. and the Holy See.—10. Death of Louis XII.—11. Accession of
Francis I. His policy. Policy of Leo X.—12. Cardinal Matthew Schinner.
Battle of Marignan.—13. Treaty of peace between Leo X. and Francis L—
14. Question of the kingdom of Naples.—15. The Concordat of Leo X
between the Holy See and France.—16. Review of the concordat.—17. List
session of the seventh general council.—18. League against France. Prudence
of Leo X.—19. Theologians. Cajetan. Adrian of Utrecht, etc.—20. Linguis
tics. The exact sciences.—21. Historians. Machiavelli.—22. Paolo Giovio.
Guicciardini.—23. Poets. Ariosto. Vida. Snnnazaro.—24. Michael Angelo.
Raphael.—25. Conspiracy among the cardinals against the life of the Holy
Father.—26. Luther. The cause of his success.—27. Lnther’s first years.—
28. Catholic doctrine of indulgences.—29. Luther’· sermon at Wittenberg
against indulgences.—30. Luther's theses posted upon the doors of the church
nt Wittenberg.—31. Reply of Tetzel. Luther before Cardinal Cajctan.—
32. Carlstadt and Melancthon.—38. Bull of Leo X. against the errors of
Luther.—84. Luther burns the Papal bull in the publie square of Wittenberg.
—35. Charles V., emperor of Germany.—36. Luther’s work on Christian
Liberty.—87. Eek. Ernser. Prierias. Catholic doctors.—33. The Auertio
toptein Sacramentorum of Henry VIIL—89. Diet of Worms. Luther at the
castle of Wartburg.—40. Review of the errors of Luther.—41. Division be­
tween Luther and Carlstadt—42. Death of Leo X........................... Page I

CHAPTER

II.

j i. rojrriFioATB op Adrian VT. (January 9, λ. d. 1522—September 24, 1533).
i. Election and character of Adrian VI,—2. Efforts of the Pope to reform the
Roman uourt.—3. A new manifesto from Luther.—4. Diet of Nuremberg.—

IV

CONTENTS.

5. Adnan sends missionaries to America.—6. Religions orders. TheatinesCon
gregation of Somnscha. Barnabites. Regular Clerks of the Good Jesus. St
John of God. Ben Fratelli. Discalccd Franciscans, or Minors of the Strict
Observance of St. Peter of Alcantara. § II. Foniifioate of Clement VII.
(November 19, a. d. 1523—September 25, 1584). 7. Election of Clement VII,
His intricate position.—8. Death of Bayard. Pavia. Treaty of Madrid.—
9. The Holy League.—10 Capture of Rome by the Imperialists.—11. Treaty
of peace between the Pope, Francis I. and Charles V.—12. Disturbances
caused at Wittenberg by Carlstadt. The Anabaptists.—13. Luther preaches
against monastic vows, and labors to abolish the Mass in the church of Wit­
tenberg.—14. Insurrection of the peasants.—15. Luther incites the German
princes to suppress the revolt.—16. Diet of Spires (1526-1529).—17. Dispute
of the Sacraraentarians with Zwingli, (Ecolampadius and Luther.—18. Diet
and Confession of Augsburg.—19. Peace of Nuremberg.—20. First attempt of
Henry VIII. to annul his marriage with Catharine of Aragon.—21. Reply of
Clement VII. to his request.—22. Cromwell.—23. Discussion in the English
court, on the statutes of Prromunire.—24. Henry VIII. marries Anne Boleyn.
Thomas Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury.—25. Clement VII. annuls
the marriage of Henry VIII. and Anne Boleyn.—26. Death of Clement
VII............................................................................................................................ Page 68

CHAPTER III.
Pontificate of Paul TIL (October 15, a. d. 1534—November 10, 1549). 1. Elec­
tion and first acts of Paul III.—2. The Jesuits. St. Ignatius of Loyola.—8.
Execution of Sir Thomas More, by order of Henry VIII.—4. Execution ol
Fisher, bishop of Rochester.—5. Cromwell appointed vicar general of the kingin
the ecclesiastical government. Suppression and sack of the monasteries. Henry
VIII. is again excommunicated by Paul III.—6. Execution of the Countess
of Salisbury, mother of Cardinal Pole.—7. Continuation and close of Henry’s
reign.—8. Accession of Edward VI. to the throne of England.—9. Luther’s
marriage.—10. Polygamy of the Landgrave, Philip of Hesie, authorized by
Luther and Melancthon.—11. Anabaptists at Munster. John of Leyden.—
12. Progress of the Reformation in Prussia, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and
Iceland.—13. A truce of ten years concluded at Nice between Charles V. and
Francis I., through the mediation of Paul III. Francis I. the Father of
letters.—14. Calvin. His system.—15. Nature of Calvin’s polemics against
Catholicity.—16. Calvin’s political life. His dictatorship in Geneva.—17.
Common features of Calvinism and Lutheranism.—18. Interview of the Papal
legate, Vergerio, with Luther.—19. Diet of the States of the Empire at Snialcald.—20. Attack of Charles V. upon the Lutheran princes. Battle of Milhlberg.—21. Death of Luther. Character of the Saxon Reformer.—22. Opening
of the Eighteenth General Council at Trent.—23. History of the Council of
Trent by Fra Paolo, under the name of Pietro-Soave-Polanc.—24. History of
the council by Cardinal Pallavicini.—25. Edict of Charles V. known as the In­
terim.—26. Decrees of the Council of Trent concerning the Sacred Scriptures,
th· establishment of chairs of theology and the pastoral obligation of preaching

CONTENTS.

at least on every Sunday and solemn feast—27 ApoHaay of the latrata Ver
gerio, in Germany. Apoetasy of Ochino, general of the Capuchin·.—28
Fifth session of the Council of Trent. Louis Lippomano, bishop of Modena.
--29. Decree of the council on original sin.—30. Decrees rm justificatif n and
pastoral residence.—81. Transfer of the council to Bologna.—32. Death of
Francia I. Marot. Rabelais.—33. Causes of the opposition to the Council of
Trent.—34. Last contests and death of Paul III.—35. American mission».—
86. St. Francis Xavier.—37. Theologians. Melchior Cano.............. Page 197

CHAPTER IV
Pontificate of Jurrus ΓΠ. (February 8, a. d. 1550—March 23, 1555). 1.
Election of Julius III. Opening of the Jubilee of 1550.—2. Bull of Julius III.
for resuming the Council of Trent. Siege of Malta.—3. Hostilities between rhe
Holy See and France. Henry IL opposes the re-opening of the council.—4.
Thirteenth session of the council. Decrees on the Sacrament of the Eucha­
rist and on episcopal jurisdiction.—5. Fourteenth session. Decrees on the
Sacraments of Penance and Extreme Unction. Decrees on ecclesiastical disci­
pline. Fifteenth session, in which it is agreed to wait for the Protestant de­
puties.—6. Second suspension of the Council of Trent, pronounced by Julius
III. and announced in the sixteenth session.—7. Maurice, elector of Saxony,
enters Innspruck in triumph.—8. Treaty of the public peace signed at Passau
—9. Abdication of Charles V., leaving the imperial crown to his brother,
Ferdinand I., and his hereditary States to his son, Philip Π. The emperor
withdraws to the monastery of Ynste. His death.—10. Character of Charts·
V.—11. Accession of Mary Tudor to the throne of England.—12. Cardinal Pole
sent as legate to England. Reconciliation with Rome.—13. Protestant cal­
umnies against Queen Mary. Death of Julius HI. § II. Poxtificatb of
Marcellos II. (April 9, A. d. 1555—May 1, 1555). 14. Election, charact®
and death of Marcellus II. § III. Pontificate of Paul IV. (May 23. a. d
1555—August 18, 1559). 15. Election and character of Paul IV.— Di. Ferdi­
nand I. assumes the imperial dignity without seeking the approbation of the
Holy See.—17. Ireland erected into a kingdom by Paul IV.—18. Alliance of
the Pope and Henry II. of France, against Philip II. Elevation of the Pope’·
family.—19. Defeat of the French at St. Quentin, by Emmanuel-Philibert,
duke of Savoy.—20. Struggle in Italy between the Pope and the Duke of
Alva. Calais taken by the Duke of Guise. Death of Queen Mary. Treaty of
Cateau-Cambrésis, between Philip II. of Spain and Henry II. of France.—31.
Conditions of this treaty, concerning the Pope,—22. Paul IV. banishes hi·
nephews from Rome.—23. Death of Paul IV. and of St. Ignatius.—24. First
measures of Queen Elizabeth against the Catholic religion in England —25.
Acta of Parliament to reestablish the schism in Englund.—2tf. Violence of
Elizabeth against the Catholic bishops. Intrusion of Mathew Parker, former
chaplain of Anne Boleyn, into the see of Canterbury.—27. Death of Henry IL,
king of France. Is succeeded by Francis II.—28. Calvinism io France. As­
sembly of the Prô-aux-clercs. Assassination of President Minard. Execu­
tion of the apostate priest Aune Du bourg........................................ Pa<· 153

VI

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER

V.

I 1 Pontificate of Pios IV. (December 20, a. d 1559—December 9, 1505). I
Lutheranism and Calvinism at the accession of Pins IV.—2. The parties ol
Bourbon, Montmorency and Guise, in Franco.—8. Conspiracy of Amboise.—
The Chancellor Michel de PHôpital.—End of the reign of Francis II. and ac­
cession of Charles IX.—4. Pius IV. and his nephew, St. Charles Borromeo.
—5. Pontifical bull for resuming the Council of Trent.—0. Abdisu, Catholic
patriarch of Eastern Assyria, visits Rome. Erection of bishoprics in America
and the Indies.—7. Twenty-second session of the Council of Trent. Canons
on the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.—8. Discussion on the origin of the episco­
pal institution. Arrival of the Cardinal of Lorraine nt Trent. Death of the
Cardinals of Mantua and Seripando, Papal legates and presidents of the council.
They are succeeded by the Cardinals Morose and Navagero.—9. Twenty-third
session of the council. Canons on the Sacrament of Holy Orders. Decree
for the establishment of seminaries.—10. Twenty-fourth session. Canons on
marriage. Decrees on Reformation.—11. Sermon of the Bishop of Nazianztim,
coadjutor of Famagusta, at the close of the council. Reading of the decrees
on Purgatory, the worship of saints, holy relics and images. Close of the
Council of Trent. Its disciplinary decrees rejected in France and Germany.
Pius IV. confirms all the acts of the council.—12. Troubles with the Calvinists
in France. Catholic triumvirate. Colloquy of Poissy.—13. Riot, styled by
the Calvinists the Massacre of Vassy. Battle of Dreux. Siege of Orleans.
Murder of the Duke of Guise. Battle of St. Denis. Death of the Constable
Anne de Montmorency. End of the Pontificate of Pius IV. § II. Pontifi­
cate of St. Pios V. (January 7, a. d. 15G6—May 1, 1572). 14. Leading
features of the Pontificate of St. Pius V.—15. Election of St. Pius.—16. His
first measures for the reform of abuses and of morals.—17. Troubles with the
Calvinists in France during the Pontificate of St. Pius V.—18. Imprisonment
of Mary Stuart. The Pope excommunicates Queen Elizabeth.—19. Beginning
of the revolt of the Gueux in the Netherlands.—20 The Duke of Alva ap­
pointed governor of the Netherlands.—21. Don Carlos, son of Philip 11. of
Spain.—22. Battle of Lepanto.—28. St. Pius V. publishes the catechism of
the Council of Trent, the Roman breviary and missal. Palestrina.—24. Sociniauistn.—25. Heresy ofBaius.—26. Death of St. Pius V. Saints and scholar·
of bis epoch. St. Theresa. Carmelite Reform............................. Page 185

CHAPTER VI.
J I. Pontificate of Gheoouy XIII. (May 18, a. d. 1572—April 7, 1585). 1.
Election of Gregory XIII. Massacre of St. Bartholomew.—2. Success of
William the Silent, in the Nethena. Is. FeiK-cutione in England.—3. Brown·
ista Moravian Brethren. Rodolph It., emperor of Germany, obtains the
confirmation of his election by the Holy See.—4. Cardinal Henry, king of
Portugal.—5. Reformation of the Calendar, known as the Gregorian Calendar
_-fl T>-> Roman Martyrology. Death of Gregory XIII. § II. Pontifioatf

CONTENTS.

vii

or Pixtub V. (April 24, a. d. 1585—Aognst27, 1500). 7. AntewfonttofSix
tne V.—8. Life of Sixtos V., by Gregorio Leti.—9. Domestic administration of
Rome by Sixtos.—-10. Institution of the Congregation» of Cardinali.- K
Death of Mary Stoart in England. Sixtus excommunicates Queen Elizabeth,
and entera into a league against her with Philip II. Destruction of the Inti
*
cible Armada.—12. The League in France.—13. Murder of the Duke and of
the Cardinal of Guise. Assassination of Henry III. by Jacques Clément Ao
cession of Henry IV.—14. Change in the conduct of Sixtue V. toward Henry
IV. and the League. Death of the Pope. § III. Pontifioatb of Urban VII.
(September 15, a. d. 1590—September 27, 1590). 15. Election and death of
Urban VII. § IV. Pontificate of Gergort XIV. (Decembers, a. d. 1590
—October 15, 1591). 16. Election, brief Pontificate, and death of Gregory
XIV. § V. Pontificate of Innocent IX. (October 30, a. d. 1591—Decem­
ber 31, 1591). 17. Election and death of Innocent IX. 3 VL Pontifioatb
of Clement VIII. (January 29, a. d. 1502—March 3, 1605). 18. Election of
Clement VIII.—19. Clement's policy in regard to France.—20. Abjuration of
Henry IV. at St. Denis.—21. Clement receives the abjuration of Henry IV.
through Duperron and Ossat. the French ambassadors at Rome.—22. Molinism.
—23. Investigation and conclusion of the Molinist question.—24. The Duchy of
Ferrara annexed to the Pontifical States. Peace of Verrina. Dissolution of the
marriage of Henry IV. and Catherine of Valois.—25. The Jesuits restored .n
France by Henry IV. Death of Clement VIII. § VII. Pontificate of Lir
XI. (April 1, a. d. 1605—April 27, 1605). 26. Election and death of Leo
XI............................................................................................................... Page 238

CHAPTER VII.
11. Pontificate of Paul V. (May 16, a. d. 1605—January 21. 1621). 1. State
of Europe at the accession of Paul V.—2. Persecution by Taiko-Saina and his
successors in Japan.—3. Chinese missions. Father Ricci.—4. America. St.
Turribius, archbishop of Lima. St. Rose of Lima.—5. -Reduction» in Para­
guay. Rome and Venice.—6. The Gunpowder Plot.—7. Progress of Catho­
licity in Europe, under Paul V.—8. Zeal of Henry IV. for the Catholic faith
His death.—9. Death of Pani V. § II. Pontificate of Gregoet XV. (Feb­
ruary 9, a. d. 1621—July 8, 1628). 10. Election of Gregory XV. Congre.ation of the Propaganda.—11. The Jesuits expelled from Holland and called to
the University of Prague by the Emperor Ferdinand II.—12. Addition of ■ e
Palatine library to that of the Vatican by Gregory XV.—13. Reform in reli­
gious orders in France. Death of Gregory XV.—14. Saintsand Loly works io
the beginning of the seventeenth century.—15. St. Francis of Sales, j LIL
Pontificate of Urban VIII. (August 6, a. d. 1623—June 29, 1044). 16.
Election of Urban VIII. State of Europe at his accession.—17. Thirty Years’
War.—18. The Italian war.—19. Capture of La R..J.rile.—■.·■'. L-c
duchy of Urbino to the Holy See 21. Jansenius.—23. His work entitled
“ Augustinus.” The five erroneous proposition»pointed out by Cornet, syndic
of the Theological Faculty of Paris.—23. Saint Cyran. Urban V1U. forbids
the reading of the “Augustinus," The University of Louvam refuses to sut>

▼iii

CONTENTS.
Hilt to the Pope’s decision.—24. The “ Augustinus " condemned by the bnu
In Eminenti.—25. Death of Urban VIII.—26. Saintsand good works of his
Pontificate............................................................................................................Page 257

CHAPTER VIII.
HISTORICAL REVIEW OF THE SEVENTH PERIOD.

I Protestantism. Its development favored by human passions.—2. Principles of
Protestantism in their application to the political and social word.—3. Counci
of Trent.—4. The Jesuits.—5. Their constitution.—6. Their hierarchy.—7.
Labors of the Jesuits.—8. Contemporaneous orders. Congregation of the
Benedictines of St. Maurus.—9. Foreign missions.—10. Theologians.—11.
Commentaries on Sacred Scripture.—12. Ascetic works.—13. Art still subsid­
iary to the service of the Church...........................................................Page 284

EIGHTH PERIOD.
CHAPTER 1.
I 1. Pontificate of Innocent X. (September 15, a. d. 1644—January 7, 1655).
1. Features of the Eighth Period of the History of the Church.—2. Address of
the Marquis of St. Ohamond, French ambassador nt Rome, to the cardinals in
conclave. Election of Innocent X.—3. Murder of the Bishop of Castro. In­
nocent orders the city of Castro to be razed to the ground. The case of
Antonio Barberini.—4. Mazaniello. John IV., of Portugal, head of the royal
house of Braganza.—5. Treaty of Westphalia.—6. Charles I., king of England.
Covenant signed by the Puritans in Scotland.—7. Cromwell.—8. Death of
Charles I. The Fronde.—9. Jansenism. Bull Cum occasione—Respectful
silence.—10. Death of Innocent X. § II. Pontificate of Alexander VII.
(April 7, a. d. 1655—May 22, 1667). 11. Election of Alexander VII.—12.
Christina of Sweden.—18. Pre-Adamites. Abjuration of Isaac de la Peyrère,
leader of the Pre-Adamites.—14. Misunderstanding between Alexander VII.
and the court of France, concerning the administration of the diocese of Paris,
in the absence of the archbishop, Cardinal Rotz.—15. Pence of the Pyrenees,
between France and Spain.—16. Death of Cardinal Mazarin. His character.—
17. Louis XIV. His age.—18. Affair of the Duke of Ordqui, the French am­
bassador at Rome.—19. Bull of Alexander VII. against Jansenism.—20 Tte
“ Formula.”—21. Ordinance of the vicar-general of the diocese of Paris, con­
cerning the “Formula.”—22. New Formula of Alexander VII. Opposition
of tbo “Four Bishops.” Death of Alexander VII. § III. Pontificate of
Clement IX. (June 20, a. d. 1667—December 9, 1669). 28. Peace of dement
IX., o
lled
*
the Clementine Peace, in the affair of Jansenism.—24. Brief of

CONTEXTS.

il

Clement ΓΧ Io the refractory bishops.—25. Alliance between Jansenism *nd
Gallinanism. Mark Anthony de Dominie. Edmond Richer. John Laonoy.
Baillet. The "Lives of the Fathers of the Desert,” and the works of H
Theresa, translated by Amnnld d’Andilly.—26. Ellie Dnpin. Richard Simon.
Le Conrrayer.- -27. The brother» Pithou. Dupny.—28. Pascal. The Let tree
Provincial™.—29. Antoine Amanld. Work» on "Frequent Communi».' ” and
the “ Perpetuity of the Faith.” Nicole. The EeiaU de Morale.—Vv N'warj
of St. Gothard, won by Montecucnlii over the Turk».—31. Capture >f 1 indi»
by the Grand- Vizier, Achmet. Death of Clement IX..................... Page 298

CHAPTER II.
I (. Pontificate of Clement X. (April 29, a. i>. 1670—Joly 22, 1676). I. Cardi­
nal Bona. His works.—2. Election and government of Clement X,—3. The
Regale in France. Death of Clement X.—4. Spinoza. His pantheistic system
—5. Descartes. His philosophy.—6. Dangers of the Cartesian system pointed
out by Bossuet.—7. Malebrauche. § II. Pontificate of Innocent XI. (Sep­
tember 21, a. d. 1676—August 12, 1689). 8. Election and first acts of
Innocent XL His character and antecedents.—9. Splendor of France under
Lonis XIV.—10. Fleury's “History of the Church.”—11. The two funda
mental maxims of Gallicanisin, according to Fleury.—IS. Fleury's reasoning
against the exercise of the Pontifical power in the middle-ages, drawn from ths
“ False Decretals.”—18. Value of the maxim : “ The king, as such, is not sub
ject to the judgment of the Pope."—14. Difficulties between Louis IV. and
Innocent XI., concerning the Regale.—15. Bossuet.—16. Bossuet'» .etter to
tbo Pope in the name of the French clergy. Reply of Innocent XI.—17. Con­
vocation of the General Assembly of the clergy of France, in 1682. Lonit
XIV. arranges the matter of their deliberations.—18. Sessionsuf the Assembly.
-19. Declaration of the 19th of March, 1682. The Four Article
*.
—if).
Letters patent of Louis XIV., requiring all the univen-ities of the kingdom io
teach the Four Article».—21. The Pope condemns the "Declaration of the
Clergy of France," and annuls all the acts of the Assembly of 1682,—23. Pro­
test of the Catholic world against the Declaration.—23. Bossuet’s " Defence of
the Declaration of the Clergy of France."—24. Innocent XI. refuses the bulls of
canonical institution to the bishops appointed by Louis XIV.—25. The
“Franchises.” They are suppressed by the Pope. All the Catholic powers
except France submit to the measure.—26. Innocent refuses to receive Le­
vantin as ambassador from the court of France. The parliament appeals from
the Pope to a council.—27. Louis XIV. seizes upon Avignon, aad mterfens <o
the nomination of the archbishop-elector of Cologue.—28. Revocation of the
Edict of Nantes.—29. Invasion of Austria by the Turks. Mahomet IV. Kara
Mustapha. Innocent XI. effects the conclusion of a treaty, offensive and
defensive, between Leopold I., emperor of Austria, and John Sobieski, king of
Poland.—30. Siege of Vienna by the Turks. Rescue of the city by Sobieski.
—81. Condemnation of Molinos, of the “ New Testament of Mons ” and other
works.—82. Death of Innocent XI. § III. Pontificate of Alexanpu VIII.
October 6, a. d. 1689—February 1, 1691). 33. Election of Alexander VIII.

CONTEXTS

Lonfi XIV, renounces the right of the FVaaeAi»» ; restores Avignon nn<l the
Comtst-Vensiwin to the Popo.—84. Rnll Inter multiplice», condemning the
"Declaration of the Clergy of France,” and annulling all the acte of the
Assembly. Death of Alexander VIII................................................... Pace 339

CHAPTER III.
11. Ροκτιγιολτκ or Ixsocbkt XII. (Joly 12, a. d. 1691—July 12, 1700). 1. Eleotion of Innocent XII. Boll Romanum Decet Pont\ficem against nepotism.—
2. Stalo of England and of France, at the accession of Innocent XII. Peace
of Rynriok.—8. Letter of Louis XIV. to Innocent XII., disavowing the acts
of the Assembly of 1682, nnd declaring that the necessary orders have been
issued for the revocation of the royal edict which followed the declaration. 4. Letter of the French bishops to Innocent XII., declaring the decrees of
1682 nnll and void.—δ. Innocent XII. grants canonical institution to the
Üiirty-flro bishops appointed by Louis XIV., nnd consents to the extension of
the right of rtgale to the whole kingdom.—6. François de Salignae de la Motte
Fénelon.—7. Madame Gnyon.—8. Tho Maxime» de» Saint» of Fénelon. State
of the question agitated between Bossuet nnd Fénelon. Disgrace of Fénelon
9. Sentence of the Pope. Fénelon's work condemned.—10. Submission nf
Fénelon.—11. Death of Innocent XII.—12. Victory of Teinesvar or Zentba,
won by Prince Eugene of Savoy over the Turks. § II. Pontificate or
Ci.Kur.ST XI. (November 23, a. i>. 170ft—March 19. 1721). 18. Character of
the eighteenth century.—14. The question of the succession of Charles II. of
Spain.—15. Antecedents of Cardinal Albani.—16. Election of Cardinal Albani
as Clement XL—17. The Duke of Anjou, grandson of Louis XIV., is proclaimed
king of Spain, in virtue of the will of Charles II., nnd takes tho name of Philip
V,—18. War of succession in Spain, from 1700 to 1718. Reverses of Loria
XIV. Prince Eugene defeated by Marshal Villars at Denain. Treaty of
Utrecht Treaty of Rastaut.—19. The investiture of the kingdom of tho Ί wo
Sicilies claimed at the same time by Philip V. of Spain and Leopold I. of
Austria.—20. Political concessions wrung from Clement XI. by tho imperial
forces.—21. Encroachments of the secular power iu Savoy upon ecclesiastical
*.
privilege
—22. Abolition of the Tribunal of “The Sicilian Monarchy.”—
23. The "Case of Conscience."—24. Quesnel. The Réflexion» Morale».
Quenel'a pamphlet
*
against Cardinal do Noailles, archbishop of Paris.—
26. Bull of Clement XL, Vineum Domini Sabaoth.—26. The Problème Ecclêliattijue relative to the work, Réflexion» Morale». Critical situation of Cardinal
de NoaiUes. Ineffectual attempt of Bounet in his favor. Decree of Pope
Clement XL—27. The bull Unigtnilut, condemning the Réflexion» Morale».—
28. Reception of the bull Unigenilui in Franco.—29. Death of Louis XIV.—
80. Death of Hosauet Leibnitz.—81. Philip of Orleans, regent of France.
The Sorbonne. Cardinal de Noadlcs and other prelates appeal from the ball
Dnijrnitus to the “Pope better informed.” The bull Paetoralie. Edict of
Philip of Orleans, making the bull Unigenita» binding in France.—32. Ques­
tion ol the Chinee» Site». Tho bull Ex Illa Die.—33. A glance at Protestant
England. The Epiacopaliana. The Presbyterians.—34. The Qnwkore and

ι

CONTENTS

xi

Methodists.—·8δ. Collins. Condemnation of his work an '* Freedom of
Opinion."—88. The Sultan Achmed III. violates the treaty of Carlowit». Tho
Turks defeated by Prince Eugene nt Pcterwnradin nnd Belgrade. Peace
of Passarowitz.—37. Mechitarists.—38. The Plague in Marseilles in 1720.
Belzunce. Clement XI. sends three ship-loads of corn to the city of Maroilles.
—89. Death of Clement XI.—40. Saints and learned men at the close of the
seventeenth and the opening of the eighteenth centoriee. $ III. Potvihcati
of Innocent XIII. (May 15, a. d. 1721—March 7, 1724). 41. Incident in the
conclave concerning Cardinal Paolncci. Privilege of exclusion enjoyed by the
crowns.—42. Leading events of the short Pontificate of Innocent ΧΙΠ.—
48 Death of Innocent XIII................................................................... Page 385

CHAPTER IV.

Pontificate of Benedict XIII. (May 29, a. d. 1724—February 21. 1730).
1. Sketch of the progress of Jansenism by Fénelon.—2. Council held by Bene­
dict XIII. in the Church of St. John Lateran.—3. Schism of Holland.—
4. Council of Embrun. Deposition of Soanen, bishop of Senez.—5. Submis­
sion of Cardinal de Nouilles, archbishop of Paris.—6. M. de Vintimille, arch­
bishop of Paris. Submission of the Sorbonne.—7. The parliament forbids the
celebration of the feast of St. Gregory VII.—8. Liturgical revolution in
France.—9. Authors of the different particular liturgies of France.—10. Death
of Benedict ΧΙΠ. § II. Pontificate of Clement XII. (July 12. a. d. 1730—
February 6, 1740). 11. Election of Clement XII. Case of Cardinal Coscia.—
12. Affair of Bichi, Apostolic Nuncio at Lisbon.—13. Death of the Regent.
Ministry of Cardinal Fleury. War for Stanislaus Leczinski. king of Poland.
Peace of Vienna.—14. Conduct of Clement XII. during the war. Corsica and
the republic of San Marino place themselves under the protection of the Pope.
Cardinal Alberoni is mado Legate of the Holy See, in the Romagna.—15. The
deacon Paris. Convulsions in the cemetery of St. Medard.—ϊβ. Canonization
of St. Vincent do Paul.—17. View of the conduct of the parliament respecting
the Gallican Liberties.—18. Refusal of the Sacraments.—19. Voltaire. 20. Bis
Lettrée philosophiques or Lettre» sur les Anglais. condemned by the theological
Faculty of Paris.—21. Freemasonry condemned by Clement XIL—22. The
rules of the Maronite and Melchite religious approved by the Pope. Joseph
Assemani.—23. Death of Clement XIL Success of the Turks against the
Austrians. § III. Pontificate of Benedict XIV. (August 17, a. d. 1740—
May 3, 1758). 24. Antecedents and election of Benedict XIV.—25. The suc­
cession to Charles VI., emperor of Germany.—36. Frederick the Great, king
of Prussia.—27. Alliance between France nnd Prussia, to lower the houso of
Austria.—28. Maria Theresa defended by the devotedness of the Hnngarian
nobles. Reverses of the French arms. Death of Cardinal Fleury.—29. Illnese
and death of Lotus XV. Successes of the French arms. Treaty of Air iaChapelle Accession of the house of Lorraine to rhe imperial throno of
Austria.—80. Conduct of Benedict XIV. during tho continuance of rhe hostili­
ties.—31. Charles Edward.—32. Scandalous conduct of the parliament of Paris
In the affair of the refusal of the Sacraments. Representation of the bishope

II

XII

CONTENTS.

to Lonis XV.—38. Banishment of the parliament of Paris.—84. Recall of the
parliament. Fresh acts of violence. Pastoral letter of Christopher de Beantnont, erohbishop of Paris. Brief of Benedict XIV. Declaration of Louie
XV. against the attempts of the parliament.—86. Damiens.—86. Death
of Benedict XIV. Analysis of his Bullary. Treatise on the Dioceunn
.................................................................................................................. Page 444

CHAPTER V.
11 Pontificate OF Clement XIII, (July 8, a. d. 1768—February 2. 1789).
I. Conspiracy of the philosophy of the eighteenth century against the Church.
—2. Jean Jacques Rousseau.—8. Character of Clement XIII. and of his
minister. Cardinal Torregiani.—4. Political state of Europe at the accession of
CMement XIII.—6. Expulsion of the Jesuits from the kingdom of Portugal.—
6. Persecution of the Society of Jesus in France.—7. Suppression of the
Society by a decree of the parliament of Paris.—8. Clement XIII., in a secret
consistory, annuls the decree of the parliament.—9. The Seven Years’ War.
Treaty of Paris.—10. The Bull Apostolicum in favor of the Jesuits.—
II. Clement XIII. condemns the Catechism of Mdsenguy; the History of the
People of God, by the Jesuit, Berruyer; the work of Helvetius; the Encyclopmdia\ and the work of Felvonius.—12. The Jesuits expelled from Spain,
Naples, Parma and Malta.—13. Brief of Clement XIII. to the King of Spain
-14. Death of Clement XIII. § II. Pontificate of Clement XIV. (May 9,
a. d. 1709—September 22,1774). 15. Election of Clement XIV.—16. Position
of the Papacy in respect to the European Powers.—17. Suppression of the
Society of Jesus by Clement XIV.—18. Death of Clement XIV.—19. Death
of Lonis XV. Accession of Louis XVI.—20. St. Alphonsus Maria de
Lignori......................................................................................................... .. Page 488

CHAPTER VI.
Pontificate of Pius VI. (February 15, a. n. 1775—August 29,1799). 1. A glance
at the Pontificate of Pius VI.—2. Election and first acts of Pius VI.—3. The
Jesuits received by Frederick the Great, of Prussia, and Catherine II., empress
of Russia.—4. First years of the reign of Louis XVI.—5. Josephism in
Germany.—6. Journey of Pins VI. to Vienna. Synod of Pistoga.—7. Revolt
of Belgium against Joseph II.—8. Ministers of Louis XVI.—9. Opening of th·
States-General.—10. Civil Constitution of the Clergy.—11. Courageous beaiing of most of the French clergy.—12. Pins VI. condemns the Civil Constitu­
tion.—18. Captivity of Louis XVI.—14. National Convention. Trial of the
king.—16. Death of Lonis XVI.—16. Address of Pius VI. to the cardinals on
the occasion of the execution of Louis XVI. Death of Marie Antoinette. The
deign of Terror.—17. The Directory. General Bonaparte.—18. Bonaparte’»
first campaign in Italy.—19. The Directory attempts to force Pius VI. to
revoke the condemnation of the Civil Constitution of the Clergy.—20. Pin·
VI. forcibly removed from Rome by order of the Directory.—21. Death of
Pins VI.. at Valence . .
................................................... ..Page BIT

CONTENTS

MD»

CHAPTER VU
I I. Pontificats of Pina VII. (March 14, A. d. 1800-Meptembor
1833)
1. Election of Pope Pins VII.—2. The Concordat—3. The Bull Ealetia
Chruti. Schism of the “Little Chnrch." Ball Qui Chritti /)omini.—4.
Cardinal Capram in France. Translation of the body of Pine VI. to Rome.
Ratification of the Concordat by the Corp» LigitlaUf. Ceremony at the re­
opening of the churches in France.—5. Murder of the Duke of Enghien.—
6. Letter of the emperor to Pine VII. Solemnization of the marriage of
Napoleon and Josephine.—7. Coronation of the emperor. Sojourn of Pio·
VII. in Paris. Hie return to Rome.—8. Memorial of the Pope to Napoleon.
The emperor's reply.—9. The marriage of Jerome Bonaparte. Firmness of the
Pope. Benevento and Ponte-Corvo retaken from the Holy See. Military
occupation of Pesaro, Faro, Sinigaglin, and Civita-Vecchia, by order of the
emperor.—10. Peace of Tilsit. Fresh attack of Napoleon upon the Holy See.
—11. Occupation of Rome by the French troops under General Mioll’is.—12.
Bull of excommunication Qtium memoranda dû.—13. The Pope removed to
Savona.—14. The emperor appointa an ecclesiastical commission. Letter to
the captive Pope. The Pope’s reply.—15. Divorce of Napoleon and Josephine.
The case of the second marriage with Marie Louise.—16. The emperor's inter­
view with the Abbé Emery.—17. A deputation of four bishops sent to the
Pope. Concessions wrung from Pino VII.—18. First sessions of the Council
of Paris. Arrest of the prelates De Boulogne, Hirn, and De Broglie.—19.
Second period of the Council of Paris. Decree of the council. Its confirma­
tion by Pius VII.—20. Campaign of Moscow.—21. The Concordat of 1813,
wrung by violence from the Pope.—22. Pius VII. revokes the Concordat of
1818.—23. The Restoration.—24. Return of Pius VIL to Rome Restoration
of the Jesuits.—25. The “ Hundred Days."—26. Last acts and death of Pina
VII. §11. Pontificate of Leo XII. (September 28, a. d. 1833—February
10, 1829). 27. Election of Leo XII. His first allocution to the cardinals.—
28. Liberalism in Europe.—29. Count Joseph de Maisire.—80. The Viscount
de Bonald.—31. Gallican tendencies in France. The Abbé de Lamennais.—
82. Concordat with Hanover. Death of Louis XVIII.—88. Feutrier.—34
Death of Leo XII. § III. Pontifioatb of Pins VIII. (March 81. a. d. 1829—
November 30, 1830). 35. Election of Pius VIII. Encyclical letter to all ths
bishops of the Catholio world.—86. Conquest of Algiers. Revolution of 1830.
—87. Interview between Mgr. de Quélen and Louis Philippe.—38. Death of
Pius VIII. § IV. Pontifioatb of Gbeoort XVI. (February 3, a. d. 1831—
June 1, 1846). 39. Election of Gregory XVI. First sots of his Pontificate. 40. Domestic administration of Gregory XVL—41. Plunder of 8t. Germain
I'Anxerrois and of tiio archiépiscopal residence in Paris.—13. The cholera in
1832.—43. Spread of dangerous doctrines in France. Condemnation of de
Lamennais.—44. The reign of Louie Philippe.—45. Symptoms of religions
restoration in France. Death of Gregory XVI. Election of His Holiness
Pius IX —46. Conclusion................................................................ Page ÔM

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.
SEVENTH PERIOD.
From Luther to the Treaty of Westphalia (A D. 1517-1β43λ

CHAPTER I.
SUMMARY,
Pontificate

of

Leo X. (March 11, a. d. 1513—December 1, 1521).

General view of the seventh period.—2. State of the world at the death of
Julius II.—3. Election of Leo X.—4. Reinstatement of the Cardinale Car­
vajal and St. Severinus.—5. Reformatory canons of the Lateran Council.—
6. Decree of the council concerning the press.—7. Decree on the Monts-dcpictc.—8. Decrees for the pacification of Christian princes, and against the
errors of Pomponatius on the immortality of the soul.—9. Peace between
Louis XII. and the Holy See.—10. Death of Louis XII.—11. Accession of
Francis I. His policy. Policy of Leo X.—12. Cardinal Matthew Schinner
Battle of Marignan.—18. Treaty of peace between Leo X. and Francis I.—
14. Question of the kingdom of Naples.—15. The Concordat of Leo X.
bet ween the Holy See and France.—18. Review of the concordat.—17. Last
session of the seventh general council.—18. League against France. Pro
donee of Leo X.—10. Theologians. Cajetan. Adrian of Utrecht, ete.
_ 20. Linguistics. The exact sciences.—21. Historians. Machiavelli.—
22. Paolo Giovio. Guicciardini.—23. Poots. Ariosto. Vida. Sannazaro.
—24. Michael Angelo. Raphael.—25. Conspiracy among the cardinals
■gainst the life of the Holy Father.—26. Luther. The cause of bis success.
—27 Luther's first years.—28. Catholic doctrine of indulgences.-29. Lu­
ther's sermon at Wittenberg against indulgence».—30. Luther’s theses
posted upon the doors of the church at Wittenberg.—13. Keplv of T-tpM.
Vol. IV —1

2

GENERAL JI8T0RY OF THE CHURCH.

Luther before Cardinal Cajetan.—32. Carlstadt and Melancthon.—33. Bull
of Leo X. against the errors of Luther.--34. Luther burns the Papal bull
in the public square of Wittenberg.—35. Charles V., emperor of Germany.
—36. Luther’s work on Christian Liberty.—37. Eck. En.oer. Prieriu.
Catholic doctors.—38. The Assertio septem Sacramentorum of Henry VIII.
—39. Diet of Worms. Luther at the castle of Wartburg.—40. Review
of the errors of Luther.—41. Division between Luther and Carlstadt42. Death of Leo X.

Pontificate of Leo X.
*

(March 11,

a. d.

1513—Dec. 1, 1521).

1. The disorders, factions and intrigues which followed in
the train of the Great Schism of the West, had opened the
way for revolt against the authority of the Church. The
seventh period witnessed, in the rise of Lutheranism, the fiercest
storm which had yet tried the strength of St. Peter’s chair.
Heresy was introduced in various parts of Christendom, became
a powerful party in France, Switzerland, the Netherlands
and Poland, and even the established religion of the State
in England, Sweden, Denmark and in several States of the
German empire. Its establishment was the signal for a fierce
struggle between the Catholics and the so-called Reformers,
which overturned the order of all Europe until the treaty of
Westphalia. As we treat of the disturbances which ruined
the peace of the world, and compromised the future destinies
of empires and of human society itself, at the voice of a sedi
tious Saxon monk, we shall take occasion to show that Prot­
estantism was not the work of one man. It owed its destruc­
tive power to the combined force of every hostile passion, of
'very evil instinct, of every element of hatred and cupidity.
The dogmatic question was but a pretext; it was made use
of to mislead the multitude ; material interest was the true
and the only motive which led secular princes to throw off the
authority of the Church. The world had reached a state in
• For this period of the hio>«ry of the Church, we are largely indebted to the writing· ot
M. Audio, the distinguished author whose recent and untimely death ie wept by the Church
and the literary world. Audio’s Historica of Leo X. of Luther Calvin and Henry V in­
tellect honor upon an epoch, and adorn his name

LEO. X (A. D. 1613-15»)

Λ

which the names of liberty and independence seemed to present
to the over-excited imaginations new fields and boundless en­
joyment. Luther’s doctrine of private interpretation and his
principle of spiritual independence responded to the instincts
of the sixteenth century ; and hence his words exercised so
great an influence, his blasphemies were so widely repeated,
his insults so loudly applauded ; his quarrels found so many
soldiers, his proselytism so many neophytes, his license so
many imitators. From the very outset, Protestantism was
broken up into fragments and sects ; unity, which is strength,
belongs to the true Church alone. Luther would not recognize
his own work as it exists at the present time. The perpetual
mobility of error, its ceaseless changes, may, for a moment,
satisfy the natural restlessness of the human heart ; but they
leave nothing solid or lasting. This is the secret of the innate
weakness of Protestantism. It stands, indeed, as a political
medium ; as a religion, it is dead. It moves, but in a circle,
and the bounds of its conquests are not widened. It h.is
wealth, honors and armies; it has not the faith which gives
life ; it never had, it never will have a Francis Xavier, to sub­
ject new empires, to win all hearts to its sway. Circumstances
favored its first steps. The newly-discovered art of printing
carried its anti-catholic works, by thousands, to the most obscure
hovels ; the invention of gunpowder, by changing the ancient
mode of warfare, furnished it with armies ; the light of litera­
ture, rekindled at the torch of pagan antiquity, diffused over
the learned world a kind of atmosphere of inherent freedom, of
individual independence, and—it must be said—of general un­
belief, which favored its propagation. Amid these new storms,
the Church, ever great, ever glorious, ever fruitful, found, in the
new world opened to its zeal by the genius of Christopher
Columbus, a spiritual harvest which repaired the losses expe­
rienced in Europe. She was consoled, by prodigies of holiness,
fidelity and devotedness, for the scandals and disorders of Ger­
many and England ; the spirit of God had not ceased to abide
within her.

4

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

2. When the death of Julius II. left the throne of St. Peter
vacant, Catholic Europe had for her rulers—in France, Loui?
,
XII.
whose attempts upon Italy we have already had occasion
to mention ; in England, Henry VIII., the second king of the
house of Tudor, who was to cover his name with the triple dis
grace of apostasy, adultery, and barbarous cruelty, though his
gay and chivalric youth gave no presage of his future ignominy ;
in Germany, the Emperor Maximilian I., who had shown him­
self the faithful ally of the Holy See, and who was soon to
leave his crown to the heroic Charles V. ; in Spain, Ferdinand
the Catholic and Isabella of Castile were closing their glorious
career in unclouded prosperity and in the practice of virtues
equally admirable. The kingdoms of the North were, as
yet, but little occupied with the general concerns of Europe.
Italy, France and England were the centres of political interest.
The later accession of Charles V., bringing an immense com­
bination of power into the hands of one ruler, and two worlds
under the same sceptre, soon ushered Germany and all Europe
into a new sphere of action. Francis I., in setting himself up
as a rival to Charles V., inaugurated the system, followed in
France until the reign of Louis XIV., of opposing the exces­
sive predominance of the empire. The germ of war was lurk­
ing under the smiling exterior of peace, at the moment when
the death of Julius II. caused a lull in the storm which had
shaken his Pontificate.
3. On the 4th of March, a. d. 1513, the cardinals met in con­
clave in the chapel of St. Andrew. The youngest among their.
John de Medici, who was but thirty-six years of age, was
appointed to collect the ballots. His family had lately been
restored to its rights and possessions in Florence, where its power
was signalized by countless benefits and a noble patronage of
letters and the arts. After a conclave of seven days, on the
11th of March, the illustrious cardinal read his own name on
nearly every ballot he had collected. He was Pope. When be
had examined the votes, John de Medici betrayed not the least
emotion. The cardinals approached to pay their homage, and

LEO X. (A. D. 1813-16)1).

6

he affectif lately embraced them all. The youthful Pontiff took
the name of Leo X. The tidings of his election awakened
universal enthusiasm in the Catholic world, which seemed
to foreknow the great deeds that were to illustrate the new
Pontificate. Leo X. was to give his name to a whole age The
world had spoken, until then, of the age of Pericles, the age
of Augustus ; it was soon to hear of the age of Leo X.. and
later, of the age of Louis XIV. The great men to whom Prov­
idence gives the glory of concentrating upon themselves the
splendor of an entire period, belong to the whole world. Each
individual renown is, so to speak, but a tributary pouring itself
into their powerful personality ; they do not, in themselves,
possess every kind of talent or of merit; but they know how
to discern, to foster and to bring them to light; they are not
the diamonds, but they give the diamonds their high polish and
brilliant lustre. We must, then, consider in Leo X. two simul­
taneous personalities and lines of action : that of the Vicar uf
Jesus Christ, the spiritual head of Christianity; and that of the
sovereign who constitutes himself the enlightened patron of let­
ters, art and science, who gathers round his throne painters,
sculptors and architects, such as Raphael, Michael Angelo,
Bramante ; men of letters, like Bembo, Sadolet and Bibiena.
4. On entering upon his new dignity, the Pope found the
seventeenth general council assembled, though its sessions had
been interrupted by the death of Julius II. The Pragmatic
Sanction had been discussed in the preceding sessions and
condemned by the late Pope. Leo X. desired that the question
should not be resumed, as it would only tend to increase the
ill-will of the French monarch; whereas he hoped to effect a
peaceful settlement. His end was identical with that of Julius
II., but he sought to reach it by different means. He was
naturally of a mild and peaceable disposition, as he soon bad
occasion to prove by an act of signal generosity. Cardinal
Carvajal and the Cardinal of St. Severinus had taken a leading
part in the factious proceedings of the Council of Pisa, against
Julius II. On his death-bed, Julius said of them: “As a

6

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Christian, I forgive them, but, as head of the Universal Chinch,
I think that justice should have its course.” On learning the
promotion of Leo, the two culprits felt that the time had come
to seek forgiveness for their fault. Besides, the sincerity of
their repentance redeemed the scandal of their schism. They
accordingly came to Rome under the protection of a safe-conduct
from Leo. Their appearance before the council was most im­
pressive. The two cardinals, stripped of all the emblems of their
rank, were ushered into the council-hall, approached, and pros­
trated themselves before the successor of the Pontiff they had so
deeply injured. After remaining some moments in this position,
they arose ; and Carvajal addressed the Sovereign Pontiff :
Holy Father, forgive our fault; pity our tears and penance;
look not upon our sins, which outnumber the sands of the sea­
shore.” After a moment of deep silence, in which all eyes
were fixed upon the suppliants, the Pope replied : “ The
Church is a tender mother and receives with open arms all who
return to her; still, she would not, by a weak indulgence,
encourage the sinner to fall again. In order, then, that you
may not glory in your fault, I have determined to inflict a
punishment upon you. 'Have you not, by the blackest ingrati­
tude, pained the heart of your master, your benefactor, your
father, Pope Julius II., of glorious memory? Did you not
publish a sentence of deposition against the Vicar of Jesus
Christ? Now, pronounce your own judgment.” The two car­
dinals, covered with confusion, made no reply. “ Well, then,”
resumed the Pope, “ if you consent to sign this declaration,
you are pardoned by the Holy See.” The document which the
Pope handed them was a full disavowal of all their proceed­
ings against Julius II. When the cardinals had signed it, Leo
came down from his throne, and, approaching Carvajal, said to
him : “ Now you are our brother, since you have submitted to
our authority. You are the los
*
sheep of the gospel, brought
back to the fold ; let us rejoice in the Lord.” With the same
affectionate kindness, he spoke to the Cardinal of St. Severinus,
and both were restored to their dignity. The world might now

LEO X. (A. D. ) 513-15311.

augur the future career of a Pontiff who could so well combine
the high attributes of majesty and mercy.
5. The council carried on its work under the inspiration <»f
the Pope. Rome had long needed a sacerdotal reform. The
Lateran Council, obedient to the wish of the Sovereign Pon­
tiff, appointed a commission, charged to determine the means,
not only of reforming the morals of the clergy, but of bringing
them back to the purity of the early ages of the Church. This
design had been foremost in the mind of Julius II. ; Leo. X.
would not allow a thought so holy to fail of execution. The
ordinances published for that end are a monument of ecclesi­
astical wisdom and prudence. “ No candidate shall be raised
to the priesthood who is not of mature age, of exemplary
conduct, and well versed in the learning of the schools. The­
ology, the Mistress of Learning, has been too much neglected.
Henceforth, no one shall be admitted to the ministry of the
altar, without having made a serious study of the Fathers and
the canons. But theological learning is not alone sufficient for
a priest. He must also display the virtues belonging to his
divine calling ; he must live in the constant practice of piety
and chastity ; his life must shine as a lamp before men, that
God may be honored by his works. In proportion to the
elevation of the dignity, is the binding force of its obligations.
The cardinals should be models of regularity and ecclesiastical
perfection. Their abodes should be open to all men of worth
and of learning, to indigent nobles, and to every person of vir­
tuous life. The table of a prelate should be simple, frugal and
modest; his house should be ruled neither by luxury nor by
avarice ; his servants should be few, and always under the
direction of his own active vigilance; let their faults be pun­
ished, and their good behavior rewarded. He shall never give
his support to the claims of ambition ; but he must lend an
attentive ear to the petitions of the oppressed who seek justice
at his hands. He must be ever ready to plead the cause of the
poor, the friendless and the orphan. If he has poor relations,
justice requires that he shall assist them, but never at the

8

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

expense of the Church.” Each line of the decree 3oocerning
the cardinals is an anticipative reply to the calumnies which
Luther is soon to utter against the luxury of the Roman pre­
lates. “ The field of the Lord,” said Leo, “ must be thoroughly
upturned, in order to produce new fruits.” The legitimate and
peaceful reform to which this expression gave rise reached
every degree of the hierarchy. The methods of teaching were
examined by the council with peculiar care. In Florence, in
Rome, and, indeed, in all Italy, at the period of the literary
revival, it was generally considered that enough had been done
for the cultivation of the mind, when the student had been
taught to read Virgil or Theocritus, been made acquainted with
the gods of Ovid, or translated the works of Plato. Leo X.,
while encouraging the study of Greek and Latin antiquity, still
perceived the danger of this exclusive system of education.
He was unwilling that the soul should be satisfied with an
entirely sensual nourishment.
It must draw, from purer
sources, the knowledge of the higher truths revealed by faith.
“ The Christian youth must be taught that he was created by
God to love and serve Him ; and that he must practise the
teachings of the law of Jesus Christ ; let the voices of the
young join in the sacred psalmody of our churches ; let them
chant, at vespers, the psalms of the Royal Prophet ; let them
read, every night, the history of those Christian heroes whose
names the Church inscribes among the doctors, the martyrs
and the holy anchorets. The Christian child should know the
Decalogue—the commandments of God—the articles of the
Creed ; and, under the care of their masters, the students, both
lay and clerical, should hear mass, vespers, sermons, and spend
the Sundays and Festivals of the Church in singing the praises
of the Lord.”
6. It was essential to the preservation of the faith and
of morality, that they should be carefully guarded against
the influence of licentious and irreligious writings. “ By
multiplying the literary master-pieces of classical **
antiquity,
says a contemporary writer, “ the art of printing has so

LEO X. <-A. D. 1513-1521).

9

materially lowered their value, that a work formerly worth 8
hundred gold crowns now costs hardly twenty. Moreover, it in
well printed and cleared of the gross errors which disgraced it
in the manuscript.” This marvellous invention, however, did
not only facilitate the diffusion of useful and virtuous works.
The danger was .as much increased as the advantage ; and it
was felt even at this early date. Vitalis of Thebes, a professor
of law, complains, in the year 1500, of the boldness of those
typographers who yielded to the attraction of dishonorable gain,
and did not blush to print the books of authors “ who spoke
in a strain unheard even in the old Lupercalia.” The council
was therefore obliged, in its care of faith and morals, to treat
the great subject of the press, which has never ceased to agitate
and disturb the world. The decree published by Leo X., with
the consent of the Fathers, is too important not to be quoted
entire. “ Among the multiplied cares which weigh upon Us,
one of the first and most unceasing is to recall to the way of
truth, those minds which have been led astray, and to win
them back to God, by the help of His holy grace. This is
truly the object of Our most heartfelt desires, of Our tenderest
affections, of our most active vigilance. Now, We have learned,
by the complaints which reach Us from all directions, that the
art of printing—which, by the divine goodness, has been con­
stantly perfecting itself in our age, although well calculated,
by the great number of books which it places, at a reduced
value, in the hands of all, to advance the cause of literature and
science, and to form scholars in all languages, whom We would
wish to see, in great numbers, in the Roman Church, since they
are enabled to convert the unbelievers, to instruct them, and to
bring them by holy teachings into the true fold—has, never­
theless, become a source of evil, by the bold undertakings of the
masters of the art ; that in all parts of the world, these masters
have not hesitated to print works translated from the Greek,
Hebrew, Arabic, or Chaldean tongue into Latin, or originally
written in Latin or in the vulgar tongue; containing errors
against faith, dangerous teachings contrary to Christian morality.

K»

GIWERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

attacks upon the reputation of individuals, even upon persons in
the highest dignities; and that the reading of such works, far
from improving the mind, leads to the most fatal errors in mat.
ters of faith and public morality, thus giving rise to a (rain of
scandals, and threatening the world with yet greater woes.
Wherefore, lest an art so happily invented for the glory of
God, the spread of the faith and the diffusion of useful knowl­
edge, should be turned to a contrary use, and become an
obstacle to the salvation of the faithful of Christ’s flock, We
deem it Our duty to watch carefully over the printing of books,
in order that cockle may not grow up with the wheat, that
poison be not mingled with the healing draught. Earnestly
desiring to provide against the evil in due time, in order that
the typographical art may prosper in proportion to the care
and watchfulness bestowed upon it, with the advice and consent
of the Sacred College, We decree and ordain that henceforth,
and for all future time, no one shall print or cause to be printed
any book in Our city, or in any other city or diocese whatever,
until it shall have been carefully examined, approved and
signed in Rome, by Our vicar, and in the various dioceses by
the bishop or by any person of his appointment, who must be
competent to judge of the matter treated in the work; this We
decree under pain of excommunication.” This decree was an
important measure of social and religious order. The censor­
ship of an ecclesiastical tribunal in Rome and in each diocese, if
always respected, would have saved the world an incalculable
amount of evil. The measure was perfectly warrantable in fact
and in law. What government is willing to bear the insults of
its subjects, to cover its administration with disgrace ? But
if in this instance the crime resides in the words, shall printing,
which is but the multiplication, the reproduction and even the
perpetuation of these words, alone escape the check? Or,
viewing the question in another light, can the pastors of souls
allow the flock intrusted to their care, to be depraved by the
free circulation of impious doctrines, tending to overthrow all
order ? With the mission to act as our guides and fathers, did

LEO X. (Λ. D. 1513-1521).

1ι

they not likewise receive the power to guard us against all the
sources of corruption, license and impiety ? In taking these
precautionary measures against the abuse of the press, Leo X
and the Latcran Council proved themselves the guardians of
faith and morals, of the public peace and order. They had
deserved well of mankind. The decree we have just cited was
a remote preparation for the establishment of the tribunal of the
Index, definitively constituted by the Council of Trent, and
which has since, like a watchful sentinel, stood guard over the
public morals, giving timely warning of the shoals to be avoided,
the dangerous errors to be branded, the false teachings and
criminal theories to be condemned. While thus regulating the
use of printing, for the benefit of the Catholic world, the Pope
was erecting in Rome the College of the Sapienza. which was
to become the model of all universities, and to gather within
its walls the most eminent representatives of literature tnd
science from all parts of Italy.
7. The Lateran Council overlooked nothing that concerned
the general good. Usury had been the plague of the middleages. The needy were sacrificed to the rapacity of the Jews,
who lent money, at exorbitant rates, and thus succeeded in al­
most draining the wealth of Christendom. More than once, es­
pecially in the days of the Crusades, princes had pledged their
ostates or their provinces to raise the means necessary for those
expeditions. But the poor were the greatest sufferers by these
exactions of the children of Israel. The first effort to deliver
the world from the rapacity of these usurers was made at Peru­
gia, in the latter half of the fifteenth century, by Barnabas of
Terni, a Recollet, or Minor of the strict observance. He pro­
posed to make a general collection through the city, and to ap­
ply the proceeds to the establishment of a bank for the relief of
the needy. God lent a winning power to his words, for he had
hardly exposed his design, when all the inhabitants of Perugia
brought their jewels, gems and gold, with large suras of money as
a capital for the charitable institution which was called the Montde-piété. The institution of the poor monk was soon known in al!

12

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

the cities of Italy. The laborer, when in want, was no longei
obliged to have recourse to a Jew. By pledging some article of
his poor furniture, he received a certain amount of money, which
he was to return at a stated time, with no other interest than a
small sum to cover the indispensable expenses of the bank. Still
this institution, like every other truly useful invention, was
subject to detraction. Some theologians thought that it pos·
sessed all the essential properties of usury, under another form.
A violent discussion ensued, but without any definite result ;
and the question was brought before the general council. The
Fathers to whom the matter was thus referred were well known
for their learning and charity. After a long and serious delibera­
tion, in the course of which the numerous writings of both par­
ties were carefully examined, the judgment was pronounced
in a Papal decree. Leo, after a brief review of the whole de­
bate. acknowledges that a sincere love of justice, an enlightened
zeal for the truth and an ardent charity, actuated both the op­
ponents and the defenders of the Mont-de-piété ; but he adds
that it is time, for the interest of religion, to put an end to the
disputes which jeopard the peace of the Christian world. He
to whom Christ has intrusted the care of souls, the guardian of
the interests of the poor, the comforter of the suffering, forbids
any one to tax with usury the institutions founded and approv­
ed by the authority of the Apostolic See, and which require
from the borrower but a trifling sum to cover the necessary ex­
penses of their administration. He approves them as real in­
stitutions of charity, which it is well to protect and to propa­
gate.
8. The general peace of Christendom was the object which
Leo X. had most at heart, and he submitted to the council a de­
cree bearing upon this point. Nuncios were sent to the various
European courts, to present these views and to secure their
adoption by the different sovereigns. True to the traditions of
his predecessors, Leo meditated a formidable expedition against
the Turks ; but, as in the case of the former Pontiffs, the glo­
rious project, worthy of the head of Christendom, was thwarted

LEO X. (A. D. 1513-1521).

13

by the disgraceful indifference of the European sovereigns.
The exclusive study of Latin and Greek authors, with the pre­
dominance of Platonism, fostered by the revival of letters, had
introduced into the learned world, and even among theologians,
a pagan error on the nature of the soul. Virgil’s mens agitai
molem misled the humanists of the day ; they held that the soul
of the world, one and universal, gave life to all beings, and was
the same for all men, transforming itself in each individual, and
undergoing the modifications inherent in different natures. Be­
side this general soul, common to all, they admitted the exis­
tence of another, which they called the intellective, and which,
according to their theory, was mortal and perished with the
body. A special decree was promulgated by the council, con­
demning these errors. The decree of the council may have
been provoked by certain works from the pen of Peter Pomponatius (a. d. 1462—1526), a doctor of Mantua. In his treatise
on the Immortality of the Soul, the author asserts that unaided
reason would tend to reject that dogma, and that we can know
it only by revelation. It seems to us, on the contrary, that
reason rather leads us to admit the immortality of the soul. If
'ts light is not sufficient to afford it a dogmatic certitude of this
truth, still reason would rather confirm than deny it. However.
Pomponatius, whom the philosophers of the eighteenth century
would have claimed as one of their forerunners, always showed
himself a docile child of the Church. He submitted his work
to the tribunal of the Inquisition, and published it anew with
the corrections pointed out by the examiners. The posthu­
mous reputation of atheism, which it has been attempted to fix
upon his name, is but a historical fiction. Pomponatius died,
as most philosophers died at that time, in sentiments of the
liveliest faith and most edifying piety.
9. During the sessions of the Lateran Council, political
events had followed on in the course of time, and called for the
Pun tiff's undivided attention. Louis XII., made wiser by re­
verses. had consented to make peace with the court of Rome.
Ilis ambassadors came to the council, and, in their master's

Il

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

name, disavowed the schismatical proceedings of the false
Council of Pisa. Leo received the advances of the Most Chris
tian King with the joy of an affectionate father, and absolved
Louis from the censures pronounced against him by Julius II.
Every thing seemed to favor the hopes of the Sovereign Pontiff.
Italy was freed, by the victorious arms of Hungary and Poland
from the attacks of the Turks. Emanuel the Great, king of
Portugal, immensely enriched by his commerce with the Indies,
sent splendid and costly presents to Rome. Leo conferred
upon him the investiture of all the lands lately won by the
Portuguese navigators, and ruled with equal wisdom and cou­
rage by the Christian hero Affonso d’Albuquerque, sumamed
the Great and the Portuguese Mars. This succession of pros­
perous events was celebrated, in Rome, with splendid festivities,
while the seventeenth general council steadily carried on its
work of salutary reform, and Leo X. surrounded his throne
with all the splendors of art, the glories of literature, and the
grandeur of genius.
10. But the ambition of Louis XII. was not satisfied, and
he was planning a new attempt upon Italy, when he was
stricken down by a violent disease of which he died, on the
1st of January, a. d. 1515, in his palace of Tournelles, at Paris.
The name of Louis XII. might have been recorded among
those of the wisest kings, had he not been led away, by a pas­
sinn for distant expeditions and military laurels, into a path
beset with difficulties and danger. At the very time when
Italy, streaming with the blood shed by his arms, looked upon
him as one of those scourges sent by Providence for the chas­
tisement of nations, France was heaping benedictions upot
his name. The public criers proclaimed his death with lhe
words : “ Our good king Louis, the father of his people, is
dead !” And the whole nation was filled with mourning. Few
princes, indeed, ever deserved better of their subjects. Nob
withstanding his many wars, he would never raise their taxes
always finding means to supply his wants, by a strict aud pru
dent economy. “ I would rather see my courtiers laughin;

LKn X. (A. D. 1513-1631).

15

at my avarice," he used to nay, “ than my subjects weepina
for my prodigality." After the example of his illustrious pre­
decessor, St. Louis, he often went in person, without escort or
attendants, to administer justice and to dictate his decrees.
He shortened the formalities of trials, but condemned any haste
in the procedure. He always kept two exact accounts : the
me, of the favors at his disposal ; the other, of the most wor­
thy persons in each province. When any benefice or dignity
became vacant, it was always filled by the most worthy candi­
date. The effects of so wise an administration did not fail
soon to appear. “ The reigns of his predecessors seemed for­
gotten,” says the quaint old chronicler St. Gelais, “ in the
happy days he gave to France.”* When he travelled through
the country, the people left their work, thronged the roads
which they had decked with green, and filled the air with re­
peated acclamations of joy, as he passed. “ He is indeed our
father,” they cried, “ he stints himself for us.”
11. Louis XII. left no male heir to the crown, which thus
passed to Francis I., the great-grandson of the Duke of Orleans,
brother to Charles VI., and Valentina Visconti of Milan. The
young monarch loved to surround his throne with men of letters,
artists and scholars. He was called the Father of letters, and
was a worthy contemporary of Leo X. History presents him
to us with all the qualities which command love and admira­
tion—he was frank, honorable, kind, generous and brave. Find­
ing his kingdom disposed by the wars of Charles VIII. and
Louis XII. to undertake Italian expeditions, he prepared to
assert his right to the Milanese, as heir of Valentina Visconti.
Were it fair to judge, from a point so far removed, the tradi­
tional policy of the French kings at this period, we might be
inclined to censure the persevering ambition which cost tor­
rents of blood, drained the royal treasury, revolutionized Italy
and disturbed the peace of the world ; and all for a result so
utterly barren. But the rights they asserted, and which, to us,
• D ne courut oncques au règne ao nul de* autres, si bon ωιηρ» qu'il « G··. durant !· ueo.'

16

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

seem questionable enough, were doubtless far more just and
well grounded, in their estimation.
However this may be,
when the new King of France openly proclaimed his hostile
intention, the duchy of Milan was in the hands of Maximilian
Sforza and defended by an auxiliary body of Swiss troops in
the pay of the duke. The policy of Leo X., in this critical
juncture, had been already determined. The Pope loved peace
and would have wished to see it reign over the whole of Europe,
but especially in Italy, for which he was planning a brilliant
destiny. But finding himself placed in the necessity of choos­
ing between the contending parties, and of throwing his author­
ity into the scales in favor of one or the other, he was bound to
uphold the cause of Italian independence, so nobly defended by
Julius II. The possession of Lombardy by the French would
have endangered the patrimony of the Holy See ; and their pre·
tensions to the throne of Naples would have made the Pontifi
cal States a constant thoroughfare for their armies. The exi
gencies of his position explain why Leo X., though drawn to­
ward Francis by a natural conformity of tastes and by a com­
mon love of art and letters, still felt bound to sacrifice his
personal sympathies to considerations of a higher order. As
bead of Italy, to which position he was raised by the influence
of his exalted rank and high personal character, he could not be
French, he must remain Italian. This political necessity has
been wholly disregarded or overlooked by some historians, who
tax the conduct of the great Pontiff with partiality and injustice.
It is our conviction, and, though a Frenchman, we do not fear
to say it, that the first and highest duty of every people is to
defend its nationality, even against the arms of France, if
France invade it. Such was the course of Leo X. ; and those
who are so ready with their censure, would have been the first
to blame him had he acted otherwise.
12. Francis concluded an alliance with the Venetians; he
was master of Genoa; the Italian waters were thus in his
power. Leo, on the other hand, joined a league against him,
with Maximilian. Ferdinand the Catholic, and the Swiss. The

LEO X. (A. D. 1613-1621).

n

Swiss were led by a cardinal who combined the military talent
ol Albornoz, the valor of William Tell and the eloquence of St.
Bernard. This was Matthew Schinner, bishop of Sion, of whom
his contemporaries said that “since the great Abbot of Clairvaux, such resistless eloquence had never been known as that
of the Bishop of Sion.” Julius II. had raised him to the
Roman purple. Schinner’s heroic nature displayed at once
the most opposite extremes. He was found almost simultane­
ously at the advance posts, in the centre, or with the rear­
guard ; a soldier in the fray, a bishop when the departing -oui
was to be reconciled with its God. Like the least of his men
at arms, he made the snow his couch, and lived, in the camp,
like an anchoret, fasting several days in the week, abstaining
wholly from meat, using no beverage but water, reciting his
office, and spending long hours in prayer on the eve of a battle.
As we have already observed, the habits of the age explain the
combination which would be wholly at variance with the spirit
)f our own times. Switzerland had, in its illustrious cardinal.
% surer rampart even than its lofty mountains crowned with
eternal snows. But both these barriers yielded before French
valor and the spirit of the chivalric monarch. The Alps were
scaled, and in less than eight days Francis was in Italy. At
the first tidings of his approach, Milan revolted and expelled
Maximilian. The French troops were within a few’ days’
march of the city, when the Cai Jinal of Sion hurried to the
rt- ;ue, with his hardy mountaineers from Uri, Uuderwalden,
Zug and Schwitz. On the 13th of September, a. d. 1015, the
Swiss poured down upon the French, charging with their lances,
eighteen feet long, and their huge two-handed swords ; without
cavalry or artillery, using no military strategy other than mere
bodily strength, marching steadily up to the batteries which,
under the able management of Genouillac, mowed down whole
ranks of the approaching column, and bearing back more than
thirty charges of those great war-horses, covered, like their riders,
with heavy mail. The dauntless intrepidity of the Swiss made
the battle of Marignan one of the most obstinate combats re

18

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

corded in history. The veteran Marshal Trivulce, who had
fought eighteen pitched battles, said that this one was “ a
battle of giants, and the others mere child’s play.” The king
was at the head of his infantry to meet the charge of the
enemy, and each soldier became a hero. The fight continued
a long time, by moonlight ; but toward eleven o’clock the dark­
ness became too deep and separated the combatants, or rather
every man stood at the post where darkness had surprised him.
Francis slept upon a gun-carriage, within fifty paces of a Swis"
battalion. At daybreak the charge was sounded on both sides,
and the fight was renewed with the same fury as on the pre­
ceding day. After a desperate struggle of five hours, the
Swiss, hearing the battle-cry of the Venetian allies of Francis:
“Marco! Marco !" and believing that the whole Italian army
was upon them, closed their ranks and slowly retreated, but
with a front so determined, that the victorious army dared
not pursue. They left more than fifteen thousand dead behind.
Francis, at his own request, was knighted on the field of battle
by the hand of Bayard. The Swiss, so gloriously defeated,
withdrew to Milan.
Their leaders spoke of peace ; but
Schinner, like another Hannibal, preferred voluntary exile to a
treaty with the French. He accordingly left Milan and retired
to Innspruck. Francis said of him to the historian Paolo Gicvio :
“ What an unbending man is that Schinner !
His fearless
freedom of speech has done me more harm than all bio moun­
tain-spears.”
13. The victory of Marignano opened the way for the king
into Italy. Leo’s policy had failed; he was obliged to bow
to necessity. William Budé, the first Greek scholar in France,
was sent by Francis I. as ambassador to Rome. The selection
of the envoy was eminently suited to win the good graces of a
Pope who loved and patronized learning ; and Leo, in return,
appointe 1 Louis Canossa, another distinguished scholar, to repre­
sent him at the court of France. These negotiations soon resulted
ip a treaty of peace. The Pope gave up Parma and Piacenza,
which were annexed to the Milanese ; Franc's recognized the

LEO X. (A. D. 1513-1621).

19

authority of the Medici in Florence, gave back Bologna
the
Holy See, and pledged himself for the independence of the
Pontifical States. On his return to Rome, with the treaty he
had just concluded with Francis I., Canossa did not forget to
represent to the Pope the deference, respect and love which the
king had always shown toward the Holy See, in the course of
the negotiation. The Ponti IT returned his thanks for these
good dispositions, by a letter in which he alluded to the many
eminent qualities Heaven had bestowed upon the youthful
monarch. Francis had more than once expressed a desire for
a personal interview with the Pope. Leo gladly assented to
the desired conference, which took place at Bologna, December
11, a. d. 1515. Francis knelt and kissed the slipper of the Pope,
who raised him up and presented his cheek. The king then
took his place on a splendid throne at the right hand of the
Pope ; and his chancellor, Duprat, made the profession of
obedience. “ Most Holy Father,” said the chancellor, “ the
army of the Most Christian King is yours; dispose of it as you
please ; the forces of France are yours ; her standards are
yours. Here is your obedient son; he is ever ready to devote
himself to the defence of your sacred rights by word and by
the sword.”
14. The Pope and the king had two important questions to
decide ; the French possession of Naples and the Pragmatic
Sanction. Francis, once in possession of Milan, wished to drive
the Spaniards from Italy and to seize the kingdom of Naples.
Since neither of these two ends could be gained without the
help of Rome, he solicited the armed intervention of the Pope.
Leo understood that, for him, togain time was to conquer; he
accordingly represented to the king the old age and infirmities
of Ferdinand, the probability of his speedy dissolution, which
would free the Pope from his obligations to the house of Aragon,
and promised in that event to consider whether his position
would authorize him to help France in the conquest of Naples,
or not. The king understood the motives of the Soveieign
Pontiff, and the question was reserved.

20

GBNF.RAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

lb. Thb question of the Pragmatic Sanction had, under
various forms, continually occupied the attention of the Roman
ami French courts. Louis XII., in his disputes with .Julius
11.. had made it an occasion of displaying his resentment
against the Pope, by giving force to its hostile prescriptions.
In the Lateran Council, Julius had retorted by laying Lho
French kingdom under interdict. Francis held a different
position in regard to Leo X. Even before the interview at
Bulogna, both sovereigns entertained the same view concern­
ing the necessity of annulling the decree ; but the matter
was one of too much importance to be settled within the few
days they had passed together. When they separated, after the
interview of Bologna, the Pope left the Cardinals of Ancona and
of Santi-Quatri, and the king his chancellor, Duprat, with full
powers to conclude, by a concordat, an amicable settlement of the
difficulties which had so long divided the Church and France.
The negotiations between the cardinals and the chancellor lasted
until the 18th of August, a. d. 1017, when the agreement known
as the Concordat of Leo X.was published in Rome with the ap­
probation of the Holy See, and continued to govern the church
of France until the Concordat of 1802. It brought considerable
changes into the existing system of elections. We quote a few
of the most important clauses : By the fourth and tenth articles,
the cathedral and metropolitan churches are deprived of the right
of election.—■“ Within six months after the vacancy of any
charge, the king shall name a doctor or a licentiate in theology or
law, possessing all the necessary qualifications ; the choice to be
confirmed by the Pope.” The same law holds for abbeys and
conventual priories.—“ In every cathedral a prebend shall be
reserved for a doctor, or licentiate, or bachelor of theology, who
must have studied ten years in a university. The prebendary,
with the title of Théologal, shall lecture at least once a week,
and may absent himself from choir duty without losing any of
the emoluments attached to personal residence. A thud of the
benefices, of whatever kind, shall be hereafter reserved for those
who have taken degrees in the University.”
The con-

LEO X. (A. D. 1613-1531).

21

cordât regulator! the period for studies ; ten years for doctor·
and licentiates in theology ; seven years for doctors in law or
medicine ; five years for licentiates and masters-ofarts ; five
years for bachelors-of-laws.—“ In the collation of a benefice, the
preference shall be given to the oldest or highest in degrees, in
any one faculty, or to one who has taken degrees in a higher
faculty. A doctor shall take precedence of a licentiate, a licen­
tiate of a bachelor ; theology must rank above law, law above
medicine ; and, as a mark of honor to sacred studies, bachelors
in theology shall be preferred to licentiates of inferior faculties.
The cure of city or suburban parishes shall be granted only to
graduates, or to those who have studied at least three years in
the schools of theology or law, or to masters-of-arts. Scandal­
ous clerics shall be punished by suspension from their benefices
and then by the loss of the benefices and disqualification for
Holy Orders.”
16. We have given the substance of the concordat to which
Leo X. has attached his name; a work of which the Papacy
may justly be proud. In speaking of the Pragmatic Sanction,
the Pope remarked, that it gave up the Church of France to in­
trigue, violence and simony. “ It is an unquestionable *fact,
says a late French writer, “ that the elections reestablished
by the Council of Basle were but a fiction. In each prov­
ince the nobles made themselves masters of at least the high­
est dignities; they had, to a certain extent, some right to
the nomination, as patrons of the churches, or as descendants
or the pious founders.”* To put an end to such a state of
things was a real benefit. Still, passion, animosity and hate
leagued together to oppose the work of Leo X. The partisans
of what were so improperly called the Gallican lihertiu protended that the Pope had overstepped the bounds of his au­
thority in this radical change of the system of ecclesiastical
elections. The same absurd outcry has ever been raised against
each great act of the Papacy. The Church, like every other
• Essay ou Æueas Sylvius, by M Vx&dubk. 8vo, Pari», 1843, p. 81

22

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

social body, has its crises, when particular evils require tho
application of extraordinary remedies. Jesus Christ, in consti­
tuting His Church to last for all ages, must have provided for all
the necessities of its future existence ; and this He did by giv­
ing to Peter and to his successors the authority to bind and to
loose, to confirm his brethren in the faith. Besides, in the case
in question, abstracting from all idea of lawful authority, the
step taken by Leo X. is abundantly justified by motives of
present necessity. Doubtless it was a good and holy custom
that allowed the clergy to choose their own pastor in the days
of faith, piety and peace. But when morality becomes cor­
rupted, when sacred studies are neglected and the minds of
men are disordered, then scandals more readily make their way
into the sanctuary. It is no longer worth, but wealth, that gives
the best claim to preferment ; learning and virtue, without the
appanage of wealth, must yield to the influence of riches, which
are often the fruit of dishonesty or sin. The sovereign’s choice,
confirmed by the Holy See, put an end to all abuses, to domes­
tic rivalry and hate, and gave to the successful candidate the
twofold support of the spiritual and temporal authority, in their
highest expression. “ The bull of Leo X.,” it is urged, “ de­
stroyed a system of discipline long in force in the Church of
France.” But it must be admitted that there are circum­
stances in which h. departure from the ordinary rule becomes a
necessity. And who is to decide when that necessity exists ?
Is it the priest, who has not the fulness of the priesthood, but
is “ a branch,” says Thomassin, “ of that divine tree of which
the bishop is the trunk?” Is it the bishop, whose jurisdiction,
though divine, can only be exercised within the limits and on
the subjects prescribed by the Sovereign Pontiff, “ to whom it
belongs to extend or to retrench them ?” as the Cardinal of
Lorraine proclaimed in the Council of Trent ? “ Since the Pri­
macy was given to St. Peter to remove all occasion of schism,”
says St Jerome, “the Pope alone has the right to make laws
that shall bind the Church ; but these laws, being, by then
nature, variable, cannot bind him so far that he may not dero­

LEO X. (λ. D. 1613-1531).

23

gate from them for just reasons, of which he alone is to be the
judge.”
17. The concordat was read in the Lateran Council before
being made public. The last act of the Fathers was the forma,
approval of the agreement. On the 16th of March, a. d. 1517,
Leo X. presided at the last session, which numbered one hun­
dred and ten prelates. The questions which had occasioned
their convocation were happily resolved. Peace was restored
among Christian princes, a reform effected in morals and in the
Roman court, the schism and the false Council of Pisa were
abolished, and the Pragmatic Sanction annulled. Leo once
more confirmed all the acts of the preceding sessions. He also
prescribed the collection of tithes, and exhorted all beneficia­
ries to allow this collection on their benefices to be used in
the war against the Turks. The Cardinal of St. Eustathius
then pronounced the usual formula of dismissal : “ Domini ite
in pace.” A solemn Te Deum was chanted in thanksgiving, and
the Lateran Council, which had lasted nearly five years, was at
an end.
18. The alliance between the Pope and Francis I. was
viewed with apprehension by Austria and Spain. The Em­
peror Maximilian and Ferdinand the Catholic both sought an
alliance with Henry VIII. of England. The favor of Henry’s
prime minister, Cardinal Wolsey,gave them every hope of success
when the death of Ferdinand, in January, a. d. 1516. caused a
complete revolution in European politics. The youthful Charles
of Austria, afterward so famous under the title of Charles V.,
then sovereign of the Netherlands, having succeeded his grand­
father, Ferdinand, upon the throne of Spain, needed a season
of peace to establish himself firmly in his new possessions.
Francis I. determined to seize upon the kingdom of Naples.
The reserve * question of the conference at Bologna was thus,
by the force of circumstances, once more revived to trouble the
peace of the world. Maximilian, hearing of the mtendcd
expedition, found all his youthful vigor and energy retuniiLg.
He led an armj into the Milanese, at the same time urging

24

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

his ally, Henry VIII., to invade the French roast ; but th·
king failed to cooperate. Milan was defended for the French
monarch, by the Constable of Bourbon, who had not yet dis­
graced his name by the infamous stain of treachery. The
imperial forces were repulsed in spite of the valor of Cardinal
Schinner, who led his faithful mountaineers under the standard
of Maximilian. The bearing of Leo X. amid the confusion of
war was such as it should have been. The treaty of alliance
concluded by the Holy See with Francis was faithfully
observed ; and still the Pope has been accused of displaying
duplicity and bad faith in this conjuncture. On learning the part
taken by the Swiss, in the war, the Sovereign Pontiff at once
wrote to the Cardinal of Sion : “ As soon as you receive my
letter, give up your undertaking; remain quiet, and do not
disturb the peace of your mountains. There is nothing that a
wise and prudent man should more studiously avoid than to
bring trouble into a peaceful republic, and to rouse to revolt the
land of his birth ; this is not to serve the true interests of
Christendom.” These words must have seemed hard to the
cardinal; but if the soldier might have felt stung to the quick,
the priest was there to pour oil and wine into the wound.
*
The
bishop obeyed the voice of the Sovereign Pontiff, badc adieu to
his followers, and withdrew to await the moment when the
Church should need his services Leo wrote, at the same time,
to Ennio, bishop of Veruli, his legato in the Swiss cantons :
“ As I already warned you—immediately after signing the treaty
of friendship with Francis I.—be very careful, in your dealings
with the Swiss, never, directly or indirectly, to offend his
Majesty ; I rely upon your prudence. You are aware that tho
court of France is not yet very favorable to you, it will there­
fore be of the utmost importance that you take no part in the
diets which are announced in Switzerland ; keep aloof from all
popular proceedings, showing that you have not tho remotest
intention of doing any thing that might displease the King of
•M. Acdin, Uutoire de Lion X.. I. 11, p. 168.

LEO X. (A. D. 1513-1521).

25

France.” We are at a loss to discover, in these sentiments of
the Sovereign Pontiff, the ground for a charge of faithlessness
and perjury.
19. Amid these political concerns which necessarily con­
sumed so much of Leo’s time and attention, he still managed
to give to literature, science and art the support, encourage­
ment and patronage that might have been expected from
a sovereign as enlightened as he was liberal. The science
of theology was represented in the Roman court by the
celebrated Dominican, Cardinal Cajetan (Tommnso de Vio).
Cajetan was passionately devoted to St. Thomas Aquinas,
whose works are too little studied in our own day, and
whose Sumina should be the manual of every theologian. It
was generally said that “ if the works of the Angelic Doctor
could ever have been lost, they would have been found again
in the memory of Cajetan and indeed he had learned the
Summa almost by heart. He taught theology at Padua with
distinguished success. He was heard with the same attention
and pleasure by cardinals, universities, the clergy, nobility and
people. His spirited, logical and manly eloquence subjugated
all minds. During the sessions of the false Council of Pisa, he
appeared in that city, and, with a courage equal to his eloquence,
openly reproved the disobedience of the schismatical cardinals,
overwhelmed them by his triumphant arguments, and branded
their rebellion in its very stronghold. It was then that he wrote
his celebrated treatise on The aulnorily of the Pope and of the
Council, in which he so ably defends the monarchical supremacy
of the Sovereign Pontiff. Cajetan afterward deserved, from
Clement VII., the title of Lamp of the Church. In raising him to
the purple, Pope Leo X. was rewarding both talent and virtue.
Another jromotion, at the same time, placed a»..ong the princes
of the Church the son of a poor weaver of Utrecht, destined
by Providence to succeed the Pope who conferred the honor
Adrian of Utrecht, for whom this gloiious future was in store,
had opened his way to greatness by a youth of deep and labori­
ous study in the University of Louvain. His learning was dis·

26

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

played in the treatise De Debus Theologicis, which won him the
esteem and favor of Maximilian I., who made him preceptor to
his son, the youthful Charles of Austria. The distinguished
theologian was thus to form one of the greatest princes of the
sixteenth century. His care was not lost; and when, after­
ward, from the chair of St. Peter, he turned his eyes upon his
former scholar, now king of Spain and of the Netherlands,
emperor of Germany and master of half the New World, the
preceptor had no occasion to blush for his pupil. Leo had
discerned the merit of the theologian of Utrecht, and in call­
ing him to Rome, to clothe him with the purple, he placed him
upon an eminence which he was worthy to hold. The Sacred
College numbered other distinguished theologians. Alexander
Cesarino was regarded by Paul Manutius as one of the best read
men of his day in the Sacred Writings. Jacobatio, who was made
a cardinal at the same period, has all the weight of a doctor,
in questions of dogma. His work, De Concilio, received the dis­
tinguished honor of being included in the acts of the Lateran
Council. It would almost seem that a vague presentiment of the
coming struggles of the Church, or the illumination of a ray of
divine light, had warned Leo X. to surround the Holy See with
the power of virtue and learning, to meet the assaults of
the Lutheran revolt. Prierias, whom he had appointed to
the office of Master of the Sacred Palace, was a man most
deeply versed in ecclesiastical knowle- ;e; the professors of the
Roman Gymnasium, Nicholas de Lun.
*
and Cyprian Benedetti,
were eminently qualified to lead the youthfid ecclesiastics into
the highest walks of theological science. The groundless
calumny, repeated by Protestant historians, that Leo X., in his
exclusive zeal for the encouragement of literary and artistic
merit, neglected to foster that divine science which is queen, mis­
tress and mother of all the others, is abundantly refuted by facts.
To what influence is the Church indebted for the great number
of illustrious doctors who, twenty years later, shone with
such splendor in the Council of Trent, if not to the schools
founded by Leo X. ?

LEO X. (A. ï).

27

20. The great Pontiff appreciated the advantages to be
derived from the study of languages, in clearing np disputed
passage» in the Sacred Writings, in settling their doubtful mean­
ing, and in opening to the theologian the hitherto unknown field
of the Eastern dialects. The efforts of the Sovereign Pontiff
toward this end, caused a real scientific revolution in Europe.
The Greek Fathers were studied from the original text. Lascaris and Favorino, the most celebrated Hellenists of the day,
illustrated the chair of Greek, erected for them in the Roman
Gymnasium. The Oriental languages were taught in Rome
and in Bologna by the distinguished philologist, Theseus Ambrogio, a canon of St. John-Lateran, who spoke nearly every
known idiom. Leo offered him the cardinal’s hat, which he
declined, preferring the obscurity of a life of study to the
brilliant honors of the cardinalat». He translated the liturgy
of the Eastern Church from Chaldean into Latin, and published
a polyglot grammar in Chaldaic, Syriac, Armenian, &c.. a splen­
did work, which Mazuchelli pronounces the first attempt of the
kind ever made in Italy. Another great Orientalist, Pagnini.
a Dominican religious, conceived the project of giving a Latin
version of the Bible, from the Hebrew text. He devoted
twenty-five years to this great work, carefully collating all the
manuscripts within his reach, and then took the result of his
labors to Rome. There was but one sovereign who could then
undertake the publication of so expensive a work ; and Pagnini
found in Leo X. an enlightened judge and liberal patron. The
Pope ordered the manuscript to be re-copied and printed at his
own expense. In the following year, the Psalter, with the rab­
binical commentaries, was issued from the Pontifical press.
The death of Leo delayed the publication of the remainder of
the work, though it was afterward completed at Lyons, under
the patronage of Adrian V. and Clement VII. Luther soon
afterward proclaimed that the Church kept the Bible from the
light, whereas the Popes encouraged the publication of Pagnini’s version. Leo X., /kdrian VI., and Clement VII., gener­
ously patronized the author aud his work. What is Luther
*

28

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

assertion worth when opposed to this fact? The impulse given
by Leo X., to the study of languages was soon felt throughout
Europe. It was then that Cardinal Ximenes published his
Polyglot Bible; the Calabrian Guidaccerio, his Hebrew grammar,
a noble work which he afterward revised, in Paris, where he
then held a professorship, while Francis Rossi, of Ravenna, con­
tributed the mystic philosophy of Aristotle, translated from the
Arabic. These three works bear, on the title-page, the name
of Leo X., to whom they were dedicated. This serious study
of the dead languages was of great service to the exact sci­
ences. In Rome, were translated the elements of Euclid and
some arithmetical works received from the Arabians. Mathe­
matics were in high esteem in the Italian universities. It is
certain that, before the Pontificate of Leo X., there was a spe­
cial chair of Mathematics in the Roman Gymnasium. Coper­
nicus taught the science at Rome, about the year 1500. but Leo
X. was the first to attach any honorable emoluments to its pro·
fe&?orship. The hieroglyphics of the Egyptian obelisks also
drew the attention of the learned men whom Leo had gathered
about his throne. The resuscitation of the sacred language of
the Egyptians, of which the honor is claimed by the scientific
men of our own day, really belongs to the sixteenth century
Pierio Valeriano, one of the early preceptors of Leo X., wrote
the first scientific work giving any special information on this
symbolical writing. The value of his system may be questioned,
but it cannot be denied that he has displayed a high degree of
learning, sagacity and talent in this kind of research.
21. If there be one department of human learning whicn,
above all others, requires power of reflection, varied acquire­
ments,solid judgment, a deep acquaintance with the human heart,
profound erudition and an easy style, it is undoubtedly the
study of history. Great poets and great painters are more nu­
merous than great historians. Leo X. had the glory of gather­
ing about his throne every variety of talent. Historians were
not wanting to this brilliant galaxy of learning. Machiavelli's
History of Florence, dedicated to Leo X., is One of the finest

LEO X. (A. D. 1513-1531).

29

Hiuments of the Italian language and one of the deepest works
ever written in any language. “ Machiavelli.” says M. And in,
“ must more than once have awakened Tacitus while writing
this work.” Like his severe Roman model, the historian of
Florence is grave, solemn, sober in style. No writer has ever
shown a deeper insight into the most hidden folds of the human
heart. The secret cause of every action is always displayed
by the side of the apparent motive. His flexible style adapts
itself to all subjects ; it is close and concise in his political
works; in h’story, abundant and picturesque; easy, flowing
and natural in his correspondence. Machiavelli, the republican
conspirator, the declared enemy of the Medici, found in Leo X.
a patron and protector ; he is the most complete personifi­
cation of two diametrically opposite periods. He seems to pos­
sess a twofold personality, that of the ancient Roman who has,
in his inmost heart, raised altars to liberty, dreaming impossi­
ble republics, whose citizens should recognize no distinction but
that conferred by superior virtue, and branding tyranny and
crime with the energy of indignation. But side by side with
this character, equally absolute in affection and hate, appears
the Italian courtier, pliant, intriguing, restless, ambitious of
honors and power. Machiavelli did not appear to equal advan­
tage in both phases of his character. The courtier was inferioi
to the historian, and, until the accession of Leo X.. his life was
little better than a long period of disgrace. The work upon
which his reputation is chiefly founded, is the Prince. Its ori­
gin is directly connected with the history of Leo X. At the
death of his brother, Julian de Medici, Leo, unable to take into
his own hands the administration of the Florentine republic,
was at a loss for a constitution to give to his native State.
Machiavelli, the former Secretary of the Republic, was the very
last man to whom the Pope might have been expected to apply
for a solution of the difficulty. But Leo X., like all great men,
jould appreciate real talent, even in an enemy, and Machiavelli
was consulted. This is the first instance of a prince seeking
political counsel from a conspirator ouce banished from his States

30

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

for conspiring against his own life. The Florentine answered
the Pontiff’s confidence, by the production of a master-piece
“ The Prince” gave existence to the modern political system
and raised it upon a truly scientific basis ; it must be taken only
as a series of formulas for the use of governments. The prin­
ciple of self-interest becomes, in the hands of the publicist, the
spring of the world and the ruler of society. Machiavelli is the
advocate of brute force, cunning, fraud and deceit, when power
needs the help of bad passions for success ; of clemency, gen­
erosity and all the noblest inspirations, when virtue is to be
called into action. In a moral point of view, that system cannot
be too severely condemned which makes of hypocrisy, fraud and
perjury a governmental necessity.
22. The genius of the historian always draws its inspira­
tions from contemporaneous circumstances and events. It can­
not be denied that the expedition of Charles VIII. into Italy
was favorable to the development of historical studies. Before
this period, some attempts had, indeed, been made to revive that
science. John Villani. in Florence, Æneas Sylvius, whose tal­
ents raised him to the Papacy, Poggio and Leonardo d’Arezzo,
have all left some works not wholly without merit. Yet these
attempts, however laudable, were not crowned with success.
With these writers, history becomes, at times, a mere collection
of legends, sometimes a mere journal or a simple summary of
events, recorded without method, criticism, or spirit. The ap­
pearance of Charles VIII. converted Italy into a vast battle­
field, on which the most powerful nations of the world struggled
for supremacy. Paolo Giovio undertook to write the history
of the great expedition, and as soon as he had finished the firs»
book, he went to Rome, to read some portions of it to Pope
Leo X. He presented himself at the Pontifical court without
introduction or recommendation ; he had but to make known
his name and the object of his visit, to obtain an audience.
Had he been an ambassador, the master of ceremonies might
perhaps have made him wait ; but all the doors of the Vati­
can were open to one who came in the name of the Muses.

LEO X. (A. D. 1513-1531).

31

He was accordingly received in the Pope’s apartments. Ha
read several pages of his history, and the Pope affirmed
that, with the exception of Livy, no historian seemed to him
more eloquent than Giovio. The successful historian was
speedily rewarded with the title of Roman Knight, a yearly
pension and the chair of Philosophy in the gymnasium estab­
lished by the Pope. Paolo Giovio was a philosophical histo­
rian, not contenting himself, as his predecessors had done,
with a mere detail of facts, but likewise studying and explain­
ing them ; he correctly appreciates the manners, customs, and
institutions of the various nations of which he writes ; and those
nations are the whole world. In the description of the glorious
victories won by the French arms, his style warms into new
life and color, and seems to join in the spirited charges of our sol­
diers. We have to regret the loss of five books of his annals,
the richest in great events. To the grave recital of the histo­
rian, Giovio adds the portraits of the great men of every time
and country, drawn with the pen of a faithful biographer. The
patronage of Leo X. was of signal service to him ; Clement VJ I.
afterward raised him to the see of Nocera. The revenues of the
bishopric, in which he never resided, together with the Pon­
tifical liberality, enabled him to purchase a delightful retreat
on the shores of Lake Como, where he wrote his work on the
“ Praises of Great Men,” a real gallery, into which he introduces
celebrated captains and philosophers, theologians and poets,
orators and physicians, emperors and doges, monks an·! queens.
When it became known that Giovio had planned the composi­
tion of such a work, all were at once anxious to appear in his
gallery. Hercules Gonzaga sent him the portraits of the Man­
yuan and of Pomponatius ; from Vasari he received busts of the
heroes of Roman antiquity ; from Cortes, an emerald in the
shape of a heart, and Aretino contributed a picture of himself,
painted by Titian, that the historian might spare at least the
face of him who was styled the scourge of princes. They all
knew that the only true immortality on earth, exclusive of that
conferred by religion, is given by history.—Beside Giovio,

32

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Guicciardini has also chronicled the events which took place in
Italy since the expedition of Charles VIII., but he has many
advantages over his rival ; in the first place, he was an eye­
witness of most of the facts which he relates ; again, he wrote
in the vernacular idiom, whereas Paolo Giovio made use ol
Latin, the language of the learned, and hence unknown to the
great mass of the people ; and the offices of political trust which
he held must have given him access to secrets which no other
could have learned. Like Machiavelli, Guicciardini was a
Florentine, and. like him, he had a grave and severe turn, pro­
fessed republican principles and served the party opposed to
the Medici; he had also been initiated by personal experience
into the knowledge of men and their dealings. He had hardly
reached his thirtieth year when the Republic sent him as am­
bassador to Spain. He was deputed to present its congratula­
tions to Pope Leo X., on his accession, and when the Pontiff
passed through Florence, in 1515, on his way to the conference
of Bologna, it was through Guicciardini that the republic again
addressed him. True to his habit of impartial liberality toward
real talent, in whatever political party it might exist, Leo named
Guicciardini governor of Modena and Reggio. The historian
filled the post with distinguished success ; he succeeded in com­
manding equal respect and esteem for his twofold authority as
military governor and civil administrator. Adrian·VI. kept
him in office and Clement VII. placed him in charge of the Ro­
magna. It was by thus generously rewarding literary worth
that the Papacy made itself the centre of the literary revival.
Still, Guicciardini is not irreproachable. He sometimes displays
hostile sentiments toward the Pontifical power to which he was
so deeply indebted ; his style is often diffuse ; an overstrained
patriotism blinds him to the real qualities and noble magnanimity
of Charles VIII. But these stains are unnoticed amid the beau­
ties which adorn his history. No writer, among the ancients,
abounds in deeper reflections ; he appeals to reason rather than
to the imagination. The study of the law gave him a tone of
calmness and austerity. He attributes all human events to the

LFX) X. (A. D. 1513-1M1).

35

urection of Providence. Having lived in the camp and in
the senate, among the nobles and with the people, he has an
inconlestible advantageover his rivals, and speaks with the ver
tainty of experience on all the events of his time. He had
drunk largely at the sources of ancient literature, especially
from Livy, and shows too much fondness for harangues ; some
of those which he ascribes to his characters are perfect models.
The address of Gaston de Foix before the battle of Ravenna is
quoted with special praise. However, these amenities of style,
foreign to historic truth, were but imitations of antiquity. In
this respect, the literary revival was but a copy, a species of
perpetual reproduction of a bygone age ; its writers, histo­
rians and poets all lack originality.
23. The poetic art, under Leo X-, numbers many illus­
trious names, and the great Pontiff deserves the highest praise
for the impartial patronage bestowed upon every variety and
expression of talent in this branch. The fact that Ariosto’s
“ Orlando Furioso ” appeared with a special privilege and a
Pontifical bull authorizing the sale of the work for the profit
cf the poet, shows how far Leo meant to carry the indulgence
and the prerogatives of a crowned Maecenas. We do not hesi­
tate to assert our belief that, notwithstanding all the brilliancy
and splendor of the period in which the gods of Homer and Vir­
gil returned with the almost divine language in which they
were celebrated, the world was fast hurrying astray into the
ways of error. It disowned its traditions, habits and Chris­
tian thoughts, it rejected the inspirations of the middle-ages,
though without denying the faith ; hence the strange anomalies
found mingled with the most sacred names in religion. Vida,
in compliance with Pope Leo’s wish fora poem on the birth of
Christ, anti Sannazaro, treating the same subject in harmonious
verse, fall into the error of peopling the groves and valleys
about Jerusalem with fauns, nymphs and dryads. The genius
of Christian poets was thus misled by the passion for Greek
antiquity, and the influence was too powerful to die out soon;
it ruled the age of Louis XIV., and has, even until our own
Vo· nr—r

I
34

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

day, confined the human intellect to the walks of heathen
Olympus. If it be true that literature is at once, in respect to
public opinion, a mirror and a focus, it cannot be denied that
the pagan tendencies of the revival have contributed to the
philosophical wanderings of the eighteenth century. Still, it
would be the height of injustice to charge Pope Leo X. with
the results of the literary movement of his age. A man, how·
ever great, can avail himself only of the resources furnished
by his epoch. Leo X. took the age as he found it; but he
raised it to the height of his own lofty views. He hailed the
discovery of heathen antiquities with an enthusiasm equal to
that which hailed the discovery of the New World ; he could
not suspect that its flowers but served to hide a deep abyss;
or we should rather say that his work shared the lot of all
human works, and was afterward drawn into a fatal extreme
which was preparing the way for unforeseen catastrophes.
24. The originality wanting to the writers of this period
appeared in the works of its artists. The age which cun pre­
sent, at once, two such men as Michael Angelo and Raphael is
worthy to attract the attention of all posterity. Buonarotti,
the sculptor, painter and architect, is the type of majesty and
grandeur; his name is a synonyme for every variety of talent;
his genius would have sufficed to illustrate three great men.
His every inspiration was a master-piece, received by the world
with an enthusiastic welcome ; his pencil gave to coming gen
erations the awful scene of the Last Judgment ; his chisel
shaped, in immortal marble, the sublime figure of Moses, while
his daring hand reared aloft the great dome of St. Peter s. He
had reached the zenith of his glory, when he found his palm
disputed by a mere youth, who overcame him in the most glo­
rious struggle ever known. Michael Angelo, with his austere
forms and the majestic severity of his compositions, had been
the favorite artist of Julius II.; Raphael, whose divine pencil
has idealized matter and colored his canvas with something
of the tints of Heaven, was the privileged artist of Leo X. ;
he has remained the inimitable model, the painter by excel·

LEO X. (A. D. 1513-1531).

35

lence, peerless in the past, and most probably in the fut ore.
While heathen models were reproduced in every work of art,
Raphael felt that painting should, above all things, represent
the life of the soul, the leading element of Christianity. Every
object in nature spoke to him of the Creator ; he never fell into
the error of obscuring, by excessive ornament, the beauty of its
divine origin, which dwells in every created object. No artist
ever more affectionately represented the Immaculate Virgin.
Raphael seemed desirous to consecrate his genius to the Mother
of God. In whatever form we meet his representations of that
blessed Mother, whether with her eyes cast down upon the
Divine Child in her arms, at the foot of the cross, or crowned in
heaven by the Blessed Trinity ; whether borne upward above
the clouds of heaven by choirs of angels, or gazing upon the
entombment of Jesus—there is not one before which we do not
feel almost compelled to kneel. Men speak of the different
styles of Raphael ; in our opinion, he had but one ; what is
called a change, is but a new step forward ; it is the progress
of genius from its dawn, through the various stages of develop­
ment, to its zenith ; but it is always genius. A few months
after his accession, Leo X. wrote to his favorite artist : “ Raffaello d’Urbino, it is not in painting only that you have won
undying glory among men; Bramante, before his death, pro­
claimed your talent in architecture, and named you to carry
out the work he had so gloriously begun. Your plans, which
have been presented to Us, attest your eminent capacity, and
as Our greatest desire is to finish the temple of the holy Apostles
Peter and Paul with all possible splendor, we appoint you to
take charge of the work. Remember that, in this undertaking,
you have a reputation to support, a growing name to illustrate for
future time, a worthy return to make for the paternal affection
We feel toward you, to support the renown of the great temple
yot. arc about to erect, and to show Our veneration for the
Prince of the Apostles.” Raphael had not time to carry out
his plans for the rebuilding of St. Peter’s, which many prefer
co those of Michael Angelo, because they partake mure "f the

36

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

severit) «f ancient art. The gigantic plan on which it wu
designed to rebuild the Basilica would require mountains of
marble, and, accordingly, Julius II. had authorized the Romnns
to use the remains of the ancient monuments and to make new
excavations. Sometimes a sacrilegious mallet would shamefully
deface some master-piece of pagan art. Leo X. accordingly
wrote to Raphael : “ Since it is proper that the temple dedi­
cated to the Prince of the Apostles should be built of marble
drawn from the soil of Rome itself, where it is found in great
quantities, and as want of skill in its use threatens the destruc­
tion of the most precious monuments of antiquity, We place in
your charge all work in the ruins and excavations about the
Pontifical city. We hear that some workmen, in their igno­
rance, deface marbles bearing inscriptions worthy of preserva­
tion in the interest of literature and elegant Latinity. We,
therefore, ordain that none of those old remains shall hence­
forth be used without your express permission.” This brief
saved a number of statues, inscriptions and bas-reliefs, which
now enrich the Roman museums. Leo directed him, likewise,
to complete his frescoes begun in t he halls of the Vatican, under
Julius II. The subject proposed to the artist was to represent,
in a succession of great scenes, the history of the Papacy in
the world. The illustrious painter performed his task in a
manner worthy of the noble design, and the work of Raphael
has stood through succeeding ages, honored by the enthusiastic
admiration of the world. But the splendid reputation of Ra­
phael was a source of alarm to Michael Angelo. Buonarotti
resolved to enter the arena against the painter of Urbino, and
to insure his success in the trial by securing the cooperation of
Sebastian del Piombo. Sebastian colored the canvas upon
which Michael Angelo had sketched the “ Raising of Lazarus;’
Raphael’s inspired pencil drew one of the most sublime scenes
of the New Testament : the “Transfiguration of Christ.” When
the two paintings were finished, they were brought together in
the Hall of the Consistory. The decision did not long remain
doubtful; Sebastian was a skilful master ; his brilliant coloring

LEO X. (A. 0. 1513-1521)

87

could delight the e^e, but could not speak to the soul. Rome,
with one voice, awarded the palm to Raphael. The Trass
figuration is the master-piece in every school ; the highest
effort of human power, in painting ; the limit between the hu­
man and the angelic, in art. This was Raphael’s last triumph;
genius is a slow poison, which wastes the vital powers, and
which has sent many great men to an untimely grave. During
Raphael’s illness, v, hich lasted fifteen days, Leo often sent to in
quire after the health of his favorite artist, upon whom he waspreparing to confer unwonted honors ; it is said that he ever,
intended to raise him to the purple. But, whatever may have
been his projects, they were thwarted by death ; Raphael died
at the age of thirty-seven years, having already won immortal
ity, at an age when most men have hardly begun to build thi
the edifice of their glory.
25. We have hitherto shown Leo X. surrounded by the
writers, historians and artists who have made his reign one
of the brightest periods in history. Side by side with thi.·
picture, in which the Papacy appears as queen of the world,
controlling the intellectual movements, directing genius and
guiding science, we shall now present the Sovereign Pontiff
struggling with unwearied energy against foes both interior
and exterior. We shall find parricides even in the Sacred Col­
lege, and we may need to recall to mind that among the twelve
Apostles there was found a traitor to sell the blood of the Just
One. Motives of private revenge and the rage of disappointed
ambition were the causes of the scandal which filled the Catho­
lic world with the deepest horror. Leo X. had intrusted the
government of Sienna to the Bishop of Grossetto. Cardinal
Alphonso Petrucci, of the family of the Borghese, whose ances­
tors had long held the sovereign authority in Sienna, thought
his claim superior. Being naturally of a vain and fiery dispo­
sition and excessively intemperate in his speech, he broke uut
into violent complaints against the Pope, sparing neither his
person nor his character. He even spoke openly of assassina­
tion. Bapt st Vercelli, a most skilful surgeun, who was then

38

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

attending the Pope, was induced to lend his aid to the cardinale
plans of revenge. Λ liquid poison, skilfully introduced into a
tumor, with which the Pope was then afflicted, must inevitably
destroy the august patient. Every thing was prepared. But
Petrucci, blinded by his passion, could not keep the secret upon
which depended his honor and his life. He wrote from Flor­
ence, where he was then residing, to his friends in Rome, in­
forming them of his criminal designs and execrable hopes.
The letters were intercepted ; Leo could not doubt the reality
of the plot. Vercelli was arrested, and the cardinal, summoned
to Rome on some ostensible business, came without the least
suspicion; but immediately upon his arrival, he was seized and
conveyed under a strong escort to the castle of St. Angelo.
Here he confessed his crime, denounced all his accomplices,
declared that his aim was to rid Rome of a tyrant, and to be­
stow the tiara to the aged Cardinal Riario. The cardinals im­
plicated by his confession were, Riario, Francis Soderini, Adrian
Corneto, and Bandinello de Sauli. It is not easy to conceive
the anguish that filled the mild and merciful heart of Leo X.,
at this sad occurrence. On the 3d of
* June, a. d. 1517, he
called a consistory, and, after reviewing the many benefits he
had heaped upon the cardinals, he complained of the black in­
gratitude of those princes of the Church. Then raising his
voice, he exclaimed : “ There are some among you who have
betrayed their sovereign. But, before this image of Jesus cru­
cified, I promise them pardon, if they will but confess their
crime.” The guilty cardinals were silent; then began a gene­
ral examination, and each cardinal was called upon to declare,
on oath and before Christ, whether he was guilty or not. When
Soderini approached, he at first hesitated, stammered some pro­
test, but on being more closely questioned, threw himself upon
his knees, raised his hands in supplication to his judge, and
with streaming eyes acknowledged his crime and begged for
mercy. Leo was not yet satisfied. “ There is yet another,”
he said. “ In the name of God, then, let him come forward.”
All eyes were at once turned toward Adrian Corneto. The

LEO X. (A. D. 1513-1691).

39

cardinal drew himself up and looked haughtily at the Pope;
but his assurance soon gave way ; he suddenly lost color,
threw himself, with his colleague, at the Pontiff’s feet, and con­
fessed his guilt. Leo kept his word ; Soderini and Adrian
were condemned to pay a fine ; but, moved by remorse, they
inflicted justice upon themselves by a voluntary exile from
Rome. The Cardinals Petrucci, de Sauli, and Riario, being
more deeply implicated, were solemnly degraded. The Pontifical
secretary, Bembo, read the sentence before the Sacred College,
and on the following night Petrucci was executed in prison;
Vercelli, the surgeon, was put to the torture and then quarter­
ed. This was more than enough of blood for the aching heart
of the mild Pontiff; the punishment, of Cardinal de Sauli was
commuted to imprisonment for life, and this sentence was at
length reduced to a mere fine. The cardinal wished to return his
personal thanks to Leo for this almost miraculous release. The
Pope, whose countenance bore the traces of the deep pain that
filled his heart, replied to the cardinal’s expressions of devoted
attachment : “ We are willing to believe you sincere ; God grant
that your heart prove true to the promises now made by your
lips.” Riario was treated with equal indulgence. He had for­
merly entertained relations of close intimacy with the Pope,
and wan received with more indulgent mercy. In the course
of a Pontifical mass, Leo turned from the altar,and approaching
the cardinal, thus addressed him : “ Before the body and blood
of Jesus Christ, I bring you peace; in the name of Almighty
God, I forgive any offence you may have committed against me,
and, in return, I entreat you to forget all your own feelings of
resentment.” Then extending his arms, he embraced the car­
dinal with the affection of a father.
26. But a new storm now arose, threatening not only the
life of the Pope, but the very existence of the Church. At the
voice of a single monk, Germany was shaken to its very centre ;
the ignorant and ignoble, misled by the cry of liberty ; princes
and nobles, by the hope of throwing ofl‘ the authority of bishops
and clergy ; relaxed religious, hoping to escape the obligation»

40

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

whi.h lud become a burden to them;—all classes of eociety
flocked to the standard of revolt, and the name of Luther was
repeated by every voice, as that of a liberator and a lather.
Never, since the establishment of Christianity in Europe, had
any name been so widely hailed ; never had the popular mind
been so deeply moved, or revolt been attended with equally
alarming signs of universality and violence. However power·
ful, for evil, may have been the genius of Luther, it would be
an error to ascribe to him alone the melancholy glory of the
general conflagration. His success is due to a combination of
many influences, springing from the elements of which German
society was then composed. The imperial power was as much
concerned as the Pontifical, in silencing the rebellious monk;
but it lacked the necessary means. The power of the German
emperors was neither as extensive nor as firmly established
then, as it is now.
The subordinate princes did, indeed,
recognize the imperial authority, but they might appeal from its
judgment to a council of their peers. The nobles, who formed
a prominent part of the state, lived by spoliation ; the bishops,
compelled to defend the l ights of their sees by armed force, too
often forgot the holiness of their ministry and the duties of
their high calling; the people, but half instructed in the truths
of religion, scandalized by those who should have been their
models and their guides, had become accustomed to slight the
voice and the authority of the Church. The great wealth of the
clergy had long kept alive the cupidity of the German princes
and nobles ; whoever could suggest the means of adding these
possessions to their estates was sure to be heard with favor.
The cry of reform, uttered in the Lateran Council, was the pre­
text under which the German princes cloaked their grasping
designs. This word became the rallying-cry ; no one thought
of studying its precise bearing or signification ; it was enough
that it was popular and helped to fill the ranks of the army
that was preparing to invade the treasures of the Church.
The same phenomenon has been witnessed at a later date,
when, in the name of liberty, revolution carried its ravages

LEO X. (Λ. D. 1513-1521).

41

through the blood-stained fields of Europe. The word liberty
was never even defined ; and, doubtless, those who proclaimed
it with the most ferocious enthusiasm never took the trouble
to study its meaning. So the reform, proclaimed a necessity
by the council, bore no resemblance to the movement inau­
gurated by the over-excited mind of Germany, in the sixteenth
century. The reform designed by the Church was the restora­
tion of morals to their primitive purity, the suppression of the
abuses, which had crept into the administration of church
property, during the middle-ages.· But. there could never
have been a thought of touching the dogmas or the faith which
had been handed down unchanged through successive ages.
The administrative reform was itself attended with complicated
difficulties ; for if the State charged abuses upon the Church,
the Church could, with equal right, throw back the same charge
upon the State. With a view in some sort to counterbalance
contradictory propositions, the Papacy opposed premature in­
novations, and this caution afforded the ground upon which
heated imaginations built the charge of the Church’s opposition
to the general welfare.
These impatient spirits, always
anxious to hasten the course of events, and believing them­
selves of a superior cast, whereas they were but over-rash, never
took into account the real obstacles against which the Church
had to struggle, and styled her moderation weakness ; but
thinking men, who understood that the government of the
world should show something of the patience which character­
izes the Divine rule, appreciated the moderation of the Papacy,
and looked for greater results from its action, in proportion as
it was more reserved, more mild and merciful in its perse­
verance. A man, nevertheless, arose with no genius but
that of evil, who availed himself of the passions of all, of the
cupidity of the great, of the gross instincts of the masses, re­
spectively flattering and justifying them under the name of
reform ; who claimed to be the restorer of pure morality, while
authorizing license by his writings and his example; who,
under the specious pretext of reformation, did away with all

•12

GENERAL HÎ8T0RÏ OF THE CHURCH.

euburdination to ecclesiastical authority, with all idea jf absti­
nence, austerity, self-denial and continence; enriching princes
with the spoils of the clergy; freeing conscience from every
moral obligation, to subject it to the caprice of privato
judgment, that is, to disorder; this man, thus wielding .ill the
power of hell, on earth, whose only greatness was the geneial
perversion of which he made himself the centre, the representa­
tive nnd the reflector, was Martin Luther.
*
The Reformation to
which he attached his name was a religious and political revo­
lution. At his entrance upon the scene of action, he found the
elements of this twofold movement which was to shake the
world, already prepared ; he did not create, but only used them.
The germ of Protestantism already existed before he came to
.'ester it with his passionate language, by turns biting or insinua­
ting, polished or rude, harmonious or insulting, eloquent 01
vulgar, soothing like a melody or poisoning like the serpent’s
fang. There had been reformers before the great Reformation
Luther was a name, a leader, a standard ; but he had disciplee:
soldiers, echoes, an army—all ready to hail and to follow, to
defend and to applaud.
27. Martin Luther was bom in 1483, of a poor family, of
Eisleben. His boyhood was adventurous, and he was early
called to struggle against adversity and want. While pursuing
his studies under the most discouraging difficulties at the Latin
school of Eisenach, he attracted the attention and sympathy of
a pious and liberal lady, Ursula Cotta, who furnished him
with means for his support, cared for him with a mother’s inter­
est and affection, and opened to his talent the schools to which
liis poverty might otherwise have made him a stranger
Though favored thus by Providence, he soon forgot its favors,
and looked only to the difficulties of the way before him ; his
heart, deaf to the calls of gratitude, heard only the promptings
of an unjust and ever-growing anger against humanity. At
EL-.enach, Luther studied grammar, rhetoric and poetry, under
• M Blxkc. Bitloire eallmaitiquf, t. III., paeeim.

LEO X. (A. D. 1513-IM1).

43

the celebrated teacher, Trebonius, rector of the monastery of
barefooted Carmelites. The young student soon attracted at t-ntion by his acule mind, natural eloquence, rare flow of languag··,
and his facility in composing, both in verse and prose ; h · had
nc rival among his fellow-students. Eisenach soon became t<io
narrow to limit that eager intellect, which aime 1 at reaching 'he
highest walks of science. He went to Erfurth, where he g ive
himself up, with all the fervor of passion, to the difficult study
of logic, which he afterward forsook to commune with the great
minds of antiquity—Cicero, Virgil and Livy. He read their
works, not as a student who merely seeks to understand their
verbal meaning, but withan inquiring judgment, that sought to
extract from them information, advice and principles for his
future guidance. He had, in two years, taken his degrees in
philosophy, when an unexpected event suddenly turned his
thoughts into a different channel. One of his most intimate
friends, the companion of his youthful toils and pleasures, was
struck dead at his side, by lightning. Terrified by this warn­
ing from Heaven, the young student, on the following night,
entered the Augustinian convent at Erfurth, and sent back to
the university the insignia of the Master's degrees which it had
conferred upon him. He now subjected himself to the most se­
vere monastic discipline. The thought of his friend, hurried away
without warning or preparation into the hands of the living God,
harassed his sleepless nights. Luther fasted and tortured himself
like an anchoret of Thebais, and Staupitz, the Superior of the
Augustinians, was often obliged to restrain the excessive fervor
of the neophyte. lie soon discerned, within the hidden folds
of his passionate soul, a boundless pride and an unyielding
obstinacy, which he subjected to the sternest trials. At length,
after a long and severe noviceship, Luther was allowed to pro­
nounce the usual vows, and in the same year received Holy
Orders (λ. d. 1507). “To-day," ho wrote to one of his friends, I
îay my first mass; come and hear it. Unworthy sinner as I am.
God has been pleased to choose me in the abundance ot His
nercy ; 1 shall strive to make myself worthy of His goodness,

QfiNRKAb HISTOilF OF THE CHURCH.

an>l in so far as it is possible for such a vile in iss of dust, to fulfil
His designs Pray that my holocaust may be pleasing in If is
sight." The youthful priest continued to devote himself, with un·
diminished ardor, to tho pursuit of the highest mysticism. He
took for heavenly communications the hallucinations ofa delirious
brain. His superiors sent him to Rome, in the hope that the
change might prove beneficial by varying the train of his
thoughts, and that faith would speak more soothingly to the
heart of Luther, in the midst of the Eternal City. But the
austere monk understood nothing of the splendors of Italy, of
the brilliant lustre of the Papacy. He left Rome with an anath­
ema on his lips; he was not yet, but he was soon to become
an open rebel. His faith had begun to waver, and the spirit
of the future Reformer wasstruggling within him. “ My life/
wrote Luther, at about this time, “ is a daily advance toward
the pit of hell; for I am every day becoming more wicked and
more wretched." Still his mind was improving itself amid
these interior struggles and storms which harassed his soul.
Luther was called to the chair of philosophy in the University
of Wittenberg, by its founder, Frederick the Wise, elector of
Saxony,a patron of literature and art, an accomplished musieiau,
and thoroughly conversant with the writings of the classical poets
of antiquity. Frederick had heard and admired the preaching of
Luther, and soon after obtained his appointment to the pulpit of
Wittenberg. The youth ot the city thronged to hear his lec­
tures ; they were captivated by his clear, pointed and sarcastic
style. But older and more sensible men were unfavorably
impressed by his proneness to disparage his predecessors, whose
renown was still high in the schools ; “ Echoes of the past,” he
• styled them, “giving but human sounds, like all the foolish
philosophers who seek in man the explanation of moral phe­
nomena, instead of tracing them to their source, that is to God
and to His Word." His success as a preacher was attended
with the same character of impulsive oratory and unrestrained
passion. His voice was full and sonorous, his gestures free and
noble. He had, at the very outset, announced his intention

LEO X. (A. D. I51A-I5JO.

45

jf i.-»r irritating his predecessors ; ami he was true to hi
* word
Turn’ng from the beaten track of the Schools, he affected to
draw his inspirations, texts and figures, exclusively from rhe
Sacred Writings. The applause of his hearers, who were
picaseil with his innovation, encouraged him in the dangerous
course upon which he had entered. “ Luther," said a religious
after hearing one of his sermons, “has deep penetration ami an
admirable command of figures; he will yet give the doctors
much trouble and raise great storms." His discourses already
betrayed the latent germ of the doctrines which he was soon to
profess publicly, in giving the last developments to Protestant­
ism. lie had already taught that fa th alone obtains wnat the
law requires. Without directly preaching against firsts, pil­
grimages and prayer, he exalted the d ictrine of faith alone in
such terms as to depreciate good works. He asserted that the
worship of God had been disfigured by superstitious practices,
calculated to kill the soul, and though he allowed some efficacy
to the indulgences of the Church, he still refused them the
title of spiritual remedies. We now find in his discourses the
constantly recurring formula: Salvation by faith.
28. Such was the position of the professor of Wittenberg
when Leo X., following the example of several of his pre­
decessors, granted certain indulgences to all the faithful who
should contribute, by their alms, toward the completion of the
Basilica of St. Peter, begun by Julius II.. and for thé expedition
against the Turks, which the Pope still hoped to carry out.
The Archbishop of Mentz, who was intrusted with the promul­
gation of the Pontifical decree in Germany, charged John
Tetzel, a Dominican and inquisitor of the faith, to publish the
indulgences in Saxony. The Augustinians, thinking themselves
entitled to that privilege, were hurt by what they deemed a
show of partiality toward Tetzel. Luther warmly advocated
the claim, and thus a monkish rivalry gave rise to the most
fearful storms. Before entering upon a narrative of the facts io
the case, it is important to establish the Catholic teaching con­
cerning indulgences, which were made the subject of such bitter

46

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

controversy. “ Theology,” in the words of the Fathers of Trent
‘•distinguishes in sin the guilt «and the punishment. The guilt
is the offence done to God; the punishment is the chastisement
deserved by the offence, whether temporal or eternal. The
Church having received, with the keys, the power of binding
and loosing, exercises that power in regard to sins committed
after baptism, both in the sacrament of penance and in the
granting of-indulgences ; in the sacrament of penance, the
Church remits the sin as to the guilt and the eternal punish­
ment, but not always the whole of the temporal punishment.
By an indulgence, the Church releases wholly, or in part, from
the temporal punishment which was to be undergone for sin, in
this world, by works of satisfaction ; in the other, by the pains
of Purgatory. The indulgence, then, remits the punishment,
not the guilt. The treasure of indulgences, which can be dis­
pensed only by the Popes and bishops, is supplied from the
superabundant satisfaction of Jesus Christ ; a single drop of the
sacred blood of the God-man would have been a thousand times
sufficient to redeem thousands of worlds. To these exhaust­
loss springs of merit are added—as agreeable to God and
meritorious, because of their union with the satisfaction of the
Saviour, and as applied in virtue of the communion of saints—
the abounding merits of Mary, the Mother of Sorrows, who
never had a fault to expiate, with those of numberless saints
who have suffered for justice’ sake and practised long-continued
penances to atone for slight imperfections.” The doctrine of
indulgences is closely allied to that of Purgatory. Faith
teaches us that beyond the bounds of this life there is a place
of purification where the soul is cleansed from the last stains of
sin, that, when the time prescribed by the divine mercy and
justice shall be accomplished, it may go to hike its place among
the blessed, “ for nothing defiled can enter into the kingdom of
Heaven." Faith tells us, again, that those hours of trial and
punishment, of which we know not the number or extent, may
be shortened and mitigated by works of satisfaction. Not that
•meh works have any power of themselves ; but when offered

LBO X. (Λ. b. 1S13-U21).

47

by our divine Mediator to His Father, they disarm and appease
i God of charity and of mercy. So, indulgences, like prayer·
*
or
alms-deeds, do, by the application of the merits of Jesus Christ,
alleviate the temporary sufferings of the souls of our brethren.
The Church has the power to shorten these satisfactory suffer­
ings, in virtue of the words spoken by our Lord Himself:
“ Whatsoever you shall bind upon earth, it shall be bound also
in Heaven ; and whatsoever you shall loose upon earth, it shall
be loosed also in Heaven.”
29. The Dominican Tetzel, in publishing the indulgences
granted to the whole Catholic world by Leo X., was in the
right and did no more than his duty. Notwithstanding the
disorder and license of public morals, the spirit of faith and
piety was not yet wholly dead in the hearts of the people. The
preaching of the Dominican religious was eminently successful
in Germany. In the latter end of 1517, Tetzel went to Juterbock, a small town in the principality of Magdeburg and eight
miles from Wittenberg, which city was soon deserted by its
inhabitants, all flocking to hear the preacher. Luther in vain
strove to restrain his penitents, who eagerly crowded around
the dispenser of the spiritual treasures which the Papacy was
bestowing upon the world. In a first impulse of anger, he wrote
to the Bishop of Misnia nil urgent letter, imploring him to put
a stop to what he called a scandalous traffic. As deeply
wounded in his self-loveais in his attachment to his order, he
announced that he won KI preach upon indulgences, and for
several days, closely shift up in his cell, he labored earnestly to
collect into a body all the anti-Catholic ideas which had bëen so
long developing themselves in his mind. The Church was
crowded, and in this first open expression of his thoughts, the
preacher exposed the whole substance of the system which he
afterward established. The whole of Luther’s doctrine is con­
tained in that religious instruction, which is clear, condensed,
and divided into paragraphs forming so many maxims or prop­
ositions The opinon of the Saxon monk is not mantled in
obscurity ; it appeals to the understanding, just as it was

48

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

conceived, innovating, hostile to all hitherto received doctrines,
insolent against tradition, disdaining moderation, and haughty;
such as it appeared in all the after-life of the Reformer. It may
not he out of place to quote some of the formulas which best
display the boldness of the new doctrines—“ I maintain that it
is impossible to prove from the Scriptures, that divine justice
requires from the sinner any other penance or satisfaction than
amendment of heart ; and that it nowhere enjoins the concur­
rence of acts or works, for we read in Ezechiel : ‘ The Lord will
not impute sin to him who repents, or who does good.’ We are
told that indulgences, applied to the soul suffering in Purgatory,
are imputed to it and counted in the remission of the punish­
ment which it may still have to suffer: this is an utterly
groundless opinion. Indulgences, instead of expia ting, leave the
Christian in the filth of his sin. Give first to your needy
brother, and then, if you have means, bestow them upon the
Basilica of St. Peter. If you have more than you need, and your
charity finds no poor brethren in your own country, upon whom
to exercise itself, then, if you are so disposed, give to churches,
adorn altars, and, if any remains, give to St. Peter’s at Rome,
which stands in less need of it. Indulgences are neither of
divine precept nor counsel ; it is not a commandment, a work
affecting salvation. That souls can be freed from Purgatory
by the efficacy of indulgences, I do not believe, although the
doctrine is held by some new teachers. But they cannot
prove it; the Church says nothing aboutit. In truth, it is
better to pray for them. Though some accuse me of heresy
for having told them truths which will damage their traffic,
what care I for their prating ? They are crack-brained dolts,
who have never studied the Bible, who know nothing of the
doctrines of Christ, do not understand themselves and are buried
in the depth of their darkness.”
30. Luther was now fairly started in his career ; he had
negun by an open attack upon indulgences ; he had set forth
his doctrine of justification by faith, without works, the ground­
work of his whole system. One month later, he poeted up in

LEO X. (Λ. Γ>. IM3-IS31).

49

Wittenberg a famous thesis, comprising all the points of the
discourse just quoted, and which, like a firebrand, wrapped th»·
whole of Germany in the flames of religious strife. The Au"ustinians were thrown into consternation by the boldness of
their preacher ; they begged him to use moderation and pru­
dence. But the youthful monk was intoxicated by the renown
which already attached to his name. “ Dear Fathers," he re­
plied to their warnings, “if it proceeds from God, let my work
alone, it will run its course; if it does not proceed from His
Holy Name, it will fall to the ground.” His theses, a true pro­
gramme of rebellion, were posted upon one of the columns of the
cathedral at Wittenberg (October 31, a. b. 1517). Luther's first
intention was to publish them in German, that the people might
also take part in the discussion ; the only concession that could
be wrung from him was, that he should write them in Latin
They comprised ninety-five propositions against indulgences ami
the Pontifical authority; and on the following day, one of great
solemnity in the Catholic Church, every one in Wittenberg who
understood Latin, might read: “That the Pope has no more
power than a simple village curate.—That they will be lost
who rely upon a letter of indulgence for their salvation.—That
the gospel treasures are nets whereby, formerly, souls of men
were caught; while the treasures of indulgences are nets in
which, now, the wealth of men is caught.”
31. Tetzel answered this bold tirade by a real theological
thesis, analyzing the propositions, one by one, and showing
wherein they were opposed to the received doctrine of the
Church Eight hundred copies of this Catholic treatise, calm
in the consciousness of truth, plain, clear, logical and powerful,
wer« sent to Wittenberg to counterbalance the effects of Luther’s
insolent sophisms. But the students, carried away by the im­
pious eloquence of their teacher, seized the freshly-printed
sheets, and proclaimed through the streets that they were about
to burn, in the public square, the propositions of Master Tetzel,
inquisitor of the faith, bachelor of theology and priest of the
Order of St. Dominic. A fire was, accordingly, lighted in the
Vni V —»

5”

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

university square, and a student threw the theses into the
flames, exclaiming ; “ Vivat Luther ! Pereat Tetzel !” These
tidings, and the troubles to which they gave rise throughout all
Germany, soon crossed the Alps and startled the ears of the
Papacy. Luther thought it prudent to anticipate the judgment
of this supreme tribunal, and he addressed Pope Leo X. in
terms of the deepest humility and filial submission: “Most
Holy Father, I cast myself at the feet of Your Holiness, with
all that I am and all that I have. Give life, take it away ; call,
recall ; approve, reprove ; your voice is that of Christ, who
dwells in you and speaks by your lips. If I have deserved
death, I am ready to die.” Leo yielded to the merciful
promptings of his great soul, and allowed himself to be deceived
by these hypocritical professions. Before pronouncing a judg­
ment, he wished the Saxon friar to be examined on the spot,
and the duty was intrusted to Cardinal Cajetan, the theological
light of Italy, who was then acting as Apostolic legate in Ger­
many. “ If Luther repents,” wrote the Pope to his ambas­
sador, “ forgive him ; if he persists, he must be silenced."
Luther renewed the protestations already addressed to the
Pope, but with as little sincerity. He threw himself at the
feet of the nuncio, declaring that he was prepared to disown
the offensive words used by him, if he were told wherein they
were reprehensible. “My son,” replied Cajetan, “I have not
come to discuss the question. I only ask you, in the name of
His Holiness, to retract your errors.” Luther refused, and
asked, at least, to have his erroneous propositions pointed out
to him. Cajetan quoted two, which the monk endeavored to
defend. The interview lasted more than an hour; in spite of
his resolution, the cardinal was engaged in a discussion. Al
length Luther asked three days to determine the course he
ought to pursue; the cardinal granted the delay. Before the
expiration of the term, he asked to be allowed to defend him
self in writing, which request was also granted, and on the fol­
lowing day Luther presented a thesis in which he maintained
that, in matters of dogma, a simple layman, if he rests.upim

LEO X. (Λ. b. UO3-1MI).

51

authority and reason, is superior to the Pope. The nuncio
endeavored, by conciliatory words, to recall the proud spirit to
the path of obedience. Luther made an angry reply. “ Brother.'
said Cajetan, holding both hands of the monk in his own. “ it istill time ; I am ready to intercede for you with our common Fa
ther ; only retract.” Luther was silent, his obstinacy was unbend
*
ing. One month later, appeared the bull of Leo X., which define·!
the teaching of the Church concerning indulgences, and con­
demned the new errors without even mentioning the name of
Luther. The rebellious monk now threw oil' the mask, and
gave way to the most furious invectives against the Pope
‘‘Indeed,” he wrote, “I can hardly believe that any thing so
monstrous could come from a Pope, and especially from Leo X.;
the ignoramus, who, under the name of Leo, tries to frighten
me with this brief, shall speedily learn that I see through his
idle sport, and that I shall easily counfound his wickedness
and ignorance.”
32. Once fairly started, Luther now pushed on in this new
path, with rapid strides ; he began by publishing his appeal to
a future council. “Far be it from me,” he said, “to attack the au­
thority of the Holy Father and much less to separate myself from
the Church ; but is not the Pope of the same flesh and nature
as other men, peccable and weak like them ; as likely to err and
fall as was St. Peter?” The new ^teaching was making rapid
progress ; it not only disturbed the whole of Germany but also
counted many followers. Among its most fervent apostles were
Melancthon and Carlstadt. Melancthon, though but twentytwo years of age, already held the chair of Greek in the Uni­
versity of Wittenberg. He was of a pensive disposition, with a
heart prone to mystical effusions of tender piety, and a mind
richly stored with the wealth of classic antiquity. He was se­
duced and controlled by the warm and brilliant eloquence of Lu­
ther. Carlstadt had studied both in Germanyand Italy. While
dean of the University of Wittenberg, where he held the profes­
sorship of philosophy, he had given Luther the Doctor's cap. He
was one of those minds as unsteady as the sand which is shifted

■>2

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

about by every wind. These two disciples were most valuable
to Luther, as they won over to his interest the more unlearned
with whom the names of Melancthon and Carlstadt were an
authority ; still, to tell the truth, it was not the question of re­
ligion which brought most of its partisans to the Reformation.
Ambitious princes witnessed, with a secret pleasure, the factious
stand taken by Luther against ecclesiastical authority; they
hoped that their power would gain what that of the clergy might
lose. Their blindness was undeceived when Luther’s teaching
armed a hundred thousand German peasants against the author­
ity of the nobles and rulers. The peace and prosperity of
nations is.always in proportion to the flourishing state of reli­
gion, the princes who are so unhappy as to forget or overlook
this truth are always the first victims of their own impru­
dence.
33. Leo X. cherished the hope that the German monk
would return to the way of submission and repentance. In the
year 1519, a second negotiator was appointed to continue the con­
ferences begun by Cardinal Cajetan. The Pontiff’s choice fell
upon Charles Miltitz. a Saxon +heologian. Luther did noteven
attempt to dispute with him, but assured him that the Pope
had not, in all Christendom, a more respectful, devoted and
obedient son than himself, and that he was ready to retract all
the errors imputed to him. Miltitz was deceived by these false
promises, and returned to Rome, where Leo X. heard, with
transports of joy, the false professions of the Reformer. “ It
will give us unspeakable happiness,” said the Pope, “ to see the
Church at peace, before We die.” This joy was short-lived:
the letter in which Luther was to make his abjuration to the
Sovereign Pontiff was far different from what had been ex­
pected. It was but a violent attack upon the authority of the
Pope, in which the Saxon monk seems to be trying his powers
of insulting epithet and coarse imagery. Leo had exhausted
the treasures of his paternal indulgence. But, he still hesita­
ted ; “ he loved this brother Martin,” he would say, “ endowed
with such a beautiful intellect. It is only a quarrel of the

LEO X. IA. D. 151Λ- S«l).

b3

monks.
A et it was necessary to act; Germany was in com­
motion and threatened to throw off
* the yoke of the Church, all
eyes were turned toward the chair of St. Peter, the whole
world was waiting to hear the sentence of Christ’s Vicar. At
length, on the 15th of June, λ. d. 1520, the bull was published. H
compared Luther to the heretic, Porphyry, because, like him.
he dares to insult the majesty of the Roman Pontiff, and does
not hesitate to use invectives when he lacks arguments. ‘· We
see with heartfelt grief,” said the Pope, “ that some bold teach­
ers, blinded and misled by the father of lies, are wresting the
words of Holy Writ to a false and dangerous interpretation, so
that it is no longer the gospel of Christ, but the gospel of man,
and too often even the gospel of the demon.” He adds that, in Ger­
many are renewed the errors of the Greeks and Bohemians, al­
ready condemned by the councils and by the constitutions of
his predecessors ; and that he feels this more painfully from
Germany, since the Popes, and himself in particular, have al­
ways felt a peculiar affection for the German nation, to which
the TIoly See is under great obligations, for its princes have
been the protectors of the Church, of her doctrine and her lib­
erties. “ Still," he continues, “ the duty of Our pastoral
charge will not allow Us to dissemble : We must, therefore, con­
demn forty-one propositions contained in the writings of Luther.
The unanimous voice of the cardinals, heads of orders, theolo­
gians and canonists pronounces them worthy of censure; We
condemn them as respectively heretical, scandalous, false,
shocking to pious ears, calculated to mislead the faithful, and
contrary to Catholic faith. We forbid all persons, on pain of
excommunication and privation of all ecclesiastical dignities,
incurred ipao facto, to believe, maintain, or defend these propo­
sitions, to favor their publication, to preach them, or to suffer
others to teach them, directly or indirectly, in public or in pri­
vate.” The Pope then recalls the fact that he had exhausted
ill the resources of conciliation, mildness and chaiity to bring
back the innovator into the path of obedience. “ We might,”
ho adds in conclusion, “ proceed directly against bi.i person

M

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

and visit him with a nominal sentence of excommunication,
Yet, following rather the example of meekness given by our
Redeemer, and with the advice of Our beloved brethren, the cardi­
nals, We are willing to grant him a delay of sixty days, to retract his errors and burn his impious books. If, at the expira­
tion of that time, he and his adherents have not complied with
the condition, We declare that they have incurred the penalties
due to heretics and are cut off from the communion of the
faithful.”
34. This sentence throw Luther into a rage bordering on
madness.
He immediately published a virulent pamphlet
against the execrable bull. “I hold the author of this bull,” he
writes, “to be anti-Christ, I curse it as an insult and a blas­
phemy against Christ, the Son of God. But tell me, igno­
rant anti-Christ, were you then so senseless as to believe that
men would allow themselves to be frightened ? What ! did you
not blush thus to oppose your words of smoke to the thunders
of the divine word !” Such was the style of the Saxon monk !
Such the language of the father of Protestantism ! And still
we are obliged, in quoting him, to soften the coarseness of his
expressions and images, not to soil, with his sacrilegious blas­
phemies and gross licentiousness, the pages of a book destined to
record the triumphs and struggles of the Church, the immacu­
late spouse of the Holy Ghost. Luther was not satisfied with
words. On the 10th of December, a.d. 1520, he publicly burned
the Pope’s bull at Wittenberg. On the next day he ascended the
pulpit. His revolt against the Holy See found a number of
fanatical admirers, and, amid bursts of enthusiastic applause
from his misguided hearers, Luther exclaimed : “ Yesterday I
burned, in the public square, the satanical work of the Pope. 1
could wish it had rather been the Pope himself, I mean the
Papal See. Let every Christian seriously reflect that in com­
municating with the Papists he renounces eternal life. Abom­
ination to Babylon ! So long as I have breath I shall exclaim :
Abomination!” War was declared. The schism was effected

LEO X. (A. 1). 1S13-1521).

Γ>ή

From that day, there was no longer any hope of coming to (•■•rm·
with Luther.
35. Meanwhile the attention of Europe had been, for a
moment, called away from the seditious movements of the self
styled Reformer, by political events which threatened the public
peace; the Emperor Maximilian was dead (a.d. 1519/ Charles
of Austria had already received, through his parents, the Arch­
duke Philip, «nd Joanna, daughter of Ferdinand the Catholic,
the sovereignty of Spain, with the conquests and treasures of
America ; the two Sicilies, the Netherlands and Franche-Comte.
beside the title of King of the Romans, which he owed to the
care of Ferdinand. He was active, industrious, prudent and
brave ; his vast intellect had been improved by study and by
the lessons of Cardinal Ximenes, who still governed Spain
under the heir of Ferdinand and Isabella. His ambition was
proportioned to the development of his mind, and the young
prince, though but twenty years of age, became a candidate for
the empire. Francis L. older by six years, more renowned for
his exploits, also entered the lists for the imperial prize. The
power of either of the two competitors was a source of just
anxiety to the Germans, who were jealously watchful of their
freedom. The electors of the Holy Empire were assembled
at Nuremberg, according to the terms of the Golden Bull, to
adjudge the imperial crown. Europe watched the proceedings
of the assembly with the most intense interest. The policy of
the court of Rome was clearly marked out and steadily followed.
Leo foresaw that the success of either competitor would jeopard
the liberty of Europe, the independence of the Holy See and
the peace of Italy. If Francis I. obtained the crown, there
were no more barriers of ice between France and Italy; if
Charles, already sovereign of Spain and Naples, became empe­
ror, there was no longer a sea between the States of the Church
and the realm of that prince. Cajetan was instructed by the
Sovereign Pontiff to remind the electors of the constitution
which excluded the kings of Naples from the imperial throne, and
of the danger which would accrue from bestowing the empire

56

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE vHURCH.

and the title of King of the Romans upon a youthful prince,
like Francis I., already master of the Milanese and of Lombardy.
It seemed for a moment that the neutral policy suggested by Leo
X. would prevail ; for the electors, justly alarmed at the dangers
pointed out by the nuncio, offered the crown to Frederick of Sax­
ony. But, whether from disinterested motives, or through fear of
being crushed by two formidable competitors, Frederick refused
it. The electors, in admiration of his generosity, unanimously
requested him to decide the question between the rival candi­
dates. He voted in favor of the Spanish prince ; and on the
5th of July, 1519, in the church of St. Bartholomew, the
Archbishop of Mentz, in the name of the Electoral College,
proclaimed Charles of Austria emperor of Germany. On learn­
ing this result, Leo determined at least to turn to the best ac­
count, for the Church, an election which he had been unable to
prevent. It was necessary, for the peace of the world, that
Charles should assist in suppressing the nascent heresy. There
never was a time when the union of the empire and the Holy
See was more necessary. The Papal nuncio was instructed
to confer upon the subject with Charles, who speedily set all
Leo’s anxiety at rest. On the day of the emperor’s coronation
at Aix-la-Chapelle, the Archbishop of Cologne, in full pontificals,
approached him and asked : “ Do you promise to labor lor the
triumph of the Catholic faith, to defend and protect the churches
of Germany, to uphold the interests of the empire, to be the
father and the guardian of the widow and orphan, and to
render the required obedience to the Supreme Pontiff?” To each
of the former questions, Charles had simply bowed assent ; but
at the last he raised his hand, and laying it upon the gospel side
of the altar pronounced the oath: “I will; and I rely, for
strength to keep my promise, upon God and the prayers of the
faithful ; may God and His saints assist me.”
36. The youthful monarch turned his thoughts to the most
extensive projects, and determined to make Francis I. *repen
of having been his rival in the contest for the German throne.
The King of France had won great renown at Marignano,

LEU X. (Λ. Ο 1513—1621).

67

Charles would not remain behind in the race for glory. The
disorders caused by the Reformation could not but displease
him at a time when he was preparing to use all the power of
his empire against a formidable enemy. Even human policy
urged him to pacify his new States and to check the progress
of heresy ; a general diet was accordingly convoked at Worms
to adopt some decisive measures against it. Luther had availed
himself of the interval of truce afforded by the election, to spread
his doctrines and strengthen his party. Ilis weapons against
the Catholic dogmas were not confined to libelsand insults. In
his work on “ Christian Liberty,” a grave treatise of high theo­
logical pretensions, the heresiarch had clearly laid down his doc­
trine. He carries out his principles to their last consequences,
and maintains, as truths founded on the gospel text, not only
justification without works, but the impossibility of faith with
works, which he regards as so many sins ; also the subjection
of the creature to the devil, even when it endeavors to escape
from him. By the side of these cheerless doctrines, he presents
as a dogma the impeccability of the soul which has never ceased
to believe ; “ for if I have sinned,” he says, ** Christ has not sin­
ned, Who is in me, in Whom I believe, Who operates, thinks, acts
and lives with me, and Who alone fulfils the law.” He then
tries to establish the doctrine that the character of the priest­
hood is, in some sort, infused into all mankind, as the soul into the
body ; that it belongs to every one who believes, because Christ
having joined Himself to humanity by a wholly mystical union,
the soul has become His spouse and enjoys ail the gifts which t lie
spouse bestows upon His beloved ; that all those words, priest,
cleric and ecclesiastic, signify nothing, are an outrage upon the
word of God, for we are all equally His children, His stewards
and His ministers, and so all the outward pomp of dress and
ceremonial are but vain figures, but human forms, which the
spirit of Christ should banish from among Christians.
37. Nothing can be more full, clear and dogmatic. If
Luther is right, the Papacy, the priesthood, Catholicism, are
mere human inventions; Rome is, indeed, as he styles it,

58

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

empurpled Babylon. Champions were not wanting to defend
he outraged honor of the faith ; theologians and doctors came
from all directions to give battle to this new theology. Eck,
chancellor of the University of Ingolstadt, a man of mind and
erudition, whose name was known in all the learned circles of
Germany, was first in the field. In his work entitled “The
Obelisks,” he opposes the Reformer with the constant tradition
of the Church, with arguments from the Fathers and Catholic
theologians. Every honest and unprejudiced reader must see
that Eck is supported by reason, justice and truth. But the
vorks of Christian apologists have all, in the eyes of the
nasses, precisely the defect of being too solidly right. The
neated imagination of the people requires something new and
exciting. The multitude applauded Luther, who replied to the
Catholic doctor only by the repetition of such epithets as “ ser­
vant of Satan,” “ notorious enemy of Christ,” “ theologaster ” and
“ wretched sophist.” Emser, a Leipsic professor, was not more
successful in his polemical tilt with the Augustinian monk.
“You are but a miserable Romanist,” said Luther, in answer
to his arguments. “ And now I say : Farewell, Rome, city of
scandals ! The wrath of my Master in Heaven will soon be
poured upon thee.
Farewell, abode of dragons ; nest of
vultures, owls and bats !” The Dominican Prierias, master of
the Sacred Palace, who had grown gray in the study of theology
and the contests of the schools, now came forward to take pari
in the defence of the insulted honor of Rome and the Papacy.
Luther gave but two days to the c.imposition of his pamphlet
in reply to the dialogue of Prierias. “ That old monk,” says
theheresiarch, “held the pen while Satan dictated. He would
do well, another time, to seek some better inspiration for the
Thomas he brings against me.” It will be easily seen that
sarcasm and ridicule were the favorite weapons of the Father
of the Reformation. When his opponents think to crush him
with the mighty voice of constant tradition, he maintains that
a single man may be right against Popes, councils, doctors, the
past and the present. The Angel of the Schools, whose very

LEO X. (A· ï»· 1M3-1M1).

59

name is an authority, was represented by Luther as “ a college
pedant, stringing words together, like beads, wallowing in the
mire and trying to reach Heaven by a road strewn with thorn.·
and briers.” Luther, now in the full career of skepticism,
heaped denial upon denial. He sent forth his work on
The Captivity of the Church in Babylon, in which he pretends,
by a single stroke of the pen, to suppress the Sacraments of
Order, Extreme Unction and Penance, with the doctrine of In­
dulgences, Purgatory and the Papacy.
38. The Wittenberg Reformer was now opposed by a
crowned apologist, who rose up with all the majesty of royal
power and all the logic of a disciple of St. Thomas. Henry
VIII. of England had in his youth been passionately devoted
to the study of theology. The “angelic doctor” was his favor­
ite author ; and the royal disciple had profited by the teachings
of so great a master. He did not disdain to enter the lists as
a champion of Catholic truth, and his admirable work, Astert to
Septem Sacramentorum, won for him from Leo X. the title of
“ Defender of the Faith,” which he was afterward to fori·1 it
by his own sad and scandalous defection. “ There was a time
of happy memory,” wrote Henry, “ when the Church needed
no defenders, because she had no enemies. But now she is
attacked by one who hides the wicked instincts of the demon
under an outward show of earnest zeal for the truth, and who,
under the influence of anger and hatred, vomits forth his
viperous venom against the Church. It is time to tear off his
mask. Let every soul regenerated by the waters of baptism,
and redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ, let the aged and the
young, the priest and the king rise up against the ungrateful
and the impious wretch.” Then turning to the heresiarcb
himself, the royal apologist thus addresses him : “ Deny, if you
dare, that the whole Christian world hails Rome as its spiritual
mother ! Even to the remotest ends of the earth, all that tears
the Christian name, on the sea and in the wilderness, bows be­
fore Rome! If this power is neither from God nor from men,
the Papacy must then have usurped it; Rome must have stolen

60

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

it. But when? Can you tell us the time of this usutpation 1
But if the power be of immemorial date, going far back into the
twilight of ages, then you must know that it is a received prin­
ciple in human laws, that all immemorial postession is, by the
very fact, legitimate; and that the unanimous consent of man­
kind forbids us to touch what time has consolidated.” Luther
taught, in his “ Captivity of the Church in Babylon,” that the
words of the Redeemer, “ Whatsoever you shall bind upon
earth, it shall be bound also in Heaven,” were addressed, not
to the Apostles represented by their successors in every age,
but to the faithful generally, to every man or woman who
had received baptism; thus creating a priesthood of which
every infant became a member as soon as it opened its eyes
to the light. Henry VIII. thus answers his assertion : ·* Lu­
ther says that the words of the institution apply to laymen as
well as to priests, and Bede says that they do not; whom are
we to believe?” Luther denied the sacrament of confirmation,
because he could not, he said, find any mention of its institu­
tion in the sacred text. “ How !” replied Henry, “ if you had
only the gospel of St. John, would you therefore deny the
Eucharist, because St. John does not record the institution of
that sacrament ? Without tradition you would not know that
there are gospels. Had not the Church taught us the an then
ticity of St. John’s gospel, how could we have discovered it·
Why, then, will you not believe the Church when she says to
you : ‘ This is what Jesus Christ did for us ; these sacraments
He instituted ; these things have been handed down to us by
the Apostles just as you believe her when she tells you
•These are the writings of St. Mark or of St. Matthew’?’
The work closes with a train of reasoning in perfect keeping
with the solid and powerful arguments which characterize it
throughout. “It is idle now,” says the royal champion, ;‘to
reason with Luther, who is of no one’s opinion ; who does not
seem to understand himself; who denies what he had at first
affirmed, or affirms with equal readiness what he before denied,
if you meet him with the arms of faith, he will put on the

LEO X. (A. D. >511-1521).

dl

buckler of reason ; or if you appeal to reason, he will hear of
nothing but faith ; quote the philosophers, and he appeals to
the Scriptures; turn upon him the light of the sacred writings,
and he veils himself in the sophistry of the schools. The
shameless innovator puts himself above all law, despises our
doctors, and from the height of his notoriety laughs at the liv­
ing lights of our Church ; he insults the majesty of our Pontifi's,
outrages tradition, dogma, morality, the canons, the faith and
even the Church itself.” Henry's work was presented by the
English ambassadors to Leo X., who received it with transports
of joy, and by a special bull bestowed upon the English mon­
arch the official title of “Defensor Fidei.” Henry, at the same
time, received the congratulations of all the Catholic doctors ;
Germany, Italy, France, the Netherlands and Spain—all vied
with each other in showering praises and congratulations upon
him. This unanimous salutation drowned the voice of Luther,
who made a vain attempt to overwhelm, by a torrent of invec­
tives, the masterly work of the English monarch. “ That a
king of England should have written against me." said Luther.
“ is not surprising, since even the Pope, who calls himself the
master of kings, princes, schools and churches, has taken up
his pen to attack me. But what care I for their assaults ? It
is from Heaven that I have, by the grace of God, received my
doctrine ; from Heaven and from Him. whose little finger is
more powerful than a thousand Popes, kings, princes and doc­
tors. Now, if 1 handle Henry VIII. rather roughly, let him
blame himself for it ; it is his own fault. If a king of England
flings his insolent lies in my face, I think that I have a right,
on my part, to cram them down his throat; if he easts mire on
the crown of my Master and my Christ, how can he be aston­
ished if he finds it thrown back upon his own diadem, or if I
cry out from the house-tops : ‘The King of England is a liar and
a varlet?’ But to have done with these Papists, once for all, 1
answer them through the King of England : * If age constituted
right, the devil would be the most righteous creature on thi
*
earth, for he is more than five thousand years old.'"

62

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

39. Such was the attitude of Luther in respect to Catholic
Europe, at the opening of the Diet of Worms, convoked by
Charles V. (a. d. 1521). Aleandro attended as Papal nuncio;
Luther was cited to appear, and, having received an imperial
safe-conduct guaranteeing his personal safety, he set out from
Wittenberg in the beginning of April. The debates were sol­
emnly opened by the nuncio, followed by the Catholic doctors,
against Luther and his adherents. The faith, so shamefully
insuited by the Saxon monk, was vigorously defended. With
this illustrious assembly, the abuse, of which Luther always
commanded a ready supply, could not pass for argument.
Aleandro obtained from Charles V. a decree, commanding that
all the Reformer’s works should be publicly burned, if found
within his States, and forbidding their reading or circulation.
Luthci saw that he should make nothing of an assembly so
serious and enlightened. He quitted Worms, in great haste, as
if fearing for his personal safety, and, undercover of a disguise,
Bought shelter in the castle of Wartburg, belonging to the Elec­
tor of Saxony. Wartburg was an old feudal manor, perched,
like an eagle’s eyry, on the summit of an isolated mountain,
“in the region of birds, who sing upon the trees and praise the
Lord by day and by night.” Here Luther had no cause to fear
the observation of his enemies. In this “ new Patmos,” as he
was pleased to style his retreat, under the name of the Ecclesi­
astes of Wittenberg, he recorded the visions of his excited ima­
gination and awaited a more favorable turn of events. Since
the Diet of Worms, Leo X. had issued a second bull against
Luther. After a brief historical review of the whole question,
the Pope again excommunicates Luther and all his adherent»,
lays an interdict upon all places which afford them an asylum,
and uses every available means to check the progress of a here­
sy which had already grown to such formidable proportions.
But these stern measures came too late to stay the destructive
career of the heresiarch. He continued, with increased bold­
ness, to strike at the dogmas of faith, to sap the very founda­
tions of Catholicity. His daring increased with his sense of

LKO X. (A. D. 1513-15-21).

«3

security, j nd his fiery words, borne upon the wings of the pre-s
and the voice of his disciples, to palace and hovel alike, kindled
the fire of passion and prepared the way for fresh storms The
progress of Lutheranism was indirectly favored by the enuivo
cal course of the distinguished scholar, Erasmus of Rotterdam.
The talented humanist had won universal admiration by the
ease and purity with which he spoke and wrote the languages
of Virgil and Homer. Before yielding to Aleandro’s earnest
endeavors to withdraw him from the cause of Luther, Frederick
of Saxony wished to obtain the advice of Erasmus. The illus­
trious scholar, yielding to miserable views of personal interest
and to the fear of offending the Lutherans, returned an evasive
answer, which Frederick interpreted according to his wishes,
and continued to protect Luther.
*
The fame of the great
scholar of Rotterdam will always bear the reproach of having,
by his weakness and want of decision, encouraged the first -tcps
of Protestantism. He afterward, though too late, tried to re­
pair the scandal and to measure his graceful Ciceronian pen
with the blunt speech and volcanic eloquence of Luther. But
the odds were no longer equal, and the monk of Wittenberg
easily crushed under his thundering sarcasm the harmonious
and cadenced periods of Erasmus. One happy hit of the theo­
logian of Rotterdam has, however, survived : “ Protestantism,"
says he, “ is a tragedy which winds up like most comedies; all
ends in a marriage.”
40. Luther’s mind was overheated at Wartburg, by the ex­
citement which his novelties were creating in the world, and of
which the echoes reached him from every quarter, to stir up his
ardent soul to renewed action; his ceaseless discussions with
Catholic theologians threw him into new errors, and, when it
became necessary to reduce his teachings to a system, he found
that he had successively attacked all the dogmas of faith. The
sum of his teaching is, very nearly, a complete negation of
Catholicity. The following rapid sketch may give some idea
• Palma.

Hutorùa EcdfiaitioB. t IIL. p. 307.

61

GENERAL HI8T0RÎ OF THE CHURCH.

of their bearing : 1. Luther denied all dogmatic authority in the
Church; every individual was thus made a judge in matters of
faith, depending only upon his own conscience and private in­
terpretation of the Sacred Text. This was destroying, al a
single blow, tradition, councils, the Fathers and canon law;
sacrificing all the past to throw open to coming generations a
boundless field for the unbridled excesses of heresy. This fun­
damental error was, moreover, to lead Protestantism into all the
contradictions and doctrinal variations which have since divided
it into so many different sects. 2. He rejected the Catholic
priesthood, by abolishing the sacrament of Iloly Orders and as­
cribing the priestly ministry to every one of the faithful. The
Church thus became a republic, of which every member was a
leader in equal authority. This was formally giving the lie to
all Church history, every page of which bears witness to the
divine origin of the distinction between the clergy and the faith­
ful. 3. He denied the primacy of the Pope and the authority
of the Holy See; and this error is but the necessary corollary
of the preceding one, for, in his eyes, the Pope was the anti
Christ, and Rome the Babylon of the Apocalypse. 4. He
denied free-will, and, even outdoing the repeatedly condemned
errors of Pelagianism, taught that, since the commission of the
original sin, every action, even though a meritorious one, is ne­
cessarily a sin. Faith in Jesus Christ is alone available for
sanctification, without any cooperation on our part. This was
a proclamation of the most unbridled license, the ruin of all
morality, and gave free scope to every disorder, to every prompt,
ing of passion. 5. He denied the efficacy of the Sacraments as
means of sanctification. Since he refused to admit the merit
of good works, the means established by Christ to increase grace
within us and to bear up the soul in the practice of virtue be­
came useless. He acknowledged but three Sacraments : Bap­
tism, Penance and the Eucharist, in which he recognized, how­
ever, but sensible signs which excite us to faith in the merits
of Christ, without communicating any other grace to our souls.
6 He denied the divine origin of s---- mental Confession, and

LEO X. (A. D 1513-1521).

65

.educed the sacrament of penance to individual faith in the re­
mission of sins through the merits of Jesus Christ. 7 He de­
nied transubstantiation, and substituted, instead of the Mass,
the Lord’s Supper, a mere formality, in which the words of con­
secration operate in the bread and wine only a figurative pres­
ence, thus destroying the Eucharistic Saciifiro. the centre and
life of Catholic worship. 8. His work of destruction was
crowned by the exclusion, from all Lutheran temple·;, of the
invocation of saints and reverence for their images, which the
heresiarch styled idolatry. Religious ceremonies were to him
but the pomps of Satan. Until then the Catholic priesthood
had preserved its dignity and maintained the high character of
its august mission by means of the law nf celibacy, so repeat­
edly attacked by heretics, but always guarded with equal vigi­
lance by the Holy See. Luther abolished celibacy, religious
vows and monastic orders, thus making a wide breach in the
dike which Divine Wisdom had set against the impetuous tor­
rent of evil passions. Such is the appearance presented to us
by the work of destruction to which Luther devoted his whole
life. All the theological notions, all the institutions, the whole
discipline of the Church, were thrown into disorder. Luther
concentrated in one nearly universal denial all the errors which
former heresies had successively opposed to each separate dog­
ma of our faith. Strictly speaking, he was not inventing a
system of errors, but merely collecting all past heresies into the
great pandemonium called Protestantism.
41. Luther’s naturally aggressive and domineering spirit
would have subjected his disciples to his own personal authority,
while, in his anti-Catholic theses, he proclaimed the principle
of the absolute freedom and independence of the human mind.
He wished to direct, according to his own notions, the work of
ruin in which he had taken the lead. “ He was holding con
ferences,” as he says himself, “ with infernal spirits. in his
solitude at Wartburg, for the abolition of the Mass." when he
learned that his disciple Carlstadt, without waiting for the
signal, was dogmatizing at Wittenberg, where be revived the
Vou 17.—b

·,β

GENERAL HISTORY OP THE CHURCH.

LEO X. (A. D. 1513—1521).

age of the Iconoclaste, destroying holy images, profaning altars,
proscribing science and letters as means of perdition. Luther
immediately hurried to Wittenberg and attempted to silence
Carlstadt, who refused to submit. Lutheranism was thus
attended by domestic discord, in its very first steps ; and the
infallibility which the Father of Protestantism refused to th··
Pope, to the Church and to tradition, was now refused to himself
The seeds of independence which he had sown in the minds ol
his hearers now sprang up on all sides with a vigor which he
was powerless to master. He had unchained the winds, and
storms sprang up beneath his feet at every step. Zwingli, curate
of Einsideln, in Switzerland, had already become a party-leader
In imitation of the Saxon monk, he rose up against the doctrine
of indulgences, but, beside supporting the errors of Luther, he
rejected the dogma of original sin, and substituted the figurative
in the place of the real presence. Hatred for the Papacy, the
rock against which all heresies have successively dashed them­
selves to pieces, was also the power that actuated Zwingli.
42. The Pontificate of Leo X., troubled by so much domestic
strife, drew to a close amid the din of arms with which the
ambition of Charles V. and Francis I. made all Europe resound.
Both monarchs strove to form alliances offensive and defensive
with the other European sovereigns. The friendship of Henry
VJII. was equally desirable to either of the rival princes, and
they spared no pains towin it. Francis met the English king oq
the famous Field of the Cloth of Gold, where the knights, says
Du Bellay,an eye-witness, “carried their forests, their meadows
and their mills upon their backs.” Francis had hoped by this
ruinous magnificence to dazzle his English neighbor. But the
more wily and successful policy of Charles had already prepos­
sessed the mind of Henry in his favor. He had gone, almost un­
attended, to meet him at Dover, promised the tiara to Cardinal
Wolsey, the king's favorite minister, and paid him the first in­
stalment of a truly imperial pension, which he promised Jo con­
tinue if the minister served his interests faithfully with his royal
master. The ambitious cardinal, who was already receiving a

6*

similar bribe from the French court, could not resist the elo
quent reasoning of Charles, and promised him his assistance
The position of Leo was not without difficulty. The hope of
freeing Italy from the French troops was opposed, in his mind,
by the fear of seeing it all in the hands of Charles, already
master of Sicily. Italy was indeed to be the battle-field, in the
coming struggle. Lautrec returned to take possession of the
Milanese in the name of Francis; he was attacked by Prospero
Colonna, with the imperial troops, and in a moment the con­
flagration became general. Leo X. did not witness the end of
these troubles ; he wn? snatched away by an insidious fever
from the love of his subjects and the admiration of the world.
He died on the 1st of December, a. d. 1521, at the premature age
of forty-four years, after a Pontificate of eigb years and nine
months.

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

CHAPTER IL

g I. Pontificate op Adrian VI. (January 9, a. o. 1522—September 24, 1528).
1.

Election and character of Adrian VI.—2 Efforts of the Pope to reform the
Roman court.—3. A uew manifesto from Luther.—4. Diet of Nuremberg.
—5. Adrian sends missionaries to America.—6. Religious orders. Theatines
Congregation of Somascha. Barnabites. Regular Clerks of the Good Jesus.
St. John of God. Ben Fratelli. Discalced Franciscans, or Minors of the
Strict Observance of St. Peter of Alcantara.

§ II. Pontificate of Clement VII. (November 19, a. d. 1523—September 25,
1534).
7. Election of Clement VII. His intricate position.—8. Death of Bayard.
Pavia. Treaty of Madrid.—9. The Holy League.—10. Capture of Rome
by the Imperialists.—11. Treaty of peace between the Pope, Francis I. and
Charles V.—12. Disturbances caused at Wittenberg by Carlstadt. The
Anabaptists.—13. Luther preaches against monastic vows, and labors to
abolish the Mass in the church of Wittenberg.—14. Insurrection of the
peasants.—15. Luther incites the German princes to suppress the revolt.—
16. Diet of Spires (1520-1529).—17. Dispute of the Sacramentarians with
Zwingli, (Ecolampadius and Luther.—18. Diet and Confession of Augsburg.
—19. Peace of Nuremberg.—20. First attempt of Henry VIII. to annul his
marriage with Catharine of Aragon.—21. Reply of Clement VII. to bis re­
quest.—22. Cromwell.—23. Discussion in the English court, on the statutes
of Præmunire.—24. Henry VIII. marries Anne Boleyn. Thomas Cran·
mer, archbishop of Canterbury.—25. Clement VII. annuls the marriage of
Henry VIII. and Anne Boleyn.—26. Death of Clement VII.

§ 1. Pontificate

of

Adrian VI. (January 9, a.
tember 24, 1523).

d.

1522--Sep­

1. The throne left vacant by Leo X. was not an easy heri­
tage to secure. There are periods in the life of the world
when empires are borne onward in a plain and well-defined
pathway. All things seem tending to the same splendid and
glorious oad, when the most unlooked-for circumstance sud-

AbKlAN VI. (A. D. 1522-1523).

fi9

denly turns the smoothly-flowing course of events. Tt would
almost seem that God is making sport of the designs of men ;
He shows them the goal almost within their reach, and with
His all-powerful hand suddenly blots them out from the land
of the living. So it was with Leo X. He had surrounded the
Papacy with an unprecedented degree of brilliancy and gran­
deur ; he dies, and the crown of the most brilliant of the Me­
dici is bestowed upon an unknown scholar, Adrian of Utrecht,
the early preceptor of Charles V., who now lived in studious
retirement at Vittoria, in Biscay. His imperial disciple was,
at first, desirous to intrust him with the regency of Spain ; but
Adrian thought himself unequal to the task of ruling men.
His highest ambition was to spend his days in the peace and
quiet of private life. Words cannot convey his painful aston­
ishment when two deputies from the Sacred College brought
him the tidings of his election to the Sovereign Pontificate.
The cardinals had given him their votes because they hoped
that his credit with Charles would place him in a better position
than any other to combat the formidable heresy Avhich was
desolating Germany. The new Pope left Spain with tears of
heartfelt grief, and was solemnly crowned in Rome, on the 29th
of August, a. d. 1522. Contrary to the time-honored custom of
the Roman Pontiffs, he kept the name by which he had been
known as cardinal and professor, and reigned as Adrian VI.
On entering the Eternal City, he perceived that the Romans
were preparing to erect a splendid triumphal arch for the cere­
mony of his installation. He at once interrupted their labors.
“These displays,” he said, “are more suitable for pagan
princes than for Christians and religious." These words are a
sufficient index to the character of the Pontificate inaugurated
with such a spirit of pious austerity, and which he wished to
devote to salutary reforms, thus to remove all ground for the
hostile declamations of Luther and his adherents. “ Adrian,”
nays Ranke, “ was of a most spotless fame ; upright, pious,
industrious ; of such gravity that nothing more than a faint
smile was ever seen upon his lips, yet full of benevolent, pure

*0

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

intentions ; a true minister of religion.” When he took the
helm of Peter’s bark, the situation of Catholic Europe was one
of intricate dangers. The King of France and Charles V.
vere carrying on bloody hostilities ; Soliman II., the son of
Selim, was leading all the powers of Islam against Hungary;
the religious anarchy created by the heresiarch of Wittenberg
was spreading over the whole of Germany, and threatening the
pence of all the Christian States. Adrian made every effort to
remedy these three evils, but unhappily failed in all his en­
deavors. The ambition of Francis and Charles would listen to
no proposition for peace. It was impossible for the Pope to
turn against the common enemy of Christendom the weapons
which the rival monarchs were using against each other. Soli­
man, after making himself master of Belgrade (1521), lair
siege, in the following year, to the city of Rhodes, which the
Grand Master of the Hospitallers, for want of a sufficient defen­
sive force, was compelled to surrender by capitulation, togethci
with the whole island. Charles V. afterward bestowed upon
the order the island of Malta (1530), where they resided, under
lhe name of Knights of Malta, until the extinction of the order.
2. Finding his influence powerless upon the general policy
of Europe, Adrian determined to signalize his Pontificate at
least by a domestic reform of the clergy and of the Roman
court, a reform which had long been needed and for which the
leading men of the Catholic world had been earnestly laboring.
Struck with horror at the evils to which the publication of
indulgences had given rise, he attempted to check the abuse.
He forbade the sale of the offices and dignities of the Roman
court, lowered the rates of the chancery, abolished coadjutor­
ships, ami omitted nothing that could insure the bestowal ot
offices upon the most worthy. It was a frequent expression
of Adrian’s that “he wished to adorn the churches with priests
and not the priests with churches.”
3. After the death of Leo X., Luther came forth from his
retreat at Wartburg, more eager than ever for the struggle.
Charles on his return from Spain, was too busy with his prépara-

ADRIAN VI. (A. D IMS-1593).

71

lions for war against Francis to check this new flight, and nn
one else in Germany was powerful enough to carry into · ιΙ.·.ζ
the edict of Worms. The Saxon monk was thus left in undis­
puted possession of the field ; he made frequent appeals to
popular passion and his powerful words found hearers every­
where. He is no longera mere heretical monk; he is now a very
tribune “Catholic princes,” he exclaimed, “ the hand of God
is uplifted over your heads ; utter destruction shall come upon
you, you shall die, even were your power greater than that of
the Turk himself. You have already received your reward :
you are looked upon as knaves and impostors ; you shall he
judged by the part you have acted ; the people know you ; the
fearful punishment which Holy Writ calls the mockery of
God shall encompass you on all sides, and you cannot avert
it. The people are weary of your tyranny and iniquity and
will no longer bear it; God will have no more of it. The
world is not what it was when you hunted men like wild
beasts.”
4. Shortly after the appearance of this new manifesto,
another diet was opened at Nuremburg (November, a. d. 1522).
The Pope sent, as his nuncio, Francis Cherpgat, bishop of
Teramo, and in his instructions to the envoy. Adrian did not
dissemble the abuses which afflicted the Church He speaks
as a vigilant and severe Pontiff who does not fear to point out the
evil, because he has the will and the energy necessary to correct
it. “We know,” said the Pope to his nuncio, “that abuses
have existed ; that the profanation of holy things, arrogance
of power and deplorable scandals have, at times, compromised
the honor of the Holy See; We are sensible of the evil, nor
shall We leave it unpunished.” This frank confession should
have won for the Pope the cordial sympathy of every honest
heart. But a majority of the diet were ruled by the influence
and the sarcasms of Luther. They only saw, in this frank
and generous avowal, the confirmation of the grievances anti
calumnies heaped by the heresiarch upon the Holy b’ee. The
diet saw only one way of obtaining peace for Germany , it was

72

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

tn convoke a national synod, in which every party should be
represented. Meanwhile, it promised to do what it could for
the maintenance of order, though it was at the same time
occupied in drawing up a list of grievances against the Holy
See. They were rather harsh remonstrances and unreasonable
pretensions than complaints, a hundred in number, and drawn
up in a spirit of hostility which betrayed itself in every line.
The Pope could not satisfy these demands without encroaching
upon his own authority, or ecclesiastical discipline, and on the
most revered traditions. The diet refused to review what it had
done, and Cheregat withdrew, crushed by his defeat. Luther
had triumphed. Adrian died of a broken heart, after the
return of Cheregat. He was sixty-four years old at the time
of his death (September 14, 1523).
5. Adrian’s pastoral care was not confined to the provinces
of Catholic Europe. Hearing that missionaries were needed io
America, he sent to the New World a body of Franciscan
religious, full of devoted zeal for the propagation of the faith;
and to encourage these zealous apostles, he gave them a proof
of his confidence and Apostolic solicitude by a Pontifical bull
iirecting that, in the Indies—by which name the whole of
the New World was then known—wherever there existed no
episcopal see, or in those places which the bishops or their
vicars could not easily visit, the episcopal jurisdiction might
be exercised by religious, especially delegated by the superiors
for the purpose, except in those cases in which the episcopal
character was absolutely indispensable. A similar privilege
had already been granted to the missionaries of the order by
John XXII.
G. While Germany harbored a rebellious monk whose fanati
cal declamations against the doctrines of free will, the efficacy
if good works, the sacraments, and the spiritual and tempo­
ral power, were undermining every moral, religious and social
principle, God raised up, in Italy, several apostolic men, whose
zeal, and yet more whose example, rekindled, in the hearts of
both clergy and faithful, a love of piety, pure morality and the

APTITAN VT. (A. D. 1532-1523).

73

practice of every virtue. St. Cajetan of Thienna, of an illus­
trious Italian family, after bringing back to their first fervor the
confraternities of the Lovp of God, in Rome, and of St. Jerome,
at Vicenza, founded the Order of Theatines, so called because its
first, general, Peter Caraffa, still retained his title of archbishop
of Theate after his election. The chief ends which the Thea
tines proposed to themselves were, to preach to the people, to
assist the sick, to oppose errors in faith, to restore among the
laity the frequent and devout use of the sacraments, and among
the clergy a spirit of disinterestedness, regularity and fervor,
a love for sacred studies, the most religious respect for holy
things, and strict ecclesiastical discipline. St. Jerome .Emili­
ani. a noble Venetian, was at the same time engaged in erecting
charitable institutions in all the cities of Lombardy ; he endowed
numerous hospitals and became the Francis of Paula of the
sixteenth century. At Somascha, a village on the frontiers of
the Venetian territory, he founded a congregation named, from
the place of its origin, the congregation of the Soniasques. The
members devoted themselves to the instruction of youth, and
especially of young men destined for the ministry of the altar.
/X. similar institution was established at Milan by three Italian
noblemen : Antonio Maria Zacharia, Bartolomeo Ferrari ami
Antonio Morigin. They were called Barnabites, from the church
of St. Barnabas which was assigned to their use. BB. Marga­
ret and Gentilia of Ravenna at this time instituted in their
native city the Regular Clerks of the Good Jesus. But holiness
and good works were not peculiar to Italy alone. In Spain, an
old soldier, born a poor shepherd, became, by the force of his
example alone, the founder of an order of charity which has
since spread throughout all the Catholic world. St. John,
surnamed of God, was led to this change of life by the saintly
eloquence of the illustrious Father John d’Avila, who well de.
served his title of Apostle of Andalusia. Under the direction
of this holy priest, John began to gather the sick poor into his
modest dwelling, where he served them and provided for their
wants with a zeal and charitv which attracted universal adini-

71

GENERAL HISTORY OF

ΠΙΕ CHURCH.

ration.
The example of charity is always contagious; it
awake? the noblest instincts of every generous heart. The in­
habitants of Granada vied with each other in contributing to the
support of his poor patients. In the distribution of his alms,
the saint was ignorant of those odious distinctions too often
established upon the conduct and character of the poor. The
Archbishop of Granada one day sent for him and told him that he
was charged with receiving vagabonds and persons of bad charac­
ter; the man of God threw himself at the feet of the archbishop
and replied : “ The Son of God came to save sinners ; we arc
obliged also to promote their conversion by our sighs, our tear?
and exhortations. lam unfaithful to my vocation, because I neg­
lect this duty ; and I acknowledge, to my confusion, that I know
no other bad person in my hospital but myself, who am a most
wretched sinner, unworthy to eat the bread of the poor.” The
saint was joined by some pious imitators, and thus began the
Order of Charity or Brothers of St. John of God. They are
popularly known in Italy under the name of Fate ben Fratelh,
abbreviated into Ben Fratelli, from their original custom of beg­
ging alms, after the example of their holy founder, with the
words : “Brethren, do us good for the love of God.” Another
prodigy of holiness and penance was at the same period given
to the world by the Order of St. Francis. St. Peter of Alcan
tara entered the Order of Minors at an early age, and was soon
distinguished among the religious by the practice of the greatest
humiliations, most rigorous fasts, incredible watchings ami pain­
ful austerities. The constant union of his soul with God suffered
no interruption from any external employment. He told St.
Theresa that he had once lived in a house three years without
knowing any of his religious brethren except by the sound of
their voices. Love of retirement was, if we may use the ex­
pression, his predominant passion ; and he begged his superiors
that he might be placed in some solitary convent, where ho
could give himself up to the sweet practice of contemplation.
He was sent to the convent of St. Onuphrius, situated in the
frightful mountain solitude of Lapa. In this retreat he com

CLEMENT VH. IA. D. 152J-15M).

76

porfed his golden book “ On Mental Prayer,1’ justly esteemed a
master-piece by St. Theresa, Louis of Granada, St. Francis of
Sales, Pope Gregory XV., and other competent judges. This
work was soon followed by another no less excellent treatise on
“ The Peace of the Soul, or an Interior Life,” in which the saint,
with the pen of a proficient, lays down the rules of the contem­
plative life and of the highest perfection. After a long practice
of the severest austerities of penance, he drew up the plan of a
religious order, which should follow the rule of St. Francis in all
its primitive rigor. The religious who embraced this pious insti­
tute were called Discalced Franciscans, or of the strict obser­
vance of St. Peter of Alcantara. Later, while spiritual directo
of St. Theresa, he greatly encouraged her in her project of re­
forming the Carmelite Order, and supported her through the
troubles and obstacles of every description against which she
had to struggle, in accomplishing the will of God. The Order
of Ursuline Nuns was established at about this time, by B
Angela de Mcrici, of Brescia, for the virtuous education of
young ladies, and was soon spread over all Catholic Europe,
winning universal esteem by the virtue and fidelity of its mem­
bers to their duty. Such was, in the beginning of the sixteenth
century, the interior life of the Catholic Church, against which
Luther and his followers poured forth their blasphemous cal­
umnies.

§ IL Pontificate

of

Clement VII. (November 19, a. d, 1523—
September 25, 1534).

7. At the death of Adrian VI., Giulio de Medici, a cousin
of Leo X., was raised to the Pontifical throne. He inaugurated
his Pontificate by restoring to favor Cardinal Soderini. whose
base ti e tchery we have already mentioned. “ On this occasion,
to quote contemporary authors, “ he proved himself Clenica:
in deed i s well as in name.” His position was a difficult one.
and God had heavy trials in store for the great soul of the
merciful Pontili’. Italy was cruelly scourged by war; the
Reformation was making daily progress. The orders assembled

76

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

again at Nurem burg in 1524, with unmistakable evidences of
sympathy for Luther’s novelties. The Papal i uncio was a
man of determined will and an able theologian ; he soon per­
ceived the hostile stand of the majority, and could only oppose
the decisions of the dipt with protestations which were
unheeded. The Catholic princes of Germany were alarmed
and felt that they should need all their power to resist. Three
of them, Duke Wilhelm, Duke Louis of Bavaria, and Ferdinand,
archduke of Austria, met at Ratisbon, where they were soon
joined by several bishops and archbishops ; they concluded a
treaty for the defence of the Catholic doctrine and worship
against Lutheranism. But these unaided efforts were destined
to remained fruitless. Before entering upon an uninterrupted
narrative of the troubles caused by the Reformation, k will be
well to acquaint the reader with the succession of political
events that hurried the afflicted Pontiff, Clement VIL, into dis­
asters which he could not avert.
8. Since the year 1521, Italy had been the battle-field or.
which Charles V. and Francis I. contended for the empire of the
world. The French admiral, Bonnivet, a man better suited to
the court than to the field, was sent against the Imperialists
under the notorious Constable of Bourbon, whom a personal
injury had made a traitor to his king and country. Next in
command to the admiral, was Bayard, the chevalier sans peur
et san-9 reproche, whose precious life paid the forfeit of hia
commander’s incapacity, at the battle of Romagnano on the b’esia
(a. d. 1521). The Constable of Bourbon approached the dying
hero and said to him : “ I truly feel great pity at seeing yon
in this sad condition ; for you were so worthy a knight,” “ My
lord,” replied the fearless and faithful captain, “ it is not I
who am to be pitied, but you, who are in arms against your
country, your king and your faith.” A few moments after, the
hero expired, his eyes fixed upon the cross-hilt of his sword,
■which recalled to him the august symbol of the religion to
whose laws he had ever been faithful amid all the chances and
dangers of a soldier’s life. The constable withdrew wifi

CLEMENT Vil. (Λ. D. 1523-1534)

77

tear! <1 eyes. “ Happy the prince," he cried, “ who has such
a seivant’ France little knows the loss she suffers to-day!”
The sight of this unswerving fidelity to God and to the king, in
the very arms of death, moved, but did not change the constable
Revenge is a passion that will not be sated. Bourbon fell upon
Provence, which the wily emperor had flattered him with the
hope of ruling in person. Aix and Toulon were soon in his
power, and he laid siege to Marseilles, without the least
expectation of resistance. “ The third discharge of the imperial
cannon,” said Bourbon, ‘‘will bring those frightened burghers to
our feet, with halters about their necks and the keys of the
city in their hands.” He was soon, however, compelled to
change his tone. 'The garrison, the private citizens, and even
the women of the town, vied with one another in constancy and
daring. Francis assembled a large army under the walls of
Avignon, but when he advanced upon Marseilles, the Im­
perialists, already exhausted by the labors of a siege of fort}
days, weakened by disease and want, hastily retreated into
Italy. But Francis was before them ; Milan opened its gates to
the French king, and the whole duchy, with the single exception
of Pavia, submitted to his rule. Clement VII.. alarmed by the
ever-growing power of Charles, thought it his duty to favor the
cause of his opponent. The tidings of the French king’s success
were accordingly received with joy at the Roman court; but
they were destined to be short-lived, and Rome was doomed
to suffer, more than any other city, from the reverses of France
Bonnivet advised the king to lay siege to Pavia. But Bourbon
was now advancing with a reënforcement of twelve thousand
Germans, levied at his own expense. Ordinary prudence would
nave required the French to retreat; but the chivalric Francis
deemed it a disgrace to fly before the traitor Bourbon ; he
accordingly determined to await his approach. This proud
determination resulted in one of the most lamentable defeats
ever experienced by the arms of France ; the royal army was
cut to pieces, the king himself remained a prisoner in the hands
of the enemy. After the battle. Francis wrote to his mother

78

OBNERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

“Madame, all is lost but honor” (Madame, tout est perdu, for»
l'honneur). The royal prisoner was taken to Madrid, and only
obtained hie release after signing a treaty by which he renounced
his claims upon Italy, gave up the duchy of Burgundy to the
empire, promised to deliver up his two eldest sons as hostages
for the performance of these conditions, to return his estates
and rights to the Duke of Bourbon, and to bind himself, by a
matrimonial alliance, to the family of Charles.
9. After signing this disgraceful treaty, Francis was set at
liberty ; he left his prison with the firm determination not tc
fulfil the terms imposed by force, and to which necessity alone
could have made him subscribe. The estates of Burgundy,
which had met to deliberate upon the treaty of Madrid, thus
addressed the king: “ Should your majesty persist in the in­
tention of giving us over to a foreign domination, we shall de­
fend our own province to the last breath, and die Frenchmen.”
This noble sentiment was received with universal applause.
Pope Clement VIL, Henry VIII.. the republics of Venice,
Genoa, Florence, and Milan, entered into an alliance with
France against Charles V. ; this coalition received, from the
Popo’s participation, the name of the Hob/ League. True to the
traditions of Italian policy, the Sovereign Pontiff saw that the
liberty of the Peninsula was lost if the youthful emperor,
already master of Naples, gained possession also of the Milan­
ese, which was yielded by the treaty. This consideration de­
cided his policy under the circumstances.
10. The rage of the Imperialists first vented itself upon
Italy. During ten whole months, Milan was given up to the
barbarous fury of the Spaniards. As soon as it became known
in Germany that these rich provinces were given up to pillage,
sixteen thousand German landsknechts crossed the Alps, led by
a furious Lutheran, named George Freundsberg, who wore about
his neck a golden chain, “ with which,” as he said, “ he meant
to strangle the Pope.” This host of brigands was led, or, per­
haps, rather followed, by Bourbon and Leyva. Its ranks were
swelled, as it advanced, by numerous adventurers. Marching

CLEMENT VII. (A. I». 1M3-IM4).

7c

through Ferrara and Bologna, the Lutheran.’ were about ft
turn into Tuscany, and many were now in the habit of -war
ing only by the gloriouê sack of Florence ; but their hereti al
spirit urged them on to Rome, where the constable assured
them that they should find ample booty. The city was fiercely
assaulted. Bourbon fell in the attack, but his soldiers avenged
his loss only too well. They gave no quarter, and on the very
day of their entrance, eight thousand Romans were butchered
while imploring mercy on their knees. “Never, perhaps, ir
the history of the world,” says Sismondi, “had a greater capi­
tal been given up to a more atrocious abuse of victory ; never
had a powerful army been made up of more barbarous ele­
ments; never had the restraints of discipline been more fear­
fully cast aside. It was not enough for these rapacious plun­
derers to seize upon the rich stores of sacred and profane
wealth which the piety or industry of the people had gathered
into the capital of the Christian world ; the wretched inhabitants
themselves became the victims of the fierce and brutal soldiery;
those who were suspected of having hidden their wealth, were
put to the torture. Some were forced, by these tortures, to sign
promissory notes,and to drain the purses of their friends in other
countries. A great number of prelates fell under these sufferings. Many others, after having paid their ransom, and while
rejoicing to think themselves free from further attacks, were
obliged to redeem themselves again, and died from grief or
terror, caused by these acts of violence. The German troops
were seen, drunk at once with wine and blood, leading about
bishops in full pontifical attire, seated upon mules, or dragging
cardinals through the streets, loading them with blows and out­
rages. In their eagerness for plunder, they broke in the doors
of the tabernacles, and destroyed master-pieces of art. The
Vatican library was sacked ; the public squares and churches
of Rome were converted into market-places, where the conquer­
ors sold, as promiscuous booty, the Roman ladies ami horses ;
and these brutal excesses were committed even in the basil is
of St. Peter and St. Paul. b°’d by Alaric as sacred jsyluuao

30

GENERAL BISTORT OF THE CHURCH.

the pillage which, under Genseric, had lasted but fourteen days,
lasted now two months without interruption.” The wardrobe
of the Sovereign Pontiffs fell into the hands of these madmen.
Clothed in the sacred vestments, they assembled in the hall of
conclave and proceeded to a mock election. After declaring
Clement VIT. deposed from the Papacy, they solemnly elected
the apostate monk Luther as Vicar of Jesus Christ. Strange
contradiction ! They knew no better way of honoring the au­
thor of the Reformation than by conferring upon him, in
derision, a dignity which he had made the chief butt of his
ridicule.
11. While these scenes of desolation and horror were
enacted in Rome, Clement VII. was besieged in the castle of
St. Angelo, his last asylum. Here he soon found himself so
closely pressed that he was forced to capitulate. On the 5th
of June (a. d. 1527), the Archbishop of Capua, on behalf of the
unfortunate Pontiff, signed a treaty, by which Clement was
bound : 1. To pay down a hundred thousand gold ducats. 2. To
place the castle of St. Angelo, as a pledge, in the hands of the
emperor’s officers ; 3. To give up to the Imperialists the cities
of Ostia, Civita-Vecchia, Citta di Castello, Parma, and Piacenza;
4. To remain a prisoner until the promised sum should have
been paid. Clement found it impossible to fulfil these condi­
tions. The governors refused to give up the cities placed in
their charge. The Pontifical treasury was completely drained,
and the Pope was forced to remain a prisoner. A fearful plague
crowned this series of disasters ; from Rimini it came even into
the castle of St. Angelo, and Clement was exposed to the dan­
ger of this scourge, more fearful even than war. He managed
to escape from his prison in the disguise of a travelling mer­
chant A11 seemed to conspire at once against the Pontiff.
The enemies of the Medici seized the occasion offered by the
confusion of the moment to drive out the family of the Pope
from Florence. Clement was deeply affected by the defection
of his native city ; he saw that the only means of avoiding
greater disasters was to renew the alliance with the victorioui

CLEMENT VII. (Λ. I». 1573-1534)

8]

Imperialists. On June 26th, 1529, he arranged terms of <»«·: iimmodation with Hugo Hunniades, the Imperialist mm
mander. The power of Charles, lately confirmed by the treaty
concluded with Francis, at Cam bray, and known as the Ladle»
*
Treaty
was now at its zenith ; beside the provinces of the
German empire, he ruled the Italian Peninsula from the Alps
to the Mediterranean. On the 24th of February, 1530, the
Pope crowned him emperor at Bologna. But Clement could
not look with indifference upon the rapid growth of the impe­
rial sway which threatened to destroy the balance of power in
Europe, and especially to injure the interests of the Church. He
wished to make one more effort to throw his political influence
into the scales. Turning to France, he met the king at Mar­
seilles. This return to the policy of his predecessors, under
circumstances so full of peril, was heroic. But Charles was
too powerful an adversary; beside, the Lutheran schism was
daily assuming a more threatening attitude, and Clement VII.
was powerless to stem the destructive torrent.
12. While the Catholic princes were forming their league
at Ratisbon, a meeting of the Lutheran princes was held at
Torgau (a. d. 1526). Philip, landgrave of Hesse, John, the new
elector of Saxony, the duchies of Mecklenburg and Anhalt,
Prussia, the cities of Brunswick and Magdeburg, entered into
an alliance to support the cause of the Reform. Luther’s prin­
ciples led to consequences which their author would have
wished to disavow. We have already mentioned the excesses
of Carlstadt at Wittenberg. The fanatical preacher with his
own hand set fire to the text-books brought to him by the stu­
dents from all quarters, under pretext that the Bible must
thenceforth furnish the only reading for all mankind. The
people applauded these digraceful scenes, worthy of the Van­
dals, and followed the sectary to the plunder of churches and
monasteries. Similar scenes were enacted at Zwickau by a
• The treaty of Cambray received this popular appellation from the fact that it wua con­
cluded through the mediation of tho two princesses Louise of Savoy, mother of Franci» I.
end Margaret of Austria, aunt of Charles V.—Ta.
Vou IV —6

82

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

bine of fanatic·, under the guidance of Nicholas Storch ; th··»·
rejected the authority of Luther, thus putting into practice thr
theories of independence which they had learned from the
Saxon monk himself, by throwing off the yoke he sought to inipose upon them. They denied the validity of infant baptism,
for which, they said, they could find no warrant in Scripture.
Their leader took them to Wittenberg, where he maintained
his doctrine that infant baptism was useless ; that hence it was
indispensably necessary to rebaptize adults, upon whom the
Church could not confer a valid sacrament before they Ind
attained the age of reason. Their doctrine obtained for them
the name of Anabaptists, to which their disorders gave a most
bloody renown. Melancthon, Luther’s cherished disciple, wa­
vered for some time between the authority of his master and
that of the new sectaries. Storch’s objections had weight
enough with him to lead him into a serious study of the ques­
tion of infant baptism; the text of Holy Writ did no- sup­
fly the light he sought, and he would then have become an
Anabaptist too, had not the excesses of the fanatics given him
a disgust for their doctrines. Luther was unable to restore
order in his divided camp. In vain he wrote to the leaders
of the new sect, urging moderation, and reminding them of the
necessity, as he said, “of trying the spirits.” Finding his
words unheeded, he thought himself entitled to “ rap these
visionaries upon the snout;" and he tried against them the vio­
lent abuse and popular preaching he had found so successful
against Catholicity. But it is easier to start the minds of men
in the way of revolution, than to check their headlong course
when they have once begun to move on the steep descent.
When Luther tried to enforce his own opinions, he was told
that he had himself taught the sole authority of the Bible. If
he leaned his arguments upon the Gospel, he was met with the
reply that they had learned from him their right to interpret
the Sacred Text tor themselves. The religious freedom which
he claimed to have given to the world, now turned its powoi
against its author. Still he did not allow himself to be dis·

CLEMENT VH. (Λ. Π. 1SS3-1534).

83

couraged, and, finding it impossible to check the movement ne
had rashly provoked, he did not hesitate to place himself at its
head. With a view to change the current of popular ideas,
and doubtless, too, to satisfy the passions which burned within
his own breast, he began to preach with vehemence against
monastic vows. The sermons, letters and pamphlets which
soon flooded the whole of Germany were all written under this
inspiration, to flatter the lowest instincts and stir up the igno­
rant populace. The arguments with which he attacked the
vow of chastity and the law of ecclesiastical celibacy do not
admit of quotation. It will not be hard to understand the
success of Luther’s doctrines, if we consider that they were sup­
ported by every bad passion, by every form of cupidity and
vice. “ The time has come,” wrote Luther, “ to do away forever
with these vows against nature ; the time has come when those
who make them should be treated with the greatest rigor of
the law ; now is the time to destroy convents, abbeys, priories
and monasteries, that such vows may never be uttered more.”
The Reformation was evidently intended to be a radical one.
The lower instincts of man are little disposed to reason with
the power that opposes th eir workings.
13. At all times, there have been found, even in religious
orders, men unworthy of their vocation, whom a continued
abuse of grace has gradually led to apostasy ; rotten branches
that should be speedily lopped off from the trunk, which they
injure by their misconduct and immorality. Luther s preach­
ing awaked an echo in every depraved heart; the scandal
was carried out to its fullest extent. The religious deserted
I heir convents to contract sacrilegious unions. Carlstadt was
solemnly married at Wittenberg, and the Reformers loudly
applauded the shameless act as a heroic deed which restored
human freedom. Passions, once aroused, never stop to reason.
Among his familiar friends, Luther confessed that this overflow
of the sensual appetite “ singularly corrupted the good odor of
the gospel.” But, as he meant to profit by it himself, at a later
date, he was careful not to struggle too violently atrainst it.

84

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

and continued to direct his attacks against the Catholic priest
hood. “ These priests, these mass-mumblers, deserve death as
truly as a blasphemer who should curse God and His saints in
the public streets.” We might almost believe that in such
words we hear, by anticipation, the cries of the revolutionists
of 1793.
14. The time was far distant when Pope Leo X., misled as
to the character of the Reformer, could treat the question as a
“quarrel of monks." Minds had been working onward, since
then, and the people began to take an active share in the
scandalous disputes. The name of liberty, which seems to have
been sent on earth only to breed revolutions, was throwing all
Germany into a state of disorder. Erasmus has left us a
striking picture of the appearance of the sectaries. “ I see
them,” he writes, “ as they come from the sermons, with rage
depicted in every feature, their eyes on fire, as if intoxicated
by the bloodthirsty harangues which they have just heard.
This evangelical race breathes but combats, seeks no other
argument than armed force.” The fairest provinces of Germany,
the Rhine country, Saxony, Thuringia and Suabia, were deso­
lated with fire and sword. A new name suddenly appeared
amid the general fermentation ; a name written in letters of
blood upon the ruins of castles, churches and monasteries; it
was that of Thomas Münzer, the leader of the sect of Conqueriny Anabaptists. Luther’s work on “ Christian Liberty,” scat­
tered throughout the whole land, had prepared all minds for
revolt ; the new prophet placed arms in the hands of the revolters and organized the rebellion as a holy war. Münzer
was born at Zwickau, in the decline of the fifteenth century.
He was successively vicar in his native town and curate at
Mülhausen, and disguised, under an outward show of austere
penance, a boundless ambition and a bitter hatred against all
superiority, hierarchical or social. At the first cry raised by
Luther against the Holy See and the Catholic Church, Münzer
distinguished himself by the fanatical ardor with which he sup­
ported the new doctrines. He soon even outstripped his master

CLEMENT VII. (A. D. 1523-1634).

80

and labored to destroy the order of society, by preaching a
system of political equality and freedom, much more intelligible
to the uneducated peasantry than the spiritual equality and
freedom taught by the Saxon monk. The overthrow of all
power, the destruction of every form of government—such
was his doctrine in the widest interpretation given to it by the
most ardent modern socialists. A cry of indignation went up
f^om every court in Germany at the announcement of these
revolutionary theories. The nobles were very willing to support
the Lutheran crusade against the clergy, the convents and ec­
clesiastical property, so long as it was to redound to their own
profit. They were quite ready to gather the spoils and to
enrich themselves with the wealth of the altars. But when the
tide of revolution threatened to sweep them along in its destruc­
tive course, when thirty thousand armed peasants rose up
against their authority, demolished their strongholds, broke
down their ramparts, destroyed their troops, plundered their
treasure and proclaimed the downfall of all the sovereignties
of the world to make way for what they called the Kingdom of
God, they were struck with fear, and their councils called upon
Luther to stem the torrent which his inflamed harangues had
let loose. The Reformer at first tried the counsels of modera­
tion and prudence, which were not even heard. His voice was
drowned by the storm ; like all revolutionary leaders, he
possessed an immense influence for destruction, but was power­
less to pacify. The banishment and proscription of Münzer, to
which he contributed in concert with the German princes, only
added new force to the insurrection. The furious anabaptist
was looked upon as a martyr to liberty and a victim of the
tyranny of princes. In his place of exile he drew up a document
consisting of thirty articles, to be presented by the peasants
to the princes of the empire, by which they demanded
exemption from all taxes, the abolition of seigneural courts, the
suppression of tithes and of all other dues, and the right for
every parish to choose and to remove at will the ministers of
the divine word. To give additional weight to his demands.

86

GENERAL HISTORY OP THE CHURCH.

Münzer took care to support them all by texts drawn from the
writings of Luther himself. In a few weeks, the incendiarv
memorial was spread through every province and received the
approval of the excited multitude. It was finally handed to
Luther, with the request that he would have it signed by the
princes. As might have been foreseen, this proceeding was
fruitless, and the hypocritical flattery with which the Reformer
endeavored to satisfy the peasants gave a fresh proof of his
impotence. His empty declamations were answered by the
fierce war-cry of the fanatical sectaries. Münzer assumed the
appellation of “ Gideon, sent of God to reestablish with the
sword the kingdom of Jesus Christ.” At his voice, the popu­
lace of Mülhauscn, in Franconia, drove out their magistrates
and set up a kind of republic, of which the prophet became the
chief. He had soon collected an army of thirty thousand
sectaries ; their numbers were fast increased by the accession
of many adventurers who sought, in these times of trouble,
impunity for past crimes and the opportunity of committing
fresh ones. Under his command they carried on a war of
bloodshed and rapine, in which the most horrible acts of cruelty,
the most unheard of barbarity, were the order of the day.
Luther no longer hesitated to invoke the most vigorous chas­
tisement upon these madmen, whose guilty hopes he had him­
self excited. He wrote to the German princes, urging them
to check the disorder and to lay aside the gentle means they
had hitherto used. “ While there remains a drop of blocd in
your veins,” said Luther to them, “ hunt these rebellious
peasants like wild beasts ; kill them like mad dogs ; they are
sold, body and soul, to Satan.” Luther’s action, in this case,
was, perhaps, profoundly politic, but it was as disgraceful as it
was skilful, and every drop of blood shed in that disastrous
warfare must fall upon the memory of the Reformer, who gave
up to the public vengeance the multitude of fanatics he had
armed himself.
15. The evil was pressing; any attempt at negotiation was
erne to fail against the popular movement which agitated the

CbEMKNl Vil. (A. D. 1539-1934).

87

masses in Germany, equally hard to arouse and to pacify. The
nobles availed themselves of Luther’s mistake, to throw upon
him all the odium of the war they were about to undertake
with the fixed purpose of effecting the utter extermination of the
revolted peasants. In looking back over the long list of evils
inflicted upon the world by the Lutheran heresy, the most dis­
astrous, perhaps, recorded in the annals of the Church; when
we see its cradle stained with blood, its birth attended with so
many crimes, its progress marked by numberless ruins ; if we
follow, step by step, the conduct of its author, if we consider
the duplicity, the results of which deluged his country in blood,
the boundless pride and ambition which could sacrifice the
peace of the world to an unholy thirst for glory ; if we look
into the depths of that heart which had become the abode of
evil passions, of shamelessness and base desires—it is hard
to understand the blindness of those minds for which Luther is
still a prophet, an apostle sent from God. With the page of
history open before us, doubt or hesitation seems to us an
impossibility ; none of these characteristics savor of the
Gospel, though that sacred name was ever profaned by the sec­
taries who sought to cover their shameful disorders by the
authority of the Divine Book. Luther wrote thus in 1522:
“ The people are rising every where ; they have at length opened
their eyes and will no longer allow themselves to be crushed by
violence.” In 1526, the man of the people, the hero of the
multitudes, had changed his tone : “ The people are tigers that
must be chained, wild beasts that must be destroyed without
pity or restraint.” It was the singular destiny of the apostate
monk that his very inconsistencies were so many mournful tri­
umphs. In 1522, the people obeyed the voice that urged them
to revolt; in 1526, the nobles answered his appeal by rising up
to crush the rebellion which he had himself proclaimed. But
if his insatiable pride could, in his own day, gloat over these
bloody triumphs, history and posterity can view them only as
so many subjects of opprobrium which time cannot efface. A
powerful array unde the Landgrave Philip of Hesse, the Dukes

88

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Henry of Brunswick and George of Saxony, attacked Miinzei
at Mülhausen. The desperate resistance of the peasants, and
the fanatical madness with which they refused to give any
quarter, drew upon them the most fearful reprisals ; the battle
was one of tho bloodiest for the numbers engaged. Toward
evening the peasants were routed and fled in all direction»,
leaving their leader nearly alone upon the field (May 15,
a. d. 1525). Münzer fled to Frankcnhausen, where he remained
concealed for some time ; but his retreat having been discov­
ered, he was taken and brought to Mülhausen, where he was
tried and sentenced to be beheaded. In the immediate pres­
ence of death and of the awful judgments of God, the Catholic
faith, which he had forsaken, once more revived within his
breast. The remembrance of his crimes and the terrors of eter­
nity opened his heart to remorse. He abjured the perverse
doctrine which had made his life so miserable, and protested
that he wished to die a submissive and repentant son of the
Church he had so violently assailed. In these dispositions he
mounted the scaffold (December. 1525), trusting in the unfail
ing mercy of the God Whose dying words were a prayer for His
executioners.
1G. Luther’s popularity perished with Münzer upon the
scaffold at Mülhausen. Henceforth, we shall find him among
princes, literary men and the familiar friends who form a kind
of court around him ; his part is reversed ; he no longer wields
that immediate influence over the multitudes which had marked
the first years of the Reformation. This new phase in the life
of the apostate monk is revealed by repeated attempts at pacifi­
cation. The camp into which he wtas now entering needed or­
der, and he was called upon to establish it. The Catholic clergy
was ruined ; its property was in the hands of the nobles ; epis­
copal jurisdiction was abolished, every form of belief was tol­
erated, every religious law annulled. Unless he was ready to
open the doortoevery form of anarchy, to every shape of extrav­
agance and disorder, it was necessary to reestablish an author­
ity of some kind ; and the Reformer’s theories were now to

CLEMENT VII. 'A. D. 1523-1534).

W

receive, in practice, a formal refutation. Luther had built up
his whole doctrine on the fundamental principle of individual
liberty, in the widest acceptation of the term ; he had. conse­
quently, destroyed the Catholic priesthood, as a sacrilegious
usurpation of the sacred ministry of religion, to the profit of a
few, whereas, in his system, it belonged equally to all. Now,
he was condemned himself to constitute Lutheran ministers,
upon whom he must confer a kind of priestly character. He
had, in the first days of his revolt against the Church, solemnly
burned, in the public square of Wittenberg, a copy of the canon
law, by way of strong protest that he regarded the legislation
of the Church as a despotic sway from which the consciences
of men must be freed, a galling yoke which had too long weighed
down the people and which it should be his glory to break for­
ever. Now he was condemned to substitute his own laws in
the place of those which the antiquity of Tradition and the au­
thority of the holiest Pontiffs, the twofold consecration of time
and virtue, had made equally dear and venerable. He mus
*
now frame arbitrary laws wholly devoid of authority, institu­
tions which have no foundation on the past and no power of
resistance against the dangers of the future. Finally, in obedi­
ence to the secret promptings of the vilest passions, Luther had
shaken the very foundation of society, by attacking the sacred
institution of marriage. It became necessary to stay the prog­
ress of these impure doctrines which threatened Europe with
the foul disgrace of Mussulman polygamy. The Landgrave
Philip of Hesse, the victor of Mülhausen, summoned the Luther­
ans to meet at Homburg (October, a. d. 1526). tjiat they might
discuss these questions in concert and come to a speedy deter­
mination. Luther did not appear in the synod, but left the di­
rection of it to one of his most ardent disciples, the apostate
Lambert of Avignon, one of the first who lelt the Order of
Minims, in which he had made his religious profession, to fol­
low the German Reformer. It was in this assembly that Lu­
theranism received a definitive organization, which it has. in
most respects, since preserved. The landgrave, who simply

(H)

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

asked for a legislation and hierarchy of some kind, without
any regard to their real merits, unconditionally accepted what,
ever was offered, only declaring that when they were once pro­
mulgated, he should strictly enforce their observance. Luther
himself, urged on by the constant need of action which preyed
upon his soul, put forth all the energy of his mind, all the elo­
quence of his impetuous nature, for the support and the propa­
gation of the doctrines laid down at Homburg. He filled the
country with evangelical preachers, as he called them, whose
mission it was to withdraw the people from the yoke of the
Church. They scattered around them printed copies of a
formula composed by Melancthon, containing, in a few pages,
all the new doctrines, and, as a more efficient means of spread­
ing his teachings, Luther himself composed a small and a large
catechism, which were to be placed in the hands of children.
These measures had thrown Germany into a state of complete
revolution. An imperial diet was convened at Spires (152G).
Charles V. was engaged in his protracted war with France.
His brother, the Archduke Ferdinand, who commanded the im­
perial troops in Hungary, was hardly able to defend those rich
provinces against the victorious arms of Soliman. The position
of affairs was favorable to the Lutheran princes ; they profited
by it in the assembly, and the public calamities which were
afflicting the empire helped on their exorbitant pretensions
The authorities had neither the power nor the will to deal with
domestic troubles, while so many foreign enemies threatened
the empire from without. With a view to cut short all re­
criminations, .it was agreed to leave matters as they then
stood, and to refer to a future time the settlement of difficul­
ties which it was plainly impossible to remove under existing
circumstances. Such was the import of the famous concession
made by the Diet of Spires, in these terms : “ Until the meeting
of the ecumenical council, each power shall do, as regards the
decree of Worms, what it deems best, and shall be answer­
able, for its conduct, to God and to the emperur.” The
next subject of attention was the defensive league to be

CLEMENT VII. (A. D. 1523-15My.

d)

formed against the Turks. The fairest promises were readily
made; but they all proved useless, for tidings were brought,
at the same time, of the defeat and death of Louis, king of
Hungary, whose army had been cut to pieces by Soliman in the
marshes of Mohacs (August 29, 1526). The disaster aroused
in the heart of Germany the old instincts of nationality and
faith which had given birth to the Crusades. But Luther and
Melancthon had declared that they would rather have the sul
tan than the Pope ; and they accordingly labored with all their
power to stifle this noble impulse. “ The word of God and His
work,” they said, “ need no armed defenders ; they are strong
enough of themselves to meet all the attacks of their enemies.”
The Turks availed themselves of the inaction of the Christian
princes and of the secret sympathies held out to them by
Lutheranism. Soliman laid siege to Vienna, with a formida­
ble army. The garrison and citizens of the German capital,
now thrown upon their own resources, performed prodigies of
valor, and succeeded for the time, in turning off from Europo
the torrent of Mussulman invasion. Still the danger was
threatening. Another diet met at Spires (1529) ; but the
Lutheran princes showed far more eagerness to support the
prerogatives of their new sect, than to take measures for re­
pelling the common enemy. Party spirit, always blind and
selfish, is never willing to hear of terms. The Catholics, with
the genuine patriotism which rises above paltry considerations
of self-love and personal vanity, proposed a middle course whirl·
should, according to them, unite all the suffrages. It was
very nearly the same as the declaration admitted, two years
before, by the preceding diet. “ The edict of Worms, said
the proposal, “shall be observed in the States in which it has
already been received. The others shall be free to continue
in the new doctrines until the meeting of the next general
council. However, to prevent all domestic troubles, no one
shall preach in public against the Sacrament of the altar ; the
Mass shall not be abolished; and no one shall be hinder···!
from celebrating or hearing it” These words, which certainly

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

breathe a spirit of unquestionable moderation and justice
aroused the whole Lutheran party, which protested, with one
voice, that freedom of conscience and evangelical truth were
threatened. “ The Mass is an act of idolatry, condemned by a
thousand passages of Sacred Scripture. It is our duty and
our right to overthrow the altars of Baal.” This written pro­
test. duly signed, was immediately sent to Bologna, to he pre
sented to Charles V. It was on this occasion that the Luther­
ans first took the name of Protestants, which they have since
kept. The victories of Charles in France and Italy had just
resulted in the treaty of Cambrai with Pope Clement VII, and
Francis I. The emperor could now dictate terms, and he used
his power. The Lutheran deputation met with a very unfavor­
able reception; the emperor refused to receive their protest.
“ The Catholics have no more idea than yourselves," said
Charles, “of acting against their conscience or their faith. We
expect a peaceful and regular settlement of the difficulties in
Germany, from the decision of a general council, which will
meet as soon as circumstances permit. Until then, it is our
wish that the States strictly observe the decisions of the diet."
The deputies, proud to display their independence before the
most powerful monarch in Europe, drew up a formal protest
against the imperial decision. Charles, in reply, ordered them
to be thrown into prison. lie soon afterward, however, set
them at liberty, and summoned another diet to meet at Augs­
burg, in the following year, promising to be present in person.
17. The interval was taken up by the Sacramentarian
discussion between Zwingli, Œcolampadius, and Luther.
Zwingli, in explaining the terms of the Eucharistic institu­
tion, pretended that the words : “ Hoc est corpus meum,"
meant: “This signifies my body.”
Œcolampadius would
have the word corpus understood in a figurative sense, and
not as indicating a real presence. The teaching of the Cath­
olic Church is that the words of Jesus Christ are to be under­
stood literally, and that they really eftect what they say ; so
that after the consecration of the bread by the words : “ Hoc

CLEMENT VU. (A. D. ISÎ3-1M4).

93

est corpus meum" {This is my body}, there is no longer bread
upon the altar, but the body of Jesus Christ, under the foria
And appearance of bread. This is what theologians call the dogma
of Transubatantiation. Luther rejected the Catholic doctrine
though he was equally unwilling to admit the arbitrary inter­
pretations of Zwingli and Œcolampadius. He accordingly
wrote, with his usual vehemence, in support of his intermediate
system of Consubstantiation. He maintained that the body of
Christ is with the bread in the sacrament of the Eucharist i In
Dane, sub pane, cum pane}. Zwingli retorted by demonstrating
that if the literal interpretation must be received, the Catholic
dogma of Transubstantiation was the only admissible one ; and
that if, with Luther, they admitted a figurative sense (77n.
*
is
my body, signifying : This contains my body, or This bread is united
unth my body), he asked in what his metonymy was less solid
than Luther’s synecdoche. “ You call us heretics," said Zwingli.
“ who should be put to silence ; you lay an interdict upon our
works, you urge the authorities to oppose our doctrines. In what
did the Pope’s conduct differ from yours, when truth first tried
to raise its voice ?” The ecclesiastic of Wittenberg could find
but little to reply to this argument. He had declaimed against
tradition ; he was now obliged to fall back upon it. in spite of his
theories of private interpretation. “ Consubstantiation." he wrote
to Albert of Prussia, “ is not a doctrine of human invention ; it
is founded upon the gospel, upon plain, unquestionable words ;
it has been uniformly believed and preserved throughout the
whole world, from the foundation of the Christian Church until
the present hour ; this is proved by the works of the Hol·.
Fathers, both Greek and Latin, as well as by daily usage ami
continued experience. Were it a new doctrine, had it been less
uniformly kept in all the churches, throughout all Christendom,
it would not be so fearful, nor so dangerous to doubt and to dis­
cuss it. Whoever doubts it might as well deny the Christian
Church, and condemn, as heretical, not only the holy Chui ch,
but Christ Himself and the Apostles and Prophets, who have
established it with promises of endless duration ! The Church

94

OE.VERXL HISTORY OF THF. CHURCH.

of God is the pillar and ground of truth.” These words could
hardly be attributed to the same pen which five years before
had written: “All the Fathers have erred in the faith, and. if
they did not repent beforedeath, they are damned for all eternity
St. Gregory invented purgatory and masses for the dead
Augustine often erred,and it is not safe to trust him. Jerome,
( look upon as a heretic who has written many impious things.
I know none of the Fathers whom I hate as I do him ; he is
always uttering absurdities about fasting and virginity. I make
little account of Chrysostom ; he is an empty declaimer. Basil
is good for nothing—he is a real monk. Thomas Aquinas is a
mere theological abortion, a sink of error, a compound of all
kinds of heresies which destroy the gospel.”* Yet these in­
consistencies gave Luther no trouble. His words were adapted
to the interests of his cause, hostile or flattering, according to
circumstances.
18. The emperor’s arrival at Augsburg was delayed until
the lôth of June. It was the eve of the Feast of the Blessed
Sacrament, which gave rise at once to new difficulties. Charles
V. called upon the Protestant princes to lay before him a written
formula of their belief and of the abuses they claimed to reject.
Melancthon was charged to draw up the document, which was
called the Augsburg Confession,or Formula of Faith (Confessio
AwiMtana}. Luther received it without restriction. “ I am
well enough pleased,” he writes, “ with this document, and I
see no need of change or improvement in it. Besides, I could
not undertake it ; I could not act with so much calmness and
gentleness.” The Augsburg Confession contained a preamble in
two parts, the first, in twelve articles, rested upon the Apostles
Creed and that of Nice, and the second, in seven articles,
exposed the abuses to be rejected.
Among the abuses,
Melancthon enumerated communion under one kind, private
masses, celibacy, monastic vows, the distinction of meats for
days of abstinence, auricular confession and ecclesiastical
Vid. Ahog, t. 1IL, pp. <6, 66.

CLEMENT VII. (A. D. I5Î3-1534).

95

government.
The first part, composed with great art And
moderation, contained Luther’s doctrine undor a softened and
disguised form ; still, it recognized the leading errors of the
Saxon monk : 1st. On original sin, as causing an absolute in­
capacity for good; 2d. On justification by faith alone; 3d
On free will, faith and good works ; 4th. On the worship and in­
vocation of saints; 5th. On the presence of Jesus Christ in
the Sacrament of the altar : as we have already stated, Lu­
ther admitted no change of substance. The confession was
publicly read before the diet, after which the emperor submit
ted it to the Catholic theologians present in the assembly—
Eck, Cochlæus, Conrad Wimpina, Faber and others. They
pointed out the errors and showed, moreover, from Lnther’r
writings, that be had himself, at various times, taught directly
opposite doctrines. Ii. the presence of the crying evils already
caused by the Reformed doctrines, it was not easy for devotee
sor.a of the Church to master their indignation. The first re
port of the Catholic doctors, drawn up under the influence of
this feeling, seemed to the emperor somewhat too harsh. He
pointed this out to the theologians, who recognized the necessity
of keeping within the bounds of prudence and moderation.
Truth must be calm and reserved ; passion is suited only to
the defence of error. With this view they drew up a new refu­
tation of the confession (Confutatio Confessionis Augustana?).
Each article was calmly discussed in accordance with the rules
of strict logic. The Lutheran errors were compared with Catho­
lic tradition ; it was shown wherein they diverged from the
truth and by what alluring baits they had misled unthinking
minds. The refutation was read, by command of the emperor,
to the assembled ei ders. Charles had relied upon the good faith
of the Protestant princes. After this precise and clear exposi­
tion of the Catholic dogmas, he did not doubt that they would
at once abandon the cause of the Reformation. He accordingly
addressed the assembly, expressing the desire that all divisions
should thenceforth cease : *· Otherwise,” he added, ·· we shall
be compelled t< act, in conscience, in accordance with our con
*

96

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

nation oath, ns protector of the Holy Church.” This declaration
aroused all the hatred of the Protestant faction.
Philip of
Hesse, to the general consternation, abruptly closed the discus·
sion opened between the princes and bishops, and quitted Augs­
burg. Charles then decided that a public controversy should be
held in his presence, on the disputed points. Eck, the Catholic
doctor, and Melancthon, the disciple of Luther, were appointed
to defend their respective theses. The question of communion
under both kinds was first discussed. The Catholic theologians,
relying upon an analogous precedent in the case of the Hussites,
promised to obtain this concession for Germany, in the event of
their coming to an understanding upon the other disputed ques­
tions. Melancthon was certainly the most honest and upright
of all the Reformers. He could not impugn the known truth, and
he soon fell into disrepute with his own party for his moderation
in carrying on the discussion. Luther did not appear at the
diet ; he remained at Coburg, always ready to give his advice
in matters of importance. In the course of the debate, Melancthon
acknowledged the authority of bishops. “ Under what pre­
text,” he said to his partisans, “ can we deprive the bishops of
their authority, if they teach sound doctrine ? If I must say
what I think, not only would I strengthen their authority, but
I would even wish to restore to them full episcopal power
and spiritual administration. Without a governing power, we
shall languish under a tyranny more cruel than any that has
yet existed !” In terms even more explicit, he wrote to the
legate, Campeggio, on the power of the Sovereign Pontiff : “ We
have no other doctrine than that of the Roman Church. We
are ready to obey her if she dispenses to us the treasures of
kindness which she lavishes on her other children, and consents
to overlook certain points of minor importance, which we could
not now change even though we wished it. We honor the
Pope of Rome and all the constitutions of the Church, pro­
vided the Pope do not repel us. But why should we tremble"
Why should he reject the prayer of suppliants, when unity can
be so easily restored ? There are but insignificant differences

CLEMENT VIT. (A. D

1583-1534).

97

in flw usages wiiK'li ςροπι to opi ·
n- ilintion
The canons themselves admit that we may differ on such mat­
ters without being cut off from the union of the Chunn.
When Luther heard of this letter, his rage knew no bound- “ 1
will not hear of unity in doctrine,” he wrote to Melancthon,
“since it is an utter impossibility unless the Pope will lav aside
all his Papal insignia. The affair will be lengthened out by con­
tinual quibbling and endless concessions. The wily Catholics
have set us a snare which we must carefully avoid.” Melanc­
thon now saw clearly that the Reformer had no intention
of entering upon the discussion with any degree of good
faith. “ All these fault-finders,” said he, “ plainly show that
they are contending, not for the gospel, but for their own per­
sonal interest.” Had Melancthon been gifted with a courage
equal to his uprightness, he would have seized this occasion to
break with Protestantism. But Luther swayed his timid nature
with all the power which a superior mind knows how to exer­
cise over a weak imagination. The victim passively submit­
ted to all that was required of him. Instead of following out
his projects of reconciliation, he published an “ Apology for the
Augsburg Confession,” in opposition to the Refutation of the
Catholic theologians.
The Lutheran nobles presented it to
Charles, who rejected it as well as the confession itself; but
among the Protestants it obtained an authority equal to that of
the Formula. On the other hand, the four cities which held
the doctrines of Zwingli, viz. : Strasburg, Lindau, Constance
and Memmingen, had published a common confession of faith,
the “ Confessio Tetrapolitana.” Zwingli himself presented a
special one of his own, in which he brings out the points nf
divergence between his doctrine and Luther's, in the question of
the Eucharist. All was discord and confusion in the Protestant
.nip, and Melancthon, in despair, could not forbear exclaiming .
Zwingli must have lost his senses !” The emperor, hopeless of
ffecting a union now becoming daily more impracticable, at
length published an edict which put an end to the disputes.
·· The Protestants,” said he, “ have been refuted by sound
v»i. rv.—i

98

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

principles drawn from sacred Scripture. They may docide upon
the course they will pursue, before the 15th of April of next
year." Another edict, issued soon after, closed the proceedings
of the diet. In it the emperor positively declared that he felt
bound in conscience to defend the ancient Catholic faith, “and
the princes promised to second his endeavors with all their
power.”
19. Peace could not last long with enemies who showed re­
spect for no authority. When Charles wished to carry out the
decrees of the diet, he received no support from the Catholic
princes of Germany, who dreaded the consequences of a civil
war in the present hostile state of the German mind. On the
other hand, the emperor felt that he must conciliate the Lu­
theran States, to secure their help against the Turks, whose ad­
vance still continued to alarm the whole of Europe. The Prot­
estants would come to no agreement until the imperial decree
of Augsburg should have been revoked. They met at Sinaicald (Schmalkalden), on the 29th of March, a. d. 1531, and con­
cluded an offensive league of six years. They proceeded with
greater assurance and daring in their new course since Luther
and Melancthon, recalling their former opposition, now author­
ized the use of arms for the maintenance of Protestantism.
Thus, in many respects, the Turkish sultan became the natural
ally of the Protestant princes, since his design of profiting by
the divisions in Germany gave an opportunity to those who
were rending it to make head against the emperor. Charles
V. was obliged to enter into negotiations with them at Frank­
fort, and the conference ended at Nuremberg (July 23d,
1532). There it was agreed that, until the meeting of the
general council, no steps should be taken against any of the
princes ; that every thing should remain as it was, for the time
being; that only those, however, who had already received the
Confession of Augsburg should be included in the treaty of
peace. Luther had triumphed.
20. While these complicated difficulties in Germany so fear­
fully agitated the Pontificate of Clement VII., his attention was

CLEMENT VII. (A. D. 1323-1631)

9£

called to England by events no less deplorable. Henry VIII.
whose elegant apology for the Catholic faith, against the “ Ec
olesiastes of Wittenberg,” had been so splendidly and appro­
priately rewarded by Leo X. with the title of “ Defender of
the Faith,” remained for a time true to the character which he
had taken upon himself. He wrote a second treatise against
Luther, taking up his line of argument against the Reformer
with no less vigor and logic than in the first. These two
works won an immense celebrity. Satisfied with his success,
the monarch’s pride should have kept him in his course of
fidelity to the Church whose cause he had so nobly defended.
His minister, Cardinal Wolsey, had thrown about his reign a
halo of glory and splendor. His most intimate counsellors were
two men whose talent and virtue were the admiration of all
Europe—Fisher, bishop of Rochester, and Thomas More,
whom he had raised to the dignity of chancellor. At the age
of nineteen, Henry, in virtue of a dispensation from Pope
Julius II., had married Catharine of Aragon, the widow of his
brother Arthur, and aunt of Charles V. ; Catharine was an ac­
complished princess, and for twenty years Henry boasted of his
happiness in possessing so amiable and virtuous a consort. If
ever an exalted position could have seemed secure, it was cer­
tainly that of the queen so nearly allied to the imperial throne,
whose mild and modest virtues were in benediction throughout
England, and won the love and esteem of Henry himself. This
happy existence was at length disturbed by a criminal passion
of most disastrous consequences. Yielding up his heart to the
sway of an unholy affection, the king was unable to resist the
cnarms of Anne Boleyn. Anne was as ambitious as beautiful ;
she aimed at royalty and succeeded in her design. Henry's
passion was too powerful to admit of calculation. He sacrificed
a lawful consort, a faithful minister, his honor, his conscience, his
religion, and his faith. Cardinal Wolsey tried to oppose the
influence of the royal favorite; he was disgraced and bad not
etrength of mind to survive the loss of his fortune. On his
death-bed the fallen minister uttered the memorable words

1

100

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

“Had I but served God as diligently as I have seived the
king, He would not have given me over in my gray hairs"
(a. d. 1530). Henry applied to Clement VII. for a divorce. The
Pope's position was extremely embarrassing.
Catharine o(
Aragon was an aunt of Charles V., whose troops had latelj
sacked Rome and seized upon the States of the Church. Toad
against Catharine, even supposing that the canons could have
allowed such a course, would have drawn upon him the dis­
pleasure of the emperor. On the other hand, Henry urged his
request with an eagerness which gave occasion for the most
serious apprehensions. In the heat of his passion he might
plunge into the Lutheran heresy and drag all England with him
into the abyss of error. Catharine had also appealed to the
Sovereign Pontiff, and Clement took the occasion to call the
whole matter before his tribunal. He hoped that the time
which must necessarily elapse between the opening of a long
and intricate trial and the final sentence, would bring some
favorable event to his assistance ; but his hopes were doomed
to disappointment.
21. Henry immediately dispatched a commission to Rome.
His ambassadors were instructed to seek and to follow the
advice of the most distinguished Italian canonists. He se­
cretly requested their opinion upon the following points
1. “ Whether, if a wife were to make a vow of chastity and
enter a convent, the Pope could not, of the fulness of his
power, authorize the husband to marry again ; 2. Whether, if
the husband were to enter into a religious order, that he might
induce his wife to do the same, he might not be afterward re
leased from his vow, and at liberty to marry again ; 3. And
whether, for reasons of state, the Pope could not allow a prince
to have, like the ancient Patriarchs, two wives, of whom one
only should be publicly acknowledged and enjoy the honors of
royalty.” Henry’s agents were meanwhile busy in every part
of Europe, buying up the opinions of theologians and univer­
sities in favor of the divorce ; these were to be laid before the
Pope as the expression of their general opinion. But the

CLEMENT VII. (A. D. 152J-15.44).

101

cumber of these decisions was, of necessity, very limited, and
the Pope was not ignorant of the measures used to obtain
them. To all their urgent entreaties, Clement returned the
same answer, “ that he was ready to take the question into
immediate consideration, and to gratify the king in any manner
conformable with honor and justice. We ask but one thing
in return,” he added, “ it is, that, under pretext of the gratitude
due from the Holy Church to Henry VTIL, we may not be
asked to violate the unchangeable commandments of God.”
22. This reply crushed the hopes of Henry. He saw that
it would render useless all the expedients by which he had
thought to reach the end he so ardently desired. The advo­
cates of Anne Boleyn began to despair of success, and to
waver in her support, when they were rescued from danger by
the boldness and ingenuity of Thomas Cromwell, a man of in­
triguing mind, covetous heart, and servile disposition. Ilia
father was a fuller in the neighborhood of the capital. Thomas,
in his early youth, served as a trooper in the wars of Italy ;
from the army he passed to the office of a Venetian merchant,
’and, after some time, returning to England, exchanged the
counter for the study of the law. His pliant mind, fruitful in
expedients, recommended him to the service of Wolsey. When
his patron was disgraced, Cromwell forsook the fallen favorite
and hastened back to court. Gratitude was never the virtue
of ambitious minds. Seeing the intricate position into which
the king had been led by his ardent passion, Cromwell, knowing
that his fortune would be made if he found an expedient to
satisfy the royal will, solicited and obtained an audience. An
expedient was not hard to find for a man who “had learned,
from Machiavelli, that vice and virtue were but names fit, in­
deed, to amuse the leisure of the learned in their colleges, but
pernicious to the man who seeks to rise in the courts ot princes
The great art of a politician was, in his judgment, to *penetrat
through the disguise which sovereigns are accustomed to throM
over their real inclinations, and to devise the most speciom
expedients to gratify their appetites, without appearing to out

102

GENERAL HISTORY OP THE CHURCH.

rage morality or religion.”
Such was the man who was
destined to lead Henry VIII. into new paths, and England into
a schism from which she has not yet emerged. “ The learned
and the universities,” he urged, “ have pronounced in favor
of the divorce. Nothing is now wanting but the Sovereign
Pontiff’s approval. Such a measure on the part of the Pope
might, indeed, arouse the emperor’s resentment. But if it
cannot be obtained, is the king, therefore, to give up his rights?
Why not, rather, imitate the German princes, who had thrown
off the yoke of Rome? Could he not, by.the authority of
Parliament, declare himself the head of the Church within his
own realm ? England was, at present, a monster with two
heads ; but if the king would at once take into his own hands
the authority usurped by the Pope, all anomaly would dis­
appear, the existing difficulties would vanish, and churchmen,
through attachment to their lives and fortunes, would become
the most obsequious ministers of his will.” Henry listened
with surprise, but with ill-disguised pleasure, to a discourse
which flattered at once his guilty passion, his thirst for wealth,
and his greediness of power, the three concupiscences which,
by their union, constitute the spirit of the world. He thanke
*
’
Cromwell, and ordered tun. to oc immediately sworn of his
privy council.
23. The king now entered upon a totally new line oi
policy. In the archives of English legislation, there had long
lain an old and now rusty weapon, but yet, in the king’s
estimation, wonderfully fitted to strike the blow which he was
preparing to aim at the Church.
Certain almost forgotten
statutes, of ancient and very questionable origin, known as the
statutes of Prœniunire, made it high treason to carry out, within
the realm, certain provisions or decrees of the head of the
Universal Church, without the royal sanction. All the members
of the English hierarchy had received their bulls of nomina­
tion and exercised spiritual jurisdiction in the kingdom, with­
out taking out any such royal license. The whole English
episcopate was, therefore, according to the statutes or præmu-

CLEMENT VH. (A D * *13-1534).

103

nire, guilty of high treason. Such was the singular charge
brought against the whole body of the clergy in the beginning
of the year 1531, at the instigation of Cromwell. The case
was opened and sentence pronounced against the whole epis­
copate. A deputation from the clergy offered a present of one
hundred thousand pounds in return for a full pardon. But the
king was not to be satisfied with money. He refused the pro­
posal, unless, in the preamble to the grant, a clause were in­
serted acknowledging the king “ as the protector and only
supreme head of the church and clergy of England.
Much
time was wasted in fruitless discussions. Warham, archbishop
of Canterbury, moved an amendment in the following terms :—
“ We acknowledge His Majesty to be the chief protector, the
only and supreme lord, and, as far as the law of Christ will
vllow, the supreme head of the church and clergy of England.”
The restriction contained in the words “ as far as the law of
Christ will allow” was the only ground on which the Catholic
bishops could conscientiously sign the proposition. They un­
derstood their position, and as a more precise definition of the
sense in which they gave their signatures, the Archbishop of
Canterbury and the Bishop of Durham added to their names a
more explicit declaration, in these words:—“If this clause
mean only that the king is the head in temporals, why all this
formality, since every one grants it already ? If it mean that
he is the head in spirituals, it is contrary to the doctrine of
the Catholic Church, out of which there is no salvation. I,
therefore, protest against the latter sense, and submit all to the
judgment of our Holy Mother the Church ; I call upon all
present to witness my dissent from it, and demand that this
protest be entered among the acts of the convocation.”
24. But Henry was yet wavering and irresolute ; he sought
to intimidate the court of Rome, but had not determined to
separate from itf communion. Finding that he could not
terrify the Pope into the approbation of the divorce, he now
took a decidedly hostile stand. On the 25th of January, a. r·
1533, at an early hour, Dr. Rowland Lee, one of the royal

104

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

chaplains, received orders to celebrate Mass in a retired apart
inent at the western end of the palace of Whitehall; the
purpose was to unite Henry VIII. and Anne Boleyn ; the fear
of an illegitimate birth hastened the time of this ceremony.
The chaplain, when he discovered the object for which he had
been called, made some opposition ; but Henry calmed his
scruples by the assurance that the Pope had pronounced in his
favor, and that the Papal instrument was safely deposited in
his closet. Meanwhile, the death of Warham had left the see
of Canterbury vacant ; it was in the interest of Henry that
the see should be filled by a creature of his own. With this
view, he bestowed the bishopric upon Thomas Cranmer, a priest
of more than questionable morality, who, after his entrance
into Holy Orders, had married a granddaughter of the Lutheran
Osiander, in Germany. This union was kept secret, and Cran­
mer had taken the greatest precaution to hide his immorality
from the public. Still he had a secret leaning toward the
Protestant doctrines, and had signalized himself among the
English theologians who wrote in favor of the divorce. When
Cranmer was named to the vacant archbishopric, the nomina­
tion was approved by the Pope, who was ignorant of his
scandalous antecedents, and thus he was placed in possession
of the first see in England. The new primate inaugurated his
power by a letter to the king concerning his “ incestuous
union ” with Catharine of Aragon, “ a union,” he wrote, “ which
has given great scandal, and which we have also resolved, for
the peace of our own conscience, to break off by every canoni­
cal means in our power.” The king most graciously consented
to receive this admonition from the pious primate of his king­
dom. “We deemit necessary,” said he, “for the good of our
soul, to yield without delay to the representations of our spirit­
ual father, the Archbishop of Canterbury.” Cranmer asked
to be allowed at once to institute an ecclesiastical procedure
against Catharine. The injured queen was then residing at
Ampthill, near Dunstable. Cranmer opened his court at Dun­
stable and summoned the king and queen to appear before him

CLEMENT VIT. (A. D. 1523-15M).

105

Catharine paid no heed to the iniquitous summon». The arch­
bishop pronounced her contumacious ; and. in consequence,
judgment was given against her, stating that the marriage
between her and Henry was null and invalid; this judgment
he pronounced in virtue of his apostolic authority as legate of
the Holy See, which he claimed as tributary of the primatial
see of Canterbury. This decision was communicated to the
king by the primate, who, with much gravity, exhorted him to
submit to the will of God, made known to him by a sentence
given conformably to the laws of the Holy Church Henry then
officially announced his marriage with Anne Boleyn, and the
hypocritical prelate confirmed the adultery “ in virtue of the
authority which he held from the successor of the Apostles.”
25. It was time to put an end to these scandalous proceed­
ings, and to inform the Catholic world that the Holy See was
not disposed to become accessory by its silence. On the 23d
of March, a. d. 1534, Clement VII. held a solemn consistory, in
which he clearly explained the question of the divorce and the
negotiations to which it had given rise. Of the twenty-two
cardinals, nineteen pronounced in favor of the validity of the
union with Catharine of Aragon; only three were in favor of a
further delay. According to the opinion of so numerous a
majority. Clement VII. pronounced a definitive sentence, de­
claring the marriage of Henry VIII. and Catharine of Aragon
lawful and valid, condemning the proceedings against Catharine
as unjust and tyrannical, and ordering the king to take her back
as his legitimate wife. Before the Pontifical bull reached
England, Henry had already sent to both Houses a bill abolish­
ing the power of the Pope within the English realm, and the
schism, fruit of impurity, avarice and ambition, was consum­
mated.
26. This sad intelligence reached Rome simultaneously with
that which announced the defection of Switzerland, under the
leadership of Calvin. The remedy for such an accumulation
of evils would have been a general council, which was now
called f·- by the united voice of the whole Catholic world.

106

GENERAL HI8TORV OF THE CHURCH.

Clement had taken measures to convoke it, but the ceaseless
wars betweei. Charles V. and Francis I. made his efforts use
less. Broken down by multiplied reverses, discouraged by
the struggles of his stormy Pontificate, filled with fear foi
the present and apprehension for the future, he was seized by a
deep and settled melancholy, which took him to the grave
(September 25, a. d. 1534). •‘From his dying couch, he was
doomed to see the Vatican fallen from its ancient glory and
political influence, the kingdoms of the west wrested from the
Catholic faith, and Switzerland torn from the Holy See.” The
august diadem which he had worthily borne through a career
of troubles ind vicissitudes was indeed, to him, a crown of
thorns.

PAÜL III. (A. D. 1534-1549).

1IG

CHAPTER III.

Pontificate

of

Paul III. (October 15, a. d. 1534—November 10, 1549).

1. Election and first acts of Paul III.—2. The Jesuits. St. Ignatius of Loyola.—3,
Execution of Sir Thomas More, by order of Henry VIII.—4. Execution
of Fisher, bishop of Rochester.—5. Cromwell appointed vicar general of the
king, in the ecclesiastical government. Suppression and sack of the
monasteries. Henry VIII. is again excommunicated by Paul ΠΙ.—6. Exe­
cution of the Countess of Salisbury, mother of Cardinal Pole.—7. Continua­
tion and close of Henry’s reign.—8. Accession of Edward VI. to the
throne of England.—9. Luther’s marriage.—10. Polygamy of the Landgrave,
Philip of Hesse, authorized by Luther and Melancthon.—11. Anabaptists
at Munster. John of Leyden—12. Progress of the Reformation in Prussia,
Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Iceland.—13. A truce of ten years con­
cluded at Nice between Charles V. and Francis I., through the mediation
of Paul HL Francis I. the Father of letters.—14. Calvin. His system.
—15. Nature of Calvin’s polemics against Catholicity.—16. Calvin’s politi­
cal life. His dictatorship in Geneva.—17. Common features of Calwnisin
and Lutheranism.—18. Interview of the Papal legate, Ver<»erio, with
Luther.—19. Diet of the States of the Empire at Sinalcald.—20. Attack
of Charles V. upon the Lutheran princes. Battle of Mdhlberg.—21. Death
of Luther.
Character of the Saxon Reformer.—22. Opening of the
Eighteenth General Council at Trent. —23. History of the Council ofTrent by
Fra Paolo, under the name of Pietro-Soave-Polano. —24. History of the coun­
cil by Cardinal Pallavicini.—25. Edict of Charles V. known as the Interim.
—26. Decrees of the Council of Trent concerning the Sacred Scripture
*,
the establishment of chairs of theology and the pastoral obligation ofpreaching
at least on every Sunday and solemn feast.—27. Apostasy of die legate Vengerio, in Germany. Apostasy of Ochino, general of the Capuchins.—28.
Fifth session of the Council of Trent. Louis Lippomano, bishop of Modena.
—39. Decree of the council on original sin.—30. Decrees on justification
and pastoral residence.—31. Transfer of the council to Bologna.—S3.
Death of Francis I. Marot. Rabelais.—33. Causes of the opposition to
the Council of Trent.—34. Last contests and death of Paul III.— 35
American missions.—36. St Francis Xavier.—37. Theologians. Melel»»r
Cano.

108

Pontificate

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

of

Paul III. (Oct. 15,

a. d.

1534—Nov. 10, 1549).

1. Clement VII. bequeathed to his successor an immense
and a difficult mission. It must aim at a threefold object: to
pacify the hostile powers ; to stay the torrent of heresy; to
crush the schismatical attempts of England ; in a word, to re­
store, on a firm basis, the Catholic unity which seemed to be on
the point of dissolution. A man was found with a mind to
plan and the courage to execute these great undertakings.
Paul III. was of the noble Tuscan house of Farnese, a name
already illustrious in the decline of the thirteenth century.
His studies identified him with the literary movement of his
age ; he always showed a decided passion for the ancient
classics and for the fine arts made popular by the late revival.
At the age of twenty-two he was made a cardinal by Alex­
ander VI., and from that time he was always occupied in
political concerns, filling the highest posts with signal success.
When Charles VIII. entered Italy, he was sent as Apostolic
legate, to meet the king at Viterbo. Honored with the confi­
dence of Julius IL, Leo X. and their successors, the tiara was
bestowed upon him by the unanimous vote of the Sacred Col­
lege. Clement VII. had even said upon his death-bed: “If
the Papacy were hereditary, we would bequeath the tiara to
Cardinal Farnese.’’ The Sovereign Pontificate was indeed a
fearful burden. Paul III. met its difficulties with noble intre­
pidity ; but before beginning his task he took the precaution to
surround himself with men distinguished for merit and virtue.
These ministers, who sbed additional lustre on bis Pontificate,
were the Venetian Contarini, Caraffa, Sadolet, whose name
illustrated the reign of Leo X., Pole, Giberto and Fregoso—
all commanding universal esteem and respect. With them, he
began to lay the foundation of a peaceful reform in the Church,
to meet the unbridled radicalism of the Lutherans. His first
•step was to appoint commissioners for the execution of reforms

PAUL III. (A.

υ.

I5M-IWJ).

109

in the Chancery, the Penitentiary and the Apostolic Cham­
ber. Under his active influence, the Camaldoli, the Francis­
cans and the Capuchins at once entered upon a course of strict
reform.
2. To second the Pontiff in the arduous and difficult task
which he had undertaken, Providence was preparing a powerful
array of new auxiliaries, armed with a zeal proportionate to
every want, a self-devotion equal to every enterprise, a courage
fearless of every danger ; who should ever display, in weal or
woe, the same fidelity to duty, the same submission to the
Holy See, the same ardor for the salvation of souls ; who. in
exile or on the steps of the throne ; in the Christian pulpits of
European capitals, or in the distant missions of India, China,
and Japan ; in literary institutions, or in the lowliest cabins ;
in the most enlightened cities, or the most obscure hamlets,
should, always and everywhere, with the same forgetfulness
and the same success, carry on the work of God. We mean
the Jesuits, whose institution dates from the period when
Paul III. was inaugurating his new reign. Don Inigo Lopez
de Recalde, better known as Ignatius of Loyola, the youngest
son of the house of Loyola, was born in the castle of that
name, in the province Guipuscoa, where his family held the
first rank amongst the nobility. He was reared at the court
of Ferdinand the Catholic, and in the suite of the Duke of
Najara. His position opened to him a splendid prospect in the
profession of arms, but the hand of God checked his high
career at the very outset ; He had reserved that great soul for
His own service. In the defence of Pampeluna against the
French, in 1521, Ignatius received wounds in both legs, which
obliged him to give up the military profession. The leisure
hours of a long convalescence he devoted to reading romances
of chivalry. These romantic narratives aroused his ardent
imagination ; but unable now to follow his natural inclination, he
fell into a deep melancholy. He felt within himself an inex­
pressible longing which nothing could satisfy, and in this frame
of mind he began to study the lives of the Saints, and to med»

no

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

•jite upon the Scriptures. A new world was suddenly opened
out before him; a world of which he had never before known
the extent. The spiritual life was revealed to him with all its
charms and attractions, its sweet radiance flooded his soul, and
Ignatius arose a new man. Such is the admirable power of di­
vine grace, displaying, at every stage of the Church’s history,
its marvellous fecundity for the salvation of the world ; striking
down St. Paul on the road to Damascus, transforming Augus­
tine in a garden at Milan, converting I’gnatius on his bed of
pain in a solitary castle. The young Spaniard obeyed the
voice of God; he tore himself away from his home and kin­
dred, and withdrew into a solitude near Mamesa.
*
The desire
of a more active life soon turned his thoughts toward Jeru­
salem and the conversion of the Unbelievers. Failing in this
project, he returned to Spain, whence he passed over into
France, to attend the course of the University, and devote
himself to the study of theology. The relations which he here
contracted with Peter Faber, a Savoyard, and with Francis
Xavier, decided his vocation. The three friends, together
with several other young men whom they had won, repaired
one day to the church of Montmartre. Faber, who was
already in holy orders, said Mass, after which they all took a
vow of chastity and poverty, and swore to devote their lives
to the care of the Christians and to the conversion of the Sara­
cens. The order of the Jesuits dates from that memorable
day (August 15, a. d. 1534). In l537, we find Loyola at Venice,
with some of bis companions ; here he received the order of
priesthood, and preached, with them, the truths of salvation.
A year after, they set out for Rome, the centre of all that it
great, the focus of all the living works of Catholicity ; but,
before separating, they drew up certain rules for their common
observance. It was then that Ignatius gave them the name of
Company or Society of Jesus. At Rome, they had to contend
* Matresaisa email town three leagues distant from Montserrat, celebrated ns tno
rcaoalof St. Ignatius, where he composed the admirable work of the Spiritual Exercise»
«nd m u place of pilgrimage for mi-Hitudus of pious souls.

PAÜL lit. (A. D. 1534-1949),

ni

«gainst almost insurmountable obstacles to obtain the recog
nition of the new institute; but their intrepid zeal, patience,
and humility, triumphed over every difficulty. Paul III. at
first gave them a verbal approbation, which he renewed in
1543 by a solemn bull, definitively constituting the Society of
Jesus as a religious order. These opening difficulties once
overcome, they were enabled to increase their number To the
two vows by which they had already bound themselves, they
now joined a third, that of obedience, and added the strict ob­
ligation to do whatsoever the Pope should command; to go into
every country where he chose to send them, to preach to the Turks,
heathens, infidels, or heretics, instantly, without discussion, con­
dition, or reward. “ What an admirable contrast to the ten­
dency hitherto manifested by that age !” says Ranke. “ While
the Pope experienced opposition or desertion from every side,
a society of men was formed, volunteers, full of zeal and en­
thusiasm, with the express purpose of devoting themselves
exclusively to his service.”
3. The course of events was hurrying on in England
Henry no longer set any bounds to his tyranny, or to his re­
bellion against the Church. The Parliament, after having abol­
ished the Pope’s jurisdiction, pronounced the king's marriage
with Catharine of Aragon illegal and invalid, confirmed his
union with Anne Boleyn, and declared the children that might
spring from it lawful heirs to the throne, to the exclusion of
the Princess Mary, daughter of the injured Catharine. It was
also enjoined upon every English subject to swear obedience
to this act, under pain of being deemed guilty of high treason.
This clause was yet to cost torrents of blood. The Bishop of
Rochester, the virtuous Fisher, and his illustrious friend, Sit
Thomas More, had been, from the outset, opposed to the
divorce. When called upon to take the oath required by the
new constitution, they refused and were thrown into the dun
geons of the Tower. Cromwell and Cranmer were appointed
their judges. “ You should grant,” said some one to the laic
chancellor, “ that your conscience has erred, since it is op·

112

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

posed to the council of the whole nation.” “ I might believe
it," replied More, “ had I not in my favor a far greater council,
the whole of Christendom.” While confined in the Tower, he
was subjected to a harder trial than that which he had under­
gone with so much firmness and dignity before an iniquitous
tribunal. Margaret, his wife, whom he tenderly loved, was
admitted to visit him. She threw herself upon her knees be­
fore him, weeping bitterly, and begged him to submit to the
will of the king, for the sake of his children. “ Margaret."
replied More, with the heroism of a martyr, “ would you have
me exchange my hopes of eternity for the few years of life that
still remain to me.” When notified of his sentence, he was told
that the king, as a special favor, had commuted his punish­
ment from hanging to decapitation ; “ God preserve all my
friends," he replied, “ from such favors. I trust that none of
my children may ever need them.” As he ascended the steps
of the scaffold, he said to one of the executioner’s attendants :
“Let me lean on your arm to mount these steps, I shall not
need it to come down.” After a few moments spent in
prayer, and having recited the psalm Miserere, he declared
that he died in the faith of the Catholic, Apostolic, and Roman
Church. One blow of the axe severed from its trunk that
head worthy of a crown in heaven (July 6, a. d. 1535).
4. More bad been preceded to martyrdom by his friend,
the Bishop of Rochester. The pious prelate, who had reached
the venerable age of eighty years, was arrested in 1534, and
confined in a damp dungeon of the Tower. A year of strict
and painful imprisonment was unable to shake his patience or
his faith. Paul Ill., wishing to give a signal proof of the
esteem and sympathy felt for the generous confessor, named
him to the purple on the 12th of May, a.d. 1535, and all Europe
applauded a favor so well deserved. But it only served to
hasten the fate of the bishop, for Henry, as soon as he received
the intelligence, exclaimed, “ Paul may send him the hat, but 1
will take care that he have never a head to wear it on.” The
Roman purple was indeed to be dyed in the blood of a martyr.

PAUL HI. (A. D. U34-1M9).

113

He was condemned to death, June 17th, 1535, as guilt
*
i
high treason, for having maliciously and traitorously said that
the king was not the head of the Church. His execution took
place on the 22d of the same month. Not content with the
execution of Fisher, Henry ordered the dead body to be
stripped, exposed for some hours to the gaze of the populace,
and thrown into the grave without coffin or shroud. The reli­
gious orders in England imitated the courageous bearing of
Fisher and More. By the tyrant’s order, all the friars obser­
vants were ejected from their monasteries anil dispersed,
partly in different prisons, partly in the houses of the friars
conventuals, whose cowardly compliance saved them from the
fury of the apostate king. More than fifty perished from the
rigor of their confinement, the rest were banished to France
and Scotland. The sons of St. Bruno showed the same con­
stancy as the faithful disciples of St. Francis. The priors of
the three charter-houses of London, Axiholm and Bellevai
when summoned to take the oath, waited on Cromwell to ex­
plain their conscientious objections to the recognition of the
king’s supremacy. From his house he committed them to the
Tower, and on the 5th of May, 1535, they were executed at
Tyburn, with four other monks and a secular clergyman, who
had asked leave to bring the last consolations of religion to
their condemned brethren. On all these the sentence of the
law was executed with the most barbarous rigor. They were
hanged, cut down alive, embowelled and dismembered, aud
their mangled limbs scattered upon the public highway.
5. After these bloody scenes, which struck terror into the
heart of England, the clergy seemed to have surrendered all
sense of honor and faith. A general apostasy followed.
Another question now arose respecting the manner in which the
royal supremacy was to be exercised. Henry found it necet»
sary to name a vicar for the conduct of ecclesiastical *afi'air
.
His choice fell upon the man whose counselshad first suggested
the attempt and whose industry had brought it to a successful
termination. Cromwell inaugurated this sacrilegious assum pVol. IV.—8

114

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

lion of power by a general visitation of all the monasteries of
the kingdom, “whose wealth,” he said, “ was a source of great
scandal to all the faithful.” To give some show of system to this
wholesale plunder, an act of Parliament (a. d. 1536) suppressed
about three hundred and seventy-three religious houses, “ for
the glory of Almighty God and the honor of the realm,” and
added their property to the revenue of the crown. The first
attempt having been attended with some disorders and opposi­
tion, it was found necessary to proceed with more caution
and cunning. The religious communities were accused of tak­
ingpart in the disorders and of opposing the royal prerogatives.
But this process of spoliation was too slow, and violent means
were resumed. In 1540, the secularization of the monar­
teries was accomplished. Henry’s will had been executed in a
disgraceful spirit of Vandalism, that spared neither master­
pieces of art nor monuments of learning.
The blind and
senseless rage of the royal ministers had attacked even the
tombs of the saints. Not even St. Augustine, the Apostle of
Britain, nor the illustrious martyr of Canterbury, nor the
founder of England’s power, Alfred the Great, could find favoi
with the brutal barbarity of these revolutionists. Their ashes
were scattered to the winds. Thus did Cromwell win the title
given him by Fox, of “ valiant soldier of the Reformation.”
With the wealth accruing it m this pillage, Henry founded six
new bishoprics and fourteen Cathedral and collegiate churches.
But the principal gain was to the royal visitors and favorites.
This dispersion of the church property is the real source of
pauperism in England. The intelligence of the king’s excesses
was received throughout Europe with loud and general execra­
tion, and Paul III. launched a second excommunication against
Henry VIII.; but the tyrant paid no heed to the sentence and
persisted in declaring himself an obedient son of the Catholic
Church. He continued the use of holy water and ashes, and
the invocation of saints ; a royal decree provided for the pres
ervation of the dogma of transubstantiation as an article of
faith, and enjoined clerical celibacy as an indispensable obliga-

PAUL ΪΠ. (A. D. 1534-1649).

115

lion, “founded,” said the pontiff-king. “upon a commandment
of Christ." But images and relics found no favor in his eyes ;
he ordered them to be burnt wherever they might be found ; the
reign of the Iconoclasts seemed once more restored.
6. The murderer of Fisher and Thomas More had still
another victim to immolate to his revenge. The ranks of the
English clergy were honored by a man as illustrious by his birth
as by his talents and virtues—Cardinal Pole. His mother, the
venerable Countess of Salisbury, was the last, in a direct line,
of the Plantagenets, a family which had swayed the English
sceptre through so many generations. The cardinal was thus
nearly allied by blood to Henry, who had hitherto loaded him
with favors and seemed proud of his friendship. When the
question of the divorce was proposed to the House of Lords,
Pole openly pronounced against the act of injustice. This op­
position was viewed as a crime of high-treason, and the cardi­
nal deemed it prudent to withdraw from the pursuit of Crom­
well’s emissaries. The king visited upon the mother the re­
venge he cherished against the son. The Countess of Salisbury,
though more than seventy years of age, and bowed down by
the weight of misfortune rather than of years, was kept in the
Tower, “ as a hostage,” said the king, “ for the behavior of her
son the cardinal.” At length the barbarous sentence of decapi­
tation was pronounced against her. When the executioner
bade her lay her head upon the block, “ No," she replied,
“ my head shall never bow to tyranny ; if you will have it, you
must get it as you can.” At these words the executioner
struck a violent blow at her neck with his axe, but the stroke
was not fatal. The unhappy countess, distracted by pain, ran
wildly about the scaffold, with her long gray hair streaming
about her shoulders ; the executioner followed her, but only suc­
ceeded, after several attempts, in striking off her head.
What
a fearful scene!” exclaims the Protestant writer Cobbett. *· Whai
Englishman does not blush when he remembers that it was
enacted in his own country?”
7. From this period, the reign of Henry VIII. is but a sm-

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

cession of cruel acts and bloody executions. Anne Boleyn,
the first cause of so many crimes, soon excited the anger and
felt the vengeance of her terrible consort. Her levity and
indiscretion had doubtless given rise to many unfavorable re­
ports against her; but the severity of the punishment to which
she was condemned was chiefly due to the new passion of
Henry for Jane Seymour. Anne was beheaded, nor was Eng­
land astonished to learn that on the very next, morning its
lustful monarch had married Jane Seymour, with unwonted
pomp. Jane, in the following year bore him a male child,
afterward Edward VI., and in less than a fortnight expired.
Anne of Cleves appeared for a moment on the fatal throne;
but Henry repudiated her on ignoble grounds, and doubtless
thought it generous enough to spare her life. Less fortunate
than her predecessor, Catharine Howard was soon led to the
block still red with the blood of Anne Boleyn. Cromwell, the
infamous minister of so many deeds of blood, was himself dis­
graced and imprisoned in 1540, on the twofold charge of
heresy and treason. He proved as abject in misfortune as he
had been cruel in prosperity, and was led to execution in spite
of all his pathetic appeals for nvprey. The royal widower of
five queens, of whom two had been repudiated and two be­
headed, still thought of contracting another matrimonial allince. We are naturally inclined to ask, if there could have
been found a woman willing to risk such a union. The pros­
pect of a crown is an irresistible attraction for an ambi­
tious mind, and Catharine Parr was proud to ascend the blood­
stained throne. She was fortunate enough to escape the axe
of the headsman, but her death-warrant had already been
signed, and she would perhaps have been the third of Henry’s
queens to grace the scaffold, but for the early death of the king
(a. d. 1547). In a reign of thirty-eight years, Henry had ordered
the execution of two queens, a cardinal, two archbishops,
eighteen bishops, thirteen abbots, five hundred priors and
monks, thirty-eight doctors, twelve dukes and counts, one
hundred and sixty-four noblemen of various ranks, one hundred

PAUL m. (A. D 1534-16491·

and twenty-four private citizens, anti one hundred and ten
females.
The modern Nero should have another Tacitns,
That such a monster should have become the head of a religion
adopted by England, the land of high and noble intelligence,
where minds are accustomed to appreciate men and events
with coolness and deliberation; where history is studied,
understood, compared and judged; where national honor is
a truly popular sentiment of so much power and vitality—is
a fact which defies all the calculations of human prudence, sets
at naught all the laws of probability, confounds the mind and
compels it to bow before one of those fathomless abysse?
of divine justice, “ Whose judgments are incomprehensible
and unsearchable His ways.” Would to Heaven that the
English people, who want only the possession of Catholic truth
to make them perhaps the greatest nation in the world, might at
length open their eyes to the shame, the barbarity, the cruel and
beastly lust from which sprang the schism that tore them from
the bosom of Roman unity! Why will they not throw off
the ignominious heritage of Henry VIII. to become once more
the true children of St. Peter? What glory awaits therein
this, the only character worthy of their noble race ! Their
ships, which triumphantly plough the waters of every sea,
would bear the standard of the true faith to the farthest shores.
Their wide-spread power would then, in some degree, share the
promise of immortality made by God to His Church. But if,
on the other hand, they persist in following the path of error,
what assurance have we that theirs shall not be the fate of the
Carthaginians; that they shall not meet the same end as did
the ancient mistress of the seas? The Rome of the Popes,
though it command not the troops of the Rome of Scipio, is not
the less invincible.
3. The religious state of England was not improved by the
leath of Henry VIII. Edward VI., the son of Jane Seymour,
ascended the throne in virtue of his father’s will, and to the
prejudice of Mary, the daughter of Catharine of Aragon. The
Duke of Somerset, the young king’s uncle, was at the head ol

IIS

GENERAI. HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

the council of regency, and trained up his ward in a spirit of
hatred toward the Catholic Church. Cranmer, who had been
made spiritual vicar of the kingdom, published, “ by the aid of
the Holy Ghost," a collection of Homilies, an Anglican Cate­
chism, a liturgy in the English language, the Book of Common
Prayer, and Administration of the Sacraments (a. d. 1549). The
sacrifice of the Mass was abolished, the marriage of priests
authorized, and the vulgar tongue introduced into the celebra­
tion of the divine office ; all that remained of the ancient rite
was destroyed—pictures, statues, altars, sacred vestments, and
private chapels. The bishops who refused to conform were dis­
possessed, their property was confiscated, and the new church,
the “Church by law established,” was definitively constituted
by the aid of foreign troops. Instead of the liberal alms which
the monasteries, of their wealth, distributed among the poor,
severe penalties were now enacted against beggars ; they were
liable to be imprisoned or branded with a red-hot iron upon the
breast and forehead. Somerset was, like Henry VIII., com­
pletely under the influence of Cranmer. He ordered the exe­
cution of his own brother, whom he soon followed to the scaf­
fold, on an indictment of treason, and was succeeded by Dud­
ley, earl of Norwich and duke of Northumberland. At the
end of three years, Cranmer’s liturgy was revised, and estab­
lished by an act of Parliament, which decreed the severest
penalties, and even imprisonment for life, against those who
refused to conform to the liturgy. Forty-two new articles,
approved by Parliament, were substituted for the six articles
of Henry VIII
*
9. We return now to the history of other events of the same
period, which we have overlooked in order to give a continued
narrative of the rise and progress of Protestantism in England.
The Reformer, Luther, had meanwhile been carrying on in
Germany his work of destruction and ruin. In 1525, after
having prepared the world for this fresh scandal, by the ob
scene writings in which he loaded ecclesiastical celibacy with
• ÀUM. t.1Π., p. 132.

PAUL III. A. D. 15:4-1549,.

119

insults and epithets inspired by the spirit of darkness, ho publicly married Catharine Bora, a former nun, who had been per­
verted by his doctrines. It is probable that Luther would
have married sooner, had he not feared to incur the displeasure
of the Elector Frederick, who had lately expressed himself in
public on the marriage of priests and monks, which he called a
“ concealed concubinage.” He dreaded the railleries of Eras­
mus, who had laughed so heartily at Carlstadt. The death of
the elector gave Luther courage, and his action was so prompt
that he thought it necessary to explain to his friends the mo­
tives of his sudden determination. “ It is the Lord,” he writes,
“ who inspired the resolution. In marrying Catharine Bora, I
have made the angels rejoice and the demons weep. ’ These
last words are an allusion to the principle, which he had for
some time held, of the divine and imprescriptible obligation of
marriage for all men. Catholic Europe heard the infamous act
with a new cry of indignation; but Luther listened only to the
voice of his passions, which spoke louder in his heart than all
the world beside. Yielding without shame or remorse to their
tyrannical sway, he gathered his friends about the family board,
and gave free rein to all the sallies of his impure mind against
the Roman Church, which he had once called his mother, but
now loaded with the grossest insults. His “Table-Talk”—
• Tisch-Reden”—collected by zealous admirers and carried to
all parts of Protestant Germany, to propagate his work of scan­
dal and immorality, is the most disgraceful monument of the
Reformation.
10. Bad example is contagious. The Landgrave, Philip of
Hesse, the most zealous and powerful protector of Protestant­
ism, formed the design of profiting, after his own taste, by the
Reformer’s marriage. Though already married, he had. for a
long time, been living in a state of concubinage, and now de­
termined to take a second wife, and to have the bigamy legal­
ized. He accordingly wrote to Luther and Melancthon, stating
that though he had been for sixteen years married to Christine,
the daughtei of Duke George of Saxony, and was the father

120

GENERAL HISTORY OP THF, CHURCH.

of eight children, yet he wished to obtain their authorization
fora second and simultaneous union with Margaret, Saal, a maid
of honor to his sister Elizabeth. The motives on which he
grounds his petition are not. such as may be reproduced by a
respectable pen. Luther and Mclancthon were in a state of
great perplexity, for Philip threatened, in the event of their
refusal, to return to the Catholic Church. Still it, seemed to
them a serious undertaking, after the formal expression in
Scripture of the unity of marriage, to bring back the world to
the polygamy of the Patriarchal times. Aitor some delibera
tion, the Reformers consented to grant the landgrave’s request,
and signed the act, “to enable him,”as they said, “ to promote
the advantage of both body and soul, and the greater glory of
God. Still," they suggested, “ as it is not now a usual thing
to have two wives at once, we judge that the ceremony should
be performed privately, and in the presence of a few necessary
witnesses (March 3, a. d. 1540).” The intelligence of this new
infamy caused the greatest scandal in Europe. There was
but one opinion; with one voice Catholics and Protestants
alike stigmatized the shameless conduct of the landgrave, and
the cowardice of Luther and Melancthon in pandering to his
base passion. The Reformer thought to justify himself by an
appeal to his supreme authority, which empowered him, under
certain circumstances, to rise above the ordinary laws and to
decide in opposition to received customs. This was to proclaim
bis own authority while denying that of the Church ; it was a
solemn acknowledgment that he had rejected the supremacy of
the Pope only to set up his own. But all these inconsistencies
gave very little trouble to Luther and his adherents. Catholic
theologians might point them out, but they hardly ever met
with a reply.
11. Westphalia was made the field of new struggles and
new excesses. In the beginning of 1533, the city of Münster
was disturbed by two men, in a strange dress, who went
through the streets, crying aloud: ‘‘Do penance; the ven­
geance of the Heavenly Father is at hand!” These new

PAUL nr. (A f). 1534-15«),

121

prophets were an innkeeper, named John Bockelsou. who
became famous as John of Leyden, and the executioner Knipper
Dolling. The two fanatics had first been led away by Luther’s
Reform, but had afterward embraced the tenets of the Ana­
baptists, and were now striving to raise up the standard torn
from the hands of the peasants on the bloody field of Frank·
hausen. Their teaching would seem to have been based upon
the doctrines of illuminism; they affected to preach mortifica­
tion and penance, while practising polygamy ; they rejected the
authority, the laws, institutions and dogmas of the Church,
pretending that the Holy Ghost Himself taught them in ecsta­
sies and heavenly visions. The people were terrified at their
threats and mournful cries, and the number of their adherents
rapidly increased. John of Leyden was daily surrounded by
an immense throng, asking for baptism. The prophet soon
made himself the minister of the wrath which he had an­
nounced. When he thought his party strong enough to war­
rant the attempt, he took up arms against the Prince of Wal­
deck, bishop of Münster, and succeeded in capturing the city.
His victory was celebrated by the plunder and burning of
churches and monasteries. All books and manuscripts, other
than the Bible, with paintings and statues of the saints, wenbrought to the prophet, who ordered the “ instruments of Popish
idolatry ” to be destroyed. They were burnt amid profane
dances and the excesses of an unbridled and shameless libertin­
ism. On this day of profanation. Münster was styled the
“ City of Zion,” and John of Leyden received the title of its
king. Mathiesen, a baker of the city, took the official title of
prophet, and Knipper Dolling was named generalissimo of the
hosts of the Lord. John of Leyden surrounded his ephemeral
royalty with all the splendors of an Eastern reign; he had
guards, a brilliant court and a seraglio. This last innovation
excited some murmurs ; one unfortunate wretch, whose remarks
on the subject were reported to the king, paid for his freedom
of speech at the block. Meanwhile, the prince-bishop, having
raised a Catholic force at his own expense, was pressing the

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flENERAl» HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

siege of the rebellious city. After i resistance of six months,
the prophet at length fell into the hands of the besiegers. Hie
execution and that of his adherents delivered Münster from
bis tyranny and was the just punishment of so many monstrous
crimes (January 23, a. d. 1536).
12. Protestantism, like a destructive torrent, was rapidly
spreading over the whole of Germany. The excesses of the
fanatical peasantry and the extravagant folly of the Anabap­
tists should have withheld the princes in a course so danger­
ous to their authority ; but they were guided by other views.
Frederick, elector of Saxony, Philip, landgrave of Hesse, and
the Prince of Anhalt, were the first to declare themselves
openly. The cause of the Reformation was then successively
embraced by the States of the North and by Prussia (a. d. 1523),
through the apostasy of Albert of Brandenburg, grand-master
of the Teutonic Order, who consented to purchase a crown at
the price of a sacrilege. His defection drew on that of Livonia.
Courland and Silesia. Sweden, perverted by its king, Gusta­
vus Vasa, and Denmark, by Christiern II. and his successor.
Frederick I. (1523), successively joined the ranks of the Re­
formers. Norway soon followed their example, and, a few
years later, Iceland also received the new heresy. The sove­
reigns were easily led to join the Lutheran cause, by the hope
of sharing the spoils of the clergy, which the Reformation
placed in their hands. The nobles looked upon the step as a
means to free themselves from the restraint of episcopal au.
thority, and to appropriate the wealth of monasteries, which
they had long beheld with a covetous eye; ecclesiastics and re­
ligious, unworthy of their vocation, longed for freedom to follow
the bent of their natural inclinations. The multitude, stupefied
by the sight of so many scandals, allowed themselves to be car­
ried on by the impulse which was leading the world to general
corruption and immorality. It is necessary to state that the
nations of the North, but lately converted to Christianity, and
whose religious instruction was too often neglected by pastors
untrue to their high charge, were thus laid open, by their ver)

PAÜL ΠΙ. (A. D. >634-1549).

123

ignorance, to all the seductions of the sectaries. These general
causes were much helped by others of a local character, such
is rivalries, political or personal motives, or even lighter reasons,
which often decided these religious revolutions. Notwith­
standing all these combined or separately acting causes, the
Reformation often met a vigorous resistance which checked
for a time its triumphant career. In some States it was only
after a struggle of several years that it was definitively es­
tablished and enabled to maintain itself by the oppression of
the Catholics.
13. The Reformers had sent their emissaries into France;
but the vigilance of the government and the strong attachment
of the people to the faith of their fathers baffled all their en­
deavors. Francis I., at the head of his court, and surrounded
by all the clergy of Paris, went, in solemn procession, to restore
a statue of the Blessed Virgin, which had been shamefully
mutilated by a Protestant. He declared that, as “ Most Chris­
tian King, he should not allow, in his kingdom, the establish­
ment of a sect which aimed at nothing less than the over­
throw of the Church." Francis, after another war conducted
with glory by Marshal, afterward Constable, Anne de Mont­
morency (a. d. 1536) against Charles V., at length, through the
intervention of Paul III., signed, at Nice, a truce of ten years
with his rival. The Pope came in person to this celebrated
conference, wishing to follow up the negotiations himself in
arder to insure their success. After the signing of the treaty,
he insisted upon a meeting of the two monarchs at Aigue»·
Mortes.
These seemingly irreconcilable enemies, who had
hitherto acted toward each other with the fiercest hostility,
now exchanged assurances of a fraternal friendship (1-> !S .
In the following year (1539), Europe received a proof of their
sincerity in the truly royal reception given by Francis !.. in
Paris, to the emperor, who was on his way to suppress a re­
volt in Flanders. The king availed himself of the season of
truce to repair the disorders brought into his States by longnnd
disastrous wars. Age and experience had ripened his character ;

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

hie prodigality was exchanged for a prudent economy ; an assid
nous attention to business took the place of his former youth­
ful follies. After the example of Leo X. and the Medici, he
encouraged science, letters and arts, by a liberal patronge, “ un­
willing,” he said “ that letters should remain undowered.” He
made his kingdom an asylum for learned foreigners, enriched the
royal library with a number of valuable manuscripts, established
the Royal Printing Presses, and the College of France for the
study of Latin, Greek, Hebrew, mathematics, medicine and
philosophy. A taste for science and letters began to form part
of the national character, and was displayed by the movement
in France known as the Renaissance.
14. Unhappily, in the midst of this intellectual life now
springing up on all sides, and fostered by the material pros­
perity which peace had restored to the kingdom, France had
also her Luther. John Calvin (his real name was Cauvin) was
born at Noyon, in Picardy, in the year 1509. His father was a
cooper, and subsequently held the offices of Apostolical notary
and secretary to the bishop. Through the liberality of the
noble family of Montmaurs, he was enabled to devote himself
to the study of literature and canon law’ in the Universities of
Paris, Orleans and Bourges. Except, perhaps, in theology, to
which he gave less attention, the young student was generally
successful. But his character was bad and his morals in­
*famous At Bourges he became intimate with a young man
whose licentious poems had already obtained a scandalous re­
nown at that period. This was Theodore Beza, a native of
Vezelai, in Burgundy, and destined to become one of the patri­
archs of Protestantism in France. Minds of such mould would
easily receive the new doctrines which the Lutherans were at
that time disseminating from Germany. They imbibed these
novelties from Wolmar, one of the professors at Bourges, and
Calvin had soon become a zealous partisan of the Reformation.
His mind dwelt chiefly upon the doctrine of justification. The
• M. Blaic. t. u., p. 273.

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125

freedom with which he professed his Reformatory principles,
obliged him, on a requisition from the Sorbonne, to quit. Paris.
After a considerable time spent in various wanderings, heat length
came to Basle (a. d. 1534), where he attempted to establish his
new system of religion as set forth in his great work, “ The
Christian Institutes.” Calvin’s mind was following the path
marked out by Luther and Zwingli;
*
yet its tone is every­
where more gloomy and severe. Calvin, however, begins to
diverge from Luther, when he allows toman a species of liberty
which the Wittenberg Reformer refuses him entirely. Still he
subjects this little remnant of liberty to divine predestination,
even more formally than Luther and Zwingli ; for the predomi­
nant characteristic of Calvin’s system is the doctrine of absolute
predestination, carried out with a fanatical rigor, even to absurd
consequences. While Luther saw in original sin but a simple
privation of strength (privatio virium), Calvin recognized in it a
forced and predominant depravation, bending all the human
faculties to evil so that they can never, in spite of all their
efforts, rise again to the practice of good deeds. According to
Calvin, God, the primordial author of good and evil, has. from all
eternity, cast off a portion of Ilis creatures and doomed them
to eternal punishment, in order to show His justice in them. To
give just motives for wrath and punishment, lie caused the first
man to fall by sin, and involved the whole of Adam's posterity
in the revolt. Actual sins are imposed upon men by the Divine
will, which excites to the commission of crime those whom it
has predestined to eternal loss. Such is the sense of the
gloomy theory known as the doctrine of compulsory decrees. Free­
will is no more. Man is unavoidably doomed to acts for which
he must suffer punishment and which it is not in his own power
to commit or not to commit. The tyranny of a God who
punishes sins of which He is the first author did not terrify Cal­
vin. He clearly and openly professed his belief. " Among
men,” said he, “ some are created for everlasting life, others for
' Alzoo, t. ΠΙ.. p 92

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GENERAL HISTORY OF ΤΠΕ CHURCH.

eternal denth. Their doom is irrevocably fixed, whatever he
their conduct in life." By a strict parallelism, Calvin followed
the same reasoning in an opposite direction to explain the
doctrine of justification. Man is saved, just as he is lost, in
spite of himself. There is no more merit in being a saint than
in being a reprobate ; both are passive instruments of a will
which they must obey without being able to modify it. Now
we can understand the excessive pride of the Calvinist who
thinks himself one of the elect, and the unbridled license of the
Calvinist who believes himself doomed. Notwithstanding the
exclusive rigor of his opinions, and his unbending character,
Calvin seems to have adopted neither of the Protestant views
on the Eucharist. “ I maintain," says Calvin, “ that it is no less
absurd to place the body of Christ under the bread than to
unite it with the bread, than to transubstantiate the bread into
Hie body." In a word, Calvin was the inveterate enemy of forms,
of all outward ceremonial, the bitter opponent of all that embel­
lishes divine worship, raises the mind and speaks to the heart.
15. The cheerless doctrine of Calvin seemed fitted only to
repel. But error needs some specious appearances to allure.
The apparent austerity of the new teacher was precisely the
feature by which he attracted followers. Moreover, Calvin
supported his doctrines by a close logic and a degree of learn­
ing which easily deluded weak minds. Instead of imitating
the Saxon Reformers, by inveighing against all antiquity, or
striving to banish from the Christian world classic literature
and Greek philosophy, he acknowledged all the treasures of
learning, eloquence and logic, displayed by the Fathers of the
Church and theologians of the schools ; he showed esteem foi
the authors, philosophers and poets of Greece and Rome,
always displaying great prudence and sagacity. If he was not
altogether original, and borrowed some ideas from Luther, he
at least developed them with precision and method. Still, he
was too often, like Luther, guilty of rude, abusive and blas­
phemous language. The same spirit of intolerance and hatred
of Catholicity animated them both. His opponents were al·

PAUL III. (A

1) 1634-154»),

127

ways rogues, knaves, asses, &c., and his discussions are contin­
ually interspersed with such epithets.
16. After a considerable sojourn at Basle, Calvin repairec
to Geneva, which became thenceforth the great field of his
schismati cal operations. lie was persuaded to remain by
William Farel and Peter Viret, two Lutheran preachers, who
were spreading the new doctrines in the French cantons of
Switzerland, and especially among the people of Vaud. The
Duke of Savoy attempted to assert his rights over Geneva,
but the inhabitants, strengthening themselves by an alliance
with the canton of Berne, succeeded in throwing off his author­
ity. But this alliance would open the way for Protestantism ;
and the bishop pronounced a sentence of excommunication
against the rebe'llious city. This was the signal for a violent
reaction against Catholicity. The altars were overturned,
paintings and statues destroyed, the faithful imprisoned or
banished ; and thus the new religion was inaugurated amid
and upon the ruins of churches. Calvin, on his arrival at
Geneva (a. d. 1-536), finished what Farel and Viret had begun.
He caused the publication of a decree requiring every citizen
to abjure the Catholic faith. He forbade all amusements,
dances and noisy games, “ as unworthy," said he, “ of the gravity
of a Christian.” Even ordinary conversation was subjected to
a strict censorship. This stern rule was beginning to alienate
the minds of his followers. A difference had arisen between
Calvin and the church of Berne, concerning the use of leav­
ened bread, which the French Reformer wished to introduce
into the celebration of the Lord’s Supper, and touching the
abolition of all the festivals, which he had lately decreed, keep­
ing only the Sundays. His tyrannical rule brought upon him
a storm of popular indignation, and he was banished with
Farel and Viret. Retiring to Strasburg, Calvin continued his
war against the Church. Surrounded by French Protestant
refugees, he imbued them with the venom of his doctrines.
*
• These refuses wore sectaries who hud fled to escape tho penalties decreed by lh«
cu< and the parliaments «gainat the now dootrinoe.

128

GENERAI. HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

and thus furnished error with emissaries, who should perpul·
uate it in the bosom of our beautiful land. IIo gradually
gathered around him a community in accordance with his rcli
gious views, and married the widow of an Anabaptist. But
Calvin had left many partisans in Geneva ; he was recalled to
that city in 1541, and from that period became truly its civil
and ecclesiastical dictator. He established a consistory, to
judge all cases of misdemeanor in morals. His interdict upon
dances and games was once more enforced.
Domiciliary
visits and inquisitorial measures were organized throughout
the city, to watch the conduct of each citizen. The Gen­
evese, and especially the Libertines, or followers of Evan­
gelical liberty, rose up against this moral constraint. But
Calvin’s cruelty, his active and fertile mind, succeeded in
crushing the germs of revolt. Every word uttered against
him was punished with fearful severity.
Thus, the trans­
lator of the Bible, Castalio, was banished, together with the
physician Bolsec. Ameaux, a member of the Council of
Twenty-five, was thrown into prison. Jacob Griinet was exe­
cuted (1548), for having written some words in a threatening
tone to the dictator, who, in open council, had (Milled him a
dog. Gentilis, condemned to death for saying that Calvin had
erred in the doctrine of the Trinity, escaped capital punish­
ment only by making a retraction and an apology. Michael
Servetus, a native of Aragon, and a great anatomist, while
passing through Geneva, was seized and burned by order of
the dictator, for having published some heretical propositions
on the dogma of the Trinity, which Calvin himself so poorly
explained (1553). From the stain of this cruel and iniquitous
execution the memory of the French Reformer can never be
cleansed in the eyes of posterity. These acts of cruelty were
not with him, as with Luther, the effects of a sudden and
short-lived passion, but the result of a cold, unfeeling, calcula
ting anger. Once in possession of the political power, Calvin
soon replaced the doctrines of Zwingli by his own, in the Hel­
vetic cantons The ecclesiastical organization of Geneva

PAUL IIÎ. (A. D. 15M-1549).

129

became the model of the Reformed churches in France and
the Netherlands. After a life of tireless activity, Calvin died
(May 27th, 1563,) leaving, in Theodore Beza, a devoted biog­
rapher, and a disciple capable of carrying on the work begun
by his policy. By continued contact with the Reformer of
Noyon, Beza had gradually put off his youthful levity, and as­
sumed something of the strained gravity of his master. The com­
bination of these two elements resulted in a disposition at once
mild and severe, which gained him many partisans among the
Calvinistic communities, of which he became the true founder.
17. Such was Calvin, the French Reformer, who has often
been compared with the German Reformer. Luther appeared
in Calvin without his vehement boldness, but with the addition
of cunning, calculating ability, and cold, unfeeling cruelty.
These two leaders shared the work of the Reformation ; they
contended for it as for an empire, by a war of pride and abuse.
Their followers continued to form two camps—the Lutherans
being known as Protestants; the Calvinists as the Reformed,
which name they particularly affect ; but among Catholics both
names are applied indifferently to either body, and with reason.
Both parties have, in fact, protested against the authority of the
Church, by revolt, and both have dishonored the name of Refor­
mation by applying it to the destruction of every law as well
of faith as of morality.
*
18. The course of events hurries on more rapidly than the
pen of the historian, in this century of political and religious
agitation. During the invasion of Calvinism in Switzerland
and France, to detail which we have encroached upon the chro­
nological order of facts, Pope Paul III. gave his whole atten­
tion to Germany and the schism by which it was ravaged. The
Catholics still cherished the delusive hope that an ecumenical
esembly of the bishops would dispel the last efforts of the re­
volt. Luther continued to appeal to the council. Again and
again, since his famous theses, he had proclaimed before his
• M. Blamo, t IL. p. 276

Vou IV

IRO

ORNERAI. HISTORY OP THE CHURCH.

>vhole country that he was ready to give an account of hie
ih to a general council. Paul III. resolved at length to conv i e the great assizes of Christendom, in order to end so many
disputes, scandals and bloody struggles.
Every act of his
Pontificate had in view this great design ; it was the motive of
his intervention to effect a truce between Charles V. and Fran·
cis I. In the year 1535, the Papal legate, Vergerio, was sent
to Germany to announce to Charles V. and to the princes of
Christendom that the general council, which had been so long
and so anxiously expected, was to meet at Mantua. Vergerio,
having occasion to visit Wittenberg, expressed an earnest
desire to converse with Luther. The Saxon monk, in this
interview, spared neither rudeness nor abuse, but he could not
overcome the grave and serene patience of the legate. The
conversation between Vergerio and Luther is one of the most
striking pages in the history of Protestantism. It clearly dis­
plays the perversity of the leader of the Reformation. “ Your
council," said Luther, “ will be a mockery. If the Pope holds
one, it will be to treat of cowls, of monks, of clerical tonsure,
of meat and wine, and other follies of the same kind ; but of
faith, penance, of the bond of charity which should unite all
Christians—these grave and solemn subjects which the Refor
mation, enlightened from above, has hitherto been occupied in
teaching—not a word will be said. What need, then, have we
of your council, which is only good for the poor nations you
hold in bondage? You Papists do not even know what you
believe. Go on, then; assemble your council ; I shall be pres
ent, I promise you, though I knew that the stake or the gib­
bet were awaiting me there.” The legate indulged in no retort.
“ Tell me, doctor,” he asked, “ where would you wish the coun­
cil to be held ?" “ I,” replied the Saxon, laughing ; “ wherevei
you wish, at Mantua, at Florence, at Padua. It matters little
where ’ “And what of Bologna?” added the legate. “ Ίο
whom does that city belong?" asked Luther. “To the Pope,"
replied Vergerio. “Good God!” cried Luther, “and this is
another city which the Pope has stolen 1 Bologna, then, let it be !

PAÜI, 1ΓΙ. (A. D. 1534-1549).

131

I will go, and I will bring my head on my shouldeis.” The
whole interview was but a continued insult.
19. Meanwhile, the Protestant nobles had met at Smalcald
to oppose all the attempts of Rome to restore peace and union.
At the instigation of the Elector of Saxony, Luther, Melancthon
and the other leaders of the Reformation, in a series of confer­
ences held at Wittenberg, drew up a new profession of faith in
twenty-four articles. Melancthon, whose heart was better
than his head, and who still hoped for a final re-union, signed
the formula with this express reservation, that “ if the Popo
would recognize the Gospel (so the Lutherans styled their new
system), he would, on his part, admit the Papal supremacy
over the bishops.” It required some courage in the professor
to acknowledffe. pvpn in th»oo fprms, the spiritual jurisdiction
of the Pope, whom his most moderate colleagues regarded as
Antichrist. The Diet of Smalcald was well attended. Among
the Protestant nobles were the Elector of Saxony, the Land­
grave of Hesse, Dukes Ernest and Frantz of Luneburg, Duke
Ulric of Wurtemberg, the Princes Wolf, George and Joachim
of Anhalt, Counts Gebhard and Albert of Mansfeld, the Counts
of Nassau and Reichlingen, Duke Henry of Mecklenburg,
Prince Rupert and Philip of Grubenhagen. Luther, Melanc­
thon and Bucer were also present. In vain the vice-chan­
cellor of the empire, Mathias Held, endeavored to speak of
peace and conciliation. His efforts were useless ; he dismissed
the diet, ordering that the truce of Nuremburg should be
observed until the meeting of the next general council, at which
the emperor intended to be present in person. But the
Protestant nobles did not wish a council, and they multiplied
their objections to the places mentioned for its convocation
Luther, who before Vergerio had affected a hypocritical indif­
ference on the subject, now gave unrestrained expression to
his hostile feelings. From his death-bed he sent forth his last
oainphlet against “ The Hell-born Papacy*." “ A *council,
• Centra Pontificatum Romanum, a Diatoto fundatum Op. Lulh , t. VHI, !-mr

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GENERAL HISTORY OP

DIE CHURCH.

writes the dying Reformer; “what do you mean! Idiots, you
know not what a bishop is, nor Cæsar, nor God Himself, nor
His Word !—Pope, thou art but an ass, and wilt ever remain
an ass."
20. The Protestant league of Smalcald had become a formi­
dable power. It had equipped a force of one hundred thousand
men, who made themselves masters of the Danube and formed
a rampart too strong to be broken down by even the whole
power of the empire. “ It is surprising,” says Monsignore
Palma, “ that a prince usually so clear sighted as Charles V.
and commanding such vast resources, should have neglected,
at the outset, the measures necessary to avert the fatal results
of the league of Smalcald and to hinder the hostile preparations
which it was easier to check in the beginning than to overcome
at a later period. But, yielding to the promptings of ambition,
bo lost the time in military expeditions against France, thus
giving the Lutheran nobles time to concentrate their forces.
When, at length, he had resolved to attack them, he no longer
possessed the health and vigor of his youthful days. His ex­
hausted treasury was unequal to the demands of a new war.
Still his arms were not unfrequently crowned with glorious
successes. At Mühlberg (a. d. 1,547) he cut to pieces the army
of Frederick, elector of Saxony, the avowed protector of the
Protestant cause, and compelled him to abdicate the electoral
dignity both for himself and for his descendants. This act of
energetic authority strengthened the power of Charles V. in
Germany, and checked for a time the growing influence of
heresy."
21. Luther died in the midst of the bloody struggles to
which his doctrines had given rise. His last words were a blas­
phemy against the Church. “ Glory to God,” he exclaimed, " I
have proved that the Pope, who pretends to be the visible head
of the Church, the vicar of Christ, is but the prince of I he ac­
cursed church, the vicar of Satan, the enemy of God, the ad­
versary of Christ, a teacher of liesand idolatry, a regicide, a
man of sin, Antichrist. So help me God Amen.” Such

PAUL III. (A. D.

133

the testament of the Saxon Reformer, who died at Eisleben (a. d.
1546) and was buried at Wittenberg. Never was the Church
called to meet a more formidable opponent. “The tumult and
agitation attending nearly the whole of Luther’s life,” says
Alzog, “ make him one of the most remarkable men of any
age. His undeniable courage easily degenerated into audacity.
His activity was untiring ; his eloquence popular and captivat·
ing ; his mind quick and rich in good sayings. He was of a dis­
interested character and of a deeply religious turn, and this im­
perious sentiment of religion which controls all his thoughts
contrasts strangely with his habitually blasphemous and sarcastic
language.” But all these natural qualities which he so lamentably
abused can never efface the shame of apostasy, the crime of
rebellion, the coarse and often dishonorable features which d>sgrace his conduct and his writings, but especially the evils he
has brought upon the Church, upon souls, upon all mankind.
“ Sometimes,” said Erasmus, “he writes like an Apostle, some­
times he speaks like a buffoon whose coarse jests exceed all
bounds, seemingly forgetful of the spectacle he is giving to the
world, of the important part he is playing in it himself.” While
prohibiting the use of arms in matters of religion, he lays down
principles and uses language which would do honor to the most
furious Jacobin of the present time. He sneers like Voltaire
and strikes like Couthon and Marat. The most unbounded
evangelical liberty, the widest and most arbitrary right of in­
terpretation, he loudly claims and uses for his own benefit ; but
upon his partisans he exercises the harshest and most shameful
despotism.
How great must be the blindness which can
recognize an apostolic mission in the ungoverned transports, the
tumultuous movements, the passionate struggles and the bitter
controversies that make up the Reformer’s life ! “ The most
vulgar mind,” says Erasmus, “must see that the man who raised
such fearful storms in the world, who delighted only in cutting
or indecent, remarks, was not doing the work of God. An arro­
gance, like Luther’s, which is without an equal, argues mad­
ness ; and a spirit of buffoonery, like his, has nothing in common

J34

GENERAL HI8T0RV OP THE CHURCn.

with (he work of God.” Yet the Lutherans gave ίο the memory
of their father the honor which the Church reserves for the
Minis, and which they had condemned as a scandalous impiety
in the Catholics. Cardinal Pallavicini correctly enough com
pares Luther to a giant, but a giant-abortion. In fact, there is
nothing complete in his display of genius ; there is greatness,
but it is unformed ; his energy is savage; his learning undi­
gested ; his power rash and blind, seeking only to destroy, and
afterward furious at the ruins which its own violence has caused.
22. At the very time when he was leaving Germany, over­
whelmed by the general desolation which his words had pro­
duced, the Church was at length gathering together in a gene­
ral council all its bishops, doctors and theologians, to strengthen,
by their united power, its foundations shaken by the sectaries,
to restore its powerful unity threatened by the schism, to throw
around its impugned dogmas the splendid lustre of their faith
and learning. Mantua and Bologna had been successively
named by the Sovereign Pontiff as the places of meeting.
Through the influence of the Protestant princes, they were re­
jected. At length the Pope and the emperor definitely fixed
upon the city of Trent, which, being situated on the boundary
between Germany and Italy, afforded the advantage of a politi­
cal neutrality favorable to all parties. The negotiations on the
subject had involved a delay of several years, and it was not
until the 13th of December, a. d. 1545, that the Papal legates
opened the eighteenth and last general council.
Its task
was immense. The Lutheran reform had assailed every
institution, undermined every dogma. The Council of Trent,
in the name of the Universal Church, of which it was the
representative, under the présidence of the Apostolic legates,
during its session of eighteen years, the longest of all the
ecumenical councils, triumphantly vindicated the truth of
every dogma, and raised, to the glory of the Catholic faith,
the most complete, the most victorious, the most unassail­
able monument that was ever reared (1545-1563) During
s period, four Sovereign Pontiffs successively held the

PAUL ΙΠ. (Λ. D ;o34-15»9).

135

See of St. Peter. But the spirit of God, which they trans­
mitted to each other as a glorious heritage, inspired all their
actions and presided over every stage of that immortal
assembly. The council was opened in the name of Pope Paid
III., by his legates, Giammaria del Monte, cardinal-bishop of
Palestrina, Marcello Cervini, cardinal-priest of the title of
Santa Croce, and Reginald Pole, cardinal-priest of the title of
Santa Maria-in-Cosmedin, whose generous opposition to the
despotic fury of Henry VIII. we have already had occasion to
notice. In the first session there were, beside the cardinals,
but four archbishops, twenty-two bishops, five or six heads of
orders, with a great number of doctors both secular and regular
The archbishops alone represented the principal nations of
Christian Europe.
Olaus the Great, archbishop of Upsal,
banished from his see by triumphant heresy, came to breathe
out upon the bosom of the council the last sigh of Catholic
Scandinavia. Robert Wanshop, archbishop of Armagh and pri­
mate of Ireland, came to bear witness in favor of the ancient
faith which unhappy Ireland, more faithful and generous than
Scandinavia, was to cherish unimpaired through three centuries
of cruel persecution from powerful England. The Archbishop
of Aix was there to confess the faith of St. Louis, which
Catholic France was tn uphold as its noblest heritage amid so
many threatening storms. Peter Tagliavia, archbishop of
Palermo, represented Italy, still faithful and condemning, by
her example, the infidelity of Greece, of Asia Minor and Syria.
Spain and Portugal, which, after having driven out the Moors
from the Peninsula, were now laboring to plant the Christian
faith in the New World, in Mexico, Peru, Brazil, India and
Japan, were represented at Trent by several bishops. Catholic
Germany had sent to the council the Cardinal-bishop of Trent
and the substitute of ths Archbishop of Mentz. Protestant
Germany soon after sent deputies, who brought with them but
obstinacy and bad faith.
23. Before entering upon an account of the labors of the
cuuneil, it will be useful to dec» le the relative merits of the

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

two historians who have given us a detailed narrative of thorn ;
being members of two diametrically opposite parties, their
narration presents the same divergence as their principles.
The Venetian, Pietro Sarpi, better known as the servite reli­
gions Fra Paolo, was the first who wrote a “ History of the
Council of Trent;" he published it in London, in 1G19, under
the assumed name of Pietro-Soavc-Polano, an anagram upon
his name, Paolo Sarpi Veneto. Fra Paolo was one of those
hypocritical characters, who, under a specious exterior, hide a
dangerous and corrupt spirit. He had been captivated by the
Lutheran doctrines; he paid them a hidden worship though still
outwardly conforming to his original state. The republic of
Venice appointed him theological consulter in its disputes with
Pope Paul V. “ Fra Paolo,” says Bossuet, “ a Protestant under a
religious habit, who said Mass without believing in it, remaining in
a Church whose worship was to him idolatry, aimed only at lead­
ing the republic of Venice to a complete separation, not only from
the court but evenfrom the Church of Rome'' His history of the
Council of Trent, which he ventured neither to sign with his own
name nor to publish in his own country, betrayed the hostile
principles which the author held against the true faith. It pro­
voked a general outcry among the Catholics of Europe. The Prot­
estants, on the other band, received it with enthusiasm. In
Rome, the Congregation of the Index condemned the work, with
the severest comments, France was alarmed at the tendencies of a
writer who was the more dangerous, as his religious profession
gave him a more honorable character. Henry IV. expressed
his displeasure to the Venetian Senate, and the Doge enjoined
Fra Paolo to be more guarded for the future. Fearful of the
evil consequences which might result to himself from such a
scandal, Fra Paolo wrote to Casaubon, to secure him an asylum
in England, in case of need.
24. The Catholics could not leave unanswered a work in
which the truth was so shamelessly outraged. In the year
1655, an authentic “ History of the Council of Trent ” was
published from original documents nreserved in the archives

PAUL ΙΠ. (A. D. 1534-1649).

137

of the castle of St. Angelo. Its author, the Jesuit Fathei
Pallavicini, born in 1607 of one of the first families of Rome, was
rewarded with the cardinal’s hat.
*
With a judicious mind,a clear
understanding, a firm and sure character, Pallavicini has all
the qualities of a good historian. His thoughts are always
rendered by expressions equally correct and happy. The com­
plete documents which he had at hand are all analyzed in his
work with the most conscientious exactness. The necessarily
complicated discussions of a deliberative assembly as numerous
as the Council of Trent are clearly and distinctly unfolded.
The errors of Fra Paolo are all exposed with triumphant clear­
ness, with a precision, vigor and abundance of proof which
leave no room for reply. The learned Jesuit gives, at the end
of his work, a list of three hundred and sixty-one matters of fact
in which Fra Paolo is evidently convicted of having altered or
misrepresented the truth, beside a host of other errors which
cannot be included in a simple enumeration, but which result
from the consideration of the whole work. Pallavicini’s history
is one of the finest monuments of human genius. It will be
our guide in this brief narrative of the labors of the Council of
Trent.
25. Ten sessions of this glorious council were held during
the Pontificate of Paul III. In the interval of the first three,
Charles V., not content with his part of armed protector of the
Church, thought to enforce religious convictions as he enforced
his laws, by force. The same idea misled Zeno and the Greek
emperors, who had hoped, in their time, to settle religious dis­
sensions by the mere exercise of their authority. Charles issued
a formula of faith, under the form of a decree, granting to
Protestants the privilege of receiving under both kinds and
allowing the marriage of priests until the general council should
hare definitively pronounced upon all the controverted questions
which were disturbing the peace of the Church. This last
•The Abbé Mioxb, in his Universal Collection of ecclesia-tical writers, has giren a
French transla'i n of Pallavicini’e great work, in which the author of this History baa h
i
*
'a Mtisfactioc
taking some part. (3 vols., 4to, Parie.)

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

clause obtained for the imperial edict the name of the Interim.
Ks might have been easily anticipated, the proposed mean
satisfied no one. The Catholics maintained, with reason, that the
emperor had no power to make such concessions. The Protes
tents were unwilling to admit that Charles could set bounds
which they might not overstep. The Interim, therefore, met the
same fate as the Henoticon ; it was rejected by all parties.
But Charles V. was more powerful than Zeno. He was equally
unconcerned at the protest of the Catholics, the condemnation
of the Interim by the Roman court, the complaints of the
Council of Trent, and the Lutheran recriminations. He pressed
the execution of his edict and used force against the Protestants
who refused to receive it. Constance and Magdeburg, which
had distinguished themselves by their earnest opposition, were
treated with a severity which might serve as an example tc
the other cities.
26. The first point to be determined by the council was,
the manner of setting about the great task presented to its
zeal. It was agreed that both faith and discipline should be
treated together and be made to proceed uniformly with each
other. Before the fourth session, two imperial ambassadors,
Diego de Mendoza and Francis of Toledo, arrived at Trent.
They requested, in their master’s name, that exclusive atten­
tion should be given to the question of ecclesiastical reform,
as the promulgation of dogmatic decisions would be likely to
awake the animosity of the Protestants in Germany. But the
council proceeded, in spite of their protests, to promulgate its
decree on the sacred writings. The canon of scripture was
fixed as it now stands : the council approved, as authentic, the
old edition known as the Vulgate, and “consecrated,” said the
Fathers, “ by the usage of so many centuries.” “ In order,"
continues the decree, “to restrain petulant spirits, the holy
ecumenical council decrees that, in matters of faith and
morals, no one, relying upon bis own private judgment, shall
raslily presume to interpret the sacred scriptures in a sense
cither contrary to that of the Church, to which alone it belongs

PAUL ΠΙ. IA. D. 1534-154»).

139

to judge of the true sense of scripture, or contrary to the unani
mous consent of the Fathers and of Catholic tradition.” This was
a condemnation of Protestantism in its very first principle, for
the Lutheran Reformation was started in the name of individual
liberty of interpretation, and each one of the new sectaries
thought himself possessed of the right and the mission of
judging of the sense of scripture according to bis own fancy.
As a corollary of this dogmatic decision, a reformatory decree
enforces the obligation of establishing chairs of theology in all
the principal churches, and enjoins that “archpriests, curates,
and all those who in any manner soever are charged with the
care of souls, shall, at least on all Sundays and solemn feasts,
either personally, or, if they be lawfully hindered, by others
who are competent, feed the people committed to them, teaching
them the things which every Christian must know to be saved,
by announcing to them, briefly and plainly, the vices which
they must avoid, and the virtues which they must follow."
The bishops are admonished to watch with pastoral solicitude
over the execution of these decrees in their respective dioceses,
that it may not be said of Christ’s flock, “ The little ones have
asked for bread, and there was none to break it unto them."
*
27. The interval between the fourth and fifth sessions was
marked by a deplorable apostasy. Vergerio, the Papal legate
whose interview with Luther was related above, had yielded
to the influence of the Reformation instead of combating it
lie no longer concealed his sympathies with the heresy. It
was not without the deepest grief that Charles V. and the
Catholic noblee witnessed this dangerous example given by a
man invested with the Pontifical confidence. The emperor
wrote to Paul III., entreating him to recall his legate, while
Vergerio sought a refuge in the midst of the council, hoping
that the protection of the Cardinal of Trent would save him
from the rigorous judgment which awaited him at Rome.
Failing in this expectation, he, however, obtained from tb
*
■ Lamont, iv. 4

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

legatos letters of recommendation sufficiently influential to dis­
pense him from appearing for trial before a Roman court. Al
his own request, his case was brought before the tribunal of the
nuncio and of the Patriarch of Venice. But Vergerio, sensible
of the gravity of his position, at length broke openly with the
Church and joined the heretics : he withdrew among the
Grisons, whence he issued pamphlets, in the style of Luther,
against religion, against the council, and against the Pope,
whose representative he had so lately had the honor to be. A
few years earlier (a. d. 1542), a scandal of the same kind had
caused deep emotion in the Catholic world. Ochino, the gen­
eral of the Capuchins, a man of unbounded ambition, and dis­
playing a spirit of independence strangely at variance with the
holy state into which he had entered, joined the Zwinglian
branch of the Reformation. His apostasy was one of the most
bitter strokes which afflicted Paul III. amid the difficult trials of
his Pontificate. The apostate did not stop at this shameful de­
fection. He was publicly married, visited England, Germany,
and Poland, everywhere receiving, an enthusiastic welcome
from the sectaries, and everywhere spreading hatred against
Rome and the Catholic faith. The Sovereign Pontiff thought
of abolishing the Capuchin order, fearing that it might have
been infected with the errors of its head. Λ secret consistory
was called to deliberate upon the important measure. The
Sacred College was about to confirm the intention of the Holy
Father, when Cardinal Antonio San-Severino, in an eloquent
and generous discourse, urged the importance of acting with
perfect justice in such a matter. He enumerated the services
rendered by the Capuchins, eulogized their learning, their
zeal in the pulpit, the courage with which they underwent
the rigors of poverty, even making it their glory. Cardinal
Carpi was instructed to inquire into the conduct and the faith of
the order ; and after au investigation, which resulted in their
complete vindication, the useful religious, so dear to the people,
so simple and submissive, were maintained in their privileges.
The Pope, satisfied that Ochino’s fault was altogether personal.

PAUL HI. (A. D. 1534-1549».

restored his full confidence to the Capuchins, and bestowed
upon their order the most ample spiritual favors.
28. After the disastrous issue of the affair of Vergerio,
the Council of Trent was enabled to continue its sessions.
The number of the Fathers had, meanwhile, increased. There
were now nine archbishops, among others the Greek archbishop
of Paros and Naxos, and about fifty bishops, among whom was
Jerome Vida, bishop of Alba, in Tuscany, of whom we had
occasion to speak under the Pontificate of Leo X., and Louis
Lippomani, bishop of Motula and coadjutor of Verona. The
latter prelate was of a noble Venetian family, and had early
devoted himself to the study of letters and philosophy with
the most brilliant success. His merit raised him to the highest
ecclesiastical honors. He had successively held the dignities
of coadjutor of Bergamo, bishop of Motula, coadjutor and
bishop of Verona, and finally of bishop of Bergamo, and been
intrusted with various negotiations in Portugal. Germany, and
Poland. We shall find him, under Julius III., presiding as
Apostolic legate in the Council of Trent. He was equally
illustrious for his learning and holiness of life. Several works
left by him attest his erudition and the purity of his doctrine.
The principal of these are, his Commentaries on Genesis, Exo­
dus and the Psalms, written in Latin ; the Lives of the Saints,
some synodal statutes, and sermons.
29. The question of original sin was one of those which
the Lutheran controversy had most obscured. Did the fall of
Adam affect all his posterity? Zwingli denied it. He main­
tained that man is as strong to-day as he was in the beginning.
“ If he has preserved his free-will,” said he, “ it is enough,
without any other resources, to bring him to heaven." Luther,
taking the very opposite view, said that not only man had
fallen, but that his fall was irretrievable. His free-will gives
him power only for evil ; his best actions are sinful ; he is
justified only because Jesus Christ imputes His owu justice to
him.” Against’ these contradictions of error, the Fathers, in
their decree on original sin, established the Catholic truth io

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

nil its precision “ 1. If any one denietli that the first man by
his transgression incurred the wrath and indignation of God
and consequently death, with which God had previously
threatened him, and, together with death, captivity under his
power, who thenceforth had the empire of death, that is to say,
the devil;
*
let him be anathema. 2. If any one asserts that
the sin of Adam injured himself alone and not his posterit ■
that he, being defiled by the sin of disobedience, has transm.
ted to the whole human race only death and pains of the
body, and not sin also, which is the death of the soul ; let him
be anathema. 3. If any one asserts that this sin of Adam,
which in its origin is one, and is transmitted to all men by prop­
agation, can be taken away either by the powers of human
nature or by any other remedy than by the merits of our Lord
Jesus Christ; or if he denies that the said merits of Jesus
Christ are applied both to adults and to infants by the sacra­
ment of baptism, rightly administered in the form of the
Church; let him be anathema. 4. If any one denies the
necessity and efficacy of baptism conferred upon infants ; let
him be anathema.” The decree closes with the words :
This
same holy council doth, nevertheless, declare, that it is not its
intention to include, in this decree—where the universality of
original sin is treated of as extending to all men—the Blessed
and Immaculate Virgin Mary, Mother of God.
30. The sixth session was held on the 13th of January, a. d.
1547. The ambassador of Charles V. had received orders to
withdraw from Trent, the emperor being irritated by the deter­
mination of the council to proceed, in spite of his objection, to the
consideration of dogmatic questions. The deputies of the other
Christian princes also refused to appear in the session, through
fear of increasing the emperor’s displeasure. Difficulties were
thus multiplying around the Fathers, who felt bound, at the
same time to show some consideration for political *susccp
tibilities, so easily wounded, and to carry on the work of
God, which they had so nobly begun. It remained to
• Ilebr. a. 14.

PAUL ΙΠ. (A. D. 1534-1549).

143

dedare the Catholic belief on justification, the great dogma
which had called forth the energies of the greatest minds,
and was now so much disfigured by Protestantism. Th:s
was the most delicate of the questions in debate. The discus­
sion was stormy; some theologians even spoke of modifying
the decree in favor of the Lutheran error. But the majority of
the Fathers emphatically urged the declaration of the Catholic
doctrine of justification by works joined to the merits of our
Lord Jesus Christ. The council therefore adopted this con­
clusion : “ The sinner is justified, when the love of God, coming
down into the heart, abides in it, in virtue of the merits of
the Saviour’s passion, and by the illumination of the Holy
Ghost. Man, thus made the friend of God, goes forward
daily from virtue to virtue ; he is changed by the constant
observance of the commandments of God and of the Church ;
he increases,—faith cooperating with good-works,—in that
justice which he has received through the merits of our Lord
Jesus Christ.” This doctrine presupposed the existence of free­
will, which was denied by Luther. The council, therefore,
utters its anathema against “ whoever saith that, since Adam’s
sin, the free-will of man is lost and extinguished.” The con­
demnation extended to the whole Protestant system, since its
fundamental errors, as we have remarked, related to the dogma
of justification. The Fathers continue: “If any one saith that
without the preventing inspiration of the Holy Ghost, and with­
out His help, man can produce acts of faith, hope, charity, and
contrition, as he ought; let him be anathema. If any one saith
that man’s free will is a purely passive instrument, which can
nowise cooperate toward salvation ; let him be anathema. If
any one saith that all works done before justification, whatso­
ever be their nature, are all sins ; let him be anathema. If any
one saith that by faith alone the impious is justified ; let him be
anathema.” The council next turned its attention to the reform­
atory decree obliging to the duty of residence all prelates, pas­
tors, and abbots intrusted with the care of souls. It also provided
for the visitation of churches by the bishops, and decreed that

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

the episcopal functions should thenceforth be exercised only bj
the ordinaries, or with their special permission. The Pope, at
the same time, published a bull obliging the cardinals to resi­
dence as well as the other prelates, and forbidding them to
govern more than one church at a time. The Pontifical rescript
was received with great applause by the council.
The question of the Sacraments followed that of Justification,
as a necessary consequence; it was treated in the seventh ses­
sion (March 3, a. d. 1547). “As the work of justification
gradually develops itself in man,” says the council, “ it cannot
do without the Sacraments. Through them it begins, and being
begun is increased, or being lost is recovered. All the seven
Sacraments must be preserved such as they now exist; their
institution is to be referred to the Author of our faith, because
all the institutions of the Church of Christ are made known to
us not only by the scriptures, but also by tradition. The seven
Sacraments embrace, as we know, all life and all the degrees of
its development. They are the foundation-stone of every
hierarchy ; they make known and communicate grace ; in
fine, they complete the mystical relation which approximates
manto God.—If any one saith that the Sacraments of the New
Law were not all instituted by Jesus Christ, our Lord ; or that
they are more or less than seven, to wit: Baptism, Confirma­
tion, the Eucharist,Penance,Extreme Unction, Holy Ordersand
Matrimony ; or, that any one of these seven is not truly and
properly a Sacrament; let him be anathema.—If any one saith
that the Sacraments of the New Law are not necessary unto
salvation,but superfluous ; and that without them, or without
the desire thereof, men can obtain of God, through faith alone,
the grace of justification—though all the sacraments are not
indeed necessary for every individual ; let him be anathema.
—If any one saith that, by the Sacraments of the New Law,
grace is not conferr ed through the act performed,
*
but that faith
alone in the divine promise suffices for the obtaining of grace ;
•"Ex ooero ooerato."

ΙΆϋΙ

ΠΙ. (λ. D. 1534-1549).

14f

[et him be anathema.” The council was able, in this session,
to promulgate only the decrees relative to the Sacrament- ··(
baptism and confirmation. They were followed, as usual, by a
decree of discipline, establishing the rules for the conferring of
bishoprics and ecclesiastical benefices.—“ No one shall be raised
to the government of cathedral churches, but one that is born
of a lawful wedlock, of ripe age, gravity of manners, good
morals and skill in letters, agreeably to the constitution of
Alexander III.: Cum in cunctis, promulgated in the Lateran
Council” (Eleventh ecumenical, 1181).—“ No one shall hold, at
the same time, several cathedral churches ; but those who now
hold several churches shall be bound, retaining the one which
they may prefer, to resign the others, within six months if they
are at the free disposal of the Apostolic See ; in other cases,
within a year; otherwise, those churches, the one last obtained
only excepted, shall be from that moment deemed vacant. In­
ferior ecclesiastical benefices, especially such as have the cure
of souls, shall be conferred only on persons worthy and capable,
a collation, or provision made otherwise, shall be wholly annulled.
The council, however, reserves the right of the Apostolic See
to allow a plurality of benefices, when it may deem it neces­
sary.”
31. Events of a serious nature interrupted th·5 sessions of
the council. The plague appeared in Trent with symptoms
which warranted the most alarming fears. The majority of the
Fathers decreed the translation of the council to Bologna
(March 11, a. d. 1547). But Charles V., availing himself of
the circumstance, showed his displeasure against a council
which had not followed the system laid down by himself, and
ordered the Spanish bishops not to depart from Trent, though
they had been officially summoned by the legates to Bologna.
Such a course might have been expected from an emperor of
Byzantium. It exposed the Catholic Church to the danger of a
schism. “The obstinacy of Paul III.,” said Charles to the
nuncio Veralli, “ will ruin Christendom. But councils will not be
wanting to satisfy every necessity and to remedy all disorders.
Vni. 'V . .to

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OfcfŒRAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

The Pope does violence to the prelates by thus obliging them to
a useless removal."—“ The prelates who have gone to Bologna,”
answered the legate, “are there by their own free will ; those,
on the contrary, who remain at Trent, are there by your
Majesty’s order. They are the ones who are really without
liberty." Under this show of displeasure lurked a political and
financial scheme. To hinder the Protestant league of Smalcald from overthrowing the empire and the Church, the Pope
had entered into a Catholic league with Charles, but only for a
terra of six months. The alliance was successful ; its fruit was
the victory of Miihlberg. The emperor, finding it admirably
suited to further his own interests, would have wished it pro­
longed. But Paul III. was not the man thus to lavish sub­
sidies upon a prince who was much more likely to use them
against his rival, the King of France, than against the heretics.
Moreover the promulgation of the Interim had created an in­
cipient coolness between the emperor and the court of Rome.
32. Meanwhile, Francis I. had died at the castle of Ram­
bouillet (March 31, a. d. 1547). Had he been more fortunate,
he would have been the first prince of his day ; but fortune can­
not disgrace monarchs. They are disgraced only by their own
acts. Unhappily, the private life of Francis I. was but too far
from honorable; and this is the only stain upon his character
The scandal given by those in high station is always dangerous
for the people. The morals of France were corrupted by the
example of royal license. This degradation was displayed in
two French writers of that period : Marot and Rabelais. The
former was a Protestant, the author of a metrical translation of
the Psalms, and a licentious poet; the latter after some years
spent successively among the Franciscans and the Benedic­
tines, at length abandoned the religious life, became a secular
priest, and was made pastor of Mendon. He is known as the
author of ludicrous and obscene romances. “ Marot and Rabe­
lais,” says Labruyere, “are inexcusable for disfiguring their
works by obscenity ; both possessed enough mind and talent to
have discarded such helps, even for the sake of those who rend

PAVL 1Π. (A. D. 1B34-1649).

14"

an author rather for amusement than for instruction. Rabelais,
especially, is incomprehensible. His work is an inexplicable
enigma, whatever may be said of it ; it is a monster, the face
of a beautiful woman with the feet and the tail of a serpent;
it is a monstrous compound of subtle and ingenious morality
combined with the most disgusting corruption.” The crown
of Francis I. passed to his son Henry II.
33. Hitherto the Council of Trent had been received without
contradiction in France. But the last reformatory decrees on
residence and the accumulation of benefices, were received
with great displeasure. Most of the French bishops were
deeply involved in these two abuses. The decrees seemed to
them intolerably severe, and they refused to receive them.
Thus the first sign of opposition to the Council of Trent, in
France, came from those who stood most in need of reform.
The case was similar in other States. The bishops highly ap­
proved of reforming the Roman court, the cardinals, abbots,
priests and monks ; but to require that court bishops, instead
of holding two or three bishoprics at the same time, without re­
siding in anyone of them, should be limited to one see.with the
obligation of residing in it, was asking too much and encroach­
ing upon one of the “ liberties of the Gallican Church." So. also,
laymen, princes and kings thought it very proper to reform the
clergy ; but when the council speaks of reforming the rulers them­
selves, in order to make the reform of the clergy more complete
and lasting, by withdrawing it from the pernicious influence of
the world, we shall find all the princes arrayed in opposition.
Such is, in truth, the only cause of the opposition against
which the Council of Trent had then, and still has, to contend.
34. These difficulties embittered the last moments of Paul
III.
The power of Charles V. seemed to him too threatening
to be allowed to go unchecked. Events of a more personal
nature were added to these general troubles, and contributed to
increase the Pontiff’s grief. Paul III. had been married before
entering the ecclesiastical state. From this union there re­
mained to him a son, Pier Luigi, and a grandson. Ottavo

GENERAL HISTORY OF THF CHURCH.

his son he had bestowed Parma and Piacenza, and re­
stored,ns an indemnification to the Church, Camerino and Nepi,
which he had before given to Ottavo. The arrangement was
displeasing to the emperor, and he refused to grant to the Far­
nese the investiture of Parma and Piacenza, which depended
upon the duchy of Milan, as a fief of the empire. Pier Luigi,
however, did not long enjoy his power; he was assassinated
at Piacenza, and the Imperialists took possession of the ci ty
Paul III., whose heart was still bleeding at this cruel disaster,
soon after learned that his grandson, Ottavo, had just en­
tered into a league against the Holy See. The aged Pontiff
was crushed by this accumulation of misfortunes. On his death­
bed he repeated, in a tone of bitter grief, the words of the
Psalmist: “Si mei non fuerint dominati, tunc immaculatus ero,
et emundabor a delicto maximo.” Paul III. was a man of rare
talent and of lofty views; at the time of his Pontificate, there
was need of a real superiority to resist the general restlessness
which agitated the world. To find a prominent place beside
Charles V. and Francis I., required the energy of a Julius II.,
and the prudence of a Leo X. Paul III. was happily endowed
with these two different qualities. The Council of Trent, which
he succeeded in assembling, amid countless opposing difficul­
ties, will ever be his highest claim to glory in the eyes of pos­
terity.
35. In the midst of her grief at the defection of so many
Christian kingdoms, under the Pontificate of Paul III., the
Church was still enabled to repair her losses by the progress of
the faith in America. New Christian communities were rapidly
springing up under the care of the Dominicans and Franciscans,
in Brazil, Jamaica and the other lately-discovered lands of the
West. The most illustrious of these evangelical laborers was the
celebrated Las Casas, a former companion of Columbus, afterward
a Dominican and bishop of *Chiappa. For fifty years he labored
with untiring energy to convert the Indians and to protect
ChAppvde-loe-Rspu'iole·, or Ciudad-Real, a city of the Mexican Republic.

PAUL nr. (A. b. 1534-1549).

149

them from the oppression of the .Spanish governors. The dis­
covery of Mexico opened a new field to the preachers of the
gospel. Martin of Valencia, with a band of twelve Franciscans,
was sent by the Sovereign Pontiff to gather in this new harvest
of souls already ripe for the garners of the Heavenly Husband
man. The zeal of these missionaries, seconded by the celebrated
Hernando Cortez, was so successful among these idolatrous na­
tions, that, in the year 1524, we hear of a synod meeting in Mex­
ico, with all the canonical forms, to regulate the affairs of the
missions and provide for the spiritual interests of the neophytes.
The conquest of Mexico by Cortez and of Peru by Francis Pizarro
has furnished the disciples of the Voltarian school with subjects
for the most violent declamations. Under the specious pretext
of defending the liberty and nationality of the Indians, they have
too freely indulged in calumnies upon the genius and courage of
these two illustrious men, whose energy, valor and heroism are
beyond question. A conquestis never achieved without blood­
shed. The enemies of the Church have sought to make her out
a party to all the cruelties and bloodshed attending these expedi­
tions. It will suffice, in refutation, to quote a testimony which
cannot be suspected of undue bias in our favor—that of the
Protestant historian, Robertson. “ With great injustice,” says
the historian, “ have many authors represented the intolerant
spirit of the Roman Catholic religion, as the cause of exterminat­
ing the Americans, and have accused the Spanish ecclesiastics of
animating their countrymen to the slaughter of that innocent
people, as idolaters and enemies of God. But the first mis­
sionaries who visited America were pious men. They early
espoused the defence of the natives and vindicated theircharac·
ter from the aspersions of their conquerors, who, describing
them as being incapable of being formed to the offices of civil
life, or of comprehending the doctrines of religion, contended
that they were a subordinate race of men on whom the hand of
nature had set the mark of servitude. From the accounts
which I have given of the humane and persevering zeal of the
Spanish missionaries, in protecting the helpless flock committed

150

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

to their charge, they appear in λ light which reflects lustre upon
their function. They were ministers of peace who endeavored
to wrest the rod from the hand of the oppressor. To their
powerful interposition the Americans were indebted for every
regulation tending to mitigate the rigor of their fate. The
clergy in the Spanish settlements, regular as well as secular
are still considered by the Indians as their natural guardians,
to whom they have recourse under the hardships and exactions
to which they are too often exposed. This title is, moreover,
secured to them by law. By an ordinance of Charles V.. not
only bishops, but all ecclesiastics are authorized to inform and
to warn the civil magistrates, when any Indian is deprived of
liberty. Some of the Spanish priests have even refused absolu­
tion to those among their countrymen who held the natives in
slavery and employed them in the work of mining.”*
36. The empire of Japan saw the missions of St. Paul re­
newed within its own bounds by an Apostolic man who, with
no other arms than his zeal and heroism, subjected whole
countries to the faith. St. Francis Xavier, one of the first com­
panions of St. Ignatius, was thus, by numberless prodigies,
opening the field of distant missions, which his brethren of the
Society of Jesus were to till through the course of ages with
so much glory and to fertilize with the blood of so many
martyrs. The life of St. Francis Xavier is one of the most
wonderful in modern annals. The world seemed too limited for
the zeal which devoured this heroic Alexander of souls. India,
Japan, Corea, heard his tireless voice and witnessed the mira­
cles wrought through his intercession, by the true God Whom
he preached. Xavier, who thought nothing done so long as
there remained any thing more to accomplish, turned his tri­
umphant steps toward China. But his strength proved un­
equal to his courage. Like Moses, he died within sight of the
land which he had promised himself to win, but which it was
not given him to enter. The ship which had borne him thus
* Hirton of America, Lib. VIII

PAUL !!I. (Λ. 0. 1634-19491

U»

far, left him in a dying condition upon the shore (December 2,
à. n. 1552). Here he was left, at his own request, exposed to
til the inclemencies of the weather, but at length, George Al­
varez, his companion, touched by his sufferings, removed him
to a deserted hovel open to every wind. The heroic spirit of
the dying apostle was calm and serene. His eyes, bathed in
tears, gazed tenderly upon the crucifix in his hand, while he
uttered the words of the Psalm : “ In Thee, 0 Lord, have I
hoped, let me never be confounded;’’ and while his countenance
glowed with the heavenly joy that filled his soul, he calmly
breathed out his soul into the hands of the God he had served
so well. St. Francis Xavier was beatified by Pope Paul V.
in 1619, and canonized in 1621 by Gregory XV. ; in 1747 a
brief of Gregory XVI. directed that he should be honored as
the patron and protector of all the countries known as the East
Indies.
37. While divine Providence thus sent apostles to the
heathen, He was also raising up in Europe theologians and
doctors to meet the encroachments of heresy. Salmeron,
Laynez, Alphonso Rodriguez, Peter Faber and Bobadilla, the
first companions of St. Ignatius, devoted themselves to theologi­
cal and ascetic studies, in which they afterward won such high
renown, while their colleague, St. Francis Xavier, bore to dis­
tant strands the faith which they ably defended by their writ
ings. At the same period, the Spanish Dominican, Melchior
Cano, born in the diocese of Toledo in the first years ot the
sixteenth century, was publishing his great work “ De Locis
Theologicis,” to which words cannot do justice. The work is
written in elegant Latin, without any of the pedantic affectation
of pagan turns, so common to the authors who wrote at the
time of the literary revival. The excellence of the matter
even surpasses the beauty of the style. It is a model of good
sense raised to its highest power by Christian learning, which
blends, in one harmonious combination, nature and grace, hu­
manity and the Church, reason and faith, philosophy and
theology. To every subject he assigns the Omits which God haa

152

0BWERAL HÏ8TORY OK THE CHURCH.

givenit; he scatters the darkness and the errors with which
Luther's teachings had clouded them. Melchior Cano enu­
merates ten loci theologici or sources from which the theolo­
gian may draw arguments either to prove his own conclusions or
to refute opposite contradictory propositions. They are : 1st.
The Sacred Writings. 2d. The Divine and Apostolic Tradi­
tions. 3d. The Universal Church. 4th. The Councils, and
chiefly the General Councils. 5th. The Roman Church. Gth.
The Holy Fathers. 7th. The Scholastic Theologians and the
Canonists. 8th. Natural Reason. 9th. The Philosophers and
Jurists. 10th. Human History. The first seven authorities
belong to the domain of theology proper; the remaining three
it has in common with other sciences. The learned Dominican
defines them, shows their force and value, and teaches the man­
ner of using them. His work, together with the Summa of St.
Thomas, must form the groundwork of any serious study of
theology.

JULIUS 1Π. (A. D. 1560-1556).

CHAPTER
g I Pontificate

of

IV.

Jclius III. (February 8, a. d. 1550—March 23, 155«),

1. Election of Julius III. Opening of the Jubilee of 1550.—3. bull of Julius
III. for resuming the Council of Trent. Siege of Malta.—3. Hostilities
between the Holy See and France. Henry II. opposes the re-opening of
the council.—4. Thirteenth session of the council. Decrees on the Sacra­
ment of the Eucharist and on episcopal jurisdiction.—5. Fourteenth ses­
sion.
Decrees on the Sacraments of Penance and Extreme Unction.
Decrees on ecclesiastical discipline.
Fifteenth session, in which it is
agreed to wait for the Protestant deputies.—6. Second suspension of the
Council of Trent, pronounced by Julius III. and announced in the six­
teenth session.—7. Maurice, elector of Saxony, enters Innsprnck in triumph.
—8. Treaty of the public peace signed at Passau.—9. Abdication of Charles
V., leaving the imperial crown to his brother, Ferdinand I., and bis heredi­
tary Str.tes to his son, Philip II. The emperor withdraws to the monastery
of Yuste. His death.—10. Character of Charles V.—11. Accession of
Mary Tudor to the throne of England.—12. Cardinal Pole sent as legate
England. Reconciliation with Rome.—13. Protestant calumnies against
Queen Mary. Death of Julius III.
Ç II. Pontificate of Marcellus II. (April 9, a. d. 1555—May 1, 1555).

14 Election, character and death of Marcellus II.

§ III. Pontificate

of

Paul IV. (May 23, a. d. 1555—August 18,1559)

15 Election and character of Paul IV.—16. Ferdinand I. assumes the im­
perial dignity without seeking the approbation of the Holy See.—17. Ire
land erected into a kingdom by Pani IV.—18. Alliance of the Pope and
Henry II. of France, against Philip II. Elevation of the Pope’s family.
—19. Defeat of the French at St. Quentin, by Emmanuel-Philibert, duke of
Savoy.—20. Struggle in Italy between the Pope and the Duke of Alva.
Calais taken by the Duke of Guise. Death of Queen Mary. Treaty of
Cateau-Cambrésis, between Philip II. of Spain and Henry II. of France.—
21. Conditions of this treaty, concerning the Pope.—33. Paul IV. banishes

1Ô4

GENERAL HISTORY OK THE OHURUH.

ωβ nephews from Rome.—23. Death of Paul IV. and of St. Ignatius.—24
First moiwiires of Queen Elizabeth against the Catholic religion in England
—25. Acts of Parliament to reestablish the schism in England.__ 2«. Violenco
of Elizabeth against the Catholic bishops. Intrusion of Matthew Parker,
former chaplain of Anne Boleyn, into the see of Canterbury.__ 27. Death
of Henry II., king of France. Issucceeded by Francis II.—28. Calvinism
in France. Assembly of the Pré-aux-clorcs.
Assassination of President
Minard. Execution of the apostate priest Anno Dubourg.

§ 1. Pontificate of Julius III. (February 8, a.
Maroh 23,1555).

d.

1550-

1. The interested views of political parties made the elec­
tion of r successor to Paul III. a complicated and difficult mattor. The Sacred College was divided between three factions
the Cæsarians, who were for acceding to all the wishes of
Charles V.; the French, who desired a Pope favorable tc
France ; the Farnesians, attached to the family of the late
Pontiff, and who hoped that the tiara might pass to one of his
nephews. The Spirit of God, which is wont to confound the
calculations of human passion and to turn them to the glory of
His Church, deceived all these different hopes. After an inter­
regnum of more than two months, the suffrages met upon Car­
dinal del Monte, who had been one of the Apostolic legates at the
Council of Trent. No one would have ventured the smallest bet
on his chance, and most of the cardinals had written his name
on their ballots, perhaps, with the intention of throwing away
the vote (February 8, a. d. 1550). He was thus unanimously
elected, and took the name of Julius III. When the cardinals
came forward to do the customary homage, he affectionately em­
braced those who had formerly given him cause of complaint,
and who had personally opposed him in the Council of Trent.
By the generous liberality of his favors, he soon satisfied them
that the Pope had forgotten the injuries done to the legate.
The time of his election coincided with that of the centennial
jubilee ; and two days after his coronation Julius III. opened
it with the usual ceremonies. One of the doors of St. Peter’s

JULIUS ΠΙ. (Λ. D. 1560-1556).

U>5

church, called the Porta Sancta, is opened only on this occa­
sion, remaining walled at all other times. The Pope strikes
upon it thrice with a hammer of gold, at the same time pro­
nouncing the words : “ Aperite mihi portas justitke ; ingressus
in eas confitebor Domino; hiec porta Domini, justi intrabunt in
*
cam."
The wall is immediately removed : the Pontiff kneels
while the Penitentiaries of St. Peter’s sprinkle the door with
holy water; then, bearing a cross in his right hand, he intones
the Te Deum and enters the Basilica, followed by the cardinals
and prelates.
2. One of the first cares of the new Pope was to enter into
communication with Charles V. and the King of France, Henry
IL, about resuming the Council of Trent. Since their removal
to Bologna, the Fathers had held only one session, in which
they decided upon the prorogation of the session until the hos­
tile dispositions of Charles V. should have given place to more
favorable sentiments. The death of Paul III. greatly facili­
tated negotiations with the emperor. The King of France,
though bound by an alliance with Ottavio Farnese, who was in
arms against the Holy See, did not oppose the re-opening of
the council. Julius III., therefore, on the 14th of November
(a. d. 1550). published a bull calling upon the Fathers to meet
anew’ at Trent, in the following year. Charles V. caused the
bull to be received in the Diet of Augsburg, and the Protest­
ants promised to send their deputies to Trent. The peace of
Europe had, meanwhile, been threatened for a moment by an
attempt of the Turks, under Soliman IL. upon the island of
Malta. But a happy stratagem, devised by a high officer of the
order, averted the danger. He wrote from Messina to the
grand master, then at Rhodes, stating that the admiral, Andrew
Doria, the terror of the infidels, had gathered a considerable
fleet, with which he would speedily sail to the relief of Malta.
The letter was intercepted by the Turks, as the writer had in­
tended. These false tidings, and the very name of Doria.
• Pa axvil 19

156

GENERAL HISTORT 3F THE CHURCH.

alarmed the Turks. They raised the siege, and, by way of in
demnification, seized Tripoli, which Charles had bestowed upon
the knights, when he established them in Malta.
3. The council was thus enabled to meet at the time ap­
pointed by the Sovereign Pontiff. In the eleventh session,
under the présidence of the legates named by Julius TIT., Car­
dinal Marcello Crescenzio, Sebastian Pighino, archbishop of
Manfredonia (Siponte), and Louis Lippomani, Bishop of Verona,
the Fathers declared the council resumed and lawfully assem­
bled. The imperial ambassador, Francis of Toledo, the German
bishops, and especially the Electors of Mentz and Treves, had
now arrived at Trent, where they were received with the great­
est rejoicings. On the 1st day of September, the twelfth ses­
sion was held to announce to the Fathers that they would at
once proceed to discuss the decree on the Sacrament of the
Eucharist. But, as if it were decreed that this glorious council
must be clogged at every step by new difficulties, an unex­
pected but bitter dispute now threatened once more to break off
its continuance. Henry II. had sent troops into Italy to the
help of his ally, Ottavio Farnese. The French flag soon floated
over Parma and Mirandola. The emperor declared himself in
favor of immediate and forcible measures for driving the French
and their adherents out of Italy. The united Papal and impe­
rial troops soon took the field ; they laid waste the whole coun­
try about Parma and completely surrounded Mirandola. These
hostilities agitated all Europe ; it was still the eternal quarrel
between the King of France and the emperor, always revived
in the same terms; but now followed the most formidable
attack that Charles had ever sustained. In Italy, the French
joined the Farnese, while at the same time they appeared upon
the Rhine in alliance with the German Protestants. Mean­
while Henry II. had sent to the council the celebrated James
Amyot, preceptor of the royal children, afterward grand almo­
ner of the king and bishop of Auxerre. The translator of Plu­
tarch had not come on a mission of peace. He was charged to
announce, in his master’s name, that the alliance between the

JULID8 ΠΙ. (Λ. D. 1550—1556).

Pope and the emperor against France, would prevent the French
bishops from appearing at the council, which must thenceforth
cease to be ecumenical and could be deemed only a particulai
council. The king threatened, moreover, to reestablish the
Pragmatic Sanction, which had been abolished since the concor­
dat of Leo X. and Francis I. He had already issued an edict
ordering that no subsidy whatever should be sent to Rome, be­
cause, he urged, “ the Pope, by entering upon an unjust system
of hostility against the King of France, prevents the Gallican
Church, one of the most important parts of the Universal Church,
from assisting at the council.” The Fathers replied that the
mission of the council was wholly foreign to the disputes which
divided Christian princes, and that the neutrality observed at
Trent was quite sufficient to guarantee the safety of the French
bishops.
The reestablishment of the Pragmatic Sanction
would be unworthy of the most Christian king. His prede­
cessors had, with just reason, annulled it. By pursuing the
opposite course, Henry would display a gratuitous hostility
which would do little honor to his character. This reply did
not produce the effect which might have been expected. The
king persisted in his first resolve, and no French bishops ap­
peared in the second period of the council. The Fathers were
not to be overcome by this opposition, and rejected the Gallican
doctrine, which claimed, by the mere absence of the French
prelates, to destroy the ecumenical character of the council.
4. The thirteenth session was opened on the 11th of October,
a. d. 1551. The council first promulgated the dogmatic decree
on the Eucharist, which had been elaborated in the interven
ing congregations, where the Pope’s theologians, James Laynez
and Alphonso Salmeron, of the Society of Jesus, and those
of the emperor, Melchior Cano, of the order of Friars Preachers,
and John Ortega, of the Minors, displayed their brilliant and
solid learning. The various systems of the Lutheran heresy on
the presence of Jesus Christ, figuratively and by impanation, in
the Sacrament of our altars, were discussed and condemned.—
“ If any one denieth,” decreed the council, “ that, in the

fW

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Sacrament of the most holy Eucharist, are contained trulv,
really, «nd substantially, the body and blood, together with the
soul and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ, and consequently the
whole Christ; but saith that He is only therein as in a sign,
or in figure, or virtue ; let him be anathema.—If any one saith,
that, in the sacred and holy Sacrament of the Eucharist, the
substance of the bread and wine remains conjointly with the
body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, and denieth that
wonderful and singular conversion of the whole substance of
the bread into the Body, and of the whole substance of the
wine into the Blood—the species or appearance only of the bread
and wine remaining—which conversion the Catholic Church
most aptly calls Transubstantiation ; let him be anathema.—If
any one saith, that Christ, given
*
in the Eucharist, is eaten
spiritually only, and not also sacramentally and really ; let him
be anathema.—If any one denieth, that all and each of Christ’s
faithful of both sexes are bound, when they have attained the
years of discretion, to communicate every year, at least at
Easter, in accordance with the precept of holy Mother Church ;
let him be anathema.—If any one saith, that faith alone is a
sufficient preparation for receiving the Sacrament of the most
holy Eucharist; let him be anathema. And for fear lest so
great a Sacrament may be received unworthily, and so unto
death and condemnation, this holy synod ordains and declares,
that sacramental confession, when a confessor can be had, is of
necessity to be made beforehand, by those whose conscience is
burdened with mortal sin, how contrite even soever they may
think themselves. But if anyone shall presume to teach, preach,
or obstinately to assert, or even in public disputation to defend
the contrary, he shall be thereupon | excommunicated.”—
These canons were followed by eight chapters on Reform, re­
lating to the authority of bishops and their jurisdiction over
the clergy of their respective dioceses.—There shall be no appeal
before the definitive sentence, from the judgment of the bishop
» Exhibitum—presented.

t Eo ipso—by that very art.

JULIUS ΙΠ. (A. D. 1580—1555).

J 39

A case of appeal from the sentence of the bishop shall be re­
ferred to the metropolitan. In criminal matters it shall be law­
ful for a bishop to proceed against a cleric, even to his condemna­
tion, as also to his verbal deposition.—And because it some­
times happens that, under false pleas, certain persons fraudu­
lently obtain graces or absolutions, the bishop, as the delegate
of the Apostolic See, shall take cognizance, even summarily,
of the subreption or obreption of any grace, obtained under
false pretences, for the absolution of any public crime or
delinquency, or for the remission of a punishment to which
he has himself condemned the criminal.—The causes of bishops
shall be carried before the Sovereign Pontiff, and be by him
alone decided.
•5. On the 25th of November, a. d. 1551, the fourteenth
session published the decrees and canons relating to the Sacra­
ments of Penance and Extreme Unction. Luther’s errors on
these two Sacraments were reduced to sixteen articles, which
were delivered., for examination, to different theologians ; their
debates on the articles were presided over by the Bishop of
Verona. Nine chapters were promulgated on the Sacrament, of
Penance. They establish its necessity, the divine origin of the
institution, its character, its effects, the obligation of auricular
confession, the qualities of contrition and satisfaction.—“ If any
one saith, that, in the Catholic Church, Penance is not truly
and properly a Sacrament instituted by Christ our Lord for
reconciling the faithful unto God, as often as they fall into sin
after baptism; let him be anathema.—If any one saith, that
(hose words of the Saviour : ‘Receive ye the Holy Ghost, whose
sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them, and whose sins you
shall retain, they arc retained,' are not to be understood of the
power of forgiving and of retaining sins in the Sacrament of
Penance, as the Catholic Church has always from the beginning
understood them ; but wrests them, contrary to the institution
of this Sacrament, to the power of preaching the gospel ; let
him be anathema.—If any one denieth, either that sacramental
confession was instituted, or is necessary, for salvation, of divine

160

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

right; oi eaith that the manner of confessing secretly ton priest
alone, wh/ch the Church hath ever observed from the beginning,
and doth observe, is not in conformity with the institution and
command of Christ, and is a human invention ; let him be
anathema, -If any one saith, that, in the Sacrament of Penance,
it is not necessary, of divine right, for the remission of sins, tu
confess all and each of the mortal sins which, after due and
diligent examination are remembered, even those which are
secret, and those which are opposed to the two last com­
mandments of the Decalogue ; let him be anathema. — If
any one sauh, that priests, who are in mortal sin, have not
the power of binding and loosing; or, that not priests alone
are the ministers of absolution, but that to all and each of
the faithful of Christ the words of the institution are ad­
dressed; let him be anathema.—If any one saith, that bish­
ops have not the right of reserving certain particular cases
to themselves, except as regards external polity, and that
therefore the reservation of cases hinders not but that a
priest may truly absolve from reserved cases ; let him be
anathema.—If any one saith that God always remits the whole
punishment together with the guilt, and that the satisfaction ot
penitents is no other than the faith whereby they apprehend
that Christ has satisfied for them ; let him be anathema.—If
any one saith that the satisfactions, by which penitents redeem
their sins through Jesus Christ, are not a worship of God, but
traditions of men, which obscure the doctrine of grace, the true
worship of God, and the benefit itself of the death of Christ ;
let him be anathema.” The canons relating to the Sacrament
of Extreme Unction are no less precise and explicit. “ If any
one saith that Extreme Unction is not truly and properly a
sacrament, instituted by Christ our Lord and promulgated by
the blessed Apostle, St. James, but is only a rite received
from the Fathers, or a human invention ; let him be anathema.
—If any one saith that the sacred unction of the sick does not
confer grace, nor remit sin, nor comfort the sick ; but. that
now it should cease to be used because it was of old oulv die

.IULTU8 ÎII. -A. D. 1550-1556).

161

grace of working cures ; let him be anathema.—If any one saith.
that the right and usage of Extreme Unction, which the holy
Roman Church observes, is repugnant to the sentiments of the
blessed Apostle St. James, and that it is therefore to be changed,
and may, without sin, be contemned by Christians; lethi(n be
anathema.—If any one saith, that the Presbyteri of the Church,
whom St. James exhorts to be brought to anoint the sick, are
not priests who have been ordained by a bishop, but the elders
in each community, and that for this cause a priest alone is not
the proper minister of Extreme Unction; let him be anathema.”
The decrees on Reformation, as usual, followed the dogmatic
decisions.—Those who enter into Holy Orders, notwithstanding
a prohibition, interdict, or suspension from the ordinary, shall
suffer punishment.—Bishops in partibus are forbidden to confer
orders upon any cleric without the permission of his bishop.
—The bishop may suspend his clerics, who have been im­
properly promoted by another, if he find them incompetent
Penalties are decreed against clerics who, being in.sacred
orders or holding benefices, do not wear a dress beseeming
their state.—Voluntary homicides are never to be ordained.—
The Protestants complained that the council had not awaited
their arrival to promulgate its decrees. Their complaints were
examined in the fifteenth session, held on the 19th of March,
1551. It was agreed to accede to their wishes, and the six­
teenth session was prorogued to the 1st of May, to give them
time to repair to Trent. Safe-conducts, as explicit as could
be desired, were sent for their deputies ; but the sequel was
soon to prove their bad faith.
6. A Lutheran army had, in the mean time, been threaten­
ing Innspruck, a city not far from Trent. Some of the prelates
fled from Trent, and in a consistory, held on the 15th of April
(a.d. 1552), the Pope, learning that the city was not safe from the
assaults of the heretics, forwarded the order for the suspension
of the council. The Imperialists opposed the execution of the
order. But the Fathers still remaining at Trent determined,
in a congregation held on the 24th of April, to suspend the
Vol. iv—ii

]62

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

-ouncil during two years. In a session hold on the 28th of
April, 1552, the decree for the conditional suspension was read
and approved by all present, except twelve Spanish bishops,
who entered their protest against it. These prelates, however,
soon found it necessary to act against their own protest, and to
provide for their safety by flight.
7. Charles V. remained at Innepruck, in spite of the at­
tempts made by the Protestants upon that city. His vigor had
left him with his youth, and even his powerful mind seemed to
feel the effects of age. By a blind presumption, he thought
that he might without danger scatter his forces, sending some
into Italy against the French, others to Hungary to meet the
Turks. This feeling of security respecting the Protestants
arose from the fact that he had loaded Maurice, the new elec­
tor of Saxony, with favors, hoping thus to bind him to his in­
terests by the ties of gratitude. But the ungrateful man was
secretly betraying his benefactor, though repeatedly professing
his grateful attachment, and had already joined in a powerful
league against him, with the other Protestant nobles of Ger­
many and the King of France. During the night of the 22d of
May, a.d. 1552, it was announced to the emperor that Maurice
was approaching Innspruck, at the head of all his forces.
Charles was confined to his bed by a painful attack of the
gout. He was removed in a litter, and carried through
mountain by-ways to Villach, in Carinthia, being lighted on
his way by torches of straw, and followed by a few faithful
attendants, who had notfled at the approach of danger. Mean­
while Maurice entered Innspruck, which was plundered bv his
soldiers.
8. Charles V., so badly served by fortune, and betrayed by
the man upon whom be thought himself most entitled to lean, now
found it necessary to resort to negotiations for the re-establishment of his tottering power. Conferences were held at Passau
between the Imperial ambassadors and the deputies of the Lu­
theran princes. They resulted in an agreement known as the
Treaty of the Public Peace. It was concluded in spite of the earn

JULIUS ΙΠ. (A. D. 1550-1551).

163

est and repeated protests of Julius III., who strongly objected to
the conditions of the treaty. The chief clauses were as follow
*
“ The landgrave, Frederick of Hesse, a prisoner in the hands
of the emperor, shall be restored to instant freedom. Λ diet
of the empire shall be assembled within six months, to deter­
mine the means of settling all differences in religious matter
*,
either by a general or national council, or by conferences be­
tween the two parties, or by an ordinary diet. The delibera­
tions of the diet shall be received according to the judgment of
a commission, composed equally of Catholics and Protestants.
Until the complete pacification, both religions shall keep their
former rights, an entire freedom of conscience and a perfect
equality. Ferdinand, brother to the emperor and king of the
Romans, and his son Maximilian, shall solemnly pledge them­
selves to give due weight to all the complaints of the German
nation against the violation of its liberties.” All the troops,
on both sides, were to be at once disbanded, and a general
amnesty proclaimed. The King of France, who had helped tu
restore religious liberty—or, in other words, the triumph of
heresy—in Germany, was requested to make known his com­
plaints against the emperor, that he might afterward share in
the general peace.
9. Charles could not sign this treaty without a feeling of
deep sorrow. Reverses seemed to crowd upon him now to out­
weigh the splendid success which had so long crowned his
arms. The victor of Francis I., the destroyer of the Algerine
corsairs, the terror of the Mussulmans, the illustrious emperor
who had filled the last half century with the renown of his
triumphs, was now but an aged monarch, sinking under the
weight of years and misfortunes. His dreams of greatness
were no longer realized. He wished to leave to his son.
Philip IL, the Empire, his hereditary States, Spain, the
Netherlands, Burgundy, the Milanese, the kingdom of Naples,
Sicily and the New World, an imnen.se empir*» u upon which
the sun never set.” For this it was necessary tnat Ferdinand
his brother, long since invested with the title of King of the

16'1

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Romans, with the right of succession to the empire, should
yield his claims and his rights to his nephew. But Ferdinand
was by no means prepared to make the sacrifice. Meanwhile,
Henry II. of France, helped by his alliance with the German
Protestants, had seized the imperial cities of Toul, Metz and
Verdun, known as the Three Bishoprics. Charles made an un­
successful attempt to retake them. Fortune likewise played
him false in Italy, and he lost Sienna by a revolt. Defeated by
his enemies, racked by a disease which left him no moment of
peace, oppressed by grief at his reverses, the emperor withdrew
to Brussels ; here he allowed himself to sink into a state of
deep dejection, and lived for some months in such perfect re­
tirement, that the report of his death soon spread over all
Europe. The Diet of Augsburg, in 1555, confirmed the treaty
of Passau. This last disgrace brought the emperor to a defi­
nitive resolution. The States of the Netherlands met, by his
order, in the month of October, a. d. 1555. The emperor ad­
dressed them, recalling, in a pompous discourse, all the phases of
his laborious and agitated career, his frequent expeditions into
Italy, Germany and Africa, the wars he had waged, the
triumphs he had won: he dwelt especially upon the sacrifice
he had made of his time, his pleasures and his health, to defend
religion and secure public peace. “ So long as my strength
allowed," he continued, “ I have borne the weight of these
heavy cares; but now, broken down by the ravages of an in­
curable disease, my infirmities require that I should seek repose.
The happiness of my people is dearer to me than the ambition
of reigning. Instead of an old man, already sinking into the
grave, 1 give you a prince in the flower of his age ; a prince en­
dowed with sagacity, energy and enterprise. For myself, if 1
have committed faults, if I have fallen into errors, in the course
of so long a reign, charge them to my weakness alone. Your
former emperor entreats you to forgive them. I shall ever
cherish a lively gratitude for your fidelity ; your happiness
shall ever be the first object of my fervent prayers to Almighty
God, to Whom I devote the rest of my life.” Then turning to

JÜLTÜS HI. (A. D. 1560-1555).

Ifji)

Philip, who had fallen upon his knees and kissed his father’s
hand, Charles spoke to him, in the most touching strain, upon
the duties of princes, and conjured him to labor with the most
untiring care for the happiness of his subjects. At the close
of his address he blessed the young prince and pressed him
affectionately to his bosom ; overcome by fatigue and deeply
moved by the tears of the assembly, he fell back exhausted
upon the throne he had just abdicated. A few months later he
sent the imperial crown and sceptre, by the Prince of Orange, to
his brother Ferdinand I. ; then sailing to the coast of Biscay, he
buried himself in the monastic seclusion of Yuste, in Estremadura (1656;. Here Charles would hide, in solitude and
silence, the greatness, the ambition and all the vast pro­
jects which for half a century had kept Europe in a state of
agitation and alarm. His pastimes were limited to occasional
rides on horseback, the cultivation of a garden and mechan­
ical occupations.
He had a passion for horology, and the
inability to make two timepieces exactly agree is said to
have drawn from him the reflection: “How absurd was
it, then, to attempt the establishment of uniformity among
men and empires, since I cannot even succeed in making two
clocks agree.”
His melancholy degenerated into a gloomy
and intolerant severity, and he gave up even the most
innocent amusements furnished by his retreat. Regret for
his abdicated throne may have had some share in producing
this bitter melancholy. He was seized with a strange fancy
to witness his own funeral obsequies. A tomb was erected
at his request in the chapel of the monastery, to which his
attendants and the monks proceeded in procession, bearing
funeral tapers; Charles followed wrapped in a shroud. A
coflin had been prepared, in which he was solemnly laid,
and the office of the dead was chanted. He joined his voice,
he mingled his tears and prayers, with those of the religious.
At the end of the ceremony the coffin was sprinkled with
holy water, the crowd departed and the doors of the chapel
were closed upon him. Charles then rose from his coffin and

*56

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

withdrew to his room full of gloomy and funereal impressions
The effect of the ceremony proved fatal; on the following day
he was seized with a fever, and died on the 21st of September,
1558. at the age of fifty-nine years.
10. Charles V. was one of the greatest sovereigns of modern
times. Educated by men of a naturally peaceful disposition,
his first years showed a greater talent for administration and
politics than for war. But his contest with Francis I. and the
German Protestants proved him as great in the field as in
council. More capable of reflection than of resolution, he was
better fitted to plan than to execute. If he sometimes failed
in his political schemes, it was because he allowed too little
weight to moral forces, and did not believe in the possibility
of disinterested heroism. The success of his arms made him
bold to excess. He was deeply acquainted with human nature,
and knew how to choose his ministers and generals, whom he
bound to him by kindness and benefits. Thucydides and
Tacitus furnished his favorite reading, but amid the tumult of
passions and events he disregarded or forgot their teaching. A
dissembler himself, he saw in history but a long lesson in dis­
simulation, and made State policy consist in the art of deceiv­
ing allies as well as enemies. Naturally distrustful, he had
few confidants. Reverses and bodily sufferings made him
obstinate, irritable and revengeful. Ilis ambition knew no
bounds. He is said to have entertained the idea of a Universal
Monarchy; and if, by this expression, is meant not an immedl
ate domination, but only a general supremacy, over the States
of Europe, the idea, far from appearing to be a mere chimera,
would naturally grow out of his very situation. His manner
of life, like that of most of the great conquerors, was very
simple. Charles spoke five languages—the Flemish, Spanish,
Italian, French, and German ; he was but slightly acquainted
with Latin. His whole life was taken up by the design of re­
uniting the two religious parties ; it was the delusion of his
policy. His absolute character led him to throw off the re­
straint imposed by the constitutions of his States ; but if he some-

JÜLIÜ3 HI. (A. D. 1550-1665).

Jfil

times allowed himself to exercise an arbitrary sway, still there
is no just ground for the epithets “ despot” and “ tyrant” lav­
ished by partisan malice.
11. While Protestantism, favored by events, was growing
into fearful proportions in Germany, a happy revolution, produc­
tive of results but too short-lived, restored the Catholic faith
to England. The youthful Edward VI. died in 1553, after a
reign of six years, which was devoted to the establishment in
his kingdom of the schism introduced by his despotic parent.
The Princess Mary, daughter of Henry VIII. and Catharine
of Aragon, ascended the throne. Her arrival in London was a
triumph. She had been brought up in sentiments of the purest
faith. The Parliament, as prompt now to second a Catholic
administration as it had before been servile under princes who
favored the schism, speedily revoked all the laws passed under
Edward VI. It annulled the divorce formerly pronounced
between Catharine of Aragon and Henry VIII., declaring that
union alone lawful and valid. With a view to secure the
succession in her family, Mary determined to marry, and gave
her hand to Philip II., son and heir of Charles V., who had
already been once married and was the father of several
children. This union was a stroke of skilful policy. It would
bring under the same domination the greater part of the
Christian world and consolidate Mary’s throne, which had
already been disputed by Lady Jane Grey, the great grand­
daughter of Henry VII. Lady Jane subsequently suffered
capital punishment. The marriage of Philip II and Mary was
celebrated with a magnificence which has seldom been sur­
passed. Mary, on ascending the throne, gave her first thoughts
to “ the restoration of that religion," says the Protestant writer
Cobbett, “ under the influence of which the kingdom had been
so happy and so great for so many ages, and since the abolition
of which it had known nothing but discord, disgrace and
misery.” The chief obstacle to this great work came from
the holders of Church property, who had been enriched by
the plunder of the bishoprics and monasteries. Eighteen years

i 68

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

had elapsed since this property had been wrested from ils right­
ful owners, and during that period it had undergone numberless
divisions and subdivisions. But some compromise must be
made with the holders; and the peaceable settlement of the
matter succeeded much better than might have been expected.
“Now.” adds the writer whom we have just quoted, “it was
fully proved to all the world, and now this plundered nation
who had been reduced to the greatest misery by the so-called
Reformation, saw as clearly as they saw the light of day, that
all those who had abetted the Reformation ; that all the rail­
ings against the Pope; that all the accusations against the
monks and nuns; that all the pretences of abuses in the
Catholic Church; that all the confiscations,sackings and blood­
shed ; that all these, from first to last, had proceeded from the
love of plunder. For now the two Houses of Parliament, who
had only about three or four years before established Cranmer’s Church, and declared it to be ‘ the work of the Holy
Ghost now these pious ‘ Reformation ’ men, having first
made a firm bargain to keep the plunder, confessed ‘ that they
had been guilty of a most horrible defection from the true Church,
professed their sincere repentance for their past transgressions,
and declared their resolution to repeal all laws enacted in
prejudice of the Pope’s authority.” The churches were once
more given back to the Catholic worship. The married priests
were removed from their livings, to the great satisfaction of
the people, who had witnessed with pain the abolition of eccle­
siastical celibacy. The bishops deposed by Cranmer were
restored to their sees. The apostate prelate himself was im­
prisoned on a charge of high treason, and soon after condemned
to the scaffold, which he deserved for his numerous crimes
(a. d. 1556). The sacrifice of the Mass was again celebrated
throughout the whole extent of the kingdom ; while the needy
and wretched were no longer condemned to the brand o.
infamy and servitude for their misfortune, according to the
barbarous laws of Henry VIII. All seemed to promise that
die abyss of revolution was now closed up, that England

JULIUS IU. (A. D. 1660-1685).

169

would be England again, and that hospitality and charity would
*
return.
12. Cardinal Pole, who had presided at the opening of the
Council of Trent, and whose heroic mother had shed her blood
for the faith, was still on the continent at the time of Mary’s
accession. Pope Julius III., judging that he might now return
to his country in perfect safety, named him Apostolic legate in
England. “ The session of Parliament which was to consecrate
the official reestablishment of the Catholic religion, was opened
in the month of November, a. d. 1554, with a most splendid
procession of the two Houses, closed by the king on horseback
and the queen in a litter. Their first act was a repeal of the·
attainder of Cardinal Pole, passed in the reign of Henry VIII.
While this was going on,many noblemen and gentlemen had gone
to Brussels to conduct the cardinal to England. On the 29th
of November, the two Houses addressed a petition to the king
and queen. In this petition they expressed their leep regret
at having been guilty of defection from the Church, and prayed
their majesties, who had not participated in the sin, to intci
cede with the Holy Father for their forgiveness and for thei>
re-admission into the fold of Christ. The next day, the queen
being seated on the throne, with the king on her left, the legate,
though at a greater distance, on her right, the Lord High Chan­
cellor, Bishop Gardiner, read the petition. The king and the
queen then spoke to the legate, and he, after a speech of some
duration, gave, in the name of the Pope, to the two Houses,
and to the whole nation, Absolution, in the name of the Father,
Son, and Holy Ghost; at which words, the members of the two
Houses, being on their knees, made the hall resound with Amen !
Thus was England once more a Catholic country ; she was re­
stored to the fold of Christ. Julius III. hesitated a long while
before consenting to countenance, by silence, the plunder of
Church property ; Cardinal Pole only yielded to the necessity
with heartfelt grief ; but Gardiner, who was now the queei a
* Cobbktt’s “ Reformation,” Letter ΓΙΙ1

170

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

prime minister, and indeed all her council, were for the com­
promise. Mary, however, proceeded to restore all the Church
and abbey lands in her own possession. Her intention was to
apply the revenues, as nearly as possible, to their original pur­
poses. She restored Westminster Abbey, the monastery af
Greenwich, the Black-Friars in London, and a number of hos­
pitals, which she liberally endowed.”*
13. Such was the queen, according to the Protestant his­
torian Cobbett, upon whom so many English writers have
bestowed the now almost historic epithet of bloody. “ The
truth is,” continues Cobbett, whose authority is of great weight
here, “ that the executions ordered during the reign of Mary,
in virtue of existing laws, and after regular form of trial, gen­
erally reached a set of most wicked wretches, who sought to
destroy the queen and her government,and, under the pretence
of freedom of conscience, to obtain the means of again preying
upon the people."
In the midst of this season of consoling triumph for the
Church, Julius III. expired, on the 23d of March, a. d. 1555,
after a Pontificate of five years.

§ II. Pontificate

of

Marcellos II. (April 9, a. d. 1555—May
1,1555).

14. The votes of the Sacred College bestowed the tiara
upon Cardinal Marcello Cervini, who took the name of Marcel­
lus II. (April 9, a. d. 1555). His firmness, zeal and virtue in­
spired the world with hope. To save his administration from
even the suspicion of nepotism, Marcellus would not suffer his
relations to come to Rome after his elevation ; he introduced
numerous reductions in the expenditure of his court, and turned
his whole attention to the resuming of the Council of Trent,
which had now been two years adjourned, for the great work of
pacification and reform. “ Reformation," said the Pope to the
• CoBBrrr, uW tup.

PAUL IV. (A. D. 1555—1569).

171

Cardinal of Mantua, “ is the only means, not only of increasing
hut even of preserving the Pontifical authority. It will abolish
only what is superfluous and onerous—luxury, pomp, retinues,
with other excessive and useless expense, which bring the
Papacy into contempt, instead of making it venerable and ma­
jestic. By putting an end to all these vanities, we shall really
increase its power, its reputation and finances, which are the
sinews of a government ; but what is more, the measure will
call down upon the Popes the divine help, which they may hope
to receive who strive to do their duty.” Death did not allow
Marcellus to execute his generous designs. He was stricken
down by apoplexy on the twenty-second day of his Pontificate.
His contemporaries apply to him the words of Virgil, uttered
of another Marcellus :
“ Ostendent terris bunc »antum fata.”

§ III. Pontificate

of

Paul IV. (May 23, a. d. 155-5—August
18, 1559).

15. An administration so short as that of Marcellus Π.
seems hardly calculated to produce a serious effect upon
ecclesiastical affairs. Still it was important in its influence
upon the spirit of the Roman court, to which it gave a tendency
that appeared in the next conclave. Cardinal Caraffa, first
superior-general of the Thea tines, founded by St. Cajetan of
Thienna, was elected Pope on the 23d of May, a. d. 1555, and
took the name of Paul IV. The new Pope bad already reached
the advanced age of seventy-nine years, but he had lost none
of his youthful zeal and vigor. He was one of the most earnest
advocates of the reform. He combined all the qualities which
give a man the right and the power to command others. To
an ardent nature and a strong will, he joined deep convictions.
He was born in time to behold Italy in the freedom of the
fifteenth century, and his whole soul was bent on restoring
those fading glories. “ He was wont to compare the Italy of

172

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

that age to a well-timed instrument, of which Naples, Milan
the States of the Church and Venice, were the four strings."
Full of this project, Paul IV. could not view without pain tin
predominant power of Spain, which had disturbed this Italian
harmony; and he now brought all his power to bear upon that
foreign domination.
16. By the abdication of Charles V., as we have seen, tho
imperial crown passed to Ferdinand I., and the hereditary
States—Spain, the Netherlands, Burgundy, Naples, the Milan­
ese and the New World—to Philip IL, already king of England
by bis marriage with Mary Tudor. Ferdinand I. assumed the
imperial title and insignia without asking the usual confirma­
tion of the Holy See. This step inaugurated a complete revo­
lution. The Empire of the West had been reestablished by
Pope St. Leo III., in the person of Charlemagne. The
emperor, by the very origin of the institution, became of ne­
cessity the armed defender of the Roman Chui’ch. The Pope
bad, and was naturally entitled to, a principal part in his eleotion, either by making the choice himself or by approving
the choice of the electors who were to make it. For several
centuries the electors were seven in number, and, according
to the old constitutions of the empire, which constitutions
were common to all Christian nations, they must be Catholics
and in communion with the successor of St. Peter. Charles
V. had indeed abdicated the imperial throne ; but his ab­
dication had not been ratified, as it should have been,
by the Sovereign Pontiff; the throne was not canonically
vacant, and Ferdinand could not aspire to it. The abdication
of Charles and the succession of Ferdinand had been ratified
hy the seven electors ; but this confirmation could not, on any
ground, dispense with the consent of the Holy See. Beside,
three of the electors were heretics, and were accordingly, by
the constitutions of the Holy Empire, disqualified for the office.
Thus, when Ferdinand’s ambassador appeared before Paul ÎV
to notify him of his master’s accession, the Pope, in concert
tvith the cardinals, replied by laying down the principles just

PAUL IV. IA. D. 1555-1659).

quoted. “ The only way to remove all difficulties,” continued
the Pope, “ would be for Ferdinand to apply to the Holy Seo,
which would supply what was wanting in the mode of election."
Diplomatic negotiations were opened on the subject; but Ferdi­
nand finally recalled his ambassador and determined to do
without the Pope’s confirmation. His successors have followed
his example. From that time there has remained of the Holy
Roman Empire only the name ; it is now, in truth, but the
secular Empire of Germany.
17. The relations of Paul IV. with Philip IL, as heir to
the Italian possessions of Charles V., were not more happy.
The Pope made a wide distinction between Philip IL, king of
Spain, of Naples and of the Milanese, and Philip IL, the con­
sort of the queen of England. Charles V., Philip II. and
Ferdinand I. bad all opposed the election of Paul IV.. with
whose political opinions they were well acquainted. “If God
wills that I should be Sovereign Pontiff,’’ said the aged cardinal,
“the emperor cannot hinder my election. I shall thus be
much better satisfied with it, since I shall be indebted for it only
to God.” The new Pope had hardly ascended the throne of
St. Peter, when he received a deputation, consisting of a bishop
and two noblemen, from England ; they came in the name of
the king and queen, to make the act of submission to the Pon­
tifical authority. They were charged, moreover, to request, in
the name of their sovereigns, the erection of Ireland into a
kingdom, to which petition Paul readily acceded. An Apostolic
bull, dated June 7, a. d. 1557, officially recognized the title
of Sovereigns of Ireland, which Philip and Mary wished to
assume. The ambassadors were then admitted to an audience
with the Pope, and in the name of their nation acknowledged
him as head of the Universal Church. They presented him a
copy of the act recognizing his authority, begged that he would
ratify the absolution pronounced by the legate, and confirm
the bishoprics established during the schism. The Pope will­
ingly granted all these just requests.
IS. All these murks of good-will toward the royal consort

174

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

of the English queen did not in the least involve a change in
the Pope’s determination to destroy the Spanish influence in
Italy. To insure success in such an undertaking, he needed
the support of France. He hoped, by the help of that nation, so
dear to the Holy See, to recover the independence of Italy.
« If, in this sacred cause,” said Paul, “ I am neither heard nor
helped, posterity will at least bear witness that an aged Italian,
even at the gates of death, instead of seeking repose and pre­
paring himself in peace to die. alone conceived the noble designs
which should give back to his country its existence and its
nationality.” During the course of the formalities attending
the abdication of Charles V., the truce of Vauxelles (February
5, a. d. 1556), between France and Spain, gave a season of
quiet to the exhausted people; but the truce, dictated rather
by necessity than by a desire for peace, was broken almost as
soon as signed. Henry II., urged on by the Guises, whose in­
fluence was then all-powerful, soon violated the treaty. The
Pope entered into a league, offensive and defensive, with the
King of France against Philip II. (December 15, 1556). To
place himself in a position for beginning hostilities, the Pope
felt the need of energetic men. His family shared all his
antipathy for the Spanish domination ; and, feeling sure of its
cooperation, he naturally turned to it for support. This allabsorbing thought blinded him in regard to his nephews and
betrayed him into an error which he afterward had occasion
most bitterly to deplore. He raised to the cardinalate his
nephew, Charles Caraffa, whose hostility to the Spaniards was
well known. Unfortunately, this youth had none of the quali­
ties which become a prince of the Church.
He had been,
trained in the rude and licentious life of the camp ; and his
uncle committed a grave error by intrusting to him the conduct,
net only of secular, but of spiritual affairs. The Pontiff's
other nephews, seeing by what route they could must easily
rente his favor, were not slow to adopt his anti-Spanish feelings ;
they also received dignities and offices of trust. The elder
was made Duke of PalUano; the younger, Marquis of Monte­

PAUL IV. (A. D :»55-155ί>).

17ύ

hello; they all aspired to the highest honors. This Paul IV.,
whose whole mind seemed taken up with projects of re­
form, was indirectly favoring one of the most crying abuses—
nepotism. Though he eventually repaired his fault with a
courage and resolution which became for him an occasion of
new merit before God and of true glory in the eyes of men.
19. Hostilities had now fairly begun in Italy. The Duke
of Guise hastened toward Milan with a formidable army : but,
hampered by court intrigues, he tarnished his reputation by a
fruitless campaign, and was obliged to return to France without
having effected anything in behalf of his ally, the Pope. Philip
and Mary had sent a large force to the Netherlands, under
Emmanuel-Philibert, duke of Savoy, a great general and the
mortal enemy of Henry II., who had seized his States. In spite
of the heroic efforts of the Constable of Montmorency, of the
Prince of Condé, and Admiral Coligny, the Duke of Savoy de­
feated the French in the bloody battle of St. Quentin (August
18, a. d. 1557), comparable in its disastrous results to the
fields of Crécy. Poitiers and Agincourt. The road to the capi­
tal was open. “Is my son in Paris ?” inquired Charles V.,
’when he heard, in his retirement, of the defeat of the French.
But Philip had not his father’s genius. He knew not how
to avail himself of a victory that might have placed the whole
of France in his power. His officers urged him to march at
once upon Paris. “ No, no,” replied Philip, “ we should never
drive an enemy to desperation.” While he wasted his time in
reducing the chief fortresses in Picardy, Henry II. was organ­
izing a powerful army, of which the Duke of Guise took com­
mand on his return from Italy.
20. The departure of Guise from Italy left the Pope to his
own resources, before the Duke of Alva, the greatest captain that
Spain, then so fruitful in warriors, had sent forth, since Gonealvo of Cordova. He was at this period viceroy of Naples.
His troops marched upon Rome, which was defended by a few
troops, unaccustomed to the art. of war. The Pope felt the
need of other defenders, and he took into his pay the undwci·

176

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

plined bands of Peter Strozzi, an Italian chief. The two hos­
tile armies presented a strange anomaly. The Duke of Alva
was a fervent Catholic; he imposed upon his troops the greatest
moderation in the attack, and a deep respect for the Holy Sue.
The force of Strozzi, on the other hand, levied for the most
part in Germany, was composed almost entirely of Lutherans,
and revelled in all the license and excess of war without care
or remorse. The situation of the Pope was extremely critical,
but, happily for him, the struggle was to end on another field.
The Duke of Guise had been made lieutenant-general of the
kingdom, by Henry II. He was now to uphold the national
honor, and he did not deceive the hopes which were entertained
of his talent. In mid-winter he pitched his camp before that
>f the Spaniards and the English, in the very heart of Picardy.
By a skilful manoeuver, he succeeded in deceiving the enemy
as to his real intention, and fell suddenly upon Calais, where he
was not expected. During two hundred and ten years, the
possession of this port had left France in the power of the
English. After the disaster of Crécy, Edward III. had taken
it only after a siege of eleven months. Within ten days the
Duke of Guise took it by storm (January 10, a. d. 1558).
Guines, Ham, and Câtelet fell in quick succession, and the
English domination disappeared entirely from the soil of France.
Queen Mary felt this blow most severely. It hastened her
death, which occurred on the 17th of November, 1558. On
her death-bed she declared that, if her breast were opened, the
word “ Calais” would be found engraven on her heart. In the
following spring the Duke of Guise seemed to surpass himself
in the capture of Thionville, the strongest place held by the
Spaniards; while in Piedmont,Marshal de Brissac, with a hand­
ful of troops, nobly sustained the honor of the French arms,
and made a diversion in favor of the Pope, by obliging the
Duke of Alva to leave the Boman territory to oppose his march.
Botï. monarchs were equally desirous of peace ; Philip, because
he had no inclination for war; Henry, because he saw the ne­
cessity of repairing the misfortunes of France, and of arresting

PAUL IV. (A. D. 165Î-I55»),

177

the progress of Calvinism in his States. The Constable of
Bourbon was charged to enter into arrangements with the King
of Spain, and on the 2d of April, 1559, the treaty of CateauCambrésis was signed by both parties. This peace was known
as the “Unfortunate Peace,” because, by the terms of the
treaty, Henry gave up one hundred and eighty-nine forti­
fied towns which he had taken in Italy and the Nether­
lands ; but it has not been noted that, by preserving the
'· Three Bishoprics ”—Metz, Toul and Verdun—France once
more held her natural limits, which is the greatest security
of a State.
21. The terms of the treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis, in relation
to the Pope, were more honorable than might have been antici­
pated. It was agreed “that the Duke of Alva should repair to
Rome and do homage to Paul IV., in the name of the Catholic
king, his master. The Sovereign Pontiff should thenceforth
enter into friendly relations with the Catholic king, and re­
nounce the league with France. Philip was to return to the
Pope all the places in the Roman States, taken during the war.
The fortifications erected there were to be razed ; and all prop­
erty, of whatsoever nature, taken from the Pope in the course
of the war, was also to be restored. A general amnesty secured
the safety of all who had taken up arms on either side.” After
the ratification of these conditions, the Duke of Alva came to
Rome, and made the profession of homage which had been
agreed upon. The issue of the war, though relatively favorable
to the Sovereign Pontiff, yet ruined his most cherished hopes.
The Spanish domination at Naples and Milan was now fixed
upon a firmer foundation than ever. Philip II. was enjoying
the preponderance won by Charles V. The Pope's personal
enemies, the Colonnas and Sforzas, once more took a brilliant
position ; the check in this respect was complete. But men of
such energy do not quail before a difficult position ; they are
either crushed by events, or they meet and master them, and
then turn the powers of their strong will to other combats. So
it was with Paul IV. He bore his defeat with courage, and
Vol. IV —12

178

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

turned his whole attention to the second part of his great de­
sign—ecclesiastical reform.
22. The Pope, one day, in a consistory of the cardinals
repeated the words “Reform, reform !” One of the cardinals
replied : “Holy Father, we must begin the reform among our­
selves." Paul understood that these words referred to the dis­
orders of his nephews, which had long been a subject of loud
complaint with the Romans. The Sovereign Pontiff did not
hesitate; he made diligent inquiries, which revealed the
whole truth. With the proofs of the charges in his hand, the
Pope met the cardinals in an extraordinary consistory, made
known this family misfortune, and decreed that his nephews,
with their families and servants, should quit Rome within
twelve days. The same decree deprived them of the power
and the dignities they had so long abused. Cardinal Caraffa
was banished to Civita Lavinia. John Caraffa, duke of Palliano, general of the Pontifical States and prefect of the galleys,
lost these two high offices, and was exiled to Gallese. Anto­
nio, marquis of Montebello, was required to confine himself to
his marquisate, situated in the Romagna. All three were
warned that they should be tried for treason if they quitted
their place of exile. Several of the cardinals would have in­
terceded in behalf of the nephews, but the Pope forbade any
one even to mention their names in his presence. When he had
struck this blow and the three exiles had left Rome, Paul ex­
claimed : “Now We can, We must say: Of Our Pontificate,
the first year.”—“An event now occurred, forever memorable,”
says Ranke; “a Pope, by a sort of self-violence, emancipated
himself from all partiality to his kindred.”
23. He now gave himself up without reserve to the work of
reformation, and he allowed no day to pass without doing some­
thing for that great end. Time only was wanting to him to
resume the Council of Trent, which the ceaseless wars that filled
his Pontificate bad made it impossible to convoke. But, if he
could not resume the council, he at least prepared, by wise
regulations, the reforms which the council afterward promu!

PAUL TV. (A. D. 155»-1559).

179

gated. The administration of temporal concerns, ecclesiastical
discipline, religious orders, public and private morals—nothing
escaped his watchful control. To reach the end proposed, he
displayed an energetic severity which gained him some honor­
able enmities. He restored the Inquisition in Rome and fixed
the limits of its jurisdiction. These multiplied cares, responsi­
bilities and troubles, added to the weight and infirmities of ad­
vanced age, soon prostrated the Pope and led him to the grave.
The year which he had styled the first was likewise to be the
last of his Pontificate. Calling the cardinals around his death­
bed, he begged their forgiveness for the faults and negligences
of which he might have been guilty in the course of his reign,
exhorted them to remain in perfect union, and to choose a suc­
cessor capable of guarding the interests of the Church. A few
days later (August 18, a. d. 1-559), he expired, while repeat­
ing the words of the fifty-first Psalm : “ Lætatus sum in his
quæ dicta sunt mihi ; in domum domini ibimus.” The popu­
larity which is so often achieved at the expense of honor and
conscience, had no value in the eyes of Paul IV. The people
repaid his contempt of their favor by heaping insults upon hie
memory. They burned the palace of the Inquisition and de­
stroyed the statues raised in his honor, in the beginning of his
reign. The same year was marked by the death of St. Igna­
tius, rich in virtues and merits. He was succeeded in the
government of his order by James Laynez.
24. The death of Mary was followed in England by a new
revolution, which placed upon the throne her sister Elizabeth,
the fruit of Henry’s adulterous union with Anne Boleyn. In
the preceding reign, Elizabeth, who had been trained in the
principles and prejudices of Protestantism, gave great edifica­
tion by her zeal for the Catholic faith. Not only did she ap­
pear with affected regularity at the celebration of Mass, but
she even kept, in her private apartments, an elegant cbapel, at­
tended by a Roman Catholic chaplain ; she even had a confessor
officially attached to her person. Mary had always doubted
the sincerity of this outward conformity ; and on her death-bed

IbO

GENERAL HISTORY OF ΤΗΈ CHURCH.

her solicitude prompted her to require from her sister an avawm
of her real sentiments. The hypocritical princess replied to
this touching mark of attachment, by “ praying Almighty God
that the earth might open and swallow her up alive, if she were
not, in heart and soul, a true Roman Catholic." This was a
horrible perjury. The first act of the new queen was to recall
to court the partisans of the Protestant religion, who had been
removed by Mary. Those who had been confined for religious
causes were released. The Bishop of Winchester was thrown
•nto prison for his sermon at the funeral of Queen Mary, in
which he maintained the necessity of reestablishing Catholicity
in England. Every thing seemed to augur a coining defection ;
but that which cleared away every doubt was a. proclamation,
forbidding the Catholic clergy topreach in public,and ordering
the established worship to be observed “until consultation might
be had in Parliament by the queen and the three estates.”
25. Paul IV. had refused to recognize the legitimacy of
Elizabeth, declaring that, by right of inheritance, the English
throne should have descended to Mary Stuart, queen of Scot­
land, as the nearest lawful heir of Henry VIII. Mary had
married, in 1558, the Dauphin of France, afterward Francis II.
She was a sincere Catholic, and would have carried out the re­
ligious policy of Mary Tudor, while her union with the heir to
the French throne would have put an end to the hostilities
which had so long divided the two kingdoms. But Mary Stuart
found in England only a cruel death upon the scaffold. The
bishops, alarmed at the tendencies of the new government, as­
sembled in London and determined to officiate at the coronation
of the queen, only on the express condition that she should
take the accustomed oath to maintain the liberties of the Catho­
lic Church. Elizabeth took the oath ; a perjury cost her but
little. A few months later, the statutes “ passed in the late
reign for the support of the ancient faith” were repealed, aid
the schismatical acts of Henry VIII., in derogation of the Papal
authority, and consequently breaking off all connection not only
with the Church and the whole Christian world, but also with

PAUL IV. (A. D. 1555-1559).

181

the thousand years of Catholic England, were in a great meas­
ure revived. It was enacted that the book of Common Prayer
should alone be used by the ministers in all churches, under the
penalties of forfeiture, deprivation and death ; that the spiritual
authority of every foreign prelate within the realm should he
utterly abolished ; that the jurisdiction necessary for the cor­
rection of errors, heresies, schisms, and abuses, should be an­
nexed to the crown, with the power of delegating such juris­
diction to any person or persons whatsoever, at the pleasure of
the sovereign ; that the penalty of asserting the Papal authority
should ascend, on the repetition of the offence, from the forfeit­
ure of real and personal property to perpetual imprisonment ;
and from perpetual imprisonment to death, as was indicted in
cases of high treason : and that all clergymen taking orders, or
in possession of livings; all magistrates and inferior officers
having fees or wages from the crown ; all laymen suing out the
livery of their lands, or about to do homage to the queen, should,
under pain of deprivation and incapacity, take an oath, declaring
her to be supreme governor in all ecclesiastical and spiritual
things or causes, as well as temporal, and renouncing all foreign
ecclesiastical or spiritual jurisdiction or authority whatsoever
within the realm.
26. The English clergy opposed these bills with a most
vigorous but fruitless resistance, which, however, does them
honor, and gives us the hope that God may one day re­
member His mercies upon the land of so many confessors and
martyrs. They presented to the House of Lords a declaration
of their belief in the real presence, transubstautiation, the
sacrifice of the Mass, and the supremacy of the Pope; with a
protestation that to decide on doctrine, sacraments and disci­
pline, belonged not to any lay assembly, but to the lawful pas­
tors of the Church. Both universities, Cambridge and Oxford,
signed the confession of the clergy, and the bishops unani­
mously seized every opportunity to speak and to vote against
the measure. To dissolve or neutralize this opposition, the
Bishops of Winchester ami Lincoln were committed to the Tower.

182

GENERAI. HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Elizabeth, soon after, sent for the other bishops, required tnem
to conform to the new statutes, and, on their refusal, drove
them from her presence with expressions of contempt and re­
sentment. The oath of supremacy was tendered to each in
succession ; but all, with the exception of LandafT, sacrificed
their situations and their liberty to the dictates of their con­
science. Tunstal, of Durham ; Morgan, of St. David’s ; Ogilthorpe, of Carlisle ; White, of Winchester, and Bangs, of Coven­
try, died under the infamous treatment to which they were
subjected. A few succeeded in escaping from prison, and reach­
ing the continent. Bonner, bishop of London, died in a dun­
geon, after an imprisonment of ten years. Watson, of Lincoln,
languished during thirty-three years in a dungeon of the Tower.
At the head of the intruded hierarchy was placed Matthew
Parker, formerly chaplain to Anne Boleyn ; the new primate
thus succeeded, not the glorious archbishops of Canterbury, St.
Augustine, St. Dunstan, St. Anselm, and St. Thomas, whose
sec he was usurping, but the perjured apostate Cranmer. But
an unexpected impediment arose from the refusal of the Catho­
lic prelates to consecrate the new metropolitan, who was obliged
tc receive that rite from Barlow and Scory, two bishops who
had conformed under Edward VI. Since the consecration was
performed according to the altered ritual, it may certainly be
doubted that he received the episcopal character, and that he
could validly confer it upon others. However this may be, the
schism was again actually established in England. “ After re­
quiring all her subjects to take the oath of supremacy,” says
Cobbett, “ offering them the alternative of torture or apostasy,
this worthy daughter of Henry VIII. decreed the penalties of
high treason against any priest who should celebrate the Holy
Sacrifice within the limits of the kingdom. The executioners
were too few for the number of victims, and my pen refuses to
record all the atrocities which filled the world with horror.
Having overturned the altars and set up the tables, she com­
pelled her Catholic subjects to attend in the churches of the
new worship, under enormous penalties. Thus were the sincere
and conscientious Catholics in the kingdom incessantly harassed.

PAUL IV. (A. D. 1565-1559'.

183

ruined by enormous lines, brought to the gallows, or com­
pelled to flee from their native country.” Such was the queen
upon whom Protestant writers have bestowed the title of
“great" and “good," and whom the Voltairian school would
exalt to the dignity of a heroine.
27. The year in which Pope Paul IV. died at Rome wit­
nessed the close of Henry’s reign in France (a. d. 1559). Amid
the brilliant festivities by which the treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis was celebrated in Paris, the king wished to take part in a
“ passage at arms.” The Count of Montgommery, captain of
the guards, and the most skilful tilter of the court, in breaking
lances with the king, had the misfortune to wound him mortally.
They broke their lances with dexterity, but Montgommery
having neglected t i throw away the stock of his as soon as it
broke, it accidentally struck the king in the face, forced up the
visor of the helmet, and entered above the right eye so deeply
as to touch the brain. The king forbade that any thing should
be done to his innocent but unfortunate adversary, and died fif­
teen days after, leaving four sons, of whom three reigned during
the troubles of the Reformation. The throne immediately
passed to the Dauphin, Francis II., husband of Mary Stuart,
the unhappy queen, whose career, then so brilliant and promis­
ing, was soon to meet with such a tragic eud.
28. The progress of Calvinism in France, under the zealous
care of Theodore Beza, was slow but sure, and was preparing
lamentable disasters for the kingdom. The first meetings of
the Calvinists were held secretly at Paris, in a house in the
Rue Saint Jacques (a. d. 1555—1557). It is a remarkable fact,
that, whether it come in the name of religion or under the mask
of philosophy, revolutionary anarchy, which threatens to grind
royal thrones and human greatness into dust, has always
sprung into being under the shadow of the throne; its most
zealous propagators have been the great lords most interested
in struggling against it. The first French soldier who gave the
example of apostasy was a descendant of St. Louis, a member
of the royal house of Bourbon ; the Prince of Coudé. A prize
so noble and so unexpected emboldened the sectaries' During

18J

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

the spring of the year 1558, the Calvinists or Huguenots., as
they were called, began to hold regular evening meetings in
the Pré-RüX-ClercB in Paris, often to the number of five or six
thousand, singing the psalms of Marot, which they had adopted
in their meetings for public worship. Antoine de Bourbon,
king of Navarre, to please his wife, Jeanne d’Albret, a zealous
Protestant, was often present at these assemblies. Francis of
Chiitillon, called Dandelot, a brother of Admiral Coligny, hail
also joined the new sect, and encouraged the preachers in his
territory. On the 14th of June, 1559, the Parliament assembled
to take measures against the invasion of Calvinism. The presi­
dent, Minard, and the first president Lemaître, were in favor of
the rigorous application of the laws made by Philip Augustus
against innovators. Several counsellors, on the other hand,
undertook to defend the heretics, and gave way to recriminations
and abuse against the court of Rome. The most violent of these
declaimers was an apostate priest named Anne Dubourg. He
was arrested as he left the hall ; the Bishop of Paris declared
him a heretic, deposed him from the priesthood, and gave him
over to the secular arm. Dubourg appealed to the Archbishop
of Sens, who was the metropolitan of Paris. The death of
Henry IL, which occurred in the interval, did not interrupt
the trial; it was continued by order of Francis II., who was
guided by his uncles, the princes of Lorraine. Seeing President
Minard among bis judges, Dubourg said to him, in a threaten­
ing tone : “You shall not long be my judge.” The Reformers
took care to insure the fulfilment of this prophecy ; Minard was
assassinated on the same evening, as he was entering his abode.
It was afterward discovered that Lemaitre and Marshal SaintAndré, both strong opponents of the new doctrines, would have
met the same fate bad they been at the palace. Three days
later, the apostate priest, Dubourg, was condemned, hanged,
and burnt (1559). The Calvinists, secretly encouraged by
Elizabeth of England, turned their thoughts to the organization
of an open revolt. The wars of religion, as they have been
styled, were now, for half a century, to cover France with ter­
ror. bloodshed and m>ns.

PfÜB IV. fA. D. Ιβ6'>-1Μ*,.

186

CHAPTER V.
§ 1. Pontikicatk or Pius IV. (December 2β, a. d. 1559—December 9. 1566).
1. Lutheranism and Calvinism at the accession of Pins IV.—2. The parties of
Bourbon, Montmorency and Guise, in France.—3. Conspiracy of Amboise.—The Chancellor Michel de l’Hôpital.—End of the reign of Francis
Π. and accession of Charles IX.—i. Pios IV. and his nephew, St. Charle·
Borromeo.—5. Pontifical bull for resuming the Council of Trent.—6. Abdisu, Catholic patriarch of Eastern Assyria, visits Rome. Erection of bishop­
rics in America and the Indies.—7. Twenty-second session of the Council
of Trent. Canons on the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.—8. Discussion on the
origin of the episcopal institution. Arrival of the Cardinal of Lorraine at
Trent. Death of the Cardinals of Mantua and Seripando, Papal legates and
presidentn of the council. They are succeeded by the Cardinals Morone and
Navagero.—9. Twenty-third session of the council. Canons on the Sacra­
ment of Holy Orders. Decree for the establishment of seminaries.—10.
Twenty-fourth session. Canons on marriage. Decrees on reformation.—II.
Sermon of the Bishop of Nazianzum, coadjutor of Famagusta, at the close
ot the council. Reading of the decrees on Purgatory, the worship of saints,
holy relics and images. Close of the Council of Trent. Its disciplinary de­
crees rejected in France and Germany. Pius IV. confirms all the acts ot the
council.—12. Troubles with the Calvinists in France. Catholic triumvirate.
Colloquy of Poissy.—13. Riot, styled by the Calvinists the Massacre of
Vassy. Battle of Dreux. Siege of Orleans. Murder of the Duke of Guise
Battle of St. Denis. Death of the Constable Anne de Montmorency. Eus
of the Pontificate of Pins IV.
§ II. Pontificate

of

St. Pius V. (January 7, a. d. 1568—May 1, 1572).

. Leading features ot the Pontificate of St. Pius V.—15. Election of St Pius
—16. His first measures for the reform of abuses and of morals.—17. Tron
bles with the Calvinists in France during the Pontificate of St. Pius V.—
18. Imprisonment of Mary Stuart. The Pope excommunicates Queea
Elizabeth.—19. Beginning of the revolt of the (fucusc in the Netberlsoda.—
20. The Duke of Alva appointed governor of the Netherlands.—9» Doo

1*6

GENERAL FIRTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Carlo?, son of 1’hilip Π. of Spain.—22. Battle of Lepanto.—23. St. Piui
V. pnhlishee the catechiem of the Conncil of Trent, the Roman breviary
and missal. Palestrina.—24. Socinianiam.—25. Heresy of Bains.—26.
Death of St Pius V. Saints and scholars of bia epoch. St. Thensa
Carmelite Reform.

§ I. Pontificate of Pius IV. (December 26,
December 9, 1565).

a. d.

1559-

1. While Cardinal Giovan-Angelo Medici was taking pos­
session of the chair of St. Peter, under the title of Pius IV.,
the Lutheran and Calvinist heresies were committing fearful
ravages in Europe. England, under the rule of the daughter
of Henry VIII. and Anne Boleyn, was wading through tor­
rents of blood in the way of schism. In Scotland, the fierce
zealot, Kno&, was setting up the most intolerant Calvinism,
throwing both Church and State into utter disorder. This sect
was also making progress in the Netherlands, under favor of
the popular hatred of the Spanish rule. Philip II. appreciated
;he political importance of opposing the advance of these doc­
trinal novelties. At bis request, Paul IV. had erected three
new metropolitan sees : Utrecht, Mechlin and Cambrai, beside
several bishoprics. The German Protestants, availing them­
selves of the liberty granted them by the treaty of Passau, be­
gan the publication of a new ecclesiastical history, known as
that of the Cenhiriators of Magdeburg, under the direction of
Flaccus Illyricus. The first volumes appeared in 1559. An
uncompromising hatred of Catholicity and a constant aim to
connect the heresies of every time and country with the pre­
dominant ideas of Luther’s novelties, thus to form a kind of
tradition of error through the course of ages, is the characteris­
tic feature of this collection, which has served as the ground­
work and model of all attempts of the same kind since made,
whether singly or collectively, by the writers of the so-called
Reformation. The Waldenses, aroused by the tumult of religiouj
insurrection, began to move in the valleys of Piedmont and Sav »y. Just as the Lutheran branch had absorbed the scattered

r
PIUS IV. (A. D. 1659-15«),

187

remains of the Hussites in Germany, so the remaining Walden
*
ses, dwelling among the mountains, naturally fell into the raokof the Calvinists. Their number amounted to about three or
four thousand in Provence, Merindol, Cabrières, and the neigh­
boring country. They caused great troubles, and brought upon
themselves some very severe treatment from the royal forces
(a. d. 1545-1559).
*
2. The court of Francis II. was divided between three fac­
tions, headed by the three principal families of France—the
houses of Bourbon, Montmorency and Lorraine. At the head
of the Bourbons was Antoine, king of Navarre and duke of
Vendôme, the husband of Jeanne d’Albret, by whom he bad
Henry IV. Of a weak and vacillating disposition, he long
hesitated between the faith of his fathers, the faith of St. Louis
and Charlemagne, the old religion of France, and the novelties
of an apostate German monk. But yielding at length to the
influence of his wife, who had already been misled by the new
errors, he gave his name, without ever really giving his heart,
to the cause of the Reformation. The Prince of Condé. Louis
de Bourbon, declared his sentiments more openly, and thus be­
came the leader of the Lutherans and Calvinists in the kingdom.
The house of Lorraine, divided into two branches, the Lorraines
and the Guises, was represented by three heroes—Charles III.,
duke of Lorraine, whose descendants still sit upon the thrones
of Austria, Hungary and Bohemia ; Francis of Lorraine, duke
of Guise, the hero of Calais and Thionville, and the savior of
France; and the great Cardinal of Lorraine, the all-powerful
minister of Francis II. They had pledged themselves, at any
price, to maintain the Catholic faith in France. In this determi­
nation they were supported by the clergy, the parliament, and
the mass of the people, with all the energy of devoted attach­
ment to the faith. The third party, which hoped to restore
peace between the other two, and, by this reconciliation, to
spare the bloodshed which must otherwise ensue, was that of
Montmorency It was called the party of the “ Politics,” or
• M. Blanc,

l

II., p. 300.

(38

GENERAL HISTORY OF THF OIÏÜRCH.

the " Mixed Party." The Montmorencies, the “ First Christian
Barons," are one of the glories of France and of the Church,
by their hereditary fidelity to God and to their country. Their
origin is, on respectable authority, referred to the foundation of
the French monarchy.
*
The claim of antiquity would give but
little glory to the house of Montmorency, had not its members,
from the earliest days of our history, given it additional lustre
by an uninterrupted discharge of the highest offices of State, by
a display of splendid talents, heroic virtue, and the most valua­
ble services to the monarchy and to the nation. This illustri­
ous house has given to France six constables and eleven mar­
shals. Henry IV. used to say that “ if the house of Bourbon
ever became extinct in France, none was more worthy to take
its place than that of Montmorency.” Anne de Montmorency,
constable of France, under Francis 1., Henry II., Francis IL,
and Charles IX.. joined an exemplary piety to fearless valor.
He was a great captain, a great diplomatist, a great minister—
but what is more, a true Christian. He never omitted to per­
form his devotions, even when leading the armies of the king,
and if the provost happened to come to him while thus engaged,
to report some case of disorder, he only interrupted his prayer
to order a severe punishment, and then resumed his Pater or
Credo with the greatest composure ; this gave rise, among his
soldiers, to the expression, “ God save us from the constable’s
Patcr-nosters.’' From his early youth, Anne de Montmorency
gloried in the surname of “ Christian Cato,” which had been be­
stowed upon him in the brilliant court of Francis I. His pres­
ence had more effect there than that of the king himself, and
vice was silent at his approach. The “ Politics,” like all other
compromising parties, could hope for very little success amid
the general conflagration of minds ; and the constable, true to
• Some author· ascribe the foundation of the houso of Montmorency to Liueius, one of
the most powerful among the Frankish nobles who received baptism with Clovis. Other»
draw their descent from Lisbius orLi.beius, who gave hospitality to St. Donis, was con­
verted by the apostle to the Christian religion, and shored with him the glory of martyr-

PIUS IV. (A. υ. 1559-1566).

1BV

the last, remained unshaken in his attachment to the royal
cause.
3. The Calvinists were bitterly incensed at the punishment
of Dubourg, nor was their irritation appeased by the active
watchfulness of the Cardinal of Lorraine ; but they deemed
themselves skilful enough to set it at fault. A conspiracy was
formed by Admiral Coligny and Dandelot to murder the Guises
and seize the person of the youthful monarch, then at Amboise.
The apparent leader of the conspiracy was Bari de la Renaudie,
a gentleman of Périgord, bold and intelligent; but the plot
could not be kept so secret as not to reach the ears of the Re­
gent, Catherine de Medici, and of the princes of Lorraine, who
composed her council. By a stroke of skilful policy, they ob­
tained the publication of an edict giving to every subject the
liberty of coming in person to lay his complaints before the king.
The conspirators either did not see the plan, or thought them­
selves strong enough to turn it against its authors. They came,
armed and in strong force, to the neighborhood of Amboise,
where the court was then held. La Renaudie was slain in a
wood, near the castle; nearly all his companions were surprised,
killed in the action, or executed. Such was the end of the
conspiracy of Amboise, in which the Reformation measured
weapons, for the first time, with the royal authority (a.d. 1560).
The Prince of Coudé was deeply implicated by the confession
of La Renaudie’s secretary ; he was accordingly summoned to
appear before the court. Upon his denial of all connection with
the conspiracy, the king pardoned him. The Cardinal of Lor­
raine pursued the sectaries with the greatest energy, and even
thought of establishing against them a royal tribunal of inqui­
sition similar to that of Spain, when his plans were changed by
the appearance, in the political arena, of one of those virtuous
but short-sighted men who, in seasons of revolutionary agita­
tion., wish to do good without cutting away the roots of the evil,
and waste all their energies in struggling against effects, with­
out ever attacking the cause. This was the chancellor, Miehol
de I'llopitai. In the generous delusion of his patriotism, ho

Ι9υ

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

thought that the influence of the parliaments would alone suf
fire to check the disorders which were hurrying on his country
io destruction. He would have resumed, for the salvation of
his country, monarchical institutions at the point where Louis
XII. had left them, and have carried out a social progress, of
which all the elements and conditions no longer existed.
L'Hôpital was the sport of the revolutionists of his day, who
made use of his virtue only to increase the disorders he had
hoped to check ; so true it is that, in seasons of social disor­
ganization, evil profits even by the good intentions of honest
men, as, in periods of amelioration, good is often accomplished
even by means of the vices of the wicked. L’Hôpital opposed
all his influence to the establishment of the Inquisition, and,
with this object in view, obtained the publication of the edict
of Romorantin (May, 1-560), which transferred the cognizance
of heresies from the parliament to the bishops. To put an end
to religious dissensions, he imagined a kind of assembly of the
notables in which the Huguenot leaders should explain their
doctrine before the Catholic doctors. This conference ended
only in a challenge to civil war. Admiral Coligny, declaring
himself the leader of the new sect, presented a petition in the
name of the Protestants, promising that it would soon be signed
by ten thousand persons. “ And I,” exclaimed the Duke of
Guise, “shall present one of an opposite nature, which a
hundred thousand men, who own me as their chief, will sign with
their blood to-morrow.” Shortly after, the Prince of Condé,
whose religious fanaticism knew no bounds, was arrested, tried
by the royal commissioners, and condemned to death. “ The
head of heresy and rebellion,” said the Duke of Guise, “ must
be struck off at one blow.” (December 10th, 1560.) The scaf­
fold of the prince was to be erected in front of their place of
meeting, as a terrible warning to the Huguenots. The death
of Francis II. saved Condé.
Charles IX., a boy of eleven years, succeeded to the crown
and to the difficult task of governing France amid so many
storms.

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4. Pius IV., who had now held the Papal throne for a year,
determined to carry on the work of reform, begun by his prede­
cessor. These two Pontiffs differed in every point, in charac­
ter, habits and education. Paul IV. belonged to a noble house
of Naples, and had been brought up in a spirit of hatred for
Austria, which his energetic character had afterward more fully
developed. Pius IV. was born an Austrian subject, and be
was bound by ties of affection to the Austrian rule. Paul IV.
was energetic, resolute and enterprising ; Pius IV. was of a
mild, simple and kind disposition. Notwithstanding this dif­
ference of character, Pius IV. adopted the line of conduct
marked out by Paul IV. It is no rare thing in the history of
the Popes, to find examples of intelligent succession, in which
one Sovereign Pontiff continues the work of another, by apply­
ing different or opposite qualities to the same end. Pius IV.
was helped in the government of the Church by his nephew, St.
Charles Borromeo, the model of bishops and the restorer of
ecclesiastical discipline. St. Charles was born in 1538, in the
castle of Arona, on Lake Maggiore, of the noble family of the
counts of Borromeo ; he was early remarkable for his fervent
piety and a wisdom beyond his years. On entering the eccle­
siastical career, he was presented with several rich benefices;
but he respectfully represented to his father that what remained
of his revenues, after deducting the amount necessary for
his education and the service of the Church, belonged to the
poor, and that any other use of them would be unlawful. The
count wept with joy at this display of virtue in his youthful
son. Charles had just finished his studies in canon law, at
Milan, when he received tidings of the election of his uncle,
Cardinal de Medici, to the Papal throne, and an order to repair
at once to Rome. He was immediately made a cardinal and
archbishop of Milan, though but twenty-three years old, and
in spite of all his earnest endeavors to avoid these dignities;
but the Pope wished to honor his virtue, and to avail himself
of his great zeal and talents in the government of the Church.
Cardinal Borromeo cave his unvarying attention to public

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GENERAI. BISTORT OF ΤΠΕ CIIURCH.

affairs, managing them with rare penetration, discussing them
with the greatest wisdom, and always facilitating the decision
of whatever was brought before him. The honors which had
sought him out,at an age when most other men still have need
of guidance, by a happy privilege were, if we may so speak,
below his merit, and Rome, which had loudly condemned the
nepotism of Paul IV., applauded the elevation of the present
Pontiff’s nephew. The glory of God was the chief end which
Charles kept in view, in every action and undertaking. His
impartiality and disinterestedness were truly admirable. His
judgments were never biased by any considerations, however
powerful; in the exalted dignities which his modesty would
gladly have avoided, he consoled himself with the thought that
they placed him in a position to labor for the good of the
Church.
5. His first care was to enter, by order of Pius IV., into
negotiations for the re-opening of the Council of Trent, inter­
rupted since the Pontificate of Julius III. The bull of indiction
was published on the 29th of November, a. d. 1560. “Imme­
diately upon being called to the government of the Church,”
said the Pope, “We were sensible that the only means of suc­
cessfully opposing the spread of schism, heresy and moral
corruption, was to resume the ecumenical council already con­
voked by Paul III., and by Julius III., his successor of happy
memory. The Lord having at length vouchsafed to grant
peace and unity among Christian kings and princes, it seemed
to Us that nothing now stands in the way of its celebration.”
Apostolic nuncios were sent to bear the bull to all the European
courts. The patriarchs of the East, of Ethiopia, and of Russia,
were summoned. The cardinals of Mantua, Hercules Gonzaga
and James Puteo, to whom the Pope soon joined Seripando,
general of the Augustinians and archbishop of Salerno ; Osin
(ilosius), bishop of Culm; Simonetta, bishop of Pesaro, and
Mark Altemps, bishop of Constance, were appointed legates to
the council. In thus choosing them from among the different
nations of Europe, Pius hoped to secure their greater unanimity,

P1U8 IV. (A. D. 1δ5·>-15δ5).

193

and to give to their deliberations a character of universality
more striking in the eyes of the world.
On the 18th of January, a. d. 1562, the seventeenth session
was held, which re-opened the Council of Trent; there were
present one hundred and twelve prelates. On the 26th of
February, the Fathers met in the eighteenth session, to arrange
the order of matters to be examined. Still the political trou­
bles which had so long delayed the progress of the great assem­
bly were now renewed with greater intensity, as the council
seemed to draw near to its close. The pretensions οΓ princes,
questions of precedence between the ambassadors of the differ­
ent courts, the claims put forward by the Protestants, the vari­
ous aims of Catholic princes who wished to secure the ascend­
ency of their own views, interests, and personal ambition, were
the obstacles to be overcome. The nineteenth and twentieth
sessions were spent in settling these difficulties. At length, on
the 16th of July, the twenty-first session resumed the series of
dogmatic and disciplinary canons, promulgated by the council.
The grave question of communion, under both kinds, so loudly
claimed by the Lutheran and Calvinist Reformers, was decided.
“ If any one saith,” decrees the council, “ that each and every
one of the faithful of Christ is obliged, by divine precept or by
necessity of salvation,
*
to receive the most holy sacrament of
the Eucharist under both species ; let him be anathema.—If
any one saith, that the Holy Catholic Church was not induced
by just causes and reasons to communicate, under the species
of bread only, laymen, and also clerics when not conse­
crating ; let him be anathema.—If any one saith, that the com­
munion of the Eucharist is necessary for little children before
they have reached the age of discretion ; let him be anathema.—
As to the two questions before proposed, but not yet discussed,
viz. : whether the reasons by which the Holy Catholic Church
was led to give communion, under the one species of bread only,
to laymen, and also to priests when not consecrating, are so to
• Necatilale salutu ; aa necessary for salvation.
Vou IV.—13

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GENERAL HISTORY 01 THE CHURCH

be observed, that on no account is the use of the chalice to be
allowed to any one soever; and whether, in case that, for just
reasons, founded on Christian charity, it were judged proper to
grant the use of the chalice to any nation or kingdom, this con­
cession should be made under certain conditions ; and what
those conditions should be, this same holy synod reserves them
to another time—the earliest opportunity that shall present
itself—to be examined and defined.” The council afterward
referred the decision, on this point, to the Sovereign Pontili’ to
be regulated by him according to circumstances and conjunc­
tures. The decree on Reform comprised nine chapters.—
Bishops shall both confer orders, and give dimissoria! letters
and testimonials gratis.—No cleric shall be promoted to holy
orders, unless he holds some ecclesiastical benefice or patri­
mony, sufficient for his honest livelihood.—Daily distributions
are to be made among the canons who are present at the divine
service.—Bishops are empowered to establish new parishes,
and to make unions of several benefices, according to the spirit­
ual wants of their respective dioceses.—Bishops are to visit
all the churches of their diocese, even those which have before
enjoyed the privilege of exemption.—In all cases of reform, if
met by claims of exemption or other privileges, they may act
as delegates of the Holy See.
G. In the interval between the twenty-first and twentysecond sessions, the Fathers of Trent received an oath of ad­
herence to their decrees, from Abdisu, Catholic patriarch of
Eastern Assyria, who had come to Rome to obtain the confirmation of his title by the vicar of Jesus Christ. Thus, while
the provinces of Europe, invaded by Protestantism, were strug­
gling with sacrilegious efforts to break away from Catholic
unity, and rush into the blood-stained path of interminable
anarchy, the scattered remnants of the ancient churches of
Mesopotamia and Chaldea, mournfully seated upon the banks
of the Euphrates and the Tigris, amid the forgotten ruins of
Babylon and Nineveh, sent their patriarch to the Eternal City,
to bind them closer to the contre of Catholic unity and to draw

PIUS IV. (Λ. D. 1659-1946).

196

from its breast new life and spiritual strength. In the mean·
time, Pius IV. had erected new bishoprics in America and the
Indies, to receive the new nations that were thronging into the
doors of the Church. Japan opened its eyes to the light of
faith, and China was looking out for the companions of St.
Francis Xavier.
7. On the 17th of September, λ. d. 1562, the twenty-second
session was opened, with six cardinals, three patriarchs, one
hundred and forty-two bishops, and seven generals of orders.
Nine canons were promulgated on the holy Sacrifice of the
Mass : “ If any one saith, that in the Mass a true and proper
sacrifice is not offered to God ; let him be anathema.—If any
one saith, that by these words, Do this for a commemoration of
me (Luke, xxii. 19), Christ did not institute the Apostles
priests, or did not ordain that they and other priests should
offer His own body and blood ; let him be anathema.—If any
one saith, that it is an imposture to celebrate Masses in honor
of the saints, and for obtaining their intercession with God, as
the Church intends ; let him be anathema.—If any one saith,
that the ceremonies, vestments, and outward signs, which the
Catholic Church makes use of in the celebration of Masses, are
incentives to impiety rather than to devotion ; let him be
anathema.—If any one saith, that Masses, in which the priest
alone communicates sacramentally, are unlawful, and therefore
to be abrogated ; let him be anathema.—If any one saith, that
the rite of the Roman Church, according to which a part of the
canon and the words of consecration are pronounced in a low
tone, is to be condemned ; or that the Mass ought to be cele­
brated in the vulgar tongue only ; or that water ought not to
be mixed with the wine that is to be offered in the chalice, on
the ground that it is contrary to the institution of Christ ; let
him be anathema.” Each one of these canons, it will be seen,
meets some of the errors which Protestantism was laboring to
popularize in Germany. The decree of reformation regarding
the morals of the clergy comprised eleven chapters.—Bishups
are admonished to watch over the life, propriety of conduct

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

and learning of clerics.—The council lays down the qualifica­
tions necessary for those priests who are to be promoted to the
cure of cathedral churches.—Dispensations expedited out of
the Roman court must be committed to the bishop to whom
it belongs to make them public.—Bishops are appointed the
executors of all pious bequests, and visitors to all manner of
hospitals not under the immediate protection of kings.—Ad­
ministrators of church property, of what ’ ' d soever, shall give
in their accounts to the ordinary, unless it be otherwise speci­
fied in the deed of foundation. In fine, severe penalties were
decreed against the spoilers of churches and the usurpers of
ecclesiastical property or revenues.
8. The expected arrival of the Cardinal of Lorraine, as the
ambassador of Charles IX., induced the Fathers to delay the
next session until his appearance at Trent. The council had
reached a period of crisis. The question of the sacrament of
Holy Orders gave rise to à discussion on the institution of
bishops; it was to be determined whether the institution is
divine, or whether bishops hold their mission mediately from
the Pope. No preceding article had ever excited more lively
discussions, or more animated expressions of opinion. “ So
violent was the storm,” says Pallavicini, “that the hopes hither­
to entertained of peace in the Church were changed into de­
spair.” It needed all the tact and the virtue of St. Charles
Borromeo, his patience, his united gentleness and firmness, his
ascendant over the mind of the Pope, his uncle, and his winning
influence exerted upon the legates and the Fathers of the
council, to restore the opposite parties to harmony. The dis­
cussion was for a moment interrupted by the arrival of the
Cardinal of Lorraine, who was received with extraordinary
honors. He was met by all the Fathers, and, in a general
congregation, delivered an eloquent, spirited, and profound dis­
course on the duties of the council and the hopes which its
convocation bad awakened in the heart of Catholic Europe. The
deliberations on the institution of bishops were then resumed.
All agreed that the power of Order is given to them immediately

PIÜS ÎV. (A. D. 1559-IM8).

J 97

from Jesus Christ ; but opinions were divided upon the origin
of their jurisdiction. By some it was referred immediately to
Christ; while others maintained that it is communicated to
them only mediately, through the Sovereign Pontiff. The Car­
dinal of Lorraine succeeded in silencing these purely specula­
tive debates, which but indirectly concerned the practical
question at stake. “ The heretics,” said he, “ profit by your
intestine dissensions to extend their ravages. They maintain
that the prelates instituted by the Pope are not true and law­
ful bishops ; this is what must be directly condemned, instead
of raising idle and endless discussions.’’ This Was the wisest
course, and it was finally adopted. The death of the Cardinal
of Mantua, closely followed by that of Cardinal Seripando, both
legates and presidents of the council, caused another delay in
the proceedings. Pius IV. immediately appointed Cardinals
Morone and Navagero in their stead. The new legates were
as remarkable for their prudence and thorough knowledge of
men, as for devotion to the interests of the Holy See, and they
fully justified the confidence placed in them by the Holy Father.
They brought to a happy conclusion the dispute which had
arisen between the ambassadors of France and Spain, concern­
ing the precedence of their respective sovereigns, and were
enabled at length to hold the twenty-third session.
9. The long-delayed session was celebrated on the 15th of
July, a. d. 1563. The council promulgated the decree on the
sacrament of Holy Orders, which bad given occasion to so
much discussion : “ Whereas the ministry of the priesthood is a
thing altogether divine,” says the council, “to the end that it
might be exercised in a more worthy manner, and with greater
veneration, it was suitable that there should be several orders
of ministers attached to the service of the altar ; so that those
already marked with the clerical tonsure should then ascend
through the minor to the higher orders. For the sacred text
makes open mention not only of priests, but also of deacons,
und lays great stress upon the manner of their ordination. And
from the very beginning of the Church, the names of the fol

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

lowing orders, and the ministry proper to each one of tnem.
are known to have been in use ; viz. : those of subdeacon, aco
ly th, exorcist, lector, and porter ; though these were not of
equal rank; for the subdeaconship is classed among the higher
orders by the Fathers and sacred councils, wherein also we
very often read of the other inferior orders. If any one saith.
that there is notin the New Testament a visible and external
priesthood ; or that there is not any power of consecra t ing and
offering the true body and blood of the Lord, and of forgiving
and retaining sins ; but only a commission and bare ministry
of preaching the gospel ; or that those who do not preach are
not priests at all; let him be anathema.—If any one saith, that,
beside the priesthood, there are not in the Catholic Church
other orders, both greater and minor, by which, as by certain
steps, advance is made unto the priesthood ;* let him be anath­
ema—If any one saith, that Holy Orders or sacred ordina­
tion are not truly and properly a sacrament instituted by Christ
our Lord ; or that it is a human invention ; or that it is only a
kind of rite for choosing ministers of the word of God and of
the sacraments; let him be anathema.—If any one saith, that in
the Catholic Church there is not a hierarchy by divine ordi­
nance instituted, and consisting of bishops, priests, and minis­
ters; let him be anathema.—If any one saith, that bishops are
not superior to priests; or that they have not the power of
confirming and ordaining; or that the power which they possess
is common to them and to priests ; or that orders conferred
by them, without the consent or intervention of the people or
of the secular power, are invalid ; or that those who have
neither been rightly (rite) ordained, nor sent, by ecclesiastical
and canonical power, but come from elsewhere, are lawful min­
isters of the word and of the sacraments ; let him be anathema.
—If any one saith that the bishops established by authority
of the Roman Pontiff are not true and lawful bishops, but that
their institution is a human invention ; let him be anathema.”
Thus the holy Church of God, ever living, from St. Peter to
• Per quos, relut per gradus quosdam, in sacerdotium tendatur.

PIUS IV. (A. D. 165Β-15β6).

19&

Pius IV., embracing within herself all ages, all generations,
all promises, and all graces, now showed forth, at Trent, the
divinity of her priesthood and hierarchy. The decree on refor­
mation, promulgated with the canons, on the sacrament of Holy
Orders, was designed, by regulating the conditions for admis­
sion into the priesthood, to preserve the ecclesiastical hierarchy
in all its primitive purity and splendor. The most important
chapter of the decree, the one which has been most serviceable
to the Church, and which alone would have sufficed for the
glory of the Council of Trent, is that which ordains the estab­
lishment of seminaries in every diocese ; this institution was,
even then, deemed so beneficial, that the prelates exclaimed from
all sides, “that they would feel amply rewarded for all their
labors even should they obtain no other fruit from the council."
The Pope was the first to give the example by founding the
Roman Seminary, which he placed in charge of the Jesuits.
We give the leading features of this memorable chapter, which
may be regarded as the living and practical summary of the
holy Council of Trent, as the perpetual reformation of the
Church by herself. “ Youth,” said the decree, “ unless trained
in religious principles, is prone to follow after the pleasures and
dissipation of the world. Unless it be formed, from its tender
years, unto piety and religion, before vicious habits have per­
verted the heart, it cannot constantly persevere in ecclesiastical
discipline, without the special help of Airnighty God. The
holy synod therefore ordains, that all cathedral and metropoli­
tan churches shall be bound, each according to its means and
the extent of the diocese, to maintain, to educate religiously,
and to train in ecclesiastical discipline, a certain number of
youths of their city and diocese, or, if that number cannot be
met with there, of that province, in a college, to be chosen by
the bishop for this purpose, near the said churches or in som·
other suitable place. Into this college only those shall be re­
ceived who are at least twelve years old, born in lawful wed­
lock, who can read and write passably, and whose character
and inclination afford a hope that they will always serve in the

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

ecclesiastical ministry. The holy council wishes that the chil­
dren of the poor be principally chosen ; without, however, ex­
cluding those of the more wealthy, provided they be maintained
at their own expense, and manifest a desire of serving God and
the Church. The bishop, having divided these youths into as
many classes as he shall think fit, according to their number,
age, and progress in ecclesiastical discipline, shall, when it seems
to him expedient, assign some of them to the ministry of the
churches, keeping the others in the college to be instructed ;
always supplying the place of those who have been withdrawn,
by others; that so this college may be a perpetual seminary of
ministers, for the service of God. That they may more easily
be trained in ecclesiastical discipline, they shall, immediately
on entering, receive the tonsure, and always wear the clerical
dress; they shall learn grammar, singing, ecclesiastical compu­
tation, and the other liberal arts; they shall devote themselves
to the study of sacred Scripture, ecclesiastical works, the homi­
lies of the saints, the manner of administering the sacraments,
especially those things which seem adapted to enable them to
hear confessions ; in fine, they shall learn all the ceremonies and
rites of the Church. The bishop shall take care th,at they be
present every day at the sacrifice of the Mass ; that they con­
fess their sins at least once a month ; that they receive the
body of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to the judgment of
their confessor, and that they serve on festivals in the cathe­
dral or other churches of the place.” This decree displays,
throughout, the care, the tenderness, the motherly prudence
with which the Church of God labors to form seminaries.
Amid tears and sorrows, her heart thrills with joy. This was,
in fact, a new creation of the Spirit of God, a spiritual creation
which renews the face of the earth, and in which the Church
herself finds the youth of the eagle, and is always renewing he)·
existence, ever ancient and ever new. With time and experi­
ence, by combining the different degrees of seminaries or eccle­
siastical schools, she will be enabled to organize each diocese
into a Christian academy, a Catholic university, where al’

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201

knowledge shall be made to glorify God ; the natural Sciences,
by exciting admiration for the love and wisdom displayed in
His works; literary studies, by enabling His ministers to an­
nounce His word with greater dignity, to sing His praises more
harmoniously; the study of sacred literature, by giving a
deeper insight into the hidden meaning of the Holy Text, and
by smoothing the way for those who still wander far from the
truth, to return to the fold of Christ ; the science of theology,
and the study of the doctors and Fathers, by enabling us to
draw from the sacred founts the knowledge of our dogmas, the
spirit of faith, of piety, of zeal, and understanding. Fifty
years ago France saw all her seminaries buried beneath the
ruins of the churches and of the throne; but soon again the
same churches, rising to new life, at the call of St. Peter’s suc­
cessor, build up, according to the admirable design of the Coun­
cil of Trent, not only greater seminaries to fit the youthful
Levito immediately for the ministry, but also elementary semi­
naries, to prepare them remotely, by literary studies, for
the same great end. What a noble work of regeneration, which
gladdens Heaven and earth, sends apostles and martyrs to Ton­
quin, to China, to the farthest wilds of America, and to the
isles of the ocean !
10. After the happy close of the twenty-third session,
nothing now remained to delay the course of the council. On
the 11th of November, a. d. 1563, the twenty-fourth session
was opened, and the decrees and canons on the sacrament of
Matrimony were promulgated. The canons were twelve in
number : “ If any one saith, that matrimony is not truly and
properly one of the seven sacraments of the evangelic law, and
instituted by Christ the Lord, but that it has been invented by
men in the Chui ch, and that it does not confer grace; let him
be anathema.—If anj -me saith, that it is lawful for Christians
to have several wives at the same time, ami that this is not
prohibited by any divine law; let him be anathema.—If
any one saith, that those degrees only of consanguinity and
affinity which are set down in Leviticus (ch. 18) can hinder

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GENERAI, HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

matrimony from being contracted, or dissolve it when contract
*« ; and that the Church cannot dispense in some of those de­
grees, or establish others that may hinder and di.,aoive it ; let
him be anathema.—If any one saith, that the Church could not
establish impediments dissolving marriage ; or that she has
erred in establishing them; Jet him be anathema.—If any one
saith, that clerics constituted in Holy Orders, or regulars, who
have solemnly professed chastity, are able to contract marriage :
let him be anathema.” The decrees on reformation, promul­
gated in the same session, forbid clandestine marriages ; pre­
scribe severe penalties against abduction and concubinage, and
renew the ancient prohibitions of solemn nuptials from Advent
until the Epiphany, and from Ash-Wednesday until the octave
of Easter inclusively. The other disciplinary decrees read in
the twenty-fourth session relate to the manner of proceeding
in the choice of bishops and cardinals ; to the celebration of
provincial synods every third year, and of diocesan synods
every year ; to the power of the bishops for dispensing in cases
of irregularity and suspension ; to the institution of a grand peni­
tentiary in cathedral churches ; to the qualities required in
those who are to be promoted to the dignities and canonries of
cathedral churches, and the obligations of those so promoted ;
to the duty devolving upon the chapter during the vacancy of
a see ; to the abrogation of expectatives, and other favors of
the same kind, &c.
11. The labors of the council were now drawing to a close.
Every attempt that was made to bring the Protestants to Trent
fell before their bad faith; even the authority of the Emperor
Ferdinand could not induce them to attend. Such is the wont­
ed course of sects and heresies. They always appeal from the
Pope to a general council, and, in the end, refuse to receive the
judgment of either. On the 3d of December, a. d. 1563, the
twenty-fifth and last session of the Council of Trent was opened,
with iheattendar.ee of the legatesand two other cardinals, three
patriarchs, twenty-one archbishops, one hundred and sixty-eight
bishops, and seven generals of orders. The Bishop of Nazian

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200

zum, then coadjutor of Famagusta, addressed the illustrious
assembly : “ The day of gladness has at length dawned upon
the world,” he exclaimed, “ when the bark of the Church,
freighted with the anxious hopes of humanity, comes forth from
the long and furious storms by which it has been assailed, and
rides secure within the port. Would to God that they, for
whom we have dared the dangerous enterprise, had been willing
to share it with us ! Would that they had toiled with us to re­
build the temple of the Lord ! Greater still would then be our
joy ; and yet we are not accountable for their absence. We
have chosen this city on the borders of Germany, and thus on
the very frontier of their country; we have come with no armed
guards, that they might feel no apprehension for their personal
liberty ; we have given them a safe-conduct, drawn up in the
very terms dictated by themselves; but they have remained
deaf to our entreaties and our prayers. Now, at the happy
close of the immense task imposed upon us, we should give
eternal thanks to Almighty God, whose infinite goodness has
enabled us to celebrate this joyful day, amid the universal as­
sent and approbation of the Christian world. Endless thanks,
too, to Pius IV., our sovereign and holy Pontiff, who has de­
voted his time and his thoughts to the accomplishment of this
great work. 0 admirable piety and prudence of our pastor
and our Father ! 0 supreme happiness of the Pontiff, who sees
this council, so long interrupted, now peacefully closed under
his authority and his auspices ' I call you to witness, too, great
Pontiffs Paul and Julius, whose loss we still weep ; how ear­
nestly did you not long to see the event which we now behold
with tears of joy ! And you, holy Fathers, who have now st»
well served the Church by your illustrious labors, what a ha.t
of glory will surround your names, what honors will be heaped
upon you by the Christian worldYou will be hailed by al 1 as
pastors and fathers; all will be eager to intrust you with their
life and their salvation. 0 glad and happy day, when our peo­
ple shall once more behold us, when they shall once more em­
brace their pastors and their fathers ! ” The decrees were then

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GENERAI. HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

read which related to the doctrines of Purgatory, the worship
of saints, the veneration of relics and holy images, religious
orders, the observance of fust days, the catalogue of books, the
Catechism, Breviary, and Missal, to which the council wished
to give uniformity in all the churches throughout the world, the
revision and arrangement of which was left to the care of the
Sovereign Pontiff. When the decrees had been read and ap­
proved, the secretary addressed the assembled prelates:
“ Most illustrious lords, and most reverend Fathers, doth it
please you, that, to the praise of Almighty God, this sacred
ecumenical synod be ended, and that the confirmation of each
and every thing which has herein been decreed and defined, as
well under the Roman Pontiffs, Paul III. and Julius III., of
happy memory, as also under our most holy lord Pius IV., be
requested, in the name of this most holy synod, by the presi­
dents and legates of the Apostolic See, from the most blessed
Roman Pontiff?” They answered : “ It pleaseth us.” Then
Cardinal Morone, the first legate and president, blessing tho
assembled prelates, pronounced the usual closing formula :
“Most Reverend Fathers, go in peace.” And all answered,
“ Amen.” Tears flowed from every eye ; the Fathers, amid mu­
tual embraces, congratulated each other upon the successful close
of their labors. The eighteenth ecumenical council, the last gen­
eral assembly, held by the Catholic Church, up to the present
day, was at an end. Never before had the body of dogmas ami
discipline been so connectedly treated. The new sectaries had
assailed all—dogma, worship, canon law ; the Council of Trent
consolidated every thing upon the immovable bases of sacred
Scripture and tradition. The true faith shone forth in all its
splendor, freed from the clouds of Protestant error. Catholic
unity, the divine hierarchy of the Church were once more ex­
posed to the sight and to the veneration of the world. The
reformation, in the name of which the Lutherans had armed
thousands of their followers, was peacefully accomplished
“ The reforms decreed by the Council of Trent,” says Ranke
“are of the highest importance. The faithful were again sub

P1Ü8 ÎV. (A. D. 1559-1565).

jected to severe discipline. Seminaries were founded, in which
the young clergy were carefully educated in austere habits, and
in the fear of God. The parishes were regulated anew, strict
rules laid down for the administration of the Sacraments and
for preaching, and the cooperation of the regular clergy gov­
erned by fixed laws. The duties of their office, especially the
supervision of the clergy, were strongly impressed upon the
bishops. They also solemnly bound themselves by a peculiar
profession of faith (which they subscribed, and to which they
swore), to observe the decrees of the Council of Trent, and to
render entire obedience to the Pope, a measure, the conse­
quences of which were most important” But the Catholic
princes did not second the reformatory movement in the Church,
as they might justly have been expected to do. They ordered
that all the dogmatic decisions should be received in their States
without restriction. But the decrees on discipline met with
difficulties, in some points, in Germany and France. The par­
liaments refused to register them. To meet badly-disposed
governments, the bishops caused the decrees to be received in
the particular councils which assembled from every direction.
But the refusal of the judicial courts to register them remained
as a weapon in the hands of Gallicanism. Pius IV. at once
approved all the acts of the Council of Trent, and appointed a
standing commission of eight cardinals to interpret its decrees
and watch over their observance. On the 2-5th of March.
1564, he published a special bull, confirming the Index, or cata­
logue of books condemned by the council.
12. “ Had the so-called Reformers,” says M. Blanc, “ really
desired peace and the good of the Church, they would have
received ample satisfaction in the Council of Trent ; but, under
the specious pretext of reviving the Apostolic Age in its primi­
tive purity, they would change every thing, and raise them
selves on the ruins of the Roman Church. Intoxicated by un
hoped for success they oppose but insults to the decrees of that
immortal assembly; and men who could not agree among
themselves, even upon the most important points, set ur ’he

206

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

absurd claim to a more thorough knowledge of the true doctrin
and a better appreciation of the most expedient laws of disci­
pline, than was possessed by that immense number of bishops,
gathered together from all parts of Christendom, and more
venerable even by their virtue and learning than by age and
experience.” The French Calvinists had been in motion during
the whole time of the Council of Trent. As intolerant as they
were bold, they wished to root out what they called idolatry ;
and they began to overturn the altars, to burn castles, and de­
molish churches. In 1501, they had summoned Charles IX.
and the regent, Catherine de Medici, to tear down the images
of Jesus Christ and the saints. Catherine, whose favorite
maxim was, “ Divide and govern,” and who equally dreaded
Doth parties—the Guises, or the Catholic party, because of
their influence in the government ; the Huguenots, on account
of their violence—placed herself between them with the pro
fessed intention of preserving the balance of power, but with
the real design of destroying them by means of each other.
This policy, which she thought very deep, only increased the
strength of both factions, aroused a civil war and destroyed
the royal authority. The states-general, which the Chancellor
Γ-Hôpital looked upon as the only means of quieting the trou­
bles, met at Orleans (a.d. 1561), under very unfavorable aus­
pices. It was in vain that the too credulous chancellor, in his
opening address, exhorted the members to lay aside all personal
considerations, and to look only to the common good ; his words
were unheeded: what else could have been expected from men
who came prepared to cut each other’s throats ? When the
deputies separated, they had come to an agreement upon not
one of the contested points. Franois, duke of Guise, the Con­
stable Anne de Montmorency, and the Marshal of St. André,
James d’Albon, formed au association called the Triumvirate,
with the design of maintaining the Catholic faith in the king­
dom (1561). Philip II., king of Spain, the declared enemy of
the Protestants, wished to be at the head of the league. While
these events were taking place, a royal edict was promulgated

PI08 IV. (A D. 1559-1566).

207

(July, 1561), by Catherine, in the name of the young king.
The concessions made to the Calvinists displeased the Catholics.
The court, led by the advice of l’Hôpital, thought that the
troubles might be quieted by conferences between the doctors
of the two religions. They were opened in the month of Au
gust, 1561, and are known as the “ Colloquy of Poissy.” Six
cardinals and forty bishops appeared on the Catholic side ; the
Calvinists were represented by thirteen Reformed ministers, led
by the celebrated Theodore Beza, the first disciple and the
coadjutor of Calvin. The Cardinal of Lorraine, but especially
Father Laynez, the general of the Jesuits, whose clearness,
precision, and depth of thought and language had won a para­
mount authority at Trent, confounded the partisans of error.
So complete was the triumph, and so striking the eloquence of
Laynez, that the parliament now readily confirmed the estab­
lishment of the Jesuits in Paris. Even the King of Navarre,
seeing the want of sincerity displayed by the Calvinist minis­
ters, in the conferences, forsook their party, abjured the heresy,
and joined the triumvirate.
13. The Reformers were not crushed by their defeat at
Poissy. Strong in the concessions which the crafty policy of
the queen-mother held out to appease them, they only waited for
an opportunity to act. On Sunday, the 1st of March, a.d. 1562,
the Duke of Guise, passing through the little town of Vassy, in
Champagne, stopped to hear Mass. The *Huguenots, who were
at the same time holding their meeting in a barn near the
church, began to sing psalms at the moment when the priest
was ascending the altar. The duke sent one of his attendants
to request that they would suspend their singing, as it distract­
ed those who were présentât the divine office ; but they refused
to comply. Some noblemen of the duke’s suite having ap­
proached the meeting through curiosity, those who kept the
door thought that they had come to insult them. From sharp
• The Calvinists received the appellation of Huguenots at about the time of the conspi­
racy of Amboiso. The origin of tho name is uncertain, though it is most probably derived
from the German word Ardÿrnowen. Confederate.

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

words on both sides, they soon came to blows, and a general tumult
followed. The duke, on hearing ‘.he noise, hastened from the
church to restore order; while exerting himself in this attempt,
he received a wound in the cheek. At the sight of his blood,
his followers were exasperated beyond control ; the duke strove
in vain to check their fury ; deaf to his cries, they rushed upon
the Huguenots, killed about fifty and dispersed the remainder.
This is what Protestant writers call the “ Massacre of Vassy
representing as an odious and deliberate assault an occur­
rence which was, in truth, purely accidental. The news of
the event passed through the kingdom like an electric spark,
everywhere enkindling the flame of civil war. “ Cæsar has
crossed the Rubicon!” exclaimed the Prince of Condé. The
Calvinists flew to arms, took possession of the largest cities,
Lyons, Rouen, Tours, and Orleans, everywhere committing
horrible ravages and profanations. They stripped the churches,
tore down the altars,seized and melted the sacred vessels ; they
destroyed the images and burned the relics of the saints. At
Tours they did not spare even the body of St. Martin, those
august remains venerated by France and by the whole world.
In many places the priests and religious were massacred. In
Dauphiny, the famous Baron des Adrets, the Calvinist leader
(1562), distinguished himself by deeds of unparalleled fe­
rocity. Two-thirds of France were desolated by these scenes
of blood. In this first civil strife, Antoine de Bourbon, king
of Navarre, whose return to the Catholic cause we have already
mentioned, died of a wound received at the siege of Rouen
(1562).♦ Condé, at the head of a body of German Lutherans,
was marching upon Paris, with the intention of taking it by
surprise at Dreux, he met the Catholic army under the Con­
stable Montmorency and the Duke of Guise (December 19,
1562). The Catholics remained masters of the field. The
Protestants disgraced themselves by the murder of Marshal
Saint André, who had fallen into their hands, while the victorious
Duke of Guise shared his table and his bed with his prisoner
• M. BljUsc, t. IL, pp. 305. 306

PICS IV. (A. D. 1559-1S85).

209

the Prince of Confié. The war was carried on by Coligny, who
held Orleans, which he made the bulwark of Calvinism. The
Duke of Guise, who had been appointed by Catherine lieuten­
ant-general of the kingdom, determined to make a last effort to
crush the rebels, and he accordingly hastened to invest the city
defended by the admiral. He pressed the siege with his usual
vigor, and was already in possession of a portion of the suburbs,
when he was assassinated by a Calvinist gentleman, Jean
Poltrot de Méré, and died while uttering a petition for the par­
don of his murderer.
*
Thus fell Francis, duke of Guise (Feb­
ruary 18,1563), “ whom his very enemies acknowledge to have
been the greatest man of his age,” says the celebrated histo­
rian De Thou. The forgiveness he had asked for Poltrot was
not granted by the court. The assassin when examined, im­
plicated Coligny. The admiral undertook to defend himself;
but the two apologies which he published have not cleared his
memory from the infamous imputation. The death of Guise
obliged the queen to treat with the rebels. The edict cf Amboise (March 19, 1563) granted a general amnesty to the Cal­
vinists, with freedom of conscience and the public exercise of
their worship in one town of each bailiwick. Still hostilities
were resumed in 1567. Coligny and Condé formed the project
of seizing the king, who was then at Monceaux, in Brie.
Catherine and Charles, receiving timely warning of the plot,
retired first to Meaux, but on the following day they set out
before daylight for the capital, with an escort of Swiss infantry.
These troops, under the command of Montmorency, presented
so resolute an appearance that Coudé feared to attack them
openly, and satisfied himself with harassing them during the
• The life of the duke had already been attempted by a Calvinist at the siege of Bouen
The mini was seized and brought before the duke, who asked him if he had ever unwit­
tingly given him soy ground for his hatred and this attempt upon his life. The culprit
acknowledged that ho had in this deed consulted only the interests of his relign a. 4 WeU,"
said the prince, “if your religion requires you to murder a man who. on your own admis­
sion, has never done you any harm, mine commands me to pardon you judge for yourself
which is the better of the two." And ho immediately ordered bis intended murderer ic
oe released.
Vol. IV.—»4

210

OBKBRAL HISTORY OF THF, CHURCH.

long and tedious march. The young king, then but seventeen
years old, remained sixteen consecutive hours in the saddle,
without tasting food. Equally careless of hunger and fatigue, he
cheered on his escort. “ Courage, my friends,” he exclaimed,
“I would rather die with you, a king and free, than live a
prisoner.” Nothing so much imbittered him against the Cal­
vinists as this odious conspiracy against his person; and he
never forgot it (Sept. 29, 1567). The second civil war now
began; the Reformers had taken their measures. They ob­
tained possession of Orleans, and their madness did not spare
the cathedral, which had been respected in the first troubles.
Negotiations were opened, but they were fruitless, and on the
25th of the following October the royal army engaged the
rebels, who had posted themselves in the plain of St. Denis,
as if to beard the king in his own capital. The Catholic arms
were victorious, but the triumph cost the valued life of the
cunstable, Montmorency. Though surrounded by the enemy,
the hero refused to surrender. Unhorsed and covered with
wounds, he still cried to those who were flying to his assistance:
“ Follow the enemy ; lose not your time with me ; I will die
upon the field of honor.” He received the honors of royal
sepulture; and France mourned his loss as that of a savior and
a father. Catherine de Medici, taking advantage of the victory
of St. Denis, succeeded in negotiating a peace with the rebels
The treaty was signed at Longjumeau, March 27, 1568 ; but
the truce was necessarily short amid the general exasperation
whi th animated all parties. It was popularly known as the
lanu peace (la paix boiteuse), or the unstable peace (la paix
mal .ssise), by a humorous allusion to the two plenipotentiaries
of Chivies IX., Gontaut de Biron, who was lame, and De Mesme
lord of Malassise. Amid these troubles and disorders, the
Pontificate of Pius IV. closed in death (December 9, 1565).
God had prepared a successor worthy to carry on his work.

8T. ΡΙϋβ V. (A. D. 1566-1572).

211

9 II. Pontificate of St. Piüs V. (January 7, a.e. 1566—May 1,
1572).
14. The Papacy was about to be illustrated by a maie for­
ever glorious in the annals of the Church, a memory equally
dear to the hearts of the Catholic faithful and formidable to the
enemies of the faith. The Council of Trent had rystemized
the magnificent theory of the great religious reform St. Pius
V. undertook to insure its application, in its widest bearing, to
public morals. “ The sixteenth century," says the Count de
Falloux, “ was marked throughout by three very distinct fines
*
of policy : the Protestant policy, convulsively struggling in the
midst of intellectual and social disorder ; the State policy of
rulers, which argues, combats, or bends, according to the neces­
sity or the chance of the hour; the opposition of the Church,
invoking eternal and divine principles.” St. Pius V. was the
representative of the Catholic opposition. Ho devoted his
whole Pontificate to the glorious task. In France, he upheld,
by his counsel, his authority and his treasure, the cause of the
true faith against the errors of the heretics. In England, he
openly stood forth in defence of Mary Stuart, the unhappy
victim of Elizabeth's bloody vengeance. In the Netherlands,
he seconded the measures of order and repression decreed by
Philip II. against the Gueux. Finally, he crowned his career
of external contest by a league against the Turks and the glo­
rious victory of Lepanto. Within, he reformed the ecclesias­
tical administration ; restored the unity of the liturgy ; con­
demned the errors of Bains ; stood like a wall of brass against
moral corruption, and toiled with unwearied zeal to repress
abuses, disorders and crimes. His reign was one long contest;
the spirit of St. Gregory VII. and of Innocent III. breathes in
his whole bearing and in his every act. He once more raised
up the Sovereign Pontificate to the lofty height whence it con­
trols nations and kings, and from which Protestantism sought
to hurl it down
• Qutoire de St. Pie V., 3 vole., 8 to. Angers, 1844. tl, p. 248.

212

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

15. The influence of St. Charles Borromeo was paramount
in the conclave which met to elect a successor to his uncle,
Pius IV. “I resolved,” says the saint, “ to look, in this elec­
tion, only to religion and faith. And as I was acquainted with
the piety, the irreproachable life, and the devout spirit of the
Cardinal of Alessandria, Michael Ghislieri, I was convinced that
the Church could not be better governed than by him.” The
voice of the Sacred College ratified the choice of the saint, and
Cardinal Michael Ghislieri was elected Sovereign Pontiff. His
election filled him with the deepest grief, and he remained
buried in mournful silence while his colleagues came forward to
offer their glad congratulations. When asked the cause of his
melancholy, “ Alas !” he replied, “in the Dominican convent,
where I lived always with God, I hoped to save my soul ; when
made cardinal-bishop, I began to fear ; but now, as Pope, 1
almost despair of salvation.” All good Catholics applauded his
election. “God has raised upto us another Paul IV!” they
cried. But the Roman people, fearing the austere morality
and well-known severity of the new Pontiff, openly showed
their apprehensions. St. Pius was informed of their fears.
“We trust in God,” he replied, “ and We hope so to reign that
Our people may feel more pain at Our death than they now do
at Our accession."
16. His first measures were animated by that zeal for dis­
cipline, of which he gave so many proofs in the course of his
Pontificate. “He banished useless luxury; converted into
alms the largesses which the Sovereign Pontiffs were accus­
tomed to bestow at their accession ; reformed the public morals ;
obliged bishops to residence; induced the cardinals to give the
example of modesty and piety; forbade the single combats
which were then displayed in public games ; abolished the sale
of indulgences; in a word, he everywhere gave force to the
discipline and principles of the Council of Trent.” He was a
living example of the regularity which he urged upon others,
and he observed the same strict discipline as when a simple
religious. Fasts, prayers and ever-increasing occupations had

ST. PIUS v. (A. D. ia«n-I51f).

213

nothing in them that could terrify his austerity; with indefati­
gable activity he attended in person to the execution of his
orders. “ After so many circumstances had concurred to ex­
cite and to foster a religious spirit,” says Ranke, “ after so
many resolutions and measures had been taken to exalt it to
universal dominion, a Pope like this was needed, not orly to
proclaim it to the world, but also to reduce it to practice ; his
zeal and his example combined produced the most powerful
effect.”
17. The treaty of Longjumeau was violated almost as soon
as it was signed. War broke out anew. All the edicts in favor
of the Reformers were annulled, and the profession of the
Catholic faith was a necessary qualification in every candidate
for a public office. St. Pius V. encouraged Catherine de Medici
and the young king, Charles IX., to oppose a strong resistance
to the progress of heresy in their States. He adopted severe
measures to turn off the contagion from the Comtat-Venaissin,
which still belonged to the Holy See ; and furnished suosidies to
iho King of France to help him in his war against the Calvinists,
whose numbers had lately been considerably increased by the
accession of a number of English and German adventurers
Thus strengthened, they were led by the Prince of Coudé against
the Catholic forces, under Marshal Tavannes. The armies met
at Jarnac, on the Charente (March 13, a. d. 1569). The Cal­
vinists were defeated, and their leader paid with his life for all
the bloodshed he had caused while fighting against his God
and his king. His death, however, did not crush the rebellion.
Jeanne d’Albret, the widow of the King of Navarre, hastened
to Cognac with Henry of Béarn, her son, then sixteen years
old, and the young son of Condé. “ My friends,” said she,
addressing the soldiers, “ here are two new leaders whom God
has sent you, and two orphans whom I intrust to your care."
Henry of Béarn, afterward Henry IV., was proclaimed, not­
withstanding his youth, chief of the league, and Coligny com­
manded under him. The Calvinists soon found themselves
strong enough for another attempt; the young king of Na

214

GENERAI. HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

varro, who was making his first campaign, signalized the open­
ing of his career by the victory of La Roche-Abeille ; Coligny
was less happy in the siege of Poitiers, gallantly defended by
the young duke of Guise, Henry-le-Balafre, son of Francis of
Lorraine, who gave promise of being a worthy successor to his
father, and whom this exploit raised to a seat in the royal
council. Coligny fell back upon Moncontour, where he was
attacked by the Catholic army. The rout of the Calvinists
was complete, and their cause would have fallen there, had not
the victorious leaders been divided among themselves. Coligny
speedily repaired this new disaster, and, for a third time, an
accommodation was proposed. The treaty was signed at St.
Germain-en-Laye, August 15, 1570. The Calvinists obtained
four places of security—La Rochelle, Cognac, Montauban,
and La Charité. They were to enjoy freedom of worship in
two cities of each province ; they were made capable of hold­
ing any public office and of aspiring to any dignity, civil, ad­
ministrative, or military. In a word, their religious existence
was officially recognized. The Pope deplored these conces­
sions, which were inexplicable to him, since the royal arms had
lately been crowned with unvarying success. But the policy
of Catherine de Medici prevailed over the repeated counsels of
the Sovereign Pontiff.
18. The efforts of the Pope to save Mary Stuart from the
jealous hatred of Elizabeth, queen of England, were equally
fruitless. The misfortunes of the ill-fated widow of Fran­
cis II. had so much interested the Holy See, the Popes bad
given so many proofs of their affectionate sympathy, and of I heir
earnest wish to soothe the bitter sufferings of the hapless Queen
of Scots, that it is necessary here to speak of her, as she was
known in Rome, where there was an earnest desire to obtain
daily accounts of a life of tears and resignation, ef a heroic
captivity ending in martyrdom. Mary Stuart was the daughter
of James V., king of Scotland ; she never saw her father whose
death placed her upon the throne eight days after her birth,
fhe regency was intrusted to James Hamilton, earl of Arran.

8T. PIÜS V. (A. D. I56A-15ÎJ).

2J6

The young queen was betrothed, in her fifteenth year, to Fran­
cis ID, and soon after left her native mountains for “ that so
lovely land of France,” to which the untimely death of her con­
sort soon forced her to bid a last farewell. On her return to
Scotland, she was incessantly harassed by the machinations
and secret plots fomented by the gold of Elizabeth. Having
married her cousin, Henry Darnley, she found but a traitor in
the one who should have protected her; but he soon after per­
ished, the victim of the ambition of Bothwell, who forced the
queen to accept his hand. Mary, weary of this continued
succession of plots and treason, unable longer to live in a king­
dom where her throne was swimming in blood, determined to
take refuge in England, and accordingly placed her life and
liberty in the hands of her sister-queen, Elizabeth. She bad
hoped that this last mark of generous confidence would awake
the better instincts of Elizabeth’s heart. Bat England gave to
the persecuted princess only the cold hospitality of a prison.
On learning this gross violation of international law, Pius V.
published a solemn sentence of excommunication against Eliza­
beth. “ Considering that that princess,” said the Pontiff, “ has,
throughout all England, usurped the title and authority of su­
preme head of the Church ; that she has abolished the ancient
and true worship, restored by Mary, the lawful queen ; that she
has forbidden the prelates, the clergy, and the people, to ac­
knowledge the Roman Church, to obey its laws and canonical
sanction ; that she has imprisoned the faithful bishops and
clergy, and put many of them to death by tortures, that she
still persists in her course of cruel violence, refusing to receive
the Apostolic nuncios sent by us to England; We, therefore,
declare that she has forfeited every claim to that kingdom, and
we hereby absolve her nobles, subjects and people from their
allegiance.” The Pope made no mention, in this document, of
the disgraceful treatment of Mary Stuart, lest his words should
only aggravate, instead of lessening, the sufferings of the captive
queen The bull was a signal for fresh persecutions in Eng­
land ; the captivity of Mary Stuart became still more rigorous

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Still her false cousin dared not yet perpetrate the regicide ; she
doubtless feared the indignation of Europe, and did not yet
feel powerful enough to set it at defiance.
19. The monarch who showed the greatest zeal for the
maintenance of the Catholic faith in Europe was Philip II.
The Netherlands, which he had received by the will of his
father, Charles V., were, by their geographical situation and
their neighborhood to Germany and France, naturally exposed
to the twofold contagion of Lutheranism and Calvinism. Philip
had intrusted the government of these States to his sister
Margaret, duchess of Parma, to whom he assigned the cele
brated Cardinal Granville, bishop of Arras, as prime minister.
The cardinal, who was a man of untiring industry, deeply versed
in business, allowed no obstacle to stand in the way of his
designs. Beside, enough had been preserved of the former ad
ministration, to satisfy the national pride without compromising
the public peace ; each province still keeping its own stadtholder. Notwithstanding these concessions, the Calvinists, who
had many partisans among the people, soon spread abroad the
spirit of discord. The revolt was brooding in silence and se­
crecy, when the council of regency was called upon to decide
whether the acts of the Council of Trent should be promulgated
in the Netherlands. Granville used all his influence to secure
an affirmative decision. The Calvinists seized the occasion to
display their hatred against him. William, prince of Orange,
stadtholder of Holland, Zealand,and Utrecht; the Count of Eginont, stadtholder of Flanders and Artois ; and the Count of
Horn, high-admiral of the United Provinces, formed a league
against the cardinal. The Protestants, at the same time, pub­
lished a confession of faith, preceded by a letter, in which they
represented to the king, that, as faithful subjects, they had
hitherto paid the taxes. This was indirectly threatening the
king. Meanwhile, they had begun to make open demonstra·
tionr against the regent. Margaret was alarmed, and requested
Philip to withdraw Granville ; the king refused, and the con­
federates retired from the council of ?tate, until the urgent

ST. PIUS V. (A. D. Ιβββ-lMIV

217

representations of Margaret had obtained the recall of the min­
ister (a d. 1564). The power of the triumvirs was greatly
increased by this concession. Still the majority of the council
voted in favor of adopting the decrees of Trent; and Philip, to
whom the votes had been sent, ordered that the penalties de­
creed against heretics should be carried out in all their rigor.
The royal ordinance gave a new pretext to the malcontents,
whom William of Orange directed with an uncommon degree of
dissimulation. He was cold, reserved, timid in appearance, and
spoke but little, to which habit he owed his surname of “ the
Silent.” He was a son-in-law of Coligny, and, like him, closely
bound to the cause of the Huguenots. On the 16th of February,
1565, a dozen noblemen, under his influence, signed the com­
pact or “ compromise of Breda,” demanding a redress of griev­
ances. Within a few months the league numbered four hundred
gentlemen, who placed themselves and their arms at his service.
The triumvirs, who were the real movers of the compact, did
not sign it, as if wishing to observe a kind of neutrality. The
meetings held by the faction aroused the whole of the Nether­
lands. About the month of April, two hundred and fifty gen­
tlemen came to Brussels, to present a petition to Margaret.
The regent wrote to Philip, acquainting him with the demands
»f the confederates, in the mean time suspending the edicts of
which they complained. It is said that one of the lords of
Margaret’s court, in speaking of the petitioners, applied to them
the epithet of “ Gueux ” or “ beggars.” The revolters imme­
diately seized upon it, and the word became a party appellation
which they were proud to bear. Their badge was a gold medal,
bearing on one side the effigy of Philip, and on the reverse,
two hands holding a wallet, with the legend, “Faithful to the
king, even to carrying the wallet —Fidèles au roi, jusqu'à la
besace. The Calvinists began to rise in all directions ; they
plundered and profaned more than four hundred churches in
the provinces of Brabant and Flauders alone ; their error was
everywhere established by force of arms (August, 1566). Mar­
garet also raised forces, recaptured Valenciennes and Cambrai.

218

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

subjected the turbulent people of Antwerp, and restored the royal
authority, with the Catholic religion, in all the revolted pi evinces
The rebels found their only safety in flight. William would have
dragged along with him the Count of Egmont, who, fearful of los
ing his property, had made his peace with the court. The two
friends persisted each in his own determination. “Adieu, landless
prince," said the count to William ; “ Adieu, headless count,” re­
plied the prince; and, with this exchange of ill-boding titles,
they parted.
20. The deepest calm now seemed to have followed the tn
multuous disorders in the Netherlands ; but the revolt, though
suppressed for the time, was still secretly fermenting. The
successive emigrations of whole communities impoverished the
country. Philip was satisfied that force alone could protect
the majesty of religion and of the throne, openly outraged by
the rebels. The Duke of Alva was made generalissimo, and or­
dered to the Netherlands with an army of twenty thousand men;
Margaret resigned her authority into the hands of the duke.
Alva entered Brussels on August 22, a. d. 1567 ; and soon
after, Egmont and Horn were arrested and put to death (June 3,
15G8). The same sentence nominally included the Prince of
Orange ; but he had taken the precaution to place himself with­
out the reach of the punishment which awaited him. A royal
commission, called the “ Council of Tumults,” was appointed to
bring to punishment the authors of the late troubles. The
property of the factious leaders was confiscated. William oi
Orange had been, in the mean time, raising t roops in Germain
and France, with a view to a simultaneous attack upon the
Spaniards in Friesland, Guelders, and Brabant. His brother,
Louis of Nassau, also led an army in his support. Alva sue
ceeded in thwarting all their plans. Louis was defeated al
Gemningen, near the Ems (July 21,15G8). With the remnants
of his army he joined the forces of his brother William, and to­
gether they endeavored to effect a junction with Conde, the
leader of the French Calvinists; but Alva, who saw through their
design, soon forced them by fresh defeats to retreat into Ger­

8T. PIÜS V. (A. D. 15βΛ-1572·

219

many. William now changed his plan of operations, in J placed
all his forces on sea ; he hoped thus to make himself master
of the country in which a price had been set upon his head.
21. Philip was not to suffer from foreign enemies alone
He was doomed to meet them even in the bosom of his own
family. His affections as a father were not more spared than
was his royal solicitude. On the 20th of January, a. d. 1568, he
thus wrote to Pope Pius V. : “ Most Holy Father, I feel bound,
not only by the duty which I owe, in common with all Chris­
tian princes, but especially by the filial devotion which I shall
ever cherish toward your Holiness, to acquaint you with my
conduct, and the serious events which trouble my reign. It is
with the desire of fulfilling this duty, that I now make known
to your Holiness my intention of ordering the arrest of my son,
Don Carlos. Your Holiness may judge of the powerful neces­
sity which obliges me to such a measure, by the effort it has
cost me to take the resolution. It is enough to say, that I am
a father, and a father deeply interested in the honor of his son
I have tried every means in my power to correct his vicious
inclinations and to curb his excesses. I have exhausted gen­
tle means, and the painful conviction has forced itself upon me,
that all these efforts have failed to inspire him with any feeling
of piety toward God, or with any of the qualities necessary to
the presumptive heir of the many kingdoms which God has
placed under my authority; I find myself compelled to secure
his person, in the hope that this display of rigor may recall him
to a better frame of mind. My administration is well known
to your Holiness and to all Europe ; and you cannot doubt that
I have taken this resolution only after mature deliberation with
my council, on the importance of the motives, and finding my­
self driven to it by the misconduct of the prince, whose nnrulv
disposition has perverted the good lessons of his masters, and
the care bestowed upon his education. Your Holiness will,
I trust, be satisfied by my conduct, that I have no other object
in view than to promote the glory of God, the interests of rnv
States, the good and the peace of my subjects, to which I sacri

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

flee all my natural tenderness for an only son." Don Carlos had,
indeed, been acting the part of an unnatural son, and deserved
I,ho punishment which was about to be inflicted upon him. Ho
had plotted against the life of his royal father, and all the pa­
pers relating to the conspiracy had been seized. The Pope’s
reply to the King of Spain was what it should have been—con­
fiding, fatherly and consoling. If Pius V. was endowed with
a strong mind, he had also received a warin and generous heart.
Don Carlos was arrested by the Duke of Feria, captain-general
of the guards, and tried by the Council of Castile, not by the
tribunal of the Inquisition, as some historians erroneously as­
sert. The unfortunate prince was arraigned on the charge of
high-treason; the judgment was pronounced conformably to the
laws of the kingdom, and Don Carlos was condemned to suffer
capital punishment. Some writers pretend that Philip, to avert
the dishonor of such an end, caused the physicians to hasten
the death of the prince. This charge, which rests upon no
documentary evidence, is contradicted by the modern historian
of the Inquisition, Llorente, whom no one will accuse of par­
tiality for Philip II. “ Don Carlos,” he says, “ when warned
that his illness must prove fatal, made his confession and re­
ceived the Blessed Sacrament. The king entered his room,
gave him his blessing, with many tears, and in a few moments
Don Carlos had ceased to live (1568).’’
22. The Popes—and this constitutes one of their highest
titles to glory—were the first to appreciate the fact that the
destruction of the Turkish power was a question of life and
death for Europe. Under Soliman II. and Selim II., his son,
their progress became more alarming than ever; the Mediter­
ranean was covered by their fleets ; masters of Greece and
Hungary, it now only remained for them to conquer the islands
of Malta and Cyprus, and then to throw themselves upon Italy.
A first attempt upon Malta (a. d. 1565) was defeated by the
heroism and admirable manœuvres of the grand master, La
Valette. The baffled Turks made a descent upon the island of
Cyprus, where they signalized their barbarous revenge by a

BT. PIÜ8 1. (A. D. Ι5«β-Ι572).

most bloody slaughter. Pius V. represented their danger to the
European princes, and succeeded in effecting a league between
the Venetians and Spaniards, to whom he joined all the forces
of Italy. He himself appointed the leader of the expedition,
and his choice decided the victory. He named the brave and
chivalric Don John of Austria, whose capacity he well knew.
The Christian squadron, which had been joined by the Knights
of Malta and the galleys of the Duke of Savoy, met the Turk­
ish fleet of two hundred and forty-five galleys and eighty-seven
ships of every class, in the Gulf of Lepanto (October 7, 1571).
Here were to be renewed the prodigies of Charles Martel and
of the hero of Rhodes and Malta. The combat lasted five
hours. In the heat of the onset, the two flag-ships found them­
selves engaged in close quarters. The Turkish commander,
Ali Pacha, was slain, and his head, displayed upon the mast of
a Christian galley, completed the defeat of his followers.
Twenty-five thousand infidels were slain and ten thousand cap­
tured. St. Pius, like another Moses, prayed while the Chris­
tian army fought. At the very moment when victory crowned
the arms of Don John at Lepanto, the Sovereign Pontiff re­
ceived a divine revelation of the event. Suddenly breaking
off a council which he was then holding, he said to the cardi­
nals : “ This is not the time to talk of business ; let us go and
return thanks to God in His temple ; our arms have just been
blessed with victory.” And the holy Pontiff, shedding tears of
gratitude, threw himself upon his knees in his oratory. Some
days after, it was known that at that very hour the cross had
triumphed in the Gulf of Lepanto. In gratitude for this signal
victory, St. Pius decreed that throughout the Christian world
the feast of the Rosary should be yearly solemnized on the first
Sunday in October; and to the Litany of the Blessed Virgin
he added the invocation: “Auxilium Christianorum, ora pro
nobis.” The victory of Lepanto crowned the work of the Cru­
sades, the work of Charles Martel, of Charlemagne, of Godfrey
de Bouillon, Tancred, and St. Louis;—the defence of Christian
humanity, of Catholic society, against Mahometan barbarism

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GENERAL HISTORY OF ΤΠΕ CHURCH.

23. The saintly Pontiff had not neglected tho internal ad
ministration of the Church. In 1566, he published the “ Cate­
chism of tho Council of Trent,” an admirable compendium of
theology, which had been compiled under the eyqs of the coun­
cil, in two years of assiduous labor, and finished three years
later by a commission consisting of Leonard Marion, archbishop
of Lunciano ; Ægidius Foscarari, bishop of Modena, and Francis
Foreiro, theologian of the King of Portugal, at Trent. Their
work was carefully revised by St. Charles Borromeo; who
steadily pursued his course of reformation in the Church and
the religious orders, though often at the peril of his life. The
Humiliati, whom the holy archbishop strove to bring back to
their primitive regularity, hired a renegade priest to murder
him. The assassin discharged a blunderbuss at him. as he
knelt in prayer at the evening devotion of his household : the
ball struck the cardinal, but, by a miraculous interposition of
Heaven, fell harmless at his feet; the Pope punished the
authors of the crime and abolished the Order of the Humiliati,
With a view to establish liturgical unity throughout the Church,
the Council of Trent had ordered the publication of a uniform
Breviary and Missal, to be used by every member of the Catho­
lic clergy. On the 9th of July, 1568, Pope Pius V. published
a constitution abolishing all particular Breviaries less than two
hundred years old, and ordaining, everywhere, the form of the
office contained in the Roman Breviary. The Missal appeared
two years later (a. d. 1570). “ In order that all,” said the Pope
in his bull, “ may embrace and observe, in all places, the tradi­
tions of the holy Roman Church, the Mother and Mistress of
all the others, We forbid, henceforth and forever, that ths
Mass be sijid or chanted otherwise than is prescribed in the
Missal published by Our order ; except when, in vir tue of a
primitive institution or of a custom dating farther back than
two hundred years, certain churches have assiduously observed
a particular usage in the manner of celebrating Mass.” May
these grave and solemn words of St. Pius V. be, at length,
unanimously received in every church and in avery diocese 1

HT. PIÜS V. (A. D. 15*16-1572),

22?

The question of church music had also been dis.ussed by the
Council of Trent. Pope Marcellus II. thought of banishing it
entirely from the divine office. But Providence had prepared,
in Rome itself, a man of a deep liturgical genius, and had given
him powers equal to his great mission. Louis Palestrina, after­
ward proclaimed the “ Prince of Church Music,” was then a
chanter in the Papal chapel. He prevailed upon Marcellus to
hear a Mass of his own composition. The Pope was delighted
with the simplicity, the unction and the richness displayed in
the work of Palestrina. The anathema prepared against music
was revoked, and the Mass of the great composer kept its name
—“ the Mass of Pope Marcellus.” St. Pius V. continued to
patronize the artist, and made him Master of the Papal chapel.
24. Lutheranism had now opened new ways of indepen­
dence, into which were blindly pouring all the self-confident
minds arrayed in rebellion against the Church. A thousand
different sects were already springing up in the very bosom of
Protestantism. Among the heretics of this period were L»lius
Socinus and his nephew Faustus, whose erroneous doctrine io
known by their name, as Socinianism. They taught that the
sacred Scripture is the only rule of faith, and its only inter­
preter, the light of human reason. Thus far they agree with
Luther. But the Socinians draw their own conclusions. All
mysteries must be rejected, from the very fact that they are
mysteries, and that, therefore, reason cannot comprehend them.
They even deny creation, “ for they could not conceive,” they
said, “how God could give being to substances by the only act
of His will.” They reject the dogmas of original sin, of the
divinity of Christ, and of the Redemption. The only sacra­
ments they receive are Baptism and the Lord's Supper, though
they grant them no other virtue than that of exciting faith
Tho resurrection of the body they reject as an impossibility.
They do not admit the doctrine of eternal punishments; but
teach that, after a greater or less duration, all created beings
will return to nothing. The Socinians hold that it is not law­
ful to make war. to appeal to the law for the reparation of an

224

GENERAL Η18ΤΌΚΓ Of THE CHURCH.

injury. Io swear before a magistrate, to discharge the office of
judge, especially in criminal cases, to kill a robber or a mur­
derer, even in lawful self-defence. The two founders of this seel
were natives of Vicenza, but they began to teach their error
in Switzerland. Proscribed by the government of Geneva, they
went to Poland, where their sect soon numbered many fol­
lowers ; they made their residence at Rachow, in the district
of Sandomir, whence they issued their profession of faith or
“ Rachovian Catechism."
25. Another error, springing, like Socinianism, from the
teachings of Luther, was introduced by Baius (Michel de
Bay), chancellor of the University of Louvain. The doctrine
of Baius views human nature in the three states of innocence,
the fall and the reparation : 1st. The state of innocence pre­
sents nature in its perfect integrity, free from concupiscence,
endowed with immortality, predestined to the intuitive vision
of God, gifted with hope and charity. 2d. The fall, by de­
stroying this beautiful harmony, deprived man of all these gifts.
Nature, now subjected to concupiscence, has no other power
than that of committing sin, and liberty no longer exists ; man
acts under the impulse of an irresistible constraint. 3d. In
the state of reparation, man receives two graces, one of which
communicates the Holy Ghost or grace to the soul, and raises
it above concupiscence; the other is the imputation of the
merits of Jesus Christ, to pay the debt of sin. The first grace
establishes man in a kind of equilibrium between chastity and
concupiscence, and by yielding an inevitable obedience to the
one of these two powers which prevails, man does it without
violence or coaction, that is, voluntarily ; this is the extent of his
liberty. Moreover, the imputation of the merits of Christ is
not made to all without distinction, but only to the predestined.
In saying that the Redemption was universal, Baius speaks of
the intrinsic value of the Precious Blood, and not of a help
given to all. From these principles, the chancellor concluded
that, in the natural order, no action is morally good ; that all
the actions of infidels are sins ; that God commands things

8T. ΡΙ08 V. (A. D. 1560-1572).

225

which are impossible to those who have not grace; that gond
work- have no efficacy to save us from eternal or even from
temporal punishment; which could not be without the previous
imputation of the merits of Jesus Christ. This comfortless
doctrine, which its advocates had the boldness to put forward
as the pure teaching of St. Augustine, was comprised in
seventy-six propositions condemned by a bull of Pius V. (a. d.
1567) ♦
26. So many arduous labors exhausted the strength of St.
Pius \who died on the 1st of May, a. d. 1572. He was
beatified, one century later (1672), by Clement X.. and canon­
ized by Clement XL, in 1712. His death was deeply mourned
in Rome and in all the Christian world ; the Turks celebrated
it by public rejoicings at Constantinople. Amid the grief
caused by the errors and disorders of his time, his Pontificate
was consoled by a great number of saints and learned men in
every rank of society. St. Philip Neri and St. Camillus of
Lellis founded, together, a congregation of regular clerics for
the care of the sick. The learned Cardinal Baronins under­
took his herculean task, the “Annals of the Church.” to refute
the Centuriators of Magdeburg. The Carthusian, Lawrence
Surins, published his collection of “ Lives of the Saints," a
valuable work, but soon after surpassed by that of the “ Bollandists.” Tl.e two Jesuits Rosweyde and Bolland conceived
the idea of raising this colossal monument, which our own age.
at length, hopes to complete ; and Bolland has left it his name.j·
All nations came forward, at once, to offer their tributes of
virtue and holiness. Holland saw nineteen of her children
martyred by the Calvinists at Gorcum (July 9th, 1572). St.
Felix of Cautalicio, near Citta Ducale, in the States of the
Church, sanctified the duties of a laborious life. St. Pascal
• Vid Blano, t. 11, pp. 310, 311. Wo have abridged his analysis of the doctrine· of
Baius.
f When Cardinal Bellartuino was informed of the plan of the work undertaken by Ro··
weyde, ho inquired the author's ago; and on learning that he was forty years old: “ Is he
sure,” asked tho cardinal, "of living two hundred years I For it will take no less thin that
tn fiuUh such a work properly."
Vol. IV—16

226

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Baylon was a poor shepherd of Aragon, who won the kingdom
of Heaven while tending his flocks. St. Benedict of Philadel­
phia, an Ethiopian by birth, edified Sicily under the habit of
the Minors of the Strict Observance. St. Francis Caracciolo
founded the Order of Minor Clerics at Naples. St. Bartholo­
mew of the Martyrs, archbishop of Braga, displayed in Portugal
the most ardent charity and deepest humility. Florence gloried
in St. Mary Magdalen of Pazzi and St. Catharine of Ricci. The
Society of Jesus was, at the same time, presenting to Christian
youth admirable examples of all the virtues which adorn that
age, in the person of two young noblemen, respectively of Po­
land and Italy—St. Stanislaus Kostka and St. Aloysius Gon­
zaga St. Francis Borgia also forsook the high dignities and
brilliant honors lavished upon him in the court of Spain, to
enter the Society of Jesus, which he afterward governed as
its third general. The Order of the Jesuits, a real nursery of
great men, contained, at this period, three justly celebrated
theologians—Cardinal Bellarmine, the immortal author of the
“ Controversies,” an immense arsenal in which he has arranged,
with perfect method, all the weapons necessary to defend the
faith of the Church and to combat against heresy ; Suarez,
whose theological works, remarkable for their clearness and
precision, fill twenty-three folio volumes ; Cardinal Tolet, whom
his masters called “ a prodigy of genius,” and whose “ Summa
casuum conscientiae,” or “Instruction for Priests,” deserved the
eulogy of Bossuet. Louis of Granada was also writing his
ascetic works, among which is the well-known “ Sinner’s
Guide.” In the midst of all these names dear to the Church,
shone that of St. Theresa, who was of a noble family of Avila.
Every kind of glory was in store for this chosen soul, early
prevented by all divine graces. In her native country, she
founded (1562) a reformed convent of Carmelites, which be­
came the model of that order remarkable for its austerities and
the practice of the highest virtues. St. Theresa not onlyedified the Church by her angelic life, she also wrote several
works which breathe the purest love of God. “ The Wav of

BT. PIÜ8 V. (A. D. .56fr-157i)

Perfection,” “ The Interior Castle of the Soul," her *· Lite,”
written by herself, and her “ Poems,” will always be in the
hands of those who strive to ascend to the height of Christian
perfection. St. John of the Cross did for the Carmelite monk·
what St. Theresa had done for the nuns of the same order
They are the two shining lights of CarmeL

228

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

CHAPTER
J * Pontificate

of

VI.

Gregory XIII. (May 13, a.d. 1572—April 7, 1585,

1. Election of Gregory XIII. Massacre of St. Bartholomew.—2. Success of Wl
liam the Silent, in the Netherlands. Persecutions in England.—3. Brow·
ists. Moravian Brethren. Rodolph II., emperor of Ge many, obtains th·
confirmation of his election by the Holy See.—4. Cardinal Henry, king of
Portugal.—5. Reformation of the Calendar, known as the Orcyorian C'ulen
dar.—β. The Roman Martyrology. Death of Gregory XIII.
§ IL Pontificate

of

Sixtus V. (April 24,

a.d.

1585—August 27, 1590).

.. Antecedents of Sixtus V.—8. Life of Sixtus V., by Grogorio Leti.—9.
Domestic administration of Rome by Sixtus.—10. Institution of the Con­
gregations of Cardinals.—11. Death of Mary Stuart in England Sixtus
•■x< onununicates Queen Elizabeth, and enters into a league against her with
Philip IL Destruction of the Invincible Armada.—12. The League in
France.—13. Murder of the Duke and of the Cardinal of Guise. Assassi­
nation of Henry III. by Jacques Clement. Accession of Henry IV.—14.
Change in the conduct of Sixtus V. toward Henry IV. and the League.
Death of the Pope.

§ III. Pontificate

of

Urban VII. (September 15, a.
27, 1590).

d.

1590—September

15. Election and Death of Urban VII.
§ IV. Pontificate

of

Gregory XIV. (December 5,
15, 1591).

a.d.

1590—October

16. Election, brief Pontificate and death of Gregory XIV.
§ V. Pontificate

of

Innocent IX (October 30, a.
31, 1591).

d.

1591—December

17. Election and death of Innocent IX.
§ VL Pontificate of Clement VI1L (January 29, a. d. 1592—March 3, 1005).
18. Election of Clement VIII.—19. Clement's policy in regard to France.
—20. Abjuration of Henry IV. at St. Denis.- 21. Clement receives thr

GREGORY XIII. (A. D. 1572-158»).

229

abjuration of Henry IV. through Dnperron and Ount, the Eien·-h ainba
*·
nadors at Rome.—22. Moliniam.—23. Investigation and conclnsion of th·
Molinist question.—24. The Duchy of Ferrara annexed to the Ponnfv-al
States. Peace of Vervins. Dissolution of the marriage of Henry IV. and
Catherine of Valois.—25. The Jesuits restored in France by Henry IV
Death of Clement VIH.
g VII.

Pontificate of Leo

XL (April 1, a.d. 1605—April 27, 1605).

26. Election and death of Leo XI.

§ I. Pontificate

of

Gregory XIII. (May 13, a. d. 1572—ApnJ
7, 1585).

1. Cardinal Ugo Buoncompagno succeeded St. Pius V. on the
13th of May, a.d. 1572,at the very time when France was startled
by the fearful tidings of the “ Massacre of St. Bartholomew."
The Calvinists had obtained the royal signature to the treaty
of St. Germain only through the necessity in which the court
was then placed of securing peace al any cost. Still, their in­
trigues had not ceased. They formed a plot to murder Charles
IX. and his mother during the festivities attending the marriage
of the King of Navarre with Margaret, the sister of Charles.
Such, at least, is the official account sent to all the foreign courts
on the day following St. Bartholomew’s. The royal council
had been discussing the course to be followed in regard to the
Huguenots. “ To avert the evils which threaten the kingdom,
said Catherine, “ the only and the infallible expedient would be
to put the admiral to death ; he is the cause and the author of
all these civil wars ; the designs of the Huguenots would perish
with him ; and the Catholics, satisfied with the sacrifice of one
or two men, would remain true to the king’s authority. Al!
the members were in favor of the proposed measure. Bu
Charles, going far beyond the end proposed, rose from his sea'
and said : “ Since you think good to kill the admiral, be it so; bm
also let all the Huguenots in France perish with him, that there
may not be one left to reproach me with his death ; give t'-.t
order at once!” This violent language which the young and
passionate prince might, perhaps, have been easily induced to

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GENERAL HISTORY OF ΤΠΕ CHURCH.

recall, was taken literally. At about two o’clock on the morn­
ing of St. Bartholomew’s Day (August 24, 1572), the bell of
the church of St. Germain-ΓAuxerrois gave the signal for the
execution of the Calvinists. Coligny was murdered in his own
house ; the tocsin sounded in all directions. The soldiers and
the inhabitants, who were only waiting for the moment to act,
soon spread themselves throughout the whole city. The houses
inhabited by Huguenots were broken open ; the destined vic­
tims, wherever they were met, were struck down, sabred, shot,
or drowned. The King of Navarre and the Prince of Condé
owed their safety only to their title of princes of the blood ;
and on the next day their abjuration, signed by their own
hands, was forwarded to the Sovereign Pontiff, with a promise
to be ever faithful to the Catholic religion. The promise was
extorted by fear, and they soon practically revoked it. The
proceedings against the Calvinists in the provinces was rather
the effect of a popular reaction than of any royal order. Among
the bishopsand governors, there were many who opposed these
deeds of vengeance, and their cbnduct, during these troubles,
will be a lasting glory to humanity. It has been said that
Rome received with public rejoicings the lamentable tidings of
St. Bartholomew’s Day. The courier who brought the account,
announced to the Pope that the King of France had just escaped
a fearful conspiracy against his life. The Cardinal of Lorraine,
who was still in Rome, where he had taken part in the conclave,
begged the Pope’s permission to offer up solemn thanksgiving
to God for the protection granted to the king. When the whole
truth was afterward disclosed, the Sovereign Pontiff, by his
words and his bulls, publicly showed his horror at such a crime.
This bloody taeasure produced an effect quite contrary to that
which had been anticipated by Charles. The King of Navarre
and the Prince of Condé had lied and retracted their abjuration ;
this was the signal for a fourth civil war. The Calviniste
seized several fortified places, among others La Rochelle, which
successfully stood nine assaults of the royal forces, under the
Duke of Anjou, with great loss to the besiegers. The duke

GREGORY ΧΙΠ. (A. D. 1512-159»).

231

was called to the throne of Poland by the nobles of that kingdora, and left the prosecution of the siege to his generals, who
were not more successful than himself. To save the honor of the
royal arms, it became necessary to grant to the besieged terms
of capitulation, securing to them the free exercise of their wor­
ship ; the same privilege was extended to Nimes and Montau­
ban (July 6, 1573). This particular treaty did not check the
progress of civil war in other parts of France, and it was im­
possible to foresee the end of the public disasters, when Charles
was prostrated by a sudden illness. “ His whole body was
shaken by a convulsive shuddering,” says Mézeray, “ becoming
at times stiffened with violent shocks; and the blood gushed
from every avenue, even through the very pores.” In this
fearful torture, he died on the 30th of May, 1574. As soon as
the tidings of his brother's death reached the Duke of Anjou,
now Ilenry III., he hastily abandoned his throne in Poland to
take possession of that of France, where the last of the Valois
was to bury his dynasty amid the shameful scandal of the
“ Mignons ” and the incapacity of the sluggard kings.
2. The Reformation was ravaging other lands as well as
France. On the 23d of January, a. d. 1579, William of Orange,
after a series of successful campaigns against the Duke of Alva ;
Don Luis de Requesens, grand commander of Castile; Don John,
the illustrious hero of Lepanto, and the Archduke Matthias, who
successively commanded in the Netherlands for Philip II., ob­
tained the ratification of a “treaty of union” between the prov­
inces of Guelders and Zutphen, of Holland, Zealand, Utrecht,
Friesland and Groningen. It was agreed that the confederated
provinces should form but one inseparable body, that every
means should be adopted and all forces made common for the
defence of the new State ; that questions of war, of peace and
of taxes should be decided only by a unanimous vote, others by a
plurality. William did not allow his own interest to be forgotten.
He secured for himself the dignities of stadtholder, admiral and
generalissimo of all the forces, military and naval, to be held
for life. Until this time, the rebelshad headed their ordinances

232

GENERAL HISTORY 01' THE CHURCH.

with the name of the lawful monarch; after the year 1579
they ceased to observe this formality, and the oath was made
in the name of the Prince of Orange. Calvinism was thus
taking possession of the Netherlands, and this news was brought
to Rome, to sadden the heart of the Sovereign Pontiff, already
deeply moved by the religious troubles in France. Meanwhile
Elizabeth was staining the soil of England with the blood of
her Catholic subjects. Among her most illustrious victims
were Henry Percy, earl of Northumberland, and his son, the
Earl of Arundel, the first peers of the realm. But the mis­
sionaries were objects of special hatred to the cruel daughter of
Henry VIII. The prisons were almost exclusively devoted to
the confinement of religious offenders. The executions began
in 1577, and the most barbarous tortures were inflicted upon
faithful Catholics to force them into apostasy. Ireland was
not spared; but nothing was ever able to shake the ancestral
faith of that heroic isle. In Ireland, the persecution has lasted
through three centuries, and still continues, with bloodshed,
proscriptions and spoliation of every kind. When history shall
have ceased to be a conspiracy against the truth ; when the
passions and prejudices by which the successive governments
of England have been unwittingly swayed, shall have yielded
to cool reflection and impartiality, there will be but one voice
to brand the executioners and exalt their victims. God grant
that the day of justice and light may soon dawn for Catholic
Ireland; may her faith yet triumph over her English oppres­
sors; it is the only revenge worthy of the blood of so many
martyrs !
3. The reign of Elizabeth witnessed the rise of the sect of
Brownists or followers of Robert Brown. They were fanatical
Puritans whose only worship was inward prayer. The Ana­
baptists also established themselves in Elizabeth’s kingdom,
while another branch of the sect was formed under the name
of “ United Brethren” or “ Moravians.” “ Two of the followers
of Storch—Hutter and Gabriel—bought a tract of land in Mo­
ravia, upon which they settled and established a kind of repub·

GREGÙKÏ ΧΠ1 (A. D. oli-ΙΜβ).

233

<w. Its members devoted themselves to agricultural pursuit·,
end led a community life. Being repeatedly driven from their
abode and dispersed, they were weakened by their separation
and by the disorders into which they fell. They finally joined
the Socinians in Transylvania.
*
Error was thus crumbling into
a multitude of different sects, in proportion as it receded from
the centre of authority, the source of light and of all truth.
Germany was still the scene of the most animated and lively
religious dissensions. Ferdinand I. was succeeded, on the
imperial throne, by Maximilian II. (a. d. 1564). Their reigns
were but a succession of negotiations with the Protestants, who
multiplied their confessions and formulas of faith without ever
coming any nearer to unity. Both emperors were successively
occupied in endeavoring to maintain an equilibrium between
their Catholic and Protestant subjects; they lacked both the
power and the genius necessary to triumph over the difficulties
of an inextricable situation. Rodolph II. succeeded his father
Maximilian, in 1576. Pope Gregory XIII. admonished him to
send an ambassador to Rome, for the express purpose of solicit­
ing the confirmation of his authority by the Holy See. The
new emperor seemed at first inclined to follow the example of
Ferdinand and Maximilian, who had refused to ask the Sov­
ereign Pontiff’s sanction for their election. But he was con­
vinced, at length, that the step would enhance the splendor of
his crown, and that an emperor need not blush at an act of
submission in which a Charlemagne could glory.
4. An unexpected source of trouble was now opened in
Portugal. The death of Sebastian, the late king, left the throne
to his uncle, Cardinal Henry (a. d. 1578). The ministers of the
new king, urged him to marry, to secure a direct succession
to the crown. Henry, yielding to their representations, deter­
mined to apply to the Pope for the necessary dispensation.
He was not only a cardinal, but also archbishop of Evora.
Gregory fully appreciated the weight of the reasons of state
• M. Blanc. L IL, p. 316.

234

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

itUegod.but he was also aware of the consequences which must
result from such an unprecedented departure from every canon­
ical rule. To grant the dispensation was, undoubtedly, within
the power of the successor of St. Peter; but the precedent
would be dangerous. The Church, which had maintained,
amid so many perils, the indissolubility of the marriage-tie,
must display the same firmness in guarding the indissolubility
of the priestly vows. Such was the tenor of the Pope’s reply
to Henry’s ambassador ; and that prince, changing his design,
steadily resisted all the entreaties of the Cortes to the contrary.
Political interests and considerations were broken upon the
rock on which the Church of Christ is founded, and the world
was not scandalized by the introduction of Protestant usages
into the bosom of Catholicity.
5. Gregory now turned his attention to a measure of immense
importance; which was to illustrate his Pontificate. This was
the reformation of the calendar. Rome received its first cal­
endar from Romulus and Numa; but this production of an
imperfect knowledge was full of inaccuracies and errors. It
was improved by Julius Cæsar, according to the calculations of
the astronomer Sosigenes, whose operations were based upon
the principle that the sun moves through the ecliptic in three
hundred and sixty-five days and six hours. This was a very
near approach to the truth, though not perfectly correct ; for in
reality, the sun makes its yearly revolution in three hundred
and sixty-five days, five hours and forty-nine minutes. Sosi­
genes thus added eleven minutes to each year, which would
involve an error of one day in a hundred and thirty-four years.
Thus, from the time of the Council of Nice (a. d. 325), until
the reformation of the calendar in 1582, the error of computa­
tion in the ephemerides, had reached ten days; so that the
vernal equinox, which, in 325, was announced for the 21st of
March, fell on the 11th, in 1582, though still announced for
the 21st. A reform was evidently necessary. Gregory called
to his aid all the lights of science, to effect it ; he appointed a
commission of all the most distinguished astronomers ; but the

GREGORY XIII. (A. D. 157Î-1ÎR6K

235

glory of having brought the great work to a successful issue
is chiefly due to an Italian physician named Lilio. For the
past, it was easy enough to remedy the error of the eleven
minutes. It was only necessary to restore the vernal equinox
to the 21st of March, as it was in 325, and this could be done
by reckoning as the twenty-first day of the month the one
which the calendar reckoned the eleventh. For the future, the
following method was adopted to insure correctness. Since
the precession of the equinoxes resulted from the accumu­
lation of each year’s excess of eleven minutes, the result was
an error of one day at the end of each period of one hundred
and thirty-four years. Thus, a lapse of four hundred and two
years would bring in an error of three days ; and, consequently,
it was decided to cut out three days of every four hundred
years. If the remaining two years were not taken into account,
it was because it would take twenty-six thousand eight hundred
years to make the difference of a day. Strictly speaking, this
is a defect in the new calendar; but it will be easy to remedy
it if the world sees the end of that long revolution of ages
When the suppression of three days in each four hundred years
had been agreed upon, it remained to decide in which particular
years it should be effected. It was agreed that it should fall
upon the first three secular years of each period of four hun­
dred years. Consequently, those years, which should all be
bissextile, are only common years. The year 1700 was the first
to feel this reduetion; the year 1800 next; the same must be
the case in 1900; but the year 2000 will be bissextile. From
the year 1582, until 1700, the old calendar was but ten days
behind the new. The suppression of a day in 1700 made the
difference, for the whole of the eighteenth century, elevon days,
and that of 1800 carried it to twelve. The reckoning accord­
ing to the old calendar is known as the Old Style; the compu­
tation by the Gregorian calendar is the New Style. It was
adopted at once by all Catholic countries ; the Protestant na­
tions hesitated more or less about receiving the benefit done
to society at large, because it came from a Pope. But they

236

OBNBHAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

yielded at length, though England held out until the last cen­
tury. Russia is now the only country in Europe which still
preserves the Old Style.
6. Gregory XIII. was to complete another great work,
closely allied to the reform of the calendar—the publication of
the Roman Martyrology. The illustrious Cardinal Baronius
was intrusted with the task, and a new edition appeared by
the authority of Gregory XIII. The brief of promulgation,
dated February 14, a.d. 1584, enjoins all patriarchs, archbishops,
bishops, abbots and superiors of churches, to conform to the
new edition, in the office in choir. The saints whose feasts are
celebrated oidy m certain places are not to be inserted in the
Roman Martyrology ; their names are to be written in a separate
book, and afterward placed in the order prescribed. This was
the last act of Gregory’s Pontificate. He died on the 7th of
April, 1585, after a reign of twelve years, entirely devoted tc
the glory of God and the exaltation of the Church.

§ II. Pontificate

of

Sixtus V. (April 24, a. d. 1585—August
27, 1590).

7. While the modern world almost universally adopted the
method of hereditary transmission of power, the Church alone,
by her system of election, made the spiritual sovereignty at­
tainable from every rank and every class of society. After
having placed herself under the government of men surrounded
with all the splendor of birth and fortune, she did not hesitate
to stoop to the lowliest names and to raise them to the Papal
throne. Sixtus V., who succeeded Gregory XIII. (April 24,
a. d. 1585), was of this class. Ilis ancestor, Zanetto Peretti, a
Sclavonian by birth, tied into Italy before the successful prog­
ress of the Ottoman arms in Illyria and Dalmatia, and settled
at Montalto. He met with little good fortune in the land of
his adoption, and his descendant, Peretto Peretti, the father of
Sixtus, was obliged to quit the city on account of debt. He
removed to Grotta-Mare, near Fermo, and here was born to

SIXTUS V. (A. b. 1585-18901.

him a son, who was destined to become Pope Sixtus V. He
received in baptism, as if by a happy omen, the name of Felix.
The future Pontiff was too poor to enjoy even the advantages
offered by the neighboring country school, and it was only by
indomitable perseverance that he managed to acquire a knowl­
edge of reading and writing. He watched his father’s swine;
and it was during these long hours spent in the fields that he be­
came his own teacher. This promising disposition encouraged
a Franciscan religious to adopt him, and to undertake to draw
out the treasures which he discovered in the strong mind of the
youth. Having afterward been received into the order of his
benefactor, he distinguished himself in the general chapter of
1549, by a brilliant defence of some theological theses. His
success on this occasion won him notice and respect; Cardinal
Pio of Carpi, the patron of the Franciscans, from that time
warmly espoused his interests, and his advance was rapid
St. Pius V. raised him to the cardinalate, and consulted him in
the most difficult cases. After the death of that Pontiff, Car­
dinal Montalto (so he was now called) lived a secluded, quiet,
frugal and industrious life, devoting his time exclusively to
study and meditation. It was from this retreat that the hand
of Providence drew him forth to rule the world.
8. The new Pope possessed, in the highest degree, all the
qualities necessary to command. His firm and resolute will
recognized no obstacle, would bend to no necessity. His his­
tory is full of examides of this unbending severity. Romance
writers, however, have seized upon the glorious name of Sixtus
V. and made it that of a hero of fable, by the numberless im­
probable anecdotes with which they surround it. The chief
author of these fables is the satirical writer, Gregorio Leti, who
was born at Milan (a. d. 1680), became a Calvinist in Geneva,
and, after a life of debauchery, was obliged to support himself
by his satirical or licentious romances. In this spirit he wrote
his “ Life of Sixtus V.,’’ of which he said himself that "a welltold fiction has always more charms for the read >r than the
naked truth." Serious history has nothing in co unon with

238

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

such works; and we must draw from other source
*
the ma­
teriale to erect a monument to so illustrious a memory.
9. When Sixtus was reminded of the custom of distributing
money among the people on the accession of a new Pontiff,
he replied : “ That custom always occasions some evils ; it is
the most robust, and not the most needy, who seize the money."
He ordered the amount usually spent in largesses to be distrib­
uted in the abodes of the poor and the hospitals. Rome soon
felt that it was ruled by a strong arm. The peace and security
of the Pontifical States had long been disturbed by number­
less banditti, remnants of the Guelph and Ghibelline contests.
Gregory XIII. had distributed strong bodies of troops through
the Roman campagna, to check their boldness. Sixtus dis­
banded the greater part of the troops and diminished the
number of the sbirri by one half. But he announced that no
pardon would be granted, during his reign, to any one guilty
of a crime against persons or property. The threat was
speedily followed by its execution; and the fear inspired by
the stern justice of the Pope effectually put an end to all
trouble from the brigands. Sixtus availed himself of the
public tranquillity to arouse the activity and industry of the
Romans. “ He wished to give a lasting glory to his Pontificate ;
he enforced the rules, concerning the College of Cardinals,
against nepotism ; he increased the Vatican library ; drew forth
from amid the ruins which covered them the splendid monu­
ments of ancient art; ordered a new edition of the Septuagint
and the revision of the Vulgate promised at Trent ; re-organized
the public administration by instituting fifteen congregations to
manage all business (a. d. 1588) ; raised up the great obelisk
brought by order of Caligula from Egypt to Italy ; and furnished
the city with a plentiful supply of water by the splendid aque­
duct on the Quirinal.”*
10. For the discharge of so many different duties, he
leaued upon the congregations of cardinals. If he did not
found them all, he yet gave them such a development and
•Al.200, t. HI., p. 213.

8ΪΧΤΌ8 V. (A D 1586-ΙββΟ).

239

perfection as to make them his. “The seven most import­
ant," says Ranke, “ those of the Inquisition, the Index, the
affairs of the council, of the bishops, of the religious order-,
the ‘ segnatura,’ and ‘ consulta,’ he found already in existence.
Nor were the political affairs left wholly unprovided for in
these, for the two last mentioned had cognizance of judicial
and administrative business. Sixtus now determined to add
eight new congregations to those already existing, of which
only two, however, were to be employed on the affairs of the
Church—the one, on the founding of new bishoprics, the other,
on the direction and the renovation of ecclesiastical usages :
the remaining six were destined for separate departments of
administration; for the annona, the inspection of roads, the
abolition of oppressive taxes, the building of ships of war.
the printing-presses in the Vatican, and the University of Rome,
lie established a high standard for the qualities befitting the
office of cardinal generally. They were all to be ‘distinguished
men, their morals unimpeachable, their words oracles, their
expressions a rule of life and thought to others; the salt of the
earth, the light set upon a candlestick.’ He fixed the number
of cardinals at seventy; ‘as Moses,’says he,‘chose seventy
elders out of all the people to take counsel with him.’ "* Under
this strict administration, the Roman court soon wore an
appearance of severity in keeping with the authority of the
Pontiff. Cardinal Gallieno di Lomo gave his wealth to pious
foundations; the learned Rusti was distinguished by his irre­
proachable circumspection; Sirlet by his science. Frederick
Borromeo, the nephew and successor of St. Charles (a. d. 1-584),
followed in the footsteps of his illustrious predecessor, dis­
playing a heroic charity during the great plague at Milan
The Cardinals Madruzzi, Valeri, and Santano, celebrated in
various departments, reflected giory upon the Roman purple.
Ά 11. While the spirit of Christianity was drawing new life
from the pure fountain-head of orthodoxy, the Lutheran and
History of tho Pope·, vol L, book TV, § «.

240

GENERAL BISTORT OF THE CHURCH.

Calvinist Reformation continued its ravages in Germany, the
Netherlands and France. Elizabeth still ruled in England.
The imperious queen drew her motives of hatred against Catho­
licity from her self-love as a woman and from her political
interests. In 1582, she made it a crime of high-treason to
induce any English subject to forsake the State religion for the
faith of Rome. The Jesuits had established missions in the
kingdom to oppose the progress of heresy. Elizabeth gave
them fifteen days to quit the island. Those who did not com­
ply with the despotic order—and they were not few—became
the objects of a persecution which recalls the martyr-ages of the
Church. Meanwhile an innocent and unhappy victim had been
for eighteen years pining in a dungeon, anxiously awaiting the
hour of justice which she was not to see. All the sovereigns
of Europe had displayed a common interest in her sad fate;
buttheir intervention could not avert the fearful vengeance that
was soon to fall upon her. A commission of forty-six members,
chosen from among the peers of the realm and the councillors
of the crown, condemned Mary Stuart to death (a. d. 1586).
Parliament confirmed the sentence and requested Elizabeth to
have it carried into immediate execution.
The Queen of
Scots wrote a touching letter to Pope Sixtus V., declaring
her fixed resolve to live and die in the Catholic faith. The
Pope had not waited for this last proof of devotion to interest
himself in behalf of the Scottish queen. He had urged upon
Elizabeth the most pressing entreaties in her favor. It may
be that his display of active solicitude helped to delay the
execution which took place only on the 18th of February, 1587.
The crime was at length consummated. A stain of royal
blood was fixed forever upon the memory of Elizabeth. Sixtus
V. issued a solemn bull of excommunication against the crowned
regicide. He placed England under interdict; declaring Eliza­
beth a usurper, deposed from all power and cut off from the
communion of the Church; ordering the English to join the
army to dethrone her, and promising the most extensive
spiritual favors to those who should seize her person and deliver

SIXTUS V. (A. D. I5S&-159U).

24 J

her user to the Catholics. At the same time,he entered into a
a league with Philip II. of Spain, engaging to furnish ample
subsidies for the war. But the result did not correspond with
his anticipation. Philip raised a most imposing force ; but the
“ Invincible Armada,” the fleet which was to conquer England,
was completely destroyed by the elements before reaching its
destined field of operations.
12. The condition of France was not improved by the
death of Charles IX. His successor, Henry III., had married
Louise de Vaudemont, a cousin of the Duke of Lorraine ; this
was espousing the cause of the house of Guise, or, in other
words, the Catholic cause. But the indolent and voluptuous
prince wasted in frivolous pleasures the time which he ought
to have devoted to the difficult administration of his kingdom.
The shameless profligacy of the monarch revolted his subjects,
and thus contributed much to swell the ranks of the factious
Calvinists. The king’s brother, the Duke of Alençon, quitted
the court and joined Henry of Navarre and Condé. This de­
fection was followed by a new war. The Catholic army, com­
manded by the Duke of Guise, who then won his glorious sur­
name “ le Balafré,” attacked the insurgents at Château-Thierry.
Victory favored the right ; but Catherine, whose crafty policy
still ruled in the name of her son, thought it expedient to enter
into negotiations with the Calvinists, and the edict of Blois grant­
ed them freedom of worship, places of safety and a right to sit in
the parliaments. These concessions excited the indignation of
the Catholics, who formed themselves into a national associa­
tion for the maintenance of the ancient faith in the kingdom.
This was the origin of the League, which was also called the
Holy Union. The members of the association swore “ to de­
fend the faith of their fathers; to restore to the provinces of
the kingdom their ancient rights, franchises and liberties, such
as they were in the time of Clovis ; to punish, chastise and
put down those who persecute the Union, without any respect of
persons; to render prompt and faithful obedience to the chief
who should be named.” Had Henry III. appreciated the value
νηι. (V—>·

242

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

of his title of “ Most Christian King,” ho would have wished
to be the only chief of the League ; but he paid little heed tn
these movements, and the confederates intrusted to Henri-leBalafré, an authority which made him more powerful in France
than the monarch himself. Sixtus had promised to support
the members of the League, and Philip II. openly proclaimed
bimself their protector. The death of the Duke of Alençon, at
this juncture (a. d. 1584), loft the succession to the throne full
of uncertainty and danger, as Henry was childless. Henry of
Navarre thus became the nearest heir ; but, according to the
old constitution of the French monarchy, the throne could not
be held by a heretical prince. France now presented the sad
spectacle of a war undertaken for an inheritance not yet open.
Henry of Guise and his brother, the cardinal, declared that they
would use all their power to oppose the accession of a Hugue
not to the sovereign power in the Most Christian kingdom.
The Pope sanctioned the resolution by excommunicating Henry
of Navarre. This step of Sixtus has been loudly blamed by a
certain school. A serious investigation of facts would have
spared these criticisms, which look very much like calumnies.
As Sovereign Pontiff, Sixtus V. was bound to maintain, in every
Christian kingdom, the faith of which he was the depositary.
But what would have become of Catholicity in France, had
Henry IV. seated Calvinism upon the throne ? The League,
then, in the general idea by which it was actuated, was a pre­
servative institution for the monarchy ; and the Popes could
not but approve it. We have no difficulty in acknowledging
that political intrigues, personal ambition and even less honor­
able motives soon gained entrance into this struggle of a people
for the faith of its fathers. This was the first time that the
•crown was arrayed against religion in the kingdom of France.
By this very fact, the rupture was a great scandal. Henry
,
IV.
whom it was the object of the League to debar from the
throne, was destined to be one of the greatest kings by whom
it was ever filled. But it will be the eternal glory of the League
to have forced the conviction upon Henry that he must be a

SIXTÜS V. (A. D. 1595-1690).

24 3

Catholic prince who would wear the crown of 8t. Louis. Sixtus
, while opposing the claim of Henry of Navarre, acknowledged
V.
his brilliant qualities. Great men understand and appreciate
each other. Had Sixtus lived to witness the conversion of
Henry the Great, it would have been the crowning of his dear­
est earthly hopes ; but that happiness was not to be granted
him.
13. The contest known as the “War of the Three Henrys”
—Henry III., Henry of Navarre, and Henry of Guise—began
in 1586. The League had lately been organized in I’aris
under the name of “ The Sixteen,” from the fact that a council
was formed, composed of one member from each of the sixteen
divisions of the city, to guard the interests of religion. The
Catholic and Calvinist armies met with varied success. At
Contras, the military genius of Henry triumphed over superior
numbers ; but the Huguenots were repulsed from the banks of
the Loire by Henry III., and defeated at Vimori in Gâtinais, and
at Auneau in Beauce, by the Duke of Guise (a. d. 1587). The
duke’s popularity was growing into formidable proportions
His vigilance, activity and zeal were contrasted with the
habitual indolence of Henry III. Parties never stop half way.
The “ Sixteen” caused the proposition to be maintained in the
Sorbonne, that “ an unworthy prince may be deprived of his
authority, just as a suspected guardian may be removed from
his administration.” The people of Paris received the duke
with the honors of a triumph ; he was hailed with the emphatic
titles of “ Destroyer of the Germans,” “ the Scourge of Heresy,”
“ the Maccabeus of France,” “ the just one who is to confound
the court of Herod.” Under the circumstances, the king thought
it necessary to quit Paris, where the Duke of Guise thence­
forth ruled with sovereign power. These events were soon
followed by a violent reaction. The Duke of Guise and his
brother, the cardinal, were assassinated by order of the king.
Sixtus was deeply moved by the account of this tragedy. The
murder of a prince of the Church, by order of a king of France,
without the previous judgment of the Roman murt, was so

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JENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

unprecedented outrage. The Pope expressed his grief in a
full consistory. “A cardinal,” he exclaimed, “ has been mur­
dered without trial, without examination, as if there were no
longer a Pope on earth; nay, even as if there were no God in
Heaven!" But he did not limit his indignation to those com­
plaints; he summoned the king to appear at Rome, threatening
him with excommunication unless he should justify his conduct.
“ We are bound to act thus,” said Sixtus, “ otherwise God
would call us to account for our conduct as the most unprofit­
able of all Popes. In the discharge of a sacred duty we have
nothing to fear even from the whole world. We doubt not
♦hat, if Henry III, persists in his wicked resolutions, God will
visit him with the punishment of Saul.” The anticipation
of the Pontiff was realized. The Pope uttered his warning
on the 23d of June, 1589 ; on the 1st of August following,
Henry III. fell by the regicide dagger of Jacques Clément.
This crime changed the face of events, but only added to their
complication. The Apostolic nuncio had quitted France after
the murder of the Cardinal of Guise. Sixtus immediately sent
Cardinal Gaetano to Paris, to acquaint him with the real state
of things in France. Henry of Navarre had assumed the royal
title, and was marching at the head of a brave and faithful army
to win his throne. The League had invested the aged Cardinal
of Bourbon with the title of king, but no one looked upon him
in any other light than that of a royal shadow ; the “ Sixteen”
still ruled Paris and received Gaëtano with enthusiasm. The
Duke of Mayenne, a brother of the Duke and Cardinal of
Guise, had taken the title of lieutenant-general of the crown
of France, and prepared to oppose the claim of Henry, by
whom he was defeated on the brilliant fields of Arques and
Ivry, where Henry IV. displayed both his chivalric daring and
the military genius of a great captain.
14. The accession of Henry IV. increased the alarm of
Sixtus. The Protestant cause seemed triumphant in France.
The Pope tried for a moment to avert the threatened dangei
by making common cause with the League and Philip II. of

8IXT03 V. (Λ. D. 1585-1590).

245

Spain. Meanwhile, the republic of Venice, at the iidingj of
the battle of Arques, sent in an act recognizing the govern­
ment of Henry IV. The Sovereign Pontiff was much affected
by this step. “ Venice has deeply offended Us,” said he to the
ambassadors. “ The King of Navarre is a heretic excommuni­
cated by the Holy See ; and yet the republic has recognized
him, in contempt of all Our remonstrances. Is the republic
placed so far above all the kingdoms of the earth, that it is
entitled to set an example to the others ? There is still a king
of Spain ; there is still an emperor. Does the republic fear the
King of Navarre ? We will defend her with all Our might,
should it become necessary; and We have the nower. But
does the republic meditate any attempt to injure Us? In that
case, God Himself would be Our defender.” The Pope’s unshaken
determination ever to oppose the accession of a heretical prince
to the throne of France was soon made known to Henry IV
He was already wavering in his religious convictions, but now
he understood the necessity of a definite return to the bosom
of Catholic unity. It may reasonably be believed that the
energy displayed by the Pope was not one of the least motives
of his conversion. Henry determined to send to Rome, as his
ambassador, the Duke of Luxemburg, with the special mission
of consulting the Pope on this serious matter. Olivares, the
Spanish ambassador, on learning the arrival of the French
commissioner, hastened to the Vatican and begged the Pope
not to grant the honor of an audience to the minister of a
Huguenot prince. “If Your Holiness,” said Olivares, “per­
sists in admitting him, I shall be under the necessity of making a
formal protest, in the name of the king, my master.” “ Pro­
test!” replied the Pope. “What protest will you advance?
You offend the majesty of your royal master, whose prudence
1 well know. You may retire.” Luxemburg was presented
to Sixtus, and assured him that the hero of Arques and Ivrv
was ready to kneel at the feet of His Holiness to seek absolu
tion and admittance into the Catholic Church. “ Let him come !
Let him come!” exclaimed the Pope; “that I may embrace

246

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

and console him !" Here it is evident that Sixtus V. was not
wting a political part. He saw the possibility of Henry's con­
version, and from that moment he could have no objection to
his sitting upon the throne ; and when the ambassadors of
the League came to complain to Sixtus of the favor shown to
tho envoy of Henry of Béarn ; “ So long,” replied the Pope, “ as
We believed the League to be working for religion, We assisted
it; now We are convinced that it is acting only through motives
of ambition or under a false pretence, Our protection is at an
end.” The immortal Pontiff was not to witness an event which
everything concurred in promising. He died on the 27th of
August, a. d. 1590, after a reign of five years. History ranks
his name among those of the greatest men who have ever ruled
the world.

§ III. Pontificate of Urban VII. (September 15, λ. d. 1590—
September 27, 1590).
15. Urban VII. was elected on the 15th of September, a d.
1590, but had hardly time to take his seat upon the Pontifical
throne. He died within twelve days after his promotion, giving
thanks to God that he was thus spared the obligation of giving
an account of a power which he had never exercised.

§ IV. Pontificate

Gregory XIV. (December 5, a. d. 1590
—October 15, 1591).

of

16. Cardinal Nicholas Sfondrati was elected Pope on the
5th of December, a. d. 1590, and took the name of Gregory
XIV. When he heard his name announced after the counting
of the votes, and saw his colleagues coming forward to salute
him with the title of Santo Padre, he could only exclaim : “ God
forgive you! But what have you done?” This mark of
humility promised a virtuous Pontiff. Gregory XIV., in a
short reign of less than a year, justified the hopes of the world
Henry IV., whose successes were growing in number and bril­

GREGORY XrV. (A. D. 1590-1501).

24?

liancy, did not seem eager to keep the promises made to Sixtus
V. The apprehension was becoming more warrantable that
triumphant Calvinism might take possession of France, with
the most popular of kings ; for it was evident that the genius
of Navarre must soon overcome every obstacle. The Pope did
not hesitate to oppose a conquering prince. He declared him­
self in favor of the League. “ Do you," he writes to the “ Six­
teen,” “ who have made so laudable a beginning, persevere te
the end, and stay not until you have reached the goal of your
course. Inspired by God, We have determined to come to your
aid. First, We send you assistance in money; We likewise
dispatch Our nuncio, Landriano, to France, in order to bring
back all deserters to the Unity of the Holy Church; lastly.
We send Our nephew, Ercole Sfondrati, duke of Montemarciano>
with horse and foot, to employ their arms in your defence.
Should you stand in need of yet more, We are ready to make­
still greater sacrifices to provide you with it." This declaration
itself, the repetition of the excommunication of Henry IV.,
which was connected with it, and lastly the injunction to all the
clergy, the nobles and the third estate, to sever themselves
from him, under pain of rigorous penalties, produced a deep
impression in France. From this time may be dated the for­
mation, among the king's adherents, of a party of Catholic royal­
ists, who incessantly urged him to return to Catholicity. Tho
Pope was also laboring to reach the same end. The immense
sums collected by' Pope Sixtus were now put into requisition
for this work, which was, unquestionably, one of vast import­
ance. Gregory had always before his eyes the lot of Protestant
Germany. He wished, at any cost, to save France from a like
misfortune. But death arrested him in the midst of his under
takings (October 15, 1591). Gregory XIV. left his successor·
to gather the fruit of his energetic labors.

8

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

§ V. Pontificate of Innocent IX. (October 30,
December 31, 1591).

a. d.

1591—

17. Giovan-Antonio Fachinetti was elected on die 30th of
October, a. d. 1591, and took the name of Innocent IX. The
Romans all agreed in ascribing to this Pontiff a mature wisdom,
purity of life, liberality, magnificence, and experience in the
management of business. He was once solicited to grant a
certain favor, the petitioner at the same time presenting him
with a considerable sum of money to defray the expenses of
the Pontifical treasury, during a season of famine in the Ro­
man States. The indignant Pope rejected the offered wealth,
and replied : “ We ask not money, but obedience." These high
qualities promised a glorious reign ; but Innocent died, two
months after his election, December 31,1591.
§ VI. Pontificate of Clement VIII. (January 29, a. d. 1592—
—March 3, 1605).

18. The conclave was now re-opened, the fourth time within
fourteen months. Cardinal Ippolito Aldobrandini, who belonged
to a distinguished family of Florence, was elected and took the
name of Clement VIII. “ The new Pope,” says Ranke,
brought to his office an exemplary diligence. He devoted no
less attention to the details of internal administration and to
personal affairs, than to the politics of Europe or the great
interests of the Church. He confessed every evening to Car­
dinal Baronins; every morning he celebrated Mass himself.
He thus raised to an extraordinary pitch the reputation he had
always enjoyed for virtue, piety and an exemplary life.”
19. “Public curiosity was now universally excited, as to
the manner in which this Pope, so full of talent, activity and
energy, and moreover of such blameless life, would treat the
most momentous question of Europe—the state of France.” He
must choose between two alternatives. He might, like his
predecessors, attach himself to the League and Philip II. against

CLEMENT Vid. (A. D. 1502-1605).

249

Henry ; or he might take part with the French monarch The
adoption <>f either course depended upon the conductor Henry.
Never had decision been more anxiously expected ; never was
decision more delicate or dangerous. When he came to the
Apostolic chair, Clement VIII. found himself surrounded by ele­
ments which singularly complicated his position. The Holy
See had a legate in France, attached to the Spanish party, and
an army destined to oppose Henry IV. ; moreover the estates
of France had espoused the cause of the League. The Pope
felt the necessity of moving with extreme caution amid these
intricate circumstances, which, to a certain extent, paralyzed
his freedom of action. He saw that he must expect the soln
tion of so many difficulties from the course of the events them­
selves. And this policy he accordingly adopted.
20. The Spaniards were urging the Duke of Mayenne, lieu­
tenant-general of the kingdom, to proceed to the election of a
Catholic king. The estates met for the purpose, toward the
end of January, a. d. 1593, but without result. Still, «ven
amid the troubles of war and the din of arms, Henry IV. was
thinking of his return to the true faith ; and if he had hitherto
resisted al) the solicitations of the Catholics of his party, it was
because he did not wish that the change should be, or seem to
be, the result of weakness or of policy, but of a thorough cunvio
tion. At length, in the hour marked by Providence, he sought
the light which he had always desired, without having yet been
able to reach it, and. while conferences were opened at Suresnes, he asked for the necessary instruction. The celebrate
Jacques Davy Duperron, afterward a cardinal, began the in­
struction of the prince, at first by simple conversations, and
then by regular conferences, in which the most able prelates
and doctors among the royalists and the members of the League
took part. To these conferences Henry brought all that
sincerity and frankness which formed the prominent character­
istics of hie great mind. Duperron having brought some of
the doctors of the opposite party to acknowledge that salvation
was attainable in the Roman Church,—"What!” exclaimed

250

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Henry, “you agree that salvation can bo attained in the religion
of the Catholics; while they, on the contrary, assert that it is
impossible in yours! In a matter of such importance, it is
surely worth while to be sure of our course, and prudence
forbids a moment of delay.” From that hour the king’s con­
version was decided. It is impossible to describe the joy that
filled the hearts of the French royalists at this announcement.
Only the League, for which ambition had now become the sole
motive power, betrayed its total want of disinterestedness and
its had faith. Elizabeth, the schismatical queen of England,
on learning the king’s conversion, felt, to use her own words,
“ a most poignant grief, and a deep depression of spirits.” On
the 25th of July, 1593, Henry IV. made his abjuration in the
presence of the Archbishop of Bourges, in the great church of
St. Denis. Henry had said : “I wish to swear upon the tomb
of the kings, my ancestors, to live and die in the faith which
they professed.” When he entered the church, the prelate put
the usual questions according to the formula for this ceremony :
“Who are you? What do you wish?” “I am the king,” an­
swered Henry ; “ 1 ask to be received into the bosom of the
Catholic Church.” “Do you desire it?” asked the archbishop.
“Yes,” replied Henry, “I wish and I desire it.” Then kneeling
before the prelate, he made his profession of faith, in these
words: “I promise and swear, in the presence of Almighty
God, to live and to die in the faith of the Catholic, ilpostolic
and Roman Church ; to protect and defend it against all ene­
mies, at the peril of my blood and of my life, renouncing all
contrary heresies.” “And I,” added the archbishop, “saving
the authority of the Holy See, absolve you from the crime of
heresy and apostasy ; I receive you into the holy Roman
Church, and admit you to its sacraments, in the name of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.” The ceremony
was witnessed by an immense multitude. The Parisians, who
had come to St. Denis in spite of the orders and the satellites
of the League, blessed the hour which had removed the last
barrier between the people and their king.

CLEMENT VIII. (A. L

1592-1605).

251

21. But Henry IV. had been excommunicated by the Holy
See ; it belonged to the Holy See to remove the censures in­
flicted by itself. The clause, “ Salva Sanctæ Sedis Apostolieæ
auctoritate,” used by the Archbishop of Bourges, in the cere­
mony of the reconciliation, reserved the final absolution, in con­
formity with the canonical regulation, to the Pope. The joy of
Clement VIII. was deep and unbounded when he was fully satis
fied of the sincerity of the king’s religious change. He gladly
opened the arms of his mercy to the son thus returning to his
father’s house. But the Spanish ministers brought into play all
the resources of diplomacy and intrigue, to break off the nego­
tiation, and to change the favorable disposition of the Pope.
Happily, Henry was represented at the Roman court by a
minister equally able and devoted, the celebrated D’Ossat, for
whom this negotiation afterward won the cardinal's hat.
D’Ossat unanswerably proved the sincerity of his royal master s
conversion. He showed that ambition had no part in the step,
since Henry had only taken it when victory had already opened
to him the gates of his capital. The collection of D’Ossat’s letters
un this subject is a master-piece of modern diplomacy. On the
17th of December, a. d. 1595, Duperron and D’Ossat received
the Pontifical absolution in the name of the king. The Pope s
throne was erected on a raised platform in front of St. Peter's;
it was occupied by Clement VIII. and surrounded by all the
cardinals. The two representatives of the French king threw
themselves at the feet of the Pope, and promised, in the name
of Henry IV., upon the Holy Gospels, that their prince would
remain true to the faith of the Catholic, Apostolic and Roman
Church. Conformably to the rites prescribed by the Pontifical.
Miserere was recited, and at each verse the Pope touched the
the heads of the prostrate ambassadors with a light wand. The
Pontiff then stood up, and having recited the usual prayers,
with uncovered head, he resumed the tiara, seated himself upon
the throne, and, raising his voice, he pronounced the absolution :
“ By the authority of Almighty God, and of the blessed
Apostles St. Peter and St. Paul, We grant to Henry of Bourbon,

2b2

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

king of France and Navarre, absolution from tlie censures
incurred by the sin of heresy.” Then giving his blessing to
the ambassadors, he continued : “Announce to the king, your
master, that We have opened to him the door of the Church mili­
tant upon earth; it must be his to win an entrance, by lively
faith and works of sincere piety, into the Church triumphant
in heaven." From that day the League tell into a state of dis­
repute from which it never rose again ; and the Roman Pontiff
blessed the divine goodness which had made him the instru­
ment of the civil and religious pacification of the French king­
dom. Henry was anointed and crowned at Chartres ; he was
prayed for in all the churches, and the religious orders hastened
to acknowledge him. The king, on his part, restored the
Catholic worship wherever it had been abolished during the
late troubles, and ever after showed himself sincerely orthodox
and devoted to the Holy See.
22. The troubles of the League were followed by a famous
theological discussion which, through the spirit and earnestness
displayed on both sides, soon grew into a passionate contest
The celebrated Spanish Jesuit, Molina, had lately published,
at Evora, his work on predestination, entitled, Liberi arbitrii
cum (jratiœ donis concordantia, or “ The Concord of Grace and
Free-will” (a. d. 1588). The author maintained that God pre
destines men to eternal glory only in view and in consideration
of their merits; that the grace by means of which they obtain
these merits is not efficacious of itself, but by the consent of
the will, and that it is given in circumstances in which God
foreknew that it would work its effect; in fine, that this grace
is refused to no one. Molina’s whole system may be reduced
to the following eight propositions: 1. God, by the knowledge
of simple intelligence, sees all that is possible, and conse­
quently, infinite orders of possible things. 2. By the scientia
media, God certainly sees what, in each order, each created
will, by the use of its liberty, will do if God gives it a certain
grace. 3. He wills, by an antecedent and sincere will, the
salvation of all men, provided they will it themselves, and

CLEMENT VIH. (A. D. 1592-1606).

253

correspond with the graces granted them. 4. He gives to all
the help necessary and sufficient to work out their salvation,
though He bestows upon some more than upon others, accord­
ing to His good pleasure. 5. In the state of our fallen nature,
there are no absolute decrees of predestination on the part of
God, efficacious of themselves and antecedent to the prevision
of the free consent of the human will ; consequently, no pre­
destination to everlasting glory before the prevision of the
merits of man, no reprobation which does not suppose the fore­
knowledge of the sins that will be committed. G. God’s will
Io save all men is real, sincere and active: it is by that will
that Jesus Christ was destined to be the Saviour of the human
race; it is in virtue of that will, and of the merits of Jesus
Christ, that God grants to all the graces sufficient to work out
their salvation. 7. God, by the sc'cnlia media, sees, with full
certainty, what a man will do under given circumstances, ·η·1
helped by a given grace; consequently He knows those who
will make a good or a bad use of grace. 8. In consequence
of this foreknowledge, lie predestines the former tu eternal
glory, and the latter to reprobation.
23. This doctrine met with the most vigorous resistance from
the Dominicans, who taxed it with Pelagianism and semi-Pelagianism. The Jesuits, with few exceptions, among whom Ilenrique and the celebrated Mariana were especially remarkable,
supported Molina. The dispute grew warm and gradually
spread until all the schools and universities were divided into two
camps under the names of Thomists and Molinists The teach­
ings of Molina passed from Portugal, where he was teaching
theology, into Spain, Touraine, France, and even into the midst
of Germany. The Dominican Bannez, alarmed at the rapid
growth of Molinism, presented petition upon petition to the Papal
nuncio; but his complaints only resulted in a prohibition to
style Molina and his adherents heretics. Notwithstanding this
order, the Dominicans still continued to make war upon the
Jesuits with a violence which even the ardor of the discussion
could not excuse. Clement VIII., on learning the state of

254

GENERAL HISTORY OF THF. CHURJH.

things from some Spanish bishops, forbade both parties to dis­
cuss the irritating questions then so popular.
In 1597,
the Pope determined to call up the whole matter before his
tribunal. For its examination, he instituted the special con­
gregation De Auziïiù, consisting of cardinals and theologians.
The most able men of both orders appeared in defence of their
respecth’e opinions. Thirty-seven conferences were held in
the Pontificate of Clement VIII., in which the celebrated Do­
minican, Thomas Lemos, especially distinguished himself. But
the question was not settled during the lifetime of this Pontiff.
The discussion of ten years was at last ended by Paul V., by
the means which, it seems to us at this day, might have been
adopted in the beginning. He dismissed both parties, leaving
to each one the liberty of following his own opinion, with a
formal prohibition to charge the opposite one with heresy or
*
rashness.
24. The closing years of Clement’s Pontificate were sig­
nalized by two events of great importance—the addition of the
duchy of Ferrara to the Ecclesiastical States, and the peace of
Vervins. Alfonso II., duke of Ferrara, died without legitimate
heirs. Cesare d’Este, a distant relation of the duke’s, attempted
to take possession of the duchy; but the Pope insisted upon the
anterior rights of the Holy See, founded upon the donations of
Pepin and Charlemagne, and which had been only interrupted
by a kind of usurpation, since legalized. Henry IV. supported
the claim of Clement VIII., and the duchy of Ferrara remained
definitively annexed to the States of the Church. The support
given to the Pontifical power, by France, on this occasion, was
rewarded by the active mediation of Clement in the conclusio),
of the peace between Henry IV. and Philip II. of Spain. The
Sovereign Pontiff drew up the preliminary articles of the treaty,
which was signed at Vervins (a. d. 1598). The Spaniards
were to restore Calais and the cities they had taken in Picardy
Henry jn his put, gave up tne city of Cambrai. The treat}

•ILBljlko, t

II., p. 321.

CLEMENT VIH. (A. D. Ι592-1Λ05).

250

of Vervins effaced the last traces of the League in France.
Cardinal D’Ossat was, in the mean time, opening fresh negotia­
tions at Rome in the name of Henry IV., concerning the mar­
riage of that prince with Margaret of Valois. This union, con­
tracted at the time of the eventful day of St. Bartholomew, had
been forced upon the young King of Navarre by the express
will of Charles IX. and the policy of Catherine de Medic
*
The circumstances which clearly proved the constraint put upon
Henry on that occasion were of public notoriety. Clement
accordingly pronounced the union null (1599) ; and Henry was
enabled to marry the Princess Mary de Medici (1600), by
whom he had one son, afterward Louis XIII.
25. The Pope now hoped to profit by the happy combination
of circumstances in which he found himself placed. A Turkish
war had broken out anew in Hungary; the large and lofty
views of the Pontiff gave him the idea of turning the forces of
the whole Catholic world against the ancient and hereditary foe
of Christendom. But if, on the one hand, the Ottoman empire
showed symptoms of declining strength, which justified the
hopes of Clement ; yet, unquestionably, the execution of such
an undertaking required a more sincere and cordial union of the
different States of Europe than was possible after so violent a
shock of interests and passions. The time had not yet come
for a new Crusade against the East. Clement was not slow
to realize this truth, and he forthwith broke off the immense
preparations which he had begun. He saw, with the greatest
satisfaction, the reestablishment of the Jesuits in France.
Henry IV., not satisfied with checking the violence of the
Huguenots toward the head of the Church, took a decided
stand in favor of the illustrious sons of Loyola, which filled the
Pontiff’s heart with joy. The Society of Jesus had been ban
ished from France, after the attempt of John Chastel upon the
life of Henry, because the regicide had studied for a time in a
college of the Jesuits. In spite of Chastel's protestations^ and
of the manifest proofs offered by him of the innocence of the so­
ciety, even to his last breath and under the most true) tortures,

256

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

those religious were driven from the soil of France by (he par­
liament. of which the majority, according to the president. De
Thou, was Huguenot. Since the time of their banishment, the
Pope had repeatedly urged upon the king that this unjust rigor,
exercised against a society which had deserved so well of the
Church, could rejoice only the enemies of religion, or, at most,
a few prejudiced Catholics. In all his interviews with D’Ossat,
the plenipotentiary of France at Rome, Clement expressed his
concern at this event. The cardinal himself earnestly desired
the recall of a religious order which had been made a victim
of Calvinist hatred. Henry IV. soon realized the wishes of
the Pope and of his legate. He recalled the Jesuits and gave
into their charge the college which he had lately founded at
La Flèche. “I believe them better fitted than any others,’’
said he, “to instruct youth" (a. d. 1604). From that time
the royal favor was never withdrawn by Henry from the
Jesuits. Clement did not long outlive this act of justice, per­
formed at his solicitation. He died on the 3d of March, 1605.
after a reign which reflected glorv unon the Church.

§ VII. Pontificate of Leo XI. (April 1, a. d. 1GU5—April 27,
1605).
26. Clement VIII. had foretold to Cardinal Alexander-Oc­
tavian de Medici that he should be his successor ; the cardinal
had acted as legate in France, and displayed the greatest ability
and prudence during the troubles which agitated that kingdom.
He was elected Pope on the 1st of April, a. d. 1605, and took
the name of Leo XI. The Pontiff was nearly related to the
Queen of France. The letters in which Duperron announces
the election to Henry IV. are full of exultation, and the acces­
sion of the new Pope was celebrated in France with public
rejoicings. But Leo merely appeared upon the Apostolic chair;
he survived his election only twenty-six days, and bore with
him to the grave the regrets of the whole Christian world

FAÜL V. /A. D. 160S-1621).

CHAPTER

251

VII.

g 1. Pontificate of Paul V. (May 16, a. d. 1605—January 21, 1621)
I. State of Europe at the accession of Paul V.—2. Persecution by Taiko
Sanin and his successors in Japan.—3. Chinese missions. Father Ricci.—
4. America. St. Turribius. archbishop of Lima. St. Rose of Lima.—5
Reductions in Paraguay. Rome and Venice.—6. The Gunpmrdrr Plot.—
1. Progress of Catholicity in Europe, under Paul V.— 8. Zeal of Hcnrv
IV. for the Catholic faith. His death.—9. Death of Pani V.

§ II. Pontificate of Greoort

10.

XV. (February 9, a. d. 1621—July ’.
1623).

Election of Gregory XV. Congregation of the Propaganda.— II. The
Jesuits expelled from Holland and called to the University of Prague by
the Emperor Ferdinand II.—12. Addition of the Palatine library to that
of the Vatican by Gregory XV.—13. Reform in religious orders ι» Fiance.
Death of Gregory XV.—14. Saints and holy works in the beginning -f
the seventeenth century.—15. St. Francis of Salon

§ III. Pontificate of Urban VIII. (August 6, a. D. 1628—June 29, 1644).
II. Election of Urban VIII. State of Europe at his accession.—17. Thirty
*Years War.—18. The Italian war.—1». Capture of La Rochelle.—20.
Escheat of the duchy of Urbino to the Holy See.—21. Janscniua.—22. His
work entitled “Augustinus." The five erroneous propositions pointed >>nt
by Cornet, syndic of the Theological Faculty of Paris.—23. Saint Cyrnu.
Urban VIII. forbids the reading of the “ Angnstinns." The University of
Louvain refuses to submit to the Pope’s decision.—24. The “ Augustinus"
condemned by the BtJI, /a Smiiutiiti.—25. Death of Urban VIII.— 26.
Saints and good works of his Pontificate.

§ I. Pontificate

of

Paul V. (May 16, a. d. 1605—January

21, 1621).

1. Cardinal Camillo Borghese was elected Pope on the 16th
of May, a. d. 1605, and ί<···1·: the name of Paul V. The new
VOL. IV.—it

258

GENERAL HISTORY OF THi; CHORCH.

Pope was but fifty-three years old, skilled in the dispatch of
business, and had acquired great experience by passing through
every grade of clerical dignity. Deeply versed in canon law,
he had conceived a high idea of the mission intrusted to the
Papacy. To unimpeachable morals he joined great mildness
and affability. On his accession, he found the imperial throne
occupied by Rodolph II., successor of Maximilian ; Henry IV.
reigned in France, where he had just extinguished the last
sparks of civil war by the “Edict of Nantes,” which gave to
the Calvinists freedom of worship and places of security. The
too famous Elizabeth had died in 1G03, leaving the English
crown to James I. of Scotland, whose education and personal
affections drew him toward Catholicity, while fatal circum­
stances and motives of policy kept him on the Protestant course
inaugurated by the daughter of Henry VIII. Philip III. re­
ceived the Spanish sceptre in 1598, from his father, Philip II.,
who died soon after the pacification of France and Spain by the
treaty ofVervins. The kingdoms of the north were ruled by
schismatical princes. The division inaugurated in Europe by
the Lutheran Reformation was thus spreading its ravages, and
the nations, wrested from the guardian authority of the Church,
were holding on a course beset with shoals and tempests.
2. Christian blood was poured out to fertilize the distant
shores hitherto closed to the light of the gospel. Japan had
received the faith through the zeal of the missionaries, and the
seed of the divine word was productive under the care of those
apostolic workmen. Religion was advancing in these countries
with mighty strides. An embassy of converted Japanese princes
was present at the coronation of Pope Gregory XIII. and
brought back to Japan the Pontifical blessing. It seemed as
if God would repair, by these distant conquests of the faith,
the losses suffered by the Church in Europe. But a persecu­
tion, which lasted thirty-six years, was begun by the Emperor
Taiko-Sama. It was inaugurated by the martyrdom of nine
religious, three Jesuits and six Franciscans, whose blood was
shed upon the soil to which they had brought the glad tidinza

PAUL V. (A. D. 160S-1631).

259

of the gospel. The Japanese Christians numbered their mar­
tyrs by t housands. The successors of Taiko-Sama were excited
by the Dutch navigators, who were all Protestants, to carry
out the same cruel policy toward the Catholics. Finally, in
1614, the Emperor Quixasu banished all the missionaries, de­
stroyed the churches and ordered all the Christians in Japan to
apostatize on pain of death. Λ body numbering more than
a thousand Christians emigrated to the Philippines to escape
the fury of the barbarous prince. The deserts were peopled by
a multitude of confessors who there revived the austerities of
Thebais and Nitria. Yet all this courage and perseverance
was powerless against the intrigues of Holland and England,
whose ships were the only ones then admitted to the Japanese
ports for purposes of trade. This reproach must ever stain the
names of both these nations upon the page of history, until,
returning from their erring course, they shall have nobly atoned
for it before God ami men, by their zeal in bearing the only
true civilization—Catholicism—to every quarter of the globe.
3. But Providence now opened the gates of China to the faith
Father Matthew Ricci, a member of the Society of Jesus, was
the first to enter the empire, cut off, by its manners, habits and
traditions, from the rest of the world. Having in the year
1600 gained admission, with several of his brother religious, to
the court of the emperor,, he obtained permission to preach the
gospel. He made his vast acquaintance with arts and sciences
subsidiary to the cause of religion, by exciting the curiosity of
the Chinese. In a short time, the name of Ricci * had won such
renown, both in the capital and in the provinces, that the Chi
nese compared him to their Confucius Glory and power came
to him in equal proportion. But it was not for these earthly
advantages that the Jesuit had devoted his life to the diffusion
of the gospel. He had now but one ambition ; to establish
• Ricci had assumed the Chinese name Li, which was the first syllable of his family
name in the only form in which the Chinese .Ould artioulate it, and the surname, Jfa-ttou
(Matthew). The other missionaries followed his example, and all took Cliinose uam··
'orroed generally io Ue same manner.

260

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

upon n firm foundation, throughout the whole empire, the work
oegun with so much labor. Λ novitiate arose in Pekin ; here
je received the Chinese youth, trained them, in the practice of
virtue, to a knowledge of letters and the study of mathematics.
And, as if all these labors had been but a recreation for his old
uge, he wrote a detailed account of all the events that passed
before his eyes; he was at every moment called upon to receive
the mandarins or the lords, whom a love of science or mere cu­
riosity brought to his abode. Beside these many different oc­
cupations, Ricci composed works, in the Chinese language, on
morals, religion and geometry, and explained to his native
pupils the first six books of Euclid. Death snatched him away
in the midst of these labors ; he died on the 11th of May, a. d.
1610, at the age of fifty-eight years, leaving to the Chinese tho
remembrance of a man whom they still revere, and to his
order an example of virtue, learning, wisdom and firmness.
This untimely death exposed to cruel vicissitudes the good
work which Ricci had so laboriously begun. In 1617, a violent
persecution broke out against the missionaries. They were
scourged, imprisoned, banished, and sent back to the shores of
Macao. Three years later the emperor, Van-Lié, who had
signed the edict of proscription, died at the moment when ThienMin, king of the Tartars, had entered his States, cut his army
to pieces, and was arousing the Chinese from the traditional
torpor which seemed to be, for them, the only condition of
existence. Tien-ki, Van-Lié’s successor, took measures to
check the advance of the Tartars. The Christian mandarins
advised him to apply to the Portuguese for officers, who
would improve the efficiency of their army. “ Still,” they
added, “ the Portuguese will give us aid, only when the Jesuits,
who have been ignominiously banished, shall receive justice
from the emperor.” Tien-ki annulled the edict of banishment
issued by bis predecessor, and restored the Fathers. It was
then that Father Adam Schall, a native of Cologne, appeared
in China. He was a thorough mathematician and astronomer,
:itid, walking in the footsteps of Ricci, he too won a reputa-

PAOL V. ,A. D. 1COS-16J)).

261

tion for universal knowledge. Having been directed by the
emperor to correct the calendar, Schall profited by the occasion
to do away with lucky and unlucky days, as superstitious
observances, and to help the spread of Christianity. AtSiganFou, he induced the pagans themselves to build a church. At
Pekin, he succeeded in obtaining a decree from the emperor,
authorizing the Jesuits to preach the gospel throughout his
dominions. This mission called for chosen men, accomplished
scholars. He who devoted himself to labor in this field was a
true hero ; for those distant seas had not yet been explored by
navigators, and they were fruitful of shipwrecks. Thus Father
Diaz, writing to the general of the society, for a yearly supply
of twenty missionaries, says : “ They would not be too many
even if, by a special blessing of Providence, they could all
reach Macao alive ; but it is not an unusual thing for one-half of
them to die on the way. It would, then, be well to send twenty,
in order that we may count upon ten every year.”
4. No less successful were the missions in America.
The island of Cuba, the empire of Mexico, and that of Peru,
had each a hierarchy canonically established. The archiépis­
copal see of Lima was then filled by St. Turribius, the Borromeo of the New World. During his episcopate of twenty-five
or twenty-six years, St. Turribius held three provincial councils
with the bishops of that part of America, and fourteen diocesan
synods with the principal ecclesiastics of his archbishopric
These councils and synods of the New World were not unworthy
to be cited as models for the Old. The holy archbishop labored
zealously to apply to his clergy and people the salutary meas­
ures prescribed by the Fathers of Trent. He established
seminaries in which the youth of the country gave bright
promise oi an efficient native clergy. While the saintly prelate
thus toiled for the glory of God and the salvation of souls, St.
Rose of Lima was edifying her native city by the spectacle "f
her amiable virtues, and deserved, by the angelic purity of her
life, the honors of public worship which the Church eventually
decreed her

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

5. But another portion of the Western World was tho scene
of a work which might well arrest the admiring attention of
the world—whole tribes of savages become a people of saints.
The Spanish conquerors of the New World had reduced the
natives to slavery, and doomed them to toil in the mines. In
vain did the clergy, both regular and secular, protest against
an abuse as impolitic as it was barbarous. Their complaints
were unheeded. There yet remained at the foot of the Cordil­
leras, in the plain that looks toward the Atlantic, between the
Orinoco and the Rio de la Plata, a country filled with savages,
where the Spaniards had not yet carried their baneful conquests.
It was in the shades of these forests that the missionaries
undertook to form a Christian republic, and to bestow, at least,
upon a few of the natives the happiness which they were not
allowed to bring to all. Yet these very tribes appeared, above
all others, the least fitted to receive the truths of the gospel
Indolent, stupid and ferocious, they were the very type of
primitive man degraded bjr his fall. There is no more striking
evidence of the degeneracy of human nature, than the littleness
of the savage amid the grandeur of the wilderness. On reaching
Buenos Ayres, the Jesuits who had devoted themselves to that
toilsome mission ascended the Rio de la Plata, and, entering
the waters of the Paraguay, went in different directions, seeking
the Indians in their native woods. The old accounts represent
the Jesuit missionary with a breviary under the left arm, in
the right hand a large cross, with no provisions other than faith
and confidence in God. These apostles are described as forcing
their way through the dense virgin forests, wading through
vast marshes, waist deep in waler, climbing steep and rugged
rocks, entering into dens and precipices, at tho risk of finding
serpents and wild beasts instead of the human beings they
sought. Many perished from hunger and fatigue ; others were
murdered and devoured by the savages. The first tribe that
listened to the voice of the Jesuits was that of the Guaranis
They were formed into a colony under care of the Fathert.
Mareta and Cataldino. whose names are entitled to rank among

PAUL V. (A. D. 1605-1β31).

2G3

those of the benefactors of the human race. The colony re­
ceived the name of Loretto, and, as the Indian ch arche*
suc­
cessively arose, surrounded each by its little Christendom, they
were all designated by the general name of “ Reductions. In
a few years they had reached the number of thirty, and.
together, constituted that “ Evangelical Republic” which has
never been equalled in perfection by any government, ancient
or modern. Each community or village was ruled by two
missionaries, who had the direction of both spiritual and
temporal matters. Public schools were opened in each one of
them, for the education and instruction of the young ; on leaving
these schools, the young men were placed, according to their
taste or particular fitness, in one of the workshops of the Re­
duction, to learn some useful trade. Those who showed a
greater inclination for agricultural pursuits were enrolled in
the class of husbandmen ; while those who still retained some
of the roving propensities of their former life followed the
herds and flocks. There were no public market-places in the
villages ; on certain appointed days, every family received all
the necessaries of life. The land was parcelled out, and each
family cultivated a portion equal to its wants. There was,
beside, a public field called the “ Property of God.” The fruits
of this common property were set apart to supply the failures
in the crops, for the support of widows, orphans and the sick.
The military, civil and political offices of the Reductions were
vested in a cacique, or war chief, a corregidor, for the adminis­
tration of justice, with regidores and alcaldes for the police duty
and the direction of the public works. The usual punishment
for a first offence against the laws was a private reprimand by
the missionaries ; a second infraction was visited with a public
penance at the door of the church, as among the first Christians ;
the third time the offender received a few strokes from a whip.
And still, during the existence of this republic, through a space
of one century and a half, hardly a single instance has been
found of an Indian incurring the last-mentioned punishment
“AH their faults,” says Father Charlevoix, “are the faults of

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

children; for such they remain, in many respects, during most
of their lives, especially displaying all the good qualities of
little ones.”* Muratori paints this Christian republic in a
single word, when he entitles his description of it, “ Happy
Christianity.” Even Voltaire was obliged to confess that “ the
establishments formed in Paraguay by the Spanish Jesuits alone
seemed Io be, in some respects, the triumph of humanity "
While the heart of Pope Paul V. was gladdened by these
tidings from the New World, he was forced into a struggle
against the obstinate resistance of an Italian State, which had
always before been obedient to the Holy See. The Venetian
Senate bad issued a decree forbidding the alienation of secular
property in favor of the churches or the clergy. It had ordered
the arrest of two ecclesiastics and brought their case before a
civil tribunal ; at the same time prohibiting the building of
churches, abbeys and hospitals, without permission from the
secular authorities. Paul V. protested against these measures,
and the Senate refusing to consider the protest, the Pope, with
the assent of the Sacred College, published a sentence of ex­
communication against the Republic (April 17, a. d. 1606). The
Senate, far from yielding, declared the sentence unjust, decreed
the severest penalties against the publication of the Papal sen­
tence, and tried to induce the clergy to continue the public
discharge of their sacred functions. The greater part of the
regular clergy quitted the country, obedient to the voice of
the successor of St. Peter. The Theatines, the Capuchins
and the Jesuits were banished from the Venetian territory. By
the side of this material struggle arose one of a spiritual char­
acter. Paolo Sarpi, whom we have already had occasion to
mention, was charged by the Doge and the Senate to defend
the rights of the Republic. This duty he undertook to perform
by attacking the Pontifical authority in aggressive pamphlets,
• in 1721, the Bishop of Buenos Ayres, Don Pedro Faxardo, could report to Philip V,,
of Spain: “Among these tribe# of Indians, naturally inclined to the practice :f the worst
vices, innocence is eo universal, that I do not believe a single mortal #in is ever commi lUd
io these Reductions."

PAUL V. (A. D. 1605-1821),

265

which were distributed among the people generally. Baroniui
and Bellarmioe met the violent attacks of the rebellious monk
with an overwhelming array of learning and unanswerable
argument. Paul V. thought for a moment of trying the force
of arms against the Venetian Republic. But he feared that the
Senate might profit by that act of rigor to drag the whole State
into the ranks of the Reformation. In this delicate juncture,
Henry IV. offered his mediation to the Sovereign Pontiff, who
gladly accepted it. Preliminary negotiations were opened, and
so skilfully carried on by the French king’s ministers at Rome
and Venice, that in 1007 the difficulty was definitively settled.
The Pope consented to recall the censures he had pronounced.
The Venetian Senate, on the other hand, annulled its decrees
against the Holy See, restored the religious who had been ex­
pelled from Venice at the time of the interdict, except the
Jesuits, who were not recalled until some time after, and with­
drew the offensive laws which had given rise to the whole
discussion.
6. The celebrated ‘‘Gunpowder Plot” had just been dis­
covered in England, and the attention of the Sovereign Pontiff
was attracted by the persecutions to which it gave rise against
the Catholics. The king, James I., was born in the bosom of
Catholicity. This was enough to awake the suspicions ot (he
schismatics, that he cherished a hidden affection for the faith
of his fathers ; and they left no means untried to ruin the Cath­
olics in his estimation. The Gunpowder Plot occurred very
opportunely for their purpose. Under the parliament house
was a large unoccupied cellar, into which an opening had been
made from beneath an adjoining house ; here, on the day before
the session, when the king, with all the nobility and both houses
of parliament, was expected to be present, were discovered
thirty-six barrels of powder and a quantity of combustible
matter. The royal officers also seized a man whom they found
in charge, with slow matches and a horse saddled and ready to
3y as soon as the train should have been fired. The sensation
to which this discovery gave rise throughout the whole kiosr-

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GENERAL HISTORY OP THE CHURCH.

doin may be imagined. The chief conspirators were arrested
They were Percy and Catesby, both of noble lineage, both
urged to the deed by political and personal motives entirely
foreign to religion. This last point was not clearly proved in
the trial; and yet the Protestants industriously spread the
report that all the Catholics in the kingdom had shared in the
odious conspiracy, and that its authors were the missionaries.
The last assertion was aimed at the Jesuits who had come to
England to combat the schism. They wore accordingly per­
secuted with the utmost rigor, and more than thirty priests,
religious and secular, Englishmen and foreigners, died under
the torture. The Protestants might then exult in the success
of their plans to make the Catholics odious to the king. More
thorough and accurate investigation has since shown that the
“Gunpowder Plot” was the work of one of James’ ministers,
who, with some of the courtiers, adopted this means of exciting
the king’s resentment against those of his subjects who had re­
mained true to the Catholic faith. This hostility against the
Catholics was likewise displayed in the parliamentary decree
requiring every English subject to take the famous “ Oath
of Allegiance.” By this oath they were bound to obey the
king, notwithstanding any sentence of excommunication and
deposition pronounced by the Pope, whose right to exer­
cise any authority in England was utterly rejected. Paul V.
immediately dispatched two briefs to England, forbidding
the Catholics, under the most severe penalties, to take the
required oath (a. d. 1607). The persecution was accordingly
carried on with renewed violence ; the wretched victims were
pioscribed and cast into prison; many were driven to seek in a
strange land the freedom they no longer enjoyed at home.
7. Still, amid all the serious cares of Paul V., Catholicity,
under the standard of the Papacy, was steadily winning fresh
triumphs. The King of Congo, lately converted to the faith,
sent to the Pope a solemn request for missionaries to teach his
people. In Poland, where Protestantism had ruled for a seasen,
Sigismund 111. was now following the impulse given by Catho

PAUL V. (A. Ü. U05-16Î1).

267

licity to the whole of Europe. He became king of Sweden by
the death of his father, John (a. d. 1592). On his accession—
though he had promised to uphold the privileges of the Reformed
churches, and to leave all his subjects in the enjoyment of full
freedom of conscience—all the hopes of the Catholics at once
revived, while the Protestants were equally alarmed. They
began a system of formidable opposition; but still Sigismund
continued to favor the Catholic cause, and if he did not succeed
in securing its complete triumph, he still showed the vital
power of Catholicism in that period of religious reaction. It
was to his influence that Poland owed the preservation of her
faith ; in that kingdom Protestantism was utterly annihilated
(1607). In Germany, where each sovereign assumed the right
of introducing into his States a religion according to his fancy,
the Catholic princes felt especially bound to bring back their
subjects to the Roman communion. Numerous conversions
were witnessed in all parts of the land; this was the reaction
against the Lutheran movement which had marked the opening
of the preceding reign ; Catholicity now began to make rapid
progress in all directions. Switzerland, the soil in which Cal­
vin had sown his cheerless and cruel doctrines, seemed farther
removed than any other province from the influence of a return
to Catholic truth. But God was preparing for her an apostolic
missionary, whose mild and captivating speech, whose amiable
and winning character, inexhaustible meekness and unwearied
zeal, should renew among the mountains of Chablais and on the
borders of Switzerland the wonders of conversion which marked
the Apostolic age. We shall yet have occasion to speak mor
*·
in detail of this wonder of the seventeenth century, of this
saintly bishop and perfect gentleman, St. Francis of Sales, who
united in his person the highest degree of virtue and learning,
and who was the friend of St. Vincent de Paul.
8. But France was the field in which religion won its most
splendid triumphs. Whatever Protestant writers may say to
the contrary, the conversion of Henry IV. was sincere, if a con­
version may be judged by its visible results. Since his abju·

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

ration in the church of St. Denis, Henry had openly proclaimed
his religious tendencies. His private instructions to the French
ambassadors at Rome abound in the most unequivocal expies«ions of love and veneration for the Holy See. We have men­
tioned his efficacious mediation in the difficulty between Rome
and Venice. We afterward find him seeking counsel from the
Pope for the management of his political relations with Spain,
confiding to him all his views, in which he displays a keen
penetration and a masterly comprehension of the general con­
dition of Europe. In the year 1598, he announced his in­
tention of restoring the Church to a condition as flourishing
as that which it enjoyed a century before. He recalled the
Jesuits, and promised to support them in spite of the parlia­
ments. The edict of Nantes, it is true, seemed to the Catholics
to favor the Huguenots beyond measure. But the critical histo­
rian will perhaps find in this act of royal clemency, only a meas­
ure of pacification which should give to France a moment’s calm
after so many storms. Had Henry IV. known how to govern him­
self as he governed his people, he would unquestionably have
been the greatest of kings. France, degraded and bleeding un­
der the last of the Valois, rested at length under his paternal
sceptre. Henry VI. was the monarch of his people’s heart ;
they spoke with one voice to bless his rule. But this concert
of praise was changed into a cry of grief and despair, when, on
the 14th of May, a. d. 1010, Henry IV. fell by the knife of the
infamous Ravaillac. All Europe joined in the wail of France,
and the great king had the glory of being mourned even by his
enemies. Pope Paul V. gave free expression to his grief. In
a consistory, convoked as soon as the sad intelligence reached
Romo, the Pope expressed all the anguish of his heart at an
event so calamitous for the Church. He wrote to Mary de
Medici, exhorting that princess to defend the faith, and to bring
up her son, Louis XIII. in sentiments of true love for religion.
“ which has lost,” said the Pope, “ so powerful a protector in
Henry IV."
9. Paul V. continued to watch with zeal over the work of

GREGORY V (A. D. I «21-1633).

269

.nor... reform, eo happily began in the Council of Trent. This re­
form was displayed by practical résulta and appeared in the foun­
dation and discipline of a nnmber of monastic institutione. No
othei Pope ever approved a greater number of religious orders
and various congregations. The sisters of “ Our Lady of Bor­
deaux,” the “ Ursulines of Paris,” the Pauline Congregation,
the Congregation of Priests of the Oratory, established by
Cardinal De Berulle, the Nuns of the Visitation, instituted by
St. F rancis of Sales, all received their confirmation at his hands.
This great Pontiff died on the 21st of January, a. d. 1621, after
a reign of fifteen years. Paul V. is one of the glories of the
Catholic Church. In his Pontificate occurred the celebrated
case of Galileo, which the enemies of the Church have always
used as a ground of calumny against the Pope. The truth is
that Paul V. allowed Galileo to maintain his theory as an astro­
nomical hypothesis ; but, at the same time, condemned the de­
cided and peremptory tone with which the learned astronomer
proclaimed his discovery, and claimed to rest it upon texts of
Sacred Scripture.

§ II. Pontificate

of

Gregory XV. (February 9, a. d. 1621—
July 8, 1623).

10. Cardinal Alexander Ludovisio was elected to succeed
Paul V. on the 9th of February, a.d. 1621, and took the name
of Gregory XV. One of his first acts was to raise the bishop­
ric of Paris to the rank of a metropolitan see, at the request
of Louis XIII. The new Pope had always shown the greatest
zeal for the conversion of infidels and heretics; this zeal in­
spired the design of founding the College of the Propaganda
(1622). The origin of the Propaganda is properly to be traced
to an edict of Gregory XIII., in virtue of which a certain num­
ber of cardinals were charged with the direction of missions to
the East, and catechisms were ordered to be printed in the lessknown languages. But the institution was neither firiniy estab­
lished nor provided with the requisite funds. Gregory XV

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

gave it ft constitution, contributed the necessary funds from his
private purse, and as it met a want, the existence of which was
really felt and acknowledged, its success was daily more and
more brilliant. Who does not know what the Propaganda has
done for philological learning ? But it chiefly labored, with
admirable grandeur of conception and energy, to fulfil its great
mission- -the propagation of the Catholic faith—with the most
splendid results. Urban VIII., the immediate successor of
Gregory XV., completed the work by the addition of the
“ Collegium de Propaganda Fide,” where youth are trained in
the study of all the foreign languages, to bear the name of
Christ to every nation on the globe. The year which wit­
nessed the establishment of the Propaganda was also signalized
by the canonization of four saints, who enjoy a well-deserved
celebrity in the Catholic Church—St. Ignatius of Loyola, St.
Francis Xavier, St. Theresa, and St. Philip Neri.
11. But while the Sovereign Pontiff decreed that public
worship should be paid to the founder of the Society of Jesus
and to his illustrious disciple, the Jesuits were driven from
Holland and forbidden to return, on pain of being arrested as
enemies and obliged to pay a ransom (a. d. 1622). This mea­
sure was the more inexplicable, as the constitution of Holland
contained an article granting freedom of conscience to all. “ But
it has always ‘been the lot of the Jesuits,” says a recent his­
torian, “ under every heretical government, to bear the weight of
all the hatred and prejudice aimed at the Catholic Church.”
But from an opposite motive, the Emperor Ferdinand II., in
order to root out heresy from his States, forbade the exercise
of the Protestant worship at Prague, removed its ministers, anci
placed the university in charge of the Jesuits. The zeal
of that religious prince did not stop here ; he also caused the
expulsion of the Protestant ministers from the rest of Bohemia,
frem Moravia and part of Silesia.
12. Duke Maximilian, elector of Bavaria, and a zealous
defender of Catholicity, having obtained possession of Heidel­
berg. presented its rich Palatine library to the Pope. Even

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271

before the conquest of that city, Gregory XV. had, through his
legate, requested this favor of the duke. The elector readily
promised to grant the wish of the Roman Pontiff. As soon as
the news of the taking of Heidelberg reached the legate, he
claimed the fulfilment of the promise. He knew that the manu­
scripts were of inestimable value, and he sent a special request
to Tilly to protect the library from injury during the pillage.
The Pope then dispatched Doctor Leone Allacci, scriptor of
the Vatican, to Germany, to take possession of the literary
treasure. Gregory was overjoyed ; he declared that the ac­
quisition of the Heidelberg library was one of the most fortu­
nate events of his Pontificate; one of the most honorable and
advantageous to the Holy See, to the Church and to learning
generally ; it was also glorious, he said, to the Bavarian name,
that so precious a spoil should be preserved in Rome, the cen­
tre of the world (a. d. 1623).
13. Another fact of no less importance marked the Pontifi­
cate of Gregory XV.—the reform of the old religious orders in
France. He saw considerable abuses to be corrected and the
necessity of carrying out the great moral reform of Paul XV.
was becoming daily more evident. Louis XIII.. who deserved
the surname of the " Just,” was convinced of this necessity.
He requested, and obtained, from the Pope, a brief to put an
end to the disorders which scandalized the faithful, and in­
trusted his chief almoner, Cardinal De La Ronhefoucault, with
the delicate and difficult duty. The virtuous prelate formed a
council composed of a Benedictine, a Carthusian, a Dominican,
a Minor, a Jesuit, a Cistercian, and of several others of solid
and enlightened piety. He met with a strong opposition, which
gave a sad but convincing proof that long habits of relaxation
are fearfully destructive of primitive fervor and piety. Still,
by means of prudence, courage and zeal, the cardinal succeeded
in restoring regular discipline to a flourishing state in all reli­
gious houses. Gregory XV., who had seconded his efforts with
all the mean? at his command, did not live to witness the suc­
cess of the glorious undertaking. The *Pontiff died at. the age

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

of seventy years, after n short but prosperous reign (July 8,
4. d. 1623).’
14. The first half of the seventeenth century was richly
blessed with holy works and saintly characters. While in the
distant Indies the blessed Peter Claver, a Jesuit, was faithfully
fulfilling his vow “ to be the slave of the negroes” (a. d. 1624),
in Spain, St. Joseph of Calasanz was founding the regular clergy
of the pious schools, scholarum piarum (1017), for the benefit
of young men, but especially of the poor. St. Fidelis of Sig­
maringen, the apostle of the Grisons, fell by the weapons of
the Calvinists, a martyr to his zeal (1622). “Forgive them,
Lord,” ho uttered as he expired, “for they know not what they
do.” At the same time, St. Josaphat, archbishop of Poloczk,
in Lithuania, also gave his blood for the faith, and was mur­
dered by the inhabitants of Muscovy, whom he had come to
convert (November 16, 1623). Thus, at the very time when
the Lutheran heresy flattered itself that it might soon witness
the obsequies of the Church, that divine spouse of Christ was dis­
playing a wonderful vitality and wealth of good works in every
part of the world ; in the Indies, in Japan, in China, in the
New World, in Spain, in Italy, in Germany and in Poland. It
was like a new outpouring of the spirit of truth which ever
abides in her and which had inspired the decrees of the Council
of Trent. The Carmelite nuns of St. Theresa’s reform were
established in Paris in 1604, and the barefooted friars of the
same order, in 1611. The French clergy was illustrated, at
this epoch, by a simple priest, who rose up to be its glory and
a prodigy of Christian charity with which his name is synony­
mous. St. Vincent de Paul, born in 1576, at Poï, in the diocese
of Acqs, was now laying the foundation of the truly apostolic
congregation of St. Lazarus, or of the “ Priests of the Mission,"
and giving a foretaste of bis life of marvels.
15. The same period witnessed the death of St. Francis of
Sales, so thoroughly French in mind, in language and in heart.
Francis was born on the 21st of August, a. d. 1567, at the
castle of Sales, three leagues from Annecy, and trained by a

GREGORY XV. <A

D. 1621-1833).

278

pious mother in sentiments of the most tender piety. Enter­
ing the ecclesiastical state at an early age, he undertook the
conversion of the province of Chablais, where his efforts were
crowned with the most splendid success. lie was soon after
placed in the episcopal see of Geneva, which he found thickly
peopled with Calvinists, upon whom he at once began to exercise
his disinterested zeal. Henry IV., hearing that the income of
the see of Geneva was very limited, directed that a pension
of a thousand crowns should be offered to the bishop in hie
name. “ Tell his Majesty,” replied Francis, “ that I feel toe
much honored by his gift to refuse it, but that, not being in
immediate want of money, and being utterly unable to keep it,
I beg his permission to leave it in the hands of his treasurer,
to be drawn as necessity shall require." Henry, on receiving
this answer, said to his ambassador: “I have never been
better thanked for a pension than by the Bishop of Geneva
The example of the holy prelate’s life and the resistless uncti >u
of his words brought back the Calvinists in crowds to the true
fold. “lean convince the heretics," said Cardinal Duperron,
“ but it takes the Bishop of Geneva to convert them." The
affectionate piety of the saint appears in every work from his
graceful pen. Henry IV. requested of him a book that should
show virtue in an attractive light. St. Francis answered the
royal wish by his immortal work, the “ Introduction to a Devout
Life,” which was received with universal applause and trans­
lated into every European language. The King of France
declared that the author had surpassed his expectation. Mary
de Medici sent a jewelled copy to James I. who. although a
Protestant, read it with the greatest delight and asked his
bishops “ why they could not write with the same unction ?’’
The treatise on the “Love of God," fit sequel to the “Intro­
duction,” filled the measure of affection ami love with which
St. Francis was regarded by all. The number of souls saved
by these two works is known only in heaven. The holy
bishop, in concert with St. Jane Frances Frémiot, baroness of
Chantal, founded the Order of the Visitation, which has pro
Vol. IV.—18

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

served its fervor and regularity through every storm, and still
continues to edify the Church. St. Francis of Sales died on the
28th of December, 1622, rich in glory and merits. His virtues
recall those of the greatest bishops whose names the Church
holds in veneration.

§ III. Pontificate

of

Urban VIII. (August 6,
June 29, 1644)

a. d.

1623—

16. Cardianal Mafleo Barberini, sprung from an old and
illustrious family of Florence, was elected Pope on the 6th of
August, a. D. 1623, and took the name of Urban VIII. The
new Pope, by his distinguished love of letters, his mild and
amiable disposition, his patronage of scholars, and his collec­
tion of Latin hymns, in which the graces of poetry minister to
the most tender outpourings of piety, had won among the
learned the surname of the “ Attic Bee.” His election was
received with universal favor, and the zeal which he displayed
for the interests of religion confirmed the hopes inspired by
his promotion. The Pontificate of Urban VIII. was contem­
poraneous with a series of events which threatened the peace
of Europe. In France, Louis XIII. had intrusted the manage­
ment of affairs to a man whose bold and unbending mind was
to direct, with the hand of a master, the destinies of the world.
Richelieu, bishop of Luçon and afterward cardinal, was about
to rule for a quarter of a century, in the name of his royal
master, and to prepare France for the splendid reign of Louis
XIV. In England, James I left his throne to his son Charles I.
(1625), who inaugurated a reign which was to end upon the
scaflold, by a blind favoritism toward the Duke of Buckingham,
a frivolous, ambitious and narrow-minded minister, whose inca­
pacity was opening a gulf beneath the throne, into which the
royal power was doomed to sink. In Spain, Olivares, prime
minister of Philip IV., was endeavoring te oppose his influence
to that of Richelieu.
17. All these elements of dissension, which were working

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275

in the bosom of European society, combined to give to the
Thirty Years’ War, which broke out in Germany, a character
of fierceness and obstinacy without a parallel in history. The
struggle was opened by a revolt of the Bohemian Protestants,
under the elector-palatine, Frederick V. (a. d. 1618). The
emperor, Ferdinand II., supported by the Spaniards and the
Catholic League of Germany, defeated the rebels in the battle
of Prague. Their leader was deprived of his electorate, which
the conqueror bestowed upon Maximilian, duke of Bavaria
(1620). The contest seemed to be at an end ; but it was only
in its first stage, called the “ Palatine War." The powers of
the North took part with the German Protestants. Christian
,
IV.
king of Denmark, marched against the emperor ( 16241629), and this phase of the struggle was called the “ Danish
period." The “Swedish period” was opened by the brilliant
exploits of Gustavus Adolphus (1630-1635). At length
Richelieu threw the resources of his great mind into the scales
and opened the “French period” (1635-1648). It does not
enter into the scope of our work to give a detailed account of
the events which belong to the political history of Europe.
The Thirty Years’ War, which began on a religious ground, was
not carried out on any determined plan, nor to the particular
end for which it had been undertaken. No man, in the begin­
ning, could foresee its extent or its real bearing. From all
directions and on all occasions, it was constantly receiving new
elements of agitation and revenge; every personal enmity,
every political altercation, was merged in this great quarrel,
and never was the truth of the axiom more truly demonstrated,
that “ war is fed by war.”
18. Amid the general conflagration, Italy had her own pri­
vate grounds of fear. The house of Austria had been growing
in power since the time of Charles V., and was beginning to
exercise a marked influence on the general interests of Europe
Its alliance with Spain added to its already too threatening
preponderance. The Alpine passes were held by Spain ; Aus­
tria seized those which lead to the German States. The minor

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principalities of Italy deemed it a threat to be thus surrounded
hemmed in by the two formidable powers. Venice and Savoy
concluded a treaty, offensive and defensive, with France, in
virtue of which the house of Austria was to be forced, by their
united power, to give up the passes and the territory of the
Grisons. At the same time the Pope was chosen as mediator
and supreme arbiter between the parties. The Pontifical troops
garrisoned the fortified places which caused so much fear and
rivalry. Urban strove to keep the balance equal among so
many opposing claims and to secure the triumph of peace. But
Richelieu, whose foreign policy was wholly directed to the
abasement of the house of Austria, refused to adopt the peace­
ful measures proposed by the Sovereign Pontiff. Regardless
of the Pope’s complaints, he began to act on the offensive in
Italy, marched French troops suddenly into the Valteline, and
drove the Papal garrisons out of the fortified towns. Spite of
all his leaning to France, Urban VIII. possessed too much
sense of his high dignity to allow the expulsion of his garrisons.
He ordered troops to be raised and to march into the Milanese,
for the express purpose of retaking the lost places, with the
cooperation of the Spaniards. The French minister found him­
self in the anomalous position of a cardinal at war with the
Sovereign Pontiff. He saw the danger of such a position, and
hastened to get out of it. A treaty of peace was soon pro­
claimed between the belligerent powers.
19. All Richelieu’s genius was now called to the wants of
France. Buckingham had been preparing a formidable invasion
to help the French Calvinists. In July, a. d. 1627, he ap­
peared off the coast of France with a large fleet ; he landed in
the isle of Rhé, occupied it, and laid siege to the citadel of St.
Martin. The Huguenots were soon in arms to second this
movement in their favor. The centre of their power was La
Rochelle, which had been granted to them by the edict of
Nantes. Richelieu, whose genius unfolded its resources with
redoubled vigor in moments of difficulty, took the city in Oc­
tober, 1628. The principal fortress of Protestantism in France

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277

had fallen. The Huguenots were obliged to receive terms from
the conqueror : they ceased to be a power, and allowed Richelieu to act with more freedom in the general concerns of Europe.
It was then that he began to take a really active share in the
Thirty Years’ War, which was ended by the treaty of West­
phalia, in 1648, and completed the downfall of the Austrian
power.
20. Urban VIII. profited by the political struggles which
shook all Europe, to increase the influence of the Holy See. by
making it the mediator between the contending powers. The
events of his time afforded him daily opportunities of display­
ing his firmness, zeal, and vigilance. His career was vast, im­
mense, and he was ever equal to his mission in that stormy
epoch. The duchy of Urbino, after the death of the last duke,
who was childless, escheated to the Holy See, notwithstanding
the jealousy of the other Italian States, which were greatly
troubled at the successive additions made to the Pontifical
States.
21. While the political world resounded with the clash of
arms, a new struggle was shaking the religious world, and was
gradually assuming the character of a heresy, the more danger­
ous in proportion as its partisans pretended to remain in close
communion with the centre of unity. The other sects openly
professed their contempt for ecclesiastical authority. Luther,
Calvin and Zwingli gloried in having broken asunder the
bonds which held them to the Roman communion; the Jansen­
ists, on the contrary, wished to be of the Church, in spite of
the Church, and would never acknowledge that they had sepa­
rated themselves from it. Cornelius Jansenius was born in
Holland in 158ύ. He began his studies at Utrecht and
finished them in the University of Louvain. He studied the­
ology under the nephew of the famous Baius and under James
Janson, two zealous propagators of Baianism. The young stu­
dent was so much taken up with the great question of grace,
then discussed in all the schools, that he read the works of St.
Augustine ten times successively, and summed up the fruit of

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

his reading in an enormous folio volume, which he published
under the title of “Augustinus,” after his promotion to the
bishopric of Ypres. He died before the publication of the
whole work, declaring in his will that he submitted his doctrine
to the judgment of the Holy See.
22. The “Augustinus” is divided into three parts, which
treat of grace, free will, original sin, and predestination. Jan·
senius lays down the principle, that the human will is not free
According to his theory, the human will is taken captive and
held in bonds by the desire after earthly things, and is unable,
by its own strength, to raise itself from that condition ; grace
must come to its assistance. This impotence, according to
Jansenius, arises from the fact that the will is weakened by
concupiscence, which draws it away from what is good into the
opposite extreme, so that man can no longer will efficaciously.
With this doctrine of the weakness of the will, Jansenius main
tains the irresistible force of grace. Grace, he says, is always
efficacious, and it is not in the power of man to avoid or to
resist its action. The system contained in this work has since
been summed up by Dr. Cornet, syndic of the theological faculty
of Paris, in these five propositions : “ 1st. Some of God’s com­
mandments are impossible to just men, spite of their good will
and endeavors. 2d. In the state of fallen nature, we never
resist interior grace. 3d. For merit or demerit, there is no need
of a freedom exempt from the necessity of acting ; it is enough
to have a liberty free from constraint. 4th. The semi-Pelagians
were heretics only in so far as they maintained that man can
resist interior and prevenient grace. 5th. Jesus Christ did not
die and did not shed His blood for all men.” Such is the doctrinal
substance of the “ Augustinus.”
23. On its first appearance at Louvain (a. d. 1640), it
excited, on one side, the most enthusiastic admiration, on the
other, the most merited censure. A Frenchman, John Duvergier,
of Hauranne, so well known as the Abbé de Saint-Cyran, intro­
duced the “ Augustinus” into France and labored to spread its
doctrines. SaintrCyran was an innovator imbued with the

ORBAN VIII. (A D. 1023-1044.).

279

spirit of Calvinism, but a secret and skilful innovator, who knew
how to prepare remotely the elements of the sect which he
wished to draw around him. He soon had as proselytes the
family of Arnauid d’Andilly, whose two daughters, celebrated
as Mothers Angélique and Agnes, directed the abbey of Pori
Royal. Whether or not there was, at this time, between SaintCyran, Jansenius and other believers in their doctrines, a secret
association, a plan of attack against the Church, drawn up by
the sectaries at Bourg-Fontaine, is one of those problems which
history has not yet satisfactorily solved. However this may
have been, it is certain that every thing was made ready in
France for the long-continued scandals which appeared with
the work of Jansenius. With a view to silencing the discus­
sions which were daily growing more, bitter, Urban VIII. pub­
lished a decree forbidding the reading of the “ Augustinus.”
The University of Louvain refused to receive this Pontifical
order. It was in vain that the Pope addressed a second brief
to the refractory doctors, representing the scandal of their
disobedience ; the second appeal was not more effectual than
the first. Leaving the rebels to follow their self-willed course,
Urban determined to-pronounce a solemn and decisive judgment.
The work of Jansenius and the writings on both sides were
placed in the charge of the holy office, that they might be
examined with the utmost care and attention.
24. On the report of the consumers, and by his own per­
sonal examination, the Pope found the “Augustinus” con­
demnable in two points : first, because it treated the question
of grace in a manner contrary to the formal prohibition of the
Holy See; and in matter, since nearly every page renewed the
errors already condemned in the writings of Bai us. Therefore,
on the 6th of March, a. d. 1642, the Pope issued the bull, In
Eminenti, condemning the work. “ After a thorough exami­
nation of the work entitled Augustinus,'' said the Pope, “ it has
been found to contain a formal expression of several proposi­
tions already condemned by Our predecessors, which it teaches
co the great scandal of Catholics, without any respect for the

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

authority of the Holy See. With the intention of applying
a suitable remedy to this disorder which is agitating all Chris­
tian society, and which tends to the ruin of the Catholic faith.
We. of Our own accord, of Our certain knowledge and in the
fulness of the Apostolic power, do, in all things and for all time,
by this present constitution, which shall have force of perpetuity,
confirm and approve the constitutions of Our predecessors,
Popes Pius and Gregory. In virtue of the same authority,
We, by these presents, absolutely prohibit, and wish that all
hold as prohibited, the work known as the “ Augustinus,” as
containing and renewing, to Our certain knowledge, the articles,
opinions and sentiments censured and condemned by the said
constitutions. Moreover, We command, on pain of incurring
all the penalties and censures contained in the constitution of
Pius, Our predecessor, that none of the faithful, of what rank
or condition soever, presume to speak, write, or dispute, con­
cerning the articles condemned in this bock. Absolution from
the censures incurred by the refractory shall be exclusively
reserved to the Sovereign Pontiff, except in danger of death.”
The judgment of the Roman Church, to which Jansenius,
on his death-bed, declared his submission, did not meet
with the same obedience from his disciples. The University
of Louvain received the decision only after many delays and
evasions. In France, the Archbishop of Paris, John Francis
de Gondi, had silenced both parties even before the decision of
the Holy See. As soon as he received the bull, he ordered its
reception throughout his whole diocese. The faculty of Paris
supported his endeavors by forbidding the condemned propo­
sitions to be maintained ; still they had many partisans, chief
among whom were SaintrCyran and the young doctor Arnauld.
The bull In Eminenti had been sent to all the Catholic churches
in the world, and was everywhere received with submission
and respect. The King of Spain, as sovereign of the Nether­
lands, commanded the doctors of Louvain to follow this
example and to put an end to their scandalous opposition. But
the partisans of the new error paid as little heed to the royal

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281

order as to the Pontifical censures. Subterfuge and discussion
were multiplied and prolonged in the University of Louvain.
25. Urban VIII. was preparing again to fulminate the eccle­
siastical censures against the rebel theologians ; but he was not
to see the end of those troubles which were destined to disturb
the whole of the seventeenth century. Of all the heresies,
Jansenism has shown itself the most hypocritically obstinate.
Its spirit more or less pervaded society, especially in France,
and the baneful error entirely disappeared only in the great
storm which, at the close of the eighteenth century, convulsed
France and the world. Urban VIII. died on the 29th of July,
a. d. 1644.
Louis XIII. had gone before him to the grave
(May 16, 1643), after displaying upon the throne the ex­
ample of Christian virtues. His contemporaries called him the
“Just.” To the most fervent prayers he owed the birth of
the royal infant, Louis XIV., who was destined to raise his
father’s kingdom to such a height of glory. In gratitude for
this favor of Heaven, Louis XIII. placed his kingdom undet
the protection of the Blessed *Virgin (August 15, 1638).
He died in the arms of St. Vincent de Paul. His minister,
Richelieu, had passed away some months before him (December
4, 1642). Richelieu was born to command ; he knew how
to plan and to execute great things. The two great objects
which he had steadily kept in view during his long administra­
tion were accomplished. The Calvinists had been crushed in
France. The house of Austria, assailed, at once, in all its pos­
sessions, in Alsatia, in the Netherlands, in Italy and Catalonia,
during the French period of the Thirty Years' War, had lost its
paramount influence in European councils. Four years more,
and the sword of Condé was to finish the great work of Riche­
lieu, when the victories of Rocroy, Friburg, Nordlingen and
Lens, had forced the Imperialists to sign the treaty of Westphalia,
which put an end to the Thirty Years' War and to the prepon­
• To Ibis event may bo traced tho origin of tho yearly procession ceJobratol on ti e feurt
of tbo Assumption, sod known as "Le vœu do Louis XIIL”: it is still kept in nun*
churches in Frutce

282

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derance of Austria (1648). The imperial colossus which, since
the time of Charles V., threatened to crush Europe, was now,
according to the prophetic expression of Henry IV.. but the
statue of Nabuchodonosor, with feet of clay and a head of gold.
Looking only at these great results, we might be inclined to
pronounce the ministry of Richelieu in every way worthy of
the eulogium of history and the admiration of posterity. Bui
genius, however great and lofty, always betrays some weak
point by which it pays its tribute to human nature. Richelieu
thought that, by exaggerating the power of royalty, he was
doing his country a service. He took upon himself the task of
crushing the power of the nobility, to aggrandize the throne
upon its ruins. This was a deep political error. When there
was no longer any intermediary power between the king and
the people, a question of principle was substituted for a ques­
tion of persons. Popular sovereignty stood face to face with
royal sovereignty, and its accession was signalized by the ruin
of France. All is of a piece in that history !* The executions
of Marshal de Marillac and of the youthful De Thou were so
many unjust and uncalled-for cruelties which all the lustre of
his glory cannot hide in oblivion.
26. While the world was pre-occupied with the movements
of belligerent powers and the grand manoeuvres of politi­
cians, Christian charity was silently working its highest won­
ders. A humble priest had accepted the mission of healing
every wound, of soothing every pang caused by the war. St.
Vincent de Paul was the support of the wasted provinces of
Lorraine, Champagne and Picardy. He sent relief to the
Catholics of England, Ireland and Scotland, who were suffering
under Protestant oppression. In his tireless zeal, he hastened
to relieve every pain. The treasures of charity were multiplied
in his hands. He harbored the little ones forsaken by their
mothers in the natural order, and thus became their father in
• The heroic blood of the Montmorencys, which Richelieu sacrificed to a false and di*
MtroiK theory, left upon the purple of the cardinal a main which time cannot efface.

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283

thi order of grace. He established hospitals for the sick, the
aged and the incurable ; and, to perpetuate for all time the
many fruitful works with which he had blessed his age, he
founded that admirable institution, the “ Sisters of Charity,"
the wonder of the world, the living evidence of the divinity of
the Catholic religion. The congregation of St. Lazarus, also of
his foundation, was, at the same time, sending missionaries to
the Christian slaves in Barbary, and on the shores of India
and Madagascar. The heart of St. Vincent took in the whole
world. St. Francis Regis was at this period the apost) ■ uf the
mountain districts of Vivarais, Cevennes, Vélay, while Michel
Le Nobletz evangelized the people of Brittany. Adrien Bourdoise and Claude Bernard, so widely known as the · Puor
Priest,” recalled the holy life and pious toil of the clergy of the
first ages of the Church The venerable pastor of St. Sulpice,
Father Olier, was laying the foundation, in his parish, of the
seminary which still bears its name and whose rule has become
‘hat of nearly every seminary in France. The spirit of religion
still animated society, spite of the ravages of Protestantism.
The Church was still the rich field of the Heavenly Husband­
man, bringing forth hundredfold fruits of grace and life.

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CHAPTER VIII.
HISTORICAL REVIEW

OF

THE

SEVENTH

PERIOD.

1 Protestantism. Its development favored by human passions.— 2. Principe»
of Protestantism in their application to the political and social world.—3.
Council of Trent.—4. The Jesuits.—5. Their constitution.—6. Their hie­
rarchy.— 7. Labors of the Jesuits.—8. Contemporaneous orders. Congre­
gation of the Benedictines of St. Maurus.—9. Foreign missions.—10. The­
ologians.—11. Commentaries on Sacred Scripture.—12. Ascetic works.—13
Art still subsidiary to the service of the Church.

1. The prominent and controlling feature of the seventh
period of the history of the Church is Protestantism. We have
sufficiently enlarged npon the circumstances which favored its
development, and pointed out the nature and dangerous conse­
quences of its teachings. The concurrence of the great events
which changed the society of the middle-ages ; which, by the
revival of letters, gave a new impulse to the human mind ;
which opened, in the discovery of America, unknown paths to
the ambition of adventurers and to the genius of commerce;
which gave, in the invention of printing, a medium of rapid
interchange of thought between different nations ; which, by
the use of fire-arms, changed the ancient mode of warfare, thus
multiplying, in every quarter of Europe, those bands of merce­
nary troops, ready to sell their blood to the highest bidder—
these causes unquestionably helped the progress ot Luther’s
errors. It seemed to be the impression that all must be new
in an age and in a society upon which had dawned, at once,
the light of so many new discoveries. In Germany, Luther
appeared, in some sort, the Columbus of the:logy. Yet serious
and reflecting minds were not misled by these deceitful appear­
ances. They soon perceived that the so-called Reformation

HISTORICAL REVIEW OP THE SEVENTH PERIOL

owed its success only to the complicity of all the worst pas­
sions. “ The success of the Protestants," says Bossuet, “if
not surprising, nor is it at all honorable to themselves. The
causes of that success could not have been more natural not
more human. What wonder that heresies which favor the
inclinations of corrupt nature should have spread with great
rapidity ? Why should we be surprised that, when the doors
of the cloisters were opened, when priests, monks and nuns
found themselves at liberty to marry, many allowed themselves
to full into the snare set by concupiscence ? When men were
offered full liberty to dispense with the hardest obligations of
the ecclesiastical laws, such as fasting and penance, what
miracle that carnal souls, with which the Church was at that
time filled, should have been disposed to give a willing ear to
such carnal doctrines ? Is it, again, a miracle that men who
were assailing incomprehensible mysteries, which appeared
contrary to sense and reason, should have dragged along with
them, into the ways of impiety, the curious, proud, presumptu­
ous minds, which always abound ? Is it, in fine, a matter of
astonishment, that, by the excitement of an ill-regulated zeal
against the disorders which the Church was the first to mourn,
many Christians were carried even into schism and revolt. The
new Reformers having enlisted in their cause concupiscence,
pride, vanity, a spirit of independence and imprudent zeal, and
adapted their opinions to passions so natural, so common and
so powerful, their success is not more surprising than that of
Mahomet, for it displays the same characteristics.”
2. Beside, to view the Reformation as a purely theological
dispute, would be to view it in too narrow a light. The politi­
cal and social characters of Lutheranism equally claim the
attention of the historian. When the teachings of the monk
of Wittenberg had introduced the principle of private interpre­
tation into religious questions, the Christian world of the *middle
ages, which had rallied around the See of Rome, as the centre
of all authority, gave place to a society in which incredulity
was substituted for the warmth of religious polemics. Idem

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GENERAL HISTORY OP THE CHURCH.

of liberty were gradually transferred from the sphere of religion
to that of politics. The nations of northern Europe, intoxicated
with this new spirit of independence, seemed to vie with each
other in seeking the most crooked by-ways of pride, license and
impiety. When the saving yoke of religion was thrown off,
when that curb was broken, radical ideas of liberty possessed
the masses. They were inflamed by the philosophy and the
Voltairian writings of the eighteenth century; the inconceivable
supineness of rulers allowed the work of destruction to come
to a head ; and, at a given moment, every throne was seen to
totter, some crumbled amid bloodshed, an unprecedented torrent
of crimes deluged Europe, leaving it strewn with ruins and
scaffolds. The barbarism of civilization, a thousand times more
fearful than that of the ninth and tenth centuries, threatened
every nation in the name of liberty. It seems to us that the
close connection between the two fatal epochs of the Reforma­
tion and the Revolution has been too much overlooked. The
one was the cradle of the other. Luther’s principle, applied to
the political and social world, has overturned all Europe, and
thrown it into a deep and dark gulf where it rolls in continual
convulsions, unable to find either peace or repose.
3. At the very moment when Protestantism thus invaded
the world, under a show of restoring the Church to the primi­
tive purity of its institution, a salutary reform was springing
from the midst of the Church itself, a reform promulgated by
the lawful authority, in a solemn assembly, amid the acclama­
tions of the whole world. The crying need of a council had
long been felt and its convocation was earnestly desired, but the
wars between Charles V. and Francis I. always placed new
obstacles in its way. We have seen with what persevering
energy the Papacy struggled against these ever-renewed diffi­
culties, and finally succeeded in assembling the immortal Council
..f Trent. “ It does not require a deep investigation into the
sessions of this celebrated council,” says Alzog, “to produce
the conviction that never did any synod, with more prudence,
clearness and precision, unfold and define so complete a bodv

HISTORICAL REVIEW OF THE SEVENTH PERIOD.

287

of important questions. Extremes met upon common gn find,
each tempering the other, and the result was the equilibrium
necessary for Catholic truth. The Spanish bishops and theo­
logians distinguished themselves by the wisdom with which
they managed to settle the opposition and the difficulties of all
kinds which came under various forms from the different nations.
No other assembly ever brought together a greater number of
cardinals, bishops and theologians distinguished for sincere
piety and solid learning. What happy changes, what an im­
mense advance would have been wrought in the Church, had
all their decrees been faithfully observed, according to the
desire of those virtuous representatives of Catholicity ! But
personal considerations, of policy or of ambition, unhappily pre­
vailed in some European States and prevented the adoption of
the disciplinary canons of the council. In France, the opposi­
tion proceeded from the parliaments, strongly imbued with the
principles of Gallicanism. In Spain, the decrees were always
promulgated with the accompanying restriction : " Without
prejudice to the royal prerogatives.” The opposition, in France,
was chiefly directed against the decrees relating to fines and
imprisonment, in spiritual matters to be left to the ecclesiastical
power, against those forbidding duels, concubinage, ami divorce;
those reserving the judgment of bishops to the Pope alone, and
those relating to the consent of parents deemed necessary in
France for marriages, and not required by the council, &c., &c.
4. In the great struggle between Protestantism and the
Church, the members of the old religious orders had not done
all that might have been expected from their zeal and piety.
Some had stood passive spectators of the combat; others had
even given the scandal of apostasy. The Holy Ghost, ever
abiding in the Church, then raised up a new order, called into
being by the force of circumstances, and, therefore, fitted to
meet the wants of the time. This jrder, being especially des­
tined to counterbalance the influence of Protestantism in the
Church, has always appeared an object of terror to Protestant
minds, which can view it only as an equally frightful and odious

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jugbear for mankind. Even within the pale of the Catholic
Church itself, truth and justice have not always shaped the judg­
ments formed of the illustrious order of the Jesuits, which has
awakened so many storms of hatred only because it has cvei
waged a relentless war against every evil passion. The con
stitution of the order, which is much clearer and stronger than
that of any other, may be summed up as follows :
5. The end of this society is the greater glory of God
—A. M. D. *G. its motto. Its members are to labor for
the salvation of their neighbor as for their own. Their duty
toward their neighbor they discharge by means of preaching,
missions, catechetical instructions, conferences with the heretics,
the confessional, and especially by the education of youth ; their
own perfection they seek by means of mental prayer, examination
of conscience, the reading of ascetical works and frequent com­
munion. Candidates for admission are tried by a novitiate of
two years, during which time all studies are laid aside, and the
novices devote their time chiefly to spiritual exercises. At
the end of the novitiate the novice may be admitted to the first
vows, which are like those of other orders. The poverty
of the members consists in their incapacity to possess, either
individually or collectively, any income or property ; they are
to remain satisfied with what is given them to supply their wants
The colleges, however, are endowed, in order that neither stu­
dents nor teachers may be taken from their duties to provide
for their own subsistence. After the novitiate they begin the
course of studies—languages, belles-lettres, rhetoric, philosophy,
theology, Church history, and the Sacred Scriptures. While
pursuing these studies, they preserve the spirit of piety in their
hearts by means of frequent examination of conscience, by ap­
proaching the Sacraments at least every eighth day, and by
renewing their vows twice a year. When they go out of
the house, they should generally have a companion. After
the completion of his studies, the Jesuit performs a second
• Ad mujorem Dei gloriam.

HISTORICAL REVIEW OF THE SEVENTH PERIOD.

2R9

novitiate, lasting one year, (luring which he is employed in
epiritual duties and lives in retirement, perfecting himself in
the knowledge of the constitutions of his order. The members
of the order are divided into three classes, according to their
degree of learning and virtue : 1st. The Professed, who. beside
the three monastic vows, make a fourth vow of absolute obe­
dience to the Pope, in regard to missions. There are compara­
tively few Professed, or Jesuits of the four vows. From this
class are chosen the general and the other principal superiors.
Their establishments are : the Professed houses, directed by a
preepositus ; the colleges, containing at least thirteen members,
under a rector ; the residences, in charge of a superior. The
pretended monita secreta of the professed, which have been so
often charged upon the society as a reproach, are but a shame­
ful calumny ; the same is true of the passage in the constitution
of the order, which has often been and is still construed by
some writers as if it gave to the superiors of the order the right
of obliging their inferiors to commit a sin; but this results Irom
a malicious mistranslation ;* 2d. The Spiritual Coadjutors, who
are in greater number, according to their talents and the consti­
tutions of the order, aid the Professed in their ministry; 3d.
The Temporal Coadjutors, or lay brothers, who are received for
domestic employments.
6. Each province is governed by a provincial. At the head
of the whole order is a general, who resides at Rome, and
enjoys full power within the limits of the constitution. M edi­
fications can be introduced only by the General Congregations
The general appoints nearly all the officers of the order, to
• The passage alluded to la the following : “ Visum est nobis in Domino, excepto
expresso voto quo Societas summo Pontifici, pro tempore existent!, tenetur, ac tnbu»
aliis essentialibus paupertatis, castitatis, et obtdientiœ, nullas constitutiones, declaratione·
vel ordinem ullum vivendi, posse obligationem ad peccatum mortale vel veniale inducere,
nisi superior ea in nomine Domini Jesu Christi, vel in virtute obedieatiæ, juberet.” Tb<
context and the connection of tbe passage evidently shows the meaning to be th.st “ tbs
four solemn vows alone are always binding ; the other constitutions and ordinance.·' enn be
binding only when the superior commands iu virtue of obedience or in tbe
o/ Jesus
Christ."
Vol. (V—19

290

GENERAL HISTORY OP THE CHURCH.

prevent whatever dissensions and intrigues might arise from
elections by suffrage ; yet these appointments are made after
consultation with the provincial and the proper consultera
The superiors of the various houses, at stated times, send re­
ports to the general of the capacity and conduct of their sub­
jects. The general has also six assistants, whose advice he is
bound to seek ; they are to be tried and able men, belonging to
different nations, by the names of which they are respectively
known. They are elected by the General Congregation, and
form the council of the general, but without authority, except
that of calling a General Congregation in extraordinary cases.
The General Congregation also elects the general’s admonitor,
who must admonish him whenever he deems it necessary.
Thus the society, constituted on the plan of a firmly organ
ized constitutional monarchy, with a wise and perfect legisla­
tion, was destined, both by this organization and by the vigorous
spirit which animated it, to acquire a great authority and wield
an immense influence in the world. The constitution maintains
the strictest unity in the system and matter of teaching, amid
the most fruitful activity; it aims at repressing, with the most
vigorous energy, whatever is at variance with the doctrine of
the Church, leaving, at the same time, in matters of mere opin­
ion, a freedom which favors the aspirations of genius.
7. The Society of Jesus, thus constituted, spread with
wonderful rapidity. Germany, the cradle of Protestantism,
was opened to its zeal by the Emperor Ferdinand I. The
universities, shaken by the Lutheran movement, threatened a
speedy ruin. For twenty years, not a single priest had been
furnished by the once flourishing University of Vienna. This
state of things induced Ferdinand to call the Jesuits into bis
States (a, d. 1551). The most distinguished among the mem­
bers who answered his call were Le Jay and Canisius. By
uninterrupted courses of instructions, frequent sermons, the re­
organization of the University of Vienna, the publication of a
new catechism and the prudent administration of the diocese,
Canisius soon restored order, and had the glory of bringing

HISTORICAL REVIEW OF THE SEVENIH PERIOD.

291

back multitudes of Protestants to the Church. The celebrated
college of the Jesuits at Friburg, in Switzerland, also recalls the
energetic zeal of Canisius (beatified, November 20, a. d. 1864).
The same circumstances brought the sons of St. Ignatius to
Bavaria. At Ingolstadt, they were intrusted with the chairs of
theology. Le Jay explained the Psalms, Salmeron the Epistles
of St. Paul and the Gospels, while Canisius taught dogma.
Their eminent success here soon opened to them the gates of
Munich (1559). They revived the taste for classical, literary
and scientific studies, which the Protestants rejected in their
system of teaching, as a worldly, useless and dangerous occu­
pation. From that time the Catholic Church of Bavaria was
protected against hostile attacks. The same benefits arose from
the foundation of their colleges at Cologne (1559), Treves
(1561), Mentz (1562), Augsburg and Dillingen (1563), Pader­
born (1585), Wurtzburg (1586), Münster and Saltzburg (1588),
Bamberg (1595), Antwerp, Prague, and Posen (1571), and in
other northern countries. Everywhere they became the sup­
port and the bulwark of the Church. Their remarkable works
in every department of theology, philosophy, grammar and
philology, were found in every quarter of the learned world
Such were the works of Tursellini (De Particulis Lingua
Latina), of Viger (De Idiotismis Linguœ Grœcœ), of John
Perpinianus, Pontanus, Vernulæus and others, on elegant
infinity; of James Balde; Sarbiewski, Jouvency, Vanière and
Spée, on poetry ; of Clavius, Hel, Scheiner, Schall, de Bell,
Poczobut, at Wilna, on mathematics and astronomy; of Kircher,
Nieremberg and Raczinski, on natural philosophy and history ;
of Acunha, Charlevoix, Dobritzhoffer and Gerbillon, on geogra­
phy ; of Aquaviva, Mariana and Ribadeneira, on history, hagiog­
raphy and political science. It has been universally conceded
by men of judgment, that tho Jesuits' system of teaching, by the
union of science and religion, by the wise and paternal guid­
ance with which it supports the mind, is admirably suited to
the education of youth. In support of this opinion, we will
only quote the words of the most just, but the most unfortunate

292

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

of kings. Λ Government," said Louis XVI., “ has always found
a special support in that celebrated society, which trained
up youth in obedience to the State, in the knowledge of arts,
sciences and literature. Choiseul gave up the Jesuits to the
persecutions of the parliaments; he gave up youth to systems
of false philosophy, or to the influence of the most dangerous
parliamentary opinions. By overthrowing the Jesuits, he has
made, to the great prejudice of education and science, a gap
which no other religious body can ever fill.” It is not surpris­
ing that the ability and moral worth of the Jesuits should have
often caused them to be summoned to the courts of princes.
Thus they were involved in the great political events of the
seventeenth century. This has been brought against them as
a crime, as if sovereigns were not free to use the lights and
counsels of learned men, tor the single reason that those men
have made a vow to devote their energy and their zeal to the
greater glory of God and of the Church.
8. We have successively mentioned the new religious orders
which came forward with the Jesuits, to offer their services to
the Papacy, in its struggle against the spirit of independence
and schism awakened by the teachings of the Reformers. The
Theatines, the Somasques, the Barnabites, the Oratorians and
the Lazarists proved themselves worthy champions of the truth.
The Carmelite nuns of St. Theresa, the Order of the Visitation,
of St. Francis of Sales, the Ursulines and the Sisters of Charity,
were renewing the prodigies of austerity, of holy contempla­
tion and of heroic self-devotion which characterized the ferv
of the early ages. The Benedictine order put forth a new branch
destined to revive its ancient glory. This once flourishing and
active order had been gradually sinking under the influence of
relaxation. It had become poor in the midst of its immense
wealth. After many fruitless attempts at reformation, the duty
was undertaken by Didier de la Cour, prior of the monastery
of St. Vannes, lie was still young when this community was
placed under his charge, and he determined to restore it to its
former reputation for science and literature, and to introduce

HISTORICAL REVIEW OF THE SEVENTH PERIOD.

293

the disciplinary reform which had now become indispensably
necessary. The monasteries of Moyen-Moutier and of St
Hidulphua received the new rule which was confirmed bv Pope
Clement VIII. (a. d. 1604). It was also favorably received by
many other monasteries in France. The general chapter, held
in 1618, in the abbey of St. Mansny, at Tulle, resolved to form
a particular congregation of the reformed houses, under the
patronage of St. Maurus, the greatest of St. Benedict’s dis
ciples. The congregation was approved by Pope Gregory XV
It attracted the attention and lively interest of Richelieu, and
soon numbered one hundred and eighty abbeysand conventual
priories. Beside the rule common to all the Benedictines, the
congregation bad several particular statutes, and a superior­
general who resided in the abbey of St. Germain, in Paris. The
“ Congregation of St. Maur" soon produced names which science
has crowned with immortality—Ma billon, Montfaucon, Ruinart,
Thuillier, Martène, Durand, D'Achery, Le Nourry, Martianay.
those giants of erudition who have displayed prodigies of learn
ing and of patient toil.
9. The charity and self-devotion of the faithful ministers of
the gospel were not confined to the nations which had long
been folded in the Christian Church, but were displayed among
the most remote and savage of the heathen tribes. No order
showed a more heroic zeal than the Society of Jesus, whose
members knew no higher ambition than to die in foreign mis­
sions, for the love of Christ. The discoveries of the Portuguese
and Spaniards afforded them the occasion and the means of
satisfying their wish. We have already spoken of the labors
of St. Francis Xavier in the Indies, and of his colleagues in
China and Paraguay. The work undertaken by these hardy
missionaries was greatly encouraged and, in some sort, system­
atized by the institution of the Propaganda, established b)
Gregory XV. Congregatio de Propaganda Fide). This congrega­
tion consisted of fifteen cardinals, three prelates and a secretary.
The abundant alms of the faithful thus found a sure and regular
destination. The college annexed by Urban VIII. to the cod-

J94

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

gregation of the Propaganda became the seminary of foreign
missions. The Pope’s example was nobly imitated, and the
work was facilitated by liberal endowments; numbers of apos­
tolic laborers from all the Catholic nations were there prepared
for their future career, and every year, on the Sunday after the
feast of the Holy Trinity, Rome witnessed the renewal of the
sublime spectacle of Pentecost, and heard the gospel preached
in every known idiom under the sun. This feast of the Propa­
ganda, in which the name of the Lord is praised in every tongue
spoken on earth, is one of the solemnities which best realize
and show forth the fundamental idea of the Catholic Church.
10. All the facts of the world's history are bound together
by a living chain. Each great movement sends its echoes in
all directions. Thus the great struggle against Protestantism,
the discussions raised in the midst of the Church itself, and the
institution of new orders, made a very marked impression upon
the scientific world. The assaults of the Protestants turned
general attention upon dogma, which was now seriously studied,
not as formerly, in a merely speculative point of view, but es­
pecially in a historical light, the most necessary in the polemics
against the so-called Reformers. The most learned theologian
who has left us any of these works is unquestionably Father
Denis Petau, of Orleans (a. d. 1583). His works are so solid,
so complete, so full of sagacity, that every student of theology
should consult them with the greatest care. Beside the publi­
cation of the writings of several Church historians and of some
*ohilosophers, and his historical and astronomical work entitled
Rationale Temporum, which formed an era, his Dogmata Theo­
logica attracted the greatest attention. It is an exposition of
the true teaching of the Catholic Church in all time, and opposed
to the changeable doctrines of the heretics. This work was
unfortunately left unfinished, by the death of the author (16521.
It seems hardly credible that an ordinary lifetime should have
sufficed for the composition of works so voluminous, so con·
• Epipbanius, SyQBaiua, Nioepborus, the Emperor Jiiliuu. and Thoioiattua

HISTORICAL REVIEW OP THE SEVENTH PERIOD.

295

ecientiously accurate and so remarkable in every particular.
Father Petau’s style is, in general, graceful and happy, his ex­
pression clear and methodical ; he establishes a liberal and
ingenious alliance between history and dogma. In the religious
polemics naturally arising from controversies with the heretics,
the most prominent names were those of Eck, Coclæus, Stanis­
las Hosius and Berthold. But the most eminent of these theo­
logians is certainly Robert Bellarmine, of Florence (1542). He
was trained, with equal care, in piety and learning, and entering
the Society of Jesus in the year 1560, he distinguished him­
self by his indefatigable application to study. He taught the
various branches of theology, and wrote a Hebrew grammar, a
biography of ecclesiastical writers (DeScriptoribus ecclesiasticis ),
and the celebrated controversial work entitled Disputationes Ίο
Controversis Christianes fidei articulis, lib. IV. Bellarmine was
thoroughly conversant with all the Protestant writings—the
works of Luther, Melancthon, Calvin, Beza, of the Socinians,
and, in general, of all the enemies of the Catholic Church. He
explains the disputed points and the state of the question, with
precision and impartiality. His proofs, resting upon tradition,
are unusually full and irresistibly logical. The promotion of
the learned Jesuit to the Roman purple, brought no change to
his simple and laborious life. The work which he composed
in later years, the Scala ad Down, shows the deep and sincere
piety, self-devotion and resignation which adorned his saintly
and beautiful soul.
11. The Catholic doctors did not, as the Protestants falsely
asserted, neglect the study of Sacred Scripture. The works
jf Bellarmine and of Paguiui, on the Hebrew tongue, exercise·!
a happy influence upon that department ot sacred learning.
The Dominican, Sixtus of Sienna (a. d. 1-569), composed an
Introduction to the Knowledge of the Sacred Writings, which is
of value in elucidating portions of the Sacred Text. Vatable
published, under Francis I. (1540). a new translation of the
Sacred Scripture, with short notes ; it is much esteemed fur
cJe»»ness and conciseness. The Commentaries on the Cible, by

296

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

the Jesuit. Stephen Menochius, met with great and deserved
success. Cornelius à Lapide holds the foremost rank among
the interpreters of the sublime theology of St. Paul. The
Jesuit Maldonatus and William Estius, chancellor of the Uni­
versity of Douay, also immortalized their names by their
works on the Sacred Writings.
12. This display of learned and pious study was crowned
by the ascetic works then given to the world, and which were
among the last fruits of the happy influence exercised by the
middle-ages upon Catholic literature. Of this nature were the
“ Spiritual Exercises” {Exercitia Spiritualia) of St. Ignatius ;
the writings of St. Charles Borromeo, Instructiones Confessorio­
rum et Condonatorum ; the Rhetorica Ecclesiastica of Valerius
Augustinus; that of the celebrated Dominican, Louis of Granada,
and especially the sermons of the great preachers of the day—
in Italy, Clarius, bishop of Fuligno ; Cornelio Musso, bishop
of Biton to—in the kingdom of Naples (a. d. 1574), Charles
Borromeo, and the Jesuit Father, Paul Segneri (1694)—in
France, Simon Vigor, archbishop of Narbonne (1575), the Jesuit
Father, Claude de Lingendes (1666), his relative, John de
Lingendes, and Francis Ferault, of the congregation of the Ora­
tory—in Spain, Louis of Granada—in Poland, Peter Skarga.
Finally, the spirit of piety, devotion, and religion was revived
and nourished in the hearts of the faithful, by the republication
and (he new translations of the writings of St. Theresa, St. John
of the Cross, St. Francis of Sales, the pious Louis of Granada,
author of the “ Sinner’s Guide,” of the “ Memorial of a Chris­
tian Life,” of a treatise “ On Prayer,” &c. These beneficial
reproductions remind us of the words used by Pope Gregory
XIII. in a letter to Louis of Granada : “You have done more,”
wrote the Pontiff, “for all those who shall seek for instruction
in your works, than if your prayers had obtained from Heaven
light for the blind and life for the dead.”
13. Beside these works of an exclusively religious charac­
ter, arts and letters still felt the inspiration of Catholicity, in
spite of all the eflorts of Protestantism. Corregio, Titian, Car·

HISTORICAL REVIEW OF THE SEVENTH PERIOT».

297

raccic. Domeniehino, Guido Reni, with the artists of the Rhine
and the Netherlands, still perpetuated the traditions of Michael
Angelo and Raphael. Poetry took anew flight into the sphere
of religion, when Tasso (a. d 1580) consecrated it to the re­
cital of the chivalric exploits of the middle-ages, in his “Jeru­
salem Delivered when Calderon de la Barca (1640), a priest
and canon of Toledo, after a brave career in arms, sung the
heroism of Christians and the immortal glory which awaits
them. At the same period, Lope de Vega, who died in 1635,
in the solitude of a cloister, devoted his fertile imagination, his
unfailing spirit, to embellishing the deepest subjects and ex­
pressing the sublimcst ideas of faith. Music too was joined
to poetry and painting. The genius of Palestrina restored the
true dignity of the art, and insured its eternal duration. Thus
did Catholicism rule the highest intelligence at the very time
when its enemies, leagued in hate, boasted that they should
soon attend its obsequies.

GENERAI, HISTORY OF T1IK CHURCH.

EIGHTH PERIOD.
FVoni the treaty of Westphalia (A. TJ. 161-81 to tho accoHwion σί
Popo Pius IX. to the Sovereign Pontilioate (A. I). 194CI.

CHAPTER J.
g I. Pontificate nr Innocent X. (September 15.

a. d.

* t—January 7,
ir·

1655).
I. Features of the Eighth Period of the History of the Church.—2. Address of
the Marquis of St. diamond, French ambassador at Rome, to the cardinals
m conclave. Election of Innocent X.—3. Murder of the Bishop of Castro.
Innocent orders the city of Castro to be razed to the ground. Tho case of
Antonio Barborini.—I. Mazaniello. John IV. of Portugal, head of tho
royal house of Braganza.—5. Treaty of Westphalia.—6. Charles I., king of
England. Covenant signed by the Puritans in Scotland.—7. Cromwell.—
8. Death of Charles I. The Fronde.—9. Jansenism Bull Cum occatione
—Respectful silence.—10. Death of Innocent X.

§ IL Pontificate

of

Alexander VII. (April 7, a.

d.

Ill V»—May 22, 1667).

II. Election of Alexander VII.—12. Christina of Sweden.—13. Prc-Adamitcs
Abjuration of Isaac de la Peyrèrc, leader of the Pre-Adamites.—]<. Mis
understanding between Alexandei VII. and the court of France, concerning
the administration of the diocese of Paris, in the absence of the archbishop,
Cardinal Retz.—15. Peace of the Pyrenees, between France and Spain.—
16. Death of Cardinal Mazarin. His character.—17. Louis XIV. Bisage
—18. Affair of the Duke of Créqni, the French ambassador at Rome.—19
Bull of Alexander VII. against Jansenism.—20. The “Formula."—21.
Ordinance of the vicars-general of the diocese of Paris, concerning the
“Formula.’’—22. New Formula of Alexander VII. Opposition of tho
“Foui Bishops." Death of Alexander VII.

g III. Pontificate

of

Clement IX. (June 20, a. d. 1667—December 9, 1669).

23. Peace bf Clement IX., called the Clement'.ie Peace, in the affair of Jansen·
um.—24. Brief of Clement IX. to the refractory bishops.—25. Alliance·

INNOCENT X. (A. D. ΙβΟ-ΙΜβ).

299

between Janacnism and Gallicanism. Mark Anthony do Domini». Bdmon I
Richer. John Latinoy. Bnillet. The " Lires of the Father» of the Dnert."
and the works of St. Tbcrowt, translated by Amauld d'Andilly.—2«. ElliDnpin. Richard Simon. Le Conrrayer.—27. The brothers Pithon. Do­
pey.—28. Pascal. The Lettre» Provinciale».—20. Antoine Arnanld. Work
*
on ** Frequent Communion” and the “ Perpetuity of the Faith.” Nicole.
The Eesau de Morale.—30. Victory of St. Gothard, won by Montecuculli
orer the Turks.—31. Capture of Candia by the Grand-Vizier, Achmet
Death of Clement IX.

§ I. Pontificate

of

Innocent X. (September 15, a. d. 1644—
January 7, 1655).

1. The eighth period of the history of the Church comprises
two very different epochs: the age of Louis XIV, and the
eighteenth century. The age of Louis XIV., the golden
age of French literature, bore a deep religious impress. Tn
spile of the Gallican tendencies which controlled the bishops
and the court of the “ Grand Monarque” beyond measure; spite
of the lamentable disagreements which arose between the Holj
See and France, faith was still shedding abroad the full ra­
diance and splendor of genius. Bossuet and Fénelon recalled,
even amid their theological contests, the days of Augustine and
Chrysostom. The treaty of Westphalia gave to Protestantism
the religious tolerance which it had been for thirty years trying
to win by the sword. It might have been expected that this
concession would impart new life and power to the cause. But
the day of its decline began precisely at the hour when it ob
tained the right to exist. It ceased to be formidable ns soon
as the contest was over. The propagation of error needs the
factitious vitality of combat; the victory which gives it peace
is the signal of its dissolution. Catholicism, on the other hand,
felt itself endowed with new vigor; a genera) reaction took
place in its favor. Every kind of talent did homage to the
truth, and seemed to seek its service as an honor. The heretic·
asserted that the Roman Church had changed in her dogmas,
and that her teaching was not that of the Apostles. Antiquity
was studied with the greatest care, under every aspect, and tho

300

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CIIUROn.

calumnies of the sectaries were proved to be groundless. From
the eminence of that great, century, enlightened by one belief
one feeling of respect for holy things, the eagle eye of Bossuet
discerned, in the dim horizon of the future, a race of impious
men who sought, in atheism, an asylum for their passions, a
stronghold for their disorders. The eighteenth century verified
the apprehensions of his great mind. Systems of false philo­
sophy, as far removed from true wisdom as from the true faith,
spread even to the ends of the earth. * Two men of equal
celebrity, though of diametrically opposite genius, Voltaire
and Jean Jacques Rousseau, popularized by their writings
the hatred they felt toward the Church. France, perverted
by their teaching, gloried in heaping outrages upon the re­
ligion of her fathers, in holding up to public contempt the
Pontiffs and the priests who had civilized the world. She
presented to the universe the sad spectacle of a society with­
out a God, without faith, without religion. But the human
heart may not, with impunity, throw off the only curb strong
enough to master its passions and control its evil instincts.
The irreligious doctrines of the eighteenth century, while
spreading among the masses, deposited the seeds of hatred and
revolt. How can authority, which is from God, subsist, when
the people are taught that “ God is only a name” ? Then
France was swept by a fearful storm which swallowed up, in
blood and ruins, the ancient monarchy, the ancestral religion,
the old nobility, whose blood had bought the nation’s glory
and was now poured out in streams upon the scaffold. The
demon of revolution triumphantly overran affrighted Europe.
The Church of Christ seemed indeed to be in her agony. But
she has promises of immortality against which all the efforts of
bell shall never prevail. Providence watched over her destinies.
A. conqueror, whose name and glory filled the world, raises up
the altars of Sion, and when, afterward, intoxicated by the
splendor of his victorious career, he forgets that it is God who
gives power, and that His hand, in anger, breaks the rebellious
instruments of His designs ; when he too would struggle with

INNOCENT X. (A. D. 1G44-1955).

the august Pontiff who sits upon the throne of St Peter, he
is struck, and the world reechoes with the sound of his fall.
His fate is a fearful warning to the proud spirits that refuse to
bow under the guardian yoke of the Church. The world then
enters upon the ways in which we are now walking; human
policy has before it an undefined horizon ; but we, children of
the Church, are sure that the hand of God will not be with­
drawn from us. The past is our security for the future. Al­
ready may we see the promise of a return to the faith. Evei
fruitful in works of salvation, the Church has brought forth
institutions, which the early ages might well envy us. The
society of the “ Propagation of the Faith” bears the name of
Jesus and the light of the gospel to the uttermost bounds of
the earth. The blood of martyrs is poured out upon distant
shores, to fecundate the growth of the seeds of life. The wor­
ship of Mary is growing with wonderful rapidity, and gathers
together, in powerful associations, the noblest hearts and the
most enlightened minds. An irresistible religious movement
is drawing the intelligence of the world to a deeper and more
serious study of Christian dogmas. The press, which by its
licentious and impious productions had corrupted the society of
the eighteenth century, now lends its immense resources to the
cause of the true faith. The clergy is equal to its sublime mis­
sion ; its eloquence, its zeal, its teaching, its virtue, and its
writings, have reconciled the science of our age with religion.
Whatever may be the destiny which God has in store for
the society of to-day, the Church will always hold in it a
prominent place, and wield a powerful influence over its desti­
nies.
2. When the cardinals had met in conclave to elect a suc­
cessor to Urban VIII., they were addressed by the Marquis
of Saint-Chamond, ambassador of the young king of France,
Louis XIV., thon but six years old. In the course of his ad­
dress, the marquis uttered the following sentiments : " Our
kings, deservedly styled ‘ Most Christian,’ have done more than
any other princes to increase the revenues and the authority

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURl Π.

of the Roman Church. The Sacred College may rely upon the
same assistance on the present occasion, and on all others, from
my royal master, since the period of his birth was one of mira­
cles, of victories, and of triumphs ; since he springs from the
race of St. Louis, through the most devout and pious parents
that ever swayed the royal sceptre. His early training is in­
trusted to the queen-regent, who teaches him no more ordinary
lesson than that of honoring and upholding the Church, and
who can set before him no higher examples, ancient or modern,
than those afforded by her own royal line, and of more than
sixty sovereigns, her predecessors, who have ever maintained
the closest union with the Holy See.” These were noble words,
uttered in the name of a youthful sovereign, whose splendor
was to outshine that of all his predecessors. Happy for him­
self had he always professed, for the successors of St. Peter,
the respect which he had been taught in childhood to bear them.
On the 15th of September, a. d. 1G44, Cardinal Pamfili was
elected Pope, and took the name of Innocent X.
3. The new Pope signalized his accession by two acts of
energetic firmness. The Bishop of Castro had been murdered
before having had time to take possession of his see. As the
act was perpetrated by the orders of the duke of that city, In­
nocent ordered his troops to march against the rebellious sub­
ject. Castro was taken and levelled with the ground ; upon its
ruins was raised a pyramid bearing the Italian inscription, Qui
fh Castro ! “Here Castro once stood.” Cardinal Antonio Barberini, chief treasurer of Urban VIII., was convicted of exactions
and embezzlements, which compromised the Pontifical adminis­
tration and aroused a general storm of dissatisfaction in Rome.
Without awaiting the issue of his case, Antonio fled to France,
where he found in Cardinal Mazarin, prime minister of Louis
,
XIV.
a powerful protection, due to the large sums of money
which he brought to the royal treasury, and which were to
serve the French arms in the war against the house of Austria.
Innocent was firm in a circumstance which involved the honor
of the Holy See. In 1646, he issued a bull in which he an-

INNOCENT X. (A. D 1(U4-K">).

303

eounccd that any member of the Sacred Collage, leaving the
Roman States without the Pope’s permission, should be pun­
ished by the confiscation of his property ; that unless the delin­
quent made his submission to the Pope within six months, he
should be forbidden entrance to the churches and deprived of
his benefices and offices ; in fine, that .persistence in the re­
bellion would forfeit the cardinalate, without hope of rehabili­
tation, except by the Sovereign Pontiff in person. This bull
met with violent opposition in France; the parliament of Paris,
which had for two centuries past arrogated to itself the right
of overruling the Pontifical decrees, declared it null and abusive.
A decree of the royal council forbade that any more money
should be sent to Rome for the expediting of bulls ; they spoke
of seizing Avignon ; a land and naval force seemed to threaten
Italy. But Mazarin, whose position was analogous to that of
Richelieu, felt that he could not make war upon the Pope to
whom he had sworn fidelity and· obedience as a cardinal. Nego­
tiations were accordingly opened with the court of Rome. The
Barberini made their submission, and the Pope consented to
pardon them out of consideration for the Most Christian King,
who had honored them with his protection. Cardinal Barberini
was subsequently raised to the archbishopric of Rheims and
made grand-almoner of France.
4. Two events of a very serious nature had lately occurred
at Naples. In a popular outbreak against the Duke of Arcos,
viceroy of Naples for Philip IV., a fisherman of Amalfi
found himself suddenly raised to the highest power, and
hailed, by a delirious mob, sovereign of Naples. The name
of Mazaniello was thus ranked among those of the celebrated
adventurers whom the caprice of the multitude draws, for a
moment, from obscurity, only to plunge them as rapidly into it
again. Innocent X. refused to sanction a power which could
evidently be but ephemeral. When advised to seize the op­
portunity to send troops to Naples, and thus to recover the
ancient sovereignty of the Holy See in that kingdom, the
Pontiff generously replied that it was unworthy of the ommon

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Father of the faithful to aggravate the misfortunes of a Chris
tian prince. He at once sent to the viceroy a sum of thirty
thousand crowns, and allowed him to levy troops in the States
of the Church, assuring him that the Holy See would faith
fully defend the interests of the Catholic king. This support,
together with the inexperience of the revolutionary leader and
the want of courage displayed by the strangers who had planned
the revolt, helped the viceroy to allay the storm. Mazaniello
was put to death by the very men who had raised him to
power. The rebels next offered the throne to the Duke of
Guise, who allowed himself to be seduced by the prospect of
a crown. The new chief defeated the Spanish troops under
Don Juan, and seized the reins of government. But he was
betrayed by the Neapolitans themselves, and fell into the
hands of the viceroy, who soon restored the authority of
Philip IV. in all southern Italy (a. d. 1646-1647). A few
years earlier, a revolution of fai different nature had wrested a
kingdom from the Spanish crown (December, 1640). At the
death of Cardinal Henry (1580), Philip II. attached Portugal
to his States. But a hostile administration soon excited the
discontent of his new subjects; in 1640, the Duke of Braganza
was raised to the throne and founded his dynasty. Philip IV.
was despoiled of what Philip IL, with impolitic derision, called
“ the little kingdom of Portugal.” The court of Spain made
every effort to deter the Pope from recognizing the new Por­
tuguese monarchy. “ Let John IV. be disregarded,” said the
Spanish ambassadors, “ and let the bishops presented by him
be refused the canonical institution.” But the Pope, who had
just refused his countenance to the popular outbreak in Naples,
was too wise not to discern the wide difference between the
two situations. He recognized John IV. as lawful sovereign,
notwithstanding the urgent remonstrances of the Spanish court.
5. The attention of all Europe was now called to the event
which was to close the Thirty Years’ War. All eyes were
anxiously turned toward the city of Munster, in Westphalia,
where the representatives of all the powers were elaborating

INNOCENT X. (A. D. 1044-1854).

3Qh

the famous treaty which put an end to so many and such longcontinued stnugglea. A Papal legate was present to guard the
rights of the Holy See. So bitter was the hatred of Protest­
antism against the Roman Church, that the Swedish ambas­
sador quitted the city, on the legate's arrival, and withdrew to
Osnabrück. It is not our intention to speak of the provisions
made by this assembly, concerning political questions foreign
to ecclesiastical history. Yet it must be said that the Catholic
sovereigns did not do for religion what might justly and fairly
have been expected from their zeal. The legate strove in vain
to inspire the ambassadors with higher and nobler views ; the
interests of heaven were sacrificed to those of earth. The
Protestants were confirmed in the possession of the archbishop. rics, bishoprics, monasteries and convents which they had
seized. The Pope and the bishops saw themselves deprived
of all active means of jurisdiction over the Catholics residing
in Lutheran countries. The various sects of the Reformation
all obtained the free exercise of their respective worship. It
was agreed that in the countries where the Catholics and Piutestants lived together, each party should keep the property,
rights and revenues of which it could prove possession in the
year 1625, which was called the normal year, except in the
Palatinate, where the year 1619 was fixed as the normal year.
But in 1624, most of the Church property was in the hands of
the Reformers. The remaining clauses of the treaty belong to
profane history ; they are too long to be enumerated here.
Pope Innocent X. protested against all the terms unfavorable
to the Catholics, but he was unheard. The politicians who
then governed thought that they had done much in thus sepa­
rating their action from that of the Papacy. Blinded indeed
they must have been not to see the lowering storm-clouds of
revolution gathering thick in the horizon, always bursting upon
the power that presents itself to the people without the majesty
of a religious character. Having thus thrown off the guardian
authority of the Sovereign Pontiffs, which had, until then, pre­
sided over its destinies, Europe was yet to learn, by a sad expo
Vol. IV -20

306

GENERAL BISTORT OF THE CHURCH.

rience, that the Church has not only the promise of everlasting
life, but that she alone, by her beneficent influence, can secure
pence and stability to the kingdoms of the earth.
6. England was now teaching the world how low a people
can fall when they have lost the true faith, and with it all
respect for lawful authority. Ilenry VIII. had let loose against
the Church of Rome all the fury of popular passion. The same
fury was now turned against the royal power, and the unfortu­
nate Charles I. became its victim. Scotland was invaded by
Calvinism, which appeared under the form of the redoubtable sect
of Puritans—fanatical champions of independence, who claimed
to rule the public worship entirely and according to their own
notions. Charles made an attempt to enforce the observance
of the established Anglican liturgy; the royal edict was re­
ceived with the cry of revolt: “Presbyterianism or death!”
The Puritans drew up and signed a new Covenant, “ sealed,"
said they, “ by Heaven itself.” After the announcement that
the Spirit of God had revealed itself to Scotland, and that “out
of the Kirk of Scotland there was no salvation ;” after an almost
incredible strain of invectives against Sixtus V., Paul V., Ur­
ban VIII., and against the Roman Church in general, every
signer was bound to defend the Covenant to the death, even
against the king himself. When Charles consulted his prime
minister, the Earl of Strafford, about the means of crushing a
rebellion so powerfully organized, the earl replied: “Your
majesty should make instant preparations for war, yet with
the resolution of doing everything possible to avoid one.” The
answer was wise, humane, and worthy to be addressed to a
king. Charles appreciated it; but his weakness prevented
him from profiting by the prudent policy of his minister. He
conceived the fatal design of calling a national assembly—the
“ Long Parliament"—which brought upon England the most
disastrous of revolutions.
7. Among the ambitious men of every rank who met in
that famous assembly, the name of Oliver Cromwell, the envoy
of the Scotch Puritans, stands prominent. We borrow from

INNOCENT X. (A. D. 1*44-1 MS).

307

the pen of Bossuet a sketch of that celebrated character
Ile
was a man of unusual depth of mind, as refined in dissimulation
as he was skilled in political management; capable alike of
undertaking and of concealing any action; equally active and
indefatigable in peace and in war; leaving to fortune nothing
that he could take from it by counsel and foresight; but yet
so watchful and ready, that he never missed the occasions
thrown in his way ; in a word, one of those bold and restless
spirits born to change the fortunes of the world. How hazard
ous is the fate of such minds ; how many appear in history,
whose very boldness has brought them to ruin ! And yet how
much can they not achieve when God is pleased to use them
as His instruments ! To this man it was given to mislead the
people and to prevail against kings. For, when he perceived
that, in the countless sects which were wandering without any
fixed or certain rules, the charm by which all those minds
wore held in error was the satisfaction of being able to dogma­
tize without opposition or hinderance from any secular or eccle­
siastical authority, he used this weakness with a ready skill
which changed the shapeless mass into a strong and formidable
power. When once the multitude has been caught with the
bait of liberty, it will follow blindly if it but hear the name
pronounced. These men, wholly taken up with the first idea
which had transported them, ran on without seeing that they
were rushing into bondage ; and their crafty leader—perceiving
that by fighting and teaching, by assuming an infinite variety
of characters, by acting the doctor and the prophet, as well as
the soldier and the captain, he had so captivated the world
that he was now looked upon by the whole army as a chief
sent of God to protect independence—began to be convinced
that he could urge them on still farther. I shall not dwell
upon the details of his disastrous undertakings, of his celebra­
ted victories, at which outraged virtue wept, nor of the long
season of unmolested triumph which astonished the world. It
was the design of God, to teach kings what it costs to quit
His Church. He would show
*,
by a striking example, to what

.108

ORNERAI, HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

'engtlis heresy can go; how naturally indocile and independent
t is, how fatal to royalty and to all lawful authority. Besides,
.vhen Almighty God has chosen a man to be the instrument of
His designs, nothing can check his career; he either fetters, or
blinds, or crushes all that is capable of resistance."
8. Cromwell soon made himself the master of a Parliament
which wanted no master. Forced into a war with his rebel­
lious subjects, Charles was defeated and withdrew to Scotland.
He was told that “ a prince hostile to the Covenant could not
be admitted into the kingdom of the Saints." The Scottish
Saints sold their king to the Saints of England for the sum of
eight thousand pounds. The unfortunate monarch was doomed
to a hard captivity. Innocent X. raised his voice against the
outrage; England had been too long taught to disregard it.
Kings had given the first examples of contempt for the Holy
See; the people, in turn, refused to hear the same Holy See.
when it undertook the defence of kings. The Independents and
the Agitators in London, excited by the council of fanatical
leaders, called for the head of Charles. Henrietta of France,
queen of England, the worthy descendant of Henry IV., dis­
played a heroic courage in her attempts to save her royal con­
sort. Her efforts were vain. On the 20th of January, a. d.
1G49, Charles was brought before a self-constituted court of
justice. His step was firm, his countenance erect and unmoved.
He did not uncover, but first seated himself, then arose, and
surveyed the court with an air of superiority which abashed
and irritated his enemies. A smile of contempt was seen to
quiver on his lips at the passage of the charge which described
him as a “tyrant, traitor, and murderer.” When called on to
answer, by those who dared to constitute themselves his judges,
he demanded by what lawful authority he had been brought
thither. “ God," he continued, “ has placed a trust in nn
keeping; God has, by a long and ancient succession, trans­
mitted to me a mandate ; I shall never violate or betray them
I should already disown them did I reply to the new and un
lawful authority by which I am questioned. When I am satis-

INNOCENT X. (A. D. Ιβ-Η-Ιβββ).

309

fled as to your title, I shall be prepared to say more." FIc was
shown, upon the desk, the fatal axe which threatened his life
He touched it with a look of disdain, and only said, " It does
not frighten me.” Three times was Charles brought before the
murderous tribunal. Meanwhile four of the lords who had
composed the ministry of the unhappy sovereign—Richmond,
Hertford, Lindsay and Southampton, names worthy to be
honorably enshrined in the remembrance of posterity—appeared
before the Commons, declaring that, according to the Constitu­
tion of England, the king was not responsible ; that they had
advised all the measures for which Charles was now called to
account ; and that, to save the anointed head of their sovereign,
they came to offer theirs to the executioner. In this noble,
self-sacrificing protest, the Earl of Strafford would unquestion­
ably have shared, but the Puritan fanatics had already immo­
lated that victim of their revenge, and, to crown the deed of
infamy, had compelled the king to sign the unjust warrant
against his.faithful servant. The self-devotion of the late
ministers of Charles failed to move his rebellious subjects.
The voice of religion, the claims of nature, political interests,
the prayers of a sympathizing people—all were rejected. The
king must prepare to die. His two children were brought to
him for the last time; he blessed them, and to his daughter,
the Princess Elizabeth, afterward Duchess of Orleans, he gave
two valuable diamonds for her mother, as a last pledge of his
affection ; and then, turning away from every creature, he
sought in the high thoughts of heaven, a refuge from his deep
afflictions and unparalleled misfortunes. Unhappily, he had
not the consolations afforded by the true faith; he had followed
in the way of the Anglican schism, and the words of Bishop
Juxon were as cold as his faith and his worship. On the 30th
day of January, 1640, a day of shame and of mourning for
England, upon a scaffold erected on a level with the windows
of his apartments in Whitehall, the head of Charles I. was
struck off by the headsman's axe. The executioner seized the
head, all dripping with blood, and, showing it to the people, ex­

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

claimed : “Behold the head of a traitor!” The crime was ac­
complished.
Royalty, thus martyred in England, was likewise proscribed
in Paris. On the 6th of January, 1649, the queen-regent and
Cardinal Mazarin were compelled to fly, taking with them the
youthful Louis XIV., to save him from the fury of the Fronde.
The history of those years of blood and tumult does not belong
to the annals of the Church. Beside, from the gloom of that
storm was yet to rise the triumphant splendor of the Great
King.
9. The question of Jansenism now re-appeared with new
ardor. The five propositions drawn from the “ Augustinus ” by
Dr. Cornet, were submitted for examination to the Holy See.
Eighty-eight French bishops signed a petition entreating Inno­
cent X. to end the discussion by a definitive sentence. On the
other hand, eleven bishops begged the *Pontiff not to pronounce
judgment, and sent four doctors to Rome to plead the cause of
the “Augustinus.” Innocent appointed a commission, which
gave two years to the examination of the work of Jansenius and
the five propositions. At length, on the 31st of May, a. d. 1653,
the bull Cum occasione appeared, condemning the propositions.
The bull was received by the Catholics in France and the
Netherlands. But the partisans of the Bishop of Ypres tried to
evade its consequences by a subterfuge. They protested that,
in the question of doctrine, they submitted to the decision of the
Sovereign Pontiff ; but they complained at the same time that the
condemned propositions should have been ascribed to the “ Au­
gustinus." This is the origin of the question of fact, which
afterward became the leading one ; for the abettors of Jansenism
asserted that the Church was not infallible when it was to be
decided whether a given proposition was, or was not. contained
in a book, and whether the meaning it conveyed was really
that of the author. In this light the bull of Innocent X. was
to be received, said the sectaries, “ only with a respectful
silence.” This was but an ingenious evasion meant to disguise
%n unpardonable insincerity. A council of bishops, held in

ALEXANDER VH. (A. D. Ιβββ-ΙβΛ».

St I

Paris on the 26th of March, 1654, declared that the bull Cum
(iccasione condemned the five propositions as coming from
Jansenius, and in the sense in which they were understood by
that author ; Pope Innocent, by a brief issued in the same year,
confirmed the declaration.
10. This was the last act of the august Pontiff. Toward the
end of December, a. d. 1654, Innocent felt an unusual weakness,
and the physicians despaired of his life. Cardinal Azzolina,
his confessor, was charged to communicate the intelligence to
the dying Pontiff, who received it with a calmness and serenity
which edified all those present. He sent for Father Paul Oliva,
a Jesuit, to assist him in his last moments. Turning to Cardi­
nal Sforza, who stood by his death-bed, “ See," he said, “ the
end of all the splendor of the Sovereign Pontificate.” He was
desirous that all the faithful should profit by the lesson, and
ordered that the gates of the palace should be open to all. He
died in sentiments of the deepest piety, on the 7th of January,
1655, after a reign of eleven years.
§ 2. Pontificate

of

Alexander VII. (April 7, a. d. 1655—

May 22, 1667).

11. Cardinal Fabio Chigi was unanimously elected to suc­
ceed Innocent X., and took tbe name of Alexander VII. The
new Pontiff was born at Sienna (February 15, a. d. 1599), and
was distinguished even at an early age, for his remarkable
talents. He successively held the posts of Inquisitor at Malta,
*
vice-legate at Ferrara, nuncio in Germany at the time of the
treaty of Westphalia, bishop of Imola and cardinal ; discharg­
ing every duty with eminent virtue and rare penetration. Still
the court of France, ruled by Mazarin, saw his promotion with
pain. At Münster, Fabio Chigi had defended the interests of
the Holy See with a noble independence which the cardinal·
• We have a volume of poems from tho pen of Alexander VU., printed at the Lour»·
(A. d 1656) ; they form a folio volume, entitled Philomaihi Jfarj
^,ωρυβΜ
thon» while «till a youth, and a member of the Academy of tho PhUomalhi nt Sionne

312

GENERAI. HISTORV OF THE CHURCH.

minister could not forget. On the other hand, the Jansenist
party, whose leaders, Arnaukl d’Andilly, Pascal, ami Nicole,
secluded in the convent of Port Royal, exercised by their
talents, their austere life, and their reputation for learning, a
marked influence upon the French society of that period,
remembered that Fabio Chigi was the secretary of the commis­
sion appointed by Pope Innocent X. to examine the five propo­
sitions of the “Augustinus." They could not, without anx­
iety, see the chair of St Peter filled by a Pope whose antece­
dents left no hope to heretics. This double prejudice of the
court and of Jansenism was to be expressed by a twofold strug­
gle which occupied the whole Pontificate of Alexander VII.
12. The first year of his reign was signalized by an event
which gave joy to the Church. Sweden, the kingdom in which Lu­
theranism first changed the whole political constitution ; in which
the Catholic reaction found both representatives and opponents
amongst the highest classes, was the very country in which
Catholicism achieved a most unlooked-for conquest; it won
over to itself Queen Christina of Sweden, the daughter of Gus­
tavus Adolphus. That princess, whose career abounds in
strange and romantic episodes, renounced the throne of her
fathers to embrace the true faith. After having received sound
instructions in the mysteries of religion, she made her solemn
abjuration at Innspruck. She hastened to Italy to receive the
blessing of the Holy Father, and deposited her crown and
sceptre upon the altar of our Lady of Loretto. Every prepara­
tion had been made by the cities of the Roman territory to give
her a magnificent reception. Christina entered Rome in triumph,
and there she ended her days, after an excursion into France,
made memorable by the murder of Monaldeschi, one of her
attendants, at Fontainebleau. She left her valuable collection
of manuscripts to the Vatican library, that noble monument of
literary and scientific wealth, raised by the Papacy to European
genius.
13. The heart of Pope Alexander VII. was likewise con
soled at this time by the conversion of the chief of the sect of

ALEXANDER Vil. (A. D. 1855-16611

313

Pre-Adamites. This name was given to a sect of men who
held that the earth had been inhabited by a generation of men
anterior to Adam. A Calvinist, Isaac de la Peyrëre, published
a work in Holland (a.d. 1655), under the title: “Prœadamitæ,
sive exercitatio super versibus 12, 13, 14, cap. v., Epistoke
Pauli ad Romanos, quibus indicantur primi homines ante Adamum conditi,” in which he maintained this absurd system, and
undertook to support it by the authority of St. Paul. Accord­
ing to his theory, Moses relates the origin of the Jewish nation
only, and not that of the whole human race. There were two
creations of men : the first in the beginning of the world, when
God placed in it a race which spread over the whole earth, and
constituted the Gentiles ; the second, at a much later date, when
God created Adam to be the father of the Jewish people. As
these senseless speculations had little to interest human pas­
sions, they did not obtain a wide-spread influence. La Peyrëre
himself renounced them in 1657, at the feet of Pope Alexander
VII., and embraced the Catholic religion, which he professed to
the end of his life with a most edifying fervor.
14. Λ lamentable difference had lately arisen between the
Pontifical court and the government of the King of France.
The Archbishop of Paris, Jean-François-Paul de Gondi, better
known as Cardinal de Retz, took a leading part in the troubles
of the Fronde. When Mazarin had overcome the insurgents
and reestablished his authority, he caused the arrest of tho
archbishop on a charge of treason, and sent him to the prison
of Vincennes. The prisoner managed to elude the vigilance of
his guards and fled to Rome, where he took part in the con­
clave which elected Alexander VII. That Pope conferred upon
him the pallium, spite of the remonstrances of the French am­
bassadors, and continued to treat him as archbishop of Paris.
The cardinal had intrusted the administration of his diocese,
during his absence, to vicars-general, who were not acceptable
to the court. Mazarin entered into negotiations with the Holy
See, in which he endeavored to maintain that the crime of high
treason in a bishop, was enough to disqualify him from holding

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GENERAI. niSTOnr OF THE CUURCH.

any jurisdiction whatever in the kingdom. It was impossible
for I he Pope to sanction a doctrine which would legitimate
every act of tyranny. Alexander agreed that the cardinal
should change his vicars-genoral, since they were obnoxious,
but he claimed for him the right of substituting others more
agreeable to the king. But Mazarin, with that stubborn and
crafty persistence which formed the distinctive trait of his
character, refused all accommodation. The contest between
the minister and the archbishop had been too personal for the
former to let it pass without being revenged. The Pope saw
that the discussion would only be imbittered by further delay,
and ho accordingly determined to bring it to an end by the exer­
cise of his authority; he appointed an Apostolic vicar to admin­
ister the diocese during the absence of the Ordinary. All the
fury of Gallicanism was let loose upon the Pontifical decree.
The Assembly of the French bishops declared that it was a
manifest violation of the liberties of the kingdom. The ques­
tion was beginning to assume proportions which alarmed Maza­
rin. He was not prepared to risk a schism, and he accordingly
proposed a middle course, which should insure the return of
peace. The king was to name six ecclesiastics, among whom
the archbishop might choose one, at his pleasure, to act as his
vicar-general. The plan was adopted and put an end to the
dispute.
15. Mazarin now turned his whole attention to the reestab­
lishing of peace between France and Spain. It was the master­
piece of his policy, and gloriously crowned an administration so
full of storms and troubles. After a series of twenty-five con­
ferences held in the Isle of Pheasants, formed by the Bidassoa,
a stream on the boundary between the two kingdoms, the
“Treaty of the Pyrenees” was signed by Mazarin and Don
Lms de Haro, on behalf of their respective crowns. Spain
ceded to France—in the Netherlands, Arras and the whole of
Artois, except the town of St, Omer; in Flanders, Gravelines
and several other important places; in Hainaut, Landrecies
and Quesnoy; Thionville, Montraédy, Marienbourg, Philippe-

ALEXANDER VIL (A. D. ΙββΜββΤ).

315

ville t'.ad Avesnes, in the duchy of Luxemburg; toward the
Pyrenees, Perpignan and the whole of Roussillon with the
county of Conflans. The Prince of Condé, perplexed for a
moment, by the troubles of the Fronde, had yielded to the fatal
inspiration to place his victorious sword at the service of Spain ;
he was pardoned, and returned to expiate his passing weakness
by unvarying fidelity and glorious feats of arms. But the most
important article of the treaty was the one which concluded
the union between Louis XIV. and the Infanta of Spain,
Maria Theresa, daughter of Philip IV. The princess made a
formal renunciation in her own name and in that of her descen­
dants, of all right of succession in the Spanish realm ; the
clause was but an empty formality, if France proved too weak
to assert such a claim, and but a useless barrier in the con­
trary supposition. Mazarin foresaw what these renunciations
would be worth ; and the event, forty years later, proved the
correctness of his calculations. France now took the foremost
rank among the European powers.
16. This success crowned with glory the declining years of
Mazarin ; though he did not long enjoy it. He died on the 9th
of March, a. d. 1661, at the age of fifty-nine years. “ Cardinal
Mazarin,” says Hénault, “ was as gentle as Cardinal Richelieu
was violent, one of his greatest talents consisted in knowing
men thoroughly. The characteristic feature of his policy was
rather finesse and prudence than force. He believed that force
should never be used until all other means have failed, and his
mind furnished him with a courage equal to the circumstances;
bold at Cassai, quiet and active in his retreat at Cologne, enter­
prising when princes were to be checked, but insensible to the
satirical attacks of the Fronde, despising the threats of the
coadjutor, and listening to the murmurs of the populace us we
listen, on the beach, to the sound of the ocean's roar. There
was, in Cardinal Richelieu, something greater, vaster, less
studied ; in Cardinal Mazarin, more address, more management,
and fewer extravagances. The people hated the one and
derided the other ; but both were masters of the State.”

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GENERAL iliSTORT OF THE CHURCH

17. The death of Mazarin was to change the face of affairs.
The young king of France had hitherto seemed a stranger to
the government of his own realm. Each one of the surviving
ministers looked for the first place. No one thought that i,
prince brought up at a distance from affairs of State, would
venture suddenly to take their full weight upon himself. They
did not know that he had for some time been trying his strength
and his genius for reigning. When Harlay de Chanvalon,
archbishop of Rouen, and president of the Assembly of the
clergy, asked him to whom he should now apply on matters of
business; “To myself,” replied Louis. On the day following
the death of Mazarin, having called together his ministers, he
addressed the chancellor as follows: “Sir, I have called you
before me, together with my ministers and secretaries of state,
to inform you that hitherto I have been willing to leave the
government of my affairs to the late cardinal ; I shall, in future,
be my own prime minister. You will assist me with your
counsels when I ask you for them. I enjoin you to give me a
daily account of every thing. The scene is now changed,"
he added in a deeply impressive tone; “ the government oi
my Slates, the management of my finances and foreign relations
shall be guided by other principles than those of the late
cardinal. Gentlemen, you know my will ; it is for you now to
put it into execution.” The sovereign who uttered these words
was, indeed, to change the fortunes of France, and to make
her the first of nations. His name and his glory were destined
to adorn the greatest age of modern history. France, peaceful
and prosperous within, victorious without, seemed to rule the
world. Louis XIV. stands before the historian, surrounded
by the immortal minds whose genius he had the tact to dis·
cover, aud whose efforts he encouraged and rewarded. “ That
monarch,” says Cardinal Maury, “ had, at the head of his armies,
Turenne, Condé, Luxembourg, Catinat, Créqui, Bouffiers,
Montesquieu, Vendome and Villars; Château-Renault, Du­
quesne, Tourville, Duguay-Trouin, Jean Bart commanded his
•Jeets. Colbert, Louvois, To-cy, were called to bis council.

ALEXANDER Vil. (Λ. D. 1654-16«).

His first senate was headed by Mole and Lamo.gnon, its organs
were Talon and d’Aguesseau. Vauban fortified his citadels;
Riquet de Caraman opened canals ; Perrault and Mansard built
his palaces ; Girardon, Poussin, Mignard, Le Sueur embellished
them ; Le Nôtre laid out his gardens; Corneille, Racine, Molière,
Quinault, La Fontaine, La Bruyère, Boileau, La Rochefoucauld
enlightened his mind and amused his leisure; Montausier,
Bossuet, Beauvilliers, Fénelon, Huet, Fléchier, Fleury educated
his children. Bossuet, Fénelon, Bourdaloue, Fléchier, Massillon
spoke to him from the Christiau pulpit, in their inspired ac­
cents.” This splendid combination of glory, greatness and
genius, laid the foundation of the moral preponderance of
France.
18. Louis XIV., it must be confessed, did not always suffi­
ciently rely upon this incontestable superiority to secure his
preeminence; be sometimes displayed an excessive arrogance
toward the other European sovereigns. H;s bearing, in a
memorable difficulty with Alexander VII., will sufficiently show
this trait. His ambassador at Rome was the Duke of Créqui,
a man of violent and ungoverned temper. His attendants
offered some insult to the Corsican troops who composed the
Pontifical guard. The insulted regiment seized its arms to
avenge its injured members. Without waiting for the issue of
I he investigation begun by the Pope, the Corsicans attacked
the ambassador's residence, killed several French subjects, and
fired upon the coach of the ambassador’s wife, killing one of her
attendants (a. d. 1662). These were certainly deplorable ex­
cesses ; but, in truth, it was only a military quarrel, provoked
by the insolence of the French retinue, and in which the Roman
government had not the least share. The Pope’s nephew, Car­
dinal Chigi, hastened at once to the French ambassador, made
ample apologies in the name of his uncle, and offered to make
any reparation he might require. The duke refused to listen
to his excuses, withdrew into Tuscany, and sent to the court
of Versailles a report representing the matter in the most dis­
advantageous light for the Holy See. Louis, on receiving thi.«

318

GENERAL HISTORY’ OF THE CHURCH.

account, imm idiately ordered that Piccolomini, the Papal nuncio
in France, should be conveyed by a guard of fifty soldiers, to
the frontier of Savoy. At the same time ho seized Avignon
and the Comtat-Venaissin, threatening, moreover, to march his
troops into Italy. The Popo vainly offered every possible ex­
planation of the fatal affray. Louis was inflexible. The year
1663 was spent, in fruitless negotiations. At length the Popo
proposed the mediation of the Catholic King, of the Grand Duke
of Tuscany, of the Venetian republic and the other Italian
States. It could not be denied that the French had begun the
quarrel. The Corsicans had, of their own accord, resorted to
arms, and thus caused all the subsequent evil. But the court
of Louis XIV. would not listen to reason. The king demanded
that the Pope’s nephew, Mario Chigi, should be exiled, that
Cardinal Imperiali should come to Versailles to present the
Pope’s apology, and finally, that a pyramid should be erected
in Rome, with an inscription to perpetuate the crime and the
punishment of the Corsicans.
*
On these terms he was willing
to make peace with the Sovereign Pontiff. This was the bear­
ing of an absolute monarch, and not of the Most Christian King.
“Every wise man,” says Muratori, “condemned this arbitrary
proceeding of the King of France against the vicar of Jesus
Christ, on account of an accident rvhich had happened through
no fault of his." All the conditions were fulfilled, and peace
was restored between the crown of France and the Iloly See.
19. One of the first cares of Alexander VII,, on ascending
the Pontifical chair, was to decide the case of Jansenism, which
the bull of Innocent X. had not brought to a close. Doctor
Arnauld had lately published two letters, in which he asserted
that the five propositions ascribed to the “ Augustinus,” were
nowhere to be found in that work. The Sorbonne condemned
the two letters (January 14, a. d. 1656), which did not deter
the doctor from issuing other writings in which he advanced
the doctrine: “That grace, without which we can do nothing,
λ as wanting to a just man, in the person of St. Peter, on an
* Thia monument was removed under Clement IX-, with the consent of Tx>uis XIV

ALEXANDER VII. Ά. D. ieS5-l6«1).

319

occasion in which it cannot, be said that he did not ein." Thia
was simply presenting in a historical form, the first of the five
condemned propositions. A second decree of the Faculty of
Paris condemned the doctrine of Arnauld (January 16, 1656).
The Jansenists, however, still continued to dogmatize on the
same theme. Alexander thought it his duty to interfere. In
a bull dated October, 1656, he promulgated a new constitution
confirming every point of the bull published by Innocent X.,
which he embodied, entire, in his own. He declares and de­
fines that the five propositions in question are really taken from
the work of Jansenius entitled “ Augustinus," and that they
are condemned in the sense intended by the author. He again
condemns the “Augustinus," and every work, printed or
manuscript, which has been, or may yet be, written in its sup­
port. “ Precision and precaution,” says a modern writer, “could
hardly have been carried further ; they seemed at first almost
overstrained ; they proved even insufficient.”
20. The bull of Alexander VII. was received with submis­
sion by the General Assembly of the French clergy (a. d. 1657)
They declared that the provisions of the decree, as well as of
that of Innocent X., should be enforced against those who con­
tinued to profess the condemned doctrine. To secure the bet­
ter execution of the Apostolic decrees, they prepared & formula,
or profession of faith, which was to be signed by all the eccle­
siastics of every diocese, within the space of a month. The
formula was drawn up in these terms: “I sincerely submit to
the constitution of Pope Innocent X., of the 31st of May,
1653, in its true sense, which has been defined by our Holy
Father, Alexander VII., on the 16th of October, 1656. I ac­
knowledge that I am in conscience bound to obey these consti­
tutions ; and I condemn, with my lips and in my heart, th··
doctrine of the five propositions of Jansenius, contained in his
1 Augustinus,’ which has been condemned by those two Popes
and by the biehops, which doctrine is not that of St. Augustine,
as Jansenius has falsely explained, contrary to the true mean­
ing of that doctor.” As soon as the decree of the General

320

OENRRAL· HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Assembly of the clergy was published in France, and the words
“formula” and “signature" were heard, the Jansenists everywhere reiterated the assertion that they were ready to submit
to the decisions of the Holy See, in matters of faith, but that
they could not be obliged, against their conscience, to acknow­
ledge that a heretical doctrine was contained in the work of a
pious and learned bishop, who had died in communion with the
Church. Arnauld wrote several works in support of this decla­
ration. They gave rise to scandalous discussions and disorders.
Tired of all this disputing and opposition, the king summoned
the presidents of the Assembly of the clergy to meet him at the
Louvre (1660). He exhorted them with great earnestness to
seek prompt and efficacious means for the extirpation of Jansen­
ism, promising to support them with the full weight of his author­
ity. In consequence of this injunction and of a report of eleven
commissioners appointed to carry out the royal wish, the clergy
unanimously resolved that every ecclesiastic, secular and regu­
lar, in the kingdom, should be required to sign the formula.
It was, moreover, decreed that all those who had written against
the bulls should make a formal retraction. A decree of the
council and a letter of the king to all the prelates of the king­
dom, ratified the sentence of the Assembly and enforced its
execution. But Jansenism had yet another deplorable scandal
to add to the many by which it was already disgraced.
21. The vicars-general, who administered the diocese of
Paris in the absence of Cardinal de Retz, issued an ordinance
requiring all to sign the formula, but distinguishing, at the
same lime, between the right which they were required to
acknowledge, and the fact for which only respect or a respect­
ful silence was asked. “ In the time of Innocent X.,” con­
tinued the ordinance, “ the question in Rome was to know
whether the five propositions were true and Catholic, or false
and heretical.” Thus the administrators required nothing more,
in regard to the question of Jansenius, than that all should
profess the full and sincere respect due to the Papal constitu­
tions, without at all prejudging the facts in the case. Thia

ALEXANDEK VII. (A. D. 1β65-16β?).

321

Line of argument betrayed either an incurable obstinacy or t
manifest insincerity. Alexander addressed to the administra
tors a brief, expressive of his lively indignation, threatening
them with the censures of the Church unless they made an
immediate retraction. This fearful warning called forth a new
decree from the administrators, in which they did, indeed, re­
tract their assertion, but with so much circumlocution, that it
was easy to discover in it the resentment of wounded selflove. Still, the advocates of the “respectful silence" did not
cease to stun the court, the city and the whole kingdom with
their clamors. “ The bishops assembled in Paris,” they pro­
tested, “ have acted as if they constituted a national council,
whereas the object of their meeting was exclusively limited to
temporal matters.” This wily pretext, based upon a false and
lying allegation, caused a delay of more than two years in the
execution of the order in the provinces. Louis exerted his
authority a second time. A decree of the royal council (May 1.
a. d. 1662) enjoined all the bishops to require the signatures of
every refractory ecclesiastic, without exception or explanation
The order was urgent; the monarch who gave it was accustomed
to have his will respected, even by his enemies. But heresy
acknowledges no authority, spiritual or temporal; and all the
power of the great king was unable to compel the signature of
a single Jansenist. They intrenched the selves in the “ re­
spectful silence," “quite prepared," they said, “to condemn
the five propositions in themselves, but not to admit that they
were really in the ‘ Augustinus.’ " Deplorable blindness of
partisan obstinacy ! The men who could reason thus, prided
themselves on their great zeal for religion and for the salvation
of souls But what benefit could result to religion from these
ceaseless quarrels ? What advantage were the simple faithful
to draw from the scandalous resistance of a certain number of
bishops, doctors, and religious, to the orders of the Sovereign
Pontiff, the judge of faith, the guardian of doctrine, the lawful
and incontestable head of the Church.
22. Indignant at this display of manifest insincerity, Louis
Vol IV.—31

822

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

XIV. called together the bishops who were then in Paris, lo
deliberate upon the best means of overcoming the obstinacy of
the Jansenists. The Assembly held to the signing of the for
muta, and urged the king to use his power, in accordance with
the desire of the Pope, to enforce the execution of the decree
within two months. The bishops wrote to Alexander VII. that
they had found the declaration of the Jansenists crafty, wicked,
and concealing heresy under the deceitful appearance of obe­
dience in words. The heretics now assailed the prelates with
a storm of insulting and calumnious libels. This insolent at­
tack was another motive which induced the king to urge, by
letters-patent, the execution of the decree. Some months
later he issued a still more explicit declaration, and appeared
tn person in the parliament to have it registered before his own
eyes. He then wrote to the Pope, requesting him to send a
formula himself, with orders to the bishops to sign it and to
have it signed by their clergy. Alexander accordingly drew
up a new constitution (a. d. 1665), in which, “ to take away all
pretext for disobedience, and all subterfuge from heresy,” he
commanded the bishops, all ecclesiastics, regular and secular,
nil religious, doctors, licentiates and regents of universities, to
sign, within three months, the following formula, very nearly
the same in form as the one before issued by the Assembly
of the French clergy: “I, the undersigned, submit to the
Apostolic Constitution of Innocent X., given on the 31st of
May, 1653, and to that of Alexander VII., of October 16th.
1656 ; and in the sincerity of my heart I reject and con­
demn the five propositions drawn from the work of Jansenius,
called the ‘ Augustinus,’ and in the sense in which they were
understood by the author, as the Apostolic See has condemned
them by the same constitutions. I swear it; so help me God
and the Holy Gospels.” The king immediatly issued an edict
requiring all the prelates of the kingdom to sign the Pope’s
formula ; declaring, at the same time, that if any bishop had
not yet signed it at the end of three months, he should be
prosecuted in accordance with the prescriptions of the Holy

CLEMENT IX. .A. D. ΙββΤ-ΙΜ»;.

32S

Canons. Spite of this order, four prelates, the bishops of A let.
Nicholas Pavilion ; of Beauvais. Nicholas Chouart de Buzenval ;
of Pamiers, Francis Gaulet, and of Angers, Henry Arnanld. re­
fused to obey. In the pastoral letters addressed to their re­
spective dioceses, they protested and declared that, concerning
the act. of Jansenius, they owed to the Church only the obe­
dience of deference, which consisted in observing a respectful
silence. The king suppressed these pastoral letters on the
10th of July, 1665; and Alexander VII., by a decree of the
Index, condemned them on the 18th of February, 1667. He then
directed that a commission nf nine ι>;ο),α™ ahnnld open the trial
of the four retractory prelates ; but death did not auow mm
carry out the delicate matter. Pope Alexander died on the
22d of May, 1667, with the reputation of an enlightened, firm,
and energetic Pontiff, the very man that was needed to combat
the most obstinate of heresies.
§ 3. Pontificate of Clement IX. (June 20, a. d. 1667—Decem
ber 9, 1669).

23. Cardinal Julius Rospigliosi, of Pistoja, was elected to
succeed Alexander VII., and took the name of Clement IX.
Nineteen French bishops had taken occasion, at the death of
the late Pontiff, to side with the four refractory prelates. They
published pastoral letters, teaching that the Church cannot pro­
nounce with infallibility upon a human action, as, for example,
in appreciating the doctrine of an *
author; that in such a case
the Church can require only a respectful silence on its deci­
sions. All the old quarrels thus threatened to spring up again
with renewed violence. Clement IX. at once confirmed the
bulls of his predecessors by a brief, in which he threatened to
prosecute the rebellious bishops with the greatest rigor. Louis
• We mint be careful to distinguish between the natum) (oftviais) sense of a book ans
th· real thought or personal meaning of the author. It is the former sense that the 1 buret
condemns, and justly calls the sense of the author, wbaterer mar have oeen lus secrr
thought, which is nothing to the reader

324

GENERAL BISTORT OF THE C1IDRCR.

XIV. actively cooperated with the Pontiff. The Jansenists
were alarmed, and thought it prudent to ward off the threatened
punishments by a hypocritical show of submission. They pro­
mised to sign the formula, without any mental reservation, if
they could be spared the shame of a public retraction of their
charges. Full of paternal kindness toward his erring children,
the merciful Pontiff granted the favor; he accepted the pro
posais of peace, and the bishops signed the declaration. We
shall not enter into the details of the frauds used by the Jan­
séniste to bring the matter to a speedy conclusion, to deceive
the Pope, the king, the bishops and the clergy; it is enough to
have pointed them out, and to add that the captious sectaries
took advantage of the reconciliation, which was known as the
“ Clementine Peace." They affected to infer that the Pope,
by not obliging the four bishops to retract their charges, had
implicitly approved their distinction between the fact and the
right. In this display of fanatical obstinacy, history would
almost seem to have made a backward step of three centuries,
to the time when the Greeks of the Lower Empire lengthened
out religious disputes by endless sophisms.
24. The insincerity of the four bishops, however, only added
new lustre to the noble language and conduct of Clement IX.
The following brief, which he addressed to them when they had
signed the formula, we quote, as a memorable monument, whiot
will ever proclaim the doctrinal unchangeableness or the Papacy
and condemn the shameful artifices of the Jansenists : “ Vener
able brethren, health and Apostolic benediction. Our nuncio al
the court of France has put Us in possession of letters by which
you inform Us, with every mark of submission, that, agreeably
to the Apostolic letters issued by Our predecessors, Innocent X
and Alexander VII., you have, in sincerity, subscribed, and
caused to be subscribed, the formula contained in the letters
of the same Pope Alexander. Though in consequence of cer­
tain reports which reached Our ears, We deemed it Our duly to
act with deliberation in this case (for We could never have
admitted, in thio respect, any exception or restriction whatever,

CLEMENT IX. (A. ί). 1ββ7-Ιββ·).

325

being, as We are, inviolably attached to the constitutions ol Our
predecessors) ; yet now, in view of the renewed and considerable
assurances which have come to us from France, touching the
true and perfect obedience with which you have in sincerity
subscribed the formula; beside, that having condemned, without
exception or restriction, the five propositions, in all the senses
in which they have been condemned by the Apostolic See, you
are very far from wishing to renew the errors condemned hy
the same See ; We wished now to give you a mark of Our pater­
nal affection, since We are sure that you will in future forget
nothing that can daily give Us new proofs of the sincere obedi­
ence and submission which you have shown toward Us on this
occasion.” Nothing could be more clear, precise and formal
than this brief. If Clement IX. was deceived by a faithlessness
which defeated all calculation, eluded every condemnation, and
disconcerted the most skilful measures, the whole infamy must
fall upon the bishops and doctors who pretended to bring back
the Church to its primitive integrity by disgraceful subtleties
and pitiful evasions.
25. To form a correct notion of the power of Jansenism,
and of the circumstances which fostered its prodigious growth ;
to account for the infatuation with which the French society ul
that period received a heresy, whose obscure teaching in one of
the highest questions of theology, could not be within the reach
of the vulgar, we must refer the history of Jansenism to the
hostile movement which was displayed, in the beginning of the
seventeenth century, against the Pontifical power. The Jan­
senists, by their subtle distinction between right and fact, came
to calling in question the infallibility of the Pope ; it was this
feature of their system which gave them the readiest access to
minds already imbued with Gallican ideas. All the tendencies
of the doctors and jurists of ‘he seventeenth century were
summed up in this one idea o make the Pope the first ot
bishops, but to allow him nothing beyond that primacy of honor;
to refuse him dogmatic infallibility, and to bestow it upon the
Universal Church at large, or assembled in ;ts general councils ;

320

GENERAI. HISTORY OP THE CHÜRCH

therefore, to put, the council above tho Popo ; to deny the right
of the Roman Pontiff to intervene in the temporal affairs of
Europe; in a word, to overthrow the whole religious and politi­
cal system of the middle-ages, in order to draw the world into
the way of lawless independence ; such had been the aim of the
legists of that age. They did not perceive that they were
merely underpinning the error of Luther, while disguising it
under less violent forms, and preserving, at least in appearance,
the outward bond of ecclesiastical communion. Marc-Antonio
de Dominis, archbishop of Spalatro and primate of Dalmatia
(1607), was the first to maintain these novelties. His work,
“ De Republics Christiana,” destroyed all idea of a monarchy
in the Church; Dominis looked upon it as an aristocratic system,
in which the Pope was but the minister, and, in some sort, the
delegate of the community. The Theological Faculty of Paris
condemned the work, while the author went to justify himself
in Rome, where he atoned for his errors in the Castle of St.
Angelo. But his teaching was not imprisoned with him.
Edmund Richer, doctor and syndic of the Faculty of Paris,
defended it with more subtlety, and, we may also add, with
more unskilfulness. In presenting, in a general way, his prin­
ciples on the community, ns the essential origin of sovereignty,
he was attacking the temporal monarchy no less than the
spiritual jurisdiction of the Sovereign Pontiff. Richer’s treatise,
“ De Ecclesiastica ct Politica Potestate," was condemned in the
synods of Paris and Aix (a. d. 1612) as well as at Rome. Its
author was deprived of his office. Before his death, however,
. Richer was persuaded by Richelieu to sign a retraction which
his partisans pretend to regard as extorted, but which seems,
on the contrary, to have been free and sincere. Jean Launoy,
a doctor of the Sorbonne and an avowed Jansenist, professed
the same opinions in a work entitled Puissance du roi sur le
manage. In the theory of Launoy, Christian marriage is made
λ purely civil matter ; the author takes from the Church the
right of establishing the invalidating impediments, and ascribe·
it exclusively to princes, in opposition to the express doctrine

CLEMENT IX. (A. D. 1β61-1ββ0).

327

of the Council of Trent, which anathematizes the very propos:
tion advocated by Launoy. “ Independently of this et« o!
non-acceptance,” adds a late author, “ the opinion of the docto;
of the Sorbonne may be said to lead to the total ruin of Chris­
tian morality ; for if the validity of marriages depends entirely
upon the secular power, what will hinder Christians from marry­
ing their own sisters, as did the illustrious Ptolemies, and all
Egypt with them ; from establishing the community of women,
as the incomparable Plato would have done, and as the grave
Cato actually did; or from becoming polygamists, according to
the teaching of the Arab Prophet?" This work of Launoy,
proscribed, by its very nature and aim, at the tribunal of every
Christian reader, was condemned in Rome by a Pontifical
decree. Launoy showed no more respect for the venerable
traditions upon which rests the worship of the saints, than for
the divine authority of the Church. He was popularly known
in France by the nickname of Dénicheur des Saints. He erased
from his calendar the name uf St. Catherine, martyr, to whom
all past ages had paid a marked devotion. On her feast he
affected tc say a mass of requiem, as if a defect of authenticity
in the acts of a saint honored by the Church with public wor­
ship, could prove any thing against her existence or her sancti­
ty. This wretched system, under pretext of a more enlightened
criticism, attacked the lives of the most illustrious saints.
Catholic writers of undoubted learning and purity of intention,
undertook to redress the injuries done to hagiology in this
respect. Baillet distinguished himself by the alfccted rigorism
with which he composed his “ Lives of the Saints," rejecting
all wonderful facts as apocryphal legends, and thus introducing
Protestant rationalism into the appreciation of those privileged
beings, the very essence of whose existence is, so to speak,
miraculous. In open contradiction to this system of a priori
negation, a professed Jansenist, Arnauld d'Andilly, brother of
the celebrated Doctor Arnauld, now published his translations
of the .“Lives of the Fathers of the Desert, written by the
Fathers of the Church,” and of the “ Works of St. Theresa.”

328

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

•very page of which abounds in facta altogether of the super
natural order, superabundantly proving that in every age of its
history, the Church has preserved, as a token of its divine
origin, the power of miracles given by Jesus Christ at the timo
of its foundation.
26. The reaction against the authority of the Church was
now drawing along the majority of the French doctors. In this
spirit, Ellies Dupin wrote several works: an “Abridged His­
tory of the Church, by question and answer, from the begin­
ning of the world to the present time;" a “Profane History”
from its beginning to the same date ; a “ Universal Library of
Historians;" and one of “Ecclesiastical Writers." The last of
these works called forth especial opposition. The Benedictines
of St. Vannes, under the direction of Petit-Didier, abbot of
Senones, were the first to point out the errors of Dupin. They
chiefly concerned original sin, Purgatory, the canonical books,
the eternity of future punishment, the veneration of saints and
of their relics, the adoration of the cross, grace, the Pope and
the bishops, Lent, divorce, clerical celibacy, the Fathers and
tradition. Thus nearly the whole Protestant theory was em­
bodied in the writings of a doctor who claimed to be a member
of the Catholic communion. The Benedictines of St. Vannes
published their “ Remarks on the Works of Ellies Dupin,” in
three volumes ; but that author soon met a yet more formi
dable adversary. Bossuet addressed to the chancellor of the
kingdom a memorial in which, with close, spirited and eloquent
reasoning, be advocates the suppression of so pernicious a work.
“In his abridgment of discipline,” says Bossuet, “ the author
grants Lo the Pope nothing more than that the Roman Church,
founded by St. Peter and St. Paul, be looked upon as the first,
and its bishop as the first among all the bishops, without attrib­
uting to the Pope any jurisdiction over them, or saying a word
about the divine institution of his primacy; on the contrary,
he makes this a matter of discipline, which he declares to be
variable. He is not more clear in speaking of bishops, but
simply says that the bishop is above the priests, without stating

CLEMENT nt. (A. D. Ιββΐ-ΐβ··).

3Λ

that he is so by divine right. These great critics are not
very favorably disposed toward ecclesiastical superiority, and
have very, little more regard for that of bishops than for the
Pope’s. One of the highest prerogatives of the chair of St.
Peter, is that it is the chair of St. Peter, the principal chair to
which all the faithful must look for unity, and, as St. Cyprian
styles it, ‘ the source of sacerdotal unity.' It is the spirit of
our modern critics to condemn those who acknowledge, in the
Papacy, a supreme authority established by divine right. To
join all antiquity in this recognition, is, in their eyes, to flatter
Rome in order to win her favor.” Bossuet thus closes his
memorial : “ Without going farther in the examination of a work
so full of errors and of rashness, it is easy to see that it mani
festly tends to the overthrow of the Catholic religion ; that it
everywhere betrays a spirit of singularity which must be
crushed ; in a word, that its doctrine is intolerable." Ellies
Dupin was banished by Louis XIV., and deprived of his chair
in the Sorbonne. His “ Universal Library " was condemned
by the Archbishop of Paris, suppressed by a parliamentary
decree in 1696, and branded with the anathema of the court
of Rome.—Another scholar, no less dangerous, Doctor Richard
Simon, wrote, in the same spirit as Dupin, 1st, a “ Critical
History of the Text, the Versions and the Commentaries of the
Old Testament
2d, “ Critical History of the Text of the
New Testament;” 3d, “Critical History of the Principal Com­
mentators on the New Testament.” All these works were con­
demned at Rome. Bossuet also denounced them to the chan­
cellor as “a mass of impious doctrinesand a bulwark for liber­
tinism.” Richard Simon, in fact, announces himself as the
partisan of the Socinians and the forerunner of modern free
thinkers. “ His real aim,” says Bossuet, “ is to destroy the
authenticity of the Canonical Scriptures, to make a direct attack
upon the inspiration of the Sacred Text, and to reject, in oppo­
sition to a formal decree of the Council of Trent, several pas­
sages as doubtful or apocryphal ; to weaken the whole teaching
of the Fathers, and by a particular design, that of St. Augus­

330

GENERAL HISTORY OP THE CHURCH.

tine on grace." The illustrious Bishop of Meaux, with tho
object of refuting Doctor Simon, composed bis magnificent trea
tise, “ Defence of Tradition and of the Holy Fathers," in which
he displays a triumphant array of learning, logic and eloquence.
Spite of his energetic efforts, the gangrene of Jansenism con­
tinued to infect the French clergy, and, ata. later period, a
canon of St. Genevieve in Paris, Pierre-François Le Courrayer,
scandalized the world by the spectacle of a complete apostasy.
In a “Dissertation on the Validity of Anglican Ordinations," he
almost unconditionally declared in favor of the Reformation of
Henry VIII., and in a later work, Declaration of my last senti­
ments upon religious discussions, he rejects all the mysteries of
Christian faith, the Trinity, the Incarnation, the dogma of origi­
nal sin, the real presence, transubstantiation, and the infallibility
of the Church. Le Courrayer quitted France for England,
where he was received as a conquest by the Archbishop of
Canterbury; the university of that city presented him with a
doctor’s diploma ; the court of London gave him a pension, and
he died amid the wealth and honors bought at the price of
apostasy.
27. Some French jurists, unhappily too faithful to the spirit
of opposition which characterized the Councils of Basle and
Constance, seemed altogether pre-occupied with the thought of
combating the prerogatives of the Roman Church. The brothers
Peter and Francis Pitbou, converts from Calvinism, were particu­
larly remarkable in this fierce contest. They worked together
to produce their famous “ Treatise on the Gallican Liberties,"
in which, under the pretext of freeing the clergy of France from
the Pontifical authority, they completely subject it to the secu­
lar *power. To support the work of the brothers Pithou, another
legist, Pierre Dupuy published a compilation under the title of
“The Liberties of the Gallican Church Proved." It was censured
and denounced to the Episcopate by twenty-two bishops and
• “The great servitudo of tho Gallican churcli,” says Floury. “is tho undue extent of the
■ocular jurisdiction." Tlds consideration has not prevented the works of tho brother»
Pithou and of Dupuy from becoming tho great armory of GaUioanism.

CLEMENT IX. (A. D. ΙββΜββ·).

331

archbishops in France, “ as a detestable work, fall of the moat
poisonous propositions, and cloaking formal heresies under the
plausible name of liberties.” “ For," says Bossuet, “ the jurists
and the magistrates understood the term ‘ Gallican liberties,
*
far otherwise than the bishops ; they looked upon themselves
as the fathers and doctors of that church, as its natural dofenders, not only against the Pope, but against the bishops.”
The parliament, which seemed to think itself the permanent
council of Gaul, helped to strengthen the spirit of hostility
against the Holy See. “Protestant in the sixteenth century,”
says the Count de Maistre; “with the Fronde and Jansenisn
in the seventeenth ; philosophical, at length, and republican il
the last years of its existence, the parliament but too often
appeared in antagonism to the true fundamental maxims of the
State. The seeds of Calvinism, fostered in that great body,
became far more dangerous when its essence changed its name,
and was called Jansenism. Then conscience was set at ease by
a heresy which proclaimed the principle, ‘ I do not exist.’ The
poison reached even those illustrious names in the magis­
tracy of which foreign nations envied France the possession.
Then all errors, even the errors hostile to each other, being
always ready to unite against the truth, the new philosophy in
the parliaments leagued with Jansenism against Rome. If we
take into consideration the number of magistrates in all parte
of France, that of the tribunals which made it a duty and a point
of honor to walk in their footsteps, the many clients of the
parliament, and all that blood, friendship, or mere ascendency
drew into the same gulf, we shall easily perceive that there
was material enough to form in the heart of the Gallican church
a formidable party against the Holy See.”
28. Such were the auxiliaries of Jansenism in France. The
leaders of the new sect were three men of different degrees of
celebrity, and whose names were repeated by every tongue of
fame. The Lettres Provinciales had just appeared under the
title of “ Letters of Louis de Montalte to a Provincial friend.”
Their author, a deep mathematician, had already illustrated the

3î>2

GENERAL niSTORÏ OF THE CRURCII.

nnmc of Pascal by brilliant discoveries made at an age when
other men have hardly closed their course of scholastic studier
He was now known in France as a first-class writer. Never
before him had the French language attained the purity, 'he
elegance, the choice of forms and turns of expression which
fixed it for all time. For style, the Lettres Provinciales were
one of the finest monuments of literature, not that they have
never since been surpassed by any other work,
*
but because
(hey were the first to appear in the highest rank, and thus ac­
quire a simple priority of date, As to the matter of the work,
Voltaire says of it, without evasion ; “ The whole work indeed
rests upon a false ground, it is very evident." Pascal’s object
was to attack the Society of Jesus, of which the members
showed themselves the most determined opponents of Jansen­
ism. For this purpose he gathered a number of texts from the
various writings of their casuists and theologians, isolated them
from their context, combining them with the greatest art, and
often with a dishonesty unworthy of his genius. In their de­
cisions, often uncertain and doubtful, as well as in the doctrine
of some of their moralists on probabilism, authority, and men­
tal reservations, he found ample matter for satire, and an ex
haustless fund of ridicule, Moreover, he did not scruple to
unbury obscure and forgotten writings, and especially to attrib­
ute to a whole society the opinions of a few individuals. Still
the work won an immense success. It was condemned by the
court of Rome, and Louis XIV. ordered that it should be ex­
amined by a commission consisting of thirteen archbishops,
bishops, doctors or professors of theology, who gave their de­
cision in these terms : “ After a careful examination of the
work entitled Lettres Provinciales, we certify that the heresies
of Jansenius, condemned by the Church, are maintained and
defended in it. In his insolence and malignity, the author
spares neither the Pope, nor the bishops, nor the king, nor his
* Id style, io literary wealth, in historical and philosophical imporianco the DiteourM
« UniverMl Hintory and the Funeral Oratione of Bossuet, and the TtUmachu» of F<-n»»
lea are infinitely superior to the LMru /‘rocinciaJa, which
more praised than read.

CLEMENT IX. (A. D. ΙΜ1-Ι6β9).

33b

iihief ministers, nor the sacred Faculty of Theology of Paris, nor
the religious orders. The book is therefore deserving of the
penalties decreed by the laws against defamatory and heretical
libels.” A corresponding decree of the Council of State con­
demned the Provinciales to the flames. Pascal did not retract.
It is sad to read in the immortal collection of his Pensée
*
such
sentiments as these : “ When I saw myself condemned, 1 feared
that I might have written amiss, but the example of so many
pious writings which have met the same fate, leads me to believe
the contrary. It is no longer allowable to write any thing good,
so corrupt and ignorant has the Inquisition become. It is bet·
ter to obey God than men. I fear nothing; I look for nothing.
Port-Royal is alarmed ; it is a bad policy. When they cease to
fear, they will themselves inspire greater fear. Silence is the
greatest persecution. The saints never remained silent. Voca­
tion, it is true, is necessary ; but it is not from the decrees of
councils that we shall know whether we are called, but from
the necessity of speaking. If my letters are condemned in
Rome, what I condemn in them is condemned in Heaven. Th
Inquisition and the Society of Jesus are the two scourges of
truth.” How deplorable the blindness that led astray in the
ways of error one of the noblest minds of which humanity could
ever boast.
29. Antoine Arnauld had just published his work on “ Fiequent Communion,” in which the spirit of Jansenism was
openly displayed. The God of the Eucharist is no longer, in
the eyes of Arnauld, the God of grace and mercy ; He is an
inexorable judge, more surrounded with terrors than on the
Mount of Sinai. The terrified faithful are no more to draw
near to that awful majesty. The effect of the work was im­
mense. The number of communions decreased in Paris at
a fearful *rate. At once the Catholics raised a general outcry
• Su Vincent de Paul wrote to one of his missionaries: "It may be that sotre lam
profited by reading the book on 1 Frequent Communion,' but if it has served to make a hun­
dred persona more respectful toward tbu Sacraments, there are at least leu thoUwind whom
it has injured by withdrawing them altogether from tli-*m. Now we no 'ongvr see the Holy

334

/ENBRAL HISTORY OP THE CHURCH.

Hgainst so dangerous a work. The book was submitted to the
Holy See, and the author was obliged to retract. In vindica­
tion of their coryphcus, the Jansenists stated that Arnauld h id
only aimed at combating the relaxation of confessors, who
were too ready to admit sinners to a participation in tin.· sacred
mysteries. “That is an excess," said St. Vincent de Paul.
“ which was deplored by St. Charles Borromco himself. But
the theories of the ‘Frequent Communion’ go still farther.
The author gives unqualified praise to the piety of those who
would put off communion until the end of their lives, as being
unworthy to approach the body of Jesus Christ. He assures
them that such humility is more pleasing to God than al)
manner of good works ; that it is speaking in a manner de­
rogatory to the King of Heaven to say that He is honored by
our communions. But even closing our eyes to all these con
siderations, we cannot help seeing that the dispositions re­
quired by the young doctor for the reception of the Holy
Mysteries are so elevated, so far above our human weakness,
that no man living could flatter himself with the thought that
he is worthy. If, as he maintains without the slightest modi­
fication, they only can be allowed to receive the Holy Eucha­
rist who are entirely purified from all the images of their past
lives by divine love, pure and unmixed, who are perfectly
united to God alone, being wholly perfect and irreproachable,
theu we must grant with him, that those who receive accord
*
.ng to the practice of the Church, with the ordinary disposi­
tions, are antichrists. No 1 On such principles, holy commu­
nion is now only for M. Arnauld, who, after making the
standard of the necessary dispositions one which might have
terrified a St. Paul, does not omit to proclaim several times,
in the course of his apology, that he says Mass every day."
Arnauld was not more willing than Pascal to abide by the
Table frequented as it used to be, not even at Easter ; many parish priests in Parts coir,
plain of this; at St Sulpice the number of communicante has decreased by throe thousand
at St Nicholas du Chardonnet, fifteen hundred persons failed in this duty of religion,
K> of many others."

CLEMENT IX. (A. D. Ιβ<Π-1Μ9).

33É

various censures which his work incurred. He quitted hi»
native land, and ended at Brussels a life which might have
reflected glory upon the Church. “ Arnanld," says a late
writer, “ was gifted with great eloquence; but he did not suf­
ficiently regulate its impulse. His powerful logic was some­
times weakened by careless diction, a heavy and dogmatic
tone, and, in his first contests, it was necessary that Pascal's
charms of expression and stinging satire should set off hie
arguments to insure their reception. He had not at command,
like that inimitable writer, the art of condensing and of being
precise, without ceasing to be eloquent.” Of the hundred and
fifty volumes which we owe to his fruitful pen, the mo-t im­
portant and only blameless one is the celebrated treatise on the
“ Perpetuity of the Faith,” in which he established the dogma
of the real presence against the Calvinists. In this work he
was helped by Nicole, another Jansenist leader, whose early
fortunes were similar to those of Arnanld. Like him, he pre­
ferred exile to submission. At a later period, however, he
returned from the wanderings of his youth, anfl obtained per­
mission to reside in Paris. It was then that he wrote his
Essais de morale, a work less universally read than esteemed,
in which the leading ideas of the sect are found buried in dis­
sertations which at present seem cold and heavy. Such was
Jansenism in France in the Pontificate of Clement IX. In­
trenched in its stronghold of Port-Royal, it spread its seductive
influence over the finest intellects of the great age. The warm­
hearted Racine yielded his affectionate soul to that cheerless
doctrine ; the severe Boileau devoted some of his beautiful
verses to its praises, and bestowed upon the i; Great Arnauld
a patent of immortality. Strange is the inconsistency of the
human mind ! At the very time when the temporal authority
was glorified in its highest impersonation,and reached its zenith
under Louis XIV., men did not blush to encourage sectaries
who rose up in open revolt against the highest spiritual au­
thority, pretending to make of the Church a kind of aristocratic
republic, whose head would have been such only in name

.136

GENERAL· BISTORT OF THE CHURCH.

30. Public attention had been for a moment withdrawn
from these lamentable contests, by a series of events which
threatened the safety of Europe and the destinies of the Chris­
tian world. In the course of the year 1662, the emperor of
Austria, Leopold I., had made an armed invasion of Transyl­
vania, a tributary province of the Porte, and had seized several
strong places, among others, Szecklhyel and Serinvar. The
Turks were then ruled by the Sultan Mahomet IV., a weak
and voluptuous prince, who spent his days in hunting, and
would have been personally incapable of avenging the honor of
his arms ; but his vizier, Achmet Kuprili, a man of eminent
ability, placed himself at the head of all the Turkish forces,
and carried the crescent in triumph through the kingdom of
Hungary. The fall of Neuhausel, of Ujivar and of Serinvar,
before the victorious arms of Achmet, was soon followed by the
brilliant and decisive victory at St. Gothard, a village near the
Raab, a tributary of the Danube. On this celebrated field, the
Turks met the Austrians and Hungarians, who were joined by
six thousand French troops sent by Louis XIV., under tho
Count of Coligny and the Viscount d’Aubusson de la Feuillade,
whom the Mussulmans surnained the man, of steel ; the illustri­
ous Montecuculli, an Austrian field-marshal, was commander­
in-chief of the allies. The whole of the Christian artillery
played at once upon the Turkish camp on the opposite bank
of the Raab. The Austrians, Hungarians and French swam
the stream. More than fifteen thousand Mussulmans were
killed or drowned, and their cavalry, heedless of the commands
and threats of the vizier, who would have carried on the fight,
fled in disorder (August 1, a.d. 1664). On the day after the
victory of St. Gothard, Montecuculli, on horseback, sword in
hand, surrounded by his battalions, intoned the Te Deum, and
the great voice of the army joined that of its leader to swell
the solemn anthem of praise to God. 11 Let us also give thanks
to Mary!” exclaimed the hero; and the soldiers repeated with
enthusiasm the august name of the Mother of God. This reli­
gious spirit, displayed amid the terrible array of battle, recalls

CLEMENT LX. (A. D. Ιββϊ-1ββ9).

337

the great combats of the old crusaders, and carries us back in
imagination to the ages of valor, when each soldier was a hero,
and every hero a martyr.
31. The defeat at St. Gothard imbittered the soul of Ach­
met, but did not crush him. “ I shall wrest Candia from the
Venetians, ’ said he on his return to Adrianople, “ or I shall die
in arms on that island which the Christians have held too
long.
He accordingly urged on the undertaking with a cour­
age and perseverance almost unparalleled in history. In the
opening of the year 1667, he began the siege of Candia under
the fire of the Venetian batteries. The Turks attacked with
headlong daring, and the Christians, far inferior in numbers,
defended their post like heroes. The gigantic struggle, now
become so unequal, lasted two years. The Venetians were re­
duced to six thousand fighting men. They offered Achmet &
large sum of money to withdraw and leave the city of Candia
to the besieged. “We are not traders,” answered the vizier;
“ we are in no want of money. We want Candia, and it shall
be ours.” Clement IX. sent assistance to the heroic Vene­
tians. Louis XIV. equipped a fleet manned by five thousand
warriors, the flower of his *nobility, under the command of the
Duke of Navailles and Francis de Vendôme, in whose veins
flowed the blood of Henry IV., and who was to die, as became
his descent, before the walls of Candia By an inexplicable
fatality, these re-enforcements, which could have secured the
triumph of the Christian arms, soon afterward left the island
they had come to defend. In the month of August, a. d. 1669,
the Duke of Navailles returned to France with his squadron. The
Pontifical galleys left at the same time. The Venetian garri­
son numbered now but three thousand men, while the ranks
of the besiegers were daily strengthened by fresh arrivals
from Anatolia, Roumelia, Egypt and the Barbary Coast. To
continue the struggle was impossible. The Venetians made
• In this auxiliary force we find tho names of a Saint-Pant a Créqui. a Beauvau, a
Fénelon, related to tho iiloatrious archbishop of Cambrai, a Cutelhme, the youthful de 8»
vigno, and a host of others equally illustrious.
VOL. IV,—22

JSP

ORNERAI. HISTORV OF ΤΠΕ CIÏÜRCn

proposals of surrender, to which the grand-vizier agreed. On
the 27th of September, 1669, ho received the keys of the city
in a silver ewer, and gave a thousand ducats to those who
brought them. He insisted upon the complete evacuation of
Candia by the Venetians, and furnished ships to take them t/>
the shores of the Adriatic They took a last tearful leave of
that, island of Crete whicn their republic had held during a
period of four hundred and sixty-five years. Pope Clement
IX. died of grief at the disaster which had befallen Christian
Europe ^December 9th, 1669).

ΛΕΜΕΝΤ X. (Λ. D. IOTO-ΙΜΛ

CHAPTER II.
§ I. Pontificate

of

Clement X. (April 29, a. d. 1870—July 22, 1879).

1. Cardinal Bona. His works.—2. Election and government of Clement X.—
3. The Regale in France. Death of Clement X—4. Spinoza. His pantho
ietic system.—5. Descartes. His philosophy.—8. Dangers of the Cartesiab
system pointed out by Bossuet—7. Malebranche.
§ II. Pontificate

of

Innocent XI. (September 21, a. o. 1976—August 12,
168(1).

B. Election and first acta of Innocent XI. His character and antecedents.—
9. Splendor of France under Louis XIV.—10. Flenry's “History of the
Church.”—11. The two fundamental maxims of Gallicanism, according to
Fleury.—12. Fleury’s reasoning against the exercise of the Pontifical power
in the middle-ages, drawn from the “False Decretals.”—13. Value of the
maxim : “The king, as such, is not subject to the judgment of the Pope.”—
14. Difficulties between Louis XIV. and Innocent XI. concerning the Re
gale.—15. Bossuet.—18. Bossuet’s letter to the Pope in the name of the
French clergy. Reply of Innocent XI.—17. Convocation of the General
Assembly of the clergy of France in 1682. Louis XIV. arranges the matter
of their deliberations.—18. Sessions of the Assembly.—19. Declaration of
the 19th of March, 1682. The Four Articles.—20. Letters patent of Louis
XIV-, requiring all the universities of the kingdom to teach the Four Ar­
ticles.— 21. The Pope condemns the "Declaration of the Clergy of France,”
and annuls nil the acts of the Assembly of 1982.—92. Protest of the Catho­
lic world against the Declaration.—23. Bossuet’s “ Defence of the Declara­
tion of the Clergy of France.”—24. Innocent XI. refuses the bulls of canon­
ical institution to the bishops appointed by Louis XIV.—25. The “ Fran­
chises.” They are suppressed by the Pope. All the Catholic powers
except France submit to the measure.—26. Innocent refuses to receive
Lavardin as ambassador from the court of France. The parliament appeals
from the Pope to a council.—27. Louis XIV. seizes upon Avignon, and in­
terferes in the nomination of the archbishop-elector of Cologne.—28. Revo
cation of the Edict of Nantes.—29. Invasion of Austria by the Turks
Mahomet IV. Kara-Mustapha. Innocent XI. effects the conclusion of a
treaty, offensive and defensive, between Leopold I., emperor of Austria, and

340

GENERAL ΠΤ8ΤΟΛΓ OF THE CHURCH.

John Sobieski, king of Po’nnd.—30. Siege of Vienna by the Turks. Rescue
of the city by Sobieski.—31. Condemnation of Molinos, of the “New Tes
tamont of Mons" and other works.—82. Death of Innocent XI.
g III. Pontificats of Alexander VIII. (October 6. a. d. 1089—February 1
1091).
18. Election of Alexander VIII. Louis XIV. renounces the right of the
Franchise»; restores Avignon and the Comtat-Venaissin to the Pope.—
34. Bull Inter multiplices, condemning the "Declaration of the Clergy of
Franco,” and annulling all the acts of the Assembly. Death of Alexander
VIII.

§ I. Pontificate of Ci.emf' X. (April 29, a. d. 1670—July 22,
1676).

1. At the death of Clement IX. all Rome seemed to join in
one unanimous desire to see the chair of St. Peter occupied by
the pious and learned Cardinal Bona. John Bona was born
(a. d. 1609) at Mondovi, in Piedmont, of a noble family allied,
it was said, to the house of Bonne Lesdiguières, of Dauphiny.
At the age of fifteen years he entered the Cistercian Order, in
the reformed Congregation of St. Bernard, known in France
under the name of *Feuillants. He was successively prior of
Asti, abbot of Mondovi, in 1661 general of his order, and at
length, in 1669, cardinal. His works comprise several treatises
full of piety and learning ; the work “ De Rebus Liturgicis ”
displays curious and interesting researches into the rites, pray­
ers and ceremonies of the Mass. Among his ascetic works,
the most distinguished is the tieatise “De Principiis Vitæ
Christian®,” written with so much unction and simplicity, that
it has been compared to the “ Imitation of Christ.” But the
treatise in which the pious cardinal surpassed himself, “ De
• This secondary order, detached from the great monastic family of Citeaux, was instl
luted ir 1677, by Jean ds la Barrière, in the monastery of Fouillant, near Toulouse. Ilia
religions practised austerities which appeared superhuman. They were to go at all times
bare-headed and bare-footed, to sleep on boards, eat upon their Knees, and suffer extraordi­
nary privations. The Feuillants took a large share in the troubles of the League, especially
a certain Father Bernard do Montguillard. called Le Petit feuillant, who was remarkable for
the "ehemenoe of life sermons. In 1630, Urban VIII. made a division between the Foul·
tenu of Italy, under the name of " St Bernard's Reform," «nd those o( France

CLEMENT X. (A. D. 1610-1618).

341

Divina Psalmodia," is a learned explanation of the Office of the
Church, and, in particular, of the Breviary. A deep and criti­
cal examination into the origin, the order, the disposition and
significance of each part of the divine office, makes of this work
a precious mine in which the priest may find the meaning of
the prayers which he recites every day, with considerations
suited to keep alive his devotion, to inflame his zeal, to raise
his mind and heart. Cardinal Bona deserves to rank among
the Fathers and Doctors of the Church.
2. Yet he was not elected Pope. The choice of the Sacred
College fell upon a no less virtuous and worthy candidate, Car­
dinal Altieri, then eighty years old ; he took the name of
Clement X. “ This Pontiff,” says a Protestant *author, “ followed
the governmental maxims of his predecessor. As he had no
jiving kindred, and was unwilling to witness the extinction in
his own person of the ancient line from which he sprung, he
adopted the family of the Paluzzi, gave them the name of
Altieri and all his hereditary estates. Though he clothed his
new relations with high dignities and advantages, and usefully
employed the new cardinal Altieri as his chief minister, still
this was not a nepotism burdensome to the Apostolic chamber.
On the contrary, he instituted a special congregation to provide
means for lowering the taxes. He abolished the tithe which
had been ordered during the war with the Turks. He cut off
all superfluous expenses, both at court and in the State, and
deposited in the Mont-de-piété, to be used for the public good, all
the income of the Pope's private purse. That was also a wise
law by which he announced, in the year 1671, that commercial
pursuits, when carried out on a large scale, would not derogate
from the dignity and honor of the nobility in bis States, pro­
vided they did not enter into a retail trade.”
3. This Pontificate witnessed the rise, in France, of the
question of the Regale, which afterward became so celebrated
and so productive of fatal consequences. To understand the
•Schrockb. Kirchtn-Gttthichie ttü tier Rr/urmation, t VI, p. 33?

342

GENERAL Π18T0R F OF THE CHURCH.

origin of the question, it is necessary to form a clear ano
exact idea of the position taken by Louis XIV. in regard to
the Papacy. However sincere may have been the attachment
which he professed for the Catholic faith, that absolute monarch
could not endure that the court of Rome should pursue a policy
independent of his own. He bad seen with secret displeasure,
that the court and dependents of Clement IX. leaned to the
side of the Spaniards, with whom he was then at war. For
this he revenged himself by incessant encroachments on the
spiritual power. An edict, dated St. Germain-en-Laye (February
10, a.d. 1673), extended the regale to all the dioceses in the
kingdom. The name of regale was given to an abusive custom
introduced into France, which consisted in turning over to the
royal treasury the revenues of vacant bishoprics and other
benefices. Some dioceses, situated in the provinces bordering
on the Alps and Pyrenees, had hitherto escaped the arbitrary
measure. It was especially upon them that the new edict was
intended to bear. The French clergy showed a disposition to
submit, doubtless apprehending that any attempt at resistance
would but give rise to greater evils. The only prelates who
took a decided stand in opposition, were the Bishops of Pamiers
andAleth; their property was confiscated by the king. Nor
did he stop here; he claimed the right of raising means to pay
military pensions,upon the benefices of the Church, and antici­
pated, by an act of violence, the remonstrances which he ex­
pected from the Sovereign Pontiff, inflicting a deep wound upon
the holders of the Roman funds, by subjecting the donations
sent to Rome to a strict and controlling supervision. Such was
the situation at the death of Clement X., after a painful illness,
on the 22d of July, 1676. He bequeathed to his successor the
storms which the policy of Louis XIV. was conjuring up between
France and the Holy See.
4. It was during the Pontificate of Clement X. that Bene­
dict Spinoza, a Dutch philosopher, published his celebrated
work, “ Tractatus Theologico-politicus,” in which he makes open
profession of pantheism. According to his system, the Divinity

CLF.MEMT X. (Λ. D. ΙΜΜβίβ».

343

is nothing more than the soul of the universe, which think m
mon. feels in animals, vegetates in plants, and dwells in an inani­
mate state in the bosom of the earth. Thus there is but sjo
substance, variously modified, infinite in all respects ; since God
necessarily acts from all eternity, the existence of beings is,
therefore, necessary and eternal. All religion, all revelation,
are human inventions. The appearance of such a theory drew
a cry of indignation from a society so deeply religions as was
that of the age of Louis XIV. Spinoza’s work was condemned
by all the learned faculties of Europe; by a decree of the
States-General of France, it was suppressed throughout tht
whole kingdom.
δ. For the better understanding of the repugnance showr
by the seventeenth century to aberrations of the nature of
Spinoza's, it is important to have a precise idea of the philo­
sophical system which was then predominant. René Descartes
(a. d. 1596-1650), a native of Lahaye in Touraine, dethroned the
philosophy of Aristotle, which had held sovereign sway, since
the middle-ages, in all the schools of Europe. His famous
“ universal doubt ’’ has often been made a subject of reproach,
as containing a germ of skepticism. We cannot better defend
Descartes against this charge than by quoting his own words :—
“ When I said,” wrote the philosopher, “ that we can know
nothing with certainty, without the previous knowledge that
God exists, I also stated in express terms that I spoke only of
the knowledge of those conclusions, the remembrance of which
may come to mind, though we do not advert to the reasons
whence we drew them. For the knowledge of first principles,
or axioms, is not generally called science by dialecticians.
But when we perceive that we are thinking beings, this is a
primary notion which is no longer deduced from any syllogism.
And when I say, ‘ I think, therefore. I am, or I exist,’ I do
not infer my existence from my thought, as if by the force of
some syllogism; but as we see a thing known to us, I behold it
by a simple inspection of the mind ; as appears from the fact
that, if I deduced it from a syllogism. I must first have known

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

this major; * all that think, are or exist but, on the contrary,
that major is taught me by what T feel within myself, that J
cannot think unless I exist. For it is the property of our mind
to form general propositions from the knowledge of particulars.
I assert, moreover—which may at first sight seem paradoxical—
that there is nothing in all my philosophy that is not old ; for
as to the principles, I receive only such as have hitherto been
generally known and admitted by all philosophers, and which,
therefore, are the oldest of all. And what I deduce from them
seems so manifestly—as I demonstrate—to be contained and
enclosed in those principles, that it appears also that the con­
clusion is very old, since nature herself has engraved and im­
printed it on our minds.” From these different passages it is
evident that Descartes had no more intention of calling in
question, even for a moment, the first principles which he even
believed innate in man, than the practical and moral conclusions
which flow naturally from them ; but only the metaphysical
judgments and conclusions which constitute science, properly
so called. The illustrious philosopher was chiefly led to follow
this course, by a lively wish to prove to skeptics, atheists,
and materialists, the existence of God and the immateriality
of the soul. To cure them, he inoculates himself, so *o speak,
with their disease. He subjects all his scientific judgments and
conclusions to doubt, examination and personal evidence. He
always holds to this capital truth : “Whether I am or am not
deceived by some one, still the fact remains that I doubt, that I
think; therefore I am, and I am a thinking being. This much
is, at all events, certain. What is no less certain is. that it is
not I who preserve my own existence any more than I gave it.
He who gave and preserves it is, then, God, that infinitely per­
fect Being, of Whom I have a clear and precise idea, as of
myself, and Whose existence is implied by that very idea.”
Such is, in substance, the progressive reasoning of Descartes
in his six Méditations Métaphysiques. Avoiding the long and
circuitous route of the ordinary systems, he seeks, by inward
evidence, to convince the materialist and the skeptic that, so

■

CLEMENT X. (A. D. 1610-1818).

341

long as they do not recognize the existence of God, all oerr
science has no certitude founded upon reason. He admits,
moreover, that his system must be applied only by chosen
minds, free from corporeal images and practised in arguments
tive contests. Even though Descartes had not succeeded in
his undertaking, it would suffice for his glory to have made the
attempt.
6. The dangers of the Cartesian system were equal to its
advantages. Bossuet pointed them out with his usual elo­
quence. “ I see,” he exclaims, “ a great struggle preparing
against the Church, under the name of Cartesian philosophy.
I see more than one heresy springing from its bosom and
from its principles, which are, I think, misunderstood ; and
I foresee that the consequences drawn from it against the
dogmas held by our fathers will make it odious, and will rob
the Church of all the fruit she hoped to gain from it, to estab­
lish, in the minds of philosophers, the divinity and immortality
of the soul. From the same misinterpreted principles, another
fearful evil is insensibly gaining ground ; for, under the pretext
that we must admit nothing which we do not clearly understand,
which, to a certain extent, is true enough, each one takes the
liberty of saying, ‘ I understand this, and I do not understand
that;’ and upon this only ground a man may receive or reject
what he pleases, without reflecting that, beside our clear and
distinct ideas, we have others, confused and general, embracing
truths so essential that their denial would overthrow every
thing. Under this pretext, there has crept in a freedom of
judgment which leads some, without any regard for tradition,
rashly to advance whatever they think ; and never, in my
opinion, has the excess appeared to a greater extent than in
this new system.”
7. The followers of Descartes had given occasion to this
severe criticism of the illustrious Bishop of Meaux. The Oratorian Malebranche was one of those whose philosophical specu­
lations wandered most widely. The general aim of his princi­
pal works—De la recherche de la Vérité—Traité de la Nature

34b

GENERA!. ΗΙ8Τ0ΗΓ OF THE CHURCH.

et de la Grâce—Méditations Chrétiennes et Métaphysiques— wa»
to show the relation of the philosophy of Descartes to religion,)
and to prove that the Cartesian system affords the demonstra­
tion of several other truths in the order of nature and in that
of grace. In this there was nothing that was not praiseworthy.
Unfortunately, the imagination of Malcbranche was better suited
to poetic reveries than to the stern precision of the scholastic
teacher. Descartes, we have seen, limited the use of his sys­
tem of philosophic doubt to certain master minds ; he would
not have the first principles of natural reason, which he sup­
posed innate in man, nor their primary conclusions, subject to
it, and still less the truths of the natural order, but only the
remote and scientific conclusions of the purely natural order.
Malcbranche, regardless of these distinctions, lays down the
philosophic doubt as the necessary basis of all science ; he af­
fects the greatest contempt for all the philosophers who have
gone before him, and submits every thing to interior eviden-.e,
which he calls the interior master, the Word of God communi­
cating itself to every man by natural reason. This borders
closely upon the philosophy of a visionary. His Traité de la
Nature et de la Grâce, which may be said to contain and to sum
up all his errors, has been victoriously refuted in a special work
by Fénelon. Bossuet uttered his judgment on the theory of
Malebranche in three words—Pulchra, nova, falsa. It is evi­
dent, then, that, with the exception of a few purely speculative
deviations, the philosophy of the seventeenth, century was
thoroughly imbued with a religious spirit ; it was only in the
course of the following century that it took the anti-Catholic
stand which it has kept to our own day.

§ 2 Pontificate of Innocent XI. (September 21, a. d. 1676—
August 12, 1689).

8. At the death of Clement X., the cardinals met in con­
clave to the number of sixty-seven. On the evening of the
20th of September, the Sacred College, with one accord, pro­

INNOCENT XI. (A. D. 161β-1βΝ).

347

needed to the chapel, and all the electore, withoat a single
exception, pressed forward to kiss the hand of Cardinal Odescalchi. This manner of election by homage was certainly less
tumultuous, and sufficed to establish the legitimate promotion
of the Sovereign Pontiff. Odescalcbi burst into tears and
entreated to be allowed a moment for reflection. A dead
silence at once followed, during which all gazed with anxiety
and admiration upon the spectacle of humility and detachment
from earthly dignities. Meanwhile, Odescalchi had prostrated
himself before them, bathed in tears. He entreated his col­
leagues to choose “ a more worthy subject,” and not to crush
him beneath a weight to which his strength was wholly in­
adequate. They could not yield to his wishes, and, on the
morrow, a regular ballot confirmed, by unanimity of suffrage,
the election of the pious and humble cardinal, who took the
name of Innocent XI. On taking possession of the Vatican,
the new Pontiff sent for his nephew, Livio Odescalchi. “ You
will make no change,” said the Pope to him, “ in your manner
of life ; you will receive neither presents nor visits, as nephew
of the Pope ; you will remain in the palace which We inhabited
as cardinal ; you can have no part in the government of the
court. Such is Our formal and irrevocable intention.” The
young nobleman punctually obeyed the injunctions of his uncle.
Innocent XL immediately gave his attention to the work of
domestic reform ; he admitted to his service none but persons
remarkable for their modesty and good morals. A congrega­
tion of four cardinals and four prelates was instituted to ex­
amine the conduct and capacity of candidates for various
benefices. Merit was the only title of admission. Cardinal
Cibo once handed the Pope a list of candidates tor several
vacant offices, with a note of the recommendations oflered by
their respective patrons. Coming to one of the names, unac­
companied by a recommendation, Innocent asked the cardinal :
“ By whom is this one recommended ?” “ By nobody, replied
Cibo. “ In that case,” rejoined the Pope, “ We give him Our
protection and prefer him to the others. A recommendation

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GENERAI. HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

has very little weight with Us, when the person recommended
is wanting in virtue. Dignities should be the reward of virtue
not of ambition ; of true worth, not of intrigues.” Such was
the Pontiff whom Louis XIV. was destined to meet in his
career of ambition and despotism. Some authors pretend to
account for the determined resistance of Innocent XI. in his
struggle with Louis XIV., by the military habits which they
ascribe to the younger days of the Pontiff. They say that
Odescalchi, before he was made cardinal, had served in the
war in Flanders. This erroneous statement has been victorously refuted by Count Rezzonico, in a learned dissertation
published at Cosmo (a. d. 1742). The mistake arose from an
identity of names ; a relative of the Pope’s, an Odescalchi,
having in fact taken an active part in the War. Innocent had
entered the ecclesiastical state at an early age ; and having
spent nearly all his life in the sanctuary, he had never incurred
reproach by the harsh and unpolished manners of a camp-life,
nor by habits of violence which may be familiar to soldiers
Raised to the Sovereign Pontificate, he looked for motives of
action only in his duties as spiritual head of the Church and
independent sovereign. “ Innocent XL,” says Ranke, “ was of
the utmost purity of heart and life, meek and gentle, but im­
pelled by the same conscientiousness which governed his
private life, to fulfil the duties of his office with inflexible in­
tegrity.”
9. Louis XIV. was now at the zenith of his power and
glory. Abroad, his arms were everywhere victorious. Holland
invaded, in spite of the heroic efforts of the brothers De Witt
(a. d. 1G72) ; Franche-Comté reunited to the French territory,
spite of the confederation of Spain, Austria and Lorraine
(1674) ; the victories of Condé at Senef and Oudenarde, over
the first generals of the empire, which won for the hero that
charming sentence from Louis : “ Cousin, for one who is loaded
ts you are with laurels, it is not easy to walk
the astonish·
• On his return te court, as Condd, thon suffering from an attack of tho gout, was
slowly ascending tho grand staircase of tho palace, at the head of which bo perceived lb

INNOCENT NI. (A. D. 1G79-1 βΒ3).

mg success of Turenne, who defeated the Imperialists at Seint®·
heim, Ladenberg, Ensheim, Mulhausen and Tiircheim (1675).
though contending with forces three times as numerous ns his
own, and whose fall on the field of Salzbach drew from his ad­
versary Montecuculli, the high encomium, “ There fell a hero who
was an honor to mankind —so many brilliant feats of arms,
closed by the glorious peace of Nimeguen, placed Louis XIV
at the head of the world, and obtained for him the epithet of
Great, bestowed by the enthusiasm of his people, and to which
the nations most jealous of France have acknowledged the jus­
tice of his claim. Colbert wrote to him : “ Sire, we can but be
silent, admire, and daily give thanks to God that He has grant­
ed us to live in the reign of such a king as Your Majesty, whose
power shall be limited only by His will.” At home, the pros­
perity of the State, luxury, abundance, works of art and genius
raised his kingdom to that degree of intellectual and moral
superiority which signalizes great periods. “ Louis XIV.,"
says Voltaire, “ showed that an absolute monarch, who seeks to
do good, accomplishes every thing with ease. He had but to
command, and his successes in administration were as rapid as
his conquests had been. It was truly admirable to behold the
seaports, formerly deserted and dismantled, now surrounded
with works, at once their ornament and their defence, filled
with shipping and sailors, and containing already nearly sixty
large vessels ready for a warlike armament. New colonies,
under the protecting shadow of the French flag, sailed from all
parts of the coast for America, the East Indies, and Africa ;
while in France, under the eyes of the monarch, thousands of
men were busy in raising immense edifices, adorned by all the
arts which follow in the train of architecture; and, in the in­
terior of his court and of his capital, nobler and more elegant
arts gave to France pleasures and a glory of which former ages
had never dreamed.” Louis XIV. could with some reason utter
the words so ill interpreted or so little understood: “L’Etal,c'f#t
ting waiting to meet him: “Site,” said the hero, “I beg your Majesty's pardon for «y
io'iy." To whii louis made the gracious answer wo have quoted.

350

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

moi— 1 am the State”—for he had made himself the impersona­
tion of the interests of France, of the consciousness of power,
the dignity, the pride of the nation, and even of its passions
and its spirit. The French nation felt that it lived and ruled
in Louis XIV. Buta power so immense has its moments of
blindness, of error and weakness. Man, however great, ever
bears the stamp of that original imperfection which leaves its
impress on all his works. The Great King, whose ministers, by
their exaggerated flattery, had impressed him with the idea
that his will was the only limit of his power, wished to im­
pose his unbridled absolutism upon all Europe. The religious
convictions which ruled his life, notwithstanding the weak
points of his nature, did not withhold him in his career of en­
croachments upon the Pontifical authority. We have seen him,
under Alexander VII., contending against the Holy See with
a violence unworthy of a Most Christian King, who assumed
the title of “ Eldest Son of the Church
the Pontificate of
Innocent XL presents a series of attempts of the same kind,
arising on the one hand from a boundless ambition and haugh­
tiness ; borne, on the other, with a truly apostolic firmness.
10. We are coming to the time at which Gallicanism ap­
pears in its greatest obstinacy. It is important to form a cor­
rect idea of the doctrine which agitated the whole of the seven­
teenth century, sending the echoes of its intestine struggles
even to our own days. We may present the question in the form
in which it is given by Fleury, whose moderation is so highly
praised by the Gallicans. Fleury, successively preceptor of
the sons of the Prince of Conti, of the Count of Vermandois,
one of the natural sons of Louis XIV. ; assistant-preceptor of
the Dukes of Burgundy, Anjou, and Berry, and afterward con­
fessor of the young king Louis XV., is the author of a “ His­
tory of the Church,” in twenty quarto volumes, which has long
been the only classical work of the kind admitted into the
schools of France. The style is pure, easy and abundant;
the narrative clear and natural. A long and deep study of the
Fathers and Doctors had made Fleury familiar with the sub­

INNOCENT XI. (A. D ΙΜβ-1889).

351

jects which he treats. Many minor pointe of detail could
doubtless be found open to criticism ; but, in a work of such
length, it would be unjust not to recognize the difficulty over­
come, or to dwell too minutely upon slight defects. Only
prejudiced minds, or men who have never attempted any thing,
have the easy courage to judge so severely. In our estimation,
the great, the only reproach which Fleury has justly incurred,
is to have set out with the fixed purpose and determination of
combating, in all ages and on every favorable occasion, the au­
thority of the Holy See and the Pontifical supremacy. To this
unhappy feature his history is indebted for the injury of having
been praised by nearly all the Protestant writers. Basnage
thus wrote of it at the time of its publication : “ To mention
Fleury, is to give an idea of the highest reputation for sincerity
ever deserved by any author. Yet we predict that in Italy, in
Spain, and especially in any part of the States of the Pope, his
work will never win the esteem enjoyed by Baronius. I am
convinced, and I say it before the whole world, that there is
not a single Catholic who has not been scandalized by it.” Tne
Lutheran, Gruber, writes as follows, at the same period :
“ Fleury is an author abounding in excellent sentiments ; for
he speaks of the Pontifical primacy with so much ambiguity,
that he seems rather to destroy than to establish it ; and we
may evidently count him among the most remarkable witnesses
of the truth, who have lived in our day.” We have nothing to
add to praises so significant. A system which claims to be
Catholic is judged when it wins such commendations from the
bitterest enemies of Catholicism. Besides, it must be said,
Fleury was only displaying the tendencies of the French clergy
of that period ; which fact explains the prodigious success of
his history in France.
11. Fleury has also left us a “Discourse on the Liberties
of the Gallican Church,” which he reduces to two great maxims :
“The king, as such, is not subject to the judgment ot the
Pope. The Pope, as such, is subject to the judgment of a gen­
eral council.” This was the thesis of the Fathers ot Basle

352

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

end of Constance. “Some politicians," says Fleury, “have
endeavored to decry the doctrine of the superiority of a council
by a comparison with the States-General. They will be made,
it is objected, superior to the king, ns the council is to the Pope,
and on the same principles.” He rejects the consequence by
this last and principal reason: “As to France, we know that,
from the time of Charlemagne, the national assemblies, though
frequent and usual, were only called to advise the king, and
that he alone decided.” It is of little consequence to us now
to see by what artifice Fleury disposed of an objection which
might to some extent influence a sovereign as absolute as Louis
XIV. The logic of revolutions took upon itself to apply to the
second successor of the Great Monarch the consequences which
Fleury thought to turn aside by an argument quite contestable
in itself, in a historical point of view. There had been a
demand for a Church without a head ; the people, in turn, wished
for a government on the same model. God has his thunder­
strokes by which he lowers the pride of the wise and laughs
at their vain science. But it is necessary to proclaim as an
incontestable principle, that the Church is really a society ruled
by a head. That head has not only disciplinary power, inde­
pendently of the general councils, which are not permanent,
which do not govern during the period of their sessions ; which
cannot exist without the condition of being convoked and
presided over by the authority of the supreme head of the
Church ; which make laws, but leave to the Pope the care
of having them put into execution : he has, moreover, the
sacred deposit of the dogmatic truths, expressly taught by
Christ Himself in His gospel, or handed down from age to
age by apostolic tradition. This deposit he faithfully keeps
without ever erring; for the promise of infallibility was made
to him in the person of St. Peter on the day of the founda­
tion of the Church. The Pope, in fine, is not subject to the
judgment of a general council, since there can be no general
council without his authority, his concurrence and his sanc­
tion. As to the first of the Gallican maxims : “ The king,

INNOCENT XI. (A. D. 1*1*. IM·).

303

an such, is not sunject to the judgment of the Pope,' it «ay
*
too much or too little. If it refers to a Catholic king, he i»
subject, like all other Catholics, to the judgment of the I’>pe ;
'he maxim exaggerates the independence of the king. If
it refer to a prince without the Roman communion, it is a very
weak expression of the liberty of the sovereign, who not only is
not subject to the judgment of the Pope, but cannot even recog­
nize the lawful existence of the Pope. It is evident that Fleury
meant to speak only of a Catholic king; but really, in bis heart,
the king meant Louis XIV. He then aims at establishing a
distinction between the two qualities of king and of Catholic ;
as king, Louis XIV. was not subject to the judgment of the
Pope ; he is only so as a Catholic ; this is the natural meaning
of Fleury's maxim. In other words, the king cannot be, according
to Fleury, deposed or excommunicated by the Pope. The whole
course of the history of the Church, from the conversion ol th
*
Barbarians, affords examples of the contrary. Fleury knew
them; he gives them himself, in their proper place, but he
weakens their force by extrinsic considerations which we deem
it our duty to point put.
12. Speaking of the titles sometimes made up in the middleages, he adds, “ But of all these false documents, the most per­
nicious were the Decretals, ascribed to the Popes of the first
four centuries, which have inflicted an irreparable injury upon
the discipline of the Church by the new theories they brought
in, relative to the judgment of bishops and the authority ui the
Pope.” If we must believe Fleury, the whole Church, deceived
by false documents, was, during all the period of the mid lie­
ages, granting to the Sovereign Pontiffs a right which they did
not really possess. The Popes were usurping an unlawful
power. We should have to strike out from ecclesiastical
history eight centuries, which constitute its brightest pages
But, then, what becomes of tradition '1 What of the infalliHlity
of the Church Ί Where is the promise of Christ, “ to be with
her all days, even to the consummation of the world ?” The
charge is a very serious one. How does Fleury support it?
Vox. IV.—28

354

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

In his Institution au droit ecclésiastique, after summing up the
law of the first eight centuries, he thus concludes : “ These few
laws sufficed, during eight hundred years, for the whole Catho­
lic Church. The Catholics of the West had fewer than the
Orientals, nnd even these they had for the most part borrowed
from them ; but there wore none made for the Roman Church
in particular. She had, until then, so faithfully preserved the
tradition of the apostolic discipline, that she had felt very little
need of any reformatory regulation, and what the Popes had
written on the subject was for the instruction of the other
churches. The law which was in use during those eight hun­
dred years might be called the ‘Ancient ecclesiastical law.’
The ‘New’ carne in force soon after that date. Toward the
end ol the reign of Charlemagne, a ‘collection of canons’ was
scattered through the West, brought from Spain, and bearing
the name of one Isidore, by some surnamed Mercator, or the
Merchant. It has been discovered, in the last century, that
these Decretals, from St. Clement I. (a. d. 100) to St. Sericius
(398), did not emanate from those whose names they bear.
They are all of the same style, far removed from the noble
simplicity of those early ages. They are made up of long pas­
sages from the Fathers, who lived long after, as St. Leo the Great
(461), St. Gregory the Great (604), and others of a later epoch ;
we even discover in them some of the laws of the Christian
emperors; the matters which they treat do not belong to the
period to which they are ascribed; the dates are false.” Such
are the words of Fleury. On his part, the learned De Marca
expressly acknowledges that those false Decretals were com­
posed, with very little variation—si pauca demas—of the sen­
tences and the very expression of the laws, of the ancient
canons and of the Holy Fathers who flourished in the fourth
and fifth centuries. Thus, according to Fleury himself, the
false Decretals are made up of long passages from St. Leo, St.
Gregory and other Fathers, who lived in the first eight centuries,
in the ages of the ancient ecclesiastical law, as he calls it. Is it.
then, possible to say (hat these extracts from the ancient law

INNOCENT XI. (A. D. 1β1Λ-1β8β).

355

have formed a completely new and unheard-of law, which han
destroyed the ancient, changed the government of the Church,
and inflicted an irreparable injury upon the discipline of the Church.
The charge, refuted by these proofs, is a calumny against the
Church and an insult offered to God Himself, since He would
have proved false to His promise of being with the Church
“ all days, even to the consummation of the world.” And this
argument of Fleury’s is the soul of his history.
13. What remains in practice of the axiom : “The king, as
such, is not subject to the judgment of the Pope?” The Pope
can effectually exercise his judgment upon the king only by a
sentence of deposition or excommunication. Fleury's maxim
is thus reduced to the expression which we have already given :
“ The king can be neither deposed nor excommunicated by the
Pope.” That the king cannot be deposed by the Pope in a
society which no longer looks upon the Pope as the head of its
hierarchy, which no longer invokes his judgment as that of a
supreme tribunal, at which all conflicts and political struggles
might be settled without bloody revolutions or popular tumults,
without any of those great crises which hurry nations on to
ruin—we readily grant. The middle-ages were ruled by a dif­
ferent political law, upon which we have already dwelt at suf­
ficient length. The seventeenth century rejected that law to
flatter the pride of an absolute monarch; and now that the
appeal to the Pope has been laid aside, we are reduced to the
necessity of appealing to the people. This, however, is a ques­
tion of politics, and does not concern us here. But the Pope
can always excommunicate a Catholic sovereign when that
sovereign has the misfortune to be guilty of a serious departure
from the line of his duty ; the Pope is as truly his judge as he
is that of the simple faithful. The Pope can exercise this
right; the Pope has exercised it; and we shall yet see the im­
mortal Pius VII. fulminating against the greatest captain o'
modern times the sentence of which Heaven took upon itself
the execution by a series of unparalleled disasters. This is, in
our opinion, what remains in practice of the Gallican maxim

356

GENERAL HISTORY OF ΓΠΗ JHÜRCH.

“The king, ns such, is not subject to the judgment of tht
Pope." We have established, as a principle, that throughout
the whole period of the middle-ages, the public law of Europe
clothed the Sovereign Pontifia with a supremo jurisdiction over
all crowns ; and in that common tribunal princes and people
found an assurance of peace, order and stability Wc acknowl­
edge that the European public law is now changed ; that it has
entered upon new paths ; that it no longer grants to the Holy
See that high sovereignty which grateful nations once bestowed.
We also state, with the page of history open before us, that
no sovereign, since the seventeenth century, the epoch of the
great change in European jurisprudence, has been deposed by a
Pope. But the right of excommunication is inherent in the
very office of the Sovereign Pontiffs ; it is independent of the
changes of public opinion. It belongs, by his very position, to
the head of the Catholic Church, to cast off unworthy members
from the body of the Church. The Popes have, therefore,
that right to-day as they had it eighteen hundred years ago, in
all its fulness, over sovereigns as over the simple faithful. The
power of the keys, conferred upon St. Peter, subsists with all
its independence, with all its vigor, with its full extent and
responsibility, with all its duties and all its rights, in the per­
son of Pius IX., the august successor, in the See of Rome, of
the Prince of the Apostles. We shall now see how Gallicanism.
under Louis XIV., began the contest.
14. We have said that the Bishops of Aleth and Pamiers
earnestly pleaded the immunity of their churches, to which the
king wished to extend the right of regale from which they had
until then been exempt. They grounded their protest upon a
formal decree of the fourteenth general council, the second of
Lyons (λ. d. 1274), which, while recognizing the right of regale
in the churches in which it was already established, forbade its
extension on pain of excommunication. “Louis XIV.,’says
De Villecourt, bishop of La Rochelle, “ having made appoint­
ments to the vacant benefices of Pamiers and Aleth, those who,
in opposition to the laws of the Church, had been put in pos­

INROCENT XI. (A. 0. ·β1β-Ιβ99).

357

session by regale, were placed by their respective bishops under
ecclesiastical censure, for having presumed, on such a title, to
take possession ; but the Archbishops of Narbonne and Toulouse,
to whom they appealed, committed the grave error of pronoun­
cing these censures null, and of setting aside the decrees nf their
suffragrans. The bishops appealed from the sentence of their
metropolitans to the Holy See ; it was their right, and. in
fact, their duty. Innocent XT., in conformity with the Holy
Canons, of which France, after having trampled upon them, was
soon to boast herself the incorruptible guardian, annulled the
decisions of the archbishops, and gave expression to bitter
reproaches against the ministers of the king, who abused his
confidence by giving him faithless counsels to the profit of their
own interest and ambition. He declared, with energy, that
nothing should prevent him from making use of his Apostolic
authority against such abuses, whatever the result might be in
regard to himself.” He twice admonished the king not to lend
an ear to flatterers, and not to touch the liberties of the Church
As he received no answer, he reiterated his warnings a third
time ; now, however, he added, “ he would write no more, he
would make use of every weapon which God had placed in his
hands." Unhappily, the French clergy sided with the king
against the Pope, thus weakening the force of the Pontifical
admonitions. “ It is painful," says the learned prelate already
quoted, “ to reflect that all the members composing the Assembly
of the clergy in 1682, instead of making common cause with the
Sovereign Pontiff, who was protecting the rights of their col­
leagues, encouraged the king to maintain his usurped right of
regale. They carried their weakness and adulation so far as to
assure him that nothing should separate them from him ; they
charged the Holy See with having entered upon a vain under­
taking, saying that they wished the whole world to know their dis­
positions in this regard. Could this handful of court-prelates
flatter themselves that they represented the whole French
clergy, and expressed its sentiments, what an idea should we
have to form of that clergy ? That period would unquestionably

358

OENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

hiivc been the most disastrous for tho Church in France. The
Holy Father was unyielding, as he was bound to be, in the
defence of the canonical regulations ; but the agents of (he
French clergy gave their whole attention to the means of
making him repent this firmness, worthy of a successor of St
*
Peter."
15. The French episcopate had then at its head a prelate
who, by his eloquence, recalls Tertullian and St. Chrysostom ;
by his learning, St. Augustine and St. Jerome; and Origen by
his tireless activity. To name Bossuet, is to name the highest
impersonation of human genius in letters, eloquence, theology,
metaphysics and history. “Political like Thucydides,” says
Chateaubriand, “moral like Xenophon, eloquent like Livy, as
profound and graphic as Tacitus, the Bishop of Meaux had,
moreover, that solemnity and elevation of style, of which no
example is to be found, except in the admirable exordium of
the book of Maccabees. Bossuet is more than a historian ; he
is a Father of the Church.—What a survey has he taken of
the earth ! He passes along with the rapidity and the majesty
of ages. With the rod of the law in hand, and with irresistible
authority, he drives before him pell-mell both Jews and Gen­
tiles to the grave ; he brings up the rear of the funeral proces­
sion of all generations, and, supported by Isaias and Jeremias,
he raises his prophetic lamentations amid the ruins and the
wreck of the human race. The first part of the Discourse on
Universal History is admirable for the narration ; the second,
(or sublimity of style and lofty metaphysical ideas ; the third,
for the profundity of its moral and political views.—But
what shall we say of Bossuet as an orator ? To whom shall we
compare him ? And which of the harangues of Cicero and De­
mosthenes are not eclipsed by his Funeral Orations ?- There
are three things continually succeeding one another in Bossuet’s
* In tho history of thin difficult period, we shall continue to follow tho mort admirable
work of Mgr. do Villocourt, La France et le Pape, which throws so much light upon th·
ecclesiastical matters of tho reign of Louis XIV., and which entitles tho illustrious authoi
to · hign rank among historians.

INNOCENT Xi. (A. D. 1β7β-1ββ9).

359

discourses : the stroke of genius or of eloquence ; the quotation
so admirably blended with the text as to form but one piece
with it; lastly, the reflection, or the survey taken with agle
eye of the causes of the event of which he treats. Often,
too, does this star of the Church throw a light upon discussions
in the most abstruse metaphysics, or the most sublime theology.
To him nothing is obscure. He has created a language em­
ployed by himself alone, in which frequently the simplest term
and the loftiest idea, the most common expression and the
most tremendous image, serve, as in Scripture, to produce the
most striking effect.” This admirable picture, sketched by the
illustrious author of the “ Genius of Christianity,” leaves us
nothing to say. And yet Bossuet commands our admiration on
many other grounds. Protestantism never recovered from the
blow inflicted by the Histtire des Variations The “ Exposition
of the Catholic Faith" won Turenne to the truth. His “ De­
fence of Tradition” is a masterpiece of erudition and logic. His
treatise “ On the Knowledge of God and of one’s self," and the
Politique Sacrée, written for the instruction of the Dauphin, are
inimitable models. Bossuet’s genius was universal. While his
fruitful pen was throwing light upon so many different subjects,
in works in which lofty views and splendid style vied with
logic and eloquence, he still found time to write to the nuns of
his diocese frequent letters, breathing the spirit of St. Francis
of Sales, and full of all that is sweetest and most delicious in
Christian mysticism. In one point alone has Bossuet failed.
Captivated by the absolute royalty of which Louis XIV. was
the radiant image, he bowed that logical mind, whose rectitude
was in every other respect truly wonderful, before the splen­
dors of the Great King. “Bossuet," says Mgr. de Villecourt,
“ possessed a rich and brilliant imagination, noble and sublime
conceptions; he dazzled his hearers; he dazzled his readers;
I could wish to believe that he never dazzled himself by those
splendid flashes of genius which brought so many admirers
from all directions. Had he, in the question of the regale, been
less taken up with his own talents, kept within the rules of an

360

GENERAL IIIST0RT OF ΤΠΕ CRORCR

unbending logic, as he did in most of his controversial works
never would he have given the place of truth to opinions which
he well knew to be admitted neither by the Roman Pontiff nor
by the great majority of the bishops in communion with the
Holy See; never would he have consented to make to himself
friends among sectaries and men of doubtful faith. Had he
never concerned himself about the Declaration of the Clergy of
France (a. D. 1682) and its Defence, he would perhaps have
seen the confirmation, by the Holy Sec, of the title of “ Last
of the Fathers of the Church," bestowed by the admiration of
his contemporaries.
16. The part taken by Bossuet, in the difficulties between
the Holy See and the court of France, was unworthy of his
magnificent intellect. The clergy (a. d. 1682), led away by
the advice of the Bishop of Meaux, resolved to carry out it's
opposition to Innocent XI. In the name of all his colleagues
in the episcopate, Bossuet addressed to the Pope a letter, which
was rather a lesson given to the head of the Church than a
judgment respectfully submitted to the Apostolic authority.
The Sovereign Pontiff was reminded that there were many
things which the necessity of the times should cause to be tolerated
that this necessity was sometimes of such a nature that it could
even change the laws, especially when it became necessary to
heal dissensions and to strengthen the bonds of peace between
royalty and the priesthood. St. Yvo, of Chartres, and St. Au­
gustine were made to say “ that those who did not bend the
rigor of the canons to the good of peace, were mere blunderers
who filled their own eyes with the dust which they were trying
to blow into those of others.” The Pope was told, in conclu­
sion, “ that he should follow the promptings of his goodness in
au occasion in which it was not permitted to use courage."
Innocent XI. answered the letter of the French clergy with a dig­
nity worthy of a St. Leo. He reproached the bishops of France
“ vith having, through a most censurable weakness, forsaken
the holy cause of the liberty of the Church; with mt daring
to utter a single word for the interests and the honoi of Jesus

INNOCENT XI. (A. D. 1βΙΒ-1Μ9).

361

Christ, but of having covered themselves with eternal infamy,
by a disgraceful connection with the secular magistrates. He
calls upon them to repent, and concludes by annulling and con
demning the acts already null in themselves, as manifestly un­
lawful.”
17. This brief only embittered the already prejudiced minds.
Le Tellier, archbishop of Rheims, proposed to ask the kings
leave to convene a national council of the bishops then in Paris,
or at least to convoke a General Assembly of all the clergy of
the kingdom. Louis granted the request which he had perhaps
himself provoked. But he had too much sense to consent that
the Assembly should call itself a council. It would have been
too glaring an irregularity that some bishops, displeased with
the canonical decision of a Pope, should assemble in council to
judge him. The king therefore declared himself in favor of a
General Assembly to consist of two bishops and two deputies
of the second order from each province. He expressly ordered
them to decide, solemnly and lawfully, the doctrine of the
Gallican church on the temporal power of the Popes, on the
particular independence of the kings of France and on the
infallibility of the head of the Church.
18. Every thing foreboded a fearful explosion. Minds were
aroused and full of passion. It was boldly said: ‘The Pope
has goaded us on ; he shall repent of it.” We could wish to doubt
that such a deplorable expression was ever uttered; but Fleury
has been careful to record it for our *sorrow. In vain did Bossuet,
in his opening discourse, a real master-piece of inspiration and
eloquence, insist upon the doctrine of the unity of the Church.
All his oratorical art was unable to disguise the feeling of hos­
tility to the Holy See which animated all their hearts. On
the 3d of February, a. d. 1682, began the operations of it it
famous Assembly of the Gallican clergy, composed of thir.yfour archbishops and bishjp» and of thirty-eight ecclesiasti» s
jf the second order They acknowledged the right of exteu ’ iog
• Fuuky, AVuwata OtHund p 210

362

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

the regale to every diocese in the realm. The Bishop of Tournay. Choiseul-Praslin, was then appointed to draw up the pro­
positions relative to the Pontifical power. His work was not
received by the Assembly, and the task was intrusted to Bus­
suet. “The French,” says Cardinal Sfondrati, “should have
considered that an Assembly convened in a season of troubles
and mutual dissatisfaction, as well as the propositions which
might be published by that Assembly, would be ascribed, not
to zeal for religion, but to a feeling of revenge, and would the
more readily bo interpreted unfavorably, as the bishops saw
very well that it was not for himself or for bis own, but for
them and for the liberty of their churches, that the Pope had
taken the field. Gratitude, or even the most ordinary regard
for propriety, of which the French are so jealous, demanded
that, while the Pope was battling for their interest with so
much energy and courage, they should at least exercise no act
of hostility against him. How did it become the French
bishops to turn their arms against their benefactor ?” But
passion is a stranger to reason. On the 19th of March, 1682,
appeared the celebrated Declaration of the Clergy of France,
drawn up by Bossuet, to clothe with a melancholy renown the
name of the immortal Bishop of Meaux. We give the “ Dec­
laration” and the text, as found in the works of Bossuet.
*19. “ Many attempts are made to overthrow the decrees of
♦ Declaratio, Dit dtcirno nono Martii, 1682.—"Ecclesiro Gnllicanæ decreta et libertates
a majoribus noatria tanto studio propugnatas, earumquo fundomenta sacris canonibus ot
Petrum traditione nixn, multi diruere moliuntur; neo desunt qui carum obtentu primulum
beati Petri «Jusque sucoeuBoruin rorutinorutn Pontificum a Christo institutum, iisquo debitam
ab omnibus Christianis obedientiam, Sedisque Apostolicrc, in qua fides pnedicatur, et unitas
servatur Ecclesiae, reverendam cunctis gentibus majestatem imminuero non vereantur.
Uærctici quoque nil prætermittunt quo eam potestatem, qua pax Ecclesiæ continetur, in­
vidiosam et gravem regibus ct populis ostentent, eisque fraudibus simplices animas ab
Ecclesiæ matris Christiquo adeo communione dissentiant Quæ ut incommoda propulsemus
nos archi'-p.scopi et episcopi Parisiis mandato regio congregati, Ecclesiam Gallicanam rvprsr·
sentantes, una cum exteris ecclesiasticis viris nobiscum deputatis, diligente tractatu habito,
bæc sancienda ot declaranda esse duximus :
111. Beato Petro ojusque successoribus Christi Vicariis, ipsique Ecclesiæ, rerutn spinIcalitrm et ad mtornam salutem perlinentium, nou nutem civilium ac temporalium, a Deo
traditam potestatem, dicente Domino: · Regnum meum non est do hoc mundo,’ et iterum :
Reddite ergo quæ sunt Osaris Cæsari, et quæ sunt Dei Deo,' ac proinde stare Apostolieum

INNOCENT XI. (A. D. 1«Πβ-1β89>

’P,J

the Gallican church, its liberties so zealously upne.d by om
forefathers, and their foundations, based upon the holy canons
and the tradition of the Fathers. Some there are also who
cloaking their real designs under the name of these liberties,
do not fear to strike at the primacy of St. Peter and of the
Roman Pontiffs, his successors, instituted by Jesus Christ ·, at
the obedience which is due to them from every Christian, and
at the majesty, so venerable in the eyes of all nations, of the
Apostolic See, in which the unity of the Church is taught and
preserved. The heretics, on the other hand, leave nothing
undone to represent this power, which contains the peace of
the Church, as intolerable to kings and people, and, by this
artifice, to draw away simple souls from the communion of the
Church and of Jesus Christ. It is with a view to remedy
these evils that we, archbishons and bishops, assembled in
>8tud: 1 Omnia anima potestatibus sublimioribus subdita sit; non est enim potestas ni® ·
Deo ; quæ autem sunt, a Deo ordinata sunt. Itaque qui potestati resistit, Dei ordinatio·!
resistit,' Reges ergo et principes in temporalibus nulli ecclesiastica potestati Dei ordin®
tiono subjici, nequo auctoritate clavium Ecclesia directe vel indirecte deponi aut illoru·
subditos eximi a Ode, atque obedientia, ac præstito fidelitatis sacramento solvi posse
Enrnque sententiam publicae tranquillitati necessariam, nec minus Eedesi® quam regno
utilem, ut verbo Dei patrum traditioni, et sanctorum exemplis consonam, omnino retinen­
dam.
“ 2. Sio autem inesse Apostolic® Sedi ac Petri successoribus Christi vicariis rerum spiri­
tualium plenam potestatem ut simul valeant, atque immota consistant sancta meumeniem
synodi Constantiensis a Sedo apostolica comprobata,· ipsorumque romanorum Ponti­
ficum ac totius Eccleai® usu confirmata, a Gallicana perpetua religione, custodita, decreta,
De auctoritale anciliorum jcneraLvm, quæ sessione quorta et quinta continentur, nec probin
a Gallicana Ecclesia, qui eorum decretorum quasi dubi® sint auctoritatis ac minus appro
bata, robur infringant, aut ad solum schismatis tempus concilii dicta detorqueant.
"3. Hinc apostolic® potestatis usum moderandum per canones Spiritu Dei conditos, «t
totius mundi reverentia consecratos ; valero etiam regulas, mores et instituts a regno et Ec­
clesia Gallicana recepta. Patrumque terminos manere inconcussos, atque id pertiuer· ad
amplitudinem apostolica? Sedis, ut statuta et consuetudines tant® Sedis et Ecclesiarum xmsensiono flrmnta, propriam stabilitatem obtineant.
“4. In fidei quoquo questionibus praecipuus Summi Pontificis osse partes ejus decreta ad
omnes et singulas ecclesias pertinere; nec tamen irreformabile esse judidum, niai consensu·
Ecclesi® accesserit.
"Qu® accepta a Patribus ad omnes Ecclesias Gallicanas atque episcopo· ia Sptntu Sex··
a ictoro presidents·, mittenda decrevimus, ut idipsum dicemus omnes, simusquein node®
sensu et in eadem sententia."

• W· bava M«n la whst term· Plu* V. spprorxi th* CooMll o( Ouiiuaea

364

GENERAL HISTORY Op HIE CHURCH.

Paris, by order of the king, together with the other ecclesias
licnl deputies, representing the Gallican church, have deemed
il proper, after mature deliberation, to establish and declare :
“ I. That St. Peter and his successors, the Vicars of Jesus
Christ, and even the whole Church, have received power from
God, only over things spiritual and which concern salvation,
and not in temporal and civil matters, since Jesus Christ Him
self tenches us that His kingdom is not of this world ; ana
again, that we are to render unto Cæsar the things that are
Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s ; and that accord­
ingly these words of the Apostle cannot be altered or shaken ·
‘ Let every soul be subject to higher powers : for there is no
power but from God; and those that are, are ordained of God.
Therefore he that resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance
of God. We therefore declare that kings and rulers are not
subject to any ecclesiastical power by the order of God, in tern
poral matters; that they cannot be directly or indirectly de
posed by the authority of the head of the Church; that theii
subjects cannot be released from the submission or the obedience
which they owe them, or absolved from their oath of fidelity ;
and that this doctrine, necessary for the public tranquillity, ami
not less profitable to the Church than to the State, must be
inviolably observed as conformable to the word of God, to the
tradition of the holy Fathers and to the examples of the saints
“ II. That the fulness of power possessed by the Holy Apos­
tolic See and the successors of St. Peter, the Vicars of Jesus
Christ, in spiritual matters, is such that the decrees published
in the fourth and fifth sessions of the holy ecumenical Council
of Constance, approved by the Holy Apostolic See, confirmed
by the practice of the whole Church and of the Roman Pontiffs,
and always observed by the Gallican church, remain in full
force and efficiency; and that the church of France does not
approve the opinion of those who assail these decrees, or weaken
them, by asserting that their authority is not well established,
that they are not approved, or that they concern only the period
/if the schism.

INNOCENT XI. (Λ. 0. 1βΤ»-1βΜ).

“ III. That thus the use of the Apostolic power must be
regulated according to the canons dictated by the Spirit of Go;
and consecrated by universal respect, that the rules, the cu«toms and the constitutions received in the kingdom, are to be
maintained, and the bounds set by our fathers to remain invio­
lable ; that it even concerns the dignity of the Holy Apostolic
See that the laws and customs established by the consent of
that most venerable See and of the churches, should subsist
unchanged.
“ IV. That although the Pope has the principal voice in
matters of faith, and that his decrees reach all the churches
and each church in particular, yet his decisions are not irrevo­
cable, unless confirmed by the consent of the Church.
“ We have resolved to send to all the churches of France,
and to the bishops who govern them by the authority of the
Holy Ghost, these maxims which we have received from our
fathers, that we may all say the same thing, that we may all
hold the same sentiments and follow the same doctrine.
A circular letter conveyed this Declaration of the Assembly
to all the French bishops.
20. On the 23d of March, letters patent of Louis XIV
made it binding upon all the universities of the kingdom to
teach these doctrines. “We forbid aH our subjects,” said the
king, “and strangers residing in our kingdom, seculars and
regulars of what order soever, to teach in their houses, colleges,
or seminaries, or to write, any thing opposed to the doctrine
contained in this Declaration. We ordain that all those who
may hereafter be chosen to teach theology in all the colleges of
each university, secular or regular, shall subscribe the Declara­
tion before entering upon such function ; that they shall con­
sent to teach the doctrine therein contained, and that the syndics
of the theological faculties shall present to the ordinary of the
diocese and to cur solicitor-general, copies of the said submis­
sions signed by the clerks of the said faculties. That in ill
the colleges and houses of the said universities, where there are
several professors regular or secular, one of them shall be ap­

366

GENERAL ΠΙ3Τ0ΠΤ OF THE CHURCH

pointed every year to teach the doctrine contained in the said
Declaration ; and in colleges where there is but one professor,
he shall be obliged to teach it during one of the three consecu­
tive years. We ordain that no bachelor shall henceforth be
admitted to the degree of licentiate in theology, nor in canon
law, nor receive the degree of doctor, without having defended
the said doctrine in one of his theses.” Soon after, the solicitor­
general of the parliament went to the Sorbonne to have the
famous Declaration registered. On the refusal of the doctors,
he ordered the registers to be brought to him by force, had the
Declaration entered in his presence, and all in virtue of the
Liberties of the Gallican Church !”
21. Innocent XI. against whom the whole fury of the storm
was directed, was not slow in standing forth to meet it. In a
brief dated April 11, a. d. 1682, he thus addressed the bishops
who had taken part in the General Assembly : “ In virtue of the
authority intrusted to Us by Almighty God, We condemn, annul
and abrogate all that was done in your Assembly concerning the
regale, with all that resulted from it, and all that may here­
after be attempted in consequence; and We declare the whole
proceeding, forever, null and void.” “ We ask, in all sincerity,”
says a late writer, “if an act, so odious in its origin, as was
that of the Four Articles, so open to suspicion, in the object of
its authors, so hurtful to the Pontifical authority, could be re­
ceived by the head of the Church, the guardian and moderator
of the canons, the teacher of all the Christians, the shepherd of
the sheep as well as of the lambs ? Is it for the superior to
bend before his inferiors? Instead of favoring the power of
brute force, the heirs and usurpers of which were one day th
strip the church of France, was it not the duty of the bishops
to consult their head, to obey his fatherly voice, to give to their
people an example of submission to his judgment?”
22. The Assembly of 1682, was therefore an evil, says Mgr.
de Villecourt ; it was the fatal germ of what afterward appeared
as the “ Civil Constitution" of the clergy of France. The dec­
laration was received with indignation by all Catholic Europe

INNOCENT XI. (A. D. ΙβΙβ-ίΜ·).

86Î

The two articles which first appeared against it, came from the
University of Louvain. A national council of the Hungarian
prelates, headed by their primate, branded the acta of the
Assembly of France. Rome spoke by her Pontiffs ; Spain by
her Aguirre, her Gonzalez and her Roccaberti; Austria by her
Sfondrati; the Netherlands by Schelestrate ; France herself,
whose real sentiments were suppressed by the civil power, found
a worthy representative of her doctrine in the theologian Char
las, whose learned pen and close logic won the admiration of
Bossuet himself. This unanimous concert of voices coming al
once from every part of Christendom, must have been a fearful
thunder-clap in the ears of the Bishop of Meaux. A kind of
logic more imposing than any array of syllogisms, appeared in
arms and in a threatening attitude, it was the crushing weight
of the authority of all the churches in the world, morally united
to repel the Declaration drawn up by the Bishop of Meaux in
the name of his colleagues, and forcibly imposed by Louis XIV.
tu- a fundamental law of the State.
23. Had Bossuet reflected with a serious and unbiassed
mind upon this unanimity of sentiment, which, after the ex­
ample of St. Augustine, he turned to such account against
heresy, he would not have hesitated to disavow an act in
which passion played so prominent a part ; at least he would
have observed a prudent silence. But the pride of his intel­
lect revolted against the censure of the Catholic world ; and
the Bishop of Meaux undertook to defend his work. He de­
voted the labor of thirty years to the celebrated defence of the
Declaration of the Clergy of France, written in a sty le worthy
of the purest Latin antiquity ; but the form, however faultless,
cannot justify the matter. “To give a full and clear view of
the doctrine,” says Bossuet, “ we shall proceed, alter the man­
ner of geometers, to establish, as clearly as we are able, live
propositions linked together, and communicating light and
strength to each other· : 1. The temporal sovereignty is lawlul,
from the beginning, even among the infidels. 2. That sove­
reignty, even among the infidels, comes from God. 3. So»©·

86b

GENERAL· HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

reignty wns, from the beginning, ever, among infide. nations,
so constituted of God, that after Him it is supreme; and God
established none other to depose it or bring it to order. 4.
By the institution of the legal priesthood, God made no change
in the condition of the temporal sovereignty ; on the contrary,
lie declared more expressly that after God it is supreme in its
order. 5. The institution of the Christian priesthood likewise
made no change in sovereignty; on the contrary, the New
Testament and the tradition of the Fathers clearly teach us
that Jesus Christ gave no power to His ministers to regulate
temporal concerns or to bestow and take away the power of
any ruler whatever.” Such are the principles which Bossuet
seeks to establish in order to confirm the first article of the
Declaration. The legitimacy and the divine origin of sover­
eignty among infidel nations are admitted on all hands, and are
out of the question. But it is false, in a historical point of view,
that among the unbelievers the temporal sovereignty was not
made subject to the spiritual power in matters of worship
affecting the conscience of the people. Lycurgus appealed
for the sanction of his laws to the oracle of Delphi; Numa
claimed for his the inspiration of the nymph Egeria. The
annals of the human race, with which no one was more per­
fectly acquainted than Bossuet, formally disproved his third
proposition. It is equally false to say that “ by the institu­
tion of the legal priesthood, God made no change in the condi­
tion of the temporal sovereignty ; but that, on the contrary. He
declared that it is the first in its order.” The whole history
of the Jewish race presents the kings subject to the authority
of the prophets. Samuel appoints Saul; Samuel deposes Saul,
when that prince proves false to his trust, and gives his place
to a poor shepherd-boy, the youngest of the sons of Isai.
David, the anointed of the Lord, founds a dynasty ; but it is a
prophet who confirms, in the person of Solomon, the right of
Buccession to the throne ; it is by the ministry of the prophets
that God takes away ten tribes from the sou of Solomon to
constitute a second kingdom under the rule of Jeroboam.

IN50CEMT XL (Λ D. 187β-Ιβ«9).

369

Bosstict’a fourth proposition is thus likewise contradicted by
history. The fifth and last proposition, the only truly impor­
tant one, is not more tenable in the strict sense in which But·
suet would have it taken. That the Sovereign Pontiffs shook
have received from Christ no power to regulate temporal ■■mcerns is of little importance. The submission due to sovereigns
is a matter of conscience which concerns the moral order, and
involves the question of eternal salvation. Nobody, we rhink,
will deny this. But the Catholic Pontificate is the only spiritual
authority instituted of God to regulate matters concerning sal­
vation, to decide questions in the moral order, which interest
the conscience. Therefore, it belongs to the head of the
Catholic Church, the Vicar of Jesus Christ, to define, without
appeal, all doubtful cases which may arise touching the sub­
mission due to the sovereign. That the Church should have
directly received no authority from Christ to bestow or to take away
the power of any ruler, makes but little difference. It is certain
that a Catholic, in a case of doubt concerning a contested sov­
ereignty, will consult the authority established by Christ te
direct his conscience. He questions the Church to learn whom,
and how far, he can and must obey. And in order that, in such
a case, the conscience of the faithful may be free from all
scruple, from all anxiety, Jesus Christ gave to His Church
what was not given to the synagogue—the power of binding
and loosing all the ties of the soul, when He said to His Vicar.
‘· Whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be bound alsc
in Heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth, it shall
be loosed also in Heaven.” Here, then, we see the Church
brought, by the force of circumstances, into the temporal do­
main, and brought in as a sovereign power. Bossuet objects,
with all the other Gallican writers, that, during the first ages,
the Church did not decide cases of conscience arising between
kings and their subjects. The fact is true enough ; but the
reason of the fact is easily found. There was as yet no socie­
ty constituted upon Christian principles. Thus, all Bossuet’e
reasoning to prove the independence of the temporal power,
vot. IV,—u

70

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

falls to the ground. The first article of the Declaration of the
Clergy of France cannot stand the test of sound criticism.
*
As
to the three others, Fénelon, in a Latin treatise—De Auclor.latt
Summi Pontificis—censures them as entirely opposed Io tradi
tion, and declares himself in favor of the opinion more common
among Catholics, maintaining, with Bellarmine, the following
proposition : “ The Sovereign Pontiff, even though he should
fall into error or heresy as an individual, cannot in any way
define, as of faith, a heretical doctrine, in a decree addressed to
the whole Church.” We prefer to side with Bellarmine and
Fénelon, to adopt the opinion most commonly held among
Catholics and supported by testimonies constantly recurring
throughout the whole course of tradition. If it bo allowable to
indulge a feeling of pride at being a member of the clergy of
France, it is certainly not allowable to form a Gallican church,
with a doctrine different from that of the Roman Church, the
mother and the mistress of all the others.
24. Innocent XI. had not quailed in the struggle, so pain­
ful to his heart, in which the bishops of a nation that gloried
in the title of “Eldest Daughter of the Church,” gave a disgrace­
ful example of insubordination and revolt against the Holy See.
He was not yet without weapons to defend himself and to meet»
the invasion of French absolutism. While the king bestowed
the highest favor and preferment on the authors of the Declara­
tion—the members of the Assembly of 1682—Innocent refused
to grant them canonical institution and the necessary bulls. The
Pope’s refusal was a natural and a necessary result of circum­
stances. The king, by his edict of March 23, a. d. 1682, made
it binding upon all the bishops and doctors to recognize the
Declaration of the clergy, and he presented to the Holy See, for
promotion to the episcopate, only such ecclesiastics as bad sub­
scribed it. The Pope, on the other hand, said to the candidates
• It is well known that, at tho close of hia life, Bossuet, enlightened, doubtless, by too
lengthy discussions to which tho oont-ovorsy bad given rise, thus wrote of his work:
"Whatever may become of the ‘Declaration,· we shall not undertake to defend it here ’
-GnUta QrlhodoM.

LN HOCEWT

.

169»).

371

thus presented : “ Write that you do not recognize the De· laration, and I will confirm your election.” In this s^ate of things,
Louis, by a royal edict, forbade that any application should !?e
made to the court of Rome for bulls of episcopal institution
He directed the respective chapters to bestow upon those ap­
pointed by him, the title of spiritual administrators, in con­
tempt of the canons of the fourteenth general council, the second
of Lyons, which expressly forbade it. In fine, through his
solicitor-general in the parliament of Paris, he appealed to the
next council from all that the Pope “ had done, and might yet
do, to the prejudice of the king of France, and of bis subjects,
as well as of the rights of his crown.”
25. It seemed impossible that any thing could add to the
intensity of the crisis. Thirty-five bishops named by the Most
Christian King to various episcopal sees, were without canonical
institution ; and this abnormal position continued during the
whole Pontificate of Innocent XI. A fresh difficulty and equally
animated discussions, in a matter utterly foreign to all dogmatic
questions, added a new degree of animosity to these lamentable
contests. It related to the Franchises which the ambassador-:
of the various powers, at the court of Rome, had arrogated to
themselves, not only for their residence, but for all the neigh­
boring quarter. They would admit within those limits no judi­
cial or financial officer of the Pope; hence they had become the
asylum of all the bad characters and plunderers of the country.
They not only took refuge there from the pursuit of the law,
but even sallied forth to commit crimes in the neighborhood;
these asylums were also made the depositories of contraband
goods. Popes Julius III., Pius IV., Gregory XIII., and Sixtus
, had issued several decrees to abolish this right of asylum ;
V.
the ambassadors had never been willing to submit to the decrees,
and their attendants had always repulsed the Pontifical officers
who came to enforce them. Innocent, who had never learned
to flinch from what he deemed a duty, and relying, at the same
time upon the respect and love of his people, whose affection
ie had won by his virtue, his modesty and disinterestedness.

372

GENERAI BISTORT CF THE CHURCH.

determined, at length to abolish an abuse which had become
intolerable. He announced that he would require no change
in tho customs of the ambassadors already established at his
court, but that he would no longer receive any who would not
consent, beforehand, to renounce the assumed right of asylum.
This new measure at first met with some opposition ; the court
of Spain, rather than submit, abstained for a time from sending
an ambassador to Rome ; the republic of Venice recalled its rep­
resentative ; but at length all—the emperor, the king of Spain,
the king of Poland, James II. of England, and the other powers
- -yielded to the just demands of the Sovereign Pontiff.
26. Louis XIV. had allowed the Duke of Estrées to remain,
until his death (a. d. 1687), at the court of Rome, to avoid the
necessity of a decision. At the death of the ambassador, the
nuncio, Ranuzzi, earnestly requested Louis to direct the duke's
successor to make the renunciation subscribed by the other am­
bassadors, and thus to contribute to the return of peace and se­
curity to the capital of the Christian world. The king haughtily
replied : “I have never regulated my actions by those of others ;
God has placed mo here to give example to others, not to receive
it.” He appointed the Marquis of Lavardin to succeed the late
Duke of Estrées,and expressly ordered him to maintain the right
of asylum which had been enjoyed by his predecessors. Lavardin
accordingly set out with a retinue of eight hundred well-armed,
men. On the 7th of May, 1687, Innocent issued a bull excom­
municating any one who should attempt to maintain the right
jf asylum or offer any resistance to the officers of the law. He
declared that he did not recognize Lavardin as an ambassador,
forbidding the legates of Bologna and the other governors of
his provinces to show him any marks of honor when he should
enter the Stales of the Church. Notwithstanding this protest,
Lavardin entered Rome on the 16th of November, at the head
of his armed and threatening escort ; the Pope renewed his
prohibition to the cardinals to hold any intercourse with him,
refused him an audience, and laid an interdict upon the church
of San Luigi, in which the marquis had received communion.

INNOCENT XI. (A. f). Ιβίβ

873

When this last measure was reported to the court of Versailles,
the king's solicitor-general Harlay appealed, as against an abuse
of power, from the bull of excommunication issued by the Pope.
“ He did not admit,” such are bis words, “that the Sovereign
Pontiff ever had the right to inchide in his excommunications
the ambassadors whom the king might choose to send him.
lie attributed this sign of mental aberration in the Pope, to old
age, which was weakening his powers.” The attorney-general,
Talon, was still more violent; he represented the Pope as a
heretic, and reproached him with “ affecting to give France a
disgust for the things which would be most advantageous to
religion.”
27. This overbearing conduct toward the common Father
of the faithful, showed how far Louis allowed himself to be
blinded by his pride and by the splendid successes which had
crowned the first years of his reign. It was now twenty-seven
years since he had taken the reins of government into his own
hands, and in this long career of power he had marched from
success to success, from victory to victory ; he had extended
the bounds of France in all directions; he had humbled every
rival, every enemy. From the hour when he began his proud
struggle with the Holy See, victory forsook his banners, and
Europe, which had been humbled by so many triumphs, now
stood aghast at his reverses. At the death of the Archbishop­
elector of Cologne, the votes of the chapter were divided
between Cardinal Furstenburg, bishop of Strasburg, a creature
of France, and the young Prince Clement of Bavaria, bishop of
Ratisbon. The Pope declared in favor of the latter candidate.
Louis, in his vexation, addressed a manifesto to the Pope and
the cardinals, closing with the announcement that, to obtain the
justice which was due to him, he should seize the city of
Avignon, uphold the rights and liberties of the chapter of
Cologne, and send troops into Italy to enforce the respect k
which he was entitled (September 6, a. d. 1688). Mean·
while, the Archbishop of Paris had assembled the bishops then
in the capital, the parish priests, the beads of chapters and

374

OKtfERAL HI3TOHV OP THE CHURCH.

communities, and addressed them in vindication of the course
adopted by tho government toward tho court of Rome. The
University of Paris had, on its part, appealed from the Pope to
a general council ; all the French clergy seemed to be animated
by tho same zeal in the struggle against the head of the
Church, thus displaying in the name of tho “ Gallican
Liberties,” much more servility and fear of the king, than real
independence. On the 7th of October, the French troops took
quiet possession of the Comtat-Venaissin, while the Dauphin
set out at the head of twenty-five thousand men, to attack
Philipsburg, without any previous declaration of war. But the
same moment witnessed the beginning of the revolution in Eng­
land and Holland, which was to place William of Nassau, prince
of Orange, the bitter rival of Louis XIV., upon a powerful
throne; which was to arm Europe for its independence, and
inaugurate a fearful struggle against the Great King. Louis,
made wiser by misfortune, will yet renounce his insolent pre­
tensions, and display, in the midst of disasters, a greatness of
soul, the more admirable as it is free from the reproach of
pride and ambition.
28. Innocent XI. did not live to witness this happy
change. The preceding years had been signalized by a measure
of extreme importance on the part of Louis XIV.—the Revoca­
tion, of the Edict of Nantes, which edict, it will be remembered,
was granted by Henry IV. in favor of the Huguenots.
Richelieu had annihilated the Protestants as a political party ;
but he had allowed them to keep their places in the parliaments,
their synods, in a word, a part of their internal organization.
Louis XIV. determined to put an end, by force, to a state of
things which stood in the way of his designs for the unity of
France. It has been said that the court of Rome was a party
to the design. The majority of histories, even those which are
called classical, assert the fact. But it is wholly false. The
Edict of Nantes was revoked in IG85, at which time Louis
XIV., far from going to the Holy See for counsels to guide his
administration, was holding his kingdom in a kind of schism.

INNOCENT XI. (A. D. 1Λ1β-ΙΜ»).

375

and was preparing the contest of the Franchise
*
against Inn«>
cent XI. It is well known that the Sovereign Pontiff openly
disapproved of the violence exercised against the Calvinist· It
was this very censure that provoked the expression we have
already quoted from Talon : “ The Pope affects to give France
a disgust for the very things which would he profitable to
religion.” The “ Revocation of the Edict of Nantes ” was,
therefore, a measure altogether political, in which the Holy
See had no share, and which comes rather within the province
of profane than of ecclesiastical history. France, limited in
her conquests by Holland, found within her own bounds another
Holland, which rejoiced at the reverses of the Great King. This
consideration determined the course of Louis XIV. Beside
the state of public opinion was favorable to his designs. On
the 22d of October, a. d. 1685, the edict of revocation appeared.
It had been drawn up by Le Tellier, and Louvois, his son. The
first article withdrew all the privileges granted to the Calvinists
by Henry IV. and Louis XIII ; the next two forbade the
exercise of their religion throughout the kingdom ; the fourth
required all the reformed ministers to quit France within fifteen
days ; the fifth and sixth offered rewards to all who should
renounce their religion ; the ninth and tenth promised an entire
amnesty and the integral restitution of their property to those
who should return within four months; finally the eleventh
decreed bodily punishment against all who might relapse, yet
permitting the Calvinists to remain in their homes, to enjoy
their goods and property, to transact their business, without
any danger of persecution, on the grounds of religious belief,
provided they did not assemble for purposes of public worship.
The last concession promised a kind of freedom of conscience ;
but it was violated by the excessive zeal of the officers intrusted
with the execution of the edict. The dragoons of Louvois were
a strange class of missionaries. Politically speaking. Louis
XIV. was right in seeking to restore unity of faith in his king­
dom, but, in a Christian point of view, he should have sent
priests instead of soldiers to do the work. Such was the judg-

376

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

ment of Fénelon, and even of Madame de Maintenon, who was
then bound to the king by the closest ties. Still, “ the French
people,” it is Sismondi himself who makes the avowal, “ap­
plauded these measures. The Parisians, especially, hurried
madly to Charenton, where they tore down the temple in which
the Protestants of the capital met for public worship ; not a
trace of the building was left to mark the spot.” At a latei
period (1701-1704), the Cévennes were made the scene of
bloody contests by the insurgent peasants known as the
Camisards. Supported by fanaticism, and protected by their
rocky mountain fastnesses, they maintained a long resistance
agninst the regular troops sent to subdue them. France was
obliged to employ against them three of her marshals, in succes­
sion,—Montrevel, Villars and Berwick,—and yet they were
finally reduced more by negotiations than by force of arms. It
must be said, moreover, that writers have nearly always given
a singularly exaggerated account of the period styled the
Dragonnades ; just as some historians have quintupled the
number of Calvinists who then quitted France. The most
scrupulous research limits the number to sixty-six or sixty­
eight thousand of all ages and of both sexes, instead of six
hundred thousand, the number given by the school of Voltaire
and by Protestant writers. Again, the measure was instru­
mental in repairing a number of injuries suffered by Catholics,
in recalling to the true faith a multitude of people who had
been misled, in clearing the kingdom of the most obstinate
advocates of error, in a word, in taking from the sect all the
means of disturbing the peace and tranquillity of the nation.
Such results would fully compensate for the material injury that
might have resulted to France from the expulsion of the Calvin­
ists, even supposing them as real as these exaggerated accounts
would make them.
29. While Louis XIV. was persecuting the Huguenots in
France, his policy led him to enter into terms with Islamism.
The immense changes which had taken place in the situation
of Europe, since the beginning of the sixteenth century, had

INIVOCENT XI. (Λ. D. 1018~1βΜ).

377

assigned a new part to France. France, which at the time nf
the Crusades had struck such powerful blows at the crescent,
seemed now to wield the same power only against Christian
nations, and look for allies among the Turks. The treaty of
peace concluded between the Emperor Leopold I. and Mahomet
IV., after the battle of St. Gothard (a. d. 1664), had been vio­
lated by the Porte, which raised a Hungarian nobleman named
Tekeli to the royal dignity, by conferring upon him. as a vassal
of the Sultan, the government of that portion of Hungary be­
longing to Austria. The court of Vienna remonstrated with
the Divan, which answered by sending ten thousand Ottoman
troops to Tekeli, and by ravaging, with fire and sword, the
Austrian possessions in Hungary. Mahomet IV.. who was
ruled by his grand-vizier, Kara-Mustapha, renewed the vow
of his predecessors—“ to feed his horse with a measure of oats
on the altar of St. Peter at Rome.” The less aspiring vizier
was thinking of another European-Turkey, with Vienna for its
capital. A force of three hundred thousand Turks assembled
at Belgrade, under the command of Mustapha. In the Otto­
man council, the necessity of reducing the fortified cities on
the army’s route was discussed. “ Austria,” said the vizier,
“ is an immense tree, of which Vienna is the trunk ; the
branches will fall of themselves if the trunk is once cut down.
The immense army accordingly began its march toward Vienna,
in the mouth of April, 1683. On learning the approach of the
enemy, the emperor quitted his capital, and withdrew to Lintz
with his court. The cabinet of Versailles secretly rejoiced at
an invasion which would help to crush the house of Austria.
But Pope Innocent XI. kept a watchful eye upon the interests
of Europe ; he was the Urban II. of the seventeenth century.
His nuncios succeeded in effecting an alliance, offensive and
defensive, between the emperor and the king of Poland, the
heroic John Sobieski. Sobieski had twice already saved Ins
kingdom from the tide of Mussulman invasion. He was now a
third time to save Christendom, before the walls of Vienna.
The Sovereign Pontiff gave Sobieski the hope of an alliance

378

ORNERAI, HISTORY OF ΤΠΕ CHURCf

between James, the hero’s son, who was then sixteen years old,
and an Austrian archduchess; he promised to use all his power
to make the Polish crown hereditary in his family—a wise fore­
thought, which, if realized, might perhaps have saved Poland.
Innocent then ordered public prayers at Rome for the success
of the Christian arms. He sent a hundred thousand crowns to
the emperor, and an equal sum to the king of Poland. The
Sacred College had helped to make up this holy alms ; Livio,
the Pontiff’s nephew, had alone contributed ten thousand
crowns from his patrimonial estate. Once more the Papacy
was the salvation of the Christian world.
30. The Austrian army under Duke Charles of Lorraine,
numbered hardly forty thousand warriors. Ten thousand men,
under the Count of Starenberg, garrisoned the threatened capi­
tal. The duke made a vain effort to check the march of the
Mussulman host on the banks of the Raab. The Austrians,
repulsed by the Turks, before they could effect a junction
with the forces of *Sol eski, were obliged to fall back upon the
Danube, in the direction of Vienna. The Turkish camp was at
length pitched before the walls of the city on the 14th of July,
a. d. 1683. Vienna was completely invested. The vizier sum­
moned the garrison to surrender ; he was answered by a for­
midable discharge of artillery. The enemy began the work of
intrenchment; and a fire of shells which shook the ramparts, had,
in a few days, laid in ashes twenty convents with a number of
churches and dwellings. The monasteries and churches with­
out the walls and a great part of the extensive suburbs, were
given to the flames by the Mussulmans. All the bells in Vienna
were silent during the siege, save one, the bell of St. Stephen’s,
called Anyslern (anguish). By order of the Count of Staren­
berg, the signal of the combat was given from the belfry of St.
Stephen’s, on the 6th of July. The sound of the tocsin was
mingled with the great war cry which burst from the lips of
the whole population. Citizens and students, and even women
flew to arms. AU swore to conquer or to die. Sleep and rest
were unknown. The days were spent in fighting, the nighte

INNOCENT XL (A. D. .615-1089).

37»

in repairing the breaches in the walls and in burying the dead.
Thia fearful work had hated forty-five days; eighteen times the
Turks had stormed the walla, and the beleaguered Christians
had made twenty-four sallies ; one-half of their feeble garrison
had fallen. The Duke of Lorraine could not attack the Turks,
without exposing his army to certain destruction ; he had en
camped behind the mountain of Cayenberg to await the King of
Poland. The Count of Starenberg, driven to the last extremity,
succeeded in communicating with him by a short note. "There
is no time to lose ! We are undone unless you come !" Sud­
denly the sight of several rockets ascending from the heights
of Cayenberg, announced the arrival of Sobieski with bis twenty
thousand Polish warriors ; and hope returned to the sinking
hearts of the defenders of Vienna. The King of Poland had
come by forced marches. On his route, triumphal arches met
him at every step bearing the words which were also written in
every heart and uttered by every tongue, “ Salvatorem expectamus.” He had crossed the Danube on a triple bridge hastily
thrown across the stream by the Duke of Lorraine, near Tuln ;
and now he joined his forces to those of the duke, and of the
Electors of Bavaria and Saxony. The chief command of the
combined Christian armies, numbering seventy thousand men,
was immediately given to Sobieski. The Poles were ill-clad
and poorly equipped ; some of the German princes expressed
their surprise at the fact. “ Do you see those men ?” said
Sobieski, “they are invincible; they have sworn to clothe
themselves only with the spoils of the enemy.” “ If these
words,” says a biographer, “ did not clothe the troops of the
King of Poland, they mailed them.” The sight of Sobieski sent
a thrill of enthusiasm through the Christian ranks. As he
passed along the lines, he was greeted with repeated cries of
“ Long live King John
On ' he 12th of September, ioob, ui
daybreak, Sobieski with the chief officers of the army repaired
to a chapel situated on the height of Leopoldberg. îhe Papal
nuncio, Marco d’Aviano, celebrated the Mass served by the
Polish hero himself- *··" ^nelt with his arms extended in th·

880

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

form of a cross. After the sacrifice, Sobieski called his son
James and knighted him as he knelt at the foot of the altar
lie then directed him to mount his horse, sword in hand, and
not to quit his side. The young prince, who proved himself
worthy of his name on that immortal day, obeyed with joy.
Sobieski, though not without great difficulty, drew out his army
in order of battle, along the thickly wooded hills about Vienna.
The command of the right wing was intrusted to the Grand Het­
man Jablonowski ; the left was led by the Duke of Lorraine ; he
himself took charge of the centre. He gave the appointed sig­
nal, and from every point of the line, a heavy discharge of art il­
lery poured death and destruction upon the besiegers. The
disastrous fire lasted from ten o’clock in the morning until one
in the afternoon. At that moment, the watchful eye of Sobie­
ski caught sight of a long file of camels moving in the direction
of Hungary. The Turks were preparing to retreat. The King
of Poland ordered his army to charge the enemy. The Chris­
tian warriors, led by the gallant Sobieski, poured down like a
torrent upon the troops of Kara Mustapha, and a fearful hand
to hand contest followed. At five o’clock the Turks broke and
fled in utter rout ·, and at nightfall, of all the immense besieging
army, but twenty thousand Moslem corpses were left to guard
the walls of Vienna. The Polish king sent to the Pope the
standards taken from the enemy, with the words of Cæsar to
which the hero gave a character of Christian modesty : “ Veni,
vidi, Deus vicit—I came, I saw, God conquered.” On the day
after the battle Sobieski, riding at the head of the allied forces,
made nis entry into Vienna. The people knelt as he passed,
shedding tears of joy, and hailed him as their savior. Mothers
held up their little ones that they might look upon the hero
Sobieski’s eyes were filled with tears. “ It is God Who has
done all, my friends,” he said to the multitude that pressed
around him. “ Let us go and return thanks to Him who gave
us victory.” He was followed by the throng into the church i
the Augustinians, knelt before the altar in the chapel of Lc- -,cto.
and himself intoned the Te Deum. And the anthem of the

INNOCENT XI. (A. D. 1»7<J-1C89>.

381

Jod of battles, chanted by a whole people, rolled through the
trembling arches of the basilica. A priest then entered the pul­
pit ami made a discourse on the rescue of Vienna, taking for
his text the words which Pius V., of glorious memory, applied
to Don John of Austria, after the victory of Lepanto: - Fuie
homo missus a Deo, cui nomen erat Joannes." And all eye»
were at once turned upon John Sobieski. The deliverance of
Vienna is one of the greatest events of modern history ; Inno­
cent XI., by the sword of the Polish hero, had forever turned
back the tide of Moslem invasion from Christian Europe.
Through the intervention of the glorious Pontiff, a triple alli­
ance was formed between Austria, Poland and Venice, against
the Turks, who were forced successively to yield all their con­
*
quests.
31. While Innocent XI. was thus struggling against ene
inies from without, his untiring watchfulness was exercised
within, against the heresies which threatened the domestic
peace of the Church. He condemned the New Testament of
Mons and several other Jansenistic works lately published. He
also anathematized sixty-five propositions drawn from works
of modern casuists, and by a bull of November 19, a. d. 1687,
confirmed the sentence of the Spanish Inquisition against the
person and the writings of Molinos, the author of a work enti­
tled the “ Spiritual Guide.” Molinos taught a system of quie­
tude and contemplation, as absurd as it was dangerous, and
which obtained for his followers the name of Quietists. This
heresy made Christian perfection consist in a slate in which
man no longer reasons on his own actions, remaining in a state
of utter inaction. “ The perfect man," says Molinos, “ reflects
neither on God nor on himself; he desires nothing, not even
his salvation; he fears nothing, not even hell; he so identifies
himself with the will of God, that nothing can disturb him ;
neither impure thoughts, nor blasphemies, nor unbelief; in a
• For the history of the siege of Vienna and the war against the Turks, nd. tl»
Inn dr Constantinople, by M Baptiotin PrwODLAr. froir which we hare borrowed UM
interesting episode

,82

GENERAL HÎ8T0RT OF THB CHURCH.

word, none of the temptations to which he may yield ; on the
contrary, they are, in his eyes, the means which God uses to
purify the soul ; when the soul is once purified, when it is inti­
mately united with God by the perfect state of the prayer of
quietude, it is no longer accountable to God for tho most, crimi
nal actions, it no longer takes part with what goes on in this
tabernacle of flesh; fornication, adultery, even despair, which
are horrible crimes in those who have not yet reached the
state of quietude, become indifferent actions in the true con­
templatives, who receive no stain from them.” Molinos, in
the garb of a penitent and before the whole court and people
of Rome, solemnly abjured his errors. We shall yet find his
doctrine seducing one of the most beautiful minds of modern
times, who atoned for his momentary illusion by a noble ex­
ample of submission to the Holy Seo.
32. This was the last act of the laborious Pontificate of In­
nocent XI. The great Pontiff died, full of years and glory, on
the 12th of August, a. d. 1689, after a reign of thirteen years.
The people invoked him as a saint, and contended for his
relics.
§ III. Pontificate of Alexander VIII. (October 6, a. d. 1689—
February 1, 1691).
33. Cardinal Ottoboni was seventy years old when he was
chosen to succeed Innocent XI. ; he took the name of Alexan­
der VIII. The advanced age of the new Pontiff had not im­
paired his strength; he was well known as a man of rare
prudence, perspicuity, thorough knowledge of business, great
sweetness and moderation of character, to which he knew how
to join a prudent and reasonable firmness. Louis XIV.
thought that he might now easily end to his own advantage,
che difficulty existing between the Holy See and the court of
France. He gave up the right of asylum, which had caused so
much disorder. The Duke of Chaulues, envoy of France at
the Roman court, signed the renunciation in his master’s name.

ALEXANDER VIII. (A. V. 168» 1M1|.

383

and Louis restored Avignon and the Comtat-Venaissin Uj the
Pope (a. d. 1690). Alexander, in return, granted to the king of
France the right of naming the bishops of Metz, Toni, Verdun,
Arras and Perpignan ; a right not included in the concordat
between Leo X. and Francis I.
34. But these concessions could not secure a final peace
so long as the king persisted in exercising the right of regale in
France, and in enforcing, as a State law, the Declaration of
1682. Alexander VIII. made repeated but fruitless efforts to
induce the king to renounce this claim. He then began to pre­
pare the bull Inter multiplices, which may be called the great
work of his Pontificate. “ Appointed by the Lord,” says the
Pope, “ to defend the rights of His Church, thinking day and
night, with bitterness of heart, on the duties of Our office, with
tears and sighs We have raised up Our hands to the Lord, and
besought Him, with all the fervor of Our heart, to send Us the
helj of His powerful grace, that We may worthily discharge
the Apostolic ministry intrusted to Us. Therefore, alter having
consulted most of Our venerable brethren, the cardinals of the
Holy Roman Church ; after having received the opinions of
many doctors in theology and canon law, who, being specially
appointed by Us to investigate the question, have examined it
with all possible care ; following in the footsteps of Innocent
,
XI.
Our predecessor, of happy memory, who condemned,
annulled and abrogated all the acts of the Assembly of tho
clergy of France, in the matter of the regale, with all that Job
lowed from it ; desirous, moreover, that this should be regarded
as expressly relating to tüe acts of the Assembly of 1682,
touching both the extension of the right of regale, and the
Declaration on the ecclesiastical power, as well as all decrees,
judgments and edicts therewith connected. We declare, after
mature deliberation, and in virtue of the fulness of the Apostolic
authority, that each and every one of the acts done in the abovementioned Assembly of the clergy of France in 1682, touching both
the extension of the right of regale and the Declaration on the
ecclesiastical power, and the four propositions therein contained,

884

GENERAL HfSTORT OF THE .HÜRCH.

were of right, null, invalid, illusori/, wholly and entirely without
force from the beginning ; that they are still so,andshall be soforever,
and that no one is bound to observe them, or to observe any one oj
them, even though he should have bound himself to them by an oath.
We, moreover, declare that they are to be deemed null and
void, and as if they had never existed ; and still, by way of
greater precaution, and in so far as need may be, We, of Our
own accord and certain knowledge, after serious reflection, in
the fulness of Our authority, condemn, abrogate, invalidate,
annul, and wholly and utterly deprive of all force and effect, the
said acts and dispositions, and all the other above-mentioned
things, and before God, We protest against them, and declare their
nullity."
35. This bull was drawn up and signed on the 4th of
August, a. d. 1690. Yet the Pope delayed its publication,
hoping that Louis XIV. would submit without obliging him to
have recourse to this extreme measure. But on the 30th of
January, 1691, feeling the approach of death, and that he was
about to appear at the bar of the Sovereign Judge, Alexander
VIII. summoned the cardinals, and made them acquainted with
the tenor of the bull, which thus became as the testament of the
dying Pontiff. Ten days later he gave up his soul to God.
There is certainly something solemn and imposing in this con­
demnation of Gallicanism, pronounced by Alexander VIII. from
his bed of death! Several French writers have seized this
occasion to assail the memory of the pious Pontiff ; nor is it
astonishing. Few are the guilty that bless and approve the
sentence of the judge who condemns them ! With us, this act
of firmness on the part of Alexander VIII., makes his brief
Pontificate one
the most important in the history of the
Church.

INNOCENT ΧΠ. (A. D. 1691-1700).

CHAPTER III.
§ 1. Pontificate

of

Innocent XII. (Joly 19, a. d. 169!—July 19, 1700).

I Election of Innocent XII. Bull Romanum Decet Pontificem against nepo
tism.—2. State of England and of France, at the accession of Innocent XII.
Peace of Ryswick.—3. Letter of Louis XIV. to Innocent XII., disavowing
the acts of the Assembly of 1689, and declaring that the necessary order»
have been issued for the revocation of the royal edict which followed the
declaration.—4. Letter of the French bishops to Innocent XII., declaring
the decrees of 1682 null and void.—5. Innocent XII. grants canonical in­
stitution to the thirty-five bishops appointed by Louis XIV., and consents
to the extension of the right of regale to the whole kingdom.—6. François
de Salignae de la Motte Fénelon.—7. Madame Gnyon.—8. The Maxime'
des Saints of Fénelon. State of the question agitated between Bossuet and
Fénelon. Disgrace of Fénelon.—9. Sentence of the Pope. Fénelon's work
condemned.—10. Submissum of Fénelon.—11. Death of Innocent ΧΠ.—
12. Victory of Temesvar or Zentba, won by Prince Eugene of Savoy over
the Turks.
§ II. Pontificate

of

Cleuent XI. (November 23, a.

d.

1700—March 19,

1721).

J 3 Character of the eighteenth century.—14. The question of the succession
of Charles II. of Spain.—15. Antecedente of Cardinal Albani.—16. Election
of Cardinal Albani as Clement XI.—17. The Duke of Anjou, grandson of
Louis XIV., is proclaimed king of Spain, in virtue of the will of Charles IIn
and takes the name of Philip V.—18. War of succession in Spain, from
1700 to 1713. Reverses of Loui· XIV. Prince Eugene defeated by Man
shal Villars at Denain. Treaty of Utrecht. Treaty of Rastadt.—10. The
investiture of the kingdom of the Two Sicilies claimed at the same time by
by Philip V. of Spain and Leopold I. of Austria.—20. Political ••"m-.-^ions
wrong from Clement XI. by the Imperial forces.—21. Encroachments >f the
secular power in Savoy upon ecclesiastical privileges.—22. Abolition of the
Tribunal of “The Sicilian Monarchy.”—23. The “Case of Conscience.”—
24. Quesnel. The Réflexions Morales. Quesnel's pamphlets against Car­
dinal De Noailles, archbishop of Paris.—25. Bull of Clement XL, 1 ‘iw
*
Tot IV.—25

SBλ

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHORCH.

Domini Sabaoth.—N. The Problème Ectlfsieutique relative h the work,
Reflexions Morales. Critical sitnation of Cardinal De Noailles. Ineffectua
attempt of Bos«not in his favor. Decree of Pope Clement XL—27. The
bnii Unigenitus, condemning the R flexions Morales.—2 8. Reception of
the bull Unigenitus in France.—20. Death of Louie XIV.—30. Death of
BoMiiet. Leibnitz.—31. Philip of Orleans, regent of France. The Sor­
bonne. Cardinal De Noailles and other prelates appeal from the bull Uni­
genitus to the "Pope better informed." The bull Pastoreilis. Edict of
Philip of Orleans, making the bull Unigenitus binding in France.—32
Question of the Chinese Rites. The bull Ex Illa Die.—33. A glance al
Protestant England. The Episcopalians. The Presbyterians.—34. The
Quakers and Methodists.—35. Collins. Condemnation of his work on
“ Freedom of Opinion.—36. The Sultan Acbmed III. violates the treaty of
Cnrlowitz. The Turks defeated by Prince Eugene at Pcterwaradin and
Belgrade. Peace of Passarowitz.—37. Mechitarists.—38. The Plague in
Marseilles in 1720. Belzunce. Clement XI. sends three ship-loads of com
to the city of Marseilles.—39. Death of Clement XI.—40. Saints and
learned men at the close of the seventeenth and the opening of the eigh­
teenth centuries.

g III. Pontificate

of

Innocent XIII.

(May 15,

a. d.

1721—March 7,

1724).

<1 *Inciaen in the conclave concerning Cardinal Paolucci. Privilege of es
elusion enjoyed by the crowns.—42. Leading events of the short Pontificate
of Innocent XIII.—43. Death of Innocent XIII.

§ L Pontificate

of

Innocent XII. (July 12,

a. d.

1691—July

12, 1700).
1. Cardinal Antonio Pignatelli was raised to the chair of
St. Peter, July 12, a. d. 1691, and took the nam/, of Innocent
XII. His first act was one which filled the court of Rome
with joy, while it showed the noble heart and upright inten­
tions of the new Pontiff. Many of the Popes, yielding to a
family affection natural to the human heart, had intrusted some
of the highest government offices to their kindred. Special
titles, such as the generalship of the Church and of the Pontifi­
cal galleys, were usually bestowed upon relations of the Pope.
A cardinal-nephew too often appeared the born ministei of his
uncle, the Sovereign Pontiff. It is true that some great and

INNOCENT XH. (A. D. IWl-HOfl).

387

illustrious examples at times protested against this abuse ; and
we have mentioned them in their proper place. But no general
measure had yet definitively proscribed its recurrence. The
glory of abolishing nepotism forever was reserved to Innocent
XII. After preparing the way for the blow he was about to
strike, the Pope, on the 23d of June, 1692, published the bull
Romanum Deed Pontificem, which he required all the cardinals
to subscribe. The titles reserved for the relatives of the Sov­
ereign Pontiffs, and other dignities to which extraordinary
salaries had been annexed, were abolished. This reform
effected an economy of eighty thousand crowns in favor of
the Apostolic chamber. It was strictly forbidden that Pontiffs
should, in future, enrich their relatives with the property of
the Church, or grant to their nephews the great authority and
unbounded power which had hitherto been enjoyed by certain
cardinal-nephews. To insure the lasting observance and force
of the bull, Innocent required all the cardinals to bind them­
selves by oath to secure its execution, and that in future the
same oath should be renewed in every conclave. True to this
principle, he forbade all the members of his family to come to
Rome during his Pontificate, and distributed among the poor,
whom he called his nephews, all the wealth which some of his
predecessors had but too lavishly squandered upon their kin
îred. At the same time, by his close attention to the repres
sion of all disorders, by his strict care in the choice of eccle­
siastics, by the vigilance with which he detected and punished
the cupidity of judges, by his economy, personal frugality and
liberal alms, the new Pontiff won the esteem of his contem­
poraries and a just right to the admiration of posterity.
2. One of the first cares of Innocent ΧΠ. was to take up
the negotiations pending with France on the declaration of
1682. As always happens when discussions are complicated
by new incidents, the regale, the first cause of the troubles was
nearly forgotten; all attention was absorbed by the Four Arti­
cles. Louis XIV. had already ceased to appear as the victori­
ous monarch whose will was the law of all Europe. A new

388

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

revolution had just broken out, in spite of him, in England
After the murder of Charles I. that country had borne the yoko
of the regicide Cromwell, who ruled with absolute power until
his death (a. d. 1658). By the devoted energy of General Monk,
the throne was restored to the lawful heir of the unfortunate
Charles I., who reigned as Charles II. But he had not the
strong and steady hand required to hold the reins of govern­
ment among a still phrensied people.
*
Charles II. died, leav­
ing no legitimate heir to the throne, and the sceptre passed
into the hands of James II., his brother, and second sou of
Charles I. During life, Charles II. had concealed his real sen­
timents in favor of the Roman communion, but on his death­
bed, he had secretly abjured Anglicanism. James II. was
unwilling to compound with his conscience ; he ascended the
throne of a Protestant nation, openly professing the faith which
was in his heart. A discontented faction began, at the very
outset to undermine his authority. William of Nassau, prince
of Orange, the son-in-law of James IL, placed himself at the
head of the rebels, dethroned his father-in-law (1688), and was
base enough to encircle his brow with a usurped diadem. Louis
XIV received the royal fugitive with great magnificence and
took his cause in hand. But his noble efforts to restore him to
the English throne were ineffectual. France lost the empire
of the ocean, and the gallant Tourville had the grief, in losing
the naval battle of La Hogue, to see that England was hence­
forth mistress of the seas (1692). These reverses gave a dis­
astrous blow to the power of Louis XIV. But the victories of
Fleurus, Steinkerk, and Nerwinden, which won for the great
Marshal Luxembourg the heroic surname of Tapissier de NotreDame\—“Upholsterer of Notre-Dame”—those of Catinat in
• Il wm during the reign of Charts TI. that the names WAtj ana Tory, as designations
of party principles, fleet came into use. The Whigs represent the liberal, democratic party,
opposed to the crown. The lories, on tho contrary, profess too deepost regard for the
monarchical idea and principles, of which they are tho zealous champions. They form the
Comtn aUtt party.
f When, at the close of the campaign of 169.1, a solemn service of thanksgiving was
telebruUKi at Notre-Dame, the cathedra· wm lined with the standards taken from the eno

INNOCENT XU. (A. D. 1891--.inOJ.

389

Italy and Flanders, and of the Duke of Vendôme, in Spain,
nobly indemnified Louis for his losses, and led to the celebrated
peace of Ryswick, in which the monarch showed himself even
above his success, sacrificing, by a single stroke of the pen,
nearly all his former conquests.
3. Europe was astonished at this display of moderation.
Some historians represent it as a mere political manœuvre. We
firmly believe it to have been inspired by a deep conviction, by
that kind of presentiment which seldom deceives great minds,
and which warns them at the critical moment, that they may
tempt fortune no further with impunity. The conduct of
Louis XIV. toward Pope Innocent XII. is a proof of thw
On the 14th of September, a. o. 1693, Louis XIV. wrote to
the Sovereign Pontiff from Versailles : “ Most Holy Father. 1
have always entertained great hopes of the exaltation of Your
Holiness to the Pontificate, for the good of the Church and
the advancement of our Holy Religion. I now experience
its effects with great joy, in all the noble and beneficial meas­
ures adopted by Your Holiness for both these objects. This
redoubles my filial respect, and, as I am desirous to show it
by the strongest proofs in my power, I am most happy to
make known to Your Holiness that I have given the orders
necessary for the revocation of my edict of March 23, 16S2,
touching the Declaration of the Clergy of France—to which 1
was obliged by existing circumstances. As I am desirous
not only that Your Holiness should be acquainted with *th·-·.
my sentiments, but that the whole world also may know, by a
special mark, how great is my reverence for the high and saintly
qualities of Your Holiness, I doubt not that You will deign,
in return, to grant me proofs and evidences of a paternal affec­
tion. In the mean time I pray that God may grant Your Holi­
ness many years of such happiness as is the sincere wish, Must
my. Marshal Luxembourg found himself hemmed in by a multitude eager to see the ore
of eo many glorious fields. Nor was he released until » prince of the blood, taking him b·
the hand, introduced him by calling out—"Room, room for the Upholsterer of Ν.·Ο ·
Dame." This was the surname bestowed by tho popular enthusiasm

390

GENERAL HISTORÏ OF THE CHURCH.

Holy Father, of your devoted son.” These noble and beautiful
sentiment·? might well efface the scandals of the past !
4. This retraction was purely voluntary and spontaneous in
the part of Louis; Innocent XII. had courted it by no conces­
sion. After the example of his two immediate predecessors, he
formally refused to grant canonical institution to the thirty-five
bishops appointed by the king, and openly showed his determi­
nation to repel every attempt that might be made to abate any
thing of the dignity of the Papal See. The French clergy were
convinced that a longer resistance was impossible. Innocent
rejected several formulas submitted to him by the clergy, as not
being sufficiently explicit. At length a commission, chosen from
among the bishops who had taken part in the Assembly ol
1682, addressed to the Sovereign Pontiff a letter expressive
of the most sincere repentance : “ Prostrate at the feet of Your
Holiness, we acknowledge the inexpressibly bitter grief that
fills our hearts, by reason of the proceedings of the Assembly,
which have highly displeased Your Holiness as well as your
predecessors. Therefore, if any articles may heretofore have
been considered as decreed, in that Assembly, on the ecclesias­
tical power and the Pontifical authority, we consider them as
not having been decreed, and declare that they are to be so
considered.” Bossuet at the same time uttered, in his Gallia
Orthodoxa, the words already quoted : “ Whatever may become
of the‘Declaration,’ we do not undertake to defend it here.”
Such was, then, after ten years of ceaseless discussions, the end
of the great contest arising from the Declaration of 1G82 and
the “ Four Articles” which it contained. The Declaration has
no longer any force, either with the Popes who have always
anathematized it, nor with the prelates who had signed and who
now disown it, nor with the king who revokes the edict enfor
cing its observance, nor with Bossuet who had drawn it up and
who now dismisses it almost with ignominy. With these facts in
view, it seems to us that history and truth are strangely abused,
when it is openly asserted that the doctrines of Qallicanism,
properly so called, have never been positively condemned bv

1JTN0CENT ΧΠ. (A. D. J691-I100).

391

the Holy See, and that they have remained, on theological
grounds, in the Church, open to discussion.
5. Rome once more maintained her prerogatives, even in
the teeth of the most powerful monarch of Christendom. The
perilous situation of France, for ten years tottering on the brink
of schism, had no longer any reason to remain so. Innocent XII.
opened the arras of mercy to his children who had strayed for
a moment, but who now returned to the bosom of their father.
The bishops appointed by the king signed an act of submission
to the Holy See and a retraction of all the acts of the Assembly ;
it was not until after this absolute recantation, that Innocent
granted them canonical institution. To give fuller expression
to the joy that filled his heart at this unlooked-for return, Inno­
cent XII., in the fulness of his Apostolic authority, and waiv­
ing, in virtue of his sovereign power, the question of discipline
which had given rise to such lengthened discussions, granted
the right of extending the regale to the whole kingdom of
France. From that time, the Sovereign Pontiff showed himself
a faithful ally of Louis XIV., and the closest union was main­
tained between the mnreme head of the Church and the Most
Christian King.
G. Side by side with Bossuet, and under his auspices, a
name destined to become the admiration of the world, the love
of every feeling heart and the delight of the human race, was
illustrating the ranks of the French clergy. François de Salig
nac de la Motte Fénelon, descended from an old and illustrious
fiimily of Périgord, had entered the service of the sanctuary at
an early age. His birth and high mental qualities pointed out
the way to the highest honors; but his modesty and virtue led
him into silence and retirement. He had, in the beginning,
aspired to the office of the zealous missionaries whose part it
was to bear the light of faith to distant countries, and whose
generous self-devotion he has so eloquently portrayed in his
beautiful sermon for the Epiphany. The entreaties of his fam­
ily, the affectionate pleading of his uncle, the bishop of Sarlat,
detained him in his native land, of which he was to become un·

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

of the brightest ornaments. Disappointed in his desire for
foreign missions to which his ardent soul would have led him,
he denned himself to an apostolate which he deemed no less
profitable, the care of die Nouvelles Catholiques
*
The duties
and cares of this office, the simple direction of a community
of women, for ten years absorbed the admirable faculties
of his mind and prepared him for the composition of his first
work, the “ Traité de ΐéducation des filles—Treatise on the edu­
cation of young girls”—a master-piece of delicacy and reason­
ing, which, in a single little volume, presents more correct and
useful ideas, more refined and deep observations, more practical
truths and sound morality, than many long works since written
upon the same subject. Fénelon had contracted with Bossuet
ties of friendship which promised to be lasting. Admitted to
familiar intercourse with that great mind, his mild and winning
disposition tempered the sharp and domineering spirit of the
Eagle of Meaux. It was at this time that Fénelon wrote his
treatise on the “ Ministry of Pastors”—Du Ministère des Pas­
teurs. It was the aim of this work to show that the great
majority of men being unable to decide for themselves in every
question of dogma, divine wisdom could give them nothing
more sure to keep them from going astray than an external
authority, which, deriving its origin from the Apostles and from
Christ Himself, displays an unbroken succession of pastors
All the proofs, all the authorities and all the arguments, brought
together by Fénelon in his “ Treatise,” are but the natural con­
sequence of that principle, which is set forth with so masterly
a hand that the Protestants themselves could make no serious
attack upon it. The qualities of the man himself, the merits
of the work, and the all-powerful recommendation of Bossuet,
determined Louis XIV. to intrust the author with a mission in
Poitou, shortly after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes.
The monarch attached the greatest importance to the couver• This wee n society of religious established in Paris for the purpose of bringing up and
instructing, in the principles of the Catholic faith, young girls belonging to Calvùùst 01
Lutheran families.

INNOCENT XII. (A. D. 1691-1100).

39a

eion of the Calvinists, as it would greatly help to smooth tho
difficulties which hindered the execution of the edict. Fénelon
accepted the duty, which was not without its dangers; but he
absolutely refused the armed force generally given to the other
missionaries. lie asked to choose the colleagues who were to
share with him a ministry of persuasion and mercy. He con­
verted without persecuting, and won affection for the faith of
•which he was the apostle. This success brought the young
missionary into greater notice than ever. On his return. Féne­
lon was appointed preceptor to the grandson of Louis XIV..
the Duke of Burgundy, of whom he made an accomplished
prince, and from whom France looked for long years of glory
and happiness. Bossuet had held the same office in relation to
the Dauphin. But the two teachings were as different in their
results as were the respective characters of the two illustrious
preceptors. Bossuet knew not how to bend his great mind to
a level with the weakness of a child. He spoke to the Dauphin
in a language which held France and Europe in admiration, by
its loftiness, its erudition, majesty and eloquence. He thusucceeded in inspiring the young prince only with an in- it··
mountable aversion to every kind of study. To this want iti
the mind of the prince were joined an intractable character, i
gloomy and morose disposition, the fear of not appearing in
advantage, as he was interiorly convinced of his own medi­
ocrity. The premature death of the Dauphin was a family
grief; but France, which had looked for nothing great from
him, gave him no tears. The Duke of Burgundy, his son. was
hardly entering upon the term of boyhood, when he was placed
in the hands of Fénelon. Then followed a contest worthy <>l
the deepest attention of thinking minds. A struggle was going
on between the defects of a young prince, haughty, quick-tem­
pered, disdainful and proud, and the affectionate and winning
gentleness, the yielding and pliant genius, the charming and
resistless grace of Fénelon. It was—to use an image naturally
suggested by the subject—Minerva, under the form of Mentor,
teaching Telemachus the way to wisdom. In a few years the

394

GENERAL HISTORY OF the CHURCH.

triumph of Fénelon was so remarkable that it was universally
celebrated as a public victory. The member appointed to reply
to Fénelon’s discourse, on the day of his admission to the Aca­
demy, thus addressed the illustrious abbé : “ The young prince
intrusted to your care, and so worthy of his lineage, the most
august in the world, has advanced in the knowledge of those
things which it becomes him to know, far beyond our most san­
guine expectations; he is already the honor of his age, the hope
of the State and the terror of our foes.” Animated by the con­
soling hope of one day realizing his ideal upon the throne, and
viewing the welfare of France in the education of its king, he
carefully rooted out every dangerous impression that nature
and a premature consciousness of power might have planted in
the heart of the young prince, and instead of the defects of an
intractable disposition, he displayed in his pupil the habit of
the most salutary virtues. This education, of which we have
immortal remains, in some of Fénelon’s writings, seemed the
master-piece of a genius devoted to the happiness of mankind.
When death snatched the Duke of Burgundy from the love of
France, he carried to his untimely grave the hopes and the
tears of a whole century. Fénelon, in the midst of the court,
and in a position that drew all eyes upon him, won universal
esteem and affection by the charms of a brilliant and graceful
mind, of a refined and eloquent conversation. His beautiful
imagination and his genius displayed themselves in spite of him,
and he easily won forgiveness for the resistless ascendant gained
through personal superiority, by his pleasing manner, his per­
fect politeness and a modesty even greater than his worth.
Louis XIV. nominated him to the archbishopric of Cambrai.
The whole court applauded the choice ; and Bossuet desired to
be the consecrating prelate (June 10, a. d. 1695).
7. Thus far these two great men had been bound together
by a feeling of mutual confidence. A father and his sen, a
kind master and a docile scholar, could not have been held by
a connection more intimate, more constant, more sweet and
affectionate. A question of spirituality, raised at this period,

1HN0CBNT ΧΠ. (A. Ο. 1691-110(1).

39·/

soon changed this situation, and changed the two friends into
two rivals, we had almost said into two enemies ; but the soul
of Fénelon never knew the sentiments of violence, hostility
and bitterness, which it is painful to record of Bossuet, in his
regard. A woman, Mine. Guyon, had brought into France the
quietism of Molinos. Misled by the visions of a disordered
imagination, Mme. Guyon also fancied a state of the soul in
which divine love so entirely absorbs all the human faculties,
that it reigns ever pure, disinterested, free from all relapse or
any other feeling ; and constitutes, in perfect repose, a true
impeccability. Under the influence of these ideas, Mme. Guyon
thought herself called to the exercise of an extraordinary
ministry in the Church ; during the whole course of her life
she seemed to be haunted by the idea that she was to form a
kind of mystical association according to her doctrines. She
accordingly wrote on grace and pure love with an enthusiasm
which she succeeded in communicating to others. Besides, her
life and conduct were utterly irreproachable. She was arrested
on account of the boldness and eccentricity of her opinions,
but was afterward admitted to the society of the Duke of Beauvilliers, favored by Mme. de Maintenon, and allowed to dissem­
inate her opinions in the female seminary of St. Cyr. It was
here that Fénelon first met her. Naturally inclined to a ten­
der and affectionate piety, he allowed himself to be influenced
by the charms of a doctrine in which the most extreme ideas
of spirituality seemed to open the heart to all the inspirations
of divine love. That was his illusion; “he sinned through
excess of divine love, whereas those who attacked him sinned
through lack of love for their neighbor.”
8. The correct judgment, the sound logic, the eagle glance of
Bossuet, saved him from falling into any such error. He soon
saw, through all the circumlocutions of mystical language, the
'xngerous tendeucies of Mme. Guyon's doctrine. He exposed
all the errors of quietium, with his usual eloquence, in the cele­
brated Instruction pastorale sur les états doraison (a. d. 1695).
Fénelon undertook te answer this work, and in 1697 he pub­

396

GENERAL HISTORY OF ΤΠΕ CHURCH.

lished his Maximes des fiaints, in which he endeavored to support
his system by texts of the Fathers and Doctors of the Church
The question at issue between the two great athletes of France
was delicate and subtle enough to allow both to err. It, was
to be decided whether there can be a love of God, pure, disin­
terested, perfectly free from all idea of reward and all thought
of self. Now, it seems certain that, for some moments at least,
a soul, meditating on the perfections of God, may love Him
without a thought of the reward promised for that love ; that
it may love the goodness of God toward creatures, without
adverting to the fact that it is itself the object of that sovereign
goodness. But this is only a momentary abstraction, which
can by no means constitute an habitual state of the soul. To
maintain the contrary, to assert that this impulse of sublime
perfection can become the very foundation of Christian life ;
that the soul may, without guilt, carry disinterestedness so far
as no longer to desire salvation and to be indifferent to eternal
loss, is the extreme doctrine condemned in juietism. However,
Bossuet, as soon as he had read the work of Fénelon, hastened
to throw himself at the feet of Louis XIV., begged forgiveness
for not having sooner made known to him the fanaticism of his
colleague, and entreated him to prevent, by prompt action, the
excesses of this second Montanus, of another Priscilla. Such a
proceeding, such insulting and cruel words, against a prelate,
the preceptor of the Dauphin, beloved by the λνΐιοίβ court,
caused a profound sensation ; for they received immense weight
from the credit of Bossuet, whom Louis XIV. bad styled a
“Father of the Church.” Fénelon a second Montanus ! We
cannot persuade ourself that Bossuet would not have later dis­
owned the comparison which was made in the heat of passion.
Posterity deplores such a display of violence. Bossuet urged
the king to denounce the “Maximes” to the Pope, assuring
him that “ the errors of the Archbishop of Cambrai would bo
anathematized by the Holy See, as soon as they reached the
ears of the Vicar of Christ.” Fénelon asken leave to plead his
own cause at Rome. Louis refused it, and removed him from

INNOCENT ΧΠ. (A. D. ΙβΟΙ-ΐΤΟΟΥ.

397

the court, notwithstanding the tearful pleadings of the young
Duke of Burgundy, who ever cherished for his Mentor a grati­
tude that outlived every disgrace. Meanwhile, all the friends
and relatives of Fénelon were banished, and Mme. Guyon was
thrown into a dungeon of the Bastile.
9. The Bishop of Meaux sent to Rome his nephew, the
Abbé Bossuet, afterward bishop of Troyes, to urge the condem­
nation of the archbishop’s work. While, in France, the uncle
attacked Fénelon’s doctrine by a multitude of writings, in which
we t^o ofteh find the impress of passion accompanying that of
genius, the unworthy nephew of the great prelate assailed it in
Rome with the weapons of calumny and bad faith. Innocent
XII. appointed a commission to examine the “ Maximes." After
a year’s investigation, and sixty-four sessions of six or seven
hours each, the ten commissioners stood divided; five had
always pronounced in favor of the work ; the other five agreed
that by means of a second edition it might easily be made irre­
proachable. To the urgent solicitations of Louis XIV.. that he
would pronounce a definitive sentence, the Pope replied that ·· the
matter was not sufficiently elucidated.” The King of France
seized the occasion to redouble ms severity toward the friends
of the Archbishop of Cambrai, and he again wrote to Innocent
XII., urging him at length to pronounce an express condemna­
tion, “ threatening, otherwise, to have recourse to extreme
measures.” When these threats of schism reached Rome, the
Pope had already pronounced sentence. In a brief dated March
12, a. d. 1699, Innocent XII. says: “After consulting several
cardinals and Doctors in theology, We condemn and censure, of
Our own accord, the work entitled Maximes des Saints, in what­
ever language or edition it may appear. By the reading and
the use of this book, the faithful might be insensibly led into
errors already condemned by the Church.’’ The brief then
censures twenty-three propositions drawn from the “ Maximes,’
as respectively rash, mischievous in practice, and erroneous ;
but not one was styled heretical.*
• It Ib worth while to remark, that tho brief condemns the propositions which suppose «■

398

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

10. On the feast of the Annunciation, March 25th, λ. i
1699, Fénelon was about to enter the pulpit of his cathedral to
preach on the solemnity of the day, when his brother brought
him the first tidings of the condemnation. The archbishop
recollected himself for a moment, then, without betraying the
least sign of emotion, he began a discourse on the perfect sub­
mission due to authority. The news of the condemnation had
already been rapidly circulating in the numerous assemblage
that pressed about the archbishop. The admirable presence
of mind, the sublime bearing, and religious serenity which fore
told the submission of the illustrious prelate, and was, in some
sort, a solemn pledge of its sincerity, bathed every countenance
with tears of emotion, pain, respect and admiration. On the
9th of April, the very day after that on which he had received
the royal permission, Fénelon, greater a thousand times in his
defeat than his enemies in their proud triumph, issued a charge
to the regular and secular clergy of his diocese. “ At length."
says the archbishop, “our Holy Father the Pope has condemned
the book entitled Explanation of the Maxims of the Saints.
with the twenty-three propositions taken from it ; the brief has
already been seen by you all. We submit to this brief, dearly
beloved brethren, both as to the text of the book and the
twenty-three propositions, simply, absolutely and without a
shadow of qualification. We forbid all the faithful of this
diocese to read the work or to have it in their possession. We
shall be consoled in our humiliation, beloved brethren, if
the ministry of the word, which we have received from our
Lord for your sanctification, be not weakened, and if, notwith­
standing the humiliation of the shepherd, the flock still grow in
grace before God.—God forbid that we be ever mentioned,
unless to recall that the shepherd deemed it his part to be more
docile than the least of his flock, and that he placed no limit to
his submission.” As a lasting monument of his humble retrac­
tion, he ordered, for the exposition of the Blessed Sacrament,
kaintwd itate, in this life, but

not those which suppose simply aclj or a (rarwwory
pure io»e, without any relation to our supenatural happiness.

it .

stau

of

INNOCENT XII. (A. D. 1691-1700).

399

a golden monstrance, supported by two angels ; one of them
was represented trampling under foot several heretical books,
jne of which bore the title of his own work, though none of the
condemned propositions had been branded with heresy. This
example of perfect submission was a subject of admiration to
the whole world. Innocent XII. sent a brief to the immortal
prelate, cornmending his courage with all the affectionate ten­
derness of a father. Fénelon's disgrace did not end with the
question of quietism, which had resulted so much to his honor.
The publication of his “ Telemachus,” that admirable work,
always more relished the more it is read, destroyed every hope
of reconciliation with Louis XIV. The death of his royal pupil
soon took away his last hope ; and Fénelon died of a broken
heart, mourned by his diocese, by France, and by idl Europe.
11. Innocent XII. had gone before him to the grave. The
Pontiff died on the 7th of September, a. D. 1700, after a reign
of nine years. His election had been a time of joy to the
Homan people ; his death was an occasion of general mourning.
12. The last years of the Pontificate of Innocent XII. went
signalized by new triumphs against the Turks. The Sultan
Mustapha had sworn to revenge the disgrace of the siege of
Vienna. He led an army of one hundred and thirty thousand
men against Belgrade (May, a. d. 1697). The armies of
Leopold I. were commanded by a hero who could well oppose
even this formidable invasion. Prince Eugene of Savoy was
by birth a Frenchman; Louis XIV., generally so correct in his
judgment of men, failed to discern his talents, and the prince
offered to Austria the services of a sword which was to place
France on the very brink of *ruin. He made his first campaign
* Eugène du Savoie Carignan was tho son of Eugene Mounce, count of Soisecu, a
grandson of Charles Emanuel I, duke of Savoy, and Olympia Mancini, one of th» n.-x t oi
Cardinal Motarin. He was known at Versailles ω the “little ubb·· of Savoy,“ being then
engaged in ecclesiastical studies. He was refused an abbacy by Louis XIV.. and having
aoou alter abandoned theology for military reading, be was refused ihc command ■ ■ g>
moot, as bo had boon the abbacy. The youog soldier was stung to the quick, si bn
native land, and offered his services to Leopold I. of Austria, whs accepted them. Louis
yiv on learning the ci -cumsuncA asked some of ba a· trtiers; ·· Do you no·, think, tfeo

400

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

under Sobieski, before Vienna ; further service led to rapid
promotion, and he was soon one of the greatest captains of the
seventeenth century, that age so rich in illustrious warriors.
Leopold I. made him commander-in-chief of the Austrian forces,
and sent him against Mustapha. Eugene pitched his camp
near Sigedin. Having learned from a Turkish prisoner that
the sultan intended to cross the Theiss by a bridge near the
village of Zentha, for the purpose of laying siege to Temesvar
Prince Eugene, without losing a moment, marched his army
along the left bank of the Theiss, and, two hours after noon,
drew up his forces on the plain of Zentha (September 11,
1697). More than one-half of the Mussulman army had already
crossed the stream. The Christian leader determined to attack
the enemy before they could bring their whole force upon the
field. With the eagle eye of genius and the spring of the
threatened lion, dividing his army into twelve columns, six of
cavalry and six of infantry, he enfolded the Ottoman camp on
all sides, and sent a force to the bridge of Zentha, to prevent
the remainder of the Turkish force from joining Mustapha.
When these dispositions had all been made, the day was within
two hours of its close. But there was time enough for the hero
to win a most brilliant victory. The Turks had surrounded
their camp with a ditch and palisades, as if to resist a siege.
Prince Eugene gives the signal for the combat. The cross-fire
of his batteries thunders with deadly precision upon the Turks
in their iutrenchmeuts. They make but a feeble reply. The
fire of small arms soon begins, and at length the order is given
to charge the Mussulmans, aud a fierce hand-to-hand struggle
ensues. At seven o’clock twenty thousand Turkish corpses
strew the plain. The sultan, almost alone, disguised as a
private soldier, stripped of every attribute of imperial sove­
reignty, lied toward Temesvar. The victor spent the night
awake upon the bloody field. “ The combat," he wrote to the
emperor, in his official report, “ ended with the day, as if the
tletnen, that I have suffered a great loss Δ He did not know then that ho was losing the
Corvine of France, the future hero of Oudenard and Mulplaquet.

CLEMENT XI. (A. D. 1100-1111).

491

sun would light with his latest rays the most brilliant victory
won by the imperial arms." Europe applauded the triumph of
the hero. The Pope sent him a string of brilliants and a sword
with a golden scabbard, as to the liberator of Christendom. The
peace of Carlowitz (1699), between Austria and Turkey, a result
of the victory of Temesvar, inaugurated the downfall of the
Ottoman Empire.

§ II. Pontificate

of

Clement XI. (November 23, a. d. 1700—

March 19, 1721).

13. The eighteenth cdntury opens with the Pontificate of
Clement XI. Each period of the Church's history, through
which we have now passed, has had its contest, its charac­
teristic struggle. The spirit of the world and the spirit of
God, ever in opposition, have from the beginning contended for
the history of mankind. But no other period presents a series
of events more varied, more numerous assaults, more violent
shocks. The birth and growth of unbelief, which denies at
once all dogmas, which assumes the mission of annihilating the
Church, by the heresy of Jansenism, the most persevering, if
not the most perverse, of all ; the storms of a revolution which
shook all Europe, and which still lasts, will bring out, more
triumphantly than all arguments, more eloquently than studied
discourses, more convincingly than any syllogisms—by facts,
evident, repeated, resplendent, incontestable, because almost
Cbutemporaneous—the divinity, the immortality of that Church
which alone stands against all the leagued powers of passion,
anger, revenge, disorder and violence ; which outlives revolu­
tion and ruin; breaks every hostile power, heals every sorrow,
and is ever the first to restore her throne amid the fragments
of crumbling empires.
14. Clemeut XI. was worthy to inaugurate the period
which his stormy reign was a representation in miniature. At
the time when the conclave was assembling to elect a successor
to Innocent XII., the attention of Europe was called to a que»
Vol IV.—je

1

402

GENERAL HiSTORV OF THE CHURCH.

tion which seemed to concentrate the interests, the welfare, the
destinies of the world. The sovereign of a monarchy upon
which the sun never set, the sovereign of the Catholic Nether
lands, of the Milanese, of the kingdoms of Naples and of Sicily,
of the kingdom of Spain, of the empires of Mexico. Peru, the
Philippines—the king of Spain, Charles II., the last direct scion
of Charles V., was sinking under a lingering illness ; he was
dying without leaving an heir of his race. Who should now
gather up the reins of such a formidable power ? A11 minds
were filled with dread of fearful wars. Charles II. wished to
prevent them by a testament. Controlled by a true spirit of
religion, rendered deeper by the near approach of death, he
wished especially to be just, and not to load his conscience with
any guilt of partiality. His long struggles with France were
forgotten; he felt that, at his last hour, he could no longer be
a relative of the Austrians or an enemy of the Bourbons, but a
eoul before God, detached from the things of this world, and
called to judge with justice according to law, if he would find
a merciful Judge in Heaven. To enlighten his conscience, he
determined to consult the supreme Pastor of Christendom, the
Vicar of Jesus Christ ; and he sent to Rome the first lord of his
bedchamber. Pope Innocent XII., who had reached an extremo
old age, intrusted the examination of the matter to Cardinal
Albani, who drew up the brief in reply to the question of Charles
II. “ Being Ourself,” said the Pope, “ on the point of appearing
before God, We turn away from all personal affection, and re­
commend to Your Majesty to look only to the peace of the
Christian world, the interest of Europe, and the greater good
of your subjects." He then showed that the two acts of re­
nunciation to the Spanish throne, made, before their respective
marriages, by Anne and Maria Theresa, of Austria, queens of
France, could be of no force; this decision was grounded upon
the principle that those renunciations having been made in
favor of Spain, to preserve the peace and equilibrium of the
world, Spain had a right to annul them when she could more
elliciently secure her independence and integrity, as well a·.

CLEMENT XT. (A. D. ΠΟΟ-lttl).

403

the peace and the equilibrium of the other states ; which end
would be gained if both Austria and France could he prevented
from uniting the two crowns. The twofold object would be ef­
fected by choosing a prince of either house, who could never bear
both sceptres at once. In consequence of this decision, Charles
II. signed a will, on the 2d of October, a. d. 1700, leaving his
whole domination to the Duke of Anjou, second grandson of
Louis XIV., and, in the event of the refusal of France, to the
Archduke Charles of Austria; he died on the 1st of November,
with a quiet mind, and happy in the consciousness of having
provided for the welfare of his people.
15. The account of the death and testament of Charles II.
reached Rome as the cardinals were assembling in conclave
They felt the necessity of speedily filling the vacancy in the
Holy See, in view of the great events to which the Spanish
succession would soon give rise in Europe. Cardinal Albani,
who had drafted the brief of Innocent relative to that question,
was naturally a prominent candidate. But he had other equally
important claims to the choice of his colleagues. As secretary
of the late Pontiff, he had likewise drawn up the bull against
nepotism. His modesty was eminently displayed on the occa­
sion of his promotion to the cardinalate. Alexander VIII.,
wishing to create twelve cardinals in the next consistory,
directed Albani, his secretary, to prepare the discourse for the
occasion, which was to contain the names of the new dignitaries.
After binding him to strict silence on the subject, the Pope
began to dictate the names. Having named eleven, he began
to pace the floor in silence, as if trying to call the twelfth to
mind. Then suddenly turning to his secretary, as though as­
tonished at his not writing : “ Continue,” said he, “ write down
the twelfth.” “But who is he?” asked Albani. “What."
rejoined the Pope, “can you not write your own name?”
Albani, throwing himself at the feet of the Pope, begged him
to choose in his place a more worthy subject. The Pontiff
replied : “We have made several changes in the names of the
others whom we designed to raise to the cardinalate, but it never

404

general history op the church.

once occurred to Us to change yours.
The humble secretary
had no alternative but to submit with resignation. Such were
the antecedents of the cardinal whom the Sacred College was
about to raise to the Sovereign Pontificate.
16. After a deliberation of four hours, the votes were
unanimous in his favor. But Albani, in *grea pain and confu­
sion, protested that he felt too unworthy of such an honor, and
declared that he would positively refuse to sit upon the Apos­
tolic throne. This was a return to the days of St. Gregory,
when the humility of the saints led them to fly the highest
dignities with all the earnestness displayed by the ambitious
in their pursuit. The cardinals thought, at first, that it would
be easy to overcome this refusal of the first moment of sur­
prise. It was quite the contrary. Albani’s emotion subsided
a little only to allow of deeper reflection, and so keen was his
grief that he became seriously ill. He was even obliged to
keep his bed, “ where,” says his biographer, “ he seemed deaf
to all consolation except that which could not be granted.” All
Rome was astir to force his consent; kindred, friends and citi­
zens of all classes crowded, some to the doors of the conclave,
others before the altars, to ask of God and of men the means to
move Albani. The cardinals came one by one to the cell of
the Pope-elect, to overcome his resistance. At length Cardinal
Le Camus, bishop of Belley, undertook to convince him in due
form, and to prove to him that he could not longer resist the
Sacred College without resisting God Himself. /Arming him­
self with the “ Pastoral of St. Gregory the Great,” he entered
the cell of Albani, who could not repress a smile when he saw
the ponderous folio under the arm of his colleague. Struck by
the unanimity with which all, both old and young, strove to
overcome his opposition, Albani listened patiently while the
Cardinal read the passage of the “ Pastoral,” which states that
while refusing the highest honor through humility, yet he
ceases to be humble who does not obey the voice of God which
speaks in the unanimity of the votes “ All these reasons,"
replied Albani, “would be good had I the necessary qualifies-

CLEMENT XT. (A. D. 170Λ-Η11).

4Π5

fions.
Ile announced to the cardinals that he summoned
them all before the tribunal of the Sovereign Judge, and that if
they did not desist from their attempt, they should answer on
the day of judgment for the unavoidable faults into which his
inability would certainly betray him in the discharge of the
sublime functions of the Pontificate. After two days and two
nights spent in prayers and tears, and having received the
declaration of four learned Doctors of Rome, whom he con­
sulted, that further opposition would be a manifest resistance
to the will of God, he finally yielded the much-desired consent
and took the name of Clement XI.
The family of the new Pontiff appeared before him after
his accession. “ Remember,” said the Pontiff to his brother.
“ that you have lost your natural relative ; you have in me
now but a father, in common with all the rest of the faithful.”
He forbade all his relatives to meddle with public business, to
aspire to any office, or to assume the title of prince ; in a
word, to pass the bounds of private citizenship. This prohibi­
tion was punctually enforced. For his own conduct. Clement
XI. made it a rule to confess and to celebrate the Holy Sacrifice
every day. He gave little time to sleep, and lived so simply
that the daily expense of his table did not exceed the value of
fifteen cents, French currency. Every hour of the day was
strictly and exclusively divided between prayer and the duties
of the Pontificate. When motives of health obliged him to
take the air, which, however, seldom happened, his exercise
consisted in visiting some church, where his chief relaxation
was found in acts of charity and devotion. Such was the Pon­
tiff whom God seated upon the throne of St. Peter, at the
opening of a century in which the Church was to be assailed
by the most furious storms. In its actual state, the Christian
world needed a Head in the vigor of age—a Head equal to
every kind of labor. God seemed to have placed Clement XI.
upon the Apostolic chair, that he might there show himself
Ettperior to all assaults and disgraces, always the same in pros­
perity, in sickness, in sufferings, in struggle and in rest. The

406

GENERAL HISTORY OF ΤΠΕ CHURCH.

number, the importance, and the danger of the events which
signalized his Pontificate, have caused it to be compared with
(hat of St. Gregory the Great. The political complications
into which he was thrown, though often seemingly inextricable,
never terrified him. They only served, on the contrary, to
bring out in bolder relief his prudence, his genius and his great
ness of soul.
17. When the testamentary disposition of Charles II
became known in France, Louis XIV. called an extraordinary
council, to which only four persons were admitted—the Dau
phin, the Duke of Beauvilliers, the Marquis De Torcy, minister
of foreign affairs, and the Chancellor Pontchartrain. One voice
pronounced against the acceptance of the bequest ; one remained
undecided; the other two were in favor of accepting it. Louis
XIV. after a Jong silence made known his decision ; it remained
for three days a secret. He at length announced it in these
terms, to the Duke of Anjou : “ The King of Spain has made
you king, the lords ask for you, the people desire you, and 1
consent. Be a good Spaniard; that must henceforth be your
first duty ; but remember that you were born a Frenchman.”
He then presented him to the court with the words : “ My
lords, here is the King of Spain.” A few days later, the Duke
of Anjou, who then assumed the name of Philip V., took leave
of his royal grandfather before setting out for his new realm
“ My son,” said Louis, as a last farewell, “ remember that the
Pyrenees no longer exist.” The Cardinal of Porto-Carrero, who
was at the head of the council of regency appointed by Charles
II., hastened to proclaim the accession of the young prince, who
was also acknowledged at Brussels by the Elector of Bavaria,
governor of the Netherlands for Spain, and at Milan by the
prince of Vaudémont. Clement XL, true to the policy pointed
out by the brief of Innocent XII., of which he had drawn up the
plan, while a cardinal, addressed congratulatory letters to
Philip V., and tendered him subsidies. Many writers have
blamed Louis XIV. for what they call his ambition in regard to
the Spanish succession. What would they not havo said had

CLEMENT XL (A. D. 1700-11« >.

407

he refused to receive the bequest of Charles IT. ? There are
situations which compel. The King of France could not, with­
out prejudice to the nation of which he was the sovereign, reject
the throne bequeathed to a son of France. The cordial and
ready concurrence given on this occasion to the cabinet of Ver­
sailles by a Pope of the character of Clement XL, is a weighty
consideration, perhaps too much overlooked. It is true that the
accession of Philip V. was the signal of fearful disasters for
France; but great men are such, not so much in knowing how
to avail themselves of success, as in knowing how to rise above
misfortune ; and in this light, Louis XIV. won the admiration
of his very enemies.
18. Meanwhile, all Europe, alarmed at the prodigious
growth of French influence, and excited by the emperor Leo­
pold I., to support the claim of his son, the Archduke Charles,
against Philip V., had leagued against Louis XIV. Austria,
England, Holland, Portugal, and the Elector of Brandenburg,
to whom Leopold then gave the title of King of Prussia, not­
withstanding the protests of Clement *XL, joined the league
against France and Spain. Then began the great war against
France, which lasted until 1713, and continued between
Spain and Austria until 1725. Louis XIV. was sixty-three
years old when hostilities began, and seventy-five when
they ended. During this interval he had witnessed the death
of his son, the Dauphin, of his grandson, the Duke of Bur­
gundy, and of his daughter-in-law, Adelaide of Savoy. Of all
his legitimate descendants, there remained but a weak and
sickly child of five years. After some successes against united
Europe, he suffered the successive reverses of Hochstett. Ra• The tit· of King of Prussia. granted by Leopold to th· Elector of Brandenburg.
an infringement upon the ancient rights acquired over that province by the religion» end
military order of the Teutonic Knights. It was in vnin th.it the Popo brought forward th·
oldest and most authentic documente, and protested, by every means in his power, against
an innovation which violated long-standing rights. Ho issued several briefs, requesting
the Catholic sovereigns not to recognize the royalty of the h· ·,«·.· of Brandenburg. In
•pile of his opposition, Frederick was acknowledged as Kiog-f Prussia in the tr-uyof
Utrvcht (1713). though the Holy Soo admitted the title only io 1787. in the Pontificate of
Pina VI.

Ί
408

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

millies, Turin, Oudennrde. and Malpfaquet. “ We must humble
ourselves under the hand of God, ' said Madame de Maintenon,
when she brought him the tidings that at Hochstett the French,
under Marshal Tailard, had lost forty thousand men, including
prisoners. The king’s only generals now were the men known
ns the small change of the great Luxembourg. TIis enemies, on
the contrary, had two able and successful leaders. Prince Eu­
gene of Savoy, the hero of Temesvar, and the English Duke of
Marlborough. The Huguenots of the Cevennes, who had taken
up arms on the revocation of the Edict of Nantes, seconded the
efforts of foreign enemies by arousing the spirit of civil war at
home, under the name of Camisards and of house-burners : to
crown all other misfortunes, the crops were ruined by the frost
in 1709, and France became a prey to the horrors of famine.
Already Marlborough and Prince Eugene spoke of passing
through Paris to attack Spain, where Philip V., more fortunate
than Louis, saw his throne restored by the Duke of Vendôme
on the brilliant field of Villaviciosa. Louis wa« never more
truly great or Christian than in these fearful trials. Deeply
touched by the sufferings of his people, by the humiliation of
his arms and of his children, by the bloody losses of his
nobility, by the wretched condition of all France, which was
like a man reeling under the fatal blow, who still stands, but
totters to his fall, he did not harden his heart against these
strokes of fortune, but received them as a judgment of Provi­
dence, as a punishment for his faults. He sincerely wished
for peace, nor did he hesitate to ask it, declaring that he was
ready to purchase it even at the price of immense sacrifices
The allies (a. d. 1700) carried their harshness to the extent of
requiring, as a preliminary condition, that Louis XIV. should
himself dethrone his grandson, PhilipV. “If I must have
war," replied Louis, “ I would rather wage it against my ene­
mies than against my children.” Then acquainting the nation
with the position of affairs, he requested the bishops, by their
prayers, to call down the Divine assistance upon France. He
sent for Marshal Villars to Versailles. “You see to wha
*t

CLEMENT XT. (A. D. 1100-1721),

I η·ι

alate we nre brought,” said the king to him ; “we must, con­
quer or perish, ami end all by a glorious blow. Seek the
enemy and give him battle.” “ But, sire,” replied the marshal,
“this is your majesty’s last army.” “Be it so,” returned
Louis : “ I do not require you to defeat the enemy, but to at­
tack him. Tf you are unfortunate, write to me privately. I
will ride through Paris with your letter in my hand. I know
the French people : I will bring you four hundred thousand
men. We will conquer, or 1 will bury myself with them be­
neath the ruins of the monarchy.” Villars departed. Three
months later, the victory of Denain, over Prince Eugene, forty
Austrian divisions captured, five fortified places carried, a
trophy of a hundred pieces of cannon and of four hundred
thousand pounds of powder, answered the heroic resolution of
Louis XIV., saved France, and closed that celebrated cam­
paign, the ornament and the crown of Villars (1712). On the
11th of April, 1713, England. Holland, Savoy and Prussia
signed, with France, the. treaty of Utrecht, recognizing Philip
V. as king of Spain. The duke of Savoy, Victor Amedeus I.,
obtained the investiture of the Sicilian States; he was soon,
however, forced to abandon them, and to content himself with
the erection of his hereditary domain into a kingdom, which
changed his ducal coronet into a royal crown. Louis XIV
gave up a portion of bis conquests, but his grandson was on
the Spanish throne, and France enjoyed an honorable peace.
Since the year 1700, two emperors had reigned in Germany.
After Leopold (1705), Joseph I. ascended the throne ; his
death (1711) left it to the same archduke Charles whose
claim to the Spanish throne had caused the lato war, and who
took the title of Charles VI. It might have been expected
that the elevation of Philip's rival to the imperial throne would
put an end to all these troubles, since under no circumstances
would Europe allow the reconstruction of a power like that of
Charles V., which would have been a standing threat to all the
other States. Still Charles VI., unable or unwilling to under­
stand the situation, refused to accede to the treaty of Utrv hi.

λ

410

UENEïUL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Villars undertook to make him repent his resolution. Within
a year the emperor was obliged to sign the treaty of Rastadt
(1714), which secured to France Strasbourg, Landau, Huningen,
New Brisach and the whole of Alsatia. This particular treaty
did not hinder Charles from continuing hostilities against Philip,
which lasted until 172-5.
19. We have here given this rapid sketch of the war of the
« Spanish Succession,” to explain the difficult position of Cle­
ment XI. That Pontiff had, in the very beginning of his reign,
shown himself favorable to France ; each new disaster of the
French arms caused a bitter pang in his heart. Philip V.,
whose accession to the Spanish throne had been spontaneously
recognized by the Sovereign Pontiff, used every means in his
power to obtain from the Roman Court the investiture of the
kingdom of the Two Sicilies, which had always been looked upon
as a fief of the Holy See. Leopold at the same time made the
same request. Clement XL, having submitted the question to
several congregations of cardinals, at length pronounced his
decision. He declared that, as the common Father of the faith­
ful, his first desire was the peace of the Christian world ; that,
consequently, he had determined to observe a strict neutrality
between the two belligerent powers, though recognizing Philip
V. as lawful sovereign of Spain. He then asked the powers to
respect the Italian territory. His petitions were useless;
Lombardy was first made the scene of hostilities between the
two competitors ; and the Imperial troops took possession of
Ferrara, a city of the Pontifical States. It seems to be the sin­
gular destiny of Italy, that the nations must in turn choose it
as the field on which to settle their disputes by arms ! On the
eve of St. Peter’s day (a. d. 1701), the ministers of Spain and
those of the Empire offered, on behalf of their respective
sovereigns, the yearly tribute for the Two Sicilies, with the
palfrey. Clement stood unmoved between the two parties,
refused the rival offerings, and, on St. Peter’s day, declared
that this refusal of the tribute of Naples, after the war begun
by the Emperor of Austria, in league with England, Holland,

CLEMENT XI. (A. D. H00-HJ1).

411

Portugal, and tho Duke of Savoy, against Spain and France, in
no way prejudiced the supreme dominion of the Roman Chnrch
over the Two Sicilies, that is, over the island of Sicily and the
whole kingdom of Naples.
20. Joseph I., the successor of Leopold, showed no less di>
position than his predecessor to use force toward the Sovereign
Pontiff. By his orders, the Austrian troops in the territory of
Ferrara attacked the fortress of Commacchio, a Pontifical fief.
This unjustifiable aggression drew from Clement XI. an energetic
protest. In the brief Hactenus Lenitatis (July IT, a. d. 1700 ), the
Pope asks the youthful monarch whether he pretends to set him­
self up as the judge of the cause of Jesus Christ and of His Vicar
on earth. He exhorts him to give up his pretensions, and,to show,
in his conduct, the respect due to the Head of the Church. On
these conditions the Pope will forget his past injustice, and em­
brace him as his first-born {primogenito); but if the prince conti­
nues his course of violence, the Popo will lay aside the mercy of
the father to punish his rebellious son by excommunication and
even by arms, if needs be. “ Know,’’ added Clement, “ that
though you be not ashamed to war against the Church and
against God Himself; though you forsake the ancient rever­
ence of the Austrian throne for the Holy See ; know that the
same God Who bestows kingdoms can also destroy them.”
The protest of the courageous Pontiff was fruitless; he must
wait till some favorable solution of the difficulty should be
offered by the turn of events. Europe, in arms, presented mul­
tiplied cases of serious violation of international law. There
are periods so shaken by political storms, that the voice of
justice is unheard amid the general din.
Clement XI. was doomed to experience, to the end of his
Pontificate, the difficulties raised by the Spanish succession
against the Holy See. The forces of Charles VI., victorious
over France, joined the Prussian troops and rolled like a torrent
over the Italian territory. They were little disposed to spare
a Pope who had, on many occasions, shown an undisguised
sympathy with the cause of Louis XIV. and Philip V. ; the

412

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

old pretensions of tho Empire to the sovereignty of Italy were
Again revived. The imperial party appointed a limited time
within which the Pope must decide on the acceptance or rejec­
tion of their offers of peace ; among the conditions of which,
the recognition of the Austrian pretender to the Spanish throne
was the most important ; meanwhile they invested the city of
Rome. The situation was one of the most critical recorded in
the history of the Papacy. For eighteen years, Clement XI.
had been striving to secure the triumph of the opposite policy.
In this extremity, he determined to put off the decision as long
as possible, hoping that events might send him some unlooked
for help. He was disappointed. He waited till the appointed
day, after which, if he were still undecided, the imperialists
had threatened to overrun his capital and his dominions ; it was
at eleven at night, the last hour of the last day, that he gave
his signature to an act against which the violence that extorted
it should be a sufficient protest. Hostile writers have repre­
sented this as a mark of versatility which, say they, “ dis­
honored the character of the Pontiff.” We may here be per­
mitted to remark, in the first place, that there was no question
of a dogmatical decision. Clement XI. yielded to armed con­
straint a consent which saved Rome and the Holy See His
signature, under the circumstances, spared the world a deluge of
evils. If the Pope found it necessary to yield, if he was com­
pelled to deviate from the line of conduct which experience had
until then taught him to be the best; it is not to fickleness in
his political opinions that his conduct must be ascribed, but to
one of those fatal combinations of events by which God is wont
to work out His own hidden and marvellous designs. More­
over, the Pope’s signature exercised no marked influence upon
the general result ; the Austrian arms were unable to insure its
ratification, and the house of Bourbon continued to rule over
Spain and a great part of Italy.
21. Independently of these political complications which
troubled his Pontificate, others of no less moment claimed his
serious attention. The court of Turin had just then sanctioned

CLEMENT XT. (A. D. 1700-1711).

a practice which, had it prevailed, would have constituted a
serious encroachment of the secular power upon ecclesiastical
authority An edict, issued in 1697, decreed that the go­
vernors should grant to no one the placet necessary for ob­
taining the clerical habit, or for promotion to Holy Orders,
intil previous information, called a general patrimonial, had
been taken by the minister, as to the number of priests then in
the country, the qualifications of the candidate, his habits, his
talents, birth-place, &c. Innocent XII., who was the reigning
Pontiff at that time, wrote to the Archbishop of Turin, urging
him to use all his influence to have the edict revoked ; but it,
was renewed in 1698, with the addition of an aggravating
clause. It prescribed that parish churches should have only a
limited number of clerics for their service ; and their patrimony
was limited to a rate which none might exceed. The arch­
bishop felt bound to proclaim the nullity of such a decree.
Another was published, first at Ivrea, then in Piedmont, or­
dering that all ecclesiastical property, persons, communities and
colleges, though until then exempt, should now be subject to a
yearly tax, and that this provision should be enforced, if ne­
cessary, by means of se juestration. Such was the position of
affairs .at the accession of Clement XI. A congregation of
cardinals was named to examine the matter, and an Apostolic
decree enjoined the bishops to proceed against tho ministers of
Savoy by every means which the canons placed in their hands.
Notwithstanding this solemn decision, the difficulty remained
in the same state during the whole of Clement’s Pontificate,
and was settled only in the reign of his successor, Innocent
XIII.
22. In 1715, Clement XI. was again called to inter­
vene in a debate of no little importance. He abolished the
right of hereditary legation in Sicily, and also the tribunal
of the Monarchy.” The existence of this tribunal dated from
the eleventh century. Urban II., it was said, bestowed upon
Roger, count of Sicily, and his successors, the rights of Pupal
legates in that island. From this concession came the tribunal

414

GENERAL HÎSTORV OF THE CHURCH.

“of the Sicilian Monarchy,” which claimed the privilege of
pronouncing the final decision in all the ecclesiastical affairs of
the island. The historical fact of the concession made io Count
Roger has more than once occupied learned pens. Baronins
discusses it at considerable length, and denies the existence of
the alleged bull. Be this as it may, St. Pius V. made several
efforts to abolish the tribunal. It seemed to him inadmissible
that a lay sovereign should exercise the functions of a legate,
should pronounce and withdraw censures, and, in short, per­
form all the acts of a purely ecclesiastical jurisdiction. But the
kings of Sicily succeeded in holding their prerogative, strange
as it seemed, when an incident of no great importance in itself
renewed the dispute. Tedeschi, bishop of Lipari, having been
compelled by the officers of the treasury to pay some taxes
from which he was exempt, laid a protest before the Sicilian
government; justice was refused him, and he excommunicated
the two officers who had committed the arbitrary act. They
applied to the tribunal “of the Sicilian Monarchy,” which gave
them absolution, and sent a deputy to Lipari to enforce its
decree. The deputy was guilty of acts of censurable violence
m Lipari. The Pope intervened, and declared the absolution
pronounced by the tribunal null and of no effect. The irrita­
tion was now at its height ; two dioceses were laid under inter­
dict; the tribunal wished to annul this interdict; Clement
maintained it. An open persecution was then begun in Sicily
against the members of the clergy, and even against laymen
who took sides with Rome. While things were in this state,
the treaty of Utrecht, as we have seen, gave Sicily to the Duke
of Savoy. The officers of the Spanish monarch, who had untu
then most warmly defended the pretensions of their royal
master, now adopted a directly opposite line of conduct. The
viceroy, the president of the tribunal and his assessors would
not quit the island until they had explicitly retracted all the
acts of their administration hostile to the Holy See, and re­
ceived from the Pope absolution from the censures incurred.
The new King of Sicily, on the contrary, openly announced

CLEMENT XI. (A. D. ΗΟΟ-Πΐη.

415

his intention of holding to the privileges enjoyed by his pre­
decessors. Clement XI. redoubled his firmness ; he ordered
on pain of the most rigorous penalties, the strict observance of
the interdict, and annulled, by another bull, the first ordinance
issued by the Spanish officers in the beginning of the dispute.
Victor Amedeus, on the other hand, forbade all his subject»
to obey any foreign decree whatever, without his sanctipn.
Negotiations were carried on to settle the difficulty; but all
proving fruitless, Clement XI. published a bull on the 11th of Ja­
nuary, a. d. 1715, against the last edict of the king, and a month
later abolished the right of hereditary legation and the tribunal
“ of the Sicilian Monarchy." The bull was signed by thirty
three cardinals. An appeal was made for the King of Sicily
and the contest continued. When Philip V. again became
master of the island, in 1718, he endeavored to restore peace.
An arrangement was in process, but the condition of Europe
delayed its conclusion. Clement XI., through his whole Pon­
tificate, was doomed to wage ceaseless wars without ever seertng
his efforts crowned with final success. The Sicilian question
was not definitely settled until the reign of Benedict XIII.,
when Charles VI. was in possession of Sicily ; the tribunal
was then finally abolished.
23. These struggles occupied but the least part of the reign
of Clement XL It was mostly taken up by the Jansenist ques­
tion, revived in the beginning of the eighteenth century with
more ardor than ever. In 1701. all the old disputes were re­
newed, by the appearance in France of the celebrated “ Case of
Conscience.” This name was given to a moral decision which
seemed to concern only some private individual,and which really
aimed at destroying all the decisions of the Church against the
errors of the day. A provincial confessor was represented in a
state of perplexity concerning the conduct he was to adopt
toward an ecclesiastic whom he had always looked upon as a
good man, but who was now represented to him as unsound in
his belief. He said, that having questioned him on certam
points, he had received the following answers : “ I condemn the

416

ornerag history

or

the church.

five propositions of the ‘Augustinus,’ in all the acceptations in
which the Church has condemned them ; but in the question
of fad, I think it sufficient to show the submission of silence
and respect; and, so longas I cannot be judicially convicted
of having maintained any of these propositions, my faith cannot
be suspected. I believe that, since we are required to love
God above all things, and in all things, as our last end, all ac­
tions which are not referred to him,at least virtually, and which
are not performed through some impulse of love, are so many
sins.—I hold that he who is present at Mass with a will and an
affection for mortal sin, without any feeling of repentance, com­
mits a new sin.—I do not believe that devotion to the saints,
and especially to the Blessed Virgin, consists in all the vain
formulas and idle practices found in certain authors,” &c.
Forty Doctors of the theological Faculty of Paris answered, that
the views of the ecclesiastic in question were neither new nor
singular, nor condemned by the Church ; that they were not
such in fact, that he might not receive absolution without
renouncing them. This decision was kept secret for a whole
year ; after which it was given to the light, and countless num­
bers of the pamphlet were printed in Paris. The greatness of
the scandal was equa» to th J, of the insidious attack, which aimed
at the utter nverthrow of the whole authority of the Apostolio
Constitutions, and of all that had been done against the late
heresies. The forty Doctors who had implicated themselves
prevented their personal condemnation by a humble retraction,
thanks to the efforts made by the Bishops of Chartres and of
Meaux. Cardinal de Noailles, archbishop of Paris, then pub­
lished an ordinance condemning the decision of the consultera
as opposed to the Pontifical Constitutions ; as tending to bring
in debate questions already decided, and to perpetuate disturb­
ances; in fine, as favoring the practice of equivocation of
mental reservation, and even of perjury (A. d. 1703). The
bishops of the several dioceses issued similar ordinances
24. At this period, the history of religious polemics pre­
sents a name clothed with the melancholy renown of heresy

CLEMENT XI. (A. D. 1700-1731).

417

and almost eclipsing that of Jansenius himself. Pasquier
Quesnel, a priest of the Oratory, had early shown himself one
of the warmest defenders of the new sect. The death of Ar
nauld left him at its head. His first work, which made so deep
an impression, and rendered the author's after-life so stormy,
was the Réflexions Morales. It would seem that the work was
begun with very good intentions, and contained nothing repre­
hensible. It consisted of short maxims and pious thoughts on
the words of the Saviour, designed by Quesnel for the use of the
young priests of the Oratory, with whose instruction and direc­
tion he had been intrusted. Deejly versed in the knowledge
of the sacred Scripture and of the Fathers, the author displayed
in this work great learning and sound criticism. The minister
of State, Loménie de Brienne, the Marquis de Laigne, and other
pious persons, who had been edified by reading the book, urged
Quesnel to write a similar one on the four gospels. The high
encomiums which they bestowed upon this work, in a conver­
sation with Mgr. Vialart, bishop of Châlons-sur-Marne, induced
that prelate, who was highly esteemed for wisdom and virtue,
to examine it himself. Having read and examined the book
with care, the bishop approved it in a pastoral letter, dated
September 5, a. d. 1671, recommending it to the use of the
clergy and faithful of his diocese. Meantime, Quesnel had
openly embraced Jansenism, and was banished to Brussels,
with the Superior of the Oratory, Fr. Abel de Sainte-Marthe, a
friend and partisan of Arnauld. During his exile, Quesnel
finished his book, revised the first part, published in 1671.
seasoning it with Jansenistic principles to make it conformable
with his last additions, and the work, thus refitted, was present­
ed in 1691 to M. de Nouilles, who had succeeded M. Vialart
in the See of Châlons-sur-Marne. On learning that the work
had been approved by his predecessor, and that it was read
with pleasure and profit in his diocese, the bishop, without fur­
ther examination, gave his sanction to the new edition. In the
course of the same year, M. de Noailles was transferred to the
metropolitan See of Paris. Here he displayed the greatest
Vol IV —27

418

GENERAL HtSTORV OF TJFE CHURCH.

real against the Jansenists Γη 1696, he condemned a work
by the Abbé Barcos, a nephew of Duvergier de Hauranne.
This book, containing all the teaching of Port Royal, bore the
title of “Exposition of the faith of the Church touching grace
and predestination.” We have mentioned the condemnation of
the “Case of Conscience,” by the same prelate, in 1703.
Quesnel now turned his attacks upon the archbishop of
Paris. He could not restrain his tears when, in his retreat at
Brussels, he beheld the “ Case of Conscience,” the great hope
of the sect, suddenly overthrown by a general rising of the Ca­
tholics. His tears were soon changed into a torrent of gall
which spared no one. He wrote to Cardinal de Nouilles, accu
sing him of having struck a fatal blow at the peace of the Church,
and reproaching the forty Doctors who had retracted their first
decision, with the “ scandal of a cowardly, forced submission,
in opposition to the light of conscience and of truth.” This
letter was soon followed by another of the same kind, entitled,
“ Letter of a bishop to a bishop.” Quesnel repeats the same
sentiments, but this time with more schismatical insolence and
glaring impropriety. Clement XI. speedily branded the deci­
sion of the “ Case of Conscience,” and opposed his solemn sen
tence to the audacious efforts of the sectary. He addressed
two briefs respectively to the king and to the Archbishop of
Paris. These briefs were the signal for a storm of new insults
from the Jansenists. Some of their writers did not blush to
say that the brief to the king “ showed the heart of a tiger."
The Pope determined to promulgate his sentence in a still more
explicit and irrefragable manner. He defined, with equal pre­
cision and authority, how far true Catholics are to carry their
obedience to the Pontifical Constitutions received by the whole
Church.
25. This was the object of the celebrated bull, Vincam Do­
mini Sabaoth. After quoting the decrees of Innocent X. and
Alexander VII. on the same subject, Clement XI. laments the
obstinacy of those hypocritical sectaries who, not satisfied with
not receiving the truth, seek to avoid it by every possible subter

CLEMENT XL (A. D. 700-1131).

419

fuge. They do not blush, says the Pope, to use, in defence of
their errors, the very decrees promulgated against them by the
Holy Apostolic See. Such has been their conduct especially,
respecting the letter of Clement IX., in the form of a brief, to
the four refractory bishops of France, and the two letters of
Innocent XII. to the bishops of the Netherlands ; as if Clement
IX., while requiring by this brief an absolute and perfect obe­
dience from the four prelates, and expressing his will that they
should sign the Formula of Alexander VII., could really have
admitted any exception whatever, since he protested that he
would never receive any; as if Innocent XII., while formally
declaring that the five propositions taken from the book of
Jansenius, were condemned in the sense which they naturally
convey to the reader, meant to speak not of the sense which
they form in the book, or which Jansenius expressed, but of
some other different sense ; as if that Pontiff had wished to
modify, restrict, or change, in anyway, the Constitutions of In­
nocent X. or of Alexander VII., in the very brief in which he
declared, in express terms, that they had been and were still
more than ever in force, and that he would maintain their deci­
sions by all the means in his power. The Pontiff then directly
attacks what the Jansenists had agreed to call the respectful
silence. " Under this subterfuge,” said the Pope, “ by which
they dispense themselves from an inward adherence to an ex­
ternal retraction of the doctrine of Jansenius, they do not reject,
they only hide, their error; they irritate instead of curing the
wound ; far from obeying, they deride the Church ; they open
to the children of rebellion a large field for the propagation of
heresy. Some have gone to such a pitch of impudence, that,
forgetting the rules, not only of Christian sincerity, but even
of common honesty, they have not hesitated to assert that it is
lawful to sign the Formula prescribed by Alexander VII., even
though not intentionally judging the work of Jansenius to be
heretical· This is making sport of the Apostolic Constitutions,
and not submitting to them as a Christian.” It would be hard to
make this declaration more clear, precise and manifest; but

420

GENERAL HÏ8TORT OF THE CHURCH.

these very qualities were so many additional motives to make
it pernicious and detestable in the eyes of the Jansenists. The
Catholics received it with respect; to them it. was the word of
Peter confirming his brethren in the faith ; the sectaries them­
selves were obliged to confess that Rome no longer left them
the resource of the distinctions, the mental reservations and
subterfuges which they had so long abused.
26. Quesnel, far from submitting to the bull of Clement
XL, chose the moment of its appearance to hurl at Cardinal
de Noailles a treacherous weapon which he had long been
whetting in secret. We have seen that the prelate, while
bishop of Chhlons, imprudently gave his sanction to the second
edition of the “ Moral Reflections.” He was not aware that
the work contained all the poison of the Jansenist doctrines,
which he afterward condemned in the “ Exposition of the faith
of the Church,” by Barcos. Paris, and indeed all France, was
suddenly flooded with copies of a pamphlet, entitled “ Problème
Ecclésiastique," in which the anonymous author opposes LouisAntoine de Noailles, bishop of Chalons in 1695, approving those
doctrines in the “ Moral Reflections,” to Louis-Antoine de
Noailles, archbishop of Paris in 1696, condemning the same
doctrines in the “ Exposition of the faith of the Church." The
sensation caused by this pamphlet, at a moment when all minds
were attentive to the debate, was immense. The simple state
ment of a fact would have vindicated the Archbishop of Paris
The approbation of the “ Moral Reflections ” had been given on
the testimony of another, without a second examination, with­
out any idea of the heretical additions made to a work previously
authorized by the bishop’s predecessor. But this statement
might have argued a culpable carelessness on the part of the
prelate, in a matter so serious as the approval of a dogmatic
work. The statement, therefore, was not made. The “ Pro­
blème Ecclesiastique” was condemned to the flames by a decree
of the Parliament of Paris. Quesnel was, by order of Philip
V., arrested at Malines and thrown into prison. Some of his
friends succeeded in releasing him, by piercing through one of

CLEMENT XI. (A. D. 1700- 1121)

421

the walls. After some time again spent in concealment and
wandering about the Netherlands, he at length settled in Am­
sterdam, where Codde, bishop of Sebaste and Vicar Apostolic in
Holland, who had lately been deposed for his attachment to the
same doctrines, invited him to make his abode. Here he began
to write again in favor of the “ Ecclesiastical Problem.” The
Archbishop of Paris was still in the same embarrassing dilemma ;
the only possible means of freeing himself from it was the only
means he was unwilling to use. Accusations were fast multi­
plying ; Bossuet took the field, and endeavored to justify the
cardinal by showing· that there were points of essential differ­
ence between the doctrines contained in the “ Moral Reflec­
tions,” and those of the “ Exposition.” But the thesis was
untenable even for the genius of the Eagle of Meaux. This
system of defence only aggravated the position of the cardinal.
The Jansenists published the work of Bossuet, with the title.
“Vindication of the Moral Reflections, by Bossuet." Clement
XI., hoping to put an end to discussions which only multiplied
scandals, issued a decree on the 13th of July, a. d. 1708, in
which he most severely censured and condemned the “ Moral
Reflections” of Quesnel.
*
27. This measure was not productive of the effects that
might have been expected from it. The Jansenists continued
to defend the work of Quesnel and the “ Ecclesiastical Prob­
lem.” Louis XIV., weary of seeing France thus torn by end­
less discussions, asked the Pope for a clear and explicit Consti­
tution, to put an end to all these debates. Never had a heresy
thus persistently made a mockery of the thunders of the Church,
or with greater insincerity eluded the anathemas of her Pon­
tiffs. For half a century, France and the Netherlands had been
made a religious arena in which the Jansenists carried on their
obstinate struggle. Clement XI. was as truly alive as Louis
XIV. to the necessity of restoring peace. He had thus far
• The real title of thia work was. Le .Vsuveau Testament en français, avec des rf/tenons
morales sur chaque terse!, ou Abrégé de la inorale de ΓEvangile, des Actes des Apitres, dm
Epltres de Saini Paul par le Γ. Pasqubb Qitcxkl. prêtre de l'Oraioire.

422

GENERAL HISTORV OF THE CHURCH.

shown no want of zeal in the discharge of his duties as Pontiff,
He had the grief to see all his efforts fail before the hypocrisy
of the sect; but his was one of those heroic natures that never
sink under reverses. A congregation of cardinals, appointed
by him, entered upon a careful examination of the “ Moral
Reflections." Λ hundred and one propositions, drawn from the
work, were submitted, with various qualifications, to the Ponti­
fical censure. Clement then ordered public prayers in al) the
churches in Rome, to implore the light of the Holy Ghost. At
length, on the 8th of September, a. n. 1713, the celebrated Con­
stitution, Unigenitus Dei Filius, was promulgated. Tt condemns
the work of Quesncl as containing a hundred and one proposi­
tions respectively false, captious, offensive to pious ears, tainted
with heresy, erroneous, in a word, heretical, and renewing vari­
ous errors, especially those contained in the celebrated proposi­
tions of Jansenius. All the faithful are forbidden to hold or to
teach the said propositions, or to speak of them in any other
sense than that conveyed by this Constitution. “ Moreover,”
continues the Pope, “ by the express and particular condemna­
tion of the hundred and one propositions, We would by no
means be understood to approve what is contained in the rest
of the book. In the course of the examination made of it, We
have noticed several other propositions bearing a close relation
and affinity to those just condemned, and filled with the same
errors. We have also remarked many others, calculated to
breed disobedience and rebellion against authority, civil and
ecclesiastical. In fine, what is still more intolerable, We have
found the text of the New Testament altered in a most censur­
able manner, and agreeing, in many places, with the French
translation of Mons, long since condemned. Bad faith has been
daring enough to wrest the text from its true sense, to give it
a false and dangerous meaning. For these reasons, in virtue
of the Apostolic authority in Us vested, We forbid and con­
demn the book of ‘ Moral Reflections,’ under whatever title
and in whatever language it has been or may hereafter be
printed,_ in whatever edition or whatever version it has

C’ÆMF.Ml XI. (A. D ΙΪΙΛ-Mîl).

423

«ppenred or may yet appear,— as eminently calculated to mis­
lead the faithful by the false appearance of instruction full of
piety. We likewise condemn all other books and pamphlets, in
manuscript or in print, or—which God forbid—that may here­
after be printed, in defence of this work. We forbid every one
of the faithful to read, to copy, to keep, or to use them, on pain
of excommunication incurred by the very act.”
28. The first appearance of the bull fulminated against the
work with which the very fate of Jansenism was, in some sort,
JoseJy linked, threw the whole sect into deep consternation.
The bull Unigenitus, sent by Clement XI. to Louis XIV . was
laid before the assembly of the clergy. Forty of the prelates
received it ; only seven hesitated and joined Cardinal de Noailles
in refusing to sign it. The cardinal, still in the awkward posi­
tion in which the Ecclesiastical Problem had placed him,
thought it inconsistent with his honor to acknowledge the con­
demnation of a book published with his approbation. This was
an ill-timed delicacy ; but, to those who know the human
heart and the windings of self-love, this conduct, however afflict­
ing, cannot seem wonderful. Still, more than a hundred bishops
published the bull Unigenitus throughout the kingdom. Louis
XIV. openly proclaimed his firm determination to support it,
even by force if necessary. The convent of Port *Royal, of
which the nuns had always refused to subscribe the Formula,
was closed by a royal edict (October 29th, a. d. 1709), and the
buildings razed to the ground. Jansenism had no longer a
legal existence. Its spirit still survived, and took refuge in
the parliaments. That of Paris, encouraged in its opposition by
Cardinal de Noailles, long refused to register the bull Unigen­
itus ; but Louis XIV. declaring that he would, in case of neces­
sity, bold a bed of justice, the bull was registered on the
14th of February, 1714, notwithstanding the protest of tho
• Some of the nuns of the Order, who had remained in the convent io Paris, on chairing
themselves more doeio and subscribing the Formula, were allowed to remain. Their com­
munity lasted until tho time of the "National Convention." The convent tun s'oee been
tnmtformed into the " Hospice de la Maternité” (à. d. 1814).

424

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

president, Ménard. Several prelates, however, still held out in
their resistance. The Archbishop of Tours publicly attacked
the bull in a pastoral letter; Cardinal de Noailles, in contempt
of all propriety, did the same. These isolated protests were far
more than balanced by the applause of the Catholic world,
which had readily submitted to the voice of Christ’s Vicar upon
earth. Clement XL could have silenced the detractors of his
bull; the royal government was prepared to support him with
energy, but the Pope, animated by the true spirit of religion,
which never punishes until every expedient of mildness and
mercy has been exhausted., moderated the absolute determina­
tion of the king, and advised him to wait until events should
offer the means of a more peaceful solution.
29. The reign of Louis XIV. was drawing near to its end ;
the health of the great prince was sinking under the infirmities
of age. On the 29th of August, a. d. 1715, he said to the car­
dinals De Rohan and De Bissy : “ I die in the faith and obedi
cuce of the Church ; I am not informed of the questions which
trouble her ; I have only followed your counsels ; I have done
only what you wished; if I have done wrong, you shall answei
for it before God, whom I call to witness.” He then sent for
the Dauphin, afterward Louis XV., then five years old. “ My
dear child," said the dying monarch to him, “ you will soon
be the king of a great realm ; what I most earnestly recom­
mend to you is, never to forget your duty to God ; try to re
main at peace with your neighbors. I have been too fond ol
war ; do not imitate me in this, nor in my great expenses. In
all things take advice, and seek to know the best, that you
may follow it always ; relieve the burdens of your people as
soon as you can, and do what I have had the misfortune not to
be able to do myself.” He closed this touching interview by
these words to the young Dauphin : “ My dear child, I give you
my blessing with all my heart.” After which he kissed him
twice with the greatest tenderness ; then turning to the mem­
bers of his court, he said to them : “ Gefttlemen, I entreat your
forgiveness for the had example I have given you ; I owe you

CLEMENT XI. (A. D. 110O-HÎI).

425

many thanks for the manner in which you have always served
me, for the fidelity and attachment you have always shown me
I beg for my grandson the same unvarying fidelity you have
always displayed in my regard. It is my hope that yon will
all concur in maintaining union, and that if anyone goes astray,
you will help to bring him back.” Until his last breath, he
showed the courage of great souls. “ Why do you weep ?" he
asked hie attendants; “did you think me immortal?" Thus
died, at the age of seventy-seven years, one of the greatest
kings that ever governed men. He seemed to have lived just
long enough to preside at the obsequies of the age, of which he
had concentrated all the splendor and glory about himself. The
Duke of Orleans was proclaimed regent for the young king,
Louis XV.
30. Louis XIV. had been preceded to the grave by Bossuet.
On the 12th of April, a. d. 1704, that great light of the Church
of France was extinguished in death. The friends of the illus­
trious bishop, prostrate at the foot of his bed, begged his last
blessing. One of them, at the same time, expressed his deep
gratitude for all the goodness the bishop had shown him. en­
treating him to think sometimes of the friends he was leaving
on earth, and who had been so devoted to his service and hie
glory. At the word glory, Bossuet, who already felt the *shadow
of death falling about him, who was now a stranger to earth,
seized with a holy terror in the presence of the Supreme Judge,
whose sentence he was about to receive, raising himself from
his bed of pain, and animated by a holy indignation, found
strength to exclaim distinctly : “ Cease such discourses : pray
to God to forgive me my sins.” In the last years of life. Bos­
suet had conceived the project of bringing back the Protestants
to the Catholic faith. With this view, he maintained a regular
correspondence with the great Leibnitz, the deepest philosophe»
of Germany. The esteem in which the distinguished philoso
pher held Catholicity, is shown by his “ theological system,’
in which he admits nearly every article of our faith.
31. The regent of France, Philip of Orleans, was a frive

426

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHI. H< II.

Ions prince of more than loose morality, and gave the example
of that deplorable license into which the nobility plunged without a second thought, and dragged the kingdom to speedy de· g
etruction. The man whom he placed at the head of his admin·
istration, nnd whom he afterward made the Cardinal Dubois, I
was even more worthless than his master. ' The regent did not
follow the policy inaugurated by Louis XIV.. respecting the
Jansenists. He took no pains to hide the fact that the Unitjenilus was personally offensive to him. Those who had been
banished during the preceding reign, for disobedience to the
Pontifical decisions, were now recalled. The Sorbonne, which
nnd first received the Constitution, now began to assail it. Cle­
ment XL, indignant at such a proof of bad faith, suspended the
privileges of that institution, and forbade it to confer ecclesias­
tical degrees. The Sorbonne did not cease its hostile demon|
stratums, and, in 1717, joined those who had appealed, at the
same time revoking the decree by which it had, in 1710. ex­
cluded from the doctorate all its members who had, by word or
writing, attacked the bull. On the 5th of March, a.d. 1717, an
instrument appeared, signed by Cardinal de Noailles, the bish­
ops of Mirepoix, Montpellier, Boulogne and Senez, and by a
number of ecclesiastics of the second order ; it was entitled,
“ An Appeal from the bull Unigenitus to the Pope better in­
formed, or to the next General Council.” In order to gain the
signatures of as many adherents as possible, these prelates did
not hesitate to offer sums of money to all who consented to sign
the paper. But the body of the French episcopate lamented
these disorders. Languet, formerly bishop of Soissons, but at
that time archbishop of Sens, especially signalized himself by
his zeal in defending the outraged rights of the Apostolic See.
The Duke of Orleans wanted scandal ; he was gratified bo
yond his wish. He was beginning to be alarmed at the turn
taken by the debate. By an edict published in 1717, he im­
posed silence upon both parties ·, but he found it easier to un­
chain the winds than to check them in their mad career. The
edict of the regent was unheeded. Meanwhile, Clement XI

CLEMENT XI. (A. D 1700-1731).

427

had condemned the appeal of Cardinal de Noailles and of the
four bishops. On the 25th of March, 1718, he wrote an auto
graph letter in Italian, to the Archbishop of Paris, conjuring
him to give the example of submission, and to return to the
path of obedience. This affectionate and conciliatory measure
was likewise fruitless. At length, on the 27th of Augustpl718,
by the bull Pastoralis, the Sovereign Pontiff declared that, in
future, he should not recognize as sons of the Church those
who refused to obey the bull Unigenitus, though adorned with
the honors of the episcopate or of the cardinalate. The regent
and the refractory bishops, alarmed at the unshaken constancy
of Clement XL, proposed to receive the bull if the Pope would
add some explanations. But the Pontiff refused this conces­
sion as injurious to the Apostolic See. Several French bishops,
with a view to facilitate the restoration of peace, tried to pre
sent these explanations, though in terms most honorable to the
Holy See. Clement XL, while commending their zeal, still
declined any mediation. There was no alternative but to sub­
mit. An edict of the Duke of Orleans (1718), ordered that
throughout all France the bull Unigenitus should be faithfully
received and observed, forbiddirtjK any appeal to a future coun­
cil, and annulling all those which had already been made.
Notwithstanding all these motives for desisting from a lament­
able opposition, Cardinal de Noailles and the four refractory
bishops would not yet submit. They contented themselvet>
with observing what they called the respectful silence. The Pope
might have used strong measures, but he would not “ quench
the smoking flax,” and history, which has commended the firm­
ness of Clement XL, has also recorded the memory of his mer­
ciful and exhaustless clemency. It was enough for the Pope
that the legal observar.ee of the Unigenitus was required in
France ; the rest was a mere matter of time.
32. In the year 1715, by the bull Ex ilia die, Clement XL
had closed a celebrated controversy known as the question of
the Chinese rites. The first missionaries in China were the
Jesuits. Thoroughly conversant with the literature an 1 history

42«

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

of that country, their attention was naturally attracted to the
study of the civil and religious ceremonies of the Chinese·. The
.•ites paid to their ancestors and the honors given to Confucius
constituted the two leading features of their ceremonial. The
people were so deeply attached to these practices, which were,
in some sort, identified with the history and manners of the
nation, that to abolish them seemed sure to close all hearts, in
the Celestial Empire, against the Catholic faith. After a mature
examination, most of the missionaries thought that the Chinese
ceremonies were safe from the charge of superstition and
idolatry. Their great desire to facilitate the conversion of the
Chinese, especially of the learned, whose example might lead
the rest of the people, “ their charity and their zeal,” says M
Cretineau-Joly, “ misled them.” They laid the question before
the Congregation of the Propaganda, in the light in which il
appeared to them, and they on several occasions, received
answers which authorized them to allow the neophytes to con­
tinue their ceremonies as they had been represented. But
some Dominican religious who had come to evangelize the
country, in their turn, viewed the matter in a different light
They exposed their doubts to the Holy See. The difficult)
grew with the vehemence displayed by both parties in the
defence of their respective views. To put an end to these
lamentable discussions, Clement XI. decided that the Chinese
ceremonies should thenceforth be forbidden among the new
Christians of the Celestial Empire. Such was the object of the
bull Ex ilia die. “ The suppression of the Chinese ceremonies,”
says a late writer, “ was a measure of great wisdom. The least
motive to suspect them of idolatry ·, the animosity which diver­
sity of opinion daily embittered among the missionaries ; the
epithets of ‘ abettors of idolatry’ and ‘ flatterers of idolatrous
kings the display of scandalous divisions before the eyes of
the idolaters, thus making Christianity a by-word among them ;
—all this was doubtless the greatest evil that could befall the
Gospel ; to put an end to it, there were no considerations that
might not be disregarded.”

CLEMENT XL (A. D. Î7OO-17Î1).

33. England now irresistibly demands the attention of the
historian. The nation had been divided in two since the schism
of Henry VIII. From that moment Protestant England perse
cutes Catholic England without rest or interval. The heads of
Mary Stuart and of Charles I. fall beneath the axe of Anglican­
ism. Protestant England proscribes James II. and his son; she
excludes from the throne whoever professes the ancestral faith ;
the crown is bestowed upon the Dutch Calvinist, William of
Nassau, with his wife, Mary Henrietta, the heretical daughter
of the dethroned Catholic king, and afterward upon another
daughter of the same king, Anne, with her Lutheran husband.
George of Denmark (a. d. 1702-1714) ; finally upon a German
Lutheran, George of Hanover (1714-1727), to the prejudice of
more than fifty princes who had better claims to the throne,
but who professed the religion of old England, the religion of
the great and saintly kings, Edward and Alfred. To justify the
apostasy, at least in its own eyes, Protestant England wields the
pens of its writers to calumniate Catholic England, the Isle oi
Saints. Such are the aim and spirit of the histories of Burnet,
of Rapin, Thoyras, of Hume, and, in fact, of nearly all the his­
torical publications produced in England. Meanwhile, Angli­
canism is crumbling into an infinity of sects, which, according to
their governmental form, may be comprised in two classes—the
Episcopalians, who recognize an episcopal authority ; and the
Presbyterians, who do not. The Episcopalians—the Established
Church—have kept the hierarchy of bishops, priests, and
deacons ; but the Roman Church looks upon their erdinations
as utterly null, on two grounds : one of fact, the other of right —
1. Matthew Parker, the so-called Archbishop of Canterbury,
and the stock of the whole Anglican episcopate,since 1-5-59, was
never validly ordained bishop, nor even priest, since his conse­
crator, Barlow, was not himself ordained. 2. The form of
ordination prescribed by the ritual of Edward VI., according to
which Parker was consecrated bishop by a man who was not
properly in that Order himself, is null and insufficient; it ex­
cludes the very idea of sacrifice and priesthood ; so that the

430

GENERAL IHSTORT OF THE CHURCH.

Episcopal Church of England possesses only a civil hierarchy,
without any sacred character. Thus the Episcopalians have
but the shadow of a hierarchy, while the Presbyterians have
not even that, shadow. The Presbyterians are so called, not
because they have, or recognize, priests, in the Christian sense,
but because they consult the elders of their assemblies, who are
called presbyteri, in the pagan sense of the Greeks. From their
ranks most of the dissenting sects have sprung. One of the
most remarkable among them is that of the Quakers. They
derive their name from the trembling and contortions which
they exhibit in their assemblies, when they believe themselves
moved by the Spirit of God. Their founder was George Fox,
an illiterate shoemaker, of a gloomy and melancholy dispo­
sition. In 1647, under Charles L, amid the troubles of civil
war, he went about preaching against the Episcopal clergy, war.
taxes, luxury, the use of oaths, &c. The fundamental articles
of his doctrine are : 1. The perfect equality of all men ; conse­
quently, the abolition of all social distinctions, of all outward
signs of respect, of all ranks. 2. God gives to all men an
inward light, sufficient to lead them to eternal salvation; conse­
quently, there is no need of priests, nor of pastors, nor even of
the Holy Scriptures ; any individual, man or woman, is entitled
to preach and to teach, when moved by the Spirit. 3. To gain
eternal life, it is enough to avoid sin and to do good works ;
there is no need of sacraments, of ceremonies, or of external
worship. 4. The principal virtues of a Christian are tempérance
and modesty ; all superfluity of ornament and dress must, there­
fore, be discarded. 5. It is morally wrong to swear or to take
an oath for any cause whatever, to carry on a suit at law, to
bear arms, to make war, &c. li The quakers and even the
quakeresses,” says Mosheim, “ went about through cities and
villages, like madmen and Bacchanalians, declaiming against
Episcopacy, against Presbyterianism, against every established
form of religion. They made a mockery of public worship, in­
sulted priests during the celebration of the holy offices,
trampled upoi the laws and the authority of magistrates, all

CLEMENT XI. (A. D. 1700-1741),

431

under the pretext that they were obeying the inspiration of the
Holy Spirit.” One of the acct, William Penn, having received
from the English government a large tract of territory in
America, brought over a numerous colony of Quakers to culti­
vate it, and named his new province Pennsylvania. The open­
ing of the eighteenth century saw the rise of another sect, that
of the Methodists (1729). Its birthplace was the Univer­
sity of Oxford. Several students, who had devoted much time
to reading the Bible, formed themselves into a small society
under the direction of two brothers, John and Charles Wesley.
They strictly regulated all their actions, and devoted their
whole time to study, prayer, and good works. This exact regu­
larity attracted general attention, and obtained for them the
name of Methodists. John Wesley, who aspired to the leader­
ship of a sect, assumed the power of appointing bishops and
priests, though he was neither himself. The new religion soon
gained celebrity by the extravagant excesses of its members.
Cornwall, where the sect was most numerous, was literally
invaded by a convulsive epidemic. Like the Quakers, the
Methodists sent a colony to the New World.
34. License in religious opinions is the shortest road to
unbelief. England was at this time the seat of doctrines which
were but the prelude of the system of universal scepticism,
whose standard was to be raised within half a century, by the
schools of false philosophy. Anthony Collins, an English
philosophical and sceptical writer, in 1707. published a “ Trea­
tise concerning the use of reason in propositions depending on
human testimony," in which he establishes an opposition between
the certitude afforded by revelation and the evidence given by
reason. In the same year, he engaged in the controversy be­
tween Dodwelland Dr. Samuel Clarke, concerning the immateri­
ality and immortality of the soul; he opposed the immortality
and spirituality of the soul. It was not to be expe ted that
Collins should have any very exact notions on the liberty of man
after having reasoned so incorrectly concerning the nature of the
soul. He placed liberty in the will alone, only excluding con-

<82

GENERAL HfSTORV OP THE CHURCH.

etraint or physical necessity. Clarke maintained the contrary
opinion, with that clear reasoning which characterizes his writ­
ings. Collins replied by his “Discourse on Free-thinking.' in
which he openly attacks all revelation. It was written, as the
title shows, at the time of the rise and progress of a society of
free-thinkers, who, under the pretext of an attack upon super­
stition and Popcry, were really sapping the foundation of all
religion. “The want of justiceand sincerity displayed by Collins,
in the whole course of this work,” says Leland, “has given
rise to very just complaints.” He continually reasons on the
supposition that the defenders of revelation are opposed to a
reasonable freedom of thought. Whatever evil has been done
by any Christian, he deems an argument against Christianity,
and every thing that has ever formed a subject of controversy
must, in his system, be looked upon as doubtful. In the issue,
the work tended to Deism. To the credit of the English clergy
be it said, they rose up in a body against the bold innovation?
of Collins, who removed to Holland. Here, under his personal
superintendence, was published a French translation of his
“Discourse on Free-thinking” (a. d. 1714). Clement XI. sub­
mitted the work to the examination of a commission, and con­
demned it by a solemn decree. Collinsled the advanced guard
of the Voltairian school,which was ata later period repeatedly
to draw upon its writings the thunders of the Holy See.
35. The care bestowed by Clement XI. upon the work of
repressing heresies and mischievous doctrines did not withdraw
the attention of the great Pope from the general interests of
Chrictendom. The Sultan, Acbmet III., successor to Mustapha
IL, violated the treaty of Carlowitz, by attacking the Venetians
in the Morea, in the beginning of the year 1715. Betrayed
by the Greeks of the Peloponnesus, who. like the Greeks of
the Lower Empire, preferred the Mussulman yoke to a Catholic
government, the Venetians were forced to abandon the Morea,
conquered fifteen years before by the illustrious Morosini. This
war was marked by fearful slaughter on the part of the Turks ;
the few Venetians who escaped the Ottoman scimetar, were

CLEMENT XI. (A. D. 1700-1721),

43?.

nearly all reduced to slavery. The atrocities perpetrated hy
the Turks in the Morea aroused all Christendom. Λ gencr.i»
cry of horror and revenge was heard from one extremity of
Europe to the other. The Holy See, which had so often before
armed nations and kings, in the name of religion and civiliza­
tion, against Islam, once more raised its mighty voice. Clement
XI. now displayed a zeal equal to that of Urban II., of Pius
V.. or of Innocent XII. To every European court he sent his
legates and his apostolic briefs to arouse the Christians, and he
made an immense outlay from his own treasury to support the
holy war. “If it becomes necessary,” said the Pontiff, “I
shall purchase the success of this undertaking by the sale of
every chalice and ciborium in Italy.”
At his call, Spain,
Portugal, Genoa, Tuscany, the Knights of Malta, equipped their
squadrons, and the combined fleet rode the waters of the archi­
pelago under the Pontifical banner. On the Continent, the
hero of Temesvar, Prince Eugene of Savoy, prime minister of
Austria and commander-in-chief of the imperial armies, called
upon the Divan, in the name of Charles VI., to return to the
observance of the violated treaty of Carlowitz, and to restore
the Morea to the Venetians, from whom it had been unjustly
wrested. The Divan replied by a declaration of war. At the
head of sixty thousand men, the invincible Eugene crushed the
Turks at Peterwardein (August 5, a. d. 1716), just as he had
crushed them nineteen years before, near Temesvar, on the plains
of Zentha. Six thousand Mussulmans were left upon the field ;
one hundred and fifteen pieces of cannon, fifty standards, and
a considerable amount of money, fell into the hands of the
Christians. A few days later, the city of Temesvar, the last
bulwark of Islamism in Hungary, was once more under the
Austrian flag. One year afterward, Belgrade, defended by one
hundred and fifty thousand Turks, after a siege of three weeks
by Prince Eugene, surrendered to the Christians (August 1.
1717). These two brilliant campaigns resulted in the treaty
of Passarowitz. Here again the Turks were forced to receive
terms from the Christians. This peace one of the most gloriVou IV.—28

434

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

ou? and advantageous ever contracted between Austria and t/m
Ottoman Empire, took from the Porte, Peterwardein, Belgrade.
Tcmesvnr, Semendrin, with a great portion of Wallachia and
Servin. Important places in Dalmatia and the Ionian Islands
were restored to Venice. The Porte kept the Morea, but the
possession of that peninsula did not counterbalance the great
territorial losses of Turkey in the Danubian provinces. The
treaty of Pnssarowitz was solemnly signed on the 21st of July,
1718. It was the crowning glory of Prince Eugene, who dis­
played ns much statesmanship on this occasion, as he did genius
and heroism at the head of his armies. The conqueror of the
Turks sent to Clement XL, whose noble zeal had so greatly
contributed to the success of the Christian arms, several stan­
dards taken from the enemy. The Pope, accompanied by the
Sacred College, went to the Church of St. Mary Major to return
thanks to the God of armies ; with his own hands he laid the
captured standards upon the altar of the Blessed Virgin, whose
help he had implored, and then intoned the Te Deum. It is
evident that Prince Eugene could have taken Constantinople,
after the victories of Peterwardein, Temesvar, and Belgrade, and
such, it is said, was his design. But France, Holland, England
and Russia, the mediating powers in the congress of Passarowitz,
checked the warlike projects of the hero. They were alarmed
nt the power, the prodigious development daily acquired by
Austria. The European balance of power would have been
looked upon as destroyed, had the Germans marched as con­
querors into the capital of the Turkish Empire. In later times,
the great question of European equilibrium, relative to tho
much coveted possession of Constantinople by a powerful nation,
has again saved the Turks, who, no longer their own masters,
owe their presence on the shores of the Bosphorus, only to the
rivalry—natural in such a case—of the Christian powers.
*
36. The political vicissitudes of the Morea, by turns uuder
the domination of the Venetians and of the Turks, gave occa­
sion to the return ol a great number of Armenians to the
• PuVJODluiT. Uiotni" Ji Ct>nttantin/,plr, l IL, pp. 30s, 301 308

CLEMWT XI. (Λ. D. ΠΟΛ-HJl).

436

Catholic faith. This happy event was in great part du- to
Peter Mekhitar, a native of Sebaste, in Cappadocia (a. d. 167C).
Having completed his studies in the patriarchal monastery of
Echmiadzin, he received the title of vertdbied, or doctor. In
the year 1700 he removed to Constantinople, where he devoted
nimself for some time to the ministry of preaching. The Ar­
menians of that city were then divided in their obedience be­
tween two rival Patriarchs. Mekhitar made fruitless efforts to
re-unite them. Then, turning to the Roman Church, he had
the courage openly to preach submission to the Pope. This
step exposed him to the full hatred of the schismatics. The
mufti ordered his arrest ; but the courageous missionary suc­
ceeded in eluding all their pursuits : by the help of some de­
voted friends, he embarked, under the disguise of a merchant,
and reached Smyrna in safety (1702). A decree of the Grand
Turk followed him even there ; again he was obliged to conceal
himself, and in a few days sailed in a Venetian ship, bound for
the Morea, where he was joined by several of his disciples.
The Morea was then in the hands of the Venetians. The Vene­
tian governor allotted Mekhitar a suburban town with the neigh
boring territory. Here the illustrious fugitive built a church
ind a monastery, in which he dwelt until 1717, when the Turks
once more gained possession of the Morea, Mekhitar was
obliged to fly with his community. On the 8th of September,
1717, the Republic granted him the island of St. Lazarus, where
he built another church and monastery, which became the resi­
dence of the Armenian religious, who still retain it under the
name of the Mckhitarists. To his monastery Mekhitar added
a printing establishment, for the publication of such books as
might be necessary for the instruction of his countrymen, and
to introduce among them the true doctrine of the Roman
Chur-jh, The progressive influence of Christian Europe has
now put a stop to persecutions in Constantinople. The Ar­
menian Catholics have a Patriarch who depends immediately
upon the Holy See, thus reviving and representing the Armenian
nationality up,to St Gregory the Illuminator

436

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHL’RCH.

37. France was edified at the heroic charity and self-dev>
tion displayed by the holy bishop, Belzunce. In 1720, a
young princess of Orleans, a daughter of the regent, had passed
through the kingdom, amid feasts and rejoicings, on her way to
marry the Duke of Modena. The French lords who had ac­
companied her in this festive journey returned to Marseilles on
ships decked with wreaths of flowers, and accompanied by the
harmonious strains of musical choirs. Suddenly Marseilles was
startled by the report of an unlooked for apparition, a formida­
ble apparition which carries terror in every age, to all countries,
which always moves about accompanied by dismay and dea th,
riding in triumph over heaps of victims. A ship from Sidon
had brought the plague. This was the eighteenth time, since
the days of Julius Cæsar, that it visited Marseilles. At the
fearful tidings, the noble, the rich, the magistrates, all fled be­
fore the contagion. The lazaretto was without attendants, the
hospitals without wardens, the tribunals without judges, the
revenue without collectors. The city was deprived of pur­
veyors, of police, of indispensable laborers. The tide of emi­
gration was checked only when the Parliament of Provence
drew a line, including Marseilles and its vicinity, pronouncing
sentence of death upon all who should cross the boundary. And
the parliament forthwith took to flight, thus first violating
the law it prescribed to others. But the desolate city still
had its bishop left. "When urged to follow the example of
the magistrates, “ God forbid,” he replied, “ that I should for­
sake the people to whom I am bound to be a father ! I owe
them my care and my life, since I am their pastor.” We bor­
row from the account of the generous prelate some particulars
of the scenes of horror amid which he moved during the two
years that the plague ravaged the fated city. “ All our public
squares, all our streets,” says he, “were piled up with great
heaps of dead bodies, left unburied often two or three whole
weeks, in many parts of the city, affording food for famished
dogs. The fear of contagion soon seized all minds ; every
natural sentiment yielding to the instinct of self-preservation.

CLEMENT XI. (Λ. D. HOO-iW).

437

nearly all the sick were pitilessly turned out of their houses,
children by their own parents, and parents by their chil Iren,
and they were left, almost without help, amid the corpses
which had changed the streets into infectious hospitals and
fearful cemeteries. The inhabitants, sinking under fear anti
horror, vainly took the precaution to shut themselves up in their
houses, or to seek their safety and preservation in the country ;
the plague followed them even there. Then, amid the harrow­
ing pain which filled my heart, I had the unspeakable consola­
tion to see the greater part of the secular and regular clergy of
the city and country hastening with emulous zeal to the relief of
our plague-stricken brethren. The most impetuous rivers were
but a weak obstacle to the zeal of some of the religious of Pro­
vence, who, finding every avenue closed, fearlessly swam the rapid
streams to come to my help and end their days in the practice of
the most heroic charity. Their memory should be handed down
as an example to the most remote posterity.” Belzunce him­
self was worthy to lead that band of heroes and of martyrs.
All his attendants wrere carried off in the beginning; alone,
poor, because he has given all, always on foot, the early dawn
finds him in the dark and infected dens of misery, night comes
down upon him amid the heaps of dead in the public places ;
he slakes their thirst, he consoles them like a father, exhorts
them like an apostle, and bends over their diseased forma
to catch the last dying confession. Europe learned the heroic
bearing of Belzunce with a cry of admiration. Clement XI.,
in two special briefs, congratulated him on his devoted charity,
granted a plenary indulgence to all those of his flock stricken
down by the plague, as well as to all those who ministered to
them, and announced that he had shipped him about two thou­
sand bushels of corn, at the expense of the Roman Church.
The Pope, in fact, dispatched three ships loaded with wheat;
one was wrecked, the other two were taken by African cor­
sairs. But when these barbarians learned whence they came
and for what purpose they were designed, seized with a
fooling of reverence .they faithfully sent them to the unfo. .0

438

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

nate city. On the 1st of November, 1720, Belzunce c^nsocrated his diocese to the adorable Heart of Jesus., in order to
touch the Saviour of the world with pity for his desolated flock.
The sound of all the bells gave notice, early in the morning, of
this august ceremony. An altar was raised at the end of the
Cours, the principal street of Marseilles. The holy bishop,
attended by the scanty remnant of his clergy, barefooted
and bareheaded, with a rope about his neck and a crucifix in
his hands, walked in procession to the place. The sight drew
tears from every eye. Belzunce made a most touching discourse,
broken at every moment by the sobs of both the speaker and
the hearers. Then followed the act of reparation and the con­
secration of the diocese to the Heart of Jesus; the ceremony
was closed by the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. The people,
prostrate in that immense square, and in the streets from which
a view could be had of the altar, were bathed in tears, and
joined their petitions to those of their pastor, in the firm
confidence that Heaven would now hear them with favor. Nor
was their hope vain ; from that day of benediction the plague
began to disappear, and Marseilles seemed to revive. Louis
XV. afterward named Belzunce to the peerage and bishopric
of Laon, and to the archbishopric of Bordeaux ; but the conduct
of the saintly prelate was of that kind for which earth has no
fitting reward. He refused both dignities, to remain with his
belovee. flock at Marseilles.. Popes Clement XL, Benedict
,
XIII.
Clement XII., and Benedict XIV. loaded him with marfis
of esteem and affection; Clement XII. honored him with the
pallium.
38. Meanwhile Clement XI. had closed his Pontificate, one
of the longest, stormiest and most glorious in the history of the
Church (March 19, a. d. 1721). Jansenism has vainly done
its best to dim the aureola of glory which encircles the name of
the illustrious Pontiff. The Lutheran city of Nuremberg struck
medals in his honor ; and the Pacha of Egypt, on hearing of
his death, declared that he could have wished the glory of the
Koran such a chief as Clement XI.

CLEMENT XI. (A. D. 1700-1721).

439

39. We have been compelled, in order to give proper atten­
tion to the great events which marked the decline of th·· seven­
teenth and the opening of the eighteenth century, to pass
lightly over the biographies of the saints and learned doctors
who consoled the Church in her struggles against heresy within
and enemies without. The Blessed Cardinal Barbadigo, bishop
of Padua; B. Francis de Posadas, of St. Domingo; B. Nicholas
de Longobardi, of the Order of St. Francis of Paula ; St. Francis
Hieronymo, and the two Frs. Segneri, of the Society -f Jesus;
St. Joseph of Cupertino; BB. Bernard de Corleone, d’Offida,
Bonaventura de Potenza, Thomas de Cora, Pacifico de San
Severino, and St. Veronica Giulani, all of the Order of St. Fran­
cis of Assissium; B. Joseph Oriol, a priest of Barcelona; B.
Sebastian Valafré, a priest of Savoy—presented, in every rank
and condition of life, the high example of those virtues of which
the Roman Church has ever been the model and the mother.
France admired the austere life of the Abbé de Rancé, the
reformer of La Trappe. A host of scholars, theologians and
philosophers, such as Bianchini, Fontanini, Vignole, Laderchi,
TTghelli, Coleti, Fabretti, Zacagni, Cardinals Ciampini and Quirini,
the Benedictines Banduri, Magliabecchi, in Italy; Fathers Sirmond, Petau, Labbe, De Marca, Morin and Lecointe; Combefis,
a Dominican ; Mabillon, Lenain de Tillemont. d’Acheri, Bene­
dictines ; Leo Allati us and Thomasin, the Oratorian—proved
that the Church was as truly the queen of science as of virtue ;
and this testimony is borne in her favor by the illustrious
Newton, who lacked only the true faith to make him the
greatest rnan of that brilliant age. The Venerable John Bap­
tist de la Salle, a canon of Rheims, founded, in 16S1, the
institute of the Christian Schools, for poor children, which still
continues through succeeding ages to display the same modest
devotedness and heroic charity. The Church, like her Divine
Pounder, always went about doing good

440

111.

ORNERAI, ΠΙ8ΤΟΗΤ OF THE CHüTCH.

Pontificate

of

Innocent XIII. (May 15,
March 7, 1724).

a.

r. 1721-

40. The Constitutions for the election of the Pope prescribe
that, to make the election lawful, all the absent cardinals must
bave been summoned, even such cardinals as may have been
excommunicated; the Cardinals de Nouilles and Alberoni were
accordingly invited to attend the conclave ; the former excused
himself on the plea of his advanced age ; Alberoni, who, after
ruling Spain as prime minister of Philip V., had fallen into dis­
grace and retired to Parma, answered the call of bis colleagues.
Fifty cardinals had met; when the name of Cardinal Paolucci
was pronounced, by those who were counting the ballots, as
having received a great number of votes, Cardinal Althan,
minister of the emperor of Germany, Charles VI., to the great
astonishment of the Sacred College, rose up, and, in his mas­
ter’s name, pronounced exclusion against Paolucci. With
admirable modesty and humility, Cardinal Paolucci asked to be
heard, and praised the justice of the prince who, knowing his
incapacity, excluded him from the Pontificate, of which he
declared himself unworthy. Meanwhile the examiners con­
tinued to count the ballots, and three votes were wanting to
make the required two-thirds in favor of Paolucci. *· Most
assuredly,” says Ottieri, “ had the cardinal received the required
number of voles, he would have been proclaimed, for the ex­
clusions pronounced by the courts of Austria, France and
Spain are admitted, not as a definitive compact, but by way
of prudent consideration, in order to avoid a schism in tho
Church, in case the princes should refuse to acknowledge a
Pope whose election had been displeasing to them." This
incident naturally brought the question of exclusions before the
Sacred College. Some writers assert that the privilege of ex­
clusion enjoyed, in the conclaves, by the three courts of Vienna,
Paris and Madrid, took its rise in the Count'd of St. Johu Lateran, held by Pope Nicholas II in 1059. But the question

INNOCENT ΧΠΤ. (A. D. Π21-Η14).

441

debated in that council was the coronation of the Sovereign
Pontiffs, for which the emperor’s consent was necessary, and
not their election. The right of exclusion which we have just
seen exercised in the name of Austria, against Cardinal Paolucci,
dated no farther back than one century. It sprung, as Ottieri
perfectly expressed it, from a kind of provident connivance, from
prudent deference, which would not have the Sovereign Pontiff
personally disagreeable to the great Catholic powers, for the
Pope is the Father and Pastor of them all. There have been
nearly thirty schisms, all occasioned and fomented by the spirit
of distrust existing between the Pontiffs and the secular rulers
It is proper, then, to have some regard for the repugnances of
certain courts ; otherwise the peace of the Church is jeoparded,
the Pontiff is deprived of the respect and friendship of the most
powerful princes. Such were the reasons alleged in 1644, by
the learned Cardinal de Lugo, in favor of maintaining the ex­
clusions. The conclave of 1721 respected the considerations ;
it expressed to Paolucci its deep and sincere regret, and on tho
15th of May, a. d. 1721, elected Cardinal Conti, who took the
name of Innocent XIII.
41. The house of Conti had already given to the Church
seven Popes, among whom were St. Leo the Great, St. Gregory
the Great, Innocent III., Gregory IX., and Alexander III.
The new Pontiff gave promise of walking in their glorious foot­
steps. But the shortness of his reign did not allow the reali­
zation of the hopes excited by his election. He did, however,
immortalize his name by the virtues which placed him in bene­
diction among the Roman people. In his desire to settle the
Jansenist controversy in France, he addressed two briefs re­
spectively to Louis XV., and tu the Regent, assuring them that
the only possible means of reconciliation was a frank and sin­
cere submission, without reserve or equivocation. He com­
plained of the difficulty experienced in bringing the opposing
prelates to recall their appeal, earnestly inveighed against a
I tter written to him by some among them, and declared that
to intrust the lambs of the flo< k to such shepherds was to

442

GENERAL H ISTORT 01

1HE CHURCH.

injure those lambs rather than to give them guardians." In fine,
to meet the objections of different parties, lie repeated that the
constitution Unigenitus condemned only errors, and attacked !
neither the sentiments of the Fathers nor the opinions of the
schools. The regent caused these briefs to be printed at the
Louvre; but he did not succeed in obtaining the submission of
Cardinal de Noailles and the four appealing prelates. The
cabinet of Versailles was then soliciting from the Roman Court
the appointment of Dubois to the cardinalate. Dubois was the
son of an apothecary of Brives-la-Gaillarde, in which town he
was burn, in 1656. Having acted as preceptor to the Duke of
Chartres, son of the Duke of Orleans, brother of Louis XIV.,
he obtained several rich benefices through the influence of his
pupil. At the death of Louis XIV., Dubois, by his servile
compliance, won the confidence of the regent, and became suc­
cessively, Councillor of State, Secretary of the cabinet, and En­
voy extraordinary to.England (a. d. 1715), to watch over tin
league of Great Britain and Holland with France. lie had
negotiated a peace at Hanover and the Hague. The regent ap­
pointed him minister of State (1718), and archbishop of Cam­
brai (1720). In these various diplomatic missions, Dubois, it
must be confessed, displayed a degree of talent which could
hardly have been expected in a man of his corrupt morals.
The Regent now redoubled his urgent entreaties to Innocent
XIII. to raise his favorite to the purple, and had them second­
ed by those of nearly all the sovereigns. The Pope made a long
resistance, but the importunities were renewed ; at length h<
yielded, and the appointment, which so much astonishes us at this
time, was then what might be termed a European appointment
Massillon consented to take part in the consecration of the
new prelate. "With the bulls of canonical institution, Pope In­
nocent sent him a brief, exhorting him thenceforth to live mure
conformably to his high dignity. Dubois promised ; God grant
he may have kept bis word’.—Meanwhile, the Turks were pre­
paring for war and revenge. Villena, Grand Master of Malta,
fearing that the Mussulman attack might fall upon that

INNOCENT XÎIf. (Λ. D. 1721-1724).

443

island, asked help from the Pope. Innocent ΧΠΤ. immediately
sent all the means at his command. The cardinals contributed
according to their respective fortunes. Cardinal Salerno, a
Jesuit, was asked what he had to offer. “ I have neither lands
nor income,” he replied, “but King Augustus, of Poland, has
just sent me a cross set with gems, that I will cheerfully sacri­
fice.” It was sold for a thousand Spanish doppie, and this sum
was added to the other voluntary contributions, amounting to a
hundred thousand Roman crowns.
42. The strength of the Pope was failing from day to day.
He had been compelled, for the benefit of his shattered health,
to spend some time at a neighboring country seat. On his re
turn to his capital, the nobility and the people came forth spon­
taneously to meet him. It was like the return of a beloved
father to the bosom of his family. The multitude followed him
even into the apartments of the palace, where he thus gave an
audience of love and affection to nearly the whole city of Rome
The Pontifical guards lowered their arms and gave free entrance
to the throng, in which nobles, magistrates, porters and sailors,
pressed forward in one indiscriminate mass. Innocent XIII.
deserved these marks of love and veneration. “ He was,” says
Lalande, “ the best sovereign known to this day. The Romans
have continued for many years to proclaim his praise and to
deplore the short duration of his Pontificate. Under his reign
universal plenty prevailed, the police were efficient, the nobles
and the people were equally happy.” He died on the 7th of
March, a. d. 1724. at the age of sixty-nine years. When urged,
in his last moments, to fill the vacancies in the Sacred College.
“ I am no longer of this world,” he replied, and with these
words he expired.

444

(1BNBRAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

CHAPTER IV.
g I. Pontipicatï o» Bbnedict XIII. (May 29,
1730).

a. d.

1724—-February 21

I. Sketch of the progress of Jansenism by Fénelon.—2. Council held by
Benedict XIII. in the church of St. John Lateran.—3. Schism of Holland.
—4. Council of Embrun. Deposition of Soanen, bishop of Seriez.—5. Sub
mission of Cardinsl de Noailles. archbishop of Paris.-β. M. de Vintimille,
archbishop of Baris. Submission of the Sorbonne.—7. The parliament
forbids the celebration of the feast of St Gregory VII.—8. Liturgical
revolution in France.—9. Authors of the different particular liturgies of
France.—10. Death of Benedict XIII.

g IL 1‘oxnnoATB or Cleubnt XII. (July 12, a.
1740).

d.

1730—February 0

II. Election of Clement XII. Case of Cardinal Coscia.—12. Affair of Bichi,
Apostolic Nuncio at Lisbon.—13. Death of the Regent Ministry of Cardinal
Fleury. War for Stanislaus Leczinski, king of Poland. Peace of Vienna.
—14. Conduct of Clement XII. during the war. Corsica and the republic
of San Marino place themselves under the protection of the Pope. Cardinal
Alberoni is made Legate of the Holy See, in the Romagna.—16. The deacon
Paris. Convulsions in the cemetery of St. Médard.—16. Canonization of St
_ .Vincent de Paul.—17. View of the conduct of the parliament respecting the
Gallican Liberties.—18. Refusal of the Sacraments.—19. Voltaire. His Let­
tres philowphiquu or Lettres sur les Anglais, condemned by the theologica'
Faculty of Paris.—21. Freemasonry condemned by Clement XII.—22.
Tho rules or the Maronite and Melcbite religious topproved by the Pope.
Joseph Aasemaui.—23. Death of Clement XII. Success of the Turks
against the Austrians.

§ HI. Pontificate op Benedict XIV. (August 17, a.
1758).

d.

1740—May 3,

24. Antecedents and election of Benedict XIV.—25. The succession to Charles
VI., emperor of Germany.—20. Frederick the Great, king of Prussia.—
27. Alliance between France and Prussia, to lower tho bouse of Austria.—
28. Maria Theresa defended by the devotedness of the Hungarian nobles.
Reverses of the French arms. Death of Cardinal Fleury.—20. B'.kcss and

BENEDICT ΧΙΠ. (A. D. 1724- 1136).

death of Loma XV. Succernes of the. French arm». Treaty of Ait-1
*
Chapelle. Accession of tho honae of Lorraine to the imperial throne nf
Austria.—30. Conduct of Benedict XIV. during the continnancn of the
hostilities.—31. Charles Edward.—32. Scandalous conduct of the parlia­
ment of Paris in the affair of the refusal of the Sacraments. Representation
of the bishops to Louis XV.—33. Banishment of the parliament of Paris.
—34. Recall of the parliament. Fresh acts of violence. Pastoral letter of
Christopher de Beaumont, archbishop of Paris. Brief of Benedict XIV.
Declaration of Louis XV. against the attempts of the parliament.—3S
Damiens.—30. Death of Benedict XIV. Analysis of his Bullary. Treatis
*
on tho Diocesan Synod,

§ I. Pontificate

of

Benedict XIII. (May 29,
February 21, 1730).

a. d.

1724—

1. In a private memorial to Clement XI. (a. d. 1705), Féne­
lon thus spoke : “ The experience of sixty-five years clearly
proves that the Jansenist sect is not to be brought back by
gentle means Unless vigorous measures are used, there is no
danger that the Church may not fear. Never, not even in the
hour of its most rapid growth, had Calvinism so many partisans
and defenders. Belgium and Holland are deeply infected with
the poison of the new errors. The Duke of Medina-Cœli favors
the introduction of Jansenistic works into Naples. The doctrine
has reached as far as Spain; even in Rome, Cardinal Casanate
is suspected of having some connection with the sect. In Franco,
Cardinal de Noailles is so completely in the power of its leaders
that, for the past ten years, it has been impossible to free him
from their snares. Many bishops follow his example ; there
are still some who would confirm the rest in the right way, if
the multitude were not drawn into the wrong path by these
leaders. What shall I say of the religious orders ? Nearly all
the Dominicans go *beyond
the
limits assigned by the Congrega­
tion De Auxiliis, and conspire with the Jansenists to maintain
the theory of compulsory grace. The Barefooted Carmelites
obstinately preach the same doctrine. The Augustinians,
misled by the illustrious name of their holy patron, insensibly
adhere to the Augustin of Ypres. The regular canons of St
Geneviève are anima *2'1 by the same sentiment. The Benedic-

446

GENERAL RTSTORY OF THE CHURCH.

tines of St. Maur and of St. Vannes unite all their efforts to
secure the triumph of Jansenism. The Premonstrants have
so openly displayed their partisanship, that. fiom the very
beginning of the contest, they have been known in Belgium as
theJFAi/e Jansenists. The Oratorians of M. fie Bdrulle inculcate
the same errors, not only by their dogmatic writings, as in the
theology of Juénin,but by academic theses and in the spiritual
direction of the ladies of the Court. The most learned among
the Belgian Capuchins have taken so little trouble to hide their
real sentiments, that the superiors have been obliged to remove
the lectors and guardians from their charges. The Recolleta
present the same example. Even the missionaries of St. Laza­
rus. so far removed from that faction, while they remembered
the teachings of St. Vincent de Paul, are becoming cold and
yielding, and seem to incline by degrees in the same direction.
I know one seminary in which the professor is spreading the
poison of Jansenism. The members of St. Sulpice alone have
the courage to battle ngainst the contagion. The cardinal
archbishop accordingly esteems and loves them very little."
What a fearful picture ! The desolated and tottering Church
found her enemies in her own children, who did not blush to
rend the bosom of their common mother. No more eloquent
proof could be presented than these lines of the illustrious arch­
bishop of Cambrai, of the necessity of a strong, unchangeable,
infallible authority, to recall the wandering, to repress scandals,
repair errors, and confirm all the brethren in unity and faith.
2 Cardinal Orsini, on ascending the throne of St. Peter, as
Bened ît XIII. (May 29, a p. 1724), gave his first care to the
danger.ms progress of Jansenism. He convoked a council foi
the following year, at Rome. This assemblage coincided with
the period of the Jubilee, and held its sessions in the church
of St. John Lateran. The Pope made an opening address, in
which he dwelt particularly upon the motives which should in­
duce the Popes and bishops to hold frequent synods, and upon
the benefits accruing from them to the Church. The council
held seven sessions. The principal ordinances concern the

HENEDICT ΧίΠ. (A. D. 1724-1730).

44 7

duties of bishops and other pastors, Christian education, resi­
dence, ordinations, the holding of synods, the good example
which pastors should give to their people, the solemnizing of
feasts, and various other matters of ecclesiastical discipline
At the head of these decrees the council placed two more import­
ant ones : the first required bishops, beneficiaries, preachers and
confessors, before entering upon their respective charges, to sub­
scribe the profession of faith of Pius IV.; the second was
worded as follows : “As, to maintain the profession of Catholic
faith in its purity and integrity, it is very necessary that al)
the faithful most carefully avoid and sincerely detest the errors
which, in these latter times, have risen rgainst the same faith,
all bishops and pastors of souls shall take the most exact care,
as heretofore, that the constitution Unigenitus, promulgated by
Clement XI., of holy memory, and which we recognize as the
rule of our faith, be observed and executed by all, of what rank
or condition soever, with the unreserved obedience due to it.
If. then, they learn that any one (of their own diocese, or pro­
vince, or even a stranger), residing within their jurisdiction, does
not receive this constitution, let them not fail to take measures
against him, according to their power and the extent of their
pastoral jurisdiction. And if they deem a more efficient remedy
necessary, let them denounce these stubborn and rebellious
children of the Church to the Apostolic See. Let them also
institute a strict search for the works published against this
constitution, or which support the false doctrines condemned
by it, and let them obtain possession of them, that they may
afterward be referred to Us and to the Holy See.”
3. The revolt of Jansenism was multiplying scandals. On
the 27th of April, a. d. 1723, seven Dutch priests, on their awn
authority, appointed a Jansenistic archbishop at Utrecht. The
see had been vacant since the death of Codde (1710), who was
deposed hy the Holy See because of his connection with the
sect. The Apostolic vicars afterward sent to Holland were
forced to abandon their mission; the spiritual government of
the country was intrusted to the nunci >s of Cologne and

448

flBXERAL HI8T0RF OF THE CHURCH.

Brussels. But the partisans of Codde and of Qucsnel had never
been willing to submit to their authority, arid acknowledge,]
only the vicars general appointed by Codde, or by the Chapter
of Utrecht, which claimed the right of governing during the
vacancy of the See. It appointed pastors, gave dimissoriid
letters, and exercised all the other functions of ecclesiastical
administration. The Roman Court, on the contrary, judged that
the Chapter of Utrecht having ceased to exist since the change
of religion in Holland, the priests who assumed the title of
canons of Utrecht could not be considered as forming the metro­
politan Chapter. How could seven priests, followed by hardly
sixty others, represent the clergy of Holland, while the sound
majority remained true to the authority of the Holy See? Λ
schism was therefore established in Holland, and held out against
all the efforts of the Sovereign Pontiffs, until the end of the
eighteenth century. The United Provinces thenceforth became
the refuge for all Jansenists whose position had become too
dangerous in France.
4. The appealing bishops had not withdrawn their opposi­
tion to the Apostolic Constitutions. Soanen, bishop of Senez,
was the most obstinate of all. The archbishop of Embrun,
Pierre de Tencin, as metropolitan of Senez, called a council in
his archiépiscopal city, to try his rebellious suffragan. The
council consisted of the bishops of the province, who were
joined by the Archbishops of Lyons, Vienne, Besançon, Aix.
and Arles. According to the lust Apostolic ordinance pub­
lished by Benedict XIII. in the Council of St. John Lateran,
all ecclesiastical superiors were charged to follow up the Jan­
senists within their respective provinces or dioceses. Soanen
refused to submit to the authority of bis metropolitan, and left
the council. The Fathers at first endeavored to recall him by
friendly entreaties and canonical warnings; but in vain. At
length, on the 20th of September, a. d. 1727, when the pro­
moter had stated his conclusions, the doctrines of the bishop of
Senez were condemned as rash, scandalous, seditious, injurious
to the Church, to the bishops, and to the royal authorit /, schis-

BENEDICT xm. (A. D. 1124-1730).

449

matical, full of errors, heretical, and tending to foment heresie
*
It was decreed that Soanen should be suspended from all eccle­
siastical power and jurisdiction, from the exercise of his func­
tions as bishop and priest. The council provided for the gov­
ernment of the diocese, by appointing a vicar-general charged
to govern that church, and to secure respect for the constitutions
of the Holy See. The sentence was confirmed by the suffrage
of a great number of bishops, who, at the same time, issued a
special decree in support of the bull Unigenitus. The decisions
of the council were ratified by Benedict XIII., and subscribed
by thirty-one French bishops ; but Soanen was supported by
fifty advocates of the parliament, a host of pamphleteers, and
twelve Jansenist bishops, with Cardinal de Noailles, archbishop
of Paris, at their head.
5. This was one more scandal added to all those into which
that prelate, through a mistaken idea of honor and a lamentable
obstinacy, had allowed himself to be drawn since the appearance
of the famous “ Ecclesiastical Problem.” And yet Cardinal de
Noailles was, in disposition, gentle, pious, and gifted with most
estimable qualities. A want of discernment in the choice of
those to whom he gave his confidence, and a too great readiness
to receive the impressions of others, caused all his mistakes.
So true it is, that weakness in rulers is the most dangerous of all
defects. Men of sound mind interested themselves in the abnor­
mal position into which the Archbishop of Paris had thus drawn
himself; every thing was done to bring him to retract his un­
pardonable conduct. The Pope secured the efforts of devoted
men about the person of the Cardinal, while the Jansenists, on
the other hand, left nothing undone to keep in their ranks a
prelate whose name was to them a safeguard and a buckler.
When the cardinal consented to sign the letters written to the
king against the Council of Embrun, us well as a protest to the
parliament against the registering of any edict in favor of the
council, the sect, through all its organs, praised the archbishop’s
courage to the skies, and placed his name among those of the
Fathers of the Church The cardinal enjoyed these scandalous
Vol. IV -29

450

GENERAL HISTORY OP THE CHURCH.

honors for a while, but the hour of repentance came. Tin
Spirit of God, more powerful than all intrigues, touched hn
heart and enlightened his understanding. He saw the trouble,
tho rebellion and disorder which were desolating the Church,
since the bishops openly resisted the decrees of the Holy See
Be shed tears of grief over actions of which he would have
wished to blot out the memory. From that moment his resolve
was fixed, irrevocable. On the 19th of May, A. o. 1728, he wrote,
with his own hand,a retraction of his protest against the Coun­
cil of Embrun, and made the solicitor-general sign his recanta­
tion. On the 19th of July, he wrote to the Pope the most
touching apology : “Warned,” said he, “by my gray hairs, of
the account I must soon give at the tribunal of God, I throw
myself at the feet of Your Holiness, entreating you to open to
me the arms of your mercy. I submit to the decisions of the
Holy See, and sincerely receive the bull Unigenitus." It re­
mained to make the world acquainted with the glorious retrac­
tion, and the cardinal did not falter in the discharge of this
duly. On the 11th of October, he sent to every part of his
diocese a pastoral letter which filled the true friends of the
Church with joy, but carried mourning and despair into the
Jansenist camp. “We condemn,” said the aged and noble
prelate, “ the book of ‘Moral Reflections,’ in the same terms as
those used by the Pope against that work ; and we declare it
unlawful to hold other sentiments than those defined by the
bull Unigenitus. Therefore we forbid any one to have or to
read the book of ‘ Moral Reflections,’ as well as all other works
written in its support; we revoke, in mind and heart, our pas­
toral instruction of 1719, and all that may have been published
under our name, contrary to this present ordinance.” The car­
dinal was ending where he should have begun ; but the generous
courage of such a recantation compensated for the long delay.
The Jansenists revenged themselves by publishing various ai ts
coming, as they alleged, from the cardinal, and in which he was
made to declare that he still held to his appeal. But the pre­
late ejected the authorship of these apocryphal documents, iu

BENEDICT XIII. (A. t>. 1724-1730).

151

a circular to the bishops of France, and in a letter to the Pope,
accompanied by his pastoral. Benedict ΧΙΠ., in a solemn con­
sistory, publicly testified to the cardinals the joy he felt at the
submission of the Archbishop of Paris, to whom he dispatched
the brief Sapientissimum consilium, highly commending bis con­
duct, and granting the Jubilee which he asked for his diocese,
excluding from that spiritual favor those who had opposed the
bull Unigenitus.
6. The retraction of the archbishop was not productive of
as much good as his resistance had done harm. The Jansenist
bishops did not follow the cardinal in his obedience as they had
in his opposition. The bishops of Montpellier, Auxerre, Troyes,
Metz, Mâcon, Trêguier, Panders, and Cashes, continued to de­
fend a sect so often anathematized. But, however deplorable
this conduct, what is the moral force of that limited number of
prelates against the Pope, supported by the whole episcopal
body? M. de Vintimille, archbishop of Aix, succeeded Car
dinal de Noailles in the See of Paris in 1729. He found
himself at the head of a diocese which his predecessor’s weak­
ness and religious bias had filled with confusion, troubles and
discord. His patience, gentleness and moderation triumphed
over most of his opponents. The Metropolitan Chapter, by a
solemn act, conformed to the pastoral letter of Cardinal de
Noailles; at the same time, twenty-eight parish priests of Paris
wrote to M. De Vintimille, insolently complaining of his con­
duct, and acquainting him with the fears which they enter
tained, as they said, on his behalf. The archbishop took no
notice of the insult, but on the 29th of September, a. d. 1729,
published his ordinance and pastoral instruction in regard tu the
bull Unigenitus. He assured the faithful that the bull, far from
injuring the purity of faith and morals,and striking at the Gallican
liberties, on the contrary, condemned capital errors in dogma.
He pointed out the sad effects of resistance to that law of the
Church—the docility of the faithful destroyed, the Vicar of
Jesus Christ calumniated, the authority of the bishops slighted,
all suboedination swept away, and the appearance of a Hood of

462

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

seditious writings calculated to sow abroad the spirit of hatred
revolt and independence; but too many of these willingly misguided wanderers remained deaf to the prelate’s warning. Oj
the 8th of November, 1729, the theological Faculty of Paris
declared its definitive acceptance of the bull Unigenitus, decreed
that all the Doctors who refused to sign it should be excluded
from their body, and that whatever had been already done
against the authority of that constitution deserved to be buried
in the deepest silence and in endless oblivion. The Doctors of
the provinces conformed to this decree,which received seven hun­
dred and seven signatures ; thirty-nine of these were of bishops
7. This return warranted cheering hopes, but other events
of a character equally hostile to the Holy Sec soon made their
appearance, showing that the leaven of Gallicanism and the
poison of Jansenism had not yet ceased to work in France.
Benedict had just published the Office of St. Gregory VII., and
made it obligatory for the whole Church. The parliament of
Paris thought itself justified in overruling the Pontifical decree,
in virtue of the abuse existing in France, which made the publi­
cation of the Sovereign Pontiff's decrees depend upon their
previous registration by the parliament. The Doctors and
civilians of France accordingly issued a decree prohibiting the
Office of St. Gregory VII., and forbidding all the ecclesiastics
of the kingdom to recite it. The parliaments of Metz, Toulouse,
and Rbeims imitated that of Paris, declared that Gregory VII
was not a saint, and forbade the celebration of his feast.
The bishops of Verdun, Montpellier, Troyes, Auxerre, and
Castres issued pastoral letters, written in the same spirit as
the parliamentary decrees. It will not be necessary to explain
the motives on which the Gallican magistrates and bishops
thus assailed the memory of one of the greatest Popes that
ever ruled the Church. The whole life of St. Gregory VII.
was one unceasing struggle with the temporal powers in
armed revolt against the Holy See. The so-called Gallican liber­
ties did not grant to the Pope the liberty of upholding the rights
of the Apostolic jhair. It seems to us that, in this case, the

BENELICT Χ1Π. (A. D. 11Μ-Π30).

453

conduct of the parliaments was not only scandalous but ab ard.
Benedict XIII. was, with reason, astonished to learn that men
of law, supported by a few bishops, dared to forbid the cele­
bration of the feast of a saint recognized by the Church ; he
issued a brief annulling the parliamentary decrees and the
charges of the Jansenist bishops. The parliament of Paris
suppressed the Papal brief; but it could not suppress the im­
mutable, infallible authority, always respected by every true
Catholic, of that Roman Church which has received the deposit
of faith, the rule of belief, the guidance of souls, the govern­
ment of the spiritual world.
8. The encroachments of Gallicanism upon the field of litur­
gy was not to end here. Notwithstanding the regulations of
the Council of Trent, and the clear, formal and explicit consti­
tution of St. Pius V., the French bishops assumed the power
of giving to their dioceses new missals, new offices, and new
breviaries. Unity in prayer, that imposing and magnificent
harmony of the universal Church, sending up to God, on the
same day, at the same hour, from every quarter of the globe,
the same vows, in the same words and in the same tongue ; that
form of prayer which should be, according to the Holy Fathers,
the rule of faith—all would now be destroyed. The heretics
of every age had striven to alter the liturgy of the Church of
God, as a means to insinuate their errors. The Jansenists
could not neglect this system of proselytism ; they were the
real authors of the liturgical revolution, under the cloak of the
archbishops of Paris—Harlai, Noailles, and even Viutimille,
who did not see at once the full import of the new tendencies.
It was the Popes who formed the whole divine office ; they
made its rubrics, regulated its ceremonials, composed its pray­
ers, reformed the calendar,compiled the martyrology; they have
appointed a special Congregation of Cardinals to explain all its
difficulties. St. Damasus caused the psalms to be sung in choir
by day and by night, with the addition to each one of the doxology or Gloria Patri. St. Gregory the Great composed play­
ers, antiphons, homilies, regulated the office in all its parts, and

454

GENERAL HISTORV OF THE CHURCH.

gave his name (o the grave, imposing and majestic Gregorian
chant. Pope St. Stephen, during his sojourn in France, whither
he had come to seek assistance against the Lombards, reformed
the office and the chant, which had undergone some changes in
that country. Pepin and Charlemagne, to draw closer the ties
which bound their subjects to the Roman Church, caused the
Roman office and chant to be received throughout their king­
dom, and, thus restored by their efforts, it subsisted during a
thousand years, until the invasion of Jansenism. The new litur­
gical reforms which followed the labors of the Council of Trent
and of St. Pius V. were received in France as in the other Catho
lie countries. Such had been the perpetual succession of pious
labors and holy efforts of the Church, ever living and ever ani­
mated by the Holy Ghost, to regulate the prayers which she
addresses to God the Father, through our Lord Jesus Christ.
In the eighteenth century, Jansenism made a great effort to de­
stroy in France this unity of prayer and adoration, and, by
perfidious insinuations, skilfully inserted into the public oilice,
to turn away the faithful from the fréquentation of the sacra­
ments, from their devotion to the Blessed Virgin and the saints,
from confidence in the Divine goodness, to darken the holy joy
of the children of God by the gloomy terrors of the doctrines
of insufficient grace.
9. The first defacers of the Catholic liturgy were Nicholas
Letourneux and the Jansenist Benedictine, Claude de Vert,
whose joint labors manufactured the new Breviary of Cluny,
the boldest and the most hostile to the Sovereign Pontiff,
wliich equally degrades the worship of the Blessed. Virgin and
the authority of the Apostolic See. The Order of Cluny, once
so true to the head of the Church, thus disowned the brightest
pages in its annals. After them the Jansenist Foinard propa­
gated liturgical novelties, and drew up for them a kind of creed
in his well-known work, “Plan of a new Breviary, in which
the Divine office is to be especially made up from the pages of
Holy Writ.”* The very title, “ New Breviary," i8 a sufficent
• "Preset d'un nouveau Bréviaire dane lequel Tojia divin "rail particulièrement cornp^
h ï Ecriture Sainte'

BENEDICT ΧΤΠ. (A. D. 1724-1730).

tôô

evidence that antiquity, tradition, authority, the living prayer
of the Church, were contemptuously set aside to make way for
the views of a private individual, who, like all other sectaries,
would cut up texts, isolate or combine them to suit his own
fancy, in order to turn them from their true meaning, and wrest
them to the support of his errors. The idea of Foinard was
realized in the Paris Breviary, published by Cardinal de
Noailles, and composed by the Jansenist Dnguet. Vigier,
Mésenguy and Coffin, carried out the work of Duguet with even
greater boldness ; they compiled a new Paris Breviary, pub­
lished by Charles De Vintiinille, which was received with so
much dissatisfaction that, in order to insure its adoption, it was
necessary to make repeated corrections of errors not concealed
with sufficient care. Orleans and Nevers had their particular
Breviaries (a. d. 1730), composed by the Jansenist Lebrun
Desmarets, who had been condemned to the galleys, and died
impenitent.
Charles De Coislin, bishop of Metz; Caylus,
bishop of Auxerre ; Bossuet, the unworthy bishop of Troyes ;
Colbert, bishop of Montpellier ; and Montazet, bishop of Lyons,
forcibly introduced the same novelties into their respective
dioceses. This revolution was prolonged until 1770. Charles
Loménie De Brienne, whose name was to be known in a con­
nection so unfortunate for the Church, was the last bishop in
France to bring a new liturgy into his diocese. The religious
orders, forgetting their traditional respect for the sacred cus­
toms of the past, allowed themselves to be drawn into the cur­
rent of innovation. The congregation of St. Vannes adopted
a Breviary and a Missal, modeled upon the Parisian. The
order of Prémontré laid aside its Roman Breviary to take up a
new one, compiled by one of the monks of the order, who after­
ward took the oath of the civil constitution of the clergy. The
Congregation of St. Maur also had a particular Breviary, drawn
up by an apostate Benedictine, Nicholas Foulon. “ All these
new Breviaries,” says the Abbé Bertrand ds la Tour, ” profese
to follow the pattern set in the Paris Breviary; it is the centre
of Gallican unity, instead of Rome, which name is now hardly

456

GENERAL HISTORY OP THE CHURCH.

ever uttered, and which is only the centre of Catholic unity. Thp
Pope may reign in the Vatican, but here his laws, his censures,
his rubrics, his prayers, hin Breviary, his Missal, and his
Ritual will be despised. Thus sapped in her very foundations,
shaken at every joint, France is astonished to find herself
almost schismatical.”
10. Meanwhile, Benedict XIII. was closing his Pontificate.
He died on the 22d of February, a. d. 1730, at the age of eightyone years. Such was his virtue, says the learned Muratori,
that he was universally looked upon as a saint. In his incom­
parable humility, he esteemed his title of Theatine religious
far beyond all the glory and majesty of the Sovereign Pontifi­
cate. To a perfect disinterestedness he joined a boundless
tenderness for the poor. He was often known to embrace
them, seeing in them Him whose Vicar he was on earth. His
penances and fasts were extraordinary ; his mildness prover­
bial, and Rome still quotes the expression of Benedict XIV :
“I love the modesty of Benedict XIII., that gentle Pontiff,
who caused his own coach to draw back in the very midst of
Rome, to avoid a difficulty with a Roman noble.” There is but
one serious charge to be made against Benedict XIII-—he was
not always careful enough to keep his ministers within rbe
strict limits of duty and justice. He had given his confidence
to Cardinal Coscia, who abused the Pontiff's goodness, and by
his exactions drew upon himself the hatred of the Roman people.

§ II. Pontificate

of

Clement XII. (July 12,
February 6, 1740).

a. d.

1730—

11. Cardinal Corsini, a member of one of the first families
of Florence, was almost unanimously elected to succeed Bene­
dict XIII., and took the name of Clement XII. On the day
after his coronation, the people crowded around the Vatican
with cries of “Long live Pope Clement XII.! Justice upon
the justice of the last minister! Cardinal Coscia, against
whom these cries were directed, had fled from Rome immedi­

CLEMENT XU. (A. D. 1730-1740).

457

ately after the death of Benedict XIII. ; but the Sacred College
had sent him a safe-conduct, that he might take his place in
the conclave. Now the excited people seemed eager for his
head. To appease the sedition, Clement XII. promised that a
strict investigation should be made into the administration or
all the officer.·» who had abused the confidence of the late Pope
Cosria was first deprived of active and passive voice in the
Congregations ; a Pontifical decree required his presence in the
Roman States until the end of his trial ; and he was informed
that he must give up all spiritual jurisdiction in his diocese of
Beneventum. Coscia refused obedience, and a special Congre­
gation was appointed to carry on the trial. The cardinal was
condemned to refund to the treasury the sum of two hundred
thousand Roman crowns, which he had fraudulently obtained
during the term of his ministry. The cardinal asked the favor of
not being imprisoned in the castle of St. Angelo ; Clement gener­
ously granted it ; but Coscia, fearful for the future, took advan­
tage of his freedom to fly to Naples. His disobedience was pun­
ished by an interdict, and his property was sold for the benefit of
the Apostolic Chamber, which he had so shamefully plundered.
12. These acts of rigorous justice announced a firm and
vigilant Pontiff, who would never flinch from duty, however
painful its performance. The court of Lisbon soon had occasion
to learn this. The kings of Portugal began to claim that the
nuncios sent to the court of Lisbon should enjoy the same privi­
lege as those who were sent to the great powers ; which con­
sisted in promotion to the cardinalate at the end of their nun­
ciature. The court of Lisbon was especially desirous to obtain
this favor, as it would have been a more solemn recognition, on
the part of the Sovereign Pontiffs, of the recent kingdom of
Portugal. But the other European sovereigns opposed the
pretensions of Lisbon; and Rome, always prudent, did not
deem that the fitting time had yet come. John V. of Portugal
was a man of violent temper, and could brook no contradiction.
He thought to gain by force what he had asked as a favor ;
accordingly, under the Pontificate of Benedict XIII.. he de·

458

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

manded the cardinal’s hat for Bichi, then nuncio at Lisbon ; the
request was not granted and Bichi was even recalled. But the
king forbade him to quit the court, refused to receive the suc­
cessor sent in his stead, openly broke with Rome, and forbade
all his subjects, under the most severe penalties, to hold any
communication with the Pontifical court. Such was the state
of things at the accession of Clement XII. This Pope was
nearly related to Bichi; the King of Portugal hoped that this
circumstance would facilitate an accommodation, and negotia­
tions were opened with the new Pontiff. Clement XII. declared
that the nuncio must at once withdraw from Lisbon. Obedience
was now a necessity ; Bichi returned to Rome, was succeeded
by the prelate already appointed ; and, later, the Pope, to show
that firmness is always allied to gentleness in the heart of the
Vicar of Jesus Christ, raised Bichi to the dignity of cardinal.
13. Meanwhile, important events had taken place in
France. The regent, Philip of Orleans, died, the victim of his
own unbridled passions (August 10, a. d. 1723), shortly aftei
his unworthy minister, Cardinal Dubois. The young king,
Louis XV., had been freed from wardship and crowned in the
preceding year. After the brief ministry of the Duke of Bour­
bon, Louis intrusted the government of the kingdom, with the
title of prime-minister, to his former preceptor, Cardinal Fleury,
bishop of Fréjus. The cardinal had already reached the ad­
vanced age of seventy years, but he set vigorously to work to
repair, by a mild and prudent administration, the scandals and
disorders caused by the Regent and his court. The marriage
of Louis XV. with Mary Leczinski, daughter of Stanislaus, ex­
king of Poland, placed upon the French throne the charms of
virtue aud amiable graces. But this reaction against the vices
νί the regency was not powerful enough to restore the lost
morality of France. Philip of Orleans had surrounded himself
with all that made open profession of license, libertinism, and
impiety. The court of the Regent corrupted society;
society corrupted the young king, virtue was but a name,
duty a word, religion a bugbear, fit for the people ;

CLEMENT ΧΠ. (A. D. Π30-Π40).

459

and gold, with all the pleasures it can buy, became the idol of
France. The accession of Cardinal Fleury to power was like
a moment of rest between two storms. He loved peace ; and
peace was a necessity for France. He allowed the kingdom to
repair its losses, and to enrich itself by an extensive commerce,
without attempting any innovation, treating the State as an im­
mense and i jbust body that recuperates itself ; he lowered the
taxes, fixed the value of the currency, and brought into the
Court an example of exactness and economy. In a political
point of view, this was a happy period for all nations, which
forgot the past in a noble rivalry of commerce and art. All
was peace from Russia to Spain, when the death of Augustus
II, king of Poland, who had dethroned Stanislaus Leczinski,
the father-in-law of Louis XV., once more threw Europe into a
state of war. The Poles offered the crown to Stanislans, who
was proclaimed king in the most lawful and solemn manner, by
the Assembly of the Estates (September 12, a. d. 1733). But
the Emperor of Austria, Charles VI., managed another election,
supported by his arms and by those of Russia, and another
assembly of Polish lords offered the crown to the son of
Augustus II. (October 5, 1733.) Stanislaus repaired to
Dantzic to support his claim in person. He was worthy to
wear a crown, and nothing, perhaps, better shows the defect of
the elective system, than the sight of the best of kings, of that
Stanislaus, whose name and virtue still live in the memory of
grateful Lorraine, twice driven from Poland, which he would
have made the happiest of nations. The nobles who had elected
Leczinski, now shamefully forsook his cause. Ten thousand
Russians, undei the Count of Munich, besieged Dantzic; Stanis­
laus. too weakly supported by France, was unable to hold out
against them
The city was taken ; a price was set upon the
head of the lawful king, and it was only after running the
greatest risks in the disguise of a sailor, that he succeeded in
escaping. The French ministry would have been disgraced
before all Europe, had it not avenged the insult received in
Poland. France joined Spain and Sardinia against Austria.

460

GENERAL BISTORT OF THE CHURCH.

If Stanislaus could not bo restored, he could be avenged. A
F-ench army marched into Germany, under Marshal Berwick
who was killed before Philipsburg. His loss alone was a sad
reverse. The Duke of Noailles and the Marquis of Asfeld. bis
successors, took the city; this was a great exploit, especially as
the enemy’s forces were under the command of Prince Eugene.
Another French army, sent into Italy, under Villars and the
Duke of Savoy, took possession of Milan. The Marquis of
Coigny, Villars' successor (1734), defeated the Count of
Merci, in the brilliant actions of Parma and Guastalla, while
Don Carlos, the son of Philip V., with the Duke of Montdmar,
the victor of Bitonto, expelled Visconti, viceroy of Naples for
Charles VI., and made themselves masters of Sicily by taking
Messina and Syracuse. The Emperor of Austria was but too
glad to sign the terms of peace proposed by victorious France.
Cardinal Fleury, who had the wisdom to prevent England and
Holland from taking part in this war, was also able to bring it
to a happy close without their intervention. By the “ Treaty
of Vienna” (October 3, 1735), Stanislaus received the
government of Lorraine and made the happiness of that pro­
vince during a reign of twenty-eight years;
*
Don Carlos was
recognized as King of the Two Sicilies ; the King of Sardinia
received a portion of the Milanese, the other remaining in the
hands of Charles VI. ; in fine, Francis, Duke of Lorraine, who
was dispossessed in favor of Stanislaus, received the expectancy
of Tuscany, whose Grand Duke, the last of the Medici, was
dying without heirs. The Treaty of Vienna was the master­
piece of Fleury’s able and prudent policy.
14. Amid these formidable military operations, the greater
part of which had, as usual, been carried on in the Italian terri­
tory, the bearing of Clement XII. was that of a Pope ; all his
efforts were directed to one end—that of making the scourge
of war as light as possible for the suffering people. The sue·
•It was agreed, in tho term, of tho Treaty, that, at the death of Stanislaus, Lorrain,
and the duchy of Bar should pass to France Cardinal Flenry thue secured to the crown
ao. of it· fairest and richest province·.

CLEMENT ΧΠ. (A. D. 1730-1740).

cessive arrival and sojourn of the imperial and the Spanish
forces loaded the inhabitants of Bologna, Ferrara, and Ravenna
with forced contributions. The Sovereign Pontiff indemnified
them out of his private purse. When the treaty of Vienna had
given the kingdom of the Two Sicilies to Don Carlos, Clement
conferred upon him the investiture of the Neapolitan States,
which depended upon the Holy See, and exerted all his influ­
ence to allay the feelings of discord and hatred secretly work­
ing in the midst of a people so often conquered, and by so many
different masters. The Papacy was always the refuge of op­
pressed nationalities, and the natural defender of every acquired
right. The Corsicans revolted against the tyranny of the
Genoese republic, expelled the governor imposed upon them,
and sent, as their deputy to Clement XII., Paul Otticoni, with
the mission to request the Pope to restore the Pontifical
authority in their island. Had the Holy See been possessed
of that ambitious and grasping policy so unjustly charged upon
it by the enemies of the Church, the Sovereign Pontiff would
have eagerly seized the occasion of regaining possession of
an island which had for several centuries formed part of the
patrimony of St. Peter, and had passed into the hands of the
Genoese only by a flagrant usurpation. Yet, spite of the titles
which justified the offer made by the Corsicans to Clement
,
XII.
the Pope, far from accepting it, thought it more worthy
of him to offer himself as a mediator of peace. He accordingly
sent a brief to the Archbishop of Genoa, requesting him to
communicate his proposition to the Senate. It was rejected ;
the Pontiff protested in vain against this display of haughti­
ness ; he had the grief to see Corsica bend once more be­
neath a hated yoke. But he had at least the consolation of
having acted as became the true Father of all the faithful, whose
only ambition is to heal all dissensions, to appease all quarrels,
without ever seeking to make his own profit of any. Another
case of the same kind soon followed. At a distance of four
leagues from Rimini, and five from Urbino, stands the small
city of San Marino, whose inhabitants, together with those of

462

GENERAL HÏ8T0RT OF ΤΠΕ CHURCH.

seven neighboring villages, constitute a little republic This
little State was for a long time under the protection of the
dukes of Urbino ; but that house having passed away about the
middle of the seventeenth century, the republic of San Marino
placed itself under the patronage of the Holy See, which thus
acquired a kind of suzerainty over it. During the Pontificate
of Clement XII. some of the inhabitants of San Marino com­
plained of violent and arbitrary acts committed by some of the
officers of the republic, and earnestly besought the Pontiff to
receive them under the mild and beneficent government of the
Roman Church. Receiving no answer to their petition, they
applied to Cardinal Alberoni, who, after his disgrace in Spain,
was happy to receive the appointment of Apostolic legate in
the Romagna. The lust of power· never dies in an ambitious
heart. Alberoni communicated the request of the inhabitants
of San Marino to the Roman Court, and asked the Pope for
positive instructions on the subject. Clement XII. answered
the cardinal, through the Secretary of State, directing him to
repair to the frontier of the republic, and there to wait until
the inhabitants should voluntarily come to renew their first
request. “Should the majority of the responsible inhabitants,"
euid the Pope, “still desire the incorporation into the Pontifical
States, the cardinal may take possession of the city ; should it
be otherwise, he shall by no means urge the matter, but at
once return to the seat of his legation.” This prudent mode­
ration was not to Alberoni’s taste. The impetuous cardinal,
wiio had failed in Spain, in the attempt to place his master.
Philip V. upon the French throne, thought to cover himself
with glory in Italy, by giving to the Pope the republic of San
Marino. Without waiting for a manifestation of consent, as the
Pope had formally prescribed, he entered San Marino, took
possession of the republic, established a governor, and made
various laws for the government of the State, notwithstanding
the refusal of a great number of the citizens to swear allegiance
Clement XII., learning this abuse of power, disavowed the
action of his unfaithful legate, annulled all his proceedings, and

CLEMENT Xlf. (A. D. 1730-1740).

463

by a Pontifical decree, restored to the republic all the right
and privileges before granted to it by Popes Martin V., Urban
Ιλ , Clement VIII., and Leo X. Europe applauded this noble
disinterestedness, and Alberoni gained, by his rash attempt,
only the shame of having failed in an undertaking as injudi­
ciously planned as it was unfortunately carried out.
15. The first years of the Pontificate of Clement XII. were
marked by new scandals on the part of the Jansenists in
France. Francois Paris, a deacon of the diocese of Paris, died
on the 1st of January, a. d. 1727, after a life spent in obscurity,
and could have had no suspicion of the celebrity that awaited
his tomb. He had remained in the deaconship, conformably
to a common practice of the Jansenists, and spent two years at
a time, without receiving the Holy Eucharist, even at Easter.
This omission of a formal precept was, in the eyes of the sect,
a mark of the highest perfection. The teaching of /krnauld,
on “ Frequent Communion," had borne its fruit. Other exam­
ples of the same kind are found among the Jansenists ; the
most striking is that of Father de Gennes, an ex-Oratorian,
who was “so holy,” says his biographer, “as to abstain from
communion during fifteen years.” Alas ! such examples of
holiness have since become but too common ! The deacon Paris
was buried in the little cemetery of the parish of St. Médard,
where he might have slumbered in the most perfect oblivion, had
not the sect felt the necessity of some excitement to raise its
daily decreasing credit. It was accordingly imagined to trans
form the obscure deacon into another Thaumaturgus. The secta
ries met in a body about his grave, with convulsive *
writhing and
contortions, renewing in the eighteenth century, in the midst of
France, the most enlightened nation in the world, the extrava­
gances of the Quakers of Cromwell’s day in England. At the
same time, the country was flooded with apocryphal accounts
of pretended miracles wrought through the intercession of tho
new saint; the lame had suddenly recovered the use uf their
limbs, paralytics were suddenly cured amid strange convulsions.
The bait of novelty, the love of ihe marvellous, the success of

164

GENERAL HISTORY1 OP THE CHURCH.

interested views, soon drew to the cemetery of St MédanJ
superstitious crowds, ready, at the slightest appearances, to

I

believe whatever they were told. “ The authority of the bull
Unigenitus" said a coryphæus of .Tanseuism, “is such that we I
need miracles to counterbalance it.” The most striking feature
of the scenes enacted in the cemetery of St. Médard, were the
convulsions of the energumene. These convulsions, often at­
tended with pain, obliged the sufferers to seek what the sect called I
“the greater and the lesser helps,” {les grands et les petitu
secours); these consisted in violent blows inflicted upon different
parts of the body, with stones, hammers, or even with swords.
Indecency vied with absurdity in this scandalous jugglery.
I
Women were seen, writhing with strange gestures and move- i
ments, and preaching against the bull Unigenitus. The partisans
of these ridiculous prodigies must have been struck with a deep
blindness not to see their falseness. Some of these wretched
women seriously announced to the public that, on a given day,
and at a certain hour, they would give themselves to be cruci­
fied for the greater glory of Jansenism. It was time for
authority to interfere, and to put a stop to these mischievous
follies. M. De Vintimille issued a pastoral letter, vehemently
inveighing agaiust the pretended miracles of the deacon Paris,
against the disgraceful convulsions, forbidding the dissemina­
tion of relations of them, or the admission of their reality,
and condemning whatever had already been done in the matter.
Clement XII. confirmed the Archbishop’s pastoral ; unhappily,
two bishops, De Colbert and De Caylus, sided with the convulsionists and issued pastorale in their support. Languet,
irchbishop of Sens, whose zeal against Jansenism we have
already had occasion to mention, took in hand the cause of
truth, good sense and religion. The sect never forgave the
eloquent writings which he then published and in which he
lashed the convulsionists and their apologists, with as much
spirit as sound reasoning. The Benedictine La Tasts, after­
ward bishop of Bethlehem, joined his efforts to those of the
illustrons prelate, the charges of the two opposing bishop

CLEMENT XII. (A. D. 1730-1740).

465

were condemned at Rome and suppressed by a decree of the
council. The chief agent of the apocryphal miracles, the
advocate La Barre, was sent to the Bastille with four wretches
whom he used as tools to cheat the public credulity. The
cemetery of St. Médard was closed by order of the king. Even
these severe measures did not put a final stop to the convulsionary scenes ; they were carried on in the dark, and have
found believers even up to a very recent date. The birth of
a New Messiah, in 1792, was solemnly proclaimed by the Jan­
senists of Lyons. This child of prodigy, named Elie Dieu, was
to begin his mission in 1813. The heretical prophecy met the
fate of so many of its fellows.
16. Overcome on the ground of miracles, Jansenism in­
trenched itself in the parliaments, all more or less infected with
its spirit. A mysterious *fund
,
well supplied by the offerings
of the sect, supported the Gazette Ecclésiastique, the official organ
of the Jansenists, as well as the gratuitous printing and dis­
semination of libels against the Pope and the bishops ; it also
served to maintain monks and nuns who had abandoned the
cloisters, and to pay the expenses of the agents sent in dif­
ferent directions to rekindle the zeal of the lukewarm, to spur
on the ardent, and to make new proselytes. A circumstance
analagous to that of the Office of St. Gregory VII. renewed the
old difficulties, and proved to the world that none of the great
glories of religion could escape the censures of Jansenism.
Clement XII., by a bull of June 16, a.d. 1737, canonized St.
Vincent de Paul, the benefactor of France and of Europe, an
undying honor to the human race. On the 4th of January,
1738, by an edict which history might well desire to bury in
eternal night, the whole French magistracy, represented by
the parliament of Paris, suppressed the bull of canonization
• Thin fund was known by the unine of boite à Perrette; it was so called from .lie num·
o! Nicole’s housekeeper, Nicole himself having left a first deposit of forty thousand livrer
for the support of the cause. In 1728 the abbe Dorsanno, vicar-general of Cardinal d.
Noailles, added a bequest of one hundred and sixty-four thousand livres, fbo stock aoon
amounted to the immense sum of a million aud a half.
Vol ΠΓ.—30

4(if»

GEWBRAL HISTORY OP THE C^ünCH.

The pretext for this unspeakably disgraceful conduct was a
passage of the Pontifical bull, in which Clement XII. coin,
mends the Christian hero for his zeal against the Jansenistic
error. Several parish priests in Paris joined their protests to
the parliamentary decree, and ten of the most distinguished
barristers of that time supported the manifesto of these un­
worthy priests by a written opinion, “ in which they declared
that the defects which abounded in the bull authorized the
curates to protest against its being registered, which would not
prevent them from appealing at a more fitting time, as against
an abuse.” It will not be hard to conceive the intense pain
inflicted upon the heart of the Sovereign Ponti IT by such a
scandal given by the priests and magistrates of a nation styling
itself the “Eldest Daughter of the Church,” and respecting
a saint who was the brightest glory of France. Still he did
not deem it best to act under the circumstances with a rigor
which would have given more publicity and force to a lament­
able opposition. He contented himself with dealing by nego
tiation with the court of France. His complaints found an
organ and a powerful defender in the queen, Mary Leczinski
At her petition, Louis XV. ordered that the parliamentary de­
cree should be suppressed, and the memorial of the curates
considered null and void. He at the same time checked
another false step of the magistrates, who had forbidden the
title of ecumenical to be given to the fifth Lateran council ; as if
it belonged to secular judges to decide the ecumenicalness of
councils. The king annulled their decree, but they still per­
sisted in maintaining the principle it contained.
17. Had we no other guide than the first principles of tho
Catechism, or even the most ordinary common sense, we must
pronounce the conduct of the parliament of Paris, in this case,
absurd ; but we must change our opinion if we would square
it with the “ Liberties of the Gallican Church.” Fleury,
treating of these celebrated “ Liberties,” speaks thus : “ The
ancient doctrine has been left to doctors often less pious and
less exemplary in their morals than those who teach the new

CLEMENT XII. (A. D. 1T30-1U0),

401

Sometimes, also, those who have opposed the novelties were
profane and licentious jurists or politicians who have outraged
truth and made it odious. It is wonderful that the ancient
and sound doctrine should have been able to exist amid so
many obstacles.” What Fleury here styles the ancient, and
sound doctrine is the doctrine of the parliaments, of the jurists,
or of the profane and licentious politicians ; his novelties are the
sentiments of the Roman Church, of the most illustrious doctors
and saints, such as St. Vincent de Paul, St. Francis of Sales,
St. Thomas Aquinas. Now if the parliaments, the jurists, the
profane and licentious politicians have preserved the ancient
and sound doctrine against the scandalous novelties introduced
by the Popes and the saints, it cannot be denied that it also
belongs to them to examine and to pass final judgment upon
buils of canonization and even councils called ecumenical, in
order to point out and to brand the corrupting tendencies of
the saints and of the Roman Church. The consequence is
strictly logical.
18. The parliament soon showed that it had no idea of
leaving the principle in the state of a theory, but meant to apply
it in practice. Since the promulgation of the bull Unigenitus,
when a sick Jansenist called for the holy Viaticum, the Catholic
bishops and priests required that the patient should first sub
mit to the decisions of the Church concerning the errors he had
held, and that he should confess to an approved priest. The
last clause was the more necessary, as Jansenist priests secretly
visited every quarter of Paris, and even all the provincial cities,
ready to give unconditional absolution to any heretic who re­
quested the help of their ministry. The Jansenists in fact held
the principle that a suspended priest could licitly hear confes­
sions, nor would they admit that any ecclesiastical authority
had the power to withdraw that right. The conduct of the
orthodox bishops and clergy was displeasing to the magistrates
who composed the parliaments ; they looked upon it as an
equally unjust and arbitrary act of violence. The magistrates
soon began to issue decrees enjoining the pastors of souls tc

4 6R

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

give the holy Viaticum, without conditions, to every Jansen·!
on pain of fine, imprisonment, and exile. This persecution o'
the French parliaments against the Catholic Church began
openly in 1731. On the 28th of April, the parliament of Par s
gave judgment against the Bishop of Orleans, in favor of a
Jansenist woman who had been refused the sacraments. The
king annulled the decree, as an abuse, because it laid an injunc­
tion upon a bishop in spiritual matters. The parliament pre­
sented remonstrances to which the king replied, that he persisted in supporting the decree of his council and forbade the
magistrates to give any contrary decision ; his orders were not
respected. The conflicts were but the harbingers of that spirit
of revolt and independence, whose withering breath was to
sweep away the monarchy amid bloodshed and ruin. But
Louis asserted his mastery. Tie abrogated the decree of the
parliament, made it null, and pronounced it void and of no
effect. He ordered that the minute of it should be erased, and
the ordinance of suppression inscribed in the margin. Th s
display of rigor checked the boldness of the parliament for a
season, but it revenged the shame of its defeat by suppressing
a decree and a brief lately issued by Clement XII. against a
“ Life of the deacon Pâlis,” against the pretended miracles of
the cemetery of St. Médard, and against a pastoral letter of the
Jansenist bishop of Montpellier. This new attempt against the
authority of the Holy See passed unnoticed.
19. This period is signalized by the appearance of a man
who was to join the immortality of genius to that of scandal,
who seemed to have received from hell the power of destruction
and deep hatred against all civil and ecclesiastical hierarchies,
who astonished his age by the nobility of his character and the
prestige of his talent, equally hypocritical and corrupt : who
seemed to have collected, as into a focus, every idea of unbelief
of license, of universal negation, of hostility to the Church and to
Christ; who assumed the mission of branding the holiest art.·
des of belief, of calumniating the purest glories, of denying the
existence of Ged, of the soul, of conscience, of religion of

CLEMENT XTï. (A. D. 1Ï3O-174O).

469

sapping the foundations of all social institutions, consolidated
by centuries of benefits and of victories ; who succeeded in
hurling the oldest monarchy of Europe into an abyss of blood,
amid the enthusiastic applause of all Europe ; in a word, of
Voltaire, who was just entering upon his long career of literary
and immoral triumphs, by so much corruption and glory, by so
much greatness and infamy. Compelled to withdraw to Eng­
land in 1726, in consequence of an imprudent challenge, the
youthful Aroult de Voltaire bore with him in his exile a deep
and bitter resentment. In this frame of mind he was strongly
impressed by the government, the laws and the customs of that
nation. The freedom, of which the British institutions pre­
sented rather the image than the reality, captivated that super­
ficial mind already seduced by false theories of independence.
The speculations of Collins, Tindal, Wollaston, Morgan, and
Chubb, which aimed at raising deism upon the ruins of faith,
made a deep impression upon the mind of the fugitive; and he
then resolved to carry back to France a religious system which
flattered every passion, consecrated every form of belief, and
realized, in its widest acceptation, that freedom of opinion
which had been the dream of Luther, was now the aim of philo­
sophy, and afterward became the favorite weapon of every
revolution. From his retreat in England, Voltaire sent forth
his Lettres philosophiques or Lettres sur les Anglais. They touch
upon every subject—theology, metaphysics, history, literature,
science, and manners. The lively, keen, and dogmatic style,
the delicate derision and irony, the biting epigrams, all the col­
lection of literary qualities and defects which made the fortune
of Voltaire, were found in this work from an author not yet
thirty years old. Religion was treated, in these letters, in the
same sarcastic style ; he scoffed at the Catholic clergy and at
our religious rites, while heaping praises upon the then illiterate
tnd extravagant sect of Quakers. “ I am a body, and I think ;
that is all I know ; I deem it impossible to demonstrate the im­
mortality of the soul.” France had been overstocked with scan­
dalous works of every description ; but she had never before

had appealed and refused to sign the “ Formula.” or io receive
the hull Unigenitus. The object of his work was to prove dog.
maticnlly that any priest, though not approved, could validly
and licitly absolve any penitent that might come to him. This
was the thesis of the Jansenists and the parliaments in the
47Ο
GEÎTERAL HISTORY OP THE CHURCH.
cases of the refusal
of the sacraments. Travers agreed that
the usage of the Church was against him, but. he was by no
heard the language of impiety uttered in a manner so clear. mo
means afraid of it The decision of the Council of Trent, de­
absolute,
so formal.
the great
Bossuet,
was nowithout
)onr?er
claring the
nullity ofBossuet,
any absolution
given
by a priest
injurisdiction,
the field toeither
scatter
with orhis
invincible
those
ordinary
delegated,
was eloquence
of no more
im­
sophisms
birth.“That
Thedecree,"
Theological
Faculty
of Paris
portanceofinforeign
his eyes.
said the
Jansenist
doc­
condemned the Lettre» sur les Anglais; but the decree was
powerless to check the invasion of philosophism, which had
now a head, a guide, an apostle. Voltaire was allowed io
return to France, where he was received with enthusiasm by
the lords of the court of Louis XV., who blindly rushed to the

Ί

i

lH

tor, “ applies only to priests contemporary with the Council.
Beside, I find in it another error. The approval of confessors
by the bishop to the exclusion of the curates, might pass for a

CLEMENT ΧΠ. (A D. 1130-B40).

471

eeived and a council respected by the whole Church. It is
plain that while the Jansenists did not spare the authority of
the Holy See, they showed no more respect for that of the
ecumenical councils, to which, however, they continually ap
pealed. The Sorbonne condemned the work of the innovator;
Languet, whose name is heard wherever there is a Jansenist to
be met, and Cardinal Tencin, archbishop of Embrun, joined
their condemnation to that of the Sorbonne.
21. Voltaire had sworn to disseminate the deism of England ;
at the same epoch another importation of the same stock was
spreading in France, in Germany, and in Italy. Under the
name of Freemasonry, a secret, society, claiming to have in
hcrited the traditions of the Templars, gathered together, unde»
the pretext of the public good, men of the highest wealth, rank,
and intelligence. All the emblems of the society related to
the fundamental idea of the building of a temple. In the idea
of the founders, the temple was, doubtless, to be a new world
freed from all religious belief, hierarchical subordination, or
regular form of government. Freemasonry thus concentrated
within itself all the germs of destruction, all the hidden poisons,
that were to break forth at the appointed time for the ruin of
the social body. The members were admitted only after a
mysterious and fearful ordeal ; they were bound to strict secrecy
concerning all that they might see or hear in the lodges, as they
called their assemblies. The real object of the institution was
known to a few leaders, and never intrusted to the privato
members, who were amused with vain formulas and mysterious
symbols, true children’s toys. It was enough to have gathered
together a secret army, perfectly disciplined, ready to rise at
the first signal against the Church and society. By the bull
In Eminent (April 28, a. d. 1737), Clement XII. condemned
Freemasonry, forbade the faithful to take part in it on any
pretext whatever, or to contribute to its progress in any man
ner. This solemn anathema against the Freemasons has never
been revoked. The revolution of 1789. that volcano whose
lava had long been boiling in the breasts of the secret societies.

472

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

should have sufficiently enlightened every honest mind as tc
the real aim of those dangerous associations ; yet Freemasonry
lives even in our own day, and governments, by a fatal want
of foresight, think it enough for their safety to place at the
head of the sect some well-known or devoted names. It is a
cloak thrown upon the billows of the sea.
22. The vigilance of the Sovereign Pontiff reached the
farthest regions of the globe. On Lebanon, the ancient retreat
of Elias and his disciples, there were a great number of monas­
teries, some composed of Maronites, or native Syrians, others
of Melchite Greeks. Each had a community in Rome, where
their best subjects were perfected in knowledge and piety and
then sent back to their native land as apostolic missionaries.
With the exception of a few monasteries, independent of each
other, the Maronite religious constituted two Congregations ; the
older that of St. Eliseus, or of Mt. Lebanon, the other of St.
Isaias, both under the rule of St. Anthony, the patriarch of
the monastic life in Egypt. These religious were cordially
united and obedient to the authority of the Roman Church.
The Abbot-General of the congregation of Mt. Lebanon or of St.
Eliseus, applied to the Pope for a confirmation of their rules
and constitutions. Clement XII. granted the request by a
bull of March 31, a.d. 1732. The Congregation of St. Isaias
followed substantially the same rule, but a national council
having decreed that all the Maronites should have their statutes
approved by the Holy See, the Congregation applied to Clement
XII. for a special confirmation, which was granted by a brief
of the 17th of January, 1740. In the preceding year the Pope
had approved the rules of the Melchite monks of the congre­
gation of St. John the Baptist, on Mt. Lebanon, especially for
their monastery in Rome. At the same time the learned
Orientalist, Joseph Assemani, visited all the monasteries in
Syria, by order of the Pope, and returned, after an absence of
three years, with a large collection of medals and manuscripts
to enrich the Vatican library.
23. Clement ΧΠ. died on the 6th of February, a. d. 1740,

HEN F. D ICT XIV (A. D. 1740 1758/.

473

after a reign of nine years. The death of Prince Eugene, at
Vienna (April 27, 1737), revived the fallen courage of the
Turks. They defeated the Austrians and retook Belgrade and
Temesvar ; the Hungarian prince, Rakoczy, who held secret
communications with the Mussulmans, and whose ravages in
Hungary obliged Austria to conclude a peace on unfavorable
terms, was the chief cause of these misfortunes ; he was ex
communicated bv Clement XII.

§ III. Pontificate

of

Benedict XIV. (August 17, a. d. 1740—
May 3, 1758.)

24. Among the cardinals created by Clement XII., the most
illustrious was undoubtedly the theologian Prospero Lambertini,
a Bolognese, whose learning even surpassed that of the most
distinguished Benedictines of that period, so rich in illustrious
names. His education had been remarkable ; «his rapid progress
soon brought him far beyond all the students of his own age.
The most serious studies could not tire his ardor for work, or
dull the vivacity of his mind. St. Thomas was his favorite
author in theology. He applied himself with equal success
to the study of canon and civil law, and was early appointed
consistorial advocate. Being afterward made Promoter of the
Faith, he had occasion to take part in the usual processes for
the beatification and canonization of Saints ; and to this cir­
cumstance we are indebted for an admirable work on this sub­
ject; it is his masterpiece.
Passionately devoted to the
sciences, to historical researches and monuments of art, Lam­
bertini was connected with all the great men of his time. He
had the highest esteem for F. Montfaucon, with whom he had
become acquainted at Rome.
Successively canon of St
Peter’s, consultor of the Holy Office, a member of the Congre­
gation of Rites, canonist of the Penitentiary, archbishop of
Bologna, and finally cardinal, Lambertini always reflected honor
upon the high dignities to which the confidence of the Pope·

<74

GENERAL IHSTORV OF THE CHURCH.

had raised him. Such was the man for whom the hi-zheet
destinies were in store; on the 17th of August, a. d. 1740, a
unanimous vote called him to the Sovereign Pontificate. He
was asked, according to the established usage, whether he ac­
cepted the eminent dignity. “I accept it,” he replied, “for
three reasons; lam unwilling to oppose the manifestM.il of
God, which I recognize in this election, since I have never de­
sired the Sovereign Pontificate; I will not, by refusing, seem
to despise your favor; in fine, I think it time to close a con­
clave which has already lasted too long.”
25. Each year of the Pontificate of Benedict XIV was
marked by some important bulls, sometimes to preserve the
purity of sound doctrine against the attacks of error, sometimes
to reform abuses; at times, also, for the introduction of use­
ful customs. One only political event—but one which left a
long and baneful mark upon the after history of Europetroubled the Pontiff’s reign. It was the war for the Austrian
succession, which broke out at the death of Charles VI. (Octo
her 20, a. d. 1740). As the last scion of the house of Aus
tria, that prince had sacrificed all to secure to his family the
succession to the imperial crown, by a Constitution known as
the Pragmatic Sanction. This measure formed the main object
of all his political transactions for a period of twenty years ;
and when he sunk into the grave, he thought that he had left
the way to the throne open for his eldest daughter, the Arch
duchess Maria Theresa, who had married the Grand Duke of
Tuscany. Nearly all the European powers had promised to
oOserve the “ Pragmatic Sanction but, as Prince Eugene
wisely remarked, “an army of a hundred thousand men would
have enforced it better than a hundred thousand treaties."
Events proved the hero’s foresight. Scarcely, however, had
Charles closed his eyes, when claimant after claimant appeared
to dispute the succession. Beside Francis of Lorraine the
husband of Maria Theresa, came the electors of Bavaria and
Saxony—the former, Charles Albert, on the ground of descent.
fi om a daughter of the emperor Ferdinand I. · the latter, Augus-

BENEDICT XrV. (A. D. 1740-1753).

475

fus ITT., as the husband of the eldest daughter of the emperor
Joseph I. From another quarter Philip V. of Spain, and
Charles Emmanuel of Sardinia, claimed the succession on dif­
ferent grounds. The king of France, sprung from the eldest
branch of the house of Austria, through the mother, and the
queen of Louis XIV. could have proved a better claim than
any of the various competitors; but he preferred to act as arbi­
ter rather than as rival, and this resolve showed as much disin­
terestedness as wisdom and moderation. The cause of so many
crowned heads was pleaded throughout the whole Christian
world by public memorials ; a general war seemed unavoida­
ble ; the storm broke out in a direction in which no one had
thought of looking for it.
26. We here venture to remark, that in the middle ages a
question of this nature would have been solved by more peace­
able means ; recourse would have been had to the arbitrament of
the Sovereign Pontiff, and so much the more justly in this case,
that the German Empire was created by the Popes. But in the
eighteenth century the parts seemed to have been reversed ;
the great powers seemed to have banished the Papacy to the
exclusive domain of its spiritual jurisdiction, and we shall soon
find them even questioning its right to exist. Ducal Prussia,
lately erected, as we have seen, into a hereditary kingdom, had
been ruled for thirty years (a. d. 1713—1740) by Frederick
William I., elector of Brandenburg, a Protestant prince, a stern
and fierce soldier. This military founder of Prussia looked
upon the State as upon a regiment. Fearing lest his son
might not carry out his plans, he felt strongly tempted to cut
olT his head. This son, afterward Frederick II., was not pleas­
ing to a father who could esteem and appreciate only physical
strength. The prince was small in stature, with broad shoulders,
a hard and piercing eye, and a strange physiognomy. He was
a wit, a poet, a musician, but especially a philosopher, imbued
with all the new ideas, in politics and religion, which the Vol­
tairian school was to raise to honor ; his tastes were depraved,
his instincts immoral; he had a passion for writing wretched

476

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

French verses, which Voltaire was cringing enough to praise ;ia
masterpieces ; ho knew no Latin, and despised his mother
tongue, the German. But he had one quality which gained
him the title of “Great;” he willed. Ho would be brave; he
would make Prussia one of the first States of Europe ; he
would be a legislator; he would have the deserts of his coun­
try inhabited—and he succeeded. He did for Prussia what
Peter the Great had just done for Russia. When the question
of the Austrian succession first arose, he foresaw the general
confusion that must follow, and hastened to turn it to his profit
He could claim from Maria Theresa, in her capacity of sover­
eign of Hungary, four duchies in Silesia. His ancestors had
renounced their claim because they were weak ; he felt himself
strong, and he revived them. He accordingly demanded of
Maria Theresa the possession of Lower Silesia, in return for
which he promised to help her to the imperial throne by' his
credit, arms, and money. But the blood of a long line of ein·
peiors flowed in the veins of the heroic princess ; she could not
think of dismembering the patrimony of her ancestors ; she pre­
ferred war. Frederick invaded the province to which he laid
claim, in the month of December, 1740 ; and the victory of
Molwitz (1741), the forerunner of greater triumphs, crowned
his first campaign.
27. The King of Prussia had foreseen that his success would
win him allies, and that France would not miss so favorable an
opportunity of helping to the downfall of her ancient rival, the
house of Austria. Still, Cardinal Fleury wished to remain
true to the faith of treaties ; in the councils of the French
monarch, he pleaded the cause of Maria Theresa, in the name
of honor, of justice, and perhaps of prudence. This steady op­
position to the current of opinion will ever be an honor to the
character of that prudent minister. But Louis XV. was now
surrounded by youthful nobles, who were eager for combats ;
their opinion prevailed ; the king no longer heeded the voice
of. his old preceptor ; an alliance offensive and defensive beIween France and Prussia against Austria was signed, and

BENEDICT XTV. (A. D. 1740-115·).

the octogenarian minister undertook the direction of an enter­
prise to which he was opposed.
28. Charles Albert, elector of Bavaria, was recognized by
the cabinet of Versailles as lawful heir to the imperial throne ;
Louis XV. gave him an army commanded by Maurice de Saxe
and Chevert; and the army gave him a crown. Charles Albert
invaded Bohemia, made himself master of Prague, and was
crowned at Frankfort as-Charles VII. (January 24, a. d. 1742).
It was something to have grasped the sceptre, but it was neces­
sary to hold it. Circumstances seemed to favor him. while the
situation of Maria Theresa was desperate in the extreme. The
peril itself furnished resources. A fugitive among the Hunga­
rians, she called together the four Orders of the State at Presburg, appeared before them, holding in her arms her eldest child,
afterward Joseph II., and addressed them in Latin, a language
which she spoke with ease and elegance : “ Forsaken by my
friends, persecuted by my enemies, attacked by my nearest
relatives, I have no hope but in your fidelity, in your courage,
and in my constancy ; to your care I intrust the daughter and
the son of your kings ; their hope is in you.” The nobles,
deeply affected, drew their swords, exclaiming with enthusi­
asm : “ Moriamur pro rege nostro Maria Theresia!”—“Let us
die for our king Maria Theresa!” Never did princess better
deserve this sincere devotedness. They could not withhold
their tears as they uttered their oath to defend her; she
alone restrained hers ; misfortune needs firmness to command
sympathy. England and Holland, foreseeing that the state of
things would soon change, sent pecuniary assistance to the
princess, whom the popular enthusiasm had just proclaimed
king of Hungary. The King of Sardinia, won over by import­
ant concessions, broke off from the league, and embraced the
cause against which he had lately taken up arms. The enemies
of Maria Theresa served her still better by their faults. Dis­
cord entered among them, breaking up the harmony, and con­
sequently the success of all their measures. Prince Charles,
brother of the Grand Duke, harassed the allies with his pandoors,

47Ê

GENERAL HI8T0RÎ OP ΤΠΕ CHURCH.

his tolpschs, Croatians, and hussars, a fearfully destructive
scourge for troops dispersed and easily surprised. At length
the Franco-Bavarian army was almost’ annihilated without a
single action of importance. Meanwhile the King of Prussia,
victorious at Czaslaw, and much more deeply concerned for
his personal interests than for the collective advantage of
the league, had on his own account, concluded, with Maria
Theresa the treaty of Breslaw, which left him in possession
of Silesia. The Elector of Saxony was included in this con­
vention, so that the French, seeing no prospect of a diversion,
were soon forced to evacuate the city of Prague. Marshal
Belle-Isle retreated with thirteen thousand men, the shattered
remnant of a once formidable army ; and, from the extremity
of Germany, which they had reached by victorious marche'
they were compelled to fall back on the Rhine to defend them­
selves. Charles VII. was driven out of Bavaria, and his pres­
ent losses equalled his past success (1742). Cardinal Fleury
did not outlive these disasters, which his prudence could not
avert, but which bis able administration energetically strove to
’•epair (January 20, 1743). On the death of his minister,
Louis XV., like his great grandfather, took the reins oi gov­
ernment into his own hands. His mildness and affability had
won all hearts, and if the latter part of his reign had been in
keeping with its happy beginning, posterity would have rati­
fied the beautiful title of le Bien-Aimé—the Well Beloved—
bestowed on a memorable occasion by the gratitude of his
people.
29. Louis XV. felt bound to avenge the reverses of his
arms. The English had just entered into a definitive alliance
with Maria Theresa. Their army, commanded by King George
11. in person, was surrounded near Dettingen by the skillful
tactics of Marshal de Noailles. The position was that of Poi­
tiers and Crécy ; the result was the same ; the precipitate haste
of the French was their own ruin, and the name of Dettingen
was added to the list of fatal days in the history of France.
In this critical situation Louis did not hesitate ; he thought

BENEDICT XTV. (λ. D. 1740-Π58).

*79

that the post of the King of France was where the danger was
greatest. He hastened to Flanders (a. d. 1744), with his best
generals. De Noailles and Saxe, took Courtrai, Menin, Ypres,
Fumes and La Knoque. Suddenly he learned that Charles of
Lorraine had crossed the Rhine, at Spires, with sixty thousand
men ; that he was advancing through Alsatia, and even recon­
noitering Lorraine. Louis, leaving the field of his triumphs to
the care of Marshal Saxe, hurried to the rescue of his threat­
ened provinces. At Metz he was prostrated by a malignant
fever which, in a few days, brought him to the gates of death
This intelligence, borne with the speed of the wind, from pro
vince to province, from city to city, was everywhere received
with tears and lamentations. The churches, open day and
night for public prayers, were always crowded. Louis, think­
ing his last hour at hand, said to his Minister of War, Count
d’Argenson : “ Write in my name to Marshal de Noailles, that
while Louis XIII. was carried to the grave, the Prince of Condé
was gaining a victory.” On the next day the king was out of
danger The courier who brought the news to Paris was em­
braced and nearly smothered by the people ; wild with joy. they
even kissed his horse and led him through the city in triumph ;
the streets resounded with the joyful cry : “ The king is safe !
Long live Louis XV. the Well-Beloved !” Louis, by his cour­
age, showed himself worthy of this enthusiastic affection. The
victories of Fontenoy. Lawfeldt and Rocoux, the capture of
Tournai, Ghent. Oudenarde, Ostend, Brussels, Mons, Namur,
Bergen-op-Zoom, and Maastricht, forced the enemies of France
to sue for peace (1748) ; and beside, there had long ceased t<
be any motive for continuing hostilities. In 1745, the emperor
Charles VIL, whose destiny was becoming daily more uncer­
tain, died in his capital, Munich, rather of grief than of disease.
Maria Theresa succeeded in obtaining the votes of the Diet it
favor of her consort, and the imperial crown thus passed to thf
house of Lorraine, in the person of Francis I. His accession
was confirmed by the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, in which the
victorious Louis XV. treated, to use his own words, “ nol like

480

GENERAL FUSIOR V OF THE CHURCH.

η trader but like a king.” Frederick the Great kept hit
Silesian possessions. All the other claimants restored the ter­
ritory they had conquered. Never had a war so formidable
caused so few changes; it was a second treaty of Rys wick
(October 17, 1748).
30. During this long period of hostilities Benedict XIV.
observed the strictest neutrality toward all the belligerent
powers. Italy had also been the scene of bloody combats.
A strong French force under Marshal Maillebois was sent to
restore, in the Duchy of Milan and Parma, Don Philip, son-inlaw of Louis XV., and son of Philip V. and Queen Elizabeth
Farnese. Like Moses on Mt. Horeb, the Pope prayed for the
success of the right. The Austrian, Spanish and Neapolitan
troops established themselves indiscriminately in the Pontifical
States. The officers passing through Rome made it a duty to
respect the throne of religion had the abode of peace. The
armies of Charles of Lorraine and of Lobknowitz met before the
gates of the city, without in the least troubling the security of
the Romans. After the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle Benedict
XIV. received a just indemnity for the sojourn of tne troops
in his dominions; and the European powers, while thus dis­
charging their obligations toward him, strengthened their n··
pective alliances by the sacred bond of universal concord.
31. It was now two years since the final settlement of a
question in which the Papacy had always been deeply interested.
The proscribed members of the house of Stuart had found in
Rome a noble and generous hospitality. The Sovereign Pon­
tiffs could not forget that the attachment of that family to the
faith, was the sole cause of all their misfortunes ; the capital
of the Christi in world was, for the illustrious exiles, as a second
home, in which they found, if not the power, at least the respect,
due to their rink and to their birth. In 1745, Charles Edward,
grandson of the unfortunate James II., seizing the occasion of­
fered by the content between France and England, determined to
try the fortune of war. A fishing boat landed him on the const
of Scotland th it boat was bearing hack Catholicity to the “ Isle

BENEDICT XIV. (A. D. 1740-1788).

481

of Saints," in the person of the heir of so many kings. When
the young prince made himself known to some of the inhabitants
of Moidart, they threw themselves at his feet and said to him :
“ What can we do? we have no arms, we are poor, we live on
oaten bread and till a barren soil." “ I will till this soil with
you,” replied the prince ; “ I will eat of your bread, I will share
your want; and I bring you arms.” They swore to restore the
son of their kings to the throne of his fathers, and the prince
was soon surrounded by a little band of faithful highlanders
with a few French auxiliaries. The English government set a
price upon the head of Charles Edward, and offered thirty thou­
sand pounds sterling to any one who should give him up. The
young prince, true to the teaching of his Church, acted more
generously, and issued an order forbidding his adherents to
make any attempt upon the life of George II. or of any member
of the royal family. The victory of Preston Pans over General
Cope, was the reward of this generous order. Charles Edward
marched into England, as far as Derby, about one hundred and
twenty miles from London. Everything promised success to
the Pretender, when the Scottish chiefs, in a moment of doubt
as to their fortune, decided upon a retreat. The prince vehe
mently opposed the measure and followed the retiring army,
mad with indignation. The English, under the Duke of Cum­
berland, the greatest of the British commanders of his time,
took the offensive and followed the Scotch into their own coun­
try. Victory once more crowned the cause of justice at Falkirk,
but the Duke of Cumberland was victorious at Culloden (April 27,
a. d. 1746), and completed the destruction of the Jacobite party
by executions which won for him the surname of the “ Butcher.”
Charles Edward, after almost miraculously escaping the danger·»
that threatened his life, died in Florence. His brother, the
Duke of York, was raised to the cardinalate by Benedict XIV.
in 1717, and died, Dean of the Sacred College, in 1807. With
him perished the glorious but unfortunate race of the Stuarts.
32. The importance of the war for the Austrian succession
had, for a moment, calmed the fury of Jansenism ; but it arose
Vou IV. -81

(82

GBNERAL HI8T0RV OF ΤΠΕ CHURCH.

with new life after the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle. The refusal of
the sacraments to the sectaries, without a certificate of confes­
sion attesting that the patient had received absolution from an
approved priest, was still the object of their recriminations.
On the 29th of December, a. d. 1750, a councillor denounced
an act of this nature to the parliament of Paris. The priest
who had made the refusal was instantly summoned. When
questioned as to the motive of his conduct, he answered that
he was accountable for it only to his archbishop, whose orders
he would strictly obey. The offended magistrates committed
the priest to prison, while the procurators and advocates of the
parliament waited on the archbishop, the intrepid Christopher
de Beaumont. The prelate replied that, having found the cus­
tom of requiring certificates of confession established in his
diocese, nothing should induce him to depart from it. Public
indignation was aroused by the arbitrary conduct of the parlia­
ment; the priest was released, but the magistrates revenged
themselves by issuing a decree “forbidding all ecclesiastics to
do anything tending to create a schism, especially by any
public refusal of sacraments, on the ground of the absence of
certificate of confession, or of a declaration of the name of the
eonfessor or of receiving the bull Unigenitus." This scandalously
bold decree was ever afterward the foundation of every measure
taken by the tribunals against the Catholic clergy. Thousands of
copies were scattered in all directions. They bore an allegorical
stamp, representing the magistracy under the form of justice,
with the pompous legend : “ Custos Unitatis, Schismatis Ultrix."
Alarmed by these anarchical symptoms, twenty-one prelates
met in Paris and addressed a letter to the king under the name
of “ Representations,” in which they strongly expressed all
their grief and indignation. The parliament had dared, by a
decree of May -5, 17-52, to accuse the venerable Languet,
Archbishop of Sens, of favoring schism. On this subject the
bishops presented another memorial to Louis XV. “ Magis­
trates,” said they, “ who can authentically learn only from us
what really constitutes schism, do not hesitate to bring that

BENEDICT XIV. (A. D. J MO-1758).

4b3

odious charge against their pastor ; and as a proof of the blind­
ness with which prejudice has stricken them, they accuse the
prelate of being a schismatic, at the very time when, by a
special decree, they forbid that the insulting epithet should be
applied to the least of your Majesty’s subjects.”
33. The parliament had nothing solid to oppose to this logic,
as clear and simple as good sense and truth could make it. It
had recourse to new acts of violence. On the 4th of January.
a. d. 1753, the Bishop of Orleans was condemned to pay a fine
of six thousand livres, and a curate of his diocese to perpetual
banishment, for refusing the sacraments. The king, tired of
these repeated scandals, thought to prevent their renewal by a
decree requiring them to “ abstain until further order, from all
prosecution and procedure for refusal of the sacraments.” The
order, stamped with the royal seal, was sent to the parliament,
which refused to register it, continued its tyrannical acts of
violence, and decreed that, in default of all other business, it
should continue its sittings to judge ecclesiastics guilty of
refusing the sacraments. Louis sent a command to the rebel­
lious magistrates to register the royal edict on pain of disobedi­
ence and of incurring the indignation of the king. The parlia­
ment declared that it could not obey, and continued, in the
same session, to try .several cases of refusal of sacraments
What a strange confusion of the simplest notions of law and
justice ! Royal officers, appointed by the king to administer
justice to the people, teach the people, by their example, to
condemn the king ; they devote all their energies to persecuting
the Catholic Church in the name of a hypocritical, restless, and
dangerous sect, which rejects all authority, repudiates all
powers, and intrenches itself in insubordination as in an inex­
pugnable fortress! The struggle is now between the king and
the magistrates; the time is at hand when it will be between
the king and the people. The body of French society thus
showed symptoms of a near and irremediable decline. Louis
XV. could not yield. AU the members of the parliament were
banished to Bourges, Poitiers, and Pontoise, and particular

<84

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

courts were instituted, by a royal edict, for the administration
of justice (1753)
34. Louis XV. might have believed that this severe mea­
sure would put an end to the disorders. Severity was always
painful to his kind heart; in the month of August, λ. d. 1704,
he consented to sign the recall of the parliament. “ After the
punishment of its resistance and its refusal to do justice,” said
the king in his edict, “ we have yielded to the voice of clemency,
hoping that the parliament will fulfill our wishes by an unre­
served fidelity and submission.” If the magistrates made the
promise, they did not keep it long. The pastoral letters of
the Catholic bishops were, by order of the parliament, thrown
into the flames. Nothing was now heard but summons, sen­
tences, fines, seizures, imprisonment, and exile decreed against
the pastors who refused to administer the sacraments to the
Jansenists. Some apostate and suspended priests took ad­
vantage of the disorder to multiply scandals, and, escorted by
the sergeants of the parliament, to take the holy Viaticum to
impenitent heretics. Christopher de Beaumont, archbishop of
Paris, was banished, first to Conflans, afterward to Lagny. The
Bishop of Orleans, M. de Montmorency, a name linked with all
the glories of France, was banished from his diocese, and his
chapter was subjected to a real persecution. M. Poncet, Bishop
of Troyes, the noble successor of the unworthy Bossuet, was
condemned to pay an enormous fine ; his property was seized
and confiscated. M. de Brancas, archbishop of Aix, was exiled
by the parliament of Provence. The bishops of Vannes and
of Nantes suffered the same fate. M. de Belzunce, whose
name was uttered by the city of Marseilles only as that of a
hero and a saint, found no more favor than his colleagues, in
the eyes of the guilty magistracy, which took to itself the
odious mission of assailing the most venerable members of a
clergy whose virtue was the admiration of all Europe. These
monstrous outrages were crowned by a decree of the parlia­
ment of Paris, in which it was stated that « they incidentally
received the attorney-general, appealing from the execution of

BENEDICT XIV. (A. D. 17*0-1158).

485

the bull Unigenitus as an abuse, especially inasmuch as certain
ecclesiastics claimed for it the character or the effects of a rule
of faith.” It was consequently decreed that “ there existed
an abuse,” and the order was issued, “ that every ecclesiastic,
of what dignity soever, should preserve, in regard to the bull,
a general, respective, and absolute silence.” The Archbishop
of Paris, the illustrious De Beaumont, could not allow such an
attempt to go unpunished. From the place of his exile he pub­
lished a celebrated “ Pastoral Instruction,” treating of the au­
thority of the Church, the teaching of faith, the administration
of the sacraments, and the submission due to the bull Uni­
genitus. On the 4th of November, 1756, the parliament
ordered the archbishop’s pastoral to be burnt by the hangman
on the Place de Grève. Benedict XIV. now sent forth the
voice of tliQ Head of the Church, that voice once so revered in
France. After expressing his heartfelt grief for the series of
disorders which that unhappy country was now made to wit­
ness, he paid a well-deserved homage to the generous firmness
of the faithful bishops. He announced that the Unigenitus was
a rule of faith, certain, formal, irrefragable ; “ that no one can
withhold the submission due to it without risking his eternal
salvation. Hence it follows that the holy Viaticum should be
refused to the refractory, by the general rule which forbids the
admission of a public and notorious sinner to the Holy Eucha­
rist.” Peter had spoken by the mouth of Benedict XIV. ; the
magistrates, still rebellious, suppressed the Pontifical brief.
At length, on the 10th of December, 1756, Louis XV. issued
an edict which was thought calculated to restore peace. He re­
quired respect and submission to the bull Unigenitus. He declared
that the silence prescribed by the former declarations could not
impair the right of the bishops to teach their people. He decided
that priests could not be prosecuted for refusing the sacraments
to notorious heretics. The king held a bed of justice, and had
this new edict registered in his own presence, which so enraged
the members of the parliament that most of them sent in their
resignation.

486

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

35. Deaf to the voice of its archbishop, of its king, of the
Sovereign Pontiff, the parliament was about to feel one of
those thunder-strokes with which Heaven sometimes smites the I
guilty. On the 4th of January, a. d. 1757, Louis XV. received
an anonymous letter warning him to “ take the part of his peo­
ple, not to be so indulgent toward the clergy, and to order that I
(he sacraments should be administered to the dying ; that other· I
wise his life was not safe." On the following day the knife I
of a regicide signed the mysterious note. At seven o’clock in I
the evening, as the king was entering his carriage, he was
stabbed by Damiens, the servant of a parliamentary councillor.
The murderer was arrested on the spot, and confessed that
“he had learned his hatred to the king in the hall of the par­
liament of Paris; that he had heard it said there, that the
murder of the king would put an end to all the refusals of the
sacraments and would be a meritorious action.” He moreover
asserted, in every interrogatory, that he had no accomplices;
but public opinion was not deceived ; it assigned as his collec­
tive accomplice—parliamentary Jansenism. This fearful re­
sult of its disobedience brought the magistracy, for a season, to
its senses. But party spirit had soon again drawn it beyond
the bounds of a moderation which was not its natural temper.
This was soon experienced by the archbishop of Paris, whose
unshaken firmness aroused all the fury of his obstinate ene­
mies; he was a third time banished to Perigord.
36. In the following year, Benedict XIV. ended his Ponti­
ficate (May 3. a. d. 1758). The Bullary of the learned Pontiff is
an analysis of the labors of his reign. In the first years after
his accession, he decided a question concerning the Malabar
rites, somewhat analogous to that which had arisen concerning
the Chinese ceremonial. Particular briefs were issued for the
regulation of the various jurisdictions of Maronite, Coptic and
Melchite Christians, as also for the Catholics of Albania and
Servia. The vigilant Pontiff wrote many letters to the Polish
bishops concerning an abuse which had crept into that country,
and which all the repeated endeavors of the Popes have not yet

FtTODICT XIV. (Λ. D. Η*Ο-ΠΜ;.

481

succeeded in completely rooting ont. Tt was the deplorable
facility with which the bishops of Poland, without sufficient
canonical investigation, pronounced the nullity and dissolution
of marriages. On this subject, Benedict XIV, recalls the teach­
ing of the Church on the indissolubility of the sacred tie and
the wise regulations issued on the matter by the Council of
Trent. Among the decrees relating to America, one of the
most remarkable is that in which he pleads the cause of the
wretched natives reduced to bondage by their pitiless con­
querors. The same tender charity finds expression in his briefs
in favor of the poor in the Pontifical States. It clearly shows
the father’s heart aching for the sufferings of his children.
Benedict XIV. crowned his Pontifical career by the publication
of his magnificent treatise on the Diocesan Synod, of which it
bas been said that it should be the Manual nf Bishops.

ORNERAI. HISTORY OF THE CHLi. h.

488

CHAPTER V.
§ L PonTincATR

ofCliment

XIII. (July β, λ.

d.

1768—February 2, 1769;.

I. Conspiracy of the philosophy of the eighteenth century against the Church
—9. Jean Jacques Rousseau.—3. Character of Clement XIII. and of his
minister, Cardinal Torregiani.—4. Political state of Europe at the accession
of Clement XIII.—5. Expulsion of the Jesuits from the kingdom of Por­
tugal.—6. Persecution of the Society of Jesus in France.—7. Suppression of
the Society by a decree of the parliament of Paris.—8. Clement XIII., in »
secret consistory, annuls the decree of the parliament.—0. The Seven Years
War; Treaty of Paris.—10. The Bull Apostolicuni in favor of the Jesuits.
—11. Clement XIII. condemns the Catechism of Mésenguy ; the History
of the People of God, by the Jesuit, Berruyer; the work of Helvetius; the
Encyclopadia ; and the work of Felvonius.—12. The Jesuits expelled trom
Spain, Naples, Parma and Malta.—13. Brief of Clement XIII. to the King
of Spain.—14. Death of Clement XIII.

§ II. PoHTtnoATB of Climknt XIV. (May 9, λ. d. 1769—September 22,1774)

16. Election of Clement XIV.—16. Position of the Papacy in respect to the
European Power
*.
—17. Suppression of the Society of Jesus by Clement
XIV.—18. Death of Clement XIV.—19. Death of Louis XV. Accession
of Louis XVI.—20. St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori.

$ I.

Pontificate

of

XIII. (July 6,
ruary 2,1769).

Clement

a. d.

1758—Feb­

1. We are entering upon a lamentable period of the Church’s
history. Hatred of Catholicity had passed over from England
into France; the new raee of unbelievers showed their hostility,
at first, in a less general and pointed form ; they began only by
allusions more or less transparent. Thus the “ Persian Let­
ters,” by Montesquieu, and the “ Life of Mahomet,” by Count
Henry de Bonillon-Villers, were evidently designed, under a

CLEMENT ΧΠΪ. (A. D. 1758-Πβ9).

489

skillful disguise, to show the superiority of Mahometanism over
the religion of Jesus Christ. After these isolated attacks, come·
a real league ; with a formidable agreement it is organized and
maintained in the state of a standing conspiracy. Toward the
year 1757 Voltaire’s correspondence assumes that character of
violence and excitement, that appearance of battle array, which
adopted as its password, Ecraser [Infâme, by which term was
meant the Christian religion. By raising this standard and motto
of destruction, Voltaire announced the aim and placed himself
at the head of the party. “ He had sworn,” says his panegyrist,
Condorcet, “ to devote his life to the ruin of the Church and of
all positive religion.” He kept his oath, and his principal theme,
repeated under a thousand forms during his long and checkered
career, was that Christianity was a human invention, sustained
by priests and imposed by kings, as the best curb for the peo­
ple. His accomplices were many and various. First among
them stand the parliaments. “ They think,” wrote d'Alembert,
“to serve religion by their zeal in combating the refusal of the
sacraments, bift they are serving reason without suspecting it.
They are the executioners of philosophism, whose orders they
receive without knowing it.” Next to the faithless magistracy
which placed at the service of the enemies of the State ami of
the Church an authority it had received to protect Church and
State, the number of unbelievers and demolishers was very
great. It will be enough to mention the most widely-known of
those fatal celebrities. They were the skeptical Bayle, who
maintained that a society can flourish only on condition of anni­
hilating within itself every religious ideas and belief; d'Alem­
bert, a mathematician of fine mind, who wished to preserve some
academic forms, even amid the revolutionary storm of which he
was one of the most influential movers ; Diderot, that fastidious
writer who tried to supply the want of talent by impudence,
and who openly declared in favor of Atheism ; Damilaville, of
whom Voltaire said: “He does not deny God, but he hates
Him;” in fine, Baron Holbach, Condillac, Helvetius and the
infamous La Mettrie, made their works the organs of the most

490

OBNERAb HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

positive materialism. Their chief work against Christianity wat
the “ Encyclopaedia,” directed by d’Alembert and Diderot. Ft
contributed, more than any other, to propagate anti-religious
opinions; it is an immense monument of confusion and of false
philosophy; a real Tower of Babel reared by the genius of hell
against God and His Christ. In that work, nature took the
place of God, the mind was but a transformation of matter, and
all religion was looked upon as a political invention of the
priests. They do not blush to teach that it is only by chance
that the life of man differs from that of the animal. The Encyclopædia was the great arsenal in which the unbelievers found
the arms they wielded so fiercely against the faith. Its appear­
ance was announced to Europe as an event thatshould regenerate
the world. The age of light was dawning; the era of darkness,
of fanaticism, of ignorance and superstition was now at an end ;
reason and philosophy were to endow mankind with a brilliant
future, with unknown joys and splendors. Every adventurous
mind eagerly plunged into this newly opened way. Even the
great Buffon, in his Natural History, too often confounds God
and nature,Providence and matter. La Lande, while studying
the heavens, did not read there the name of their author, and
his many works do not once speak the name of God. All, to­
gether with Volney and Dupuis, denied the existence of the
Scriptural personages, and only saw in the Gospel narrative an
astronomical dream.
2. Among these names we have not classed the one which,
with that of Voltaire, embodies the whole philosophical move­
ment of the eighteenth century. Jean Jacques Rousseau
belongs to no school, entered into no league, kept aloof from
every party. A deep and inveterate hatred, springing from
daily rivalry, separated him from Voltaire. He was a man of
paradoxical and independent mind, passionately given to chim­
eras; of a corrupt heart, which made vice its ideal and dis­
guised corruption under the coloring of innocence ; of an unset­
tled disposition, without nobleness or dignity, and so fickle that
he passed in an instant from one extreme to the other ; ;u-

CLEMENT ΧΠΙ. (A. D. 1ΐ5β-Πβ9).

491

capable of forming a habit of virtue, he could momentarily for·)
its attraction ; a prose-writer, in our opinion, far superior to
Voltaire, possessed of a persuasive, pathetic and captivating
eloquence, he hid, under the appearance of benevolence and
philanthrophv, doctrines perverse in morality, impious in reli­
gion, subversive in politics, destructive of social order, of all
hierarchy, principle, worship and authority. Rousseau presents
this singular contrast, that he can always be refuted by himself ;
he attacks the Gospel miracles, and yet no man ever wrote a
more sublime page on the character of that divine book ; he
boasts the majesty, the grandeur and pomp of the Catholic
worship, with the same pen that wrote the famous Profession
de foi du Vicaire Savoyard and the pedagogical Utopia, Emile,
which the author had placed, in his dreams, above Telemachus,
and in which he taught that his pupil should not hear of God
until he had reached the age of twenty years. The work in
which Rousseau shows most hostility to religion, is the “ Social
Contract,” which accuses Christianity of having broken the
unity of the State, destroyed love of country, favored tyrants,
and annihilated manly virtues. Such were the enemies who
arose against the Church in the eighteenth century, and who
were preparing, by their united efforts, to raise the most fearful
storm that had ever threatened its existence. “ The unbridled
freedom of opinion, the ravings of party spirit, found another
faithful ally. It was that policy, in some sort hereditary among
a certain class of statesmen, magistrates, and jurists ; a system
by which the secular power always aimed more or less at en­
slaving the Church and subjecting it to their hostile pretensions.
In that hour of mournful memory, it became the duty of every
man to choose his standard. The line of battle was drawn, the
object of the war proclaimed, the order of attack arranged with
fearful unanimity. It is before this array that Clement ΧΙΠ.
ascends the Pontifical Chair." (July 6, a. d. 1758.)
*
Raviunan, Clément XIII.
Cl· ment XIV. pp. 24—26. We have made extensive um at
this remarkable work of the illustrious Christian orator, in treating this peruxi of Churt
*
history ; we have no fear of going astray with genius and virtue for our guides

492

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

3. Raised, in spite of himself, to the summit of sphitual
power, he was to meet but hostile and leagued opposition there
whore the Apostolic See might justly have looked for defense
and support. In the day of these memorable struggles, Tieaven
at least gave to the holy Pontiff a minister worthy of himself,
in the person of Cardinal Torregiani. “ He is an upright man,"
says Duclos, “a hard worker, and thoroughly conversant with
business. Since he cannot deny that the Court of Rome is
daily losing authority in Catholic Europe, he looks upon those
losses as passing clouds, and says : ‘ We have the word of
Jesus Christ, the Church is indestructible.’ He does not seem to
suspect that there can be a difference between the Church and
the Court of Rome.” What the levity of Duclos censures, we
seriously deem a eulogy. Torregiani was right in admitting
no distinction between the Church and the Holy See : they are
one and the same. And this conviction is, in the soul, the ex­
pression of true faith and of Christian firmness. Thus Clement
XIII. and his minister were bound together by deep and con­
scientious views of faith, by a sound appreciation of the strug­
gle at hand, by generous firmness and constancy—all devoted
to the defense of the sacred interests of religion.
4. Their opponents—at first successively, but afterward in
a body—were the cabinets of all the Catholic powers. Fore­
most appears Pombal, minister of Joseph I., king of Portugal
That weak and voluptuous prince governed only in name ; his
kingdom was under the despotic rule of Pombal. Naturally
sold and tyrannical, he preferred the influence of foreign and
destructive opinions to the stability of Christian and national
traditions ; he accordingly plunged, without reserve, headlong
into the career of innovations ; overthrew every obstacle that
stood in the way of his designs ; declared war against the
Church, whose authority was burdensome to him ; and, by in­
credible exactions, which it is hard to explain, of a countrv
until then peaceable and religious, he made a state convulsed
by agitation and disorder. Pombal was all-powerful at Lisbon ;
Cboiseul, in France, with the title of prime minister, had less

CLEMENT Bill. (A. D. 115F-Π»9).

493

power. Ile was often forced to receive laws from the philo­
sophic league, the parliaments, Madame de Pompadour and
Jansenism. Louis XV. was no longer the virtuous monarch
who triumphed in the affections of his people; wholly given up
to the gratification of his passions, he left the reins of govern­
ment in the hands of inferiors. The Countess du Barry, who
succeeded Madame de Pompadour in the king’s favor, was for
twenty years the shame of France and the scandal of the
world. Louis was sometimes momentarily aroused from this
lethargy of disorders and vices, but only long enough to
exclaim : “ Well, it will last quite as long as myself ;" and he
again turned to his infamous pleasures. Meanwhile, all the
royal family made constant efforts to recall him to his duty by
practicing, before his eyes, the highest virtues. The queen,
Maria Leczinski, and the two princesses-royal, were types of
the Christian woman; his only son, the Dauphin, father of
the Duke of Berry (Louis XVI.), of the Count of Provence
(Louis XVIII.), and of the Count of Artois (Charles X.), was
snatched away, by an untimely death, bearing with him to the
grave the hopes of France and the fortune of his illustrious
house; his grandson and presumptive heir (Louis XVI.) ; his
daughter, Madame Louise of France, who exchanged the splen­
dor of Versailles for the humble cell of a Carmelite; his grand­
daughters, Madame Elizabeth, called the “ Angel of the Court,”
and Madame Clotilde, queen of Sardinia, the process of whose
beatification is now before the Roman Court—presented, in
their conduct, a striking contrast with the vices of the age and
the scandalous life of the king. But their virtuous examples
produced no effect upon a society so deeply corrupted. Choiseul, minister of France from 1758 to 1770, the period of his
disgrace, was a skillful, restless and daring politician. Justly
regarded by the philosophers of the age as the worthy pro­
moter of their ideas, he actively sought their approbation and
support; by this means he reached a certain degree of popu­
larity; and, in the presumptuous confidence which it gave him
of accomplishing his designs, he went beyond all bounds In

494

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Spain, Charles III., successor of Philip V., placed himself in a
singular position, by his lamentable contest with the Church.
Austere in his morals, sincerely attached to religion, upright,
honest, but easily deceived on account of his very honesty, he
had not learned how to bestow his confidence. Wall, Grimaldi,
d’Aranda, Campomanez, Monino, Manuel de Roda, were his
ministers or chief agents. Roda was rather a Jansenist than
a skeptical philosopher, but, in that very character, he was tho
most bitter enemy of the Holy See and of the liberties of the
Church. Campomanez, solicitor-general of the council of Cas­
tile, and minister of state, brought to the struggle the learning
and the disposition of a hostile jurist. He attacked the bishops
with the weapons of polemical discussion and judicial proceed­
ings. D’Aranda, loaded with the officious praises of the
French philosophers, to whom he was a devoted friend, placed
his talents at the service of the enemies of the Church. With
the addition of Tanucci, the minister who ruled Naples under
Ferdinand IV., and a violent adversary of the Holy See, we
have about a complete list of the statesmen who swayed the
destinies of the Catholic powers during the Pontificate of Cle­
ment XIII. Catholic Germany, Austria in particular, seemed
for a moment to stand aloof from the anti-religious movement.
Maria Theresa was a princess unsurpassed in piety, goodness ot
heart and love for her people. But she was unwittingly ruled
by the influence of Jansenistic advisers. Van Swieten and De
llaën, chief physicians to the empress, belonged to Dutch families
attached to the schismatical archbishop of Utrecht. They used
their influence at the court of Vienna to spread their doctrines,
and persuaded Maria Theresa to appoint a commission for the
reform of theological studies. This commission perfectly car­
ried out the views of the innovators. Ambrose de Stock, a
friend of the two physicians, was made president of the Theo
*
ogical Faculty of Vienna in 1753 ; the Jesuits were removed
rom the chairs of theology and canon law ; the new professors,
mostly laymen, were exclusively appointed by the secular
power, in contempt uf tho rights of the bishops. From that

CLEMENT ΣΠΙ. (Λ. D. B5S-H6·).

495

dale Get Many was successively invaded and i tiled by schis­
matical doctrines, which claimed to subject the Church and its
authority to the secular power. At about this time, Nicholas
of Hontheim, suffragan bishop of Treves, better known by the
name of Febronius, was preparing the way, by secret attacks,
for his bold treatise on “ The State of the Church and the
legitimate power of the Sovereign Pontiff.” Everything was
ready for the reign of Joseph I. The universities of Münster
and Bonn were established to propagate schismatical teach­
ings. Such were the elements of the religious and social revolution about to burst upon Europe.
5. The Jesuits had the distinguished honor of being the
first victims immolated to the hatred of the sectaries, the philo­
sophers, and the leagued politicians. The first blow at that
illustrious Order was struck by Pombal. In 1757 he had
already sent positive instructions to Don Francis d’Almada, the
Portuguese ambassador at Rome, to request of Benedict XIV'.
the suppression of the Society. This memorial closed with
these words : “ The extreme corruption of these sons of so holy
a religion has reached the lamentable point, in the kingdom of
Portugal, and still more in its transatlantic possessions, that
there are few of the Jesuits who do not live more like mer­
chants, soldiers, or tyrants, than like religious.” The charge
was as unjust as it was unmeasured. The Jesuits at the head
of the Reductions in Paraguay, were at once the fathers and
the rulers of their Indians. Forming a considerable body,
they had necessarily extensive business relations ; but they
were neither merchants, nor warriors, nor tyrants. The case of
Father Lavallette, which occurred about this time,and which was
so eagerly seized upon by the enemies of the Jesuits, to calum­
niate the Society, was but an isolated, personal error, to be re­
gretted certainly, but altogether unconnected with the Society
itself. When Benedict XIV. received Pombal’s request, he
was suffering from the illness of which he died. The Pontiff
had shown himself to be one of the most zealous defenders of
the Society of Jesus ; he thought that he might grant to the

496

GENERAL BISTORT OF TUB CHURCH.

Portuguese minister, one concession which could only end in
bringing dearly to light the innocence of the Jesuits By a
brief of April 1, a. d. 1758, he appointed Cardinal Saldanha.
Archbishop of Lisbon, Apostolic visitor of all the Jesuit estab
lishments in Portugal, directing him to dr.-ψν up a report of all
the charges brought against them. He at the same time recom­
mended the Cardinal-visitor to proceed with the greatest consi­
deration toward a Society “ which has,” said he, “ deserved so
well of the Church; which has, at the price of its sweat and
blooo, borne the light of faith to the ends of the earth.” He
moreover forbade him to issue any decree without the previous
approval of the Holy See. This was all that Pombal desired.
Taking advantage of the weakness and advanced age of the
archbishop, he wrung from him an ordinance of interdiction
against all the Jesuits in Portugal. In vain did Clement XIII.
exert all his firmness in their favor; he wrote to Joseph I. a
letter in which the goodness, wisdom, and moderation of the
Pontiff were joined to the apostolic vigor hereditary on the
throne of St. Peter. All was useless. On the 3d of September,
1758, the report was spread in Lisbon that an attempt had been
made upon the life of the king; this was a scheme of Pombal s.
Joseph I. withdrew from the public gaze ; Pombal plotted in
the dark. After some surprising delays Pombal caused the
arrest and imprisonment of two hundred and twenty-one
Jesuits, one-half of whom died in their dungeons ; the Society
was suppressed by a royal edict, its members were driven out
of the kingdom, declared traitors and rebels and their property
confiscated. The Jesuits were seized in all directions, crowded
into several ships, and insultingly thrown upon the shores of
the Pontifical States. Pombal kept three of the religious,
whom he accused of sharing in the pretended attempt against
the king : Fathers Malagrida, Alexander and De Mathos.
They were handed over to the Inquisition; but the InquisitorGeneral, Don Joseph of Bragunza, a brother of the king, refused
to condemn them. Pombal created an extraordinary tribunal
for the prosecution of this singular trial. Malagrida, a venera

CLEMENT ΧΠΤ. (A. D. 1758-1789).

•197

ble old man of seventy-five years, was condemned to the stake
as a false prophet, and he suffered the barbarous punishment
“ Thus," says Voltaire, “ was the extreme of absurdity added
to the extreme of horror.”
6. The enemies of the Society, in France, profited by this
event to further their own designs. They had already long
been striving to crush the Jesuits by hatred and ridicule. The
kingdom was flooded with calumnious pamphlets against tho
Society. The most abominable of all these libels was the one
entitled : “ An extract of the dangerous and pernicious asser­
tions of all kinds, which the self-styled Jesuits have at all times
persistently maintained, taught and published.”* Calumny
and malice are stamped upon every page of this work; there
is no crime that the Jesuits must not be represented as hav­
ing taught and of which they are not accused. Never had
bad faith been carried to a greater extreme. By a decree of
the parliament of Paris, a copy of the work was sent to every
bishop in France ; this was a gross insult. The immortal
Christopher de Beaumont, Archbishop of Paris, in a pastoral
letter, refuted all the calumnious charges heaped by the magis­
trates upon the institute of the Society of Jesus. He closes
his letter with these words : “ We are convinced that this insti­
tute is pious, as the Council of Trent has declared ; that it is
venerable, as it was styled by the illustrious Bossuet. We know
that the doctrine of the whole body has never been corrupted,
and we are very far from looking upon the ‘ Collection of Asser­
tions ’ as the summary and result of the teaching proper to the
Jesuits." This courageous protest brought upon the new
Athanasius the thunders of the parliament and the punishment
of exile. Louis XV. had no personal motives of dislike toward
the Jesuits, but Madame de Pompadour hated them because of
the frank expression of their opinion in her regard ; she had
sworn against them the hatred which vice always bears to
virtue. All historians, without exception, have borne witness
* Extrait des assertions dangereuses el pernicieuses en t"uj genres,
1rs soi-disant Jimteo
ont dans tous les tempe et persà'érammml soutenues enuigru
·
*
et piMites
Vol. IV.—32

498

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURcH

to the vindictive hatred of the royal courtezan ; and Choiseul
wholly devoted to his own greatness and power, was careful
not to oppose the favorite ; the suppression of the Jesuits was
resolved. Public opinion, so unhappily misguided, displayed
itself in the most, clamorous demonstrations against tho Jesuits,
on the 8th of May, a. d. 1760, the day on which the parliament
pronounced judgment against Father Lavallette, a member of
the Society, in Martinique. He had signed a bill of exchange
upon his colleague, Father De Sacy, then in Paris. The bill was
protested ; the case, at any other time, would have been a
mere commercial affair ; it was now made a State offense, the
parliament took cognizance of it, and the sentence was pro­
nounced amid the frantic applause of the multitude. The
Jesuits were condemned to meet the bill of exchange, and to
pay, besides, fifty thousand livres, interest and costs. We do
not undertake to discuss the merits of this sentence. Father
Lavallette was guilty, at least, of great imprudence ; but it is
reasonable to believe that, at no other time would the whole
Society have been made responsible for the rashness of a single
member. The new philosophers, now so earnestly toiling to
overthrow the whole fabric of religion, judged that the destruc­
tion of the religious orders was one of the first measures to be
secured. They thought it necessary to sacrifice the Jesuits
first, and they accordingly leagued against them. The French
episcopate, on the other hand, exerted its whole strength in
support of the Society. Only three prelates made common
cause with the parliaments in rebellion against the Church.
Fitz-James, Bishop of Soissons, the leader of the Jansenist
party in France ; De Beauteville, Bishop of Alais, a weak minded
but obstinate man, entirely ruled by the sectaries ; and De
Vaugiraud, Bishop of Angers, until then a friend to the Society
of Jesus ; but he had, in pastoral letters, approved the “ Ex­
tract of Assertions” published by order of the parliament of
Paris. Fitz-James issued a pastoral letter of the same tenor,
which Clement XIII. condemned by a decree of the 13th of
April, 17G3. The Pope knew how to temper firmness with

CLEMENT ΧΠΙ. (A. D. Ηδί-HCO),

499

sweetness and indulgence After this warning blow at the
Bishop of Boissons, he wished to use gentle means with the
other two prelates, less obstinate and less guilty ; his letters to
them are models of Apostolic spirit and zeal, joined to the
sweetest inspirations of charity.
7. Louis XV. was petitioned in favor of the Jesuits by the
queen, the Dauphin, and by all the virtuous members of his
court; but the hatred of the parliaments triumphed. On the
6th of August, a. d. 1762, a definitive decree suppressed the
Society of Jesus in France. The decree asserted that there
was an abuse in their institute ; that it was inadmissible by its
very nature in any civilized State, as contrary to the natural law,
dangerous to the spiritual and the temporal authority. It pro­
nounced the vow's and oaths made by the religious, null and
void, and all affiliations to the Society, abuses. All the Jesuits
were ordered to quit their houses ; they were forbidden to fol­
low the institute and its rules, to wear its habit, to live in com­
munity, or to hold communication with one another; finally,
they were declared incapable of holding any office, unless they
had sworn to teach the “ Four Articles.” This crowned the
triumph of the enemies of the illustrious sons of Loyola; the
example of the capital was followed with wonderful readiness
by the provinces, while the sound portion of the nation wept
over the deplorable attack upon the dearest interests of Catho­
licity. “ The decree of the parliament,” says the Protestant
Schall, “ is too clearly stamped with passion and injustice to
gain the approval of any honest, unprejudiced mind ; the at­
tempt to force the Jesuits to condemn the principles of their
Order, was to pronounce an arbitrary decision upon a fact of
history evidently false, and made up for the occasion. But in
such diseases of the human mind as those which affected the
generation then on earth, reason is silent, the judgment is cloud­
ed by prejudice.” The four thousand Fathers then in France
were obliged to seek another home.
8. The Head of the Church could not view with an indiffer­
ent eye the heavy blow thus struck at religion. Clement XIII.

I

fiOO

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

felt bound to express his sentiments on the inconceivable sen­
tence of the parliament of Paris ; he thus spoke of it in an allo­
cution pronounced before a secret consistory of cardinals, held
on the 3d of September, a. d. 1762 : “ Secular magistrates,” ex­
claimed the Sovereign Pontiff, with sorrow and indignation,
“usurp the doctrinal teaching which was intrusted only to the
pastors of Israel, to the watchful shepherds of the (lock. They
usurp it in contempt of that Divine oracle : ‘ The 'lips of the
priest shall keep knowledge, and they shall seek the law at his
mouth.’ Imputations and calumnies are heaped upon the in­
stitute of the regular clergy of the Society of Jesus, a pious
institute, useful to the Church, long approved by the Apostolic
Sec, honored by the Roman Pontiffs and the Council of Trent
with imperishable praise. The rules of the Society are assailed
with opprobrium; they are represented as contrary to all law,
divine and human ; they are proscribed and condemned to the
flames. In fine, though I shudder when I say it, the members
of that religious body, who have vowed to follow its rules, and
who, at the foot of the altar, have called upon Almighty God to
be the witness and the guardian of their most solemn pledge,
are now by violence dispensed from their observance ; nay,
even an execrable despotism,hitherto unparalleled, forbids them,
under the severest penalties, to fulfill the vows uttered by their
lips, and received by Almighty God. Their property is sold
in contempt of ecclesiastical immunities ; they are stripped of
their habit and their name; they are denied all intercourse with
their brethren; they are deprived of every hope of obtain
ing any ecclesiastical benefice, of temporal employment, unless,
among other engagements, they first swear to support and de­
fend the four too well-known propositions of the Assembly of
the French Clergy of 1682, propositions which Our predecessor
Alexander VIII. condemned and annulled.” Clement XIII.
accordingly condemned the decree of the parliament, and de­
clared it null and of no force. Motives of prudence forbade
that this Pontifical act should then receive the final character
•if publicity He still hoped that, under the influence of some

CLEMENT ΧΙΠ. (A. D. 1-59-178»).

601

Letter inspiration, the government of Louis XV. would return
to a more moderate course of action.
9. The hopes of the Holy Pontiff were not to he realized.
As if Providence had wished to punish France, that kingdom
was suffering from a disastrous war, known as the “ Seven
Years’ War.” The English, regardless of the treaty of Aix-laChapelle, seized the French possessions in Canada, and attacked
the merchant vessels of France, as they sailed in unsuspecting
confidence on the high seas; more than three hundred fell into
the hands of these unscrupulous spoilers. In spite of his peace­
ful intentions, Louis XV. found himself compelled to take up
arms (a. d. 1754). France and Austria, after a hostile separa­
tion of three centuries, were united ; Russia, Poland, and Swe­
den, likewise divided among themselves, now joined together
in favor of Louis XV. ; Spain, Holland, and Sardinia remained
neutral ; so that, in all Europe, England found no other ally than
Prussia, still ruled by the great Frederick. The genius of that
sovereign was worth ten alliances. The bloody defeat of Mar­
shal de Soubise at Rosbach, raised Frederick’s glory to its ze­
nith. The English, notwithstanding the celebrated “ family
compact,” negotiated by Choiseul between the various branches
of the Bourbon family—France, Spain, Naples, and Parma—
seized the French establishments in the Indies, in America, and
in Senegal, with the rich Spanish colonies of Cuba and the
Philippines, destroying Havana and Manilla. Louis XV. and
Spain were forced to sign the treaty of Paris, one of the most
disgraceful, but, at the same time, one of the most necessary in
her history. In that disastrous war France lost the flower of
her youth, one-half of her treasure, her navy, her trade, her
credit, and her glory. The kingdom of Louis XIV. was no
longer recognizable (17G3).
10. In the evils under which France was groaning, Clement
XIII. saw a punishment from Heaven. In the Pontiffs judg­
ment, the Lord was thus avenging the unjust expulsion of the
Jesuits, the abuse of the sacraments, and especially the violent
and sacrilegious administration of the Eucharist, which, by order

602

GENERAL· HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

of the parliaments, was so often repeated in that unhappy
country, in favor of refractory and impenitent Jansenists. Cle­
ment, therefore, issued the hull Apostolicum, as a solemn warn­
ing to France He begins by declaring that no earthly eon
sideration can limit the exercise of the Apostolic mission
intrusted to him by God Himself; that he must, that he will,
fulfil it to its fullest extent. He shows how solicitous the
Holy See has been at all times in regard to the religious Or­
ders; he reviews the whole series of the solemn acts by which
his predecessors have constantly approved, confirmed, com­
mended, and encourgaged the Society of Jesus. While that
Society is made the object of so many attacks, he should look
upon himself as recreant to a sacred duty if he did not rise up
in its defence ; “so much the more,” adds the bull, “ since its ene­
mies most shamelessly insult the Church of God, by the implied
assertion that she has erred, so far as to judge and solemnly
declare pious and agreeable to God, what is iu itself impious
and irreligious ; and that she has thus fallen into an error .he
more criminal that she has so long—for a space of more than
two centuries—to the great prejudice of souls, allowed her
bosom to be soiled by a stain so blighting.” The heart of tho
common Father is then pleased to pour· itself out in praise of
the persecuted Society ; he consoles, animates, and raises it by
the most touching encouragements. Finally, in deference, said
the Pontiff, to the just petitions of Our Venerable Brethren, the
bishops of all parts of the Catholic world, he once more approved
and confirmed the Institute. The bull Apostolicum, a solemn
decree of the sovereign power of the Church, was sent to every
Catholic kingdom ; but the spirit of philosophy which ruled Eu­
rope, showed as little respect for the voice of the Holy See, as it
had paid to that of justice and innocence, respecting the Jesuits.
In France, Portugal, and Naples, it was condemned by the gov­
ernment, and prohibited in the most insulting and ridiculous
forms and language. The order of the Jesuits thus remained sup­
pressed in unhappy France; it received its disgrace with a no­
ble and touching resignation. Its only protest was an apology by

CLEMENT XIII. (A. D. 1758-17··).

003

Father Cerutti, a masterpiece of eloquence, logic, elegance, spirit,
and dignity. History has received it in a serious light, and
time has undertaken to bring justice upon the unjust persecutors.
11. The melancholy and intricate concerns of the Society
of Jesus did not alone enlist the attention of the Sovereign
Pontiff, or turn his mind and heart from the grave and count­
less preoccupations inseparably attached to the Government ot
the Universal Church. Jansenism especially offered to his zeal
repeated occasions of exercising the power of supreme judge
which the Popes held from God. Hardly any of his letters to the
bishops of France close without a lament upon that plague-spot
so full of danger for the faith of Christ. He pronounced a solemn
sentence of condemnation against the Catechism of Mésenguy ;
this was a severe blow to the sectaries, since they saw, in tLo
proscription of that work, a renewal of all the anathemas hurled
against Quesnel and his partisans. And to show that he could
brand the guilty as well as vindicate the innocent, even while
he so energetically defended the Society of Jesus against the
assault of philosophiam, he censured, as infected with a scan­
dalous and profane levity, the “ History of the People of God,”
by Father Berruyer. “ You need not ask Us," he wrote to
Henri de Montesquieu, bishop of Sarlat, “ what We think of
Jansenism. We have already anticipated what you could
desire from Us in that respect, in Our replies to several French
bishops who were lamenting the woes of your Church. We
have expressed Ourself so clearly and at such length that no
one should now have any doubt of Our firmness nor of the con­
stancy of the Roman Church in her decisions." The same zeal
was applied, with the same truth and the same energy, to cura­
bat all the other errors of that lamentable period. Dangerous
books appeared in swarms ; the most impious and shamefully
perverse doctrines were spread in profusion. Clement XIII.
could not fail in one of the most important duties of the
Supreme Apostolate. In the very beginning of his reign, he
had condemned the work of the materialist Helvetius, and the
“ Encyclopædia.” into which anti-Christian philosophy had

604

GENERAL HI8TORÏ OF THE 0ΗΗΒ3Π.

gathered a confused mixture ot all errors, as a means of fighting against the truth. Ecclesiastical discipline, the divine and
unchangeable principles of the sacred hierarchy, were closely
attacked by daring innovators. De Hontheim, a suffragan of
Trêves, had lately published, under the assumed name of
Febronius, his work on the “ State of the Church and the law­
ful authority of the Sovereign Pontiff” (a. d. 1763). This
work, which denied the most generally acknowledged and in­
contestable rights of the Pope, gave great scandal to the Chris­
tian world. The brothers Ballerini, of Verona; Father Zaccharia, a Jesuit, in his “Anti-Febronius Father Zech, also a
Jesuit, and Thomas Maniachi, a Dominican, met the work with
their learned refutations. Clement XIII. solemnly condemned
it by a decree of February 27, 1764. On the 14th of
March following he warned the Bishop of Wurtzburg and the
Archbishop of Mentz to guard their flocks, both pastors and
people, against the dangerous teaching of this book. “ That
artful writer,” said he. “hides his perfidy under the cloak of
piety, he diminishes, as he claims, or rather he utterly destroys
the authority of the Sovereign Pontiff, in order, by this conde­
scension, to bring back heretics to Catholic unity ; a wonderful
condescension, indeed, which, instead of converting the heretics,
perverts the Catholics.” The Doctors of the University of
Cologne also published a learned and bold refutation of the
work of Febronius; they received the congratulations of the
Pope. “It is the part of Christian heroes,” said the Pontiff.
“ to rush at once into the fray and vigorously repel the assaults
of the Church's foes. We love you the better for it, We are
grateful to you.” This holy war filled the Pontificate of Cle­
ment XIII., and, toward the close of his toilsome career, gather­
ing up all his failing strength, he wished to bequeath to the
world a last token of his heroic courage, by arousing the zeal of
the episcopate against the torrent of dangerous books and evil
teaching which threatened to ingulf the world. In an ency­
clical letter addressed to all the patriarchs, primates, arch­
bishops, and bishops of the Christian world, the Supreme Pastor

CLEMENT ΧΠΪ. (A. D.

reminds them of this grave and solemn obligation “ You. w
have been made dispensers of the mysteries of God and armed
with TIis almighty power to break down the bulwarks of error,
work with courage and constancy to turn away from poisoned
pastures the lambs intrusted to your care, and redeemed by the
blood of Jesus Christ.”
12. Charles III. of Spain was, as we have already re­
marked, a sincerely Christian and virtuous prince, and truly
desirous to do good. But the principal persons by whom he
was surrounded, exerted all their power of counsel and action to
ruin the Society of Jesus in his estimation and to banish it from
his dominions. It was sought to throw an impenetrable vail
over the motives which determined Charles III. to order th<·
expulsion of the Jesuits from Spain. The decree of expulsion,
called the Pragmatic Sanction, says of these motives that the
king kept them inclosed in his royal heart. No official instru­
ment, no written document, no deposit in the archives, has ever
revealed the mysterious reason. Evidently, and designedly
an absolute royal order caused the least traces of it to he des­
troyed. Still, a tradition, bearing all the evidences of authen­
ticity and of truth, has handed down that State secret. One
day, as the community of the first Jesuit establishment in
Madrid was at dinner, a package of letters, one of which bore
the post-mark of Rome, was handed to the Superior, who sent
them all, unopened, to his room. Hardly had they been placed
there when an officer from d’Aranda appeared with an order
from the king of Spain to search all the papers of the Jesuits
The letters were seized. The one bearing the stamp of Rome
was opened by the king himself, when he read with equal sur­
prise and indignation that rumors were rife in Rome, grounded
on the illegitimacy of his birth, that a revolution was probably
imminent in Spain, in which the Court of Rome would take an
active share, to place the crown upon the head of the lawful
heir. The Father Rector was instructed to prepare the minds
of his religious for the event, and to give notice of it to the
Superiors of the other houses “ This letter," says the Prot-

506

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHÜRCH.

estant writer Schall, “ was written by order of the Duke of
Choiseul, by a skillful forger who succeeded in perfectly imitating the writing of the General ; it was directed to the Rectoi
in Madrid and mailed at Rome. D’Aranda was on the watch
for the moment of its arrival, and held himself in readiness to
seize it before it could even be read.” The devilish plot suc­
ceeded admirably. Charles III. suspected nothing ; wounded
in the tenderest spot, he fell into the snare, and prepared to hurl
at the Jesuits the sentence so long and vainly solicited. He
secretly consulted several Doctors and theologians to know
whether a sovereign, for reasons which he cannot make public
and which he keeps secreted in his royal heart, can, in conscience,
banish a religious Order from his dominions. The Doctors an­
swered in the negative, but the courtiers and royal councillors
were strong in the affirmative. “ On the 2d of April, a. d. 1767.”
says Count Alexis de Saint-Priest, “ on the same day, at the
same hour, in the north and in the south of Africa, in Asia, in
America, in every island that owned the Spanish sway, the
governors of the provinces, the alcaldes of the cities, broke the
triple seal that guarded the royal orders. They were identical
in substance ; under the severest penalties, even, it is said, on
pain of death, they were enjoined to proceed at once with an
irmed force to the houses of the Jesuits, to surround them, to
remove the religious from their dwellings and to transport them
as prisoners, within twenty-four hours, to a certain place men­
tioned. The prisoners were to embark at once, leaving their
papers under government seal, and taking with them only their
Breviaries. It must be confessed that this arrest and shipment
of the Jesuits was conducted with barbarous haste. Nearly
six thousand priests of all ages, many of illustrious birth, dis­
tinguished scholars, aged men bowed down by infirmities, de­
prived of the most indispensable necessaries, were crowded into
the holds of ships and turned adrift upon the sea, without any
determined course or term for their exile.’’ The edict was put
into execution in every land subject to the crown of Spain, not
even excepting Paraguay and those flourishing Reductions into

CLEMENT Xllt. (A. D. 1768-ΠΑ·).

507

which the Jesuits had brought the light of civilization with that
of faith.
13. But the voice of the Sovereign Pontiff was raised to
utter the language of the most warrantable grief and the most
justifiable remonstrances. “ Of all the calamities which have
befallen Us during the nine unhappy years of Our Pontificate,
the most afflicting to Our paternal heart is that which Y<»nr
Majesty has just inflicted by the expulsion of the members of
the Society of Jesus. Thou, too, my son : hi quoque. Fili mi!
So, Our beloved son Charles III., the Catholic king, is he who
is to fill the cup of Our bitterness, and to hurry Our wretched
old age, amid tears and sufferings, to the grave.” The king
thus answered the Pontiff’s letter : “To spare the world a great
scandal, I must ever keep within my own breast the fearful
secret which has necessitated these rigors. Your Holiness
must believe me on my word ; the safety of my life requires
of me a profound silence on this matter.” The secret which
the misguided monarch could not reveal tc Clement XII. is
known to history, and its infamy falls upon the authors of the
deed of darkness and iniquity. The example of the King of
Spain was quickly followed in his family. His son, the King
of Naples, or rather Tanucci, the minister to whom Charles III.
had intrusted the government of Naples during the prince’s
minority, followed the impulse given by the court of Madrid ;
all the Jesuits of the six houses in Naples were seized in the
same night and conveyed to Pozzuoli, whence they were re­
moved from the kingdom. In the following year the Duke of
Parma and the Grand Master of Malta also expelled every
member of the family of Loyola (a. d. 1768).
14. Under the repeated blows of so many assaults, under
the crushing weight of such fierce storms, Clement XIII. sunk
at last, broken-hearted to the grave. He fell suddenly, at the
hour when Providence had decreed to give him the rest and the
crown so dearly bought. He died on the 2d of February, a. »
1769, at the age of seventy-five years.

608

GENERAL HI8TORÏ OF TIFF. CHURCH

§ II. Pontificate of Clement XIV. (May 19, a. d. 1769—Sep­
tember 22, 1774).
15. “The struggle kept in suspense by Clement XII I," says
the Count de Saint-Priest, “ and decided by his death, was one
of the gravest importance.”—“The suppression of the Society
of *Jesus was now the unfortunate centre around which gravi­
tated all the interests of the Church. As a condition of the
restitution of the rights in part questioned, and in part torn
from her, it was demanded that she should sacrifice the Jesuits,
in whose defence she has lost those rights, during the holy
contest undertaken for them under the pontificate of Clement
XIII.” “ In the state of affairs at this period,” adds the Count
de laint-Priest, “ there was no longer any hope of an accom­
modation. The pride of the Bourbons forbade their relinquish­
ing anything they had once begun. After having banished
the Jesuits from their owu dominions, they deemed it a point
of honor to sweep them from the face of the earth. But the
sacrifice must be wrung from the Holy See itself; it belonged
to that power to disband the army which had sprung up before
the eyes of the sixteenth century, ready-armed to combat the
new spirit that was overthrowing the order of Europe. Should
it be allowed to fall under the blows of a lying philosophy ?
Was it absolutly necessary to acknowledge the claims of that
offspring of the Reformation, more dangerous than its parent?"
Now, the necessary step in this matter could be taken in one
of two ways : either openly, by requiring the conclave to pass
a resolution by which the future Pope should be bound to the
cardinals to suppress the Jesuits; or secretly, by obtaining
from the Pope-elect a written promise to suppress the Society.
Both plans were rejected by the cardinals attached to the
various crowns, as not only dangerous but even unlawful. There
was. therefore, no compact, either public or private, between
• History of tho Pontificate of Clotnoot XIV , T. I, p. 115.—Thkimbil

CLEMENT XIV. (A. D. 1789-1174).

009

the Powers and the Pope-elect. The cardinals simply exercised
their right of exclusion, in behalf of their respective sovereigns,
against the unsatisfactory candidates. At length, on the 19th
of May, a. d. 1769, Cardinal Ganganelli received all the votes
except that of Cardinal Orsini, who cried out in vain that Gan­
ganelli was a Jesuit in disguise. His protest was unheeded;
the new Pontiff was proclaimed and took the name of Clement
XIV. His election was attended by none of the irregularities
alleged against it. It was the work of a few hours, preceded
by no promise, written or secret. The political intrigues at
work during the conclave, were in no way prejudicial to the
liberty of suffrage. The candidates proposed by the crowns
were all successively rejected. The Spirit of God, which
baffles all stratagems, and works out its own hidden designs by
means of the interests and passions of men, was watching over
the destinies of the Church. The promotion of Clement XIV.
to the Apostolic Chair, has every quality of validity and sound­
ness. Novaes ascribes to a marvellous disposition of Provi­
dence the fact that, to the exclusion of the Roman princes, of
even the sons of kings, who then took part in the conclave,
the cardinals raised to the Pontifical throne the only religious
then in the Sacred College ; “at a time,” he adds, “ when
religious were generally so little in favor, when, in nearly every
European court, they were made the victims of the persecutions
and sarcasms of ministers, of kings, and of philosophers."
16. The situation of Europe was fearful. “ Never, perhaps
in modern times,” says Schall, “ has the Pontifical See found
itself in a crisis so fearful as at the accession of Clement XIV.
The anti-religious party ruled in every court. It is certain that
the various States meditated projects of schism, as appears in
the creation of national Patriarchs independent of the Roman
court. The prudence of Clement XIV. dispelled tho danger.”
Though seated upon the Pontifical throne, Ganganelli made no
change in the simplicity of his life and manners. Gentle, kind,
affable, always even-tempered, never hasty in his judgments,
and never allowing himself to be misled by the heat of an in

610

GENERAL BISTORT OP THE CHURCH.

considerate zeal, he might have had a most glorious Pontificate,
in better times, But the storm was raging; the winds were
let loose upon the bark of Peter, and threatened, unless the
hand of God was stretched out to save, to bear away the pilct
in its rage. France, Spain, Naples, Parma, and Venice were
at open war with the Holy See ; Portugal, already on the
threshold of schism, was its determined enemy. The first
question to be solved, therefore, was that of the Jesuits. “ How
suppress them, and yet how save them?” asks the Count de
Saint-Priest. “ Must the Pope brave the anger of the most
powerful princes of Europe, drive them into schism, and perhaps
even into heresy ? Must the Holy See be exposed to the risk
of losing not only Beneventum and the Comtat-Venaissin, but
even the filial obedience of Portugal ‘Most Faithful,’ of France
* Most Christian,’ of Spain ‘Most Catholic?’ How, on the
other hand, could he strike out from the land of the living an
Order approved by so many Popes, looked upon as the bulwark
of Europe, the buckler of the faith !”
17. Clement XIV. inaugurated his Pontificate by an act
which raised a violent storm. In the bull Coelestium munerum
thesauros he thus speaks : “ It is with joy and happiness that
We bestow of the abundance of heavenly treasures upon those
who earnestly seek the good of souls. As we reckon among
those faithful laborers in the field of the Lord, the religious of
the Society of Jesus, We most assuredly desire to nourish and
increase, by spiritual favors, the enterprising and active piety
and zeal of those religious.” This brief drew lively and bitter
complaints from the courts of France, Spain, and Naples. They
demanded the suppression of the Jesuits as an indispensable
condition of the repose of Europe, the tranquillity of the Church,
and the peace of the world. For two years the Pope resisted
all solicitations, all petitions, all manner of violence even ; but
Charles HI. bad made the question a personal matter ; he de­
termined to constrain the Holy See by every means in hi?
power, and it was he who hounded on the other European
oourts in that fierce and truceless persecution of the Society.

CLEMENT XIV. (A. D. Ηβ0-1ΤΤ4>.

511

At his instigation, France had already seized the Comtat-Ve­
naissin, and Naples took possession of the Principality of Bene­
ventum. Clement XIV. still held out. Charles III. sent to
Rome his minister Monino, the most fierce and bitter enemy
of the Jesuits. From that moment the august Pontiff was
hourly beset by a ceaseless, unrelenting obsession. The Span­
ish minister one day urged an interested argument; he pledged
himself to the Pope for the restitution of Avignon and Bene­
ventum on the very day on which the Pope should sign the
brief of suppression. But he received from the Vicar of Him
who drove the buyers and sellers out of the temple, the coura­
geous reply : “ Know that a Pope governs, but does not barter
souls.” With these words he broke off the conference and
withdrew in indignation ; when he reached his own apartment,
his grief found vent in tears, and he sorrowfully exclaimed :
“May God forgive the Catholic King!" Clement had long
hoped in the piety of Maria Theresa of Austria. That princess,
a daily witness of the good done by the Jesuits, and foreseeing
the evils that must follow their ruin, made a strong resistance
to the importunate solicitations of the King of Spain. The
Pontiff had placed his hope in that resistance. Happy in hav­
ing found an opposition which agreed so well with his plan and
his views, he made it a rampart under the protection of which
he hoped, for a time at least, to escape the cruel demands of the
courts. But even this last hope was to betray him ; the last
barrier was soon to fall. Maria Theresa, with a weakness
characteristic of all mothers, had given to her son and unwor­
thy heir, the title of emperor. Joseph Π. left, even from his
earliest years, in the hands of the philosophers, had imbibed
all their hatred for the Church, he was destined to inaugurate
a reign most deplorable for Germany. This restless, captious
prince, always meddling in ecclesiastical concerns, and whom
his brother, the great Frederick, always mentioned by the ironi
cal epithet of “My brother the Sacristan,” spared neither wor­
ship nor churches, nor convents, in his pretentious claims and
ordinances. At length he prevailed upon his mother to consent

512

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

to the suppression of the Jesuits. Maria Theresa was a great
queen, a heroic princess, an honor to her sex, and an ornament
to the time in which she lived, but she had no longer a will when
her son had spoken ; she consented to the suppression of the
Jesuits on condition that the young emperor should have the
disposal of their property. But cupidity proved stronger than
prudence. Thus was the last hope plucked from the breast of
Clement XIV. Yet, left to himself, deprived of all support, he
still hesitated. But delay was no longer possible for the unhappy
Pontiff. On the 21st of July, a.d. 1773,he pronounced the final
sentence; the Pope was like the master who, to save the ship,
sacrifices his most precious goods to the storm. By the bull
Dominus ac Redemptor, the Society of Jesus was suppressed.
“Inspired, as we humbly trust, by the Divine Spirit,” said
the Pope,“ urged by the duty of restoring unanimity to the
Church, connneed that the Society of Jesus can no longer ren­
der those sen-ices for which it was instituted, and moved by
other reasons of prudence and State policy, which We hold
locked in Our own breast, We abolish and annul the Society of
Jesus, its functions, houses, and institutions.” The sense of
this brief is by no means doubtful; the punishment inflicted
by the Pontiff is not a chastisement, but a sacrifice, made with
a hope of peace; the sentence was not called for by justice ;
it was an administrative measure, advisable on account of
the complications of the moment. “Was it lawful?” asks
Father Cahour. “ Yes,” he continues ; “ for the Holy See had
the right to suppress what it had itself established. Was it
prudent and opportune? Many say that it was not. But 1
respect the critical situation in which the Vicar of Jesus Christ
found himself placed, and my only regret is, that this time, the
sacrifice of Jonas, granted to the fury of the waves, has only
given new boldness to the storm.”
18. This was the last Pontifical act of Clement XIV. ; he
died on the 22d of September, a. d. 17Ή, miraculously assisted
in his last moments by St. Alphonsus Liguori. Clement XIV.
has been variously judged even by his own contemporaries

CLEMENT XIV

VA. D. !7β&-1Η4).

513

Some have greatly exalted him ; and these were generally men
who felt but little friendship for the Church, its libertie- mu
its rights. Others have too much depreciated him ; these wete
Catholics, but men who did not sufficiently reflect upon the
critical circumstances in which the Pontiff was placed.
Caraccioli has contributed more than any other, to the calumnies
uttered against this Pope, by the apocryphal collection of let­
ters known under the name of Letters of Ganganelli : “ Authen­
tic history will sufficiently vindicate the memory of Clement
XIV. ; his election was free and without simony, notwithstand­
ing the simoniacal intentions and external pressure of the courts ;
the extreme 'difficulty of the times; the moral violence con­
stantly exercised by the Powers to constrain Clement XIV.; the
uselessness of the half measures and lengthened compromises
with which he opposed them ; the threats, the fears of a schism
which beset a Pope naturally mild and conciliating, are so
many extenuating circumstances. Clement XIV. might well,
then, persuade himself that the good of peace required him to
stifle his affection and esteem for the Society and to sacrifice it
to the cruel exigencies of that unhappy epoch.”
19. The death of Clement XIV. was closely preceded by
that of Louis XV. That prince who had, during life, given so
much scandal, when his last hour drew near felt a return of
those feelings of faith which his heart had cherished iu youth,
and which were hereditary in his august family. He humbled
η mself beneath the invisible hand that smote him, made a public
acxnowledgment of his long continued wanderings, asked pardon
for them from his people, and died with tears of compunction
at the age of sixty-four years (May 10, a. d. 1774). He left the
crown to his grandson, the virtuous and unfortunate Louis XVI.
Had a love of what is good, high qualities nf mind and heart,
the most humane sentiments, a spirit of justice, disinterested­
ness, and probity, been sufficient titles to insure the fortune of
a prince, Louis XVI. would have been the happiest of kings.
But they who are called to the tearful mission of governing
men, have more need of firmness than of other virtues Louis
Vol. IV.—33

614

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

XVI. was too kind not to be weak. His whole life was a long
struggle against crime and wickedness ; and in the struggle
Louis was always defeated. Crime and wickedness triumphed,
hs a lesson at once to kings and to people.
20. In speaking of the death of Clement XIV. we men
tioned the name of St. Alphonsus Liguori, that great bishop, tho
wonder of his age and the glory of Italy. lie had devoted
seventy years to instructing the poor inhabitants of the
Neapolitan country, when, on the 9th of May, a. d. 17G2, he
received a letter from the Apostolic Nuncio at Naples, an­
nouncing to him that Pope Clement XIII. had appointed him
Bishop of St. Agatha of the Goths. The announcement came
upon him like a thunder-stroke, he was lost in confusion, struck
dumb ; he was found in deep agitation and bathed in tears.
The pious Congregation of missionaries, founded by him, shared
his grief and dreaded the thought of losing its father and guide.
He immediately wrote a letter of renunciation, thanking the
Pope for his good-will, and alleging his incapacity, his advanced
age and infirmities, his vow never to accept any dignity and the
scandal which would therefore be given to his Congregation.
The protest of his humility was useless ; he was obliged to bend
his will to that of the Sovereign Pontiff, or rather to that of
God. His congregation of Redemptoriets likewise bowed to the
decree of Providence which required the painful sacrifice. Li­
guori, while a bishop, continued to lead the poor and penitential
life of a missionary. During the thirteen years of his after
life he consecrated every instant to the glory of God and the
service of the Church. Having inherited the pious traditions
of the mystic school, he succeeded in communicating them to
the daily practice of the faithful. The first work which we have
from his heart, rather than from his pen, was the “Visits to
the Blessed Sacrament and to the Blessed Virgin,” a delightful
little volume which has furnished meditations to many pious souls
al the foot of the altar. A number of other works of the same
kind—Practice of the love of Jesus Christ ; Motives for loving
Jesus Christ ; Meditations on the Mysteries of the Childhood of

*
A

CLEMENT XIV. (A. D. 1769-UT4).

Ç] 5

Jesus , The Way of the Cross ; Méditation» and devout practi,·
on the Passion of Christ; Seven Tracts on the Religious State ;
Advice concerning a Religious Vocation ; Meditations on the same
subject ; Advice to Novices to urge them to p<> >■ reranee ; the
Selva or Forest, in which he furnishes priests with a fund of
matter for meditations on the dignity, the virtues, and the duties
of the priesthood; Advice to persons of all conditions; Eternal
truths or Maxims ; and the Preparation for Death—recall the
style, the unction, the persuasive and touching grace of St.
Francis of Sales. But the work which has conferred immortal
glory on St. Liguori, and has been most useful to the Church,
is unquestionably his “ Moral Theology,” published in 1703.
It was a providential remedy for the incalculable evils which the
late heresies had not failed to produce in the direction of souls.
Jansenius made the use of the sacraments impracticable by the
exaggerated dispositions he requires in penitents and especially
by the spirit of harshness with which he inspires confessors.
St. Liguori wrote his Theology on a diametrically opposite
principle. He brought back the moral rule of the Gospel ami
of the Church to its first character of gentleness, sweetness,
and charity. Much has been said of the holy bishop’s opinion
on probabilism. The substance of his teaching on the subject
may be stated in a few words. Of two probable opinions on
which the Church has not pronounced, we are not bound to fol­
low the more severe, either for ourselves or for others ; for our­
selves, we may, but we are not obliged to follow it; for others,
we neither may nor can make it obligatory upon them. Thus
a pastor, a confessor, who, of two probable and free opinions,
makes an obligation of the more severe, even so far as to refuse
absolution to those who will not submit to it, lays upon souls a
burden which neither God nor His Church ever intended to
make them bear; he commits a real sin, and must answer
before God for all the souls he may have turned away from
salvation by his tyrannical rigorism. Such is the substance <»f
what St. Alphonsus teaches on probable opinions ; we believe
the same with him, with the Roman Church which has several

j16

GENERAL BISTORT OF ΤΠΕ CBÜRCB.

times approved his theology, and we dn not believe a different
manner of teaching or action admi. ■ Me.
St. Alphonsus
Liguori, by an incontestable and well authenticated miracle,
consoled the last moments of Pope Clement XIV. from whom
he was separated by a space of more than forty leagues. God
permitted that the soul of the Saint, in an ecstasy, should bo
transported tc the bedside of the dying Pontiff. St Liguori
died on the 1st of August, 1787.

PIUS VI. (A. D. 1Ϊ1Α.ΠΜΚ

CHAPTER

Ροιγπποατχ

617

VI.

or Pice VI. (February 15, a, d. 1775—August 29, 1799).

1. A glance at the Pontificate of Pius VI.—2. Election and first acte of Pius
• VI.—3. The Jesuits received by Frederick the Great, of Prussia, and Cathe­
rine II., Empress of Russia.—4. First years of the reign of Louis XVI.- -5.
Josephism in Germany.—6. Journey of Pius VI. to Vienna. Synod of
Pistoja.—7. Revolt of Belgium against Joseph II.—8. Ministers of Louis
XVI.—9. Opening of the States-Gencral.—10. Civil Constitution 0/ the
Clergy.—11. Courageous bearing of most of the French clergy.—12. Pins
VI. condemns the Civil Constitution.—13. Captivity of Louis XVI.—14.
National Convention. Trial of the King.—15. Death of Louis XVI.—16.
Address of Pius VI. to the cardinals on the occasion of the execution of
Louis XVI. Death of Marie Antoinette, The Reign of Terror.—17. The
Directory. General Bonaparte.—18. Bonaparte’s first campaign in Italv.—
19. The Directory attempts to force Pins VI. to revoke the condemnation of
the Civil Constitution of the Clergy.—20. Pius VI. forcibly removed from
Rome by order of the Directory.—21. Death of Pius VI., at Valence.

Pontificate

of

Pius VI. (February 15, a. d. 1775—August 29.
1799).

1. We come at last to the great social catastrophe toward
which Europe has been so long driven by the madness of Pro­
testantism, by the hatred and violence of Jansenism, by impiety,
the license of the new philosophy, the improvidence of kings,
the scandals of the courts, tho insubordination of the people,
and the simultaneous triumph of unsound doctrines in all the
States of Christian Europe. The hour of revolution was at
hand, and the world was about to be disturbed by the most
fearful political and religious calamities. Until then, many
tempests, many storms had threatened the bark of Peter;
but, if we may so speak, these dangers bore a character only
of momentary violence. When passions had once been allayed.

518

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHERCH.

the Papacy found its empire re-established over souls which
had rem-ained sincerely faithful and obedient; the former
heresies attacked only particular dogmas ; the persecuting
princes died and left their thrones to less hostile successors.
Now it was not a prince, nor a heresiarch, nor a persecutor that
raised the fearful storm ; it was the radical, universal, unsparing
denial of every belief, the destruction of every institution, the
fall of thrones and of altars, the rise of popular sovereignty,
inaugurated amid general ruin and torrents of blood, denying
God, Jesus Christ, His worship, His vicars. His priests ; and,
in the name of reason, forcing upon the world the ravings of
the wildest delirium. Had not the enemies of the Church, the
great lords, wits, poetrphilosophers and elegant Atheists of the
eighteenth century, been themselves the first victims of the
revolution, they might have applauded their work and enjoyed
their triumph—for the triumph seemed complete; they had pro­
claimed their philosophy Queen of the universe, and the people
raised up altars to Reason and danced before them upon the
ruins of downfallen royalty, to show, after its own fashion, that
they were worthy of their masters and had understood their
teaching. But the Church has promises of immortality
stronger than all the powers of hell. She was the first to
rise up from the dark abyss, greater, more glorious, more heroic
than ever. The Revolution only added another name to the
martyr-roll of the Papacy.
2. Cardinal Giovan-Angelo Braschi was elected to succeed
Clement XIV. and took the ever-immortal name of Pius VI.
On learning his election, he prostrated himself, in tears, before
the altar, and after some moments of fervent prayer, said to
the cardinals: “Venerable Fathers, the conclave is ended, but
how unhappily for me !” With these words, so sadly prophetic,
Pius VI. began one of the longest and most unfortunate
Pontificates recorded in the annals of the Church. One of the
first acts of the new Pontiff was to order a distribution of aims
among the poor. He next stopped several pensions which he
deemed unnecessary, required a strict account of the public

ΗΓΡ VT. (A. D. Π75-17Μ1

'49

funds, conferred ecclesiastical dignities and civil offio* only
upon candidates fully worthy of his confidence ; he showed
himself humane, affable, laborious, and beneficent, hi
* whole
time was divided between the discharge of his religion’ duties,
his public functions, his Museum, and the Vatican library. It
was he, indeed, who originated tho idea of establishing that
Museum, single in its kind in the world, to which masterpieces
of all the arts and the most precious relics of antiquity, were
yet to draw admirers from every civilized nation of the world.
The actions of Pius VI. had a character of high generosity
that displayed his whole soul. We shall only mention the works
undertaken in the port of Ancona, the only one in the Papal
States in which commerce could be protected; the restoration
of the Quirinal palace, in which he caused the famous obelisk
to be raised ; the herculean task of draining the Pontine
marshes; the repairing of the Appian way and of the aqueduct
of Terracina; the construction of the canal of Soligna, with·
many others equally useful and magnificent. The great under­
takings of his Pontificate did not withdraw the attention of Pius
VI. from his tender care for the poor. He founded and endowed
hospitals ; he erected houses of refuge for poor young girls ;
he established in Rome, the Brothers of the Christian schools,
to whom he intrusted the education of the poor children ; ami
grateful Rome inscribed upon the façade of their institution the
eulogy so sublime in its simplicity : " Pius VI.. Father of the
Poor.”
3. Suppressed by a Pontifical bull, banished by the Catholic
princes, the Jesuits found a home where they could least have
looked for it. Frederick the Great, a Protestant king and a phi­
losopher, and Catherine I., empress of Russia, had written to
the Pope to inform him that, knowing no better teachers of
youth than the Jesuits, they meant to keep them in their do­
minions. The situation was a delicate one. By the brief of
suppression, the Jesuits were forbidden to continue living in
communities, to receive novices, and consequently to perpetuate
their Order. The General, Ricci, had solemnly sworn to the

520

OKŒRAL BISTORT OP THE CHURCH.

Pope to renounce all power and jurisdiction as Superior. The
other Jesuits, faithful, as ever, to the decree of Rome, even
when that decree was their own death-warrant, refused the
generous offers of Catherine and Frederick, so long as the Pope
did not authorize their acceptance. Pius VI. was, on the other
hand, divided between the feelings of esteem and affection
which he openly professed toward the Jesuits, and the well
grounded fear of arousing, by an untimely manifestation, the
hardly appeased hatred and hostility of the Catholic Powers.
He met the difficulty concerning the European courts with the
noble frankness that always appears as the distinctive trait
of his character. He laid before them the propositions made
by the Empress of Russia and the King of Prussia. He was
told that, in this matter, he might follow the promptings of his
own heart, provided he did not give to the expression of his
will a character of too great publicity. Pius VI. accordingly
authorized the Jesuits in Russia and Prussia to open their
educational institutions, to establish novitiates, in a word, to
confer upon the north of Europe those blessings of which the
nations of the south had so blindly deprived themselves.
4. While Pius VI. ascended the throne of St. Peter, France
was enjoying the festivities celebrated at Paris on the acces­
sion of Louis XVI. Never did a reign begin with brighter
promise ; never, indeed, had a prince mounted the steps of the
throne with better intentions or with a deeper sense of the
greatness of his mission. The virtues of the youthful monarch
were so pure, so sincere, so brilliant, that the very schools of
philosophy could not withhold their share of praise ; but, as if
his very virtue had been given him only to hurry the hapless
prince more swiftly to his ruin, he allowed himself to be allured
by views of humanity, of public good, of philanthropy, under
which the modern innovators cloaked their subversive theories
and revolutionary doctrines. His ministers, Turgot, the Count
of St. Germain, and Nccker, were men whose faith was in
systems, who thought that political economy might answer
the purposes of religious principles in a nation Still, some

PTTJ8 VI. (Λ. D. 1Π5-Π99).

o21

beneficial reforms were effected in the government, but Louie
spoiled everything, when he inaugurated his reign by the recall
of the parliament banished by Louis XV. It has been ’aid
that men, taken individually, are seldom capable of gratitude ;
in bodies, never. The first act of the parliament, after its
restoration, was to oppose the registry of tho edicts published
by Louis XVI. This was a source of new intrigues, cabals,
and even of riots ; for the people were already learning this in
France, while the young nobility, intoxicated by visions of a
far-off independence, hastened to the battle-fields of America to
fight for its republican institutions and to conquer the order of
Cincinnatus. This was truly a period of blindness, in which all the
parts were confused, in which the disorder of ideas was equalled
only by the enthusiasm with which men plunged into untried
paths! The American Revolution brought upon France two
disastrous results ; it brought the financial crisis, the prelude
of the revolution, and the spirit of independence by which that
revolution was consummated
•5. Though farther removed from social dissolution. Ger­
many, under Joseph II., seemed to be verging upon schism.
What appeared under the name of Gallicanism in France was
seen as Josephism in Germany. Errors change their name in
accordance with times and countries, but they do not change
their nature. The work of Febronius was the theological
hand-book of Joseph II. Imbued with its principles, so favor­
able, beside, to the ambition of sovereigns, he assumed the
mission of opposing the rights, the authority, and the juris­
diction of the Holy See; he was ambitious to be the universal
bishop, the general council of his kingdom. Without even con­
sulting the Sovereign Pontiff; generally, indeed, in contempt of
his formal protests, Joseph settled, by arbitrary decisions, all
ecclesiastical questions, deprived bishops of their revenues, ex­
pelled them from the Orders of their provinces, or abolished
their sees. An imperial decree subjected all Pontifical bulls to
the ratification or placet of the monarch. This was an importa­
tion into Germany of the purely French invention of subjecting

622

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Pontifical bulls to the necessity of parliamentary registration
Other edicts interdicted, throughout the whole extent of the
empire, the teaching of the bull Unigenitus ; it was ordered
that the very text of the bull should be removed from any
theological work in which it might be found ; and that pro­
fessors should speak of it only as a purely historical document,
without any religious value. Bishops were forbidden to con­
fer orders without the previous consent of the emperor ; onehalf of the diocesan seminaries were closed ; of the two thou­
sand religious communities scattered over the whole face of the
Empire, he left only seven hundred in existence; confraternities
were abolished, and processions suppressed. lie went so far
as to fix the number of priests for each church. It was in al­
lusion to all these regulations, so foreign to the usual legisla­
tion of a sovereign, that Frederick spoke of the emperor as,
“ My brother the Sacristan.”
6. The Roman Court had fruitlessly exhausted all diplo­
matic means to recall Joseph II. to a line of conduct more
worthy of himself, more worthy especially of the memory of
his illustrious and pious mother. Pius VI. was the Apostolic
Pastor whom no consideration could turn aside from the path
of duty. It had long been an unheard of thing for a Pope to
leave the Pontifical States; yet Pius VI. suddenly' formed the
resolution of undertaking a journey to Vienna, in the hope that
his presence and his words would be more effectual than letters,
with the youthful Cæsar. The news of this journey was an
event in Europe ; the Sacred College, fearful of the results of
such a step, made the most earnest entreaties to withdraw the
Pope from his courageous project. “ We shall go,” replied
Pius, “where duty calls, just as We should go to martyrdom
for the interests of religion; happy to defend it, the successors
of St. Peter have not feared to risk their lives. We may not
desert the bark of the Church even amid the most violent
storms" The effect of the Pope’s presence in Vienna was pro­
digious·. his journey had been like a popular triumph. On the
22d of March, a. d. 1782, Pius VI. entered the capital of Aus

P1Ü8 Vi. (A. D. 111»-1199).

523

tria, surrounded by more than fifty thousand of its inhabitants.
So great was the number of people who hastened from all
•arts of the Empire, that serious alarm was felt, for a time, lest
a scarcity of provisions should ensue. It must be confessed
that Joseph II. showed dispositions Car less favorable than
those of his subjects. He observed toward the Pope the for­
malities required by ordinary politeness, but he would moderate
none of his schismatical pretensions. His prime minister,
Kaunitz, afforded to the whole court the scandalous spectacle
of a Christian refusing to show to a Pope even the least possi­
ble marks of the deference due to so many titles. Pius VI.
quitted Vienna, touched by the display of affectionate devotion
on the part of the people, but deeply grieved at the attitude
persistently maintained by the emperor. By an unparalleled
want of even decent consideration, the Austrian police, so strict
on all other occasions, had allowed the circulation in Vienna,
during the Pope’s sojourn in that capital, of an insulting
pamphlet, entitled “ Quid est Papa !” Its author, the Protestant
Eybel, openly denied the Pontifical supremacy and loaded the
Papacy with the coarsest calumnies. This shameless assault,
it should be told, met with eloquent antagonists in the very
midst of German Protestantism. The distinguished historian,
Johannes Müller, then a young man, answered Eybel. in the
admirable work, “ The Journeys of the Popes," in which he
triumphantly Vindicated the insulted honor of the Papacy.
Eybel’s pamphlet afterward drew upon its author the thunders
of the Church. Joseph II. meanwhile continued his course of
echismatical innovations. In the month of August, 1786,
the so-called council of Ems, convoked by the emperor, drew
up a decree in twenty-three articles, intended to consecrate the
erroneous doctrines of Josephism. It was first stated that
Jesus Christ had given to the apostles and to the bishups, their
successors, an unlimited power of binding and of loosing in all
cases and for all persons, and that, therefore, no further recourse
to Rome was necessary. The exemptions granted to religion
*
were annulled, excepting those confirmed by the emperor-

24

GENERAL HISTORY OF ΤΠΕ CnURCH.

strange inconsistency, which refused to the Pope, in an eccle­
siastical matter, an authority granted to the civil powei. After
other similar innovations, it was stipulated that all dispensa­
tions sought from any other source than the bishop’s tribunal,
should be null ; that the Papal bulls should not be binding if
they were received only by the bishop, and that nunciatures
should no longer exist. The abolition of the oath made by the
bishops to the Pope, was decreed. Should the Pope, they
said, refuse to confirm the bishops on these new terms, they
would find, in the rules of primitive discipline, some way of re­
taining possession of their office under the protection of the
emperor. Leopold, grand duke of Tuscany, followed the
example of his brother, Joseph 11. He had given himself up
to the influence of Ricci, bishop of Pistoja, an ambitious and in­
considerate prelate, utterly perverted by Jansenistic opinions,
who published pastoral instructions styling Soanen, the deposed
Bishop of Senez, “ a saintly and pious man Mésenguy he
called “the light of the Church,” and Quesnel a “martyr.”
He had caused an Italian translati'on to be made of the “ Moral
Reflections,” and presented copies to his priests urging them to
make use of that golden book. Ricci called a Synod at Pistoja
(September 19,1788), for the more solemn promulgation of the
errors which he was spreading. Fearing that he might not find,
in his own diocese, a sufficient number of priests disposed to favor
his intentions, he summoned several Jansenist Doctors from
various places, especially from the University of Paris, where
Natalis, Tamburini, and other theologians were displaying
those sentiments. The bishop appointed Tamburini promoter
of the synod, though, being a stranger, he had in truth no right
oven to a seat in it. The synod lasted ten days and was com­
posed of two hundred and thirty-four priests, to whom Ricci
promised that the Holy Ghost would come down upon them, and
that their oracles should become those of God Himself. The doo
trine contained in the bull Unigenitus was rejected as impious.
The Constitution of the schismatical province of Utrecht was
proclaimed the very type of the true discipline of the Church

PIÜ8 VI. 'A. D. 1775 1799».

525

The devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which tho predeceseors of Pius VI. had endeavored to propagate in the Church,
was condemned ; sacred images were made the object of a
sacrilegious contempt; condemnation was pronounced against
the multiplicity of religions Orders which Ricci wished to reduce
to one ; he also called for the suppression of perpetual vows
and admitted only the rule of Port Royal. Pius VI., in the
hull Auctorem Fidci, condemned the synod of Pistoja.
7. The scourge of revolutions was sent to teach Joseph
IL, and his imitators, what it costs princes to tear themselves
violently away from the Holy See, and to encroach upon its
jurisdiction. The Estates of Belgium refused to submit to the
schismatical exactions of Joseph II. ; the professors to whom
he would have given the chairs in the Universities of Louvain
and Luxembourg, then filled by those who taught doctrines
favorable to Rome, were driven out by the students and the
people; the Estates of Brabant and of Hainault refused the
accustomed subsidies. Joseph thought to check the evil by
severe measures, and he abrogated the privileges of Brabant.
Tho troubles increased, the emperor suppressed the diocesan
seminaries and in their stead substituted a general seminary to
which the bishops of the two provinces were ordered to send
their students. None of them obeyed, and the Cardinal of
Mechlin issued a pastoral letter declaring that the teaching of
the Josephist professors was opposed to the Catholic belief.
The cardinal was arrested by the emperor’s order, with the
Bishop of Antwerp, who had taken the same stand. The insur­
rection now broke out in all directions ; Belgium was up in arms ;
the war was actually begun. Joseph II., wholly unprepared for
such an event, proposed an armistice, which was disdainfully
rejected,and the imperialists were forced to quit the Netherlands.
The emperor, who had brought upon himself this disgrace
Dy so many acts of violence and injustice, now entreated the
Pope to remedy the evil. The merciful Pius VI. wrote to the
bishops of Belgium with that intention (January 23, a. d. 1790).
It was too late; the Belgian insurrection had Liken too deep

62fi

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHÜROH.

root; beside.the French revolution was looming up in the horiton with constantly growing proportions, threatening to ingulf
all the others. Joseph II. died during the first shocks of that
fearful convulsion (February 20, 1790). Had he lived longer,
circumstances would have brought him to a more prudent and
moderate course, and his minister, Kaunitz, converted too late
to wiser principles of government, often repeated to him : “The
French revolution will last long; perhaps, even, for all time."
8. The great storm which has been called the French Revo­
lution, refused to be turned away by all the efforts, all the
sacrifices, all the endeavors of Louis XVI. To remedy the
financial crisis which served as its pretext, the unfortunate mon
arch had successively called to the head of his councils De
Calonne, De Brienne, Necker, and others. De Galonné, a man
of superficial mind and narrow views, without business expe­
rience, found no other means of satisfying the debts of the
kingdom than to contract new ones. The real amount of the
national debt in 1788, the gulf which swallowed up the French
monarchy, has been greatly.exaggerated ; it did not amount to
more than one hundred and ten millions. There is not one of
the least Powers of Europe, whose actual debt is not propor­
tionately four times as great. But at that period the financial
system upon which national credit is now based, had not yet
been discovered. De Calonne was succeeded by the cardinal­
archbishop of Toulouse, Loménie de Brienne, an ambitious pre­
late, who saw in this new dignity only the additional renown it
was to give to his name ; he dreamed himself the head of
another ministry, like that of Mazarin : as for serious and
practical ideas, he brought to the king only incomplete systems
of political economy, gathered from the various authors who
then treated of that science as a matter of taste. Yet, the
cardinal has, in our estimation, one merit which has been too
much overlooked; he offered to rid the king of the rebellious
parliament and to replace it by a “ cour plénière ”_of which all
the members—to be chosen by the government__ should be
irremovable But Louis XVI. was a man of half-measures ;

PTU8 VT. (A. D. 1775-17991

527

the cardinal’s plan alarmed him; the ministry was changed;
taking with it, perhaps, the last hope of safety. Necker gave
the death-blow to the tottering monarchy by suggesting to Louis
the fatal plan of assembling the States-General, to lay before
them the disastrous state of the finances, and to rely upon their
wisdom for the remedy.
9. The Estates met at Versailles on the 5th of May,
a. d. 1789; on that day Revolution made its entry into the
palace of the kings. Hardly a month had elapsed since their
first session, when the States-General, changing their name,
their object, their mission and their charge, called themselves
the National Assembly, swearing not to part until they had
given a Constitution to France, and through Mirabeau, answering
the royal officer who ordered them to cease their sittings : “ Go
and tell your master that we sit here by the will of the people,
and that we are only to be dri ven out by the bayonet.” The
people now rose up, the only, the great, the absolute power
Sixty thousand men, after carrying terror and pillage to every
quarter of Paris, laid siege to the Bastille, on the 14th of July,
1789. They searched the dungeons, which were said to swarm
with the victims of tyranny—they found two prisoners. One
of the heroes of the republican expedition to America, a man
without means, without courage, whose whole merit consisted in a
groundless popularity—Lafayette—organized a national militia,
a standing insult to the army, a meaningless institution, ruinous
alike to the State and to individuals, and secured for himself
the title of commander-in-chief of the National Guard of the
kingdom. On the 4th of August, 1789, the National Assembly
abolished all titles of nobility, at the request and with the
applause of the greatest lords themselves. Without debate,
without deliberation, the work of ten centuries was destroyed
in three hours. We cannot attempt to describe the shocking
scenes of the 5th of October, 1789, and those of other days of
mournful memory, written with an indelible stain of blood upon
that page of the annals of France. A prisoner in his own
capital, insulted in his most legitimate affections, trembling

528

(IE VERA L HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

for the life of the august princess with whose destinies he
had linked his own, and whose love the French people now
repaid with outrages, her virtue and benefits with the most
revolting calamities, Louis XVI. knew how to ennoble himself,
in heroic resignation, by the very greatness of his misfor­
tunes.
10. It was impossible in the general confusion, that the
history of the Church and its Constitution should escape with­
out insult. On the 13th of February, a. d. 1790, a decree of
the Constituent Assembly suppressed religious Orders and mo­
nastic vows, and declared the property of the clergy at the
disposal of the nation ; at length the celebrated decree known
as the “ Civil Constitution of the Clergy,” ordered that thence­
forth the bishops should be appointed by the electors, and in­
vested by the metropolitan, who was to be chosen in the same
manner; they would be allowed to write a letter of etiquette to
the Pope, acquainting him with their appointment. The same
decree abolished the hundred and thirty-five bishoprics then
existing in France, and replaced them by eighty-three civil sees,
to correspond with the number of the new departments lately
substituted by the assembly in the place of the old and popular
division into provinces. It was attempted to force Louis XVI.
to ratify this tyrannical decree; the king refused, and referred
it to the Sovereign Pontiff. Pius VI. perfectly understood the
position of the unhappy monarch ; his letter seems more like
an address to a prisoner than to a king. “ Let us put our trust
in Providence,” he writes, “ and by an unshaken attachment to
the faith of our fathers, let us deserve from Him the help of
which we stand so much in need.” The Pope then referred
the king for the solution of his question to the two archbishops
of Vienne and Bordeaux, De Pompignan and De Cicé. The two
prelates had the deplorable weakness to advise the pure and
simple acceptance of the measure. De Pompignan afterward
died of a broken heart at his own scandalous weakness, and De
Cicé. published a retraction equally humble and explicit. Louis
XVI. gave his signature to the “ Civil Constitution of the

P1Ü9 VT. (A. D. 1.>β-Η9»\

529

Clergy,” and thus sanctioned a schism in the kingdom which
had until then gloried in the title of Most Christian
11. Louis XVI. wrote to the Pope, requesting him to con
firm, at least provisionally, some of the articles of the “ Civil
Constitution of the Clergy.” The Pontiff called a Congregation
of Cardinals to consider the request, and by their advice de­
termined to consult the French bishops, since they were in a
better position to judge of the spirit and connection of the de­
crees, and also of the measures suited to the difficult situation.
On the 30th of October, a.d. 1790, thirty French bishops signed
a profession of faith known as the “ Exposition of Principles
on the Civil Constitution of the Clergy.” The author, Mgr. de
Boisgelin, archbishop of Aix, who also signed it, defended in
it the true principles of the Church, without recrimination or
bitterness, with a moderation and solidity that would have
recalled less prejudiced minds. The Exposition defended the
essential jurisdiction of the Church, the right to decide on dis­
cipline, to make regulations, to institute bishops, and to give
them a mission; which rights were wholly denied by the now
decrees. It also complained of the suppression of so many mon­
asteries ; of the violence which claimed to annul promises made
to God, and to tear down sacred barriers set by no human
hand. The bishops concluded with the request that the co­
operation of the Holy See should be admitted to legalize all the
changes that might be made; that due force should be given to
ôe authority of the Pope, without whom nothing of importance
should be undertaken in the Church.
These considerations made no impression on the public
mind. On the 27th of November, a. n. 1790. the Constituent As­
sembly decreed that all the bishops and priests, who should not
within eight days, have sworn to observe the “Civil Constitu­
tion,” should be looked upon as having given up their charge
A special clause announced that, in the event of the refusal of
the metropolitan, or the oldest bishop in the province, to conse­
crate the bishops chosen in accordance with the revolutionary
forms, the consecration should be performed by any othei
Vol. IV.—34

530

GENERAL HÎSTORV OF THE CHtJRCH.

bishop whatever; and that, for the confirmation and canonical
institution, the civil administration would point out to the can­
didate a bishop of its own choice, to whom he should apply.
The 4th of January, a. d. 1791, was the day appointed for
the ecclesiastical members of the National Assembly to taka
the oath of defection and schism. Amid the loud cries of a
phrensied mob crowding about the doors with shouts of “ Death
to the priests who will not take the oath !” the president called
upon M. de Bonnac, bishop of Agen. “ Gentlemen,” said th»1
prelate, “ the sacrifice of wealth is of little moment to me ; bi
there is one sacrifice which I cannot make, that of your respect
and my faith ; I should be too sure of losing both did I take
the oath required of me.” M. de Saint-Aulaire, bishop of
Poitiers, ascended to the tribune. “ Gentlemen,” he said, ·· I
am seventy years old ; I have spent thirty-three in the episco­
pate, and I shall not now disgrace my gray hairs by taking the
oath required by your decrees ; I will not swear.” At these
words the clergy on the right rose up in a body, applauded tho
words of the venerable prelate and proclaimed that they all
shared the same sentiments. But Henri Grégoire, pastor of
Embermenil, in the diocese of Nancy, a man notorious for his
exaggerated revolutionary principles, gave the example of
defection. He appeared in the tribune and endeavored to per­
suade the clergy on the right that the Assembly had no inten­
tion of touching religion or the spiritual authority, and that in
taking the oath they bound themselves to nothing at variance
with the Catholic faith. The Assembly then decreed that instead
of individual summons, a general call should be made. Tho
president made the call : “ Let those ecclesiastics who have not
yet taken the oath, rise and come forward to swear.” Not one
answered the schismatical appeal, and yet the cries of death
were growing fiercer at the doors of the hall. All honor to the
clergy of France! There is no nobler page in the history of
'.he Church. The Assembly at once decreed that the king
should name new bishops and pastors to take the places of those
who had refused to swear. Of the three hundred ecclesiastics

PTU8 VI. (A. D. 1776-1780).

531

sent as deputies to the National Assembly, not more than
twenty adhered to the schismatical Constitution of the clergy
The bishops of the various provinces followed the example of
their colleagues in Paris, and out of one hundred and thirty-five
French bishops, only four were found under the standard of
schism. They were—Cardinal de Brienne, archbishop of
Sens, and the Bishops of Viviers, Orleans, and Autun. The
after career of these prelates was ill-calculated to vindicate
their conduct on this occasion. De Brienne, who was already
well known and understood, sent back the cardinal’s hat, ob­
tained a short time before by means of intrigue, was deposed
from his dignity by the Pope, and died miserably in 1794.
The bishops of Orleans and Autun, Jarente and Talleyrand, un­
happily placed in a state of life for which they were so illsuited, renounced it to enter into civil offices and even con­
tracted marriage ties. M. de Savines, bishop of Viviers, who
gave in his resignation and was elected according to the new
form, afterward entered upon so extravagant a course that it is
questioned whether his defection was not an effect of insanity.
Among the pastors and vicars of the provinces, the great
majority, at least fifty out of sixty thousand, refused to take
the oath prescribed by the “ Civil Constitution.” Of the re­
mainder, the greater number swore only with reservations for
all that was contrary to the Catholic faith ; a very weak
minority swore absolutely and without reserve. In a word,
nearly the whole French episcopate and the great majority of
the secular clergy, proved true in the hour of trial.
12. On the 10th of March and on the 13th of April, a.d. 1791.
Pius VI. addressed two briefs respectively to the bishops of
Constituent Assembly and to the clergy and faithful of France,
declaring the radical nullity of the “ Civil Constitution of the
Clergy. ’ The appointment of the new bishops was, in his eyes,
unlawful, sacrilegious, and contrary to the canons. He com­
manded all the ecclesiastics who had taken the oath to recall
it within forty days, on pain of suspension from all clerical
orders, and of irregularity if they continued to discharge their

532

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

functions. Notwithstanding these decrees of the successor of
St. Peter, of the Vicar of Jesus Christ, the schismatical Villar
had himself consecrated in Paris as Bishop of the department
of Mayenne. But the diocese of Laval did not hearken to the
voice of the hireling; the false pastor everywhere met only
shame and contempt.
13. In ordinary times, these violent proceedings of the
National Assembly would have constituted a deplorable schism ;
but at this period of strange confusion it was only an episode
which was soon to pass away with every institution, ever)
right, every principle, in a fearful deluge of blood. On the
1st of October, a. d. 1791, the Legislative took the place of the
Constituent Assembly. All the efforts of Louis XVI. to avert
the catastrophe had been vain. His flight to Varennes only
gave another triumph to his enemies. The Legislative As­
sembly, composed of the most ardent partisans of Paris and the
provinces, conceived the design of abolishing royalty, which
stood in the way of those bloodthirsty innovators. On the very
day on which Louis appeared in their midst they decreed that
he should no longer enjoy the titles of “ king” and “ majesty,’
and that the obligation to uncover in his presence had ceased
to exist. The nobles and princes of the blood, foreseeing the
excesses to which the revolutionists would soon give themselves
up, hastened to fly the land that was preparing to devour its
own children. The Legislative Assembly pronounced sentence
of forfeiture against the absent princes, of death against every
refugee who should not have returned to his home before the
1st of January, 1792, and of banishment against all priests
who refused to take the oath of the Civil Constitution. Indig­
nation restored to Louis XVI. all his native energy ; he wished
to use in turn, the Constitution so much abused by his enemies,
and answered the two baneful decrees by a veto. Then came
forth from the Masonic lodges the odious society of Jacobins,
ec named from their place of meeting in Paris. This vile herd
oi abandoned men, plotting in open day against all religion,
against all order, against every throne, and every government.

Ρίϋβ VI. (A D. .175-1799).

«prend like a foul contagion through the provinces, infected the
cities, and ravaged even the country districts, proscribing all
that possessed a name, a fortune, talent and virtue. The last
vestige of principle was whelmed in the torrent, the shameless
mob crowned itself with the emblem of infamy, with the odious
red cap worn by convicts. Clubs of Girondists and Cordeliers
were formed in Parie on the model of those of the Jacobins ;
while Pétion and Santerre inaugurated the “ Rein of Terror.’’
Louis XVI. was forced, with tears in his eyes, to sign a decla­
ration of war against Austria ; the 20th of June and the 10th
of August are dates written in letters of blood on the annals of
France ; the Legislative Assembly made way for the Conven­
tion, and the first act of the new’ Assembly was to declare
Louis XVI. deposed from the royal dignity. He was at first
kept a prisoner in the Luxembourg, but three days later was
sent to the Temple with the queen. Marie Antoinette, his sister,
Madame Elizabeth, the Dauphin, his son, a child of seven years
and a half, Madame Royale, his daughter, the Marchioness of
Tourzel, the governess of the royal children, whose devotedness
outlived their misfortune, and three devoted attendants, whose
names have been preserved by history as models of fidelity
—they were, Hue, Chamilly, and Cléry. It was a day of
mourning and of shame for France. On the 2d of Sep­
tember, simultaneously with the tidings that the Prussians
were already in Champagne, the streets rang with the fierce
cry, “To the prisons! Let us kill the prisoners!” A kind
of phrensy seemed to have seized upon the multitude ; a great
number of priests and aged men, crowded together in the
monasteries of the “ Carmes,” of St. Firmin, of La Force, and
of St. Germain at Bicêtre, were butchered with unparalleled
baibarity ; the horrible massacre lasted four days, and cost the
lives of more than eight thousand French citizens in Paris
alone. In those scenes of sad and bloody memory, the brutal
murderers were seen singing and dancing around their palpi
tating victims, tearing out their entrails, and even drinking
their blood. Some of the proscribed escaped by means of

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

bribes. Manuel received fifty thousand crowns for the ranscaj
of the Princess de Lamballe, the daughter-in-law of the virtuous Duke of Penthiévre. He had hardly received the mone<
when he sent to La Force a band of assassins, who brought him
back upon a pike the head and heart of the unfortunate prin­
cess, after having paraded it for some time before the windows
of the Temple, in the sight of the unfortunate Marie Antoinette,
a bosom friend of the princess. Two days later, standing in
the tribune of the Jacobins, and wearing the red cap for a dia­
dem, d’Orleans solemnly foreswore his fathers, and, at his own
request, the Commune declared that he should thenceforth bear
the name of Egalité.
14. The Convention was formed under the influence of the
reign of terror. The trembling electors voted according to the
wishes of the Septembriseurs—Septembrists—as the most fu­
rious Democrats were called. Paris and all France threw their
refuse into the mass—the two Robespierres, Danton, Collo.
d’Herbois, Billaud-Varennes, Camille Desmoulins, Couthon, St.
Just, Brissot, Marat, Legendre, Panis, Sergent, Fabre d’Eglan­
tine, and even Philip Egalité. These men, whose memory is
forever doomed to the execration of posterity, took in the Con­
vention a place which they called “ the Mountain”—La Mon­
tagne—they were themselves, in consequence, styled the
Mountaineers—Montagnards. On the 3d of December, a. d.
1792, after a discussion which betrayed the incapacity of St.
Just, the ridiculous sophisms of Condorcet, and the hypocritical
pity of Robespierre, the Convention announced that it would pro­
ceed to the trial of Louis Capet, as the infamous rabble styled
their king. On the 11th, Louis XVI. was brought before the
Assembly by Santerre. He heard, without emotion, the fifty
seven charges to which he was called upon to answer. His
reply was characterized by a force and precision only equalled
by its moderation and simplicity. The president, Barrère,
charged him with having made his alms and benefits a means
of seducing the people “Ah ’. sir,” replied the august prisoner
with emotion, *'1 have never tasted a sweeter satisfaction than

PIU8 VI. (A. D. 1175-1799).

535

that of giving to the needy.” When arraigned at the bar Louis
XVI. asked the Assembly to allow him a counsel and defence
On his return to the Temple he was separated from his family
The king was allowed to choose his counsel; he intrusted bi
*
cause to Tronchet and Target, both members of the late Con­
stituent Assembly. The latter declined the honorable task.
Malesherbes, though seventy years old, offered himself to take
the place of the cowardly Target. “In his prosperity,” said he.
“ the king honored me with his favor ; I cannot forsake him in
his adversity.” Malesherbes afterward received his reward
upon the scaffold. M. de Sèze was added to these courageous
pleaders. The fate of the defence had been anticipated ; the
judges hardly listened to it. “ Remember,” said De Sèze,
‘•that history will judge your sentence, and its judgment will
be that of ages.” History has pronounced ; it has glorified the
victim, and finds no words to brand the executioners. Louis
XVI. was condemned to death. When Philip Egalité, who sat
in the Convention, was called upon for his vote, he uttered from
the tribune this shocking speech : “ Wholly absorbed in the
thought of duty, convinced that all those who have been, or in
future may be, guilty of injuring the sovereignty of the people,
deserve death, I vote for Death." Such a word, from those
lips, drew a cry of horror even from the men who were thought
dead to every feeling of humanity; and the Assembly, with one
voice, uttered the exclamation : “ The Monster !”
15. On the 30th of December the sentence was made known
to the royal victim by the person styled “ the minister of jus
tice.” Louis XVI. received it with the calm serenity of inno­
cence. He was allowed to see his unhappy family for the last
time, and to receive the consolations of religion from M. Edge­
worth de Firmont, an Irish clergyman. Louis lengthened the
interview with the queen, his daughter, his son, and his sister,
as long as he could bear up against his emotion. At the end
of two hours, feeling that he could hold out no longer, he gave
hie last blessing to these worthy objects of his tenderest affec­
tions, and hastened back in silence to bis own apartment, with

636

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

his face buried in his hands. He then spent some time in
private communication with the Abbé Edgeworth ; the hours
seemed too short for bis piety ; it was necessary to force him
to seek some rest. He slept soundly until five o’clock. The
sacrifice of life had been offered up ; he was now a Christian
martyr going forth to die by the regicide steel of the Conven­
tion, as the martyrs of the early Church died by the orders of
Nero and Diocletian. When the king had received communion,
Clery threw himself at his feet: “Ah, my master! ah, my
king!" he exclaimed, “if my devotedness and my services can
have been pleasing to you, the only reward I ask is your bless­
ing ; do not refuse it to the last Frenchman who has remained
true to you!" The king gave his blessing to the faithful
attendant with the same composure as if he had still inhabited
the palace of his fathers. Santerre had placed a hundred
thousand National Guards under aims ; he appeared before the
august captive; the fatal hour had come: “Let us go,” said
Louis, “ I am ready.” He was seated in a carriage with twe
gendarmes who had orders to kill him at once if any attempt
was made in his favor : the barbarous precaution was useless
Among so many thousands of men, most of whom abhorred the
parricidal act about to be perpetrated, not one was found to
raise his voice in favor of his king. A deadly stupor seemed
to have fallen upon all minds. Louis XVI., untroubled by the
various passions that moved the spectators, prayed during the
whole journey to the scaffold, and nothing could ruffle the
peace of his soul no longer bound to earth. When the exe­
cutioner approached to bind his hands, Louis, who was not
prepared for this new act of violence, was on the point of
ordering him back. “ Sire,” said the abbé, “ this humilia­
tion will constitute one wore feature of resemblance between
your Majesty and the God who is to be its reward.” Louis
then held out his own hands, and with a firm step approached
the instrument of death, while his confessor exclaimed with
enthusiasm: “Son of St. Louis, ascend to Heaven.” Before
laying his head upon the block, the king turned to the people

PIUS VI. (A. D. 1775-179'J).

537

and began to address them : “ Frenchmen, I die guiltless of the
crimes imputed to me ; I forgive my enemies"—the fierce San·
terre here interrupted him with the words, “ I brought you here,
not to harangue the people, but to die and he ordered the
drums to beat, thus drowning the voice of the victim. The
head of the King of France, of the most virtuous and best of
kings, rolled from under the fatal knife ; an attendant of the
*
executioner
held it up before the people, with the words: “ It
is the head of a tyrant” (January 21, a. d. 1793). On the day
before his trial, Louis XVI. had drawn up his testament, im­
mortal as the religion by which it was inspired.
16. The effect produced in all Europe by this tragic event
is beyond description. At Rome, Pius VI. ordered a solemn
service for the repose of the soul of the unfortunate monarch ;
he addressed the cardinals assembled in a consistory: “Why
are not Our words broken by sobs and tears ? Should We not,
in sighs and groans, rather than in words, pour out the over­
whelming grief with which We are obliged to make known to
you the fearful crime of the 21st of January ? But from such an
array of wicked and ferocious judges, from so many extorted
votes, what could We look for but deeds that must win infamy,
horror, and execration from all coming ages ! The imprison­
ment and death of Louis XVI. were attended by circumstances
so lamentable, that no man, who still retains a feeling of hu­
manity, can hear them without shuddering, especially when We
remember the character of Louis, mild, affable, generous, an
enemy of rigor and severity, filled with love for his people,
* Samson, the man who presided over the execution of Louis XVI., took no active part
in the deed. Born in 1740, of a family which had for two centuries held the office of exe­
cutioner, his gentle and pious disposition waa in strange contrast with the terrible functions
of his office ; it was necessary to use forcer to bring him to the execution of Louis XVL The
fearful sight made so deep an impression upon him that he died of it within six months,
expressing the most bitter grief at having taken a part, though indirect, in a deed so atro­
cious. He left a sum of money to defray the expenses of a yearly mass of expiation, to be
•aid on the 21st of January, for the repose of the suul of Louis XVI. His pious intention
was faithfully complied with, in the church of St. Lawrence, until 1840, the period of hi»
•on’· death. For a space of twenty years, thero was no other expiatory ceremony in
Franco ; the first prc'est was that o' the executioner

53S

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

gentle anil indulgent toward all. Had Our exhortations been
heeded. We should not to-day be called on to lament the ruin
now fallen upon France, and threatening kings and kingdoms
0 France ! styled by our predecessors the mirror of Christianity,
the unshaken support of the faith, thou whose Christian fervor
nnd devotion to the Apostolic See was unequalled among na­
tions. how hast thou fallen into this gulf of disorder, of license
nnd impiety? Thou hast heaped upon thyself but dishonor,
infamy, the indignation of nations and kings, of the Little
and the great, of the present and the future !” The solemn
Mass of requiem for the soul of Louis was celebrated in the
Pontifical chapel ; among those present were the Princesses
Victoria and Adelaide, aunts of the late king. During the
panegyric of Louis XVI., the Pope was several times seen to
shed abundant tears on hearing the praise pronounced upon the
virtues of a prince, who had fallen under the weight of such
undeserved misfortunes. The death of the king was but a pre­
lude to that of the other royal prisoners in the Temple. Marie
Antoinette, the daughter of the Cæsars, who had brought to
the throne of France virtues shamefully calumniated by her
enemies, a deep and true love for her adopted country, which
was never taken into account, Marie Antoinette was doomed
to share the fate of her royal consort. She was kept during
seventy-four days in an unwholesome dungeon of the Concier­
gerie. without other food than a scanty allowance of bread and
water. The queen was dragged before the revolutionary tri­
bunal and loaded with calumnious accusations, to which she
replied with equal energy and propriety. Chauveau-Lagardo
illustrated his name by his heroic defence of the unhappy
queen ; but of what avail are the pleadings of eloquence, mis­
fortune, and courage, with such ferocious judges ? “I was a
queen,” said Marie Antoinette to them, “and you have put my
consort to death ; I was a mother, and you have torn me from
my children; there is nothing left but my blood; take it, and
do not prolong my sufferings.” In a few hours she was passing
through the streets in the fatal cart,amid the jeers of a vile rabble

ΡΤϋβ VI. (A. D. 1775-1799).

53‘J

paid to insult her. The queen turned a last look upon the Tuiler­
ies. the sight of which moved her to an extent which she could
not hide. The priest in attendance reminded her that then was
the time to show her courage. “ It is not when my woes are
about to end,” answered the queen, “ that I shall be seen to fail.”
On reaching the sea Hold, she threw herself upon her knees, and
raising her eyes to heaven, “ 0 God,” she exclaimed, “enlighten
and touch my executioners.” Thus perished, at the age of thirty­
eight years, a princess who deserved all the love of her people,
and who ended her royal life upon a scaffold. Madame Eliza­
beth met the same fate. The Dauphin died in prison under
the cruel treatment of the infamous Simon. Madame Royale,
reserved by Providence for a life of little sunshine and many
tears, escaped almost miraculously from the hands of her exe­
cutioners ; she was afterward exchanged. Terror was now the
political system of France. Four millions of victims, of every
age, and rank, and condition, were sacrificed to the ambition of
Robespierre, the abortive Cromwell of the French Revolution,
possessing the cruelty, without the talent, of the English repub­
lican. Orders were given for the plunder of all the churches,
and the suppression of the Catholic worship in France. The
churches contained wealth to the amount of eight hundred
millions, in sacred vessels and costly vestments ; the public
treasury did not receive two hundred, all the rest became the
booty of the spoilers. In the midst of one of the regular ses­
sions of the Convention, a number of soldiers entered the hall
wearing Pontifical vestments ; they were followed by a double
line of men of the lowest class, clothed with copes, chasubles,
and dalmatics; behind them were borne on handbarrows great
heaps of chalices, ciboriums and monstrances of gold and silver.
The procession filed past to the air of republican songs, and the
actors in the sacrilegious scene concluded by publicly renouncing
all worship other than that of liberty. Every street was light­
ed up by the flames which consumed the sacred books, pulpits,
confessionals, sacred vestments, pictures, and relics of saints.
Around these flaming piles, the populace, drunk with wine and

540

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

impiety, danced and blasphemed the God of its fathers. The
statues of saints were mutilated, crosses were broken, iron rail­
ings were removed, the bells were melted, and some of the
«teeples were even torn down, on the pretext that by their ele­
vation they were in opposition to republican equality. Even
tombs were not respected; the royal as’hes that rested in
St. Denis were scattered to the winds, the patroness of Paris
found no favor in the eyes of these madmen, and the shrine of
St. Geneviève was burnt in the Place de Grève. The new
divinity of this senseless people was Reason, who received in
the temples of the true God, under the form of living statues,
the incense of brutalized worshippers. The priests were ban­
ished to Guiana and to the hulks. Most of them died martyrs
to their fidelity, their devotedness, and their faith. A number
of the bishops and priests of the Constitutional Church then
resigned their functions, apostatized and married. The exiled
clergy everywhere, but especially in England, received a most
touching welcome, which they repaid by an edification that
afterward bore good fruit. The death of Robespierre (July
28, a. d. 1794—9th Thermidor, year III.) put an end to this
series of horrors.
17. The Convention was followed by the Directory. Of
her ancient traditions, France had kept but one—her warlike
courage. All the powers of Europe—Germany, Prussia, Hol­
land, England, Spain, and Sardinia—had declared war against
the Convention. Generals of an hour, soldiers without food or
clothing, repulsed combined Europe. The Vendean war, in
which a people of giants took in baud the outraged cause of jus­
tice and the monarchy, was not more successful in turning
France from the path of crime, disgrace, and infamy. At that
hour, from amid the heap of ruins, from the very bosom of
these disorders, arose a name which history was yet to place
beside the names of Alexander, of Hannibal, and of Cæsar. λ
young Corsican, trained in the military school of Brienne, was
about to cut himself an imperial mantle out of the fragments of
crumbled monarchies and to extend his glory from the Pyramids

ΡΠ78 VI. (A. D. Π15-Π09).

54

to Mt. Thabor, from the Nile to the Black Sea. Bonaparte,
who had already displayed his genius at the siege of Toulon,
was made commander-in-chief of the army of Italy (March,
a. d. 1796).
18. Pius had opposed this series of revolutionary outinges
with a truly apostolic courage. He had strongly protested
against the confiscation of ecclesiastical property ; against the
seizure of the Comtat-Venaissin, in the name of the republic ;
against the scandalous emancipation of religious orders, the law
of divorce, the marriage of priests, the massacre and banishment
of the faithful members of the clergy. Against these unpar­
alleled outrages, he had used only spiritual weapons, and had
moreover observed, in his political relations, a strict neutrality
which the weakened temporal power of the Holy See rendered
indispensable. At the very moment when the republican
troops invaded the Italian territory, the Pope, wholly devoted
to the care of governing souls, was publishing his bull Auctorem
fidei, in which he condemned the synod of Pistoja, as renewing
the repeatedly condemned errors of Wycliffe, Luther. Bains,
Jansenius, Quesnel, and the schismatical tendencies of the
“Declaration of the Clergy of France,”of 1682. Such was the
attitude of the Sovereign Pontiff in the spring of 1796, when,
from the summit of the Alps. Napoleon Bonaparte made his
first address to his troops : “ Soldiers, you are naked, ill-fed.
The Directory owes you much and can give you nothing. Look
upon this fair land ; it is yours. Here you shall find glory,
wealth, and honors.” The victories of Montenotte, Lodi, Cas­
tiglione, Rivoli, and Arcola, answered this appeal of military
eloquence, which the student of Brienne had drawn from the
deep study of Plutarch, Tacitus, and Livy. Bonaparte proved
himself as ablo in the cabinet as in the field. The treaty of
Rastad/ (November, a. d. 1797), in which the youthful con
quero' *dictat
·
I terms of peace, created and organized the Cisal
piae r'publi·, while it brought Austria and Sardinia to a pacifidisuL -ntageous to themselves.
'9 Th; negotiations with the Pope were doomed to a less

542

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

happy end. It was in vain that the hero of Arcola sent to
Pins VI. a messenger with these words : “ Tell Pius VI. that
Bonaparte is not an Attila, and that, though he were one, the
Pope should remeinber that he is the successor of St. Leo.”
The Directory named thirty million crowns as the sum which
the Holy See must pay unless it would witness the loss of a’J.
its Italian possessions. Moreover, the Legations of Urbmo
were seized. The terms were hard, but submission wa.·, a
necessity. All the orders of the State vied in generosity and
zeal to make up the enormous sum which the insolence of
triumph required of the Roman States. Pius VI. sent ail his
plate to the mint, and the generous example was folio .zed by
all his people. Meanwhile, the commissioners sent by the
Directory came to Rome, and announced in the name of Tal­
leyrand, the unworthy bishop of Autun, who had been ap­
pointed Minister of Foreign Affairs by the Republic, that, as a
preliminary condition of peace, the Pope was required to recall
the briefs by which he condemned the “ Civil Constitution of
the Clergy.” The cardinals, convoked by the Pope, declared
that such a demand could not be complied with, as it would
overthrow the whole doctrine of the Church. No decision
could have been more conformable to the intentions of Pius
VI. and to his sentiments of piety. “ We look upon the crown
of martyrdom,” he exclaimed, “ as far more glorious than that
which We now wear.” This apostolic speech was a prophecy ;
it became the rule of conduct of the heroic Pontiff.
20. On the 12th of February, a. d. 1798, the French troops
entered Rome under the command of Berthier ; they erected
a liberty tree on the square before St. Peter’s, and on the 15tL,
General Cervoni appeared in the Vatioan before the Vicar of
Jesus Christ, to tell him that he was no longer a temporal sover­
eign. As he seemed to be somewhat confused in his exordium,
the Pope said to him: “Well, sir, make known your business
without a preface ; We are prepared for the worst.” Cervoni
then proceeded to state that the continuance of the Catholic wor­
ship should be solemnly guaranteed, and that the spiritual author

Pits VI. (A. D. 1775-1799).

543

ity of the Head of the Universal Church should be preserved in
ts fulness and integrity. The Pope here remarked : “ Sir, that
authority We hold from God, and no earthly power can wrest
it from Us.” The general endeavored to justify what had been
done in regard to the temporal power. The Pope took up each
article in turn, quoted facts, sufficiently proving his fidelity and
the unjust violence of the Directory ; after which he cour­
teously dismissed the general. The Pope was to have a guard
of five hundred men; on the 16th of February it was suddenly
disbanded and Pius VI. waa a prisoner in his own palace.
They wished to reduce the august Pontiff to request his own
removal from Rome ; but all their efforts were fruitless, and, on
the 17th of February, he received a positive order to repair to
Tuscany, with a threat, in the event of his refusal, that he
should be taken away by force. “ But I am hardly convales­
cent,” said the martyr ; “ I cannot forsake my people and my
duty; I wish to die here.” “You can die anywhere,” brutally
replied Haller, the commissioner of the Directory ; “ if gentle
means cannot move you, force will perhaps be more eloquent.”
Left alone with a few faithful attendants, Pius VI. for the first
time seemed broken down by grief. Entering his oratory, he
recollected himself for a moment in the presence of God, and
soon returned with his usual serenity. “ It is the will of God,"
he said, “it is the will of God ! We must be ready to bear
whatever it may please Providence to send.” And during the
forty-eight remaining hours whi»h he spent in Rome, he did
not cease to attend to the business of the Church. On the very
night of his departure (February 20, 1798), the French Com­
missioner, who had anticipated the dawn, found Pius VI.
absorbed in prayer before his crucifix. “ Be quick !” cried the
impatient minister of that sacrilegious violence; and hurrying
his victim down the staircase of the Vatican, he did not lose
eight of him until he had entered the carriage in waiting. Thus
was the venerable Pontiff dragged from his palace and hurried
io the uncertain place of his exile and execution, in the thick
darkness of a stormy night.

544

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

21. On the 25th of the same month, the Pope reached
Sienna, where he was lodged, during three months, in an
Augustinian monastery. On the 2d of June he was removed
to a Carthusian monastery, near Florence. Still, as his preence in Italy was disagreeable to the Directory, it was de­
termined to bring him into France. On the 1st of April, a. d.
1799, he was forced to set out for Parma ; but here his condi­
tion became so alarming that the physicians protested strongly
against another removal. The French officer entered the
chamber of the august patient, uncovered the Pope’s bed,
looked for a moment at the Pontiff with that fierce brutality
which so well suited his mission, left the room, and returned
almost immediately with the words : “ Dead or alive, he must
start.” The Duke of Parma had the baseness to furnish a
troop of satellites to escort Pius VI. as far as Turin. As he
was trying to justify his conduct to the Pope, by alleging the
constraint put upon him, the martyr answered : “Your Royal
Highness uses , the same argument as did the Jews λνΐιβη de­
liberating upon the course to be taken in regard to Christ.
They said : ‘ The Romans will come and take away our place
and nation.’ Your Royal Highness will allow me to quote the
comment of St Augustine upon the passage.· They feared the
loss of their power, wholly forgetful of everlasting life ; and so
they lost both.'” Pius VI. reached the capital of Piedmont
on the 22d of April, and learned, on the following day, that
France was to be the land of his exile. · I will go wherever
they wish,” said the dying Pontiff, raising his hands and eyes
to heaven. On the 26th, he was removed during the night, and
taken across the Alps on a rough litter. During whole hours he
found himself hanging over deep abysses and pierced by a cold
wind. At Briançon he was separated from the faithful com­
panions of bis martyrdom, and, after displaying a heroic en­
durance of suffering, at length reached Valence on the 14th of
July. “ My bodily pains," said he, “ are nothing in comparison
with the anguish uf my heart. The cardinals and the b;shops
dispersed'. Rome! my people! the Church! ah. that is the

PTÜS VI. (A. D. 1778-1709*.

ΜΛ

thought which tortures me night and day. Tn what a state do
I leave them!” To these bitter reflections, to this poignant
grief, were added new persecutions. The Directory ordered
that the Pope should be removed to Dijon, expressly forbidding
any halt at Lyons. But the Pontiffs illness had meanwhile
made such rapid progress, that the least exertion might hasten
the fatal hour. They were forced to leave him at Valence.
On the 13th of August, a deceptive appearance of improve­
ment was visible in the state of the august patient ; an immense
multitude thronged about the dwelling, earnestly entreating
the favor of a last blessing. The officers tried to disperse the
crowd, but fearing an insurrection, they begged the Pope to
show himself to the people. Pius VI., trusting more to
humble submission than to his strength, had himself carried
to the balcony, in his Pontifical dress; standing up in the pre­
sence of a multitude moved to tears, he exclaimed, in a loud
and distinct voice : Ecce homo, and with affectionate tenderness
gave them his last blessing. On the 29th of August. 1799,
Pius VI. expired, breathing a prayer for France. “ In truth.”
says Ranke. “ it seemed as if the Papal power was forever at
an end.” S .t might appear to human judgments ; hut, amid
the most disastrous and threatening event God was watch­
ing, according to His unfailing promise, o' er the immortal
destinies of His Church ; the bark of Peter i.·· never nearer to
the harbor than when it seems about to sink beneath the
waves.
Vol. IV.—35

Μ·

GENERAT. HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

CHAPTER VTI.
§ 1. Ροντγποατκ OF P1UB VII. (March 14,

a. d.

1800 —September 20, 1823),

1 Election of Pope Pius VII.—2. The Concordat.—3. The bull Eccl'tia
Christi. Schism of the " Little Church.” Bull Qui Christi Domini.—4.
Cardinal Caprara in France. Transition of the body of Pius VI. to Rome.
Ratification of the Concordat by the Corps Législatif. Ceremony at the re­
opening of the churches in France.—5. Murder of the Duke of Enghien.—
6. Letter of the emperor to Pius VII. Solemnization of the murriagc of
Napoleon and Josephine.—7. Coronation of the emperor. Sojourn of Pius
VII. in Paris. His return to Rome.—8. Memorial of the Pope to Napo
leon. The emperor's reply.—9. The marriage of Jerome Bonaparte.
Firmness of the Pope. Benevento and Ponte-Corvo retaken from tho
Holy See. Military occupation of Pesaro, Faro, Sinigaglia, and CivitaVccchia, by order of the emperor.—10. Peace of Tilsit. Fresh attack of
Napoleon upon the Holy See.—11. Occupation of Rome by the French
troops under General Miollis.—12. Bull of excommunication Quum memo­
randa die.—13. The Pope removed to Savona.—14. The emperor appoints
an ecclesiastical commission. Letter to the captive Pope. The Pope't
reply.—15. Divorce of Napoleon and Josephine. The case of the second
marriage with Marie Louise.—18. The emperor’s interview with the Abbé
Emery.—17. A deputation of four bishops sent to the Pope. Concessions
wrung from Pius VII.—18. First sessions of the Council of Paris. Arrest
of the prelates De Boulogne, Hirn, and De Broglie.—19. Second period of
the Council of Paris. Decree of the council. Its confirmation by Pius
VII.—20. Campaign of Moscow.—21. The Concordat of 1813, wrung by
violence from the Pope.—22. Pius VII. revokes the Concordat of 1813.—
23. The Restoration.—24. Return of Pius VII. to Rome. Restoration of tlio
Jesuits.—26. The “ IIundred-Days."—26. Last acts and death of Pius VII
ft II Pontxfioatb of Lmo XIL (September 28, a.
1829).

d.

1823—February 10,

27. Election of Leo XII. His first allocution to the cardinals.—28. Libérai
ism in Europe.—29. Count Joseph de Maistre.—30. The Viscount de
Donald.—31. Gallican tendencies in France. The Abbé de Lamennais -

547

PIUS VII. (A. D. 1800-1823).

32. Concordat with Hanover.
34. Death of Leo XII.

g III. 1’oNTinoATR

of

Death of Louis XVIII.—33. î.utrier.-

Pice VIII. (March 31, a. d. 1829—November 30,
1830).

85. Election of Pius VIII. Encyclical letter to all the bishops of the Cathoho
world.—38. Conquest of Algiers. Revolution of 1830.—37. Interview
between Mgr. de Quélen and Louis Philippe.—38. Death of Pina VIII.

§ IV. Pontificate or Gregory XVI. (February 2, a.

d.

1831—June 1, 1848)

39. Election of Gregory XVI. First acts of his Pontificate.—40. Domestic
administration of Gregory XVI.—41. Plunder of St Germain I’Anxerrois
and of the archiépiscopal residence in Paris.—42. The cholera in 1832.—
43. Spread of dangerous doctrines in France.
Condemnation of De
Lamennais.—44. The reign of Louis Philippe.—45. Symptoms of religions
restoration in France. Death of Gregory XVL Election of His Holiness
Pius IX.—46. Conclusion.

§ I. Pontificate

of

Pius VII. (March 14, a. d. 1800—Septem­
ber 29, 1823).

1. The Revolution had not yet overcome all Catholic
Europe ; the death of the martyr-Pope happened precisely at
the moment when the European coalition was winning new
triumphs over the French Republic. This circumstance en­
abled the cardinals to meet in Venice, and a few months later
France and the world learned, with astonishment, the election
of a Pope. Unbelief, schism, and heresy, exultingly proclaimed
that the Papacy had lived out its time, and that Pius VI. would
have no successor. And yet, amid the turmoil and confusion of
revolutions, wars, hatred, and rivalry, Cardinal Chiaramonti,
bishop of Imola, was unanimously elected and took the name,
which he bore with so much glory, of Pius VII. Two months
later, the new Pope entered Ancona amid salvos of artillery.
The Russian men-of-war, then in the harbor, fired an imperia]
salute, by a special order of Paul I. Six hundred citizens of
Ancona, continually relieving each other, having taken tho
horses from his carriage, drew it by long ropes, decked with

54g

GENERAL RTBTORY OF ΤΠΕ CRVRCR.

ribbons of various colors, to the palace of the cardinal-archbishop. On the 3d of July, a. d. 1800, amid indescribable
transports of joy on the part, of tho Roman people, Pins VII.
solemnly took possession of the capital of the Christian world.
2. The French reverses in Italy were owing to the absence
of a man who held the world in admiration of his splendid ex­
ploits on the battle-fields of the East. Egypt, the land of an­
cient glories, seemed to Bonaparte a fit pedestal for his name, a
field worthy of his glory. On his return to France, crowned
with victorious laurels, but with triumphs fruitless, except of
renown, the youthful conqueror was made first consul. He
wished to deck this republican dignity with fresh laurels.
Italy, the field on which his genius was first displayed, again
called for his arms ; on the 27th of April, a. d. 1800, he led his
army across Mount St. Bernard, and on the 14th of June tho
celebrated battle of Marengo once more gave him a right to
dictate terms of peace to Europe. France received her return­
ing hero with unspeakable enthusiasm. No one could mistake;
Bonaparte was to be the restorer of order. Two ways lay open
before him for the fulfilment of his mission—the Monk of legiti­
macy, he could with his victorious sword, rebuild the French
Monarchy for the benefit of the Bourbons ; or he could take to
himself a power which placed itself in his hands. Bonaparte
chose the latter course. The history of France was adorned in
his reign with brilliant pages ; but not one of them, perhaps, is
half so glorious as would have been the record that the hero of
Arcola, of the Pyramids, and of Marengo, had seated upon th·,
throne of his fathers the heir of Louis XVI. Bonaparte saw
that he must first prepare the materials for the edifice he was
about to rebuild. It was then that, with the help of the most
enlightened men, he drew up those collections of laws, those
codes, better suited to immortalize his name, if possible, than
even his brilliant victories. Every department of the adminis­
tration, every public office, underwent a thorough reorganiza­
tion, more powerful, more central, and easier of control. These
improvements brought with them a return of confidence and

P1U8 Vil. (Λ. D. 1800-1343,.

549

credit, insuring to the new government strength for the present
and security for the future. In the midst of these labors for
the legislative and administrative resurrection of France, Bona­
parte was meditating a work that was to crown them all, and
open a new era in the history of the Catholic Church It was
the peace, the reconciliation of France with the centre uf unity,
the successor of St. Peter, by the Concordat of 1801. The first
proposal was made on the day after the battle of Marengo, by
fhe victor himself. This declaration was so spontaneous, so
clear, so precise, that on the very day a cardinal was instruct­
ed to communicate it to His Holiness. Pius VII. had just en­
tered Rome. “ Tell the first consul,” he replied, “that We shall
be happy to enter into an arrangement which promises an issue
so honorable, so well suited to Our Apostolic ministry, so agree­
able to tho desire of Our heart.” Consalvi, a prelate toward
whom Napoleon seemed to be very favorably disposed, was
immediately made cardinal, and charged by Pius VII. to ar­
range the terms of the Concordat. The French general at the
same time sent to the court of His Holiness a man whose name
is still dear to the Catholics of France—M. Cacault, whose
moderation, conciliatory disposition, wise and prudent diplo­
macy, won the highest admiration. On taking leave of the first
consul, M. Cacault asked how he should treat the Pope.
“ Treat him,” answered the warrior, “as if he had two hundred
thousand men.” Notwithstanding the display of good will on
both sides, the negotiations proceeded slowly. Pius VII. de­
termined to send to Paris Cardinal Consalvi, who was called the
Syren of Rome, in the hope that the able prelate might succeed
better with the first consul. Pius VII. did not overrate the
ability of his Nuncio Extraordinary. On the 16th of July, 1801,
the Concordat was signed in Paris by the first consul, and rati­
fied in Rome a month later by the Pope. The most important
articles are substantially as follows :—The religion of the Human
Catholic and Apostolic Church shall be freely practised in
France.—The Holy See, in concert with the government, shall
determine new limits for the French dioceses.—His Holiness

550

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

will announce to the titularies of the old dioceses, that he with
firm confidence, expects from them, for the good of peace and
unity, every sacrifice, even the resignation of their sees. If
they refuse, the new dioceses shall be provided by the govern­
ment with new incumbents.—The nominations to vacant bish­
oprics shall be made by the first consul, and the canonical insti­
tution given by the Holy See.—The bishops shall appoint
pastors; but their choice must be limited to persons not objec­
tionable to the government.—For the good of peace and the
happy re-establishment of the Catholic religion, His Holiness
declares that neither he nor his successors will, in any manner,
disturb the holders of ecclesiastical property, and that conse­
quently the ownership of the said property, the rights and
revenues attached to it shall remain in the hands of the actual
holders or of their assigns.—The government shall insure a
proper salary to bishops and pastors.—His Holiness recognizes
in the first consul all the rights and prerogatives enjoyed at
his court by the old government.
3. The bull Eccleiia Christi acquainted the Catholic world
with the happy conclusion of the Concordat (August 15, a. d.
1801). On the same day, Pius VII. dispatched a brief to the
French bishops, telling them that the preservation of unity and
the general good of the Church required of them the pure and
simple renunciation of their sees. “We are compelled,” he
wrote, “ by the necessity of the times, which wreaks its vio­
lence upon Us too, to announce to you that your reply must be
forwarded to Us within ten days, and that the reply must be
definitive, so that, if it be not such as We look for from your
devotion, We shall be obliged to consider you as having refused
to comply with Our request.” Of one hundred and thirty-five
episcopal sees existing in France, in 1789, fifty-one titularies
were dead, three had already handed in their resignation.
Among the eighty-one remaining bishops, forty-one acceded to
the request of the Pope and offered their resignation. The
oldest among them, Mgr. de Belloy, bishop of Marseilles, a
venerable man of ninety-two years, the immediate successor of

PIUS Vil. (A. D. 1800-1823).

55]

Belzunce, wrote to Mgr. Spina: “Filled with veneration and
obedience for the decrees of the Sovereign Pontiff, I do not
hesitate to place in his hands my resignation of the bishopric of
Marseilles. It is enough for me that His Holiness deems the
measure necessary for the preservation of religion in France, to
insure my submission.” These words breathe the truly apostolic
spirit which animated the three hundred bishops of Africa,
under the présidence of St. Augustine, when they offered to
yield their sees to the Donatist bishops if they would but
renounce the schism. The French bishops did not display the
same edifying unanimity. Thirty-six of them stood apart from
their forty-five noble colleagues and refused the Pope’s request,
not absolutely, but by their delays. Their protestations
amounted to a complaint that the Holy See had never before
undertaken to exercise a like authority, and that the measure
should have been concerted with the bishops. The replj was
easily found ; it was necessary to save France from shipwreck,
and Bossuet himself has said that in case of necessity, or even
of manifest utility, the Pope has all power and is above the
canons. The result of this opposition of the thirty-six bishops
to the Concordat was a kind of sect or schism known as that of
the Anticoncordalists or the Little Church, a sect which seemed to
place its merit in decrying the Pope and his authority; a schism
in which M. de Thémines, former bishop of Blois, appears to
have died. Without allowing himself to be troubled by this
resistance, Pius VII, on the 29th of November, 1801. pub­
lished the bull Qin Christi Domini, to require the observance
of the Concordat. He announced that, in virtue of his Apos­
tolic authority, he should disregard the opposition of the
refractory bishops and chapters. He suspended them from the
exercise of their jurisdiction and declared all their administra­
tive acts null and void. He abolished all the episcopal sees
then existing in France, and, in their stead, created sixty new
bishoprics, divided into <en provinces. This division was made
in accordauce with that of the Departments, so that each diocese
comprised one, two, or even sometimes three Departments, and

652

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

the sixty sees included the whole territory of France. The
hull Qui Christi Domini makes no mention of the dioceses
established by the Civil Constitution of the clergy. That divi­
sion was looked upon as never having existed, and the Popo
had no need to take away the jurisdiction of those who held
none.
4. Immediately after the ratification of the Concordat, Pius
VII. senta legate à latere to watch and direct its observance.
The legate was Cardinal Caprara, who had already acted as
nuncio at Cologne, at Lucerne and Vienna. Consalvi returned
to Rome, and was made prime minister One of the firr-t re­
quests made by the legate was to have the remains of Pius VI.
brought from Valence to Rome. The posthumous return of the
martyr-Pontiff was a real triumphal progress through all Italy,
especially at his approach and entrance to Rome. The whole
city, and even all Europe, in the persons of its ambassadors,
formed part of the funeral escort. On the 18th of February,
a. d. 1802, in the basilica of St. Peter, the solemn Mass, the
funeral oration and obsequies were celebrated by Pius VII. in
person, in the presence of the ambassadors of all the Christian
Powers. It was a kind of reparation of honor on the part of all
Europe, to a Pontiff who had so cruelly suffered from the vio­
lence or the neglect of all Europe. But the Concordat did not
advance so successfully in Paris. Napoleon had to contend
with more than one opposing influence. To those who wanted
no religion, he was obliged to point out the necessity of religion
lor the order of all human societies. To those who spoke of
Protestantism, he replied that the great interest, the great power
of France, was her unity. He was repeatedly urged to declare
himself head of the Church, as had been done in England, and
to set aside the Pope. As he was one day more than usually
pressed on this point, he cut short his interlocutor with the
exclamation : “ Enough, sir, enough : do you also wish me to
have myself crucified ?" and as the man of expedients looked
at him in astonishment, evidently at a loss to understand his
meaning, “ That is not your idea," said the consul, “ nor is it

PÏU8 Vit. (A. D. 1800-1H29).

553

mine. Well, sir, that is what must be undergone for the true
religion. And beside that one, I neither know, nor wish to
know, any other.” At length the Corp
*
Législatif adopted the
Concordat as a law of the State, on the 5th of April, 1802
The councillor of State, Portalis, before reading it, made a re­
markable discourse, showing the advantages of the new
measure But he at the same time caused the adoption of
several organic articles, tending to place the clergy under the
absolute control of the government, and of which no mention
had been made in the preliminary arrangements for the Con­
cordat. This was a remnant of Jansen istic duplicity by which
certain influential men were still ruled. The Pope earnestly
protested against these surreptitious additions, which, in time,
were abrogated, either expressly or tacitly by being allowed
to pass into a state of desuetude. On the 9th of April. Car­
dinal Caprara entered upon the discharge of his functions.
Bonaparte then named the incumbents for the new bishoprics,
and the legate gave them the canonical institution in the name
of the Holy See. Eighteen of the former prelates were called
to govern the new dioceses. Unhappily, a minister of some
influence obtained the appointment of twelve of the constitu­
tional bishops : some of them had been, or afterward were,
sincerely reconciled with the Holy See ; but three or four of
them did no more honor to the government or good to their
flocks than they displayed true submission to the Pope. The
most remarkable nomination was that of the venerable bishop
of Marseilles, De Belloy, to the Metropolitan see of Paris. He
was then ninety-two years old ; he survived his promotion eight
years, and died at the age of a hundred, crowned with the
loving veneration of all his flock. At length, on the festival of
Easter, April 18, 1802, in the Cathedral of Notre Dame at
Paris, the new Church of France, re-established by the grace
of God and the authority of the Holy Apostolic See, celebrated
its own resurrection, amid the triumphal chant and joyful tears
of the faithful. The cardinal-legate officiated pontifically before
the first consul and his legion of heroes, astonished at the

654

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

eplendors of a ceremonial to which their eyes had long been
unaccustomed. A solemn Te Denin sent up to the throne of
the God of mercies the expression of the gladness and grati­
tude of a great people restored to the faith.
5. Great events were crowding upon Bonaparte, greater
than in the days of Louis XIV. France, in 1802, stretched
from the Ocean to the Alps and to the Rhine ; the Ligurian Re­
public, with its capital, Genoa ; the Cisalpine Republic, its head,
Milan, with other Italian States, were its appendices. This
wide-spread influence and stretch of territory were the work of
the conqueror of Egypt and Italy. Misled by perfidious coun­
sels, he had the misfortune to tarnish his glory by the murder
of the Duke of Enghien, a crime without reason, without cause,
without precedent, a reminder of the days of Terror, under a
government whose very existence was a protest against that
Terror. But the power of him who was to be known to the
world as Napoleon, was so formidable, that no Frenchman dared
to brand the crime, instigated by ambition and policy—we mis
take: a young man, who was to become, who was, indeed,
already the greatest literary glory of his age, M. de Chàteaubriand, the author of the “ Genius of Christianity,” that im­
mortal work so instrumental in preparing the way for the re­
ligious restoration in France, was then Secretary of the French
embassy in Rome. He at once sent his resignation to the first
consul, saying that “he willingly served a government of
glory, but that he could not bring himself to serve a govern­
ment of blood.”
6. The assassination of the heir of the house of Condô
threw a gulf between the past and the future. On the 14th of
September, a. d. 1804, Bonaparte, who had changed his title
of Consul for life, to that of Emperor, and his Corsican name for
that of Napoleon, wrote the following autograph letter to Pius
VII. : “ Most Holy Father, the happy change wrought in the
character and morals of my people, by the restoration of the
Christian religion, leads me to beg Your Holiness to give me a
fresh proof of your interest in my welfare and in that of the

ΡΠΤ8 VTT. (A. D. 1800-1813).

great nation which I govern, in one of the most important
events recorded in the annals of the world. I entreat Your
Holiness to confer, in its highest expression, the sanction of
religion upon the anointing and coronation of the first emperor
of the French. The ceremony will receive new lustre if per­
formed by Your Holiness in person. It will draw down upon us
and upon our people the blessing of God, in Whose hands are
the destinies of empires and of families. Your Holiness well
knows my long-cherished sentiments of affection, and may
gather from them the happiness with which I shall seize this
occasion to give new proofs of it.” As an earnest of his sin­
cerity, Napoleon had restored to the Holy See the principalities
of Benpvento and Ponte-Corvo ; he had presented to Pius
VII. two ships of war, to protect his commerce, and sent to
Rome, as ambassador, his uncle, Cardinal Fesch. On the 25th
of November. 1804, Pius VII. reached Fontainebleau, where
he was mot by Napoleon ; they affectionately embraced and
entered the carriage together. The minister of police asked
the Pope, “ How he had found France?” Pius replied, “All
thanks to Heaven, we passed through it amid a whole people on
their knees ! We were far from believing it to be in such a
state.” On his arrival in Paris, he received the deputations from
the senate, the legislative body, and the tribunate. It was like
a national reparation of the outrages heaped by the Revolution
upon the successor of St. Peter. Four constitutional bishops,
Lecoz of Besançon, Lacombe of Angoulême, Saurine of Stras­
burg, and Raymond of Dijon, insisted upon being present at tho
coronation without subscribing the conditions stipulated by the
Pope in their regard. Pius was inflexible. The bishops sub­
mitted, threw themselves at the Pontiff’s feet, and assured him
of their perfect obedience. Another, and a still more delicate
obstacle stood in the way of the coronation. Napoleon had
contracted a civil marriage, in 1796, with Josephine de la
Pagerie, widow of the Viscount de Beauharnais ; but the anion
had never received the nuptial blessing of the Church. The
Pope required that the marriage should be solemnized accord­

556

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

ing to the Catholic ritual ; Napoleon, fearful of the scandal that
might arise, refused ; but Pius VII. declared that, though he
had been ready to make every possible concession in civil
matters, he could not disregard the doctrines of the Church
Still, he wished to save all susceptibilities. Consequently, on
the eve of the coronation, at eleven o’clock at night, a chapel
was prepared in the emperor’s apartments and at midnight
Cardinal Fesch gave the nuptial benediction to the emperor and
empress. The witnesses were Portalis, and Duroc, Grand
Marshal of the palace ; nothing was made public. When Car­
dinal Fesch returned to the Pope, Pius simply asked : “ My
dear snn, has the marriage been solemnized ?” “ Yes, Holy
Father.’’ replied the cardinal. “ Then,” said the Pontiff, “ We
no longer oppose the coronation of the august empress.”
7. The ceremony took place on the 2d of December, in the
Church of Notre Dame. “ Do you promise,” asked the Pope,
“ to maintain the peace of the Church of God?” “ I do prom­
ise,” answered the conqueror, with a firm voice He too soon
forgot his solemn pledge. The Pope devoted the remaining
days of his sojourn in Paris to the interests of religion, which
was the main object of his journey. He presented a list of
requests relating to the necessities of the Church, to the free­
dom of the pastoral ministry, and to the abrogation of some of
the organic articles. Some cardinals thought this a favorable
opportunity to demand the restoration of the three Legations ,
but the disinterested Pontiff would not hamper with temporal
concerns the more urgent claims of spiritual matters ; and,
solely bent upon furthering the interests of religion, he urged,
by word and writing, the adoption of measures calculated to
repair past evils, to restore to the Church and to France their
past glory and the institutions destroyed by the Revolution.
The people were never tired of looking upon the venerable
Pontiff, whose noble dignity was so much enhanced by a win­
ning sweetness, whose deep piety increased the respect felt for
his august character. Accessible to all, he loved to satim.y all
and to reiterate his blessings. He bestowed them with especial

P1ÜS VH. (A. D. 1800-1813).

tenderness upon children, and, like Him Whose Vicar he was,
seemed to delight in being surrounded by the innocent and
attractive charms of that guileless age. The presence, the
virtues, the charity of the Head of the Church contributed to
dispel many prejudices, to recall many wanderers to the fold,
and to excite the admiration of the very enemies of the faith.
At length Pius VII. set out on his return to Italy, and entered
Rome on the 16th of May, a. d. 1805. In this visit, while all
seemed outwardly to smile upon him, the Pontiff had occasion
to show his apostolic courage and firmness. Napoleon was
already planning a universal monarchy; he wished to have the
Pope under his hand. With this view, he caused an offer to
be privately made to the Pontiff, of a palace in Paris, thrice the
size of the Vatican ; the Pope might fix his residence there, and
from Paris, Pius VII. and Napoleon would together rule the
world. “ All has been foreseen,” replied the Vicar of Jesus
Christ. “ Before leaving Rome, We signed a formal abdication,
to take effect in the event of Our being deprived of Our free­
dom ; the deed is without the reach of the French power ; it is
in the hands of Cardinal Pignatelli at Palermo, and when the
intended project shall have been put into execution, you will
hold the person only of a wretched monk called Barnabo Chiaramonti.” On the very night of this sublime reply, more glo­
rious than the victory of Marengo, the emperor signed the
orders for the departure. On the Pontiff’s arrival at Rome,
the last of the Stuarts, the Cardinal of York, a venerable pre­
late of eighty years, in his capacity of Dean of the Sacred Col­
lege, received Pius VII. at the door of St. Peter’s basilica, and
congratulated him on the happy issue of his journey.
*
8. The Pope addressed to Napoleon a memorial on the situ­
ation of the Holy See and of the Pontifical States. “ As it is
necessary for the general good of Christendom,” wrote the
Pontiff, “ that its Head should not want the means to discharge
the duties imposed upon him, for his own preservation, the
• During his sojourn in Paris, Pius VII obtained from Napoleon the re-establishmenl
the Seiuiuary of Foreign Missionis as also of those if ü>o Holy Ghost and of the
m.is

558

GENERA., BISTORT OF THE CHCRCH.

Pope cannot be indifferent to the use of those means. Hie
Holiness, therefore, asks the emperor to repair, as far as possi­
ble, the losses experienced by the Holy See, and thus to imi­
tate the generosity of Charlemagne.’’ Napoleon himself dic­
tated the answer to the memorial. “ Should God grant us the
length of days common to men, we hope to find opportunities
in which we may extend and consolidate the domain of the
Holy See ; even now we are able and willing to stretch out a
helping hand, to withdraw it from the confusion and distress
into which it has been plunged by the shocks of the late wars,
thus giving to the world a proof of our veneration for the Holy
Father, of our protection over the capital of Christendom, and
in fine of our constant desire to see our religion unsurpassed in
the pomp of its ceremonial, the splendor of its temples, and in
all that can win the respect and veneration of the world."
9. Napoleon now appealed to the Pope to annul the mar­
riage which his brother Joseph, still a minor, had contracted in
the Ünited States with Miss Patterson. The Pope’s reply to
this request will always stand as a systematic explanation of
the teaching of the Church on the indissolubility of the marriage
tie. This letter may be looked upon as the personal work of
the Pope, for we recognize in it his powerful logic, his mild ur­
banity, his usual system of revision ; and he moreover declares
himself its author. “Your Majesty,” says the Pontiff in con­
clusion, “ will understand that, upon the information thus far
received by Us, it is not in Our power to pronounce a sentence
of nullity. We cannot utter a judgment in opposition to the
rules of the Church, and we could not, without laying aside
those rules, decree the invalidity of a union which, according
to the word of God, no human power can sunder.” The em­
peror was not tc be stopped by this refusal. Ho caused the
civil tribunals to annul the marriage of his brother, who after­
ward married a princess of Wurtemberg. The empeier at
the same time ordered the military occupation of Ancona, a
city belonging to the Holy See (a. d. 1805). The Pope wrote
to him on the subject: “The order lately given by Your

PT08 VIT. (A. D. 1800-1833).

559

Majesty to General St. Cyr, to take military possession of a
city of Our domain, caused Us no less surprise than grief. We
*
connu
forbear expressing the pain We feel at this treatment,
which We think so entirely undeserved." Napoleon returned
a bitter reply to the Pope’s complaint : “I am not only," he
said with insolent haughtiness, “ the soldier of the age ; were I
a little more its master, I should declare myself Supreme Pon­
tiff, and I should not allow souls to perish." The emperor’s
irritation grew with time. He recalled Cardinal Fesch from
the Roman Embassy, and sent in his stead Alquier, a Protes­
tant and a regicide. The motive of these new rigors was the
Pope’s refusal to take part in the continental blockade. The
principalities of Benevento and Ponte-Corvo were seized
and incorporated in the kingdom of Naples. Napoleon gave
Benevento to his Minister of foreign affairs, Talleyrand, for­
merly bishop of Autun, upon whom he might bestow rank and
wealth, but whom no one could restore to a good name in pub­
lic opinion. Ponte-Corvo was given to the Protestant general
Bernadotte, afterward king of Sweden. Almost simultaneous
orders were received by General Lemarrois to occupy Pesaro,
Fano, Sinigaglia, and the whole Adriatic coast within the juris­
diction of the Holy See. A body of French troops marched
from the kingdom of Naples upon Civita-Vecchia, and took
possession of the fort and citadel. One of the officers in charge
demanded of the French commander by what right he made the
seizure. The officer replied : “ You serve a petty prince and 1
a great monarch—that is my warrant.” Pius VII. on this oc­
casion said to the ambassador Alquier : “ We warn you that, if
any attempt is made to take Rome, We shall refuse entrance to
the Castle of St. Angelo. We intend to make no resistance,
but your troops must break the doors with their cannon.
Europe shall see how We are treated, and We shall at least
have acted in a manner conformable to Our honor and Our con­
science.” On the 17th of June, 1806, Cardinal Consalvi re­
signed his office, and was succeeded by Cardinal Casoni, an old
man of seventy-four. The Pontifical government, deeply hurt

660

GENERAL HISTORY OP THE CHURCH.

by the enfeoffment of Benevento nnd Ponte-Corvo, ceased to
send instructions to Cardinal Caprara, the legate in Paris, and
regulated all the business of the Holy See in Rome itself.
10. The glory with which Napoleon was crowning his arms
left Europe no leisure to note these acts of violence. Ulm,
Austerlitz, Jena, Eylau, Freidland, those immortal triumphs
crowned hy the treaty of Tilsit (July 8, λ. d. 1807), gave
to Eugene Beauharnais the vice-royalty of Milan and Northern
Italy; to Jerome, the kingdom of Westphalia. During the
conferences at Tilsit, Alexander, emperor of Russia, and the
king of Prussia, Frederick III., urged Napoleon to declare
himself the head of a national religion in France. lie refused ;
yet, if he did not imitate the sovereigns of Northern Europe
in their sacrilegious encroachments upon the religion and the
conscience of their subjects, if he maintained the Sovereign
Pontiff as spiritual Head of the Church, he meant to make him
a docile instrument of his policy, and thus to seduce all the
Catholics in the world. We shall yet see what it cost him to
have raised his hand against that Church of which it is written
“ The gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” In pursuance
of his plan of intimidation toward the Holy See, Napoleon sent
the following message to Pius VII. : “ All Italy is mine by
right of conquest. If the Pope will not, at my demand, expel
all English citizens from his States, close his ports against
them, and place his fortresses in the hands of my troops, in the
event of a war between France and England, I shall take away
his temporal authority, I shall appoint a king of Rome, or
send a senator to rule the State.” “ What can Pius VII. effect
by denouncing me to all Christendom ?” wrote Napoleon to
Eugene Beauharnais. “ He can lay an interdict upon my
throne ; he can excommunicate me. Does he think this will
make the muskets fall from the hands of my soldiers ? He would
have nothing left to do then but to cut my hair and shut me
up in a monastery." At the same time the court of France
sent official notice to the Holy See of the marriage of Jerome
Bonapaite with a princess of Wurtemberg. In the reply

PTÜ8 VII. (A D. 1800-1833).

661

which he was expected to make, the Pope must either refer to
the former marriage or not. His silence would approve the
new alliance. “ We still hope,” he wrote, “ that, after the ex­
amination made by Us of the reasons alleged for the nullity of
the first alliance, contracted by the Prince, in Baltimore, new
and just motives, not yet made known to Us, may appear, by
the force of which the second union, now notified to Us by
Your Majesty, may prove valid. This hope sustains Us in the
sorrow and anxiety which We cannot banish, when We remem­
ber what We formerly wrote to Your Majesty, after mature
deliberation, on the matter.”
11. On the 2d of February, a. d. 1808, a French army
under General Miollis entered Rome ; on that very night the
Pope directed the following protest to be posted upon the doors
of every church in the Eternal City : “ Pope Pius VII. finding
himself unable to accede to all the demands made of him by the
French government, since conscience and the voice of sacred
duty forbid, deems it necessary to undergo the disastrous con­
sequences with which he was threatened incase of refusal, even
to the military occupation of his capital. Resigned, in humility
of heart, to the unsearchable judgment of Heaven, he places hjs
cause in the hands of God ; yet, not to fail in the essential ob­
ligation of guarding the rights of his sovereignty, he formally
protests, in his own name, and in that of his successors, against
any usurpation of his domains ; it being his will that the rights
tp the Holy See be, and remain, perfectly untouched." The
Pontifical Guard was disarmed, and General Miollis held the
Castle of St Angelo. Pius VII. announced to Alquier that, so
long as the French troops remained in Rome, he should look
upon himself as a prisoner, and that consequently negotiations
would be impossible. The cardinals were exiled and taken
by armed force to the various countries from which they came
By a decree of April 2d, Napoleon took possession of the pro'
inces of Urbino, Ancona, and Macerata. Among the motives
for the sacrilegious usurpation, it was alleged : “ The gift made
by our illustrious predecessor Charlemagne, of the territory comVot IV,-36

5G2

OBWERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

prised in the Pontifical States, was made for tne benefit of
Christendom, and not for the advantage of the enemies of out
holy religion.” These enemies of the holy religion were the
English, to whom the Pope gave free entrance into his ports;
beside, Napoleon’s likeness to Charlemagne was the likeness
that exists between the spoiler and the giver.
12. Pius VII. had made the illustrious Cardinal Pacca his
prime minister. He calmly administered his authority while
awaiting the last blow meditated by imperial violence. On the
6th of September, a. d. 1808, a major named Muzio came to the
secretary’s office on Monte Cavallo,and communicated an order
for the exile of Cardinal Pacca. But the Pope, who had
hastened to the apartment on learning the officer’s business,
directed him to tell the general that he was weary of suffering
so many outrages and insults from a man calling himself a
Catholic; that he commanded Cardinal Pacca not to obey the
general’s orders, and that he intended to keep him as the com­
panion of his captivity. The close of the year 1808 was a long
series of violations of the law of nations, of protests and of
threats of fresh violence. On the 10th of June, 1809, amid
thunders of artillery from the Castle of St. Angelo, the Ponti­
fical banner was lowered and the French flag raised in its place,
while a decree of Napoleon, published by proclamation in every
quarter of the city, announced that what remained of the
Roman States was thenceforth to form a part of the French
Empire. Cardinal Pacca hastened to the apartment of the Holy
Father. As they met, the same thought was expressed by
both at once as they simultaneously uttered the words of Jesus
Christ : Consummatum est. On the morrow the celebrated bull,
Quum memoranda ilia die, was found posted upon the doors of
every church in Rome. “ By the authority of Almighty God,”
eaid the Pope, “ by that of the holy Apostles Peter aud Paul,
and by Our own, We declare that all those who, in Rome, or in
the territories of the Church, have been guilty of sacrilegious
attempts upon the temporal rights of the Holy See, with all
their principals, abettors, advisers, and adherents; those who

PID8 VII. (A. D. 1800-1823).

5(J3

bu ve helped to the perpetration of those deeds of violence, oi
have themselves perpetrated them, have incurred major excom­
munication ; and if necessary, We excommunicate and inathematizc them anew.” Napoleon was not expressly named in the
bull ; but it was impossible to mistake the meaning of the
words of Pius VII. On the 6th of July, 1809, a detachment
of gendarmes, under General Radet, surrounded the Vatican.
The Pope was attended by Cardinals Pacca and Despuig, with
several prelates and ecclesiastics of his court. Radet appeared
before the Vicar of Jesus Christ, telling him that he was ordered
to arrest and to take him to General Miollis. “If you think
yourself bound to carry out such orders from the emperor,”
replied the Pope, “ because you have sworn fidelity to him,
consider how much more We are bound to uphold the rights of
the Holy See, to which We are pledged by so many oaths.”
He then asked the general if he must go alone; he was told
that he might take with him his minister, Cardinal Pacca. At
the gate of the palace, a carriage was in waiting; when the
Pontiff and the cardinal had entered, a gendarme locked the
door; Pius VII. was not taken to the quarters of General
Miollis ; he was now on his way to exile.
13. The Pope asked the cardinal whether he had brought
any money with him. The two illustrious fugitives then ex
amined their purses ; in that of Pius VII. were twenty-two
cents of French money, and sixteen were found in that of his
minister. “ Thus,” says the cardinal in his memoirs, “ they
were setting out on their journey in Apostolic style." The Pope
showed these remains of his fortune to General Radet, ami
remarked with a smile : “ Of all Our principality, this is what
lemains to Us.” They journeyed through northern Italy, amid
populations in tears, who threw themselves on their knees as the
carriage passed, in spite of all the efforts made by the guards
to drive them off. The Pope entered France by way of Greno­
ble. There he was separated from Cardinal Pacca, who was
taken to Fenestrelle, a stronghold on one of the highest points
of the Alps, between Piedmont, and Dauphiny, where he ex·

564

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

plated, by three years and n half of strict confinement, the crime
)f having been true to his sovereign. Pius was taken to Savo­
na, and kept in the prefecture under a guard of gendarmes ; no
one was allowed to speak to him alone. Napoleon offered His
Holiness a monthly allowance of a hundred thousand francs,
to meet his expenses. The Pontiff refused all, kept himself
within his apartments, and only appeared at intervals to give
his blessing to the people. lie was allowed neither to read nor
to write, except under the eyes of one of his guards. The
cardinals could not escape the persecution directed against
their Head. Napoleon brought them all to Paris, in order to
control their votes more directly, in the event of a vacancy in the
Holy See. Those only were allowed to remain in Rome, whose
age and infirmities made it impossible for them to undertake so
long a journey. Napoleon seemed to delight in parading them
before the eyes of his capital, and in forcing them to appear at
his court.
14. Napoleon’s conduct was the beginning of a fall into
schism. “ It is very strange,” said the emperor one day to the
Abbé Emery, “ that you, who have studied theology all your
life, you and all the bishops in France, should be able to find
no canonical way of settling my difficulty with the Pope.
Had I studied theology only six months, I should soon unravel
the whole difficulty, because God has given me understanding."
The emperor assembled an ecclesiastical commission to provide
for the wants of the churches, and especially to find a method
of doing without the Pope in the institution of bishops. Tho
result of this commission was a letter addressed to the Pope by
Cardinal Maury, a great orator, but a man of low ambition, who
proved himself uuworthy of the Roman purple. Maury asked
the Pope to grant the canonical institution to the bishops named
by the emperor. “After so many innovations,” answered the
Pontiff, “ made by the emperor to the great detriment of reli­
gion, and against which We so repeatedly, but so vainly, pro­
tested ; after the banishment of so many bishops, and of the
greater number of Our cardinals ; after the imprisonment of

PTÜ8 VH. (Λ. D. IBOo—1823).

56-j

Cardinal Pacca, at Fenestrelle ; after the usurpation of the
Patrimony of St. Peter; after seeing Ourself assailed by armed
men in Our own palace, dragged from city to city, so closely
guarded that even the bishops of the places through which We
passed could not approach Our person ; after these multiplied
outrages, how can We now communicate with their author?’’
The energy of the reply disconcerted the emperor, as it set all
bis calculations at fault. But the commission, composed of
court prelates, laid before Napoleon a memorial, in which it had
the assurance to lavish praises upon the religion, the justice,
the Catholic zeal of a sovereign who had just usurped the Patri­
mony of St. Peter, and who held the Head of the Church in
captivity ; it insinuated the calumnious accusation brought,
against the Pope, of sacrificing the interests of religion to con­
siderations of a purely temporal nature. This monument of
cringing servility is one of the infamous stains on the annals of
the Gallican Church.
15. The conduct of the same bishops was equally disgrace­
ful on another occasion. The victories of Eckmuhl, Essling,
Raab, and Wagram, conquered the peace of Vienna (October 13,
λ. d. 1809). While the emperor sent his brother Joseph into
Spain to seek a crown which cost the blood of so many French­
men, and placed his brother-in-law, Murat, upon the throne of
Naples, he was preparing, for himself, to repudiate Josephine
Beauharnais. The soldier of fortune would mingle his blood with
that of the Cæsars. The emperor of Austria, Francis II., con­
sented to give to Napoleon the hand of his daughter, Marie
Louise. But it was necessary first to annul a marriage, legiti­
mate, valid, consecrated by the Church, and which an ambitious
caprice now sought to break, after a union of fifteen years.
The episcopal Commission, when consulted in the matter, de­
cided that recourse to the Pope was impossible, the case must
be laid before the diocesan officially, with recourse to the Me­
tropolitan officially, and finally to the primatial officially of
Lyons. None of these tribunals was in existence; they were
all immediately established. As the see of Paris was vacant.

066

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Cardinal Fesch was appointed to fill it, and he thus became
judge of the case in all three capacities—as first superior of the
diocesan officially, as Metropolitan of Paris, and as Archbishop
of Lyons, Primate of Gaul. The sentence was such as might
have been expected. On the 2d of April, 1810, Napoleon
married the Archduchess Marie Louise; the cardinals were
invited to attend the nuptial solemnity, but thirteen of them
failed to appear, “ for the reason,” they declared, “ that the
Pope had had no part in the dissolution of the first marriage.”
Napoleon put no hounds to his anger against these courageous
prelates; he no longer allowed them to wear the distinctive
color of their rank, and made them dress in black. This was the
origin of the well-known distinction between the red cardinals
and the black cardinals. The emperor then banished the black
cardinals to various provincial towns, and deprived them of
their income. On the 20th of March, 1811, Napoleon became
the father of a son, who received at his birth the title of King of
Rome ; the usurped title was not destined to be a harbinger
of good to the imperial infant.
1G. The heart of the great emperor was not gladdened by
the joys of domestic life. He laid before the ecclesiastical Com­
mission, always in session, propositions wholly subversive of
the authority of the Holy See. Cardinal Fesch, urged this
time by the influence of the Abbé Emery, ventured to remark
to his formidable nephew : “ Sire, all the bishops will resist,
you are going to make martyrs.” That word made the em­
peror shudder. Sending for the Abbé Emery, he asked him in
a tone of furious anger : “What is the Pope ?” The venerable
octogenarian had already offered up the sacrifice of his life ;
“ Sire," he replied, “ I can hold no other opinion, on that point,
than that which is contained in the Catechism taught by Your
Majesty’s orders in all the churches of France. The Pope is the
Head of the Church, the Vicar of Jesus Christ, to whom all Chris­
tians owe obedience. Can a body exist without its Head ; with­
out him to whom, by divine right, it owes obedience ?” “ Well,”
rejoined the emperor, “ I grant the spiritual power. But the

I

PiÜf* VU. (A. D. 1800-19J3).

Ô6?

temporal power was given to the Pope by Charlemagne, ami I,
as Charlemagne’s successor, feel bound to take it back from
him, because he does not know how to use it and it hinders him
in the discharge of his spiritual functions.’’ Emery was pre­
pared for this attack. “ Your Majesty,” he said, “ honors the
great Bossuet. Bossuet, Sire, speaks thus: ‘We are well
aware that the Roman Pontiffs and the priestly order have
received, by the grant of kings, and do lawfully hold, property,
rights, and principalities., as other men do, on very good titles.
We know that these possessions, inasmuch as they are dedi­
cated to God, should be sacred, and that no one can, without
sacrilege, invade or seize them, or give them away to seculars.
To the Apostolic See has been given the sovereignty of the
city of Rome and of other possessions, that the Holy See might
more freely and securely exercise its power throughout the
whole world. On this we sincerely congratulate, not only the
Apostolic See, but also the universal Church, and we pray,
with all the fervor of our heart, that, in every way, that sacred
principle may remain safe and untouched.’ ” The Abbé Emery
delivered from memory this passage of the “ Defence of the
Declaration of the Clergy,” which he had carefully studied.
Napoleon broke off the conference. “ The Abbé Emery,” said
he, “ spoke like a man who is thoroughly master of his subject;
I like to be talked to in that way.” “ The emperor," says Car­
dinal Pacca, on this subject, “ would, perhaps, never have been
a persecutor, if, in the beginning, he had found in the bishops
of France the firmness, the learning, and the courage of the
Abbé Emery.”
17. These parleys amounted to nothing. The emperor
thought that he should meet with more success by calling a
national council, for the 9th of June, a. d. 1811. He hoped, by
this measure, to intimidate the Pope, and to force him into
compliance. He made a show of granting the request of the
cardinals and bishops assembled at Paris, that they might be
allowed to send a deputation to Savona ; but he himself named
the prelates who were to compose the deputation; appointed ·

b<J8

general history of the church.

day for their return to Paris, and dictated the fundamental
articles of the new treaty they were to conclude, if they found
the Pope disposed to negotiate. The three prelates named
were : M. de Barral, archbishop of Tours ; M. Duvoisin, bisbcp
of Nantes, and M. Mammy, bishop of Trêves, all learned
prelates and skilful in the transaction of business, but of a
servile compliance toward the secular power. The terms dic­
tated by Napoleon were as follows :—The emperor agreed to
abide by the Concordat of 1801, but on two conditions : 1. That
the Pope grant canonical institution to the bishops already
presented; 2. That in future, he send the bulls, within three
months after the presentation, that otherwise the Metropolitan
be allowed to confer the institution upon the suffragan.—Pius
VII. at first rejected the propositions of the deputies, with
energy, but at length, at the last hour, he yielded ; ami, avail­
ing themselves of a momentary weakness, the negotiators at
once drew up, under his eyes, a promise which it would have
been impossible for him afterward to disavow, though it did no
*
bear hie signature. Pius VII. consented to grant canonical
institution to the bishops named, in the hope, as he said, that
the concession might restore peace and order in the Church.
Hardly had the deputies withdrawn, when Pius VII., realizing
the gravity of the concessions wrung from him by surprise, fell
into a deep melancholy and wept most bitterly ; with deep
groans he accused himself in terms of heartfelt repentance.
The bishops, meanwhile, returned to the emperor with a
report of their mission ; but the Pope’s promise was lor the
time kept secret.
18. The imperial council, or the Assembly of French
bishops called by Napoleon, met on the 17th of June, a. d.
1811. It consisted of ninety-five prelates, of whom six were
cardinals, nine archbishops, and eighty bishops. It was
au imposing assemblage, but, in a canonical point of view it
was not a council. In fact, the first condition necessary was,
that the bishops should be allowed to come freely and of their
own accord ; but Napoleon had arbitrarily summoned those

Λ08 VIL (A. D. 1800-1883).

5fiÿ

whom he deemed favorable to his views, to the exclusion of
the others whom he held in prison or in exile. Cardinal Fesch
began by biking upon himself the office of president ; he of­
ficiated Pontifical!/ at the opening ceremony, when Mgr. de
Boulogne, bishop of Troyes, a rival of Maury in eloquence, but
of a far more noble character, made a discourse which insured
his disgrace with the emperor. “ Never," said he, “ shall we
forget all that we owe of love aud respect to that Roman Church
by which we were begotten to Jesus Christ and nourished with
the milk of doctrine ; to that august Chair which the Fathers
call the citadel of the truth, and to that supreme Head of the
Episcopate, without whom the whole Episcopate would destroy
itself and could only wither away like a branch torn from the
parent stock. That See may be displaced, it cannot be de­
stroyed ; its splendor may fora time be taken from it—its power
never ! Wherever that See may be placed, there shall all the
others be gathered around it ; wherever that See may be moved,
there shall it be followed by all Catholics ; for wherever it
stands, there shall be the root of succession, the centre of
government, and the sacred deposit of the Apostolic traditions.
These words made a deep impression, but caused no change in
the result of the Assembly. Only one general session was
held ; after that there were only congregations held at the
archiépiscopal palace. The serious, the difficult question for
which Napoleon had called the prelates together was, to find
a satisfactory substitute for the Pontifical bulls in the canonical
institution of bishops. The Bishop of Nantes asked whether,
in a case of extreme necessity, the bulls might not be dispensed
with. But the Commission refused to accept the question
put in this form, and wished that it should be first dis­
cussed whether the council had the authority to appoint another
way of instituting bishops. The question gave rise to long de­
bates ; at length the majority of the bishops, to their honor be
it said, decided that it would be necessary to refer the mutter
to the Pope by a solemn deputation. Napoleon, irritated by
this *urn of affairs, signed a decree dissolving the council, on

bîO

GENERAL ΠΙ8ΤΟΗΤ OF THE CHURCH.

Ihe 18Λ of July, 1811. The bishop of Ghent, Mgr. de
Broglie; the bishop of Tournay, Mgr. Hirn; and the bishop of
Troyes, Mgr. de Boulogne, who had displayed a truly apostolic
firmness in the course of the debate, were arrested at night and
thrown into the dungeons of Vincennes. Napoleon was fairly
started in the way of persecution.
19. The Council of Paris, dissolved in a fit of anger, was
reopened by a new whim of the emperor. Napoleon ordered
the Ministers of worship, in France and Italy, to summon suc­
cessively each of the bishops of their respective nations then
in Paris, in order to force them, in the personal interview of
the closet, to sign a promise, in conformity with that signed by
the four deputies, under the eyes of Pius VII. The caresses,
the intimidation, used individually upon the various prelates,
succeeded admirably. Assured of having the majority of the
votes in his favor, the emperor once more summoned the council
(August 5, A.D. 1811), which, on the motion of M. de Barral,
passed the following decree : “Article 1. Agreeably to the spirit
of the canons, archbishoprics and bishoprics shall not remain va­
cant more than one year, at the furthest ; within that space of
time, the nomination, institution, and consecration must be
completed. 2. The emperor shall be requested to nominate to
the vacant secs, in conformity with the Concordats ; and the
candidates appointed by the emperor shall apply to our Holy
Father the Pope for canonical institution. 3. Within six
mouths after the notification of said nomination, made to the
Pope, by the usual means, the Pope will grant canonical insti
tution, according to the Concordats. 4. Should the Pope have
failed to grant the institution within the stated six months, the
metropolitan, or, in his default, the oldest bishop of the eccle­
siastical province, shall proceed to the institution of the bishop
nominated ; and, if the institution be that of a Metropolitan,
the oldest bishop shall confer the institution.” This decree
was presented to the Pope for confirmation, by five cardinals
and nine bishops deputed to wait upon the august prisoner at
Savona. Pius VII., already fettered by the promise made to

Plus VII. (A. D. 1800-1833).

571

tho first deputation, surrounded by cardinals solemnly pledged
to favor the designs of his persecutor, terrified by the fearful
picture of the evils which, it was represented to him, would
burst upon the Church in the event of his refusal, yielding
at length to the importunities with which he was beset, con­
sented to grant the bulls to the bishops named by the em­
peror, approved and confirmed the decree of the council
by a brief, drawn up by Cardinal Rovarella, one of the depu­
ties.
20. The report of this triumph reached Paris as Napoleon
was preparing to set out on his Russian campaign. On the
9th of May, a. d. 1812, the emperor, always hitherto trium
phant, quitted a place to which he was doomed to return only
with the shame of defeat. He was followed by six hundred and
fifty thousand men ; he had under his orders eight monarchs,
who came to pay their court to the emperor as he passed
through Dresden. This is the hour which God has chosen to
show His judgments. The muskets are about to fall from the
hands of his soldiers. Heaven will now confirm the excommuni­
cation launched against the conqueror by the august Pontiff of
the Vatican. On the 9th of June, while Napoleon is passing
through Prussia, Pius VII., by his order, is rudely transported
from Savona to Fontainebleau. We know the history—Mob­
cow, Smolensk, the Beresino, the Niemen.
The French were
no longer fighting against enemies; they were battling with the
elements. “ All turned against them," says an eye-witness of
those fearful scenes, “ even their weapons. They seemed an
insupportable weight to their numbed and frozen arms. In
their repeated falls, the muskets fell from their hands, were
broken or lost in the snow. When they rose, it was without
their arms ; for they did not throw them away, hunyer and cold
snatched them from their yrasp. The fingers of many of the
men froze upon their pieces, and thus deprived them of the
motion necessary to preserve a little remnant of heat and
life.”
21. The Pope had been five months a prisoner at Fontaine­

572

OENBICAt HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

*
bleau,
when Napoleon reached Pai is, the herald of his own
terrible defeat. The Grande Armée Aas reduced to twenty
thousand men, wandering, needy, starving, without clothes and
without arms. While busied in repairing the immense disaster,
with his usual incredible activity, he understood how useful it
would be for bis success to effect a real or at least an apparent
reconciliation with the Holy See. He accordingly visited Fon­
tainebleau. The Pope and the emperor had not met since the
day of the coronation. How changed was all since then ! Na­
poleon was, by turns, caressing, hostile, cold, impetuous, and
threatening. He laid before the Pope a new Concordat,
“which," he said, “would smoothe all difficulties.” Pius VII.
was seventy-one years old. His health, shattered by grief and
fatigue; his feelings, excited by the desire of seeing the car­
dinals held in captivity; the importunate solicitations of the
prelate Bertozzoli, who urged him to make every concession,
the entreaties of the two Italian cardinals intrusted with the
negotiation of the important matter, and who continually
harassed him with threatening anticipations ; the total absence
of any wise, noble, friendly voice to arouse that soul weighed
down by suffering ; iu fine, the prospect of approaching death—
all combined to dishearten the Pontiff. Pius VII. was now
left with little more than the faculty of making that mechanical
motion of the hand necessary to write a name. That name was
affixed, on the 25th of January, a. d. 1813, to a paper which the
emperor signed at once. The Pope bound himself to give the
canonical institution within six months to the bishops named,
after which delay the institution might be conferred by the
Metropolitan or the oldest suffragan. He renounced the sove­
reignty of Rome and agreed to reside wherever it might please
Napoleon. The emperor commanded that the conclusion of
this Concordat, wrung from the Pope by a shameful abuse of
• While Pius VII. was forsakes or betrayed by cardinale nod bishops, whoso first duty
was fidelity to the Head of tho Church, several families, equally illustrious by their ruuk
mid their sincere religious sentiments, among others, those of Montmorency-Laval and of
the Marchioness de la Riandrie, consoled the august captive by testimonials of their unal­
terable devotion.

PIÜS VH. (A. D. IB00-I821).

power, should be solemnly announced to the empire, aud a Tt
Down sung in all the churches. On these term-, the cardinala
saw the enl of, their captivity or their exile ; they hastened to
meet the Pope. Pius VII. was especially anxious to see Car
dinal Pacca, his consoling angel.
22. The interview between the Pontiff and his old friend
was most touching. “ Pius VII.," says the illustrious cardinal,
“ was bent, pale, haggard, his sunken eyes almost dark and life­
less.” The remembrance of the concession lately wrung from
him weighed upon him as a gnawing remorse. Pacca assured
him that, helped by the counsel of the faithful cardinals, “he
could repair the evil that had been done.” These words seemed
to recall the august Pontiff to his senses ; his countenance lighted
up as he asked : “ Do you then think that there is any
remedy ?” “ Yes, Holy Father,’’ replied the cardinal; “ with a
will, there is no evil that cannot be remedied.” On the 24 tb
of March the Pope sent an autograph letter to Napoleon, most
formally and explicitly retracting his concessions of the 20th
of January. “ In the presence of God," wrote the Pontiff.
“ before Whom We shall soou be called to give an account of
the power intrusted to Us as Vicar of Jesus Christ, for Lht
government of the Church, We declare, in all Apostolic
sincerity, that Our conscience invincibly opposes the execu
tion of the articles contained in Our deed of the 25th of
January. We acknowledge with grief and confusion that We
should be using Our authority, not to build up, but to destroy,
had We the misfortune to execute what We imprudently pro­
mised, not, as God is Our witness, with any evil intention, but
through pure weakness, for We are but dust and ashes. V\e
can only address Your Majesty in the words spoken by Out
predecessor Pascal II. to the Emperor Henry V. : ‘ Our con­
science recognizing the evil of Our writing, We confess it to
have been evil, and, with the help of God, We wish it to b«
completely annulled, that no harm may come from it tu the
Church, nor any prejudice to Our soul.’” Napoleon was not
touched by this sublime humility ; ne uttered tnreats of death

1

574

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

against the faithful cardinals ; but events, more swift than his
will, were pressing upon him ou all sides and left him no time
to commit new deeds of violence. The forced resignation of the
Bishops of Ghent, Tournay, and Troyes, and the usurpation of
their sees by intruded imperialists, were the last religious acts
of the reign of Napoleon.
23. The eagles, once borne on victorious pinions through
all the capitals of Europe, now driven back to the very heart
of France, had lost their proud flight and their scream of tri­
umph. Brienne, Montereau, Montmirail, Toulouse, Champaubert, Vauchamp, Nangis, and Paris, were the last gigantic
struggles of an exhausted nation, of a genius forsaken by for­
tune and falling amid the ruins of its own glory. On the 23d
of January, a. d. 18.14, Pius VII. was once more removed, by
the emperor’s orders, and taken toward the south of France.
Napoleon feared that the allied powers might set his prisoner at
liberty. But Fontainebleau had hardly lost sight of the Sove­
reign Pontiff, when it received another great personage, who was
destined to give the astonished world a lesson on the empti­
ness of human glory. Napoleon, beaten back by the allied
armies, in that palace where the Pope had so long lingered in
captivity, learned that the Emperors of Russia and of Austria,
the King of Prussia, and the Duke of Wellington, his conqueror,
had entered Paris, that his deposition had been decreed on the
1st of April, by the senate, through the influence of Talley·
*rand, his former minister, a man loaded with his favors. On
the 4th of April, urged, constrained by his most intimate
confidants, Marshals Ney and Berthier, of whom he had made
princes, he signed his own abdication to satisfy the demands oi
his father-in-law, Francis of Austria, and of the Emperor Alex­
ander, who had said to him, six years before, at Tilsit: “ The
• On tboir meeting in Paris, the allied sovereigns were still undecided na to tho uee they
should make of their victory. Some spoke of tho regency of Mario Louise, for the benefit
of tho young King of Rome ; tho name of tho Duke of Orleans was sugguated by others ,
Talleyrand, in that tons of a political oracle, which was roapooted by victory itself,
remarked: “The legitimist rule cau alone eave France." His advice prevailed, and the
Bourbons, whom he was afterward V Mrnj, owed him their return.

PIUS VII. (Λ. D. 1800-1823).

friendship of a great man is a gift of Heaven." In the court­
yard ot Fontainebleau he embraces his eagles for the last time,
and starts for the island of Elba, that narrow sovereignty
allowed by his conquerors to him, the conqueror of the world.
—Amid the tears and joyful acclamations of a whole people,
Louis XVIII, now took possession of the throne of France,
upon which his predecessor, Louis XVII., had never reigned ;
Mme. Royale, now Duchess of Angouleme, was at his side,
a memory of past storms and a pledge of present forgiveness.
France was in ruins, but the return of her sovereign restored
her in the eyes of the allied sovereigns. Peace was concluded
on the 30th of May, 1814. France kept her boundary as it
existed in 1792, and even gained some slight extent of terri­
tory on the north and east. The Bourbons would return only
as respected sovereigns, and armed Europe appreciated this
noble and generous sensitiveness. Louis XVIII., before enter­
ing into his capital, stopped at St. Ouen to sign the Constitu­
tional Charter, the spontaneous concession of a magnanimous
heart, which proved that the past was all forgotten, but which
was not powerful enough to secure the future. Weary of a
despotism of fifteen years, France welcomed, with enthusiasm,
a system which gave her a national representation, freedom of
the press, an equilibrium of the powers, through the two Cham­
bers of Peers and Deputies. Three articles of this charter con­
cerned religion ; they were as follows : “ Every individual may
profess his own religion with equal freedom, and obtain equal
protection for his worship. Still the religion of the Catholic,
Apostolic and Roman Church is the religion of the State. The
ministers of the Catholic, Apostolic and Roman Church, and of
the other Christian denominations, shall alone receive salaries
from the royal treasury.”
24. Pius VII. reached Ancona on the 12th of May. The
enthusiasm excited among the people, by the return of the ven
erable Pontiff, bordered on delirium. The Pope’s carriage was
drawn by the inhabitants, amid shouts of triumph, salutes of
artillery, and the joyous sound of all the bells. On the fol-

576

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

i.rwing day, the venerable Pontiff, bathed in tears, crowned, in
(he cathedral, the statue of the Blessed Virgin under the title
of “Regina Sanctorum Omnium a guard of honor escorted
him as far as Loretto. During his journey he gave orders that
(he kindness and respect due to misfortune should be shown to
Mme. Laetitia, the mother of Napoleon, and to Cardinal Fesch,
who came to Rome, seeking that hospitality which Rome never
withholds from the unfortunate. On the 24th of May, Pius
VII. made his solemn entrance into the capital of the Christian
world. At his side was Cardinal Pacca, the faithful companion
of his exile, who shed tears of joy at the unlooked-for happi­
ness of a Pope he loved so well. On the next day several
Roman noblemen, who had been implicated in the late disturb­
ances, came to ask forgiveness of the Pope. “ And do you
think,” asked the Vicar of Jesus Christ, with sublime humility,
“that We have no faults to atone for Ourself? Let us join in
forgetting the past and in thanking God for the present.” What
was said of St. Vincent de Paul may also be said of Pius VII.
“When he conversed, he took away the soul of his hearer and
pul his own in its place." As soon as he was again seated upon
his throne, the Pope determined to repair the injury done by
the times to the Jesuits. He was convinced that a cruel expe­
rience of twenty-five years had at length taught the Christian
rulers the true character of the Revolution and the hidden aim
of the simultaneous outcry raised in Europe against the Society
of Jesus On the 7th of August, a. d. 1814, the bull Sollicitudo
officially restored the Society of Jesus throughout the Chris­
tian world, and the decree was hailed with joy by all the true
friends of the Church and of religion.
25. Ou the 26th of February, a. d. 1815, a man attended
by a few fellow-fugitives landed at Cannes; twenty days after­
ward Napoleon was in the Tuileries ; he had cut his way
through the troops sent against him. Marshal Ney, whose
double treason is recorded in history, accompanied with a
regret that a character so weak should ever have been allied to
such heroic daring on the field of battle, promised to seize and

ΡΙΠΗ VII. (Λ. D. 1800-1823).

577

firing back in an iron cage the man whose very presence was a
revolution;—he was the first to give the example of defection.
<nd Napoleon once more found himself at the head of an ex­
temporaneous Empire. His reign lasted a hundred days and
overturned the order of Europe. Pius VII. displayed all his
native firmness amid the storm. “ Μ. ΓAmbassadeur,'' said he
io the minister of Louis XVIII., “ fear nothing, this is a visit
which will last but three months.” Wellington and Waterloo
undertook to realize the prophecy of Pius VII. Napoleon,
beaten for the first time in a pitched battle, showed himself
great in his misfortune. Like Themistocles, he sought hospi­
tality from the nation against which he had fuught so long.
England had not the generosity to appreciate such greatness of
soul ; she replied by an act of dastardly meanness. But she
was the unwitting instrument of Providence, punishing, in the
prisoner of St. Helena, the persecutor of Pius VII.
26. The situation of the Church of France once more called
for the attention of the Pope. On the 11th of June, a. d. 1817. a
new Concordat was signed by the Holy See and Louis XVIII.,
to restore that of Leo X. and Francis I., and to abolish the
“ organic articles” in so far as they were contrary to the doctrine
and laws of the Church. All the episcopal and archiépiscopal
sees erocted in the year 1801 were to be maintained with their
actual incumbents ; forty-seven new sees were to be erected.
The principal dispositions of the Concordat could not be carried
cut, because the Chambers refused to ratify them. The tribune
wiiS already beginning to take its stand in opposition to the
throne. It was at this time that Mgr. Frayssinous, so well
known for his Conferences of Notre Dame, wrote his work on
the “ True Principles of the Gallican Church,” in which doc­
trines hostile to the Holy See were set forth with the same
assurance as if, since 1682, men had neither learned nor forgot­
ten any thing. Mgr. d’Aviau, the illustrious and holy arch­
bishop of Bordeaux, wrote to the author these beautiful words
“ Yes, old French bishop as I am, I could sincerely wish that a
reputation so well deserved as yours had not been abused to
Vol. IV—37

578

ORNERAI HISTORY OP TUB CHURCH.

display the deplorable theories of Gallicanism.” Pius VII
exerted all his moderation and inexhaustible kindness to soothe
the excited minds and extinguish these fatal discussions. On
the 5th of June, 1817, he concluded a Concordat with Maxi
mihan, king of Bavaria, to regulate the ecclesiastical affairs of
that kingdom. In 1818 a similar treaty was signed by the Pope
and the King of the Two Sicilies.· In 1819, a brief, addressed
t? all the bishops of France, put an end to the difficulties
caused by the Concordat of 1817. The tireless vigilance of the
illustrious Pontiff seemed to gain strength with years. On the
13th of September, 1821, a bull, stamped with a truly Apostolic
energy, was launched against the Carbonari who threatened the
peace of Italy. On the 5th of May, in the same year, Napo­
leon breathed his last on the rock of St. Helena, and Pius VII.,
forgetting all his wrongs, remembering only his benefits, prayed
for his persecutor. Europe was proud of its Pontiff, whose
reign was the longest since St. Peter's. But his shattered
health sunk under multiplied labors. On the 20th of Septem­
ber, 1823, Pius VII. slept peacefully in the Lord, and went
to receive, in a better life, the reward of his toils and his vir­
tues. A few moments before his death, an ecclesiastic address­
ing him by the title of “ Your Holiness,” he said with a sigh :
“How! Holiness! I am buta poor sinner.” Thus died one of
the greatest Pontiffs of modern times.

§ II. Pontificate

Leo XII. (September 28, a.
February 10, 1829).

of

d.

1823—

27. Cardinal Della Genga was elected to succeed Pius VII
on the chair of St. Peter and took the name of Leo XII. In­
firmities and the labors of his various nunciatures, in Germany
and in France, had broken him down before his time—he was
but sixty-three years old. On learning his election, he said to
the cardinals : “ Why make a Pope of a skeleton ?” The sin­
cere piety, the pure morals and amiable qualities of the new
Pontiff speedily won the admiration of the world. Leo XII

LEO ΧΠ. (A. D. JR32-18Î9).

•57')

did not shrink from the thought of the difficulties to be met in
the government of the Church. His first allocution to the car­
dinals disclosed his whole mind. “You are not ignorant.
Venerable Brethren, of the cruel wounds lately inflicted upon
the Church of Jesus Christ ; what enemies fight against the
true faith; what a looseness of morals everywhere prevails ;
what clogs, difficulties, and stumbling-blocks, are everywhere
thrown in the way of the Church. It shall be Our care, Our
labor, day and night, to stem this fearful torrent of evils."
28. The new enemy now threatening Christian Europe and
the Church was the so-called liberalism,an offshoot of the spirit
of revolution. While the iron hand of Napoleon weighed upon
the world, there was but one despotism—his own. The Resto­
ration was the epoch of the awakening of liberty ; then arose a
despotism more threatening, more terrible, perhaps—the despot­
ism of the masses, the despotism of popular sovereignty. The
press, so long restrained, now poured out upon the multitudes
floods of the most impious, licentious, and anarchical ideas.
Then France and Europe wondered at the multiplied editions
of the philosophers of the eighteenth century; the Voltaire of
the hovel rose up besi le the monumental Voltaire of the great
libraries. A misguided generation still thirsted for those poi­
soned springs ; so true is it that, if history is indeed the great
school of experience for individuals, yet its lessons are almost
invariably lost upon the masses. They preserve the memory
neither of the mind nor of the heart. Leo XII. struggled with
noble energy on the new field in which the enemies of Catholi­
cism had set their standard. He found faithful allies in the
clergy of Europe. In France, the illustrious orator. Mgr. de
Boulogne, that confessor of the faith, attacked the evil emana­
tions of the press in eloquent pastoral letters, which were trans­
lated into every language as fast as they fell from his inspired
pen. But his courageous efforts could not wholly check the
fearful tide of opinions. The press had, in the tribune, a staunch
ally, a constant echo, a devoted power.
29. In the hour of danger, the hand of God ever prepares and

hRO

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CflURCh.

holds in readiness, for the defence of His Church, men whoss
talents, energy, and character, are equal to the call of events.
Two illustrious names now showed forth, in full splendor, tho
great apologetic glories of Catholicism. They were those e(
two laymen, Joseph de Maistre and De Bonald. Joseph de
Maistre was horn at Chambery, on the 1st of April, a. d. 1753, of
a family of French origin ; one branch still subsists in Languedoc.
He received his first lessons of piety in the arms of his mother,
Christine de Motz, who afterward intrusted the care of his edu­
cation to the Jesuits. When the French forces invaded Savoy,
in 1793, he went to Lausanne, where he was engaged by the
king of Sardinia, Victor Amadeus, in an important correspon­
dence with the Department of foreign affairs. Ilis residence
on the frontier of France, in a free country, the common asy­
lum of refugees from all parties, afforded him opportunities of
making himself thoroughly acquainted with the events which
interested all Europe ; his deep historical studies, his foresight
and his penetrating mind gave an immense value, not only for
his master, but for all the European cabinets, to his notes on
men and on the real situation of affairs. Bonaparte found this
correspondence, whole and entire, in the archives at Venice ;
he read with surprise and admiration the accurate and able
judgments, the political prophecies realized by himself. With
this practical knowledge of things, M. de Maistre could safely
treat great religious questions, and he did it with resistless
brilliancy, spirit, and logic, in his immortal works, du Pape and
the Soirees de St. Pétersbourg. Under the pen of this illustrious
writer, history is no longer a narrative of the past, it is a
prophecy of the future ; the law of religion is not only a
means of salvation for individuals, it is the necessary, the
indispensable condition upon which depends the existence of
society.
30. His contemporary, the Viscount de Bonald, whose son
now so ably graces the Roman purple in one of the most
illustrious sees of Gaul, was educated by the Oratorians at
Juilly. When the “Civil Constitution of the Clergy ” was forced

LEO XII. (A. D. 1823-1819).

581

open the weakness of Louis XVI., M. de Bonald was president
of the administration in the department of Aveyron. He wrote
to his colleagues a letter, afterward made public, in which h’
most energetically branded the conduct of the Assembly, and.
fearless of the thunders he might be invoking upon his head,
dared to uphold the necessity of referring the whole matter to
the judgment of the Pope. “ The National Assembly," he
wrote, “ has decreed changes in ecclesiastical discipline and in
the Constitution of the clergy ; it has imposed upon pastors the
oath of observing and maintaining them. And could I, who am
commanded to believe, not to decide; I, who know that a dis­
regard for the Holy See and for the authority of the chief pas­
tors has been the main-spring of all the religious dissensions
that have desolated the Church and the State ; I, who can not
separate the respect I owe to my religion from the respect it
requires for its ministers—could I venture to anticipate the
decision of the Head of the Church, brave the unanimous opin­
ion of my pastors, and dishonor my religion, by putting its
priests in the alternative of sacrificing conscience or interest ;
between perjury and degradation. Could I say to them :
Swear, or give up your office, your means of subsistence, as
men were once told, Believe or die! No, no, gentlemen, no !
humanity, no less than religion, revolts at the thought !” After
this splendid resignation, M. de Bonald was soon on his way
to exile. This manly eloquence was recognized in the author
of so many religious works, in which the highest philosophy
becomes a willing handmaid to the science of the sanctuary.
His “ Theory of Political and Religious Authority, in Civil So­
ciety, demonstrated by reasoning and history,” placed M. de
Bonald, at the very outset, among the most distinguished think­
ers and writers. The first edition of that work which marked an
epoch, was seized by the police of the Directory and destroyed
The author answered the outrage by a new masterpiece. In
1802, appeared the work entitled “ Primitive Legislation viewed
in later times by the sole light of reason.” This is the capital
work of the Christian philosopher. In 181S, he published his

582

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

·' Philosophical Inquiries on the first Objects of Moral Per­
ceptions.”
31. The spirit of these two illustrious writers was in
strong contrast with the symptoms of Gallican resuscitation
shown by some members of the clergy M. de Frayssinous,
not content with publishing writings showing a spirit of hos­
tility to the Holy See, stood up in the Parliamentary Tribune,
against the spread of Ultramontane doctrines. Mgr. de la
Luzerne, cardinal-bishop of Langres, in his numerous writings,
upheld the old ideas of Gallicanism which had resisted so many
revolutions, outlived so many falls, and seemed to have impreg­
nated the heart of the French clergy, like the oil soaked into a
vessel. It was then that a priest, hitherto unknown, entered
the lists and gave his name, destined at a later period to win a
renown so widely different, to the applause of the Catholic
world. The first volume of the “ Essay on Indifference in matters
of religion” had just appeared (a. d. 1818), signed by M. l'abbé
de Lamennais. Within a year that name had gained the celebrity
attached to those of Chateaubriand, De Bonald, and De Maistre.
Logic and eloquence, vigor and grace of style, bold thoughts,
sublime imagery, that majestic flow of language which recalled
the traditions of the Golden Age, the new manner, the captivat­
ing turn, the choice of subject—all was beautiful in this work.
Its effect was immense; its author was already styled a second
Tertullian; alas! he was destined to bear too close a likeness,
by his errors, to that great character of the first ages of the
Church; but then nothing foretold the coming defection. An
escort of young and brilliant minds, devoured by zeal for the
truth and thirst for learning, gathered around the new teacher,
and the Church applauded the triumph of one of her children.
The second volume of the “Essay on Indifference” appeared
soon after ; De Lamennais was now but a bold declaimer.
Misled, doubtless, by the generous illusion that he might do
away with all the old systems of philosophy and compel the
unbelieving to bow to the yoke of faith, he claimed to make the
common consent of men an infallible criterion of truth. The

LEO Xïl

(A. D. 1Μ3-1·29».

533

liscussions to which this celebrated thesis gave rise, in the
religious world, are well known. It is known, too, that they
ended in a lamentable apostasy. God doubtless wished to give
another example of the impotence of genius when it strays
from the path of obedience.
32. Leo XII. had, in the meantime, published the bull
[mpensa Romanorum Pontificum sollicitudo (March 26, a. υ
1824), to secure, by a Concordat, the interests of the Catholic
Church in Hanover. «The Pontifical decree created two bishop
rics in that kingdom, Hildesheim and Osnabrück. The Pope
provided for the observance of the decrees of the Council of
Trent, endeavored to recall the dissident members of the *· Lit­
tle Church,” in France ; condemned the schism of the Jansen­
ists at Utrecht; expressed the solicitude of the Church for the
Irish and Belgian Catholics; restored to the Jesuits the direc­
tion of the Roman College and prepared the way fora Concordat
between the Holy See and the Grand Duchies of Baden au J
Nassau. By the bull Etsi Filius Dei, he approved the Congre­
gation of Oblates of the Blessed Virgin, founded by two Pied­
montese priests, to preach the gospel to the people and to give
missions. He likewise succeeded in settling the difficulties
which opposed the re-establishment of the episcopal sees in the
province of the Upper Rhine. Less successful in France, where
de Frayssinous was at the head of the Department of public
education, Leo XII. had the grief to see that prelate endeavor­
ing to establish a new Sorbonne, to be the guardian of French
principles. This gave occasion to the youthful archbishop of
Paris, Mgr. Hyacinthe de Quélen, to give the first proofs of
that episcopal vigor which he was at a later period to display
with so much glory. He expressly announced to the minister
that he should refuse all faculties to the priests intrusted with
the chairs in the new Sorbonne. The most pressing *solicitation
failed to change his determination, and the project of de Fray»·
sinous failed. Such was the situation of affairs in France at
the death of Louis XVIII. (September 16, 1824.) A dis­
puted question of jurisdiction kept the clergy of Paris from fol­

OBNERAf. HI8T0RV OF THE CHURCH.

lowing the remains of the king to St. Denis ; the evil-disposed
gave a different meaning to this circumstance, and stated that
the king had died without having accepted the last consolations
of religion. But Louis XVIII. died a Christian death. On the
eve of his decease, as the curé of St. Germain was reciting the
Inst prayers, in a low tone, by his bedside : “ M. le curé.” said
the dying monarch, “ pray aloud and do not fear that you will
frighten me. I am not afraid of death ; only bad kings do nut
know how to die.” The throne of France passed to the Count
of Artois, brother of Louis XVI., who took the name of Charles
X.
He inaugurated his reign by a measure which proved the
goodness of his heart while it betrayed the weakness of his
character; he abolished the censorship of the press; this was
disarming himself in the presence of the enemy.
33. Charles X. removed De Frayssinous from the ministry
of public education, and gave his place to M. Feutrier, bishop
of Beauvais. The administration of this prelate was signalized
by an open hostility to the true principles of ecclesiastical dis­
cipline. Several bishops had intrusted their seminaries to
members of the Society of Jesus. Many French families
availed themselves of this circumstance to obtain for their chil­
dren a Christian education, and to avoid the obligation of send­
ing them to the "University institutions, already beginning to
excite suspicion by their teaching. On the 16th of June, a. d.
1828. two ordinances of Charles X., the one countersigned
Portalis, the other Feutrier, forbade the bishops to employ
members of a religious order in the ecclesiastical schools, to re­
ceive any exteras or even boarders, beyond a limited number.
This decree placed Christian families in the painful alternative,
either of exposing their children to the dreaded contagion of the
government schools, or of sending them abroad for the safety of
their faith and morals. The French bishops protested against
the decrees in a memorial addressed to Charles X.. and declare»
that they could not in conscience observe their prescriptions.
Leo XII. was consulted ; his answer was addressed to M
Feutrier, who did not think proper to make it public Several

686

HD8 VIII. (A. D. 1829-1830).

of the prelates published a circular, in which they granted to
the government only a right of inspection—surveillance—over
seminaries. The Pope condemned this doctrine. “ The ex­
pression inspection," said he, “ in the wide sense in which it
may be taken, should not certainly be admitted in the Church
of Jesus Christ ; it has been unanimously rejected by several
councils.” Notwithstanding these significant words—in spite
of their own convictions, the bishops were forced to bow to the
power of the minister. To make the submission easier, certain
subsidies were voted to their preparatory seminaries, and the
state of servitude was thus organized.
34. Leo XII. ended his Pontificate on the 10th of Feb­
ruary, a. d. 1829, wept by his own people and by all Christen­
dom. The year of his death was signalized by the Catholic
Emancipation in England. The efforts of the celebrated 0 Con­
nell, whose eloquent appeals have not yet died away, and whose
death was an occasion of general mourning in Europe, effected
that act of strict justice, which gave at length to a considerable
portion of the population of the United Kingdom the rights so
long withheld by the most revolting intolerance. The Pontifi­
cate of Leo XII. was marked by the apparition of the cross
of Meigné ; the sign of man’s redemption, soaring in the
heavens, had once again, as in the days of Calvary, been the
ecandal of the impious—the consolation, the hope, and the
strength of the faithful.
§ III. Pontificate

Pius VIII. (March 31,
November 30, 1830).

of

a. d.

1829—

35. Cardinal Castiglione, elected on the 31st of March, \ i>.
1829, under the name of Pius VIII., inaugurated a reign which
was destined to be but short, by the publica ion of the cele­
brated encyclical letter, Traditi humilitati nostra. Like a
watchful sentinel set upon the mountain to give warning of ap­
proaching danger, the Holy Pontiff raised the cry of alarm,
amid a society corrupted by false philosophy, misled by the
deceitful shadow of liberty, perverted by the press, seduced by

686

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

the sophistry of the tribune ; an imprudent and blind society,
hurrying to snatch the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of
good and evil, and exulting in its very madness. Pius VIII.
pointed out to the reprobation of the world—1st, the en­
deavors of a multitude of men, hidden under the cloak of false
philosophy, to overturn the chair of St. Peter, the centre of
truth, the depository of tradition, the guardian of faith and
morals ; 2d, the lamentable tendency toward a spirit of in­
difference in religious matters, as if the multiplied religious
systems could all insure salvation ; 3d, the spread of Bible
Societies; 4th, that of the secret societies already condemned
by Popes Clement XIII., Benedict XIV., Pius VII., and Leo
XII. ; in fine, the Pope called the attention of bishops to the
evil of mixed marriages, a source of most serious disorders, and
of the loss of so many souls.
36. The apprehensions of the Sovereign Pontiff were too
soon justified by the event. The Dey of Algiers had insulte!
the French consul. Charles X. said to M. de Bourmont
“Algiers has insulted France; go and take Algiers. All the
soldiers I place under your orders are my children ; be sparing
of their blood, see that all their wants are satisfied ; you shall
answer to me for all.” Two months later, the white flag floated
over the Algerian rock that had so long threatened the freedom
of the seas. These were noble words and great deeds (July 5,
a. d.1830) ; but it was the legacy of the legitimate monarchy ; its
testament was to be a victory. While the French soldiers were
covering themselves with glory, abroad, the government was
preparing for a fearful struggle at home. The charter of Louis
XVIII. had borne but bitter fruit;—disorders in the administra­
tion, a spirit of insurrection in the masses, an organized system
of insult against every thing beautiful, holy, and respectable ; in
a word, anarchy everywhere. It was time to break that net­
work that enveloped the monarchy. At least so it was then
believed. On the 25th of July, 1830, appeared the cele­
brated Ordinances, suspending the freedom of the press, chang­
ing the mode of election, and dissolving the ancient Chamber

PÎÜ8 νίΠ. (Λ. D. 1823-1830).

θ87

Were such ordinances issued to day, after the personal expe­
rience of thirty years added to the experience of our fathers, only
one fault would be found with them—that they are not absolute
enough.
The reason is, that, weary now of an unbridled
freedom, barren in its results, ruinous in its excesses, unpopu­
lar by its ceaseless harping upon the miseries of the people,
without the slightest attempt to relieve them, we feel an
immense want of authority. In 1830, the deceitful mirage
was still trusted ; the Ordinances caused a revolution. Charles
X. trod the path of exile, bearing with him, in the folds of his
glorious banner, three generations of kings. There was a man
in readiness to gather up the fragments of that great fall,
which he had, perhaps, provoked, but of which he certainly
hastened to profit; from the midst of the barricades he raised
up a throne destined to be no stronger, and took the name of
Louis Philippe I., king of the French.
37 The courageous archbishop of Paris, Mgr. de Quélen,
was urged, in an interview with the new monarch, to lead the
way in taking the oath in the Chamber of Peers, since his exam­
ple, it was alleged, would determine all the inferior clergy to
imitate him. “ That is a mistaken notion,” answered the pre­
late. “ The government that should thus receive my oath would
have M. de Quélen dishonored, it would not have the Church
of France. The Pope is the only one who can settle the ques­
tion. If he sanctions the oath and the prayers fur the actual
head of the State, the oath will be taken and the prayers will
be recited everywhere ; should he forbid them, I shall be the
first to obey him ; and the public prayers, which I have thought
proper to sanction provisionally, shall be stopped, if he turbid
them, as soon as his will is known.” Pius VIII. was consulted,
and replied by a sanction which he could not refuse. The
Papacy, according to the public law of modern Europe, has no
sharî in the making or unmakinguf governments; but it saves
souls and consolidates peace under all governments. The noble
reply of Mgr. de Quélen was not forgotten.
38. Amid the storms excited by the new revolution in

588

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHÜRCH.

Erance, Pius VIII. dosed his short Pontificate. Borne iown by
years and infirmities, he died on the 30th of November, λ d. 1830
As temporal ruler, he gave special attention to improvements
in the condition of the poorer classes ; he lessened the taxes
and furnished work for the people. As Head of the Universal
Church, he intervened, after the capture of Adrianople and the
treaty of .peace concluded between the Russians and the Perte,
in favor of the Armenian Catholics who had been driven from
their homes ; he obtained for them the erection of an Arme­
nian archbishopric in Constantinople itself, the recall of the
exiled, the recognition of their rights, and the restitution of
their property. He strongly urged the Emperor of Brazil to
abolish slavery in his States, and Don Pedro respected the
voice of the common Father of Christendom. The tidings of
the Irish Emancipation, under the ministry of Sir Robert Peel
(April 12, 1829), gladdened the heart of Pius VIII., in the
beginning of his Pontificate; and the conquest of Algiers,
destroying the piratical dens in which thousands of Christian
victims had been pining away for centuries, soothed, in his last
hours, the grief caused by the spirit of revolt then breaking
out in all directions.

§ IV. Pontificate

of

Gregory XVI. (February 2, a. d. 1831—
June 1, 1846).

39. On the 2d of February, a. d. 1831, from the balcony
over the main entrance of the Quirinal, Cardinal Albani an­
nounced to an immense multitude the name of the new Pontiff.
“ I make known to you tidings of great joy ; we have for Pope,
His Eminence Mauro, Cardinal Cappellari. who has taken the
name of Gregory XVI.” The moment was a solemn one. At
the death of Pius VIII., Europe was fearfully convulsed by the
shock of the revolution of July, which had spread in al) direc­
tions. France is as the great heart of the world ; each of
its pulsations is felt to the ends of the earth; it is the political
lhemomeler of nations. Italy, divided into so many petty

GREGORY XVJ. (A. D. 1Β?1-184βί.

sovereignties, agitated by secret societies, and especially by
the Carbonari ; Italy, which has preserved hut the memories
of its ancient glories, amid the shameful weakness of its ener­
vated characters, was stirred up by the breath of French liber­
alism. The rebellion already extended from Bologna to the
gates of Rome. But the storm was stilled under the hand of
St. Peter’s successor; a cry of universal joy hailed the accession
of Gregory XVI., who inaugurated his Pontificate by acts of
bounty and firmness. “ What strengthens Us most," said the
Pontiff, in the encyclical letter published three days after his
enthronization, “ is the thought that the Heavenly Father will
not allow the trials he sends Us to exceed Our strength.” With
the help of Austria, he put down the symptoms of revolt in
the Pontifical States. If it pained the fatherly heart of Gregory
XVI. to use such means for the pacification of the States of
the Church, he suffered no less keenly at the sight of the an­
archy and disorder breaking out in many other lands ; and it
was for this reason that he so strongly urged the bishops of
Poland and of Belgium to stand aloof from all share in political
matters, by reminding them of their ministry of peace, and of
the duties of subjects toward their rulers. Liberalism vainly
poured out all its wrathful venom against a Sovereign Pontiff
who dared to proclaim, in the full light of the nineteenth cen­
tury, the principle of St. Paul, that “all power is from God."
The abuses of the temporal power in Poland, soon after, afforded
the enemies of the Church ample matter for their malicious
attacks ; it was proclaimed from every tribune, it was writ­
ten in every public organ, that all was over with the Papal
grandeur and dignity. Gregory XVI. deceived these ill-boding
prophecies. In his circular letter to all the bishops of the
Catholic world (August 15, 1832), while openly declaring him­
self the adversary of a false and dangerous spirit of innova­
tion, he solemnly proclaimed his firm resolve to preserve and
to defend the ancient Apostolic traditions.
40. As soon as peace was completely restored to the Pon­
tifical States, the Pope at once turned all his energies to the

090

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

reformation of old abuses, and to tho exclusion of new ones. The
universities, closed during the revolution, were reorganized ; a
eystein of greater economy introduced into every department
of the administration ; officers in high places removed for iishonesty or oppression ; the receipts and expenses, since 1817,
subjected to a necessary investigation, to determine the lawful­
ness of the privileges, pensions, and subsidies granted since
(hat date ; a new body of laws promulgated ; a new penal code
submitted to the judgment of all the presidents of tribunals ; a
more equitable assessment of the land tax proposed to the
deputies convoked from all parts of the Pontifical .States;
Chambers of Commerce established in Rome, and in the cities
and seaports of the provinces ; the courts of appeal and the
criminal courts thenceforth to be presided over by lay judges ;
the most rigorous justice exercised toward all ; arts and sci­
ences patronized with equal taste and magnificence ; the Etrus­
can Museum founded in the Vatican ; the Basilica of St. Paul
raised up from the ruins of the conflagration of July 15, a. d. 1823.
Such were the domestic labors which marked the Pontificate
of Gregory XVI. The Pope continued to live like a simple
monk, according to the austere rule of the Camalduli, sleeping
upon the ground, abstemious in his diet, watching far into the
night, working with untiring zeal, praying always. lie loved
to gather about him and to make use of the great men of his
time; he appointed the learned Cardinal Lambruschini, Secre­
tary of State; restored the nunciature in France, after an inter­
ruption of twelve years, intrusting it to a prelate, whose name
is dear to every Catholic heart, whose faithful services were
afterward rewarded with the Roman purple, and whose recent
loss was an occasion of general mourning—Mgr. Fornari; ho
brought into the Sacred College—as, formerly, Leo X. had in­
troduced Bembo and Sadolet—the finished scholar Angelo Mai,
*
nnd the philologist Mezzofanti.
• Since tho writing of these lines, H. E. Cardinal Mai has ceased to exist. His dor th
is an irreparable loss to ecclesiastical science, of which ho was ono of the roost loarnod nnd
wooewful restorers; it hue thrown a roil of deep mourning over all who had the huppi

QRBGORT XVÏ. (A. D. ISÏl-ΙΜβ).

1)91

41. The most furious among the revolutionary leaders in
i rance did not hide their desire and their intention of destroyng the Catholic worship ; the politicians who now held the
power in their own hands wished to put a curb on the spirit
of anarchy, even while giving pledges to the spirit of revolu­
tion. The first acts of Louis Philippe gave expression to this
twofold tendency. The church of St. Geneviève was deprived
of its sacred character of worship, and turned into a heathen
temple, with its heathen name of Pantheon ; the modified char­
ter no longer recognized the Catholic religion as the religion
of the State, but only declared that it was that of the majority
of the French people. Still Louis Philippe imperiously required
the oath of the clergy for his new power, and the insertion of his
name in the public prayers sung in all the Catholic churches.
Mgr. de Quélen gave the example of this act of official submis­
sion ; but his heart and his sympathies were with another
cause. Gregory XVI. knew it well ; he understood and ad­
mired that noble self-devotion ; more than once, words of kindly
sympathy fell from the chair of St. Peter to console the heart
of the afflicted prelate. The work ef irreligious violence still
went on in Paris. The church of St. Germain I'Auxerrois was
sacked ; the archiépiscopal residence was plundered and utterly
destroyed.
42. Mgr. de Quélen, to avoid the fury of the persecution,
was obliged to seek shelter among faithful friends, and lived
like an exile in the midst of his diocese. The hand of God,
more powerful than the hatred of men, was soon to draw him
forth again into the light. A scourge hitherto unknown in
Europe, the plague of modern times, perhaps the same as that
of earlier ages, with a mere change of name—the cholera,
crossing the bounds of Asia, after ravaging the north of Ger­
many, had now reached the soil of France, heralded by the
terror and dismay that goes before its every step. Suddenly
apprehensions become a reality ; the cholera is in Paris ; the
need to know and to ad miro the «(lability, the sweetness, and tho modesty of the learuod
cardinal

592

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

hospitals nre filled ; the additional ones opened in every direc
tion are unequal to the demand ; all business ceases ; all better
instincts are changed and weakened ; families shut themselves
up in solitude; the infant dies at the breast of the mother, who
sinks in turn, to be closely followed by the other members of the
household ; the scholar is seized in his study, the mechanic in
his workshop ; the wealthy in their sumptuous apartments, the
poor in their dens of squalid misery. One single day records
eighteen hundred deaths (April 10, a. d. 1832). It was as the
funeral of a whole people ; the Belzunce of the nineteenth cen­
tury, Mgr. de Quélen came forth from his retreat at the call of
the plague, which was to him as the voice of God. lie appeared
more majestic than in the hour of his greatest prosperity, more
calm than in the day of peace; he feared neither the storms
lately unchained against him, nor the scythe of the pitiless
reaper who swept away, at random, virtue and vice, without
distinction of age or rank. He hastened to the hospitals,
crowded with dying sufferers, where each instant was marked
by a sigh of death. Every heart was moved, every eye was
filled with tears. At the bedside of fathers and mothers, who
left their children to his care, soothing the sharp pang of agony,
pressing the icy hands of the agonized victims, receiving their
last aspirations, Mgr. de Quélen promised to be a father to so
inauy orphans
*
On the 28th of December, 1832, he ap­
peared in public for the first time since the plunder of his
residence. The church of St. Roch, in which the heroic prelate
was to preach, was besieged, from an early hour, by dense
masses of people, who crowded every approach to the holy sanc­
tuary. Every eye was fixed upon the pulpit, awaiting the
approach of the prelate. At the sight of the noble countenance,
wan with grief, prematurely wrinkled by suffering, but ever
• Several of these wretches acknowledged to Mgr. de Quélen. with many tears, that they
oad taken part in the plunder of tho archiépiscopal palaeo and in the scones o( honor by
which it was attended. “ Wo did not know you thon," they exclaimed, bursting iuto teats,
‘ we were deceived by our leaders." The heroic prolato comforted them, allayed their ro·
worse by rep»«ed assurances of his forgiveness, and soothed their agony by hi· paternal
•insolations He revenged himself only by redoubled zeal and tenderness.

«REGORY XVI. (A. b. 1831-1 MR).

fi93

mild and majestic, a unanimous feeling of deep emotion thrilled
(he whole assembly ; at the sight of the immense concourse of
(he faithful, who had come together to see him once more, to
hear his voice again, he could not restrain his own tears. His
voice, tremulous at first, gained firmness as he proceeded, with­
out losing any of its unction ; not a word of reproach, not a re­
minder of the past, escaped his lips ; like St. Vincent de Paul,
he came to plead the cause of the orphans, and he gave his
whole attention to that duty, As the holy archbishop quitted
the pulpit, he saw that vast multitude, in tears, pressing around,
almost smothering him, kneeling to receive his blessing.
Eighty thousand francs, the fruit of the collection, were placed,
on the evening of that glorious day, in the hands of the prelate,
to begin the work of charity for the cholera orphans, a work
which has since poured over a million into the bosom of the
*
poor
43. The cholera was but a momentary check to the torrent
of evil doctrine in France. It has been said that the govern­
ment did not favor the spread of these doctrines, but it at
least tolerated them; or rather, devoted to all the political
vicissitudes of the majority, it had enough to do to provide
itself with ministers ever ready to recompose a cabinet continu­
ally changing. Born of revolution, the new power supported
itself by means of intrigue, of flattering all revolutionary pas­
sions, repressing riots, eluding the efforts of assassins, destroying
men by means of each other, and continually renewing this sisyphian toil, which seems to be the character of every parlia­
mentary administration in France. To exist amid so many ele­
ments of ruin was already an achievement. Saint Simonianisin,
Fourierism, phalansterism, the French Rite of the Abbé Chatel,
an apostate priest, by turns misled the public mind and drew
down upon their authors the thunders of the Church. But the
clamors of the liberal press deafened the ears of the people to
• “ General returns made by the officers of the fund for the cholera orphans.' Bi^ricai
Notice, by M. Sylvain Ouubert. Tho return is conflrtned by the account· of the Princess da
Boauffrcmont, treamire&s of the fund.
Vol. IV,—3«

O94

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CliURCH.

the once revered voice of the successor of St. Petei
The
grossest instincts of materialism, protected by unbelieving mir
isters, and represented, in the meanest hamlets, by those when»
the Government placed at the head of the communes, came
upon the nation like an incurable leprosy. Once, indeed (he
voice of the Vicar of Jesus Christ silenced the general din. It
was when it spoke to condemn M. de Lamennais.
Then,
thirty-three million French Catholics bent in obedience. But
the man who might, by an act of docility, have won a right to
rank forever with the immortal Fénelon, met this deserved cen­
sure with the scandal of the Paroles dun Croyant, of which
Europe soon destroyed the incendiary pages.
44. The governments of Germany were not more favorable
to religion. Pius VII. had forbidden the bishops of Rhenish
Prussia to solemnize mixed marriages, except on certain condi­
tions expressly specified. Gregory XVI. renewed the prohibi­
tion. The king of Prussia, Frederick-William III., urgently
solicited the bishops to disregard the order. They refused.
On the 20th of November, a. d. 1837, Mgr. Augustus Droste-Vischering, archbishop of Cologne, was seized, like a criminal, by
in armed force, aud thrown into a dungeon. His imprisonment
laused an immense sensation. It was afterward the salvation
of the Orthodox Church in Germany. At a later period, Swit­
zerland showed equal intolerance, aud an open persecution was
begun against the illustrious bishop of Lausanne aud Geneva,
Mgr. Marilley. France then witnessed the famous struggles
concerning the University monopolies and the freedom of
teaching, as well as that of the councils. Mgr. de Quélen die 1
in 1840, wept by all France. The men in power thought that
they might gain more from a new archbishop who should bo
indebted to them for his election. They erred. Mgr. Allie
ascended that throne which he was to illustrate by his glorious
martyrdom. The last words that passed between him and
Louis Philippe were the following : “ Remember, archbishop,
that more than one mitre has been broken !” “ True, Sire ; but
God preserve the king’s crown, for we have seen many crowns

GREGORY XVI. (Λ. D. 1831-184«).

595

broken, too.” The tragical end of his heir, the Duke of Orleans,
the multiplied attempts upon his own life, the periodical con­
vulsions of France at the approach of the elections, the symp­
toms of discontent daily expressed by local insurrections, the
corruption which stood even upon the steps of his throne and
devoted some of his ministers to public contempt, were lessons
*»t
lo
upon Louis Philippe. He was doomed to fall, as he had
risen, in the midst of the barricades.
45. Yet, amid these threatening signs of approaching storms,
the Church had her consolations and her glories. The admira­
ble work of the Propagation of the Faith, which had sprung,
all armed, from a noble and pious heart, sent its missionaries
to the farthest shores. The Arch-Confraternity of Notre-Damedes-Victoires multiplied miracles and conversions, wrought
through the intercession of the Mother of Mercy; the clergy
of France won the admiration of the world by its learning, zeal,
and piety ; may we not he permitted to inscribe here the names
dear to our gratitude, and enshrined in the veneration of the
whole Catholic world—Η. E. Mgr. Gousset, archbishop of
Rheims, and of Mgr. Parisis, then bishop of Langres. The pul­
pit of Notre-Dame was then filled by those two princes of sacred
oratory, Fathers Ravignan and Lacordaire. The Catholic
tribune had the illustrious Count de Montalembert. The sci­
ence of history, recalled by Thierry and Guizot, though in spite
of themselves, to a spirit less hostile to Catholicity, was begin­
ning to do justice to the names of St. Gregory VII., of Inno­
cent III., and of St. Pius V. Such were the various elements at
work in European society at the death of Pope Gregory XVI.
(June 1, a. d. 1846). His wisdom, firmness, and constancy, un­
shaken by the fiercest storms, have won him an immortal name
in history. Fifteen days later (June 16,1846), Cardinal Mastai Ferretti, bishop of Imola, ascended the Pontifical throne,
under the glorious name of Pius IX., amid the glad and trium­
phal anthems of Italy and of the world. Heir to the name of
Pius VI. and of Pius VII., like them, he has triumphed over
the storm : he is loved and venerated as they were.

596

ΠENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

46. We have now given a complete view of the various
phases through which the Church has passed during tho
eighteen centuries of its existence. Religion, the daughter of
Heaven, the noble ally of society, the mother of civilization, the
protectress of science, the benefactress of the human race, has
remained pure and unchanged, while all around her has under­
gone ceaseless variations
The Roman Empire has fallen :
the Jews have been scattered over the face of the earth ;
Paganism has disappeared from Europe ; she alone stands, as
the funeral processions of nations pass by, raising her majestic
brow amid revolutions and ruins. What has become of Arian­
ism ? Where are the Nestorians, the Eutychians, the Monothelitcs, the Pelagians, the Manicheans ? What has become of that
swarm of heretics by whom she was so often assailed ? Their
names, indeed, still live in the records of history, but their
works have perished ; the offspring of passion and of lies, time
has scattered them to the winds ; and that Roman Church,
whose glory they would have dimmed, whose name they even
dared at times to usurp, has outlived them ; she has dared
their efforts, she laughs at their threats and their impotent
attacks; because she is built upon the imperishable rock
against which the powers of hell shall never prevail

PONTIFICATE OF PIUS IX.
GIOVANNI MARIA MASTAl-FERRETTL

In many respects the reign of this Pontiff is the most remarkable
in the annals of the Church. He was born in Sinigaglia on May 13.
1792. His father. Count Girolamo Mastai-Ferretti, was gonfalionere,
or Mayor, of Sinigaglia. His mother was Conntess Caterina Solazzi. The Count Alberto Mastaï-Ferretti migrated from Brescia, in
Northern Lombardy, to Sinigaglia at the end of the 16th century,
and married a rich and noble heiress of the country.
The child, Giovanni, whose memorable career we here attempt to
sketch, was the seventh child born to his parents. From the day of
his birth, the memorable 13th of May, 1792, not a month elapsed
without beholding throughout the States of Italy the organization
of some revolutionary club, and within the dominions of the Holy See
the beginning of insurrectionary movements, aiming to overthrow the
papal government, to overturn all existing religious institutions,
and to spread among all classes of the population the most intense
hatred of everything Catholic. Nor was the great French Revolu­
tion, with its promoters and apostles, alone to be held responsible for
the dread convulsions that followed. No less responsible were the
Emperors Joseph II. and Leopold II., the two unworthy and illstarred sons of the illustrious and heroic Maria-Teresa. It is hard to
say which of these wrong-headed sovereigns did the most mischief.
Joseph, by taking it on himself to regulate even-thing within the
Empire that related to religious and public worship, even to the form
and color of ecclesiastical vestments, earned from Frederick the
Great of Prussia, the nickname of “ my Royal Brother the Sacritrfun.”
Before being raised to the Imperial Throne, Leopold, while Grand­
Duke of Tuscany, was the patron and promoter of Jansenism in the
Italian Peninsula. Together with the famous Bishop Ricci, of Pistoja, near Florence, the Grand-Duke, Leopold, contributed immense­
ly to the spread of Jansenism, thus disturbing in Italy the most
settled beliefs, and preparing the ground for every species of error

OF.NERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

and innovation. It was exactly what had, not long before, been
done in Franco by Jansenistic propagandists and their friends in the
French Parliament. The outcome of all these movements in France
and Italy was to encourage men to decry the Holy See, and to pre­
pare with the downfall of monarchical governments the ruin of the
Papacy and the overthrow of Christianity itself.
Gregory XVI. had striven unceasingly to withstand the spread
and influence of all these revolutionary and anti-Christian doctrines
and sects. But the very governments and statesmen who were loud­
est in casting on the Pope blame for backwardness, and hostility to
all desirable and necessary progress, were those who, overtly or
covertly, placed every obstacle in the way of enlightened change, or
acknowledged needful reform. One has only to open the records of
parliamentary legislation in France, in Great Britain, Germany, and
Piedmont, to be convinced of the shameful inconsistency of this
conductof European governments and statesmen in their dealings
with Gregory XVL and Pius IX.
The anti-Catholic tendency of the Continental governments did not
profit them in their struggle for expansion and empire. Their policy
in most cases, proved miserably abortive. It was otherwise with
Great Britain. The Land Hunger which lay at the bottom of her
foreign and colonial policy, was turned aside by no anti-Catholic feel­
ing or prejudice. In the new territories which she steadily gained
and firmly held in both hemispheres, the English government, while
conspiring with Victor Emmanuel and Mazzini against the reigning
Pontiffs, and refusing the simplest justice and political equality to
the Catholics of Ireland, granted in the newly-acquired colonial terri­
tories, a generous share of religious liberty, with absolute political
equality to those who looked to the Pope as Spiritual Father and Su­
preme Arbiter in Religion.
Perhaps the liberty thus granted by Great Britain to the Catholic
Religion throughout her Colonial Empire has earned her the re­
ward of the marvellous prosperity she at present enjoys. Palmers­
ton and Lord John Russell pursued adifferent line of policy. Other
British statesmen have happily lived to see the error and injustice
of a revolutionary and persecuting tendency.
Certainly, when the Sixteenth Gregory ended in 184G his troublous
pontificate, the sovereigns on whom rested the hopes of Christendom

PONTIFICATE OF ITCH IX.

iii

for the peace and prosperity of nations and the welfare and stability
of religion, could give the dead Pope’s successor small comfort as he
viewed the prospect before him.
The Dragon Teeth sown so long and so industriously on Italian soil
by the Freemasons, by Young Italy, and all the open or secret organiza­
tions, whose watchword was “ down with the Temporal Power and the
Papacy," had sprung up and were ripening into a crop of armed revolu­
tionists or armed conspirators ready to make open war on the Church
and to destroy in Home and throughout Italy every one of the most re­
vered institutions created by Catholic zeal and charity, under the inspi­
ration of the Popes. In Great Britain, in F rance, in Germany and Aus­
tria the Protestant sects openly favored the anti-Christian conspiracy
set on foot in the last century by Weishaupt and Voltaire. In our own
country the various societies created and fostered in the beginning by
a sincere zeal for the conversion of the Heathen and the spread of the
Gospel among Pagan nations, devoted the large funds at their dispos­
al to forwarding the Italian revolutionary cause. The good men and
women who yearly gave their contributions to the Bible and foreign
Missionary Societies, were made to believe that no more profitable or
godly use could be made of their money than to help to overthrow the
Papacy.
And where were the Popes to look for friends and assistance, amid
the revolutionary vortex into which the Bark of Peter was mean­
while drawn? France had long been called “the eldest daughter of
the Church," and in 1846, she was still the foremost of Catholic na­
tions. Her missionaries in Asia, Africa, America, and Oceanica
were still winning the admiration of the world. Her charities, in
spite of the spoliation effected in 1789, and the impoverished con­
dition of her clergy, far surpassed those of the entire Catholic
world outside France.
Such was Catholic France in 1846, and such were the leading
features of the principal countries in Christendom on June 16th, of
thatyear, when Giovanni Mastaï-Ferretti was chosen in free Conclave
to succeed to the Sixteenth Gregory.
The Son of Caterina Saluzzi, or Solazzi, was not,'like Leo X.,
Giovanni dei Medici, trained from early boyhood in the Roman
purple and encouraged by his family and surroundings to look for­
ward to the Papal throne as to the legitimate goal of his ambition.

iv

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

His weakly constitution and infirm health, on the contrary, seemed
an insurmountable obstacle to his entering even the ecclesiastical
career for which his family destined him.
"When he had attained his eleventh year, he was sent to receive his
education in the College of Volterra, where the amiability and sweet­
ness of his disposition, and the firmness of his character, made him
a general favorite with all who came into contact with him. He pur­
sued his studios in this College with the greatest distinction, but un­
fortunately, after he bad been there for about live years, he was seized
with epileptic fits. His pious mother, the Countess Catharine Solazzi,
had long desired that he should enter the ranks of the priesthood, and
he himself had from an early age an ardent desire for the same. It
was feared that this disease might be the cause of preventing him
from doing so, but as the symptoms abated considerably, the Bisho])
of Volterra, Monsignor Incontri, gave him the tonsure. He shortly
after left the College of Volterra in order to pursue his ecclesiastical
studies in Rome, where he remained until the year 1810, a short time
before Pius ATI. had to quit that city. Two years afterward he was
summoned to Milan, in order to be enrolled in the “ Noble Guard,”
which was composed of the youthful members of distinguished fam­
ilies. As he had never a leaning toward a military life, he easily ob­
tained an exemption on account of the disease to which he was subject
"When Pius the Seventh was returning to his States in 1814, young
Ferretti went back to Rome, in time to witness his triumphant entry
therein. Here, notwithstanding his malady, he renewed his ecclesi­
astical studies, and in a short time, the recurrence of the tits becoming
of very rare occurrence, he was admitted to Minor orders, and was
afterward, having obtained a dispensation, ordained sub-deacon in
December, 1818.
It was not long before he applied for a further dispensation to be
ordained priest, which was granted after some little hesitation by the
Pope, who remarked that “he believed he would never again be sub­
ject to the disease." This seemed almost prophetical, for from that
time, although he attained his eighty-fifth year, he was never afflicted
with it in the slightest degree.
Mastai-Ferretti celebrated his first Mass on Easter Sunday, 1819,
in the Church of St. Anna del Felegnami, in Rome, in which city he
remained till the year 1823, when he went to South America. He

PONTIFICATE OF PTU8 IX.

was sent there with Monsignor Muzi, the Apostolic delegate, on ac­
count of the urgent solicitation of the clergy of the Cathedral of
Santiago, in Chili, from whence a Canon camo to Rome, in order to
solicit the Pope to grant their request. Monsignor Muzi ami the
young abate. Mastai, arrived at Buenos Ayres and crossed the conti­
nent to Chili, where they remained about three years, but then re­
turned to Italy, without accomplishing all the good they desired. In
this mission the young priest showed great zeal and courage.
Pope Leo XII., at the end of the year 1825, appointed young Mastai-Ferretti President of the Hospital of St. Michael. He filled this
important post with the greatest carefulness and zeal, and gained in
it much of the experience which enabled him to bring to perfection
many and great works of benevolence and charity during his long
reign.
Alter being in this responsible position for nearly two years, the
Pope considered him worthy of being created Archbishop of Spoleto.
In this city, a very short time subsequent to his elevation, he found­
ed an asylum for orphans, in which they were taught trades and pre­
pared to earn a respectable livelihood when arrived at a proper age
to do so.
In the year 1831, great disturbances took place throughout the
States of the Church ; but, with the assistance of troops sent by the
Austrian Government, they were shortly crushed. During those dis­
turbances, upward of 4,UUU insurgents took refuge in the Archi­
épiscopal city, Spoleto, and were preparing to make a stubborn re­
sistance to the authorities. The archbishop, however, by his gentle
manner, his entreaties and prayers, so worked on them, that they all
laid down their arms and returned to their allegiance, without another
drop of blood being shed on either side.
In the next year he had au opportunity of exercising his charity in
an especial manner, as a terrible earthquake ravaged the province,
leaving thousands in the most abject poverty. He did all for Iris dock,
at that critical time, that any mortal could do.
Gregory XVI. soon succeeded to the Papal throne, and in a few
years he transferred Mastai-Ferretti from the Archiépiscopal See of
Spoleto to that of Imola, in the place of Cardinal Giustiniani, who a
short time before had resigned. Not satisfied with thus promoting
him, the Pope made him also Cardinal in the mouth of December, 1840.

vi

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

He continued his career of active benevolence while Archbishop of
Imola, He founded a college for poor ecclesiastical students, nnd an
orphan asylum for the reception of about thirty children, who were
educated mid brought up to some respectable trade. He also found­
ed a female orphan asylum and schools under the care of the Sisters
of Charity ; and to them he also intrusted the public hospital of the
city.
For a long time ho had it in contemplation to found, if possible, a
Magdalene Asylum, or « refuge for female penitents. His tender
heart bled for those unfortunate creatures, and in his own words, “ lie
desired to see the lost daughters of the earth seeking admission
again to the fold of Jesus.” He now felt himself in a position to com­
mence this noble work, and out of his own means he purchased a
bouse and converted it into an asylum for those poor women. He
placed it under the care of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, some
of whom, at his invitation, left their native country, France, to take
charge of it
He labored well and zealously in his See until the year 1846, when,
in the Providence of the great Ruler of events, the opportunity pre­
sented itself which, without any seeking after it himself, opened to him
the way to the highest and noblest destiny that any one can attain on
this earth—that of being the Visible Head of the Church of Christ.
Gregory XVI. died in the beginning of June, 1846. The CardinalArchbishop of Imola heard the news almost immediately afterward.
As Cardinal, he at once repaired to Rome, in order to take part in
the election of the new Pontiff. Little did he know, when quitting his
diocese, that he himself woidd be chosen to that great dignity. He
arrived in the sacred city on the 12th of June ; on the 16th he was
unanimously elected ; and on the 17th, under the name of Pius IX.,
was proclaimed Supreme Head of the Catholic Church. He imme­
diately announced his elevation to his brothers in Sinigaglia, in a mod­
est and humble letter, giving them at tho same time his apostolic
benediction.
Although he was most devotedly attached to his family, it is a most
extraordinary trait in his character, that he never let personal mo­
tives prevail, so as to give any member of it the least advancement in
life on account of the dignity which had been conferred on him, and
which gave him full opportunity and power to appoint them to im-

PONTIFICATE OF PITS Π.

portant offices if ho wished to do so. In fact, his family rather lost
than gained by his elevation to the Papal throne ; for, without any
increase to their income, they had, on that account, to keep up a far
greater show of dignity, and to live in a ranch more expensive man­
ner than before.
The first public act of his reign was to grant an amnesty to all
political prisoners, on condition that they should, in the words of the
Decree, “ make a solemn declaration, in writing, on their honor, that
they would not in any way or at any time abuse this pardon, and
would perform the duties of good and faithful subjects for the future.”
This decree, which proved the nobleness of his heart and the kindli­
ness of his disposition, drew down on him the benedictions of all
classes of his subjects, and was celebrated by the people in a most
enthusiastic manner, by public meetings and processions. The result
was that a great number of those who received pardon returned to
Rome ; and many of them, not satisfied with simply signing the form
prescribed by the Decree, added stronger asseverations of their own,
some even oaths, that they would never abuse his generosity toward
them.
Notwithstanding all this, as a reward for this kindness in their
regard, the leaders of the revolutionary party almost immediately
began to undermine his authority. The chief of those was Joseph
Mazzini, who did all in his power, by means of numerous political
writings, to spread the cause of irréligion and opposition to all au­
thority. Several others of the party also issued numerous pamphlets
having a similar tendency.
This band of unscrupulous revolutionists formed a secret society,
for the object of destroying all the governments then existing in Italy,
and forming a Republic, to extend over the entire country. They
made laws for themselves, threatening the most terrible vengeance
against members who would not obey their orders, or should lietray
the secrets of the society ; condemning such to instant death by the
dagger by some invisible hand, even if they were on the bosom of their
mother or at the altar of Christ.
The manner in which the Pope had inaugurated his reign caused
the greatest uneasiness in Austria. His zeal for reform in the Gov­
ernment of his States terrified the rulers of that country ; they be­
lieving that comparisons might easily be made, and much to their

viü

GENERAI, HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

disadvantage, with regard to thcdiftbrenc.es in tho institutions of the
two countries. The kingdom of Naples, and other smaller powers,
wore of the same opinion.
In the meantime, Pins IX. pursued the course dictated to him by
his own good and noble heart; introducing extensive reforms into
every branch of the administration, and at the same time condemning
in a strong manner the underhand wiles of the revolutionists, who
sought to subvert his authority. Large meetings had been held to
express their affection for him, and their appreciation of his reforms,
by thousands of his subjects. As they were necessarily accompanied
by great expense to the poor people who participated in them, he
asked, as a proof of their loyalty to him, that such meetings and
displays should cease.
In July, 1847, Austrian troops, to the number of about 1,500,
marched into the Papal States, and occupied the city of Ferrara.
This insult to the Government of the Pope was at once resented by
Cardinal Ciacchi, the Apostolic Legate of Ferrara, who demanded
the immediate withdrawal of the Austrian soldiers.
The inhabitants of the entire States showed themselves prepared,
almost to a man, to resist this act of aggression on the part of
Austria, and with the greatest enthusiasm, proclaimed themselves
ready to rise at once, if necessary, in order to drive the strangers
from their native soil. Happily, however, matters were arranged
between the two powers without any necessity for hostilities.
About this time the terrible famine, caused by the failure of the
potato, took place in Ireland. It ever endeared the Holy Father to
every Irish heart, both at home and scattered over the world, to
know that, although almost overwhelmed with troubles and per­
plexities of his own, he exerted himself to his very utmost for the
relief of their poor countrymen, and sent, considering the low state
of his finances, what may be called a noble sum of money, toward
the amelioration of their miseries.
The year 1848 was a stormy one in the entire political world, and
from the active machinations of Mazzini, and the other republican
leaders, it was but natural that serious events should take place in
the Papal States. The reports of what had taken place in other
European countries having been circulated among the Pope’s subjects,
their minds were inflamed by them. An immense concourse of people

PONTIFICATE OF PTO8 ΓΧ.

IX

proceeded to the Qnirinal, in order to demand the constitution which
had been promised to them. The great difficulty of reconciling the
twofold claims of the spiritual and temporal powers of the Pope was
what principally stood in the way. Matters should be so arranged
that the interests of the Church should not be jeopardized in the
slightest degree, and for the sake of his spiritual dignity, Pius felt
it necessiu-y to protect his temporal dignity to the very fullest extent
After, however, asking a little time to take all things into considera­
tion, he granted the new constitution in as full a degree as possible.
This, as a matter of course, did not satisfy the republicans; they
continued their plottings, and succeeded in instilling discontent into
minds of a great number of the Roman people. Count Rossi, a most
clever and energetic man, was appointed Minister of the Interior.
He instituted vigorous measures with the view of restoring order,
and with such success that in a short time he gained, to a great ex­
tent, the confidence of the public, and there seemed every probability
that order- would soon be re-established.
This would not answer the vile ends of the revolutionists, so he
was doomed to death by their secret Council, and fell in the broad
daylight by the assassin’s dagger, on November 15th, 1848, as he
was entering the Chamber of Deputies. The murderer escaped, as
no effort was made to arrest him. Crowds of the lowest scum of the
city paraded the streets at night, and stopped opposite the house of
the murdered man, using the most insulting observations, and call­
ing out for benedictions on his assassin.
After this, anarchy proceeded from bad to worse. Nothing was
so sacred as to preserve it from sacrilege by the vile hands of the
revolutionists. They laid siege to the Pope s palace, and two
cannons were brought up and planted opposite the principal gate.
A deputation demanded an audience of the Pope, which be granted ;
the leader of it said that if he did not yield to all their demands
within an hour, they would break into the Qnirinal and put all in it
to death, with the single exception of Pins himself.
It must not be supposed that the entire Roman populace took
part in these vile proceedings. Far from it. The great majority of
the people loved and venerated the Pope. But what could they do?
Large armed bodies of the frenzied slaves of the revolutionary plotters
had command of the city, and could not lie resisted by the moderate

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

and well-meaning. A much more modern instance of this is afford­
ed by the conduct of the Communists in Paris a few years since.
It is well known that those demons in human form, who destroyed
several of the most beautiful and ancient monuments of that proud
city, formed but a very small minority of the citizens, and yet what
could the remainder do to prevent their atrocities during the time
they exercised their fell sway ?
Under existing circumstances, Pius felt that he could remain no
longer in Rome, and he therefore resolved on flight. After some
deliberation as to where he should go first, Gaeta, a town in the
kingdom of Naples, was at last decided on. The plan of escape from
tho Quiriual was arranged between him and some of his most inti­
mate friends, including the Due d’Harcourt. A carriage was in
waiting in the Cortile, and Pius descended to it in the garb of a
simple priest, accompanied by the Cavalière Filippani, a Roman
gentleman, who also entered it with him. Although the streets in
the neighborhood of the Quiriual were full of troops, happily the
carnage passed on without the Pope being recognized, and partly
driving and partly walking, he arrived at the Monastery of 88.
Marcellus and Peter, where another vehicle was awaiting him, in
the care of Count Spaur.
He arrived safely in Gaeta on the 25th of November ; his first
care was to send word of his presence there to King Ferdinand of
Naples, informing him that he was about to remain there till he
could get a vessel to bring him to Spain. The king immediately
embarked, with his queen and royal family, and proceeded at once
to Gaeta, where he found the Pope in an humble inn, still in disguise,
as the bishop was absent from his palace, whither he had intended
to go on his arrival. The king immediately invited Pius to the
royal residence. He went with him, and was received in the hall by
the queen on bended knees. During his entire stay in the Neapolitan
dominions, a period of more than a year and a half, he was treated
with the greatest veneration and affection by the king and queen.
The Pope having fled from Rome, the revolutionists, of course, im­
agined that the Papacy was at an end, and gave utterance to their
cries of joy at that event. Vain rejoicing! Tho love of Catholics
throughout the world was but strengthened by his misfortunes. Even
the London Tinies, in a leading article, was forced to admit “ that in

PONTIFICATE OF ΡΓϋΒ IX.

Xi

the very hour of his flight and fall, Pina IX. was more entirely and
essentially Pope and Head of the Latin Church than many hundreds
of his predecessors had been amidst all the splendors of theLateran.”
Hundreds of letters of condolence, expressing the greatest reverence
and affection, poured in every day, written in almost every language
of the civilized world, together with numerous presents of money.
At Gaeta, the Pope published a protest against the conduct of the
revolutionists in Rome. It was posted on the walls of that city, but
in all cases torn down and trampled on. A constituent assembly was
elected, which assembled there, and its first act was to proclaim a
Republic, and dethrone Pius.
The chiefs of the revolution found it impossible to curb the
turbulent dispositions, which they themselves bad excited, of the
vagabonds and lawless adventurers who had been attracted to Rome
from all parts of Italy. Robbery and massacre were everywhere tri­
umphant, and the Nemesis was already beginning to be felt. In­
dustry7 and commerce throughout the entire States had almost entirely
ceased, and the streets were crowded with starving and destitute
people.
The Pope resolved to make an appeal to the Catholic powers, which
he did by a note dated February 18, 1849. In it he mentioned the
reforms he had granted, the plots and machinations of his enemies
to render them abortive, and several other things which he wished
to be accurately known.
This appeal was responded to quickly by the Catholic powers, and
in a very short time a French army was on its way to Rome, in order
to restore it to its legitimate ruler, and to free the well-disposed
majority of his subjects from the reign of terror which was being
carried on by the revolutionists.
The ships conveying the French troops arrived at Civita Vecchia
on the 25th of April, 1849 ; on the next day that city yielded to them
without resistance, and on the 28th they commenced their march tow­
ard Rome, under General Oudinot. The two armies met for the
first time on the 30th, and the French troops were repulsed and com­
pelled to retreat. This, of course, caused great joy to the Italian rev­
olutionists, but it was of very short duration ; for the French troops,
having received reinforcements, pushed on rapidly, and on the 12th
of June Rome Wiis entirely invested. Although the city was bravely

xii

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

defended, it was forced to yield unconditionally to General Ondinot,
mid on the 2d of July ho entered it with his army.
The glad tidings of the victory were at once sent to Pius, in Gaeta,
who thanked the victorious general and the brave French nation in a
letter written by his own hand.
The Pope did not return to Rome till the beginning of April, 1850.
The King of Naples accompanied him to the frontiers. His entire
journey from thence to Rome was one continued ovation, the in­
habitants of all the towns through which he passed vying with each
other as to who would pay him the greatest honor. He arrived in
Rome on the 12th of April, 1850. Nothing could exceed the rejoic­
ings there. The entire city was adorned with flowers ; the streets
were so crowded that the cortege could scarcely pass through ; the
Te Deum was sung in a most solemn manner in St. Peter’s ; and at
night the city was splendidly illuminated.
Thus ended the events which, for so long a time, had kept the en­
tire Catholic world in a state of grief and excitement.
Pius immediately set himself to remedy the evils which had taken
place during the reign of the revolutionists, which he, succeeded in
doing very effectively. He also gradually increased the educational
and charitable establishments of the city, and in a few years they
were in a most efficient condition.
Nothing new of any very marked importance took place until the
year 1854, when the dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the
Blessed Virgin Mary was propounded. Although before that time
not a doctrine of the Church, it was almost universally believed by
Catholics, and its promulgation was hailed with the greatest joy in
every country of the civilized world.
The joining of all Italy into one kingdom, with Rome as its capital,
had often been the dream of Italian statesmen. Count Cavour, the
clever but unscrupulous minister of King Victor Emmanuel, was he
who, in modern times, had given most of his attention to the working out
of that problem, watching eagerly for the course of events to give him
some opportunity to get in the thin edge of the wedge, so that it
might help toward carrying out that object.
This opportunity was afforded in the year 1859, when France de­
clared war against Austria, and was joined, of course, as an ally, by
the King of Piedmont. Austria was beaten, and as one of the con-

PONTIFICATE OF PIÜ8 IX.

till

ditione of peace, Lombardy was ceded to King Victor Emmanuel.
The year 1859 may be said to be the beginning of the series of
events by which the Church lost all her temporal possessions. Cav­
our, however, did not live long to see the result of his impions policy.
He died on the 6th of June, 1861.
The events of the last ten or twelve years are so fresh in the rec­
ollection of almost every Catholic, that it is unnecessary to do more
than allude to them in a short sketch like the present. For a long
time the Pope was deprived of all his possessions, except the city
of Rome, and a very small piece of country around it ; and he was
only secured in the undisturbed possession of that by the presence
in the city of a garrison of French soldiers.
In the midst of his tribulations and sufferings, Pius was resolved
to show what the power of the Church still was, and as the best
means of doing so, he published an encyclical letter in September,
1868, summoning an (Ecumenical Council, to consist of the bishops
of the universal Church from all parts of the world, to open in Rome
on December 8th, 1869. It opened on that day, with the most solemn
religious ceremonies. It was an event calculated to send a thrill of
joy through the hearts of all Catholics. Assembled together in one
vast hall were prelates from every country on the globe. The voice
of that old man, surrounded by his enemies, had been heard by his
children from pole to pole, and they came together at his bidding.
What monarch that ever reigned in the world could have done so
much ? The celebrated Council of Trent, as far as universality went,
could not be compared with it. In the Council of 1869 were present
bishops from numerous countries which were undreamt of in Europe
at the time of the previous great Council, and then only inhabited
by their aboriginal savages. What a proof of the spread of Catholic­
ity ! Every other body of Christians can only exist in a circum­
scribed space,— if transplanted, they die away, or change into some­
thing quite different ; but the Catholic Church flourishes, and will
flourish, unchanged, in every region of the earth, even to the end of
time.
The principal doctrine promulgated at this Council was the In­
fallibility of the Pope in matters of faith and morals, when proponnded by him in the exercise of his office of Supreme Pastor and Doctor.
Several other important matters were also to have been settled, espec­

xiv

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

ially with regard to the discipline of tho Church in different coun­
tries, when the news that war was declared between Franco and Ger­
many fell on Europe like a thunderbolt, in the middle of .Inly, 1870.
The Council had on this account to be postponed. In the next month
the French troops, who had so long protected tho city, were with­
drawn, and it was left completely undefended. The army of Victor
Emmanuel crossed tho Tiber at Casale, and sent a flag of truce to
General Kanzler, commander of the Papal Zouaves, on September
13th. He, however, refused to surrender. But all was in vain. The
Zouaves were overwhelmed by numbers, and several killed. On the
20th, the troops under Cadorna made a breach in the walls of Borne
and entered it. The Pope had ordered his soldiers to cease their
resistance, seeing that all was of no avail, and wishing to prevent the
shedding of blood.
From that time the Pope was virtually a prisoner in his own pal­
ace, deprived of all power with regard to the government of the States
which have belonged to the Church for so many ages, and which
have been wrested from her by base and unscrupulous intrigues.
He, however, steadily refused, by any word or act of his, to sanc­
tion the acts of the usurper, although various attempts were made to
induce him to do so. As the popes always were, so was he, firmly
resolved to maintain the rights of his See and of his Church.

The following very interesting account of the manner in which the
Pope divided his daily work was published in the year 1870, some
time before Rome was seized by his enemies. Its accuracy may lie
fully relied on. It shows the great energy displayed by him in his
attention to public and private affairs. It is as follows :
“The time he allows himself for sleep is scarcely six hours.
Half-past six finds him already in the chapel, adjoining his sleep­
ing apartments, where mass is celebrated in his presence by one of
bis chaplains. He next offers the holy sacrifice himself, and while
making his thanksgiving after it, he assists at the third mass. After
this third mass, the Pope recites the little hours of the divine office,
and then takes the cup of black coffee which constitutes his con­
stant and only breakfast. This is the only refection taken by His
Holiness before dinner, which is at half-past two, except on extraor­
dinary occasions, when the fatigues of the morning force him to take

PONTIFICATE OF PIU3 IX.

n, small cnp of soup. At breakfast, the members of the Pope's fam­
ily who may, at any time, bo in Rome, are received in audience.
Afterward tho morning letters are brought in. The letter-bag is
brought to His Holiness three times a day, and is always opened
by him personally, as are all the letters addressed to him from all
parts of the world. They are immediately arranged in classes, and
often annotated in his own hand for the guidance of officials whose
duty it is to answer them. Thanks to this orderly system, no letter
on any matter of consequence ever remains on the Pope's desk at
night. The interior arrangements of the household are next settled,
and orders for the afternoon’s promenade and duties of the day
given to the lieutenants of the guards.
“ At half-past eight the Cardinal Secretary of State is received in
audience, and on his retirement those persons who have obtained
special introduction are admitted, often taking up the whole time
till half-past ten o’clock, at which time the doors of the grand apart­
ments are o]>en to receive the Cardinal Prefects of the congregations,
ministers, and other dignitaries, for whom audiences have been as­
signed. Next follow the private audiences of those who have obtained
that honor by the intervention of the Maestro di Camera. Except
on solemn occasions, when the throne-room is used, Pius IX. receives
in the room which serves the double purpose of sleeping apartment
and of study. On one occasion a French officer was very desirous
of having an audience, but could not bring himself to perform the
usual ceremony of kissing the Pope's foot. He was subsequently
about to leave Rome without fulfilling his desire to have an audience,
when the Pope heard of the matter, and at once sent for the officer,
telling him he dispensed with the ceremony objected to, and giving
him his hand to kiss. The gallant officer was completely overcome
when, at the close of the audience, His Holiness handed him a splen­
did cameo, requesting him to present it to his mother as a memento
of his visit to Pius IX. After some three or four hours spent in
audience after this fashion, some repose is necessary. This repose
the Vicar of Christ seeks in the chapel, in communion with Him
whose representative on earth he is. A few minutes are then devot­
ed to conversation with his chamberlains, after which, at half-past
two, dinner is served.
“The Pope usually dines alone, and is served by his first valet-de-

χνι

GENERAL HISTORY OF ΤΠΕ CHURCH.

chambre, to whose family belongs whatever romains of the repast.
This usually consists of a soup, a dish of boiled beef and vegetables,
niitl roast moat, with rice and dessert. On fast and abstinence days,
fish and white meats are substituted for the flesh meats used on
other occasions. No difference is made on feast days. After dinner
the Pope lakes a short siesta in an arm-chair.
■· His next occupation is to recite vespers and complin ; after which,
when weather permits, he drives out, generally to one or other of the
most frequented promenades of the city. This is a favorite time
for strangers and others who desire to see the Pope. They range
themselves in a line on each side of the gallery along which he passes
to the carriage. His Holiness's usual going-out dress is a white
cassock, with a red cape and hat. As he passes, he bestows his
blessing on the two lines of the faithful at each side.
"Four chamberlains usually drive out with him, and an escort of
dragoons accompanies the cortege. One of them, called the Batlistrada, rides in advance ; and at his approach the people in the streets
range themselves along each side, so as to allow the carriages to pass,
and themselves to obtain the papal benediction.
“When arrived at the place chosen, the Pope usually alights and
mingles with the crowd, exchanging kind words with those he rec­
ognizes, who are always a goodly number, as his prodigious memory
enables him to recollect almost every one who has ever been pre­
sented to him. This daily excursion is always terminated before
the time of angelus, which in Rome varies with the season, from five
to eight o'clock.
“ Ou his return to the Vatican, the first occupation of Pius IX. is
to recite matins and lauds of the following day, in which he is accom­
panied by one of his chaplains. To this follow the audiences dedi­
cated specially to matters of government and such like. These are
usually extended to a late hour, seldom terminating before half-past
ten or eleven o’clock. When the audiences are all over, a few min­
utes are again devoted to conversation with the domestic prelates,
His Holiness partakes of a very frugal supper, and then retires to
his chamber.
"This is the usual routine, and is seldom interrupted, for Pius IX.
has no vacations, properly so-called ; for the few days he spends at
Castle Gandolfo, or Porto d'Anzio, cannot be dignified by that name

PONTIFICATE OF HIS IX.

xni

Even then, audiences are as numerous as at Rome, and the busi­
ness of the Church never ceases. In fact, even more than his prede­
cessors, Pius IX. has made himself ‘ the servant of the servants of
God.’ ”
The following extract from “ Maguire's Pontificate of Pins Ninth,"
will give a slight idea of the Pope’s charity and goodness of heart .
" From his accession to the pontificate to the close of 1858, Pius
IX. devoted to charitable and pious purposes the sum of 1,500,000
scudi—a sum fabulous in amount, when taking into consideration the
extent of his private resources. These consist of 355 scudi a month,
or 4,260 scudi in the year—about equal to £1,000 a year of English
money. What a revenue for a sovereign prince ! How, it may be
asked, were the 1,500,000 scudi obtained? from what source was this
enormous fund derived? The greater portion of this wealth, which
the Pope devoted to works of piety and charity, poured in upon him
at Gaeta, while he was an exile from his country and his throne—
poured in upon the Father of the Christian Church from all quarters
of Christendom, at the moment when thoughtless persons were ex­
claiming, ‘ The Papacy is at an end ! ’
“ Shortly after his return to Rome, from his temporary exile at
Gaeta, the Queen of Spain sent him, as a mark of her respect, a
splendid tiara, which was valued at 50,000 scudi—a large sum, even
when represented by English money. The Pope accepted the
princely gift, and gave immediate orders that its value, to the
full amount, should be distributed to the poor, the aged, and the
sick ; and in such a manner, and through such channels, as would be
certain to produce the most beneficial results.”
The Revolution and its tool, Victor Emmanuel, had from the
first endeavored to induce the Pope to consent to their invasions of
his rights. To all their requests, whether made directly or indirect­
ly, he constantly replied : “ Non Possumus."—“ We cannot.” Chi
his elevation, he had bound himself by oath not to alienate any por­
tion of the Pontifical States, and he adhered to his oath. The ter­
ritory was the inheritance of the Church, and he had no power to
dispose of it.
The usurper seized part of his States, and finally Rome itself, oc­
cupying the Quirinal palace, and seizing churches and religious in­
stitutions for the various departments of his government, for bar­

Xviii

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

racks, and even for stables. Such profanation of the house of God
by a man who claimed to be a Catholic is unexampled.
The usurping government passed in March, 1871, a law of guar­
antees, assigning the Pope a salary, as though ho were one of their po­
licemen or underlings ; but they claimed as their own his palaces
and all the churches and convents of Rome. A great show of re­
spect to the Pope was introduced into the act, but it was a farce ; as
any honor to the Pope was punished and the grossest insults to the
Holy Father permitted.
Against this law, Pius IX. remonstrated as a law of hypocrisy and
iniquity. He utterly refused to become the hireling of the enemies
of God and His Church. He threw himself on the devoted children
throughout the world, and not in vain. The old-time Peter's Pence
was renewed, and Catholics in all lands sent their contributions to
the Holy See. By the alms of France, Ireland, Germany, America,
Spain, Pins IX. was enabled during the last seven years of his reign
to maintain the Pontifical Court, and many of the old officials de­
prived of their positions by the invaders, as Well as many bishops
whose income was cut off, institutions of charity, poor priests, semi­
narians who were forced into the army, the calls of foreign missions
and of great occasions of suffering. While Victor Emmanuel, en­
riched with all plunder of the Church, was virtually a bankrupt,
Pius IX., with no income, paid all the wants of the Church, and left
a fund to his successor.
Among the striking events which mark the period of the captivity
of Pius IX. from September 20, 1870, till his release February 7,
1878, were the decree on the feast of the Immaculate Conception,
1870, declaring St Joseph the foster-father of Our Lord, Patron of
the Universal Church; the encyclical of May, 1871, in which he ex­
poses the dangers of the time ; the celebration in June, 1871, of the
twenty-fifth anniversary of his elevation to the Pontificate, an anni­
versary reached by none of his predecessors. The occasion was
one of universal joy, and deputations from all parts of the world
came to congratulate the Holy Father. Each succeeding year of his
reign this anniversary was kept by the faithful.
During the war between France and Germany Pius IX. endeav­
ored to mediate ; but with the fall of France he saw Prussia begin a
terrible persecution of the Church, in which bishops, priests, and

PONTIFICATE OF PTÜS ΓΧ.

xix

faithful wore thrown into prison and impoverished by a eerie» of fine
*
and penalties for every act of Catholic worship or piety. The Pope
endeavored in vain to recall the Emperor William to a sense of jus­
tice and humanity ; but he had set himself np as a Moloch of cruelty, to
be appeased only by the groans and sufferings of his subjects. Pins
IX. then encouraged the bishops and their flocks to bear their afflic­
tions patiently, allowing no fear of tyrants to drive them from their
faith. Switzerland followed the wicked example of Prussia ; and
here, too, Pius IX. consoled the faithful Catholics deprived of bish­
ops, pastors, and churches.
In 186(1 Pius IX. created the first Irish cardinal, in the person of
Archbishop Cullen ; and in 1875, the first American mendier of the
•Sacred College, John, Cardinal McCloskey, Archbishop of New York.
The persecution and imprisonment of bishops in Brazil by the
Freemason emperor and government of that country, and the fear­
ful persecution of the United Greeks and other Catholics in Russia;
the massacre of devoted missionaries and sisters in China, also
afflicted the heart of the Sovereign Pontiff during the last years of
his life.
Pius IX. crowned the great commemorations of his life by cele­
brating, on the 3d of June, 1877, the fiftieth anniversary of his con­
secration as bishop. The enthusiasm of the Catholic world was in­
tense, and for a month, day by day, delegations arrived from every
quarter. Soon after he declared St. Francis de Sales a Doctor of
the Church, as he had already, St. Alphonsus Liguori. He had,
from time to time, raised eminent and pious men to the Sacred Col­
lege, and in December, made his last promotions, appointing two
cardinals.
His health was, for a time, precarious ; but he recovered, and for
one of his advanced age, was so well that all hoped to see his life pro­
longed. Neither age nor infirmity could induce him to alter his aus­
tere mode of life, or seek improvement in his health by leaving
Rome. He would not permit a fire to be kind!. J in his room, or use
any delicacies, although so feeble that he had to bo carried to the
hall of audience.
With the new year he seemed to decline, but no fears were enter­
tained till the 6th of February. On that day he walked a few steps,
supported on each side ; the exertion seemed to prostrate him.

XX

GENERAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH.

Daring the night lie was oppressed with a feeling of suffocation, so
that, toward day, all hope vanished. The cardinals wore summoned,
the dying Pope received the last sacraments, and after sinking grad­
ually, expired in the afternoon of February 7th, 1878, exclaiming to
the cardinals: "Guard the Church which I have loved so well and
sacredly."
The news of his death was flashed throughout the world, bearing
the deepest sorrow to millions of hearts. The next day, on thousands
of altars throughout the Christian world, masses were offered for the
repose of his soul, and solemn requiems succeeded, the faithful
crowding the fanes to testify their veneration for their lost pontiff.
Protestants vied with Catholics in paying tribute to the exalted vir­
tues of Pope Pius IX., his tender piety, his love of the poor, his
zeal for the salvation of souls, his courage in condemning error and
maintaining the truth. He was indeed one of the greatest Popes; re­
markable for the length of his pontificate, for his sufferings at the
hands of Italy, which he loved so well ; for his canonization and
beatification of many saints ; the vast number of new sees erected aud
missions extended ; for his definition of the dogma of the Immacu­
late Conception ; and for holding a General Council of the Church,
more numerous, more unanimous, and more world-representing
than any the world has yet seen.

zlPPEXDIX

APPENDIX.

699

SKETCH OF THE ORIGIN AND PROGRESS
OF TUB

CATHOLIC CHURCH
IN

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
BT REV. C. I. WHITE, D. D.

L

the divine Founder of Christianity threatened the Jewish
people with the forfeiture of the high privileges that had been conferred
upon them, declaring that the kingdom of God would be taken from
them, that many would come from the east and the west, and would sit
down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, but
that the children of the kingdom would be cast out into the exterior
*
darkness,
He only affirmed that general law which Divine Providence
observes in the government of the world, by which the blessings or
graces bestowed upon one nation or individual, if rejected or abused,
are transferred to another who will make a better use of them. This
law of the translation or substitution of graces was fulfilled, not only
in regard to the posterity of Abraham who opposed the teachings of
Christ, and even put Him to death ; it has been illustrated throughout
the whole history of the Christian Church. The recognition of this law
may be termed the philosophy of ecclesiastical history. It is the
great practical lesson or wisdom to be derived from the contemplation,
on the one hand, of the power and mercy of God for the salvation of
souls, and, on the other, of the rigorous justice which will be meted
out to those wh) reject the offers of His goodness. We behold prov·
When

Uatth. riii

(Ml

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITEL STATER.

faces and kingdoms, where tho true faith once flourished tn all its
splendor, deprived of thia rich inheritance; while, at the same time, tho
glad tidings of salvation are borne to other regions of the globe seated
in darkness and in the shadow of death. If Luther and his fellow·
reformer» in the sixteenth century succeeded in wresting from tho
Church a large portion of her children, the providence of God had
already prepared a fruitful field for the precious seed of truth in the
now world discovered by the genius and enterprise of Columbus,
where all the losses sustained by Catholicism in Europe were more
than compensated by its widely-extended and enduring conquests in
America. In Mexico and in the southern portion of the continent, the
true faith soon rallied under its banners millions of souls that had been
grovelling in the darkness of barbarism and infidelity. The light of
revealed truth was not to penetrate so easily, or with such rapid march,
into that territory which is now embraced within the limita of the
United States. Here it was destined to encounter obstructions of
every kind, which would delay indeed, but could not prevent ulti­
mately the triumph of the faith. Although the successes which it
has achieved commenced at a later period than those in other
portions of the continent, they are not the less to be considered as a
part of that Providential scheme, by which the Church is to repair on
American soil the losses which it has suffered in other regions of the
world.
According to this view of the subject, or even considering it in its
purely historical facts and developments, it is a matter of surprise that
the more recent writers on ecclesiastical history have not attached a
greater importance to the establishment and progress of Catholicity
in the United States. There is scarcely a history of the Church pub­
lished within the last thirty years in which any thing more than a
brief allusion is made to the state of religion in this country. The
work of the Abbé Darras, a translation of which is now presented to
the public, seems to ignore altogether the important fact that in the
United States of America the Catholic Church has a wider field of
operation than in Europe; that it counts its millions of children,
united under the government of a numerous, zealous, and learned
hierarchy, and exhibits in its political and social condition the amplest
facilities for the propagation of the true faith and the most favorable
circumstances for its diffusion among men. For this reason it has
been thought advisable to append to the history of Darras a sketch of
the establishment and progress of Catholicism in the United States,
»t merely to supply a vacuum in that work, but particularly to "ive

APPENDIX.

ite readers on this aide of the Atlantic some insight into that
series of events which muet necessarily be for them a subject of pecu­
liar interest. Many excellent publications on our Church history have
appeared within the last thirty years; but they are limited in their
scope, touching only upon particular branches of the subject. We
shall refer to them more especially in the sequel. In the historical
sketch here presented to the public, we shall draw freely from those
sources of information, without overlooking those original documenta
which may render the narrative more interesting and instructive.

IL
In the territory now comprised within the limits of the United
States, Catholicity, from its earliest introduction, had but a temporary,
fluctuating, sporadic existence. In this respect, however, it only pre­
sented those features which have been almost universally exhibited
upon the announcement of the gospel among barbarous and supersti
tious nations, or the preaching of the true faith in the midst of a
neterodox people. From the year 1512, when Florida was discovered,
down to the year 1776, when the American Colonies declared their
independence of the British government, we behold but an alternation
of triumphs and trials, in which the zeal of the apostle, the courage of
the confessor, and the heroism of the martyr displayed themselves as
in the purest ages of the faith, and laid the solid foundation of that
spiritual edifice which is now presented to our admiration in the
American Church.
During the period of which we are speaking, the theatre ot mis­
sionary zeal embraced the Spanish colonies of the South, New Mexico.
Florida, and California ; in the North and West, Maine. New Ï ork, and
the Valiev of the Mississippi ; and in the East, the colonies ot Mary­
land and Pennsylvania. In the first-mentioned region, the blood of
the martyr flowed from the very outset. In 1542, Father Padilla, a
Franciscan priest, and a lay-brother were both pierced with arrows
by the Indians whom they sought to evangelize. After an interval of
forty years, however, missionaries of the same order succeeded in con­
verting whole tribes to the faith ; and although the result of their .abors
was considerably impaired by the incursions of hostile nations, the
inhabitants in general remained steadfast in their religious principles.
About the same time, the Dominican Fathers, aided by the Jesuit·
and Franciscans, were oursuing their apostolic labors in Florida; but.

602

THF CATHOLIC CHURCH IN TME UNITED STATES.

not until several generatione of martyrs had shed their blood in vih„.
cation of the faith, did the natives of that region embrace Christianity
The zeal of the devoted missionary was at length crowned with sue
cess. Communities of neophytes gathered round the Spanish posts,
ami this happy state of things continued until the middle of the
eighteenth century, when the country was invaded by tho hostile
colonists of Carolina, the missions were destroyed, and the Indians
driven back to their wandering life.
*
Toward the close of the
seventeenth century, flourishing missions were established at different
points in Texas, by the Franciscan Fathers, who also, in 1768, visited
Upper California, where, in the course of fifty years, they had not les?
than seventy-five thousand converted Indians under their sj: itnal
charge. These splendid results of their labora, however, almost totally
disappeared when the political revolution of 1825 drove the mis­
sionaries from that country.
In the North, the field was occupied chiefly by the sons of St. Ig­
natius. As early as 1612 they succeeded in evangelizing the Indians
of Mount Desert Island, off the coast of Maine ; but this good work
was soon checked by the assaults of a piratical crew from the shores
of Virginia. Some years after, in 1646, a mission was commenced by
Father Druillettes among the Abnakis (now the Penobscots and Pas·
samaquoddis) within the State of Maine, which resulted in the con­
version of the whole tribe. Their most illustrious missionary' was
Father Rasle, who lived among them for thirty-two years, until 1724,
when he fell a victim to the cruelty of the English settlers, who at the
same time did their utmost to obliterate every trace of Catholicity
among the Indians. To this day, however, they persevere in the faith
of their fathers. In the State of New York, the Jesuits were equally
successful, after the severest trials, and even that of martyrdom itself,
in converting to the faith the powerful nation of the Iroquois. But,
by the machinations of the English, the missionaries were at last com­
pelled to abandon their Catholic cantons, the people of which emi­
grated to Canada, where they still preserve their nationality and their
religion.
In the seventeenth century, the Jesuits extended their labors to dif­
ferent parts of the West, in the vicinity of the great lakes, while Father
Marquette, after having discovered and explored the Mississippi in
1673, opened all that country to the enterprising zeal of his brethren
Flourishing missions soon sprang up among the various tribes that
• Shia's Catholic Hissions; Uinhiok, Histoire des Hissions.

APPENDIX.

603

rtretched from the head waters of the Mississippi to the Gulf of
Mexico ; but, after a century of indefatigable toil, these Catholic
settlements became, to a great extent, destitute of pastors, owing chiefly
to the suppression of the Society of Jesus, and, as a necessary conse­
quence, the faith was destined to languish and, in some localities, to
be extinguished. It is worthy of note that, in 1727, soon after the
permanent colonization of Louisiana by the French, an Ursuline com­
munity was founded at New Orleans, under the auspices of the Jesuits,
which has continued its work of charity and education without inter­
ruption to the present day. This is the first religions community of
women established within the actual territory of the United State®.
As early as 1570, the soil of Maryland was bedewed with the
martyrs’ blood, when Jesuit Fathers from Florida visited the country
in the hope of evangelizing the natives, but were put to death through
the treachery of their Indian v
In 1634, a more successful effort
was made to plant the true faith in that part of America Sir George
Calvert, an English nobleman and a convert to the Catholic faith,
having obtained from the British king a charter for the settlement of
Maryland, a colony of two hundred English families, chiefly Catholic,
landed on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay, on the 25ih of March of
the above-mentioned year, accompanied by two priests. Fathers
Andrew White and J. Altham, with two lay-brothers, all of the So­
ciety of Jesus. Un the same day, after having offered up the holy
sacrifice of the Mass, they carried in procession a large cross to a
place marked out for it, the Governor, commissioners, and other Catho­
lics bearing part in the ceremony, and “ raised it a trophy to Christ
the Saviour, humbly chanting, on bended knees and with deep emo­
tion, the Litany of the cross.” The missionaries, on their arrival, lost
no time in commencing their apostolic labors. The site for a city
having been selected on St. Mary’s River, an Indian hut of the larger
size was obtained, which was the first chapel in Maryland. “ Besides
attending to the spiritual wants of the settlers, rhe pious missionaries»
visited the different Indian tribes. Father White resided for some
time among the Patuxent tribe, some of whom joined the Churclj.”
In 1639, a priest was stationed on Kent Island in the Chesapeake
Bay, and the same year Father White “took up his abode among
the Piscataway Indians, about fifteen miles south of Washington City.
The fruits of his labors were seen in the conversion of the king.
Chilomacon, his family, and many of the tribe.” Soon after, the
young queen and nearly all the natives of Potopaco (Port Tobacco i
were added to the Church, making about one hundred and thirty

604

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

converts. The Jesuit missionaries continued their labors successfully
tor ten years, having been assisted toward the end of that period by
some Capuchin friars. In 1644. however, a rebellion broke out in the
province, which resulted the following year in the expulsion of the
Governor and the overthrow of his authority, and in suspending the
work of the mission. “ A body of soldiers, or rather lawless brigands,
who arrived in 1645, laid waste, destroyed, and fired the whole colony.
Having driven the Governor into exile, they carried off’ the priests and
reduced them to a miserable slavery.” Although the missionera
returned in the course of a few years, they were soon destined to
encounter the most serious obstacles in evangelizing the natives, and
to suffer the most painful restrictions even in exercising the holy
ministry among the settlers. The Catholic colonists still retained, in
1649, an ascendency in the legislature, and passed an act which pro­
vided, that no Christian believer should be disturbed on account of
his religious opinions. The wisdom or pruuence of this legislation
has been questioned : but it is difficult to understand how a different
course could have been pursued under existing circumstances ; for, if
the Maryland charter did not require the proprietary to tolerate the
Protestant sects, he was at least compelled by the increasing anti­
Catholic spirit and influence in the mother-country, to manifest the
most liberal policy. At all events, the Catholic population were now
doomed to persecution in the very land where they had erected the
standard of civil liberty. By successive acts of the provincial assem­
bly, they were denied the right of openly practising their religion,
were compelled to pay a tax for the support of the Anglican clergy,
were forbidden to teach, and were disqualified for holding civil em
ploymente, unless they took an oath which amounted to a denial of
their faith. This system of oppression led a portion of them, and
even the proprietary himself, to renounce Catholicity, while the great
majority persevered in their adherence to the Church, and many
among the wealthier class sought beyond the sea those advantage»
for education which they could not enjoy in their own country. The
erection of Catholic churches being prohibited, divine worship was
confined to private residences, or to chapels contiguous to them, and
this state of things continued until 1770, when a more liberal spirit
began to manifest itself, the result alike of a growing opposition tn
the oppressive laws in favor of the Anglican establishment, and te
the obnoxious policy of the British government.
While the Catholics of Maryland were objects of persecution
those of Pennsylvania enjoyed comparative freedom. From the

APPENDIX.

60S

foundation of the latter colony, in 1682, they were at least toler­
ated, and as early as 1686 we find a priest among the inhabitant»
in 1730, Father Greaton, a Jesuit, was eent from Maryland to Phila
delphia, and founded the church of St. Joseph. Eleven years after,
missione were established at Goshenhoppen, Conewago and Lancaster
which have ever since been flourishing centres of Catholicity. About
the same time, the military station at Fort Duquesne (now Pittsburgh
while the territory was occupied by the French, was served by Catho­
lic chaplains. As we have stated above, from 1642, for a period of
about sixty years, the Jesuits were occupied in the arduous work of
evangelizing the aborigines in the interior of the State of New York:
but in the city of that name there were few Catholics, and owing to
the persecuting policy of the Colonial government, except under
Governor Dongan, they enjoyed but temporarily, during the last
quarter of the seventeenth century, the ministry of a Catholic priest.
Such indeed was the intolerance of the government that, in 1741, a
man by the name of John Ury, supposed to be a Catholic priest, wa
*
publicly executed, chiefly on the ground of his being a clergyraar
of the Catholic faith.
Such was the state of religion in the Colonies when they deter
mined to throw off the British yoke, and to establish an independent
government. This revolution in the political world naturally led to
a change of public sentiment, at least practically, in regard to differ
ences of religion. The convention of 1774 made the following
appeal : “ As an opposition to the settled plan of the British admin­
istration to enslave America will be strengthened by a union of all
ranks of men within this province, we do most earnestly recommend
that all former differences about religion or politics, and all private
animosities and quarrels of every kind, from henceforth cease and be
forever buried in oblivion ; and we entreat, we conjure every man by his
duty to God, his country, and his posterity, cordially to unite in defence
of our common rights and liberties.” Although motives ot expediency,
rather than a spirit of toleration, dictated this proclamation, it could
not but conduce in the long run to the advantage of the true faith.
Before the provinces had thrown off’ the British yoke, the Catholic re­
ligion had not penetrated into any but Maryland and Pennsylvania.
“ The laws were most rigorous against the exercise of it. A priest
was subject to death for only entering within their territories. Catho­
lics were subject to the most grievous penalties for adhering to the
worship which their consciences approved; and were not only ex
eluded from every office under government, but would hardly have

606

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATE».

been suffered to remain in any of the other provinces, if know) to
profess the faith of Rome. In this situation of things, few Catholic?
settled in other States; or, if they did, dissembled their religion, and
either attached themselves to some other, or intermarried with Pro­
testants, and suffered their children to be educated in error. Even in
Maryland and Pennsylvania, the condition of Catholics, as was noticed
before, was a state of oppression. The few Jesuits who could bo
spared from the English mission were insufficient even to answer the
exigences of the two provinces in which they first settled; and no
other clergymen undertook the perilous task of carrying rhe true faith
into the other provinces. Such was the state of things when a general
revolt from England took place.
“ Having renounced subjection to England, the American States
found it necessary to form new constitutions for their future govern­
ment, and, happily, a free toleration of religions was made a funda­
mental point in all these new constitutions; and, in many of them, not
only a toleration was decreed, but likewise a perfect equality of civil
rights for persons of every Christian profession. In some, indeed, the
yet unextinguished spirit of prejudice and intolerance excluded Catho­
lics from this equality.
“Many reasons concurred to produce this happy and just article in
the new constitutions: First. Some of the leading characters in the
direction of American councils were, by principle, averse to all reli­
gious oppression; and, having been much acquainted with the man­
ners and doctrines of Roman Catholics, represented strongly the injustice
of excluding them from any civil right. Secondly. Catholics concurred
as generally, and with equal zeal, in repelling that oppression which
first produced the hostilities with Great Britain ; and it would have
been impolitic, as well as unjust, to deprive them of a common share
of advantages purchased with common danger and by united exer
tions. Thirdly. The assistance, or at least the neutrality of Canada, was
deemed necessary to the success of the United States; and to give
equal rights to Roman Catholics might tend to dispose the Canadian
*
favorably toward the American cause. Lastly, France began to show
a disposition to befriend the United States ; and it was conceived to
be very impolitic to disgust that powerful kingdom by unjust severi­
ties against the religion which it professed.” *
It cannot be doubted that the political events of the times were
• Manuscript relation of Bishop Carroll In regard to the origin and condition of Catholicité
ta the United States.

APPENDIX.

607

preparing the way for an important change in the religious condition
of the country. Sectarian prejudice and rancor were sensibly dimin
ishing, and a wider field was opened to the Catholic missionary. As
an instance of this, may be mentioned the application made by the
Congress of the Confederation to the Rev. John Carroll, an ex-Jeeuit
of Maryland, to co-operate with a committee of laymen in 1776,
*
for
the purpose of conciliating the Canadians in favor of their cause.
Rev. Mr. Carroll, a native of Maryland, was educated in Europe, and
became a member of the Society of Jesus. After the suppression of
the order, in 1773, he returned to America, and devoted himself to the
duties of the holy ministry. It was not long, however, before his dig­
nity of character, and his connection with one of the most illustrious
families in Maryland, gave him a considerable prominence in political
and ecclesiastical affairs. He was an ardent patriot; and, so far as
prudence and propriety would permit, he supported with all his influ­
ence the cause of independence. Though much occupied with mis
eionary duty at this time, he found leisure for the composition of an
able defence of the Church against her enemies. One of these, the
Rev. Chas. Wharton, had until recently been a fellow-member of Dr.
Carroll in the Society of Jesus, and in apostatizing from the faith he
addressed a letter to his former parishioners in England as an apology
for his conduct. This pamphlet was held up as unanswerable by the
adversaries of Catholicity, “ whom the elegance of its language and
their own ignorance in religious controversy equally contributed to
deceive.” The answer of Dr. Carroll, entitled “ Address to the
Roman Catholics of the United States,” was much admired for its
learning, close reasoning, and courteous style, both in Europe ana
America, f
“Notwithstanding tho nappy change in the government and laws
of the different States, still religion reaped little advantage from it be
fore the close of the war. The priests were too few ; many of them
were worn down with age and hardships. Besides which, during the
whole war there was not the least communication between the
Catholics of America and their bishop, who was the vicar apostolic of
the London district. To his spiritual jurisdiction were subject the
United States. But, whether he would hold no correspondence with
a country which he perhaps considered as in a state of rebellion, or
• Benjamin Franklin, Charles Carroll, of Carrollton, and Mr. Chase.
f Wharton waa twice married, and died a Protestant minister at Burlington, New
Jeraer, st the age of 86.

608

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

whether a natural indolence and irresolution restrained him, the fact
is that he held no kind of intercourse with priest or layman in this
part of his charge. Before the breaking out of the war, his predecessor
hid appointed a vicar, the Rev. Mr. Lewis, and he governed the mis­
sion of America during the bishop’s silence. Soon after the termina­
tion of the war, the clergy of Maryland and Pennsylvania, being
sensible that, to derive all advantage from the new state of things in
America, it would be proper to have an ecclesiastical superior in the
country itself; and knowing the jealousy prevailing in the American
governments against the right of jurisdiction vesting in a person re
siding in Great Britain, addressed themselves to the Holy See, praying
that a superior might be allowed, and that he might be chosen by the
clergy, subject to the approbation and confirmation of his Holiness.”*
Dr. Carroll, in stating this, remarks, in a letter to Rev. Mr. Thorpe
at Rome:f “We think it not only advisable in us, but, in a manner
*
obligatory, to solicit the Holy See to place the episcopal powers, at
least such as are most essential, in the hands of one amongst us,
whose virtue, knowledge, and integrity of faith shall be certified by
ourselves.”
The wisdom of this proceeding among the American clergy is
clearly shown from the remarkable fact, that an arrangement to the
same effect was at that very time under consideration at Rome. In
deference to the views of the clergy, who petitioned simply for
a superior invested with the necessary faculties (deeming it prema­
ture to have a bishop), the Holy See appointed the Rev. Mr. Carroll
to that office, empowering him, among other things, to bless the holy
oils, and to administer the sacrament of confirmation, a sacrament
which had never yet been conferred in the United States.^: The form
of spiritual administration thus established was not altogether palatable
to the American clergy, as they feared lest their dependence on the
Congregation of the Propaganda might excite the jealousy of the au­
thorities in many of the States, where Catholics were still excluded
from civil employments, and even that of the Federal government
itself, in the Constitution of which it was declared, that no person
should be eligible to office who was a subject of a foreign Power. This
objection was plainly and frankly intimated by Dr. Carroll to Cardinal
Antonelli, Prefect of the Propaganda. “ Your Eminence,” he says,
4 may rest assured that the clergy and faithful in this country would
• fetation cited above.
f Nov. 10, 1783.
I The official letters announcing this appointment wore dated Juno 9 and 16, 1784
bat were nnt received by Dr. Oarroll until Nov. 26th of that year.

APPENDIX.

609

endure every suffering rather than reject the divine authority of the
Holy See; but, at the same time, they request that no pretext bo
given to the adversaries of our holy religion to censure us, as if de­
pending more than is necessary upon a foreign Power ; and that the
mode of appointing the ecclesiastical superior he such as to accord
with the spiritual jurisdiction of the Holy See, and to remove all oc­
casion of imputing to the Catholic body any opposition to their < ivil
government.”*
Though, at the time that an ecclesiastical superior was appointed,
the clergy deemed it unnecessary and even inexpedient to have a
bishop, their objections were soon overruled by a mature consideration
of the subject. They found by experience that religion would be ex­
posed to great injury in the United States, if the refractory spirit of
many among the immigrant priests of that time did not receive a
proper check by the exercise of the highest spiritual authority. In
this they only coincided with the policy which Rome was inclined to
adopt. A committee of three was therefore named by the American
clergy to present a petition to Rome tor the erection of an episcopal
see in the United States, and for the privilege of nominating, them­
selves (at least for this time), a fit person to occupy it.
While these proceedings were in progress, Dr. Carroll was busily
engaged in the discharge of his functions as superior of the American
Church. After visiting Philadelphia, New York, and other parts of
his extensive charge for the purpose of administering confirmation he
applied himself vigorously to the establishment of an academy at
Georgetown, D. C., as an institution which would not only a unite the
means of communicating science with an effectual provision for guard­
ing and improving the morals of youth,” but would also serve as a
nursery for encouraging the vocation of young men to the ecclesiasti­
cal state. With the assistance of the faithful in America and ot his
friends in Europe, he was enabled to accomplish this important object,
and a building was soon commenced on the banks of the Potomac,
“ on one of the most lovely situations that imagination can frame.’’!
One ot the most laborious and most painful duties of Dr. Carroll’s
office at this time was, to insure the progress of religion against the
unhappy influence exerted by a schismatical spirit both among clergy
and laity. “ Every day,” he says, “ furnishes me with new reflections,
and almost every day produces new events, to alarm my conscience
Feb. 27, 1785.
f Letter Io Bev Char'ee Plowden, 1788.
Vol- tv.—39

610

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

and excite fresh solicitude at the prospect before me. You cannot con
ceive the trouble I sutler already, and still greater which I foresee,
from the medley of clerical characters coming from different quarters,
and various educations, and seeking employment, here. I cannot avoid
employing some of them, and they begin soon to create disturbances.
As soon as this happens, they proceed to bring in Jesuitism, and to
suggest that every thing is calculated by me for its restoration : but of
all classes of such persons who have been yet amongst us, 1 have
found the Capuchins, both German and Irish, most intolerable. To a
great deal of ignorance they join most consummate assurance ; add,
that they seem to have no principle of a religions life. We have
some German Recollects and Irish Dominicans, and some secular
priests, who behave properly and even commendably.”* In New
York, Boston, and Philadelphia, all the firmness and prudence of Dr.
Carroil were called into requisition by ambitious and insubordinate
priests, who, instead of promoting union and charity among the peo­
ple, only sowed the seeds of discord and scandal. This was noto
riously the case at New York, during the schism excited by Rev. Mr
Nugent, who officiated in opposition to the order of Dr. Carroll, and
who, with his party, was guilty of such violence as to compel the eccle­
siastical superior to leave the church, whither be had gone to instruct
the people in their duty. On the other hand, the majority of the
clergy acquitted themselves zealously of their duties. In 1785, when
Dr. Carroll submitted to the Propaganda a statement of the condition
of things in the Church of the United States, the number of Catholics
was computed to be about twenty-five thousand—sixteen thousand in
Maryland, seven thousand in Pennsylvania, and two thousand in New
York and the other States.! The number of priests in Maryland was
nineteen, in Pennsylvania five ; but this force was soon increased by
the appointment of pastors in New York, Kentucky, Charleston, and
Other places.
The period of Dr. Carroll’s jurisdiction as prefect-apostolic (from
1784 to 1790) was simultaneous with the great political events which
followed closely upon the. American Revolution, and resulted in the
adoption of the Constitution of the United States. When the Catho­
lics of that day called to mind the trials and persecutions of former
times, they could not but feel a deep interest in the framing of tho
organic law, which was in future to characterize the legislation of the
•Letter to Plowden, 1189.
I Thia enumeration, afterward
*
fovnd too low, did not include the Canadian French and
others, Living west o' the Ohio and on the bordera of the Mississippi.

APPENDIX.

rtll

republic, and having united with their fellow-citizena of al religion»
denominatione in achieving the independence of their country, they
did not hesitate tc nee their influence in giving to the fundamenta,
law of the land that form and spirit which would secure the civil lib
erty they so much valued, and for which they had so bravely fought
For this purpose, some of the leading members of their body, among
whom was Rev. Dr. Carroll, drew up a memorial to Congress, repre­
senting the necessity of adopting some constitutional provision for the
yrotection and maintenance of the civil and religious freedom, the
purchase of which had cost so much blood and treasure among all
classes of citizens. Through the influence of General Washington
this memorial was favorably received, and Ures-dtM it enoCSQM
*
of the third article of the Amendments to the Constitùuon, whicn
declares that “ Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment
of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” As this amend
ment was adopted by a congress of all the States, it was a solemn
recognition of the principle which should in future govern their
respective legislative acts, and since that period it has been happilv
incorporated into their fundamental law. The importance ot this
Constitutional enactment, which was due chiefly to the tar-reaching
wisdom and enlightened patriotism of some among the more distin
guished Catholics of the time, can not be overestimated. It was th
*
most effectual barrier that could be raised against the revival of the
persecuting spirit which had disgraced nearly all the colonies, and
which would most probably have again lifted its hydra head, it the
States had not in solemn convention repudiated it as incompatible
with the essential character of the American government. But, an
open field and a fair fight with error, this was all that Catholicity
required to develop its power and to march on to victory.”*
• We can not at thia moment quote any official document, to prove that tho above-men­
tioned Catholic memorial was presented to Congress. We have made the statement upon
what we consider equally reliable authority, a letter of the late Bishop Fenwick, of Boston,
who mentione Rev. Dr. Carroll. Charles Carroll of Carrollton, George Meade (fither of Gen­
era) Meade of the United States army), Thomae Fitzsimmons, and Dominick Lynch, as
framers of the memorial. From this and other circumstances, wo are led to the opinion
that Cretincau-Joly, in his history of the Society of Jeeu«, is for the most part correct in
Che portraiture which he has drawn of the Rev. Dr. Carroll. That he was» friend of Wash­
ington, in the vulgar sense of tho word, can not be asserted ; but wo think that the hisiorian
of the Jesuits wished merely to intimate, that Dr. Carroll and Washington were friends ic
the bigbar and more excellent meaning of tho word ; that they euwrtaineu a pnu'anu
regard for each other, manifesting it on all befitting occasions, and mutually co-operntingio
such measures as tended to the publie weah In a letter to the writer, the late Hon. Geo
Washington Parke Curtis, a nephew of tho illustrious Washington, referring to Rev. Dr

612

THE CATHOLIC CBÜR0H IN THE UNITED 8TATM.

m.
The request of the American clergy, in regard to the erection of
*n episcopal see, having been granted at Rome, they lost no time in
determining its location and in the selection of a candidate for the
mitre. They fixed upon Baltimore, “this being,” says Dr. Carroll,
“the principal town of Maryland, and that State being the oldest and
still the most numerous residence of true religion in America. So far
all was right. We then proceeded to the election, the event of which
was such as deprives me of all expectation of rest or pleasure hence­
forward, and fills me with terror with respect to eternity. I am so
stunned with the issue of this business, that I truly hate the hearing
or the mention of it, and therefore will say only, that, since my breth­
ren—whom in this case I consider as the interpreters of the Divine
will—say I must obey, I will even do it; but, by obeying, shall sacri­
fice henceforward every moment of peace and satisfaction.” Though
't appeal's from these words of Dr. Carrol) that he acquiesced in the
choice which bad been made, he did so with the most unaffected
humility. “My own knowledge of myself informs me, better than a
thousand voices to the contrary, that 1 am entirely unfit for a station,
in which I can have no hopes of rendering service but through IIis
help and continual direction who has called me to it, when I was
doing all in my power to prevent it.”*
Upon the reception at Rome of the proceedings of the clergy, by
which Baltimore was designated as the episcopal see, and the V. Rev.
Dr. Carroll nominated as bishop, the official documents were immedi
ately dispatched to him, appointing him to the new see, and contain
ing the most flattering testimonials of the high esteem in which he
was held, and of the joy which his election had awakened in the capital
of the Christian world. “ It is a splendid and glorious office,” says
Cardinal Antonelli, “to offer to God, as it were, the first fruits of that
portion of the Lord’s vineyard. Enjoy, therefore, so great a blessing,
not only for the salvation of yourself, but for that of others, and for
Carroll, says; “From hie exalted worth es a minister of God. his stainless character as a
man, aud, above all. hie distinguished services as a patriot of tl e Revolution, Dr. Carroll
Stood high, very high, in the esteem and affections of the Pater 1 atriæ.” From the » nr
source we learn, that in thodaysof the flrst Presidency, when Washington passed through
Baltimore to and from the seat of government, a band of Revolutionary worthies always
assembled to do him honor, and among them Dr. CarroU over held die most conspicuous
post, and reoeived the Uret grasp of W'ashington’a hand.
• Letters to his friend Plowden.

APPENDIX.

613

tne increase of the Catholic faith, which we trust will become more
and more widely established in that distant region.”*
Soon after the reception of his bulls from Rome, Dr. Carroll re­
paired to England, where his person and merit were well known, and
presented himself for consecration to the Rt. Rev. Dr. Wahnesley.
bishop of Rama and senior vicar apostolic in that kingdom. By invi­
tation of Thomas Weld, Esq., the ceremony of consecration took place,
during a solemn high mass, in the elegant chapel at Lnlworth Castle,
on Sunday, the 15th day of August, a. d. 1790, feast of the Assump­
tion of the B. Virgin Mary, and the munificence of that gentleman
omitted no arrangement that could possibly add dignity to so august
a ceremony. A discourse was delivered on the occasion by the Rev.
Chas. Plowden, who thus alluded to the rising Church in America:
“Never, perhaps was this truth (that the formation of the kingdom
of Christ is the ultimate object of the whole dispensation of Provi­
dence in the government of this world) more sensibly evinced, than
in th late violent convulsions by which the hand of the Almighty
has dismembered the great British empire in the Western world, the
destinies of which, we trust, are founded in His tenderest mercies
For, although thia great event may appear to us to have been the
work—the sport of human passions, yet the earliest and most precious
fruit of it has been the extension of the kingdom of Christ, the props
gation of the Catholic religion, which, heretofore fettered by restrain
ing laws, is now enlarged from bondage, and is left at liberty to exert
the full energy of divine truth. Already is Catholicity extended to
the utmost boundaries of the immense continent of America: thou­
sands are there earnestly demanding Catholic instructors, and all,
penetrated with reverence for the Apostolical See of St. Peter, have
concurred to demand from his successor a Catholic prelate, whose
knowledge aud whose zeal may establish the faith of Peter upon the
rains of those errors which the first inhabitants carried forth with
them from this country. But, if Britain infected them with error, we
have the consolation to know that their Catholicity is also derived
immediately from us ; and as we in former ages received the faith of
Rome from the great St. Gregory and our apostle, St. Austin, so now,
at the interval of twelve hundred years, our venerable prelate, the
heir of the virtues and labors of our apostle, will this day, by commis­
sion from the successor of St. Gregory, consecrate the first father am.'
bishop of the new church, destined, as we confide, to inherit thoe»
• Not. 14, 1789. Tbo bulla for the new see were dated No». 4

614

T7TE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

benedictions which the first called have ungratefully rejected. Glori­
ous Is this day, my brethren, for the Church of God, which sees new
nations crowding into her bosom ; glorious for the prelate-elect, who
goes forth to conquer those nations for Jesus Christ, not by the efforts
of human power, but in the might of those weapons which have ever
triumphed in this divine warfare : he is not armed with the strength
of this world, but he is powerful in piety, powerful iu zeal, powerful
in evangelical poverty, and firm reliance on the protection of that God
who sends him.”
These remarks have all been substantially verified in the history of
the Catholic Church in the United States. While Divine Providence
was preparing on the Western Continent a new and grateful field for
the seed of truth, it was disposing events in Europe and other coun­
tries for supplying that field with zealous and active laborers, who
would bring forth fruit in good season. The revolution in France
was now beginning to wear a threatening aspect for religion as well as
for the throne, and the Abbé Emery, superior-general of the Sulpitian
Society in France, fearing its ultimate suppression in that country,
entered into a correspondence with Bishop Carroll, still in Europe,
with a view to the establishment of an ecclesiastical seminary in tho
United States. Alluding to this negotiation, Dr. Carroll says: “We
have settled that two or three gentlemen, selected by Mr. Emery,
shall come over to Baltimore next spring. They are furnished with
the means of
* purchasing ground for building, and, I hope, of endow­
ing a seminary for young ecclesiastics. I believe they will bring
three or four seminarians with them, who either are English, or know
it, professors of philosophy and divinity. They will be amply pro­
vided with books, apparatus for the altar, church, «fcc. I propose
fixing these very near my own house and the cathedral of Baltimore,
that they may be, as it were, the clergy of the church, and contribute
to the dignity of divine worship. This is a great and auspicious
event for our new diocess ; but it is a melancholy reflection that we
owe so great a blessing to the lamentable catastrophe in France.” *
Having arranged this important business, and collected consider­
able funds from his friends in England for the academy at George­
town, Bishop Carroll set sail for America.t He could not leave
• Letter to F. Plowden, London, Sep.. 25, 1190.
f About tide time, a French colony was established in Ohio, about the placo now cnUed
Gallipolis, and an effort had been made by its founders to havo a bishop appointed for
their spiritual benefit. The project, however, failed, owing probably to the creatio» of th·
_aw aeu of Baltimore: but Dom. Kdier, a Benedictine of St. Maur and Chaplain of th·

APTENTiIX.

«15

England, however, so soon without a feeling of regret that he left
behind him bo many valuable men, hie dearest friends, and the friend·
of religion and models of virtue. “ Long shall I retain the impression
made on me at Lulworth, by the goodness, the charity, the loveliness
of every branch of that most respectable family, and I am sure my
heart will be full of the gratefulest emotions when I shall sail abreast
of the Castle.”*
On landing at Baltimore. December 7 Bishop Carroll was wel
corned by a large body of Catholics and others, with every demon
stration of joy, and on the following Sunday he was installed
in hie episcopal see, according to the rites of the Roman Pontifi­
cal. On that occasion he addressed his people in the following
words :—
“ This day, my dear brethren, impresses deeply on my mind a lively
sense of the new relation in which I stand now before you. Yon have
often heard my voice within these walls; and often have I used my
feeble endeavors to rouse you from the sleep of sin, and to awake in
you the sentiments of virtue and practical piety. But when I thusaddressed you, I considered it indeed as my obligation to admonish
and instruct you ; but I did not view it as an indissoluble obligation.
My superintendence over your spiritual concerns was of such a nature
that I could relinquish it, or be removed from it at pleasure. But
now the hand of Providence (ah. may I hope that it is not an angry,
colony, was invested with ample powers, to be exercised in obedience to and with th·
approbation of Dr. CarrolL (Letter of Father Thorpe, July 21, 1790.)
The late Bishop Bruté, in his memoranda, alludes to the same rwt, stating that the
Abbe, Boisnautier, of St Roch, Paris, was appointed at Rome in 1189 bishop of Scioto
<Gallipolis). “ I knew Mr. Boisn.intier well: he spoke to me of his nomination, and
undertook to look for his papers, but not finding them readily. I only learned « auditu this
remarkable fact of a see having been established in Ohio as early aa that period. I have
no doubt but Mr. Emory was aware of this, which shows how soon th·.· ρ ψί-to had their
eye on the Valley of tho Mississippi."
• This language of Dr. CarroU was fully justified by the admirable qualities of the Weld
family. Mr. Weld, who died in 1811, was the beau-ideal of a truly Christian nobleman. flmugh
living in the midst of honor and affluence, his habits w-.ro those of a fervent religious
Montai prayer, attendance at Mass, spiritual reading, recitation of the breviary, were lor him
daily exorcises of piety, while ho approached tho sacrament of penance weekly and th·
holy communion every two or three days. The rosary and spiritual reading were exer­
cises performed in common with his family. Ho always made an annual retreat, tie was
the first, after tho act of Catholic emancipation, to build a separate chapel for th·
worship of God. His charities were boundloss. Besides founding an establishment of Trap­
pists and the Jesuit college at Stonyhurst, he built several chapels, either wholly or is
part, and provided for their support Five or six communities of religious women owed w
him a good part of their subsistence—Letter of Father Corin, S. J.

616

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

but a Providence merciful to you nod me)—the hand <.f Providence
has formed an indissoluble tic—has bound me by an obligation which
I can never renounce—an obligation of ever attending to your eternal
interests; of watching perpetually over your conduct ; of stemming, to
the utmost of my power, the torrent of vice and irréligion ; of con­
ducting you in the ways of virtue, and leading you to the haven oi
eternal bliss. The shade of retirement and solitude must no longer
be my hope and prospect of consolation. Often have I flattered
myself that my declining years would be indulged in such a state if
rest from labor and solicitude for others, as would leave me the best
opportunity of attending to the great concern of my own salvation,
and of confining myself to remember my past years in the bitterness
of compunction. But it has pleased God to order otherwise; and
though my duty commands submission, it can not allay my fears those fears which I feel for you and for myself. For, my God ! how
much reason have I not to fear for myself when I view the extent of
my duties, on the one hand ; and on the other, my weakness and natural
inability to fulfil them. In this, my new station, if my life be not one
continued instruction and example of virtue to the people committed
to my charge, it will become, in the sight of God, a life not only use­
less, but even pernicious.
“ It is no longer enough for me to be inoffensive in tny conduct and
regular in my manners. God now imposes a severer duty upon me.
I shall incur the guilt of violating my pastoral otHce, if all my
endeavors be not directed to bring your lives and all your actions to
a conformity with the laws of God ; to exhort, to conjure, to reprove,
to enter into all your sentiments; to feel all your infirmities ; to be all
things to all, that I may gain all to Christ ; to be superior to human
respects; to have nothing in view but God and your salvation ; to sac­
rifice to these, health, peace, reputation, and even life itself; to hate
sin, and yet love the sinner; to repress the turbulent ; to encourage
the timid; to watch over the conduct of even the ministers of religion ;
to be patient and meek ; to embrace all kinds of persons ;—these are
now my duties—extensive, pressing, and indispensable duties ; —these
ire the duties of all my brethren in the episcopacy, and surely import­
ant enough to fill us with terror. But there are others still more bur­
densome to be borne by me in this particular portion of Christ’s
Church, which is committed to my charge, and where every thing is to
be raised, as it were, from its foundation : to establish ecclesiastical
discipline; to devise means tor the religious education of Catholic
youth—that precious portion of pastoral solicitude; to provide an

APVF.XDlA.

617

establishment for training up ministers for the sanctuary and the aer
vices of religion, that we may no longer depend on foreign and uncer
tain coadjutors ; not to leave unassisted any of the faithful who are scat
tered through this immense continent; to preserve their faith untainted
amidst the contagion of error surrounding them on all sides; to preserve
in their hearts a warm charity and forbearance toward everv other
denomination of Christians; and, at the same time, to preserve them
from that fatal and prevailing indifference which views all religions
as equally acceptable to God and salutary to men. Ah! when I con­
sider these additional duties, my heart sinks almost under the impres­
sion of terror which comes upon it. In God alone can I find any
consolation. He knows by what steps I have been conducted to this
important otation, and how much I have always dreaded it. He will
not abandon me unless I first draw down His malediction by my
unfaithfulness to njy charge. Pray, dear brethren, pray incessantly,
that J. may not incur so dreadful a punishment. Alas! the punish­
ment would fall on you as well as on myself—my unfaithfulness would
redound on you, and deprive yon of some of the means of salvation.
“The fears which trouble me, on my own account, would receive
some abatement, if I could be assured of your steady adherence to the
duties of your holy religion. But how can I be assured of this, when
I recollect what experience has taught me, and that worldly conta­
gion, example, influence, and respect, together with impetuous pas­
sions, seek perpetually to plunge yon into habits of vice, and sifter­
ward into everlasting misery; and when I know tnat not one soul will
perish from amongst you. of which God will not demand of me, as its
shepherd, a most severe account. Unhappily, at this time, a spirit of
infidelity is prevalent, and dares to attempt the subversion of even the
first principles of religion and morality, and to break down all the
fences which guard virtue and purity of body and mind. Licentious­
ness of discourse and the arts of seduction are practised without
shame, and, it would seem, without remorse. Ah! will it be in my
power to oppose these fatal engines of vice and immorality? Dear
brethren, allow me to appeal to your consciences ; question them with
candor and truth. Can I say more to bring you back to the simplicity
of faith, to the humble docility of a disciple of Jesus, to the fervent
practice of Christian duties, than I have said to you heretofore ! But
what reformation followed then my earnest entreaties and exhorta
lions? Was prayer more used ? Were parents more assiduous in th»
instruction of their children ? Were their examples more edifying/
Was swearing and blaspheming diminished? Was druukeumas

(J18

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

suppressed? Was idleness extirpated? Was injustice abolished I
May I hope that on this occasion God will shower down more abun
dant graces; that your hearts will be turned from the love of the
world to the lore of Him I If I could be so happy as to see prevail­
ing among you such exercises of piety as evidenced your attachment
to religion and your zeal for your salvation, I should myself be
relieved from much of my solicitude—prayer; attendance on holy
mass; fréquentation of the holy sacraments; humble docility to the
advice and admonitions of your pastor. ‘Obey,’ says St. Paul, ‘those
who are put over you, as having to render to God an account for
your souls.'”
He concluded hie address by exhorting his hearers to cultivate a
true devotion to the mother of God, under whose special protection
he had placed the extensive diocesr with whose interests he was
charged.
Alluding to the general situation of the Church at this time, Dr.
Carroll says: “It has its successes and disappointments. The ca­
puchin Whelan left, his numerous congregation of Kentucky, composed
of emigrants from Maryland, whilst I was in England. They are now
w'thont a priest, except a rambling Irish one, to whom I refused
faculties some years ago. * * * I am anxious to obtain a good one
for the poor souls there, who in general are virtuous, and some of
them eminently so. At Boston there has been much offence given to
Catholics and Protestants by the disagreement of the two priests
*
and
their abettors. * * * In other places we gain ground ; and severa’
new settlements for extending religion are in prospect, as in Virginia,
N. Carolina, and Georgia. In S. Carolina we have one already.”!
Soon after his arrival in his diocess, Dr. Carroll visited Boston for tho
purpose of composing the differences in the congregation of that city.
“ It is wonderful,” he writes, “ to tell what great civilities have been
done to me in this town, where, a few years ago, a Popish priest was
thought to be the greatest monster in the creation. Many here, even
of their principal people, have acknowledged to me that they would
have crossed to the opposite side of the street rather than meet a
Roman Catholic some time ago. The horror which was associated
with the idea of a papist is incredible ; and the scandalous misrepre­
sentations by their ministers increased the horror every Sunday. If
• Revs. Messrs. Rousselet and Tliayer, who had been preceded by a Mr. Do la Poterie,
a most abandoned character. Mr. Thayer was a convert, a pious and zealous priest ; but
his seal not being " unto sobriety,” he got himself into various difficulties.
I Rev Ur. Ryan

APPENDIX.

615

al. i<i« Cuv.\vBca here were united, their number would be about one
hundred and twenty.” On his return from Boston, where his presence
had produced at least a temporary calm, he had the happiness of wel
coming the band of clergymen and studente who had come from
Erance to found an ecclesiastical seminary in Baltimore.
*
It was a
source of indescribable joy to the new bishop to witness the accession
of such distinguished priests to the ranks of the American clergy.
They were to assist him by their counsels, to strengthen the missionary
force of his immense diocess, and to establish a nursery of learned
and devoted laborers for this interesting portion of the Lord’s vine­
yard.
In obedience to the laws of the Church, and to provide more
effectually for the welfare of the flock committed to his care, Dr. Carroll
convoked a diocesan synod as soon as circumstances would permit
In the circular which was issued to the clergy on this occasion, we
read as follows : “ The necessity of consulting together on the means
of continuing the episcopacy of the United States, for the decent
ordering of divine worship, and uniformity in the administration of
the sacraments, and discipline of the diocess and clergy, and devising
m?ans, if possible, for the support of the ministers of religion ; these
are the principal objects which will engage your attention.” The
synod was convened for the 7th of November, 1791, when twenty-two
clergymen assembled, under the presidency of their venerable bishop,
to deliberate upon the important matters regarding the interests of
religion in the United States. The meeting of such a number of
priests was a novel and impressive spectacle in this part of the world.
The four first sessions of the synod were occupied with the considera­
tion of the statutes relative to the sacraments. In the fifth and last
session, the most salutary regulations were adopted in regard to the
celebration of festivals, the support of the clergy and other matters,
and a petition was adopted praying the Holy See to establish a new
episcopal see, or at least to appoint a coadjutor to the Bishop of Balti­
more. The spirit which characterized the enactments of the first
diocesan synod in the United States, the importance of the subjects
treated, and the wisdom and zeal of the chief pastor who presided over
its deliberations, are so admirably set forth in a pastoral letter which
he shortly after addressed to his flock, that the reader will excuse
us for presenting it at length in the present sketch.
• Tho Rer. gentlemen were, Messrs. Nagot, superior; Levadoux, procurator ; Garnm
tad Teaaler, professors; also a Mr. Delavau, canon of Tours.

620

THE CATHOIAJ CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

John,
Bt Divine Pwobston, and with the Approbation
Bishop of Baltimore—

of the

Holt ^er.

To my dean,y Moved Brethren, tin1 Members of the Catholic Ch urch
in this Diooess, Health and Blessing, Grace to you, and Peace from
God our Father and from, the Lord Jesus Christ :
The great extent of nay diocess, and the necessity of ordering
many things concerning it· government, at the beginning of my epis­
copacy have not yet permitted me, my dear brethren, to enjoy tho
consolation, for which I most earnestly pray, of seeing you all, and of
leaving with you, according to the natare of my duty, some words of
exhortation, by which you maybe strengthened in faith and encouriged in the exercises of a Christian life. Esteeming myself as a
debtor to all, and knowing the rigorous account which I must render
for your souls to the Shepherd of Shepherds, our Lord and Saviour
Jesus Christ, I shall have cause to tremble while I leave any thing
undone by which religion and true piety may be promoted, and the
means of salvation multiplied for you.
in compliance with the obligation, resulting from the relation m
which I stand to you, my endeavors have been turned toward obtain­
ing and applying, for the preservation and extension of faith, and for
the sanctification of souls, means calculated to produce lasting effects,
not only on the present, but on future generations. I thought that
Almighty God would make the ministers of His sanctuary, and myself
particularly, accountable to Him if we did not avail ourselves of the
liberty enjoyed under our equitable government and just laws, to
attempt establishments in which you, dear brethren, may find perma­
nent resources, suited to your greatest exigencies.
Knowing, therefore, that the principles instilled in the course of a
Christian education are generally preserved through life, and that a
young man according to Lis way, even when he is old, will not depart
from it (Prov. xxii. 6), I have considered the virtuous and Christian
instruction of youth as a principal object of pastoral solicitude. Now
who can contribute so much to lighten this burden which weighs so
heavy on the shoulders of the pastors of souls, ami who have so great
an interest and special duty in the forming of youthful minds to habita
of virtue and religion, as their parents themselves, especially while
their children retain their native docility and their hearts are uncorrupted by vice Î
How many motives of reason and religion require that parent
*

APPENDIX.

ghould be unwearied in their endeavors to inspire into them the love
and fear of God, docility and submission to his doctrines, and a careful
attention to fulfill his commandments! Father
*,
bring up you, ./,»7
dren in t he discipline and correction of the Lord (Ephes iv. 4). If all
to whom God has given sons and daughters were assiduous m rhe dis­
charge of this important obligation, a foundation would be laid for,
and great progress made in, the work of establishing a prevailing
purity of manners. The same habits of obedience to the will of
God; the same principles of a reverential love and fear of Him, and
of continual respect for His holy name ; the same practices of morn­
ing and evening prayer, and of fréquentation of the sacraments : the
same dread of cursing and swearing, of fraud and duplicity, of lewd­
ness and drunkenness; the same respectful and dutiful behavior to
their fathers and mothers ; in a word, the remembrance and influence
of the parental counsels and examples received in their youth, would
continue with them during life ; and, if ever the frailty of nature or
worldly seduction should cause them to offend God, they would be
brought back again to His service and to true repentance by the effi
ciicy of the religious instruction received in their early age. Where­
fore, fathers and mothers, be mindful of the words of the apostle,
and bring up your children in the discipline and correction of ths
Lord. In doing this, you not only render an acceptable service to
God, and acquit yourselves of a most important duty, but you labor
for the preservation and increase of true religion ; for the benefit of
our common country, whose welfare depends on the morals of its citi­
zens ; and for your own happiness here as well as hereafter, since you
may be assured of finding, in those sons and daughters whom you
shall train up to virtue and piety by your instructions and examples,
support and consolation in sickness and old age. They will remember
with gratitude, and repay with religious duty, your solicitude for them
in their infancy and youth. These being the advantages of a religious
education, I was solicitous for the attainment of a blessing so desirable
to that precious portion of my flock—the growing generation. A
school has been instituted at Georgetown, which will continue to be
under the superintendence and government of some of my Reverend
Brethren—that is, of men devoted by principle and profession to
instruct all who resort to them in useful learning, and those of onr
own religion, in its principles and duties. I earnestly wish, dear
brethren, that as many of you as are uuie would semi our sou» u>
this school of letters and virtue. I know and lament that the expeuse
will be too great for many families, and that their children must b·

622

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

deprived of the immediate benefit of this institution. But, indirectly
they will receive it ; at least, it may be reasonably expected that some,
after being educated at Georgetown, and having returned into their
own neighborhood, will become, in their turn, the instructors of the
youths who cannot be sent from home ; and by pursuing the same sys­
tem of uniting much attention to religion with a solicitude for other
improvements, the general result will be a great increase of piety, the
necessary consequence of a careful instruction in the principles of
faith and Christian morality.
This school, dear brethren, if aided by your benevolence and
favored with your confidence, will be the foundation of an additional
advantage to true religion in this our country. Many amongst you
have experienced inconvenience and disadvantage from the want of
spiritual assistance in your greatest necessities, in sickness, in troubles
of conscience, and for want of opportunity to avail yourselves of the
counsels and offices of the ministers of religion. It is notorious to you
all, that the present clergymen are insufficient for the exigencies of the
faithful, and that they will be more and more, so as the population of
our country increases so rapidly, unless by the Providence of our
good and merciful God, a constant supply of zealous and able pastor/
can be formed amongst ourselves—that is, of men accustomed to our
climate, and acquainted with the tempers, manners and government
of the people to whom they are to dispense the ministry of salvation.
Now, may we not reasonably hope that one of the effects of a virtu
Ous course of education will be, the preparing the minds of some,
whom Providence may select, to receive and cherish a call from God
to an ecclesiastical state ?
Should such be the designs of Infinite mercy on this portion of His
flock, all of us, dear brethren, will have new cause to return God
thanks for having conducted to our assistance a number of learned and
exemplary clergymen, devoted by choice and formed by experience to
the important function of training young ecclesiastics to all the duties
of the ministry. This essential service is already begun by these, my
respectable brethren. An ecclesiastical seminary, under their imme­
diate direction and episcopal superintendence, has entered on the
important function of raising pastors for your future consolation and
improvement, and I cannot forbear recommending their undertaking
to your patronage and charitable encouragement How great and
lasting a benefit will they confer on this and future generations, whe
shall contribute to endow it with some portion of those goods which
themselves have received from a benevolent Providence, and for th»

APPENDIX.

62ύ

ase of which they mast account to Hirn from whom they received
them ! What a consolation will it be to them in this life, and source
uf happiness in the next, if, through their benefactions, the seminary
be enabled not only to support its directors and professors, but like­
wise some young men, candidates for holy orders, whose virtues and
abilities may be far superior to their worldly fortunes 1 By endow
meats, such as I now recommend, great services have been rendered
to religion and morality. If donations for objects of piety have ever
been excessive, as some have pretended, the particular one now recom­
mended to your charity, and the temper of our times and laws, leave
no cause to apprehend the renewal of such an abuse.
Other objects besides those already mentioned claim our common
solicitude. It will be of little use to prepare ministers for the work
of the ministry, if afterwards they cannot be employed, for want of a
necessary maintenance, m the laborious discharge of pastoral func­
tions. Whilst the offices of our religion were performed only in two
of the United States, and even in them the number of Catholics was
much less than at present, fewer laborers were wanted, and there
were funds sufficient for their subsistence, independent of any contri­
butions from the justice or the charity of the respective congregations.
But our holy faith being now spread through other States, and the
number of Catholics being much increased in those where it existed
before, it becomes absolutely necessary to recur to the means of sup­
porting public worship and instruction, which is prescribed not only by
natural equity, but likewise by the positive ordinances of divine wis­
dom, both in Jewish and Gospel dispensations. Know you not. says
St. Paul, 1 Cor. v. 13, that they who work in the holy place, and they
that serve the altar, partake with the altar f so also the Lord ordained
that they who preach the Gospel should live by the Gospel.
In obedience to this divine ordinance, primitive Christians, when
they went to the celebration of the sacred offices ot religion, presented
their offerings on the altar of the Lord, signifying by this act that they
were not intended so much for their pastors as consecrated to God him­
self. And, indeed, the Church regarded them in this light, and
decreed in her canons, that the religious obligations of the faithful
should be employed, first, for the maintenance of the ministers of the
sanctuary, which being provided for, the remainder should be applied
towaids the relief of the poor, and the building and repairing of
churches and places of worship, necessary fur public convenience, and
the decent ordering of divine service.
God 1. ** made it our duty to join in the solemn rites of sacrifice

624

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED 8TATE8.

and prnyei, and in receiving the sacraments instituted for our benefit
and the improvement of our souls in piety and grace. The adminis
tration of these requires men set apart for and consecrated to so sacred
a function; men not assuming of themselves, but receiving their
authority from God, through His Church, and their succession from
the Apostles, through the Bishops, by whom they are ordained.
Now it is evident, that, since God has imposed on all an obligation
of joining in these acts of religion, lie requites likewise, that all
should use the necessary means for acquitting themselves of that obli­
gation ; and, consequently, that each one bear his proportion of com
mon and necessary expense for the support of j ublic worship. This
duty has been insisted on so little amongst us, as long as the assist­
ance of the faithful was unnecessary for the maintenance of their
pastors, that many will hardly conceive it to be a duty. Hence they
are often without pastors; of course they become remiss in their
religious duties, and finally regardless of them. Their offspring, uninstructed and ignorant of the principles of faith, are led astray by false
doctrines, and seduced by corrupt examples. Hence, likewise,
churches for the celebration of divine service, and the great Eucharistic
sacrifice of the law of grace, are not built at all, or are suffered to fall
hto decay.
They are without chalices, without the decent and necessary furni­
ture of the altars, without vestments suited to the different services
of the Church, in a word, without these sacred utensils its ordinances
require, and which contribute to impress the mind with a becoming
sense of the majesty of religion, and conciliate respect for its august
ceremonies. Hence, finally, results the great evil, and source of many
other disorders, that, by failing to make provision for the necessary
support of pastors, and the maintenance of public worship, you fail
likewise of fulfilling the obligation of being present at mass on every
Sunday and holiday ; you lose the opportunity of receiving necessary
and salutary instruction ; and, finally, an habitual disregard for the
sanctification of the Lord’s Day and for the exercises of prayer and
religion becomes prevalent.
In this matter, I recommend earnestly to you, my dear brethren,
not to be too indulgent to yourselves, in forming principles which
indeed may satisfy an erroneous conscience, and suit your attachment
to your ease, and your worldly interests, but cannot afford you a
reasonable assurance of having fulfilled your necessary and essential
duty to Almighty God. Every inconvenience is not sufficient to ex­
empt you from the obligation of attending at mass, on Sundays and

appendix.

625

jther days prescribed by the church. The obstacle must be grievon·
and weighty, amounting almost to an impossibility, moral or physical,
[las such an obstacle or inconvenience existed with respect to all those
who hear mass perhaps not more than once in a month, or aeldomer (
Are there not congregations, where now divine service is performed
only once a month, which arc fully competent to the expense of keep­
ing a clergyman to reside amidst them, and to administer to them
continually in all holy things; to offer every day for them, and in
the presence of some at least of them, the great sacrifice of the law of
grace ? to teach, to admonish and reprove them ? to instruct their chil­
dren and servants in the doctrines and exercises of religion, and thus
to make lighter the burden, which rests on parents and heads of fami­
lies? to watch perpetually over the morals of all, and to prevent the
contagion of error or evil example ? to be ready, and near at hand,
to administer to all, in times of sickness, the spiritual succors com­
mitted to his dispensation ? I cannot, dear brethren, enumerate the
advantages which will result from so desirable a situation, as that of
having constantly amongst you your pastor and spiritual guide; and
I exhort you with great earnestness to use much industry, and with
thankfulness to Almighty God, for the temporal blessings received
from His hand, generously to devote a part of them to the obtaining
a benefit, from which such important consequences will be derived.
The sacrifice of property which you make for a purpose so useful ami
religious, is a kind of restitution to Him who first gave it to you, and
besides being an act of the virtue of religion, because it is suggested
by the desire of encouraging and supporting divine worsliip, it is more­
over an act of exalted charity toward the poor and ignorant, who will
be enabled to obtain essential instruction, relief in all their spiritual
necessities, tlirough the means and contributions of the rich and
middle classes of life ; tand these will hus become partakers in the
merit and rewards promised in these words of the Prophet Daniel,
they who instruct many to justice, shall shine as stars for all eternity.
(Ch. xii. V. 3.)
I wi|l venture to add, that even with respect to this world you
will find it to be no loss to concur toward the regular support of the
ministry and services of religion. Habits of temperance and frugality
are generally the effects of evangelical instruction. The lessons and
duty of industry are frequently inculcated by virtuous and careful
pastors: your children and servants will be admonished perpetual’?
to shuu idleness, dishonesty, dissipations, and that train of expense
which always follows them. Those, by their effect on domestic
Vol iv.—40

626

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

economy, will make abundant compensation for the charges in suppon
of religion. Besides, you have a divine promise, that God will use a
more special Providence for your subsistence, when yon make it your
first care to fulfil His holy law. Seek first· the kingdom, of God, and
His justice, and all those things shall be added unto you (Mat.
vi. 34).
Amongst all obstructions to the due celebration of divine services,
and the regular attendance on the sacred functions of religion, this
backwardness of the faithful to contribute for its support is one of the
greatest, as was generally agreed and represented by my venerable
brethren, the Clergy of the Diocess, in a synod held some months ago.
When I convoked them, I formed some statutes of general concern
which will be communicated to you, and amongst them are the follow­
ing relative to the matter of which I have just now treated, and
enforcing the same observations.
Extract from the Statutes of the Diocesan Synod, held at Balti­
more,from the 7th to the 10th of November, 1791.
Statute V. That the Holy Eucharistic Sacrifice may be celebrated
with all reverence and becoming respect; and that the faithful may
be excited more and more to a lively devotion toward this singulai
pledge of divine mercy, it is decreed that the congregation be re
minded frequently how disrespectful it is, that any thing used for the
Holy Sacrifice should be of the meanest materials, or not kept cleanly
and entire, and that suitable vessels and utensils for the altar, as
chalices, ciborinms, and cruets, decent vestments and linen for the
ministry of the altar, wax candles and wine fit for mass be not pro­
vided. Let the Christian people he told with minute attention that
God Himself was pleased to ordain every thing relating to bis service
in the Jewish law and temple. How much more care, therefore, should
Christians use, for the decency of divine worship, since they possess
not the shadow of future blessings, as the Jews, but the substance
and reality of them! Let them be admonished likewise of th?
offerings made by primitive Christians at the time of mass, and
let them know that such must be very regardless of the honor of
God, as refuse or neglect to contribute for these things, without
which the functions of religion seem to lose their dignity and author­
ity, and the devotion and veneration for the Blessed Eucharist is
greatly diminished.
VI. It is decreed, therefore, that in every congregation two or three
persons of approved virtue and respectability be chosen by the congre­
gation, or appointed by the pastor, to be church-wardens oj guardiaus

APPENDIX.

and that the person so appointed, on Sundays and other festivals, after
the reading of the first gospel at Mass, or after the sermon, shall collect
the offerings of the faithful.
VII. The offerings, according to the ancient practice of the Church,
are to be divided into three parts, so that one may be applied to the
maintenance uf the pastor; another to the relief of the poor; and a
third to the procuring of all things requisite for divine worship, and for
building and repairing the church. But if provision be marie other­
wise for the maintenance of the pastor and the poor, all offerings are
to be appropriated to the fabric of the church, or furnishing it with
proper utensils and ornaments for the more dignified celebration of
divine worship.
VIII. The offerings made by the faithful, to render God propi­
tious to themselves or others, through the efficacy of the Holy Sacri­
fice of mass, should be accepted by the ministers of the altar in such
manner as to afford no room for suspicions of avarice or simony ; let
them be contented therefore with such an acknowledgment of their
services as cannot be burdensome to the bestowers of it : nor yet so
insignificant as to render the priestly ministry despicable in the
opinion of inconsiderate men.
XXIII. The number of Catholies having increased, and being
dispersed through the different States, and at great distances from each
other, it is become necessary to have likewise a greater number of
spiritual laborers; but these cannot be brought from foreign countries
or maintained unless the faithful concur toward bearing that expense,
as they are bound by the law of God, and according to the testimony
of St. Paul, who says, If we have sown unto you spiritual things. is
it a great matter if we reap your carnal things f (1 Cor. ix. 11).
The faithful, therefore, are to be reminded often of this duty, with
which if they neglect to comply, they will omit, through their own fault,
hearing mass on Sundays and festivals, and receiving the sacrament-'
at those seasons in which they need them most, the seasons of sickness,
of Easter, and when, through the prevalence of sinful passions, or long
habits of vice, a speedy reconciliation with God becomes indispensably
necessary. Wherefore, as long as they refuse to contribute for the
ministry of salvation, according to tho measure of worldly fortune
given to them by a beneficent God, and thus violate the divine ami
ecclesiastical laws, they are to know that they are in a state of sin, and
incapable of receiving forgiveness in the tribunal of Confession ; and
that they will be answerable to God, not only for their own noncompliance with duties so sacred, but likewise for the ignorance and

628

THB CATHOLIC CniTRCfT

IN THF.

UNITED STATES.

vires <’i the poor people that remain destitute of Christian instruction,
on iiOijonnt of the sordid avarice of those who are more favored with
the gifts of fortune. To begin, then, in this diocess that which is
practised in other Christian countries, the preceding regulations were
formed, relative to the oblations of the faithful, and others will be
added hereafter.
I trust that you, my dear brethren, will consider these statutes
with the same candor and in the same spirit in which they were
formed. It was not in the spirit of avarice, but of real solicitude for
the preservation of faith, and for your increase in godliness and
heavenly knowledge. They were suggested by the desire of seeing
you assisted with the same means of salvation as your Catholic
brethren in all other countries, and with the hope that you would use
the same endeavor as they, to appropriate to yourselves the blessings
of a regular instruction and uninterrupted ministration of divine wor
ship. To accomplish this salutary purpose more effectually, and
render more certain the subsistence of the ministers of religion, they
are directed to require at marriages, and funeral services a certain
very moderate compensation, to which they whom God has blessed
with abundance may add acccrding to their benevolence; and which
my reverend brethren are hereby charged not to require from those
to whom, on account of their great poverty, any compensation would
be burdensome.
On this occasion I cannot forbear mentioning an abuse, or rather
a prevalent neglect and indifference with respect to your departed
parents and relations. "When death has removed them from your
sight, you seem to forget that doctrine of our divine religion, which
ought to call forth all your tenderness, I mean the doctrine, that it is
a holy and salutary thought to pray for the dead, that they may he de
livered from their sins (2 Maccabees xii. 46). How different is your
behavior, when such events happen, from that of your Catholic
brethren all over the world I Their sensibility is not confined to the
unprofitable tears and lamentations of a few days ; their faith follows
their deceased friends into the mansions of another life, and enkindles
all their charity ; they procure prayers and sacrifices to be ottered to
God for the repose of their souls; the exercises of charity to the poor,
and al. the works of mercy and religion ire employed for their relief,
as long as there remains a reasonable ground to fear that they may
want it. Thus St. Augustin testified his sensibility, after the death or
bis holy mother, St. Monica; thus, as Tertnllian, St. Cyprian, and
other nrimit’ve Fathers teach us, children expressed their duty and

APPENDIX.

629

veneration for their parente, and surviving Christian spouses for them
to whom they had been united by the ties and duties of a virtuou·
marriage.
When it pleases God to call your friends ont of this world, do yon,
my dear brethren, give such proofs of your affection for them I You
attend them to the grave, yon shed over it a few tears, and there is
the term of your care and solicitude.
If a charitable priest offer up to the throne of mercy, for their sake,
the Blood of the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world,
he does it generally unsolicited and unthanked by you. You make
no sacrifice of interest or enjoyments to charity and religion, that the
deceased may find speedy mercy and an anticipated enjoyment of ever­
lasting bliss. I earnestly beseech you to deserve no longer this re­
proach on your charity and sensibility. Follow your departed brethren
into the regions of eternity with your prayers, and all the assistance
which is suggested by the principles of faith and piety. Let the great
sacrifice of propitiation be offered for all who die in the unity of the
Catholic Church and in due submission to her wholesome precepts.
Where it is possible, let a funeral service be performed. And I recom­
mend it strongly to the pastors of all congregations, and to the faithful
themselves, t. promote the formingof pious associations, whose special
object shall be to bestow on the dead, and especially on those who die
poor and friendless, the best offices of religion, that is, to procure for
them a decent interment accompanied with the prayers and sacred rites
ordained by the Church.
In this my address to yon, my dear brethren, I have been chiefly
solicitous to recommend to your attention those things which will be
of general advantage to the preservation and increase of true religion.
I have no doubt but that your immediate pastors will give you caution
frequently against the prevailing and most dangerous vices; and will
instruct you how to walk in the observance of all Christian duties. I
shall only add this, my earnest request, that to the exercise of the sublirnest virtues, Faith, Hope, and Charity, you will join a ferrent and
well-regulated devotion to the Holy Mother of our Lord and Saviour
Jesus Christ, that yon will place great confidence in her intercession,
aud have recourse to her in all your necessities, but more especially
your spiritual necessities. Having chosen her to be the special
patroness of this diocess, you are placed, of course, under her power
ful protection, and it becomes your duty to he careful to deserve its
continuance by a zealous imitation of her virtues and reliance on her
motherly superintendence.

630

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

The Sunday immediately following the feast of her glorious assump­
tion into Heaven, or the feast itself, whenever it happens to fall on a
Sunday, is to be celebrated as a principal solemnity of this dioces?. on
which we are to unite with one heart and in one earnest supplication
to the Father of all mercies and the Giver of every good gift, through
the intercession of the Blessed Virgin, that he may be graciously
pleased to preserve, increase, and diffuse a sincere and well-grounded
attachment to the principles of our holy religion, to avert from us the
seduction of error and pestilential infidelity, to awake and renew in us
the spirit of solid piety and of watchfulness over our unruly passions,
to animate us to the fulfilling of all the commandments, to pour down
on our country blessings spiritual and temporal, and to receive our
grateful and humble thanks for the innumerable favors which we con­
tinually receive from a bountiful Providence.
That these acts of religion may be more acceptable, by being
offered with purified hearts, I earnestly exhort and recommend to all
who shall join in the celebration of thia great festival, to expiate the;:
offences by sincere compunction in the sacrament of penance, and tc
enrich their souls by those abundant graces which are annexed to a
worthy participation of Christ’s Body and Blood. I have solicited,
for your sake, my dear brethren, from the Holy See, special spiritual
favors for this solemnity, and have no doubt but the fatherly solici­
tude which his Holiness the Vicar of Jesus Christ has always shown
hitherto for your improvement in every Christian virtue, will induce
him to grant the favors requested, of which, in due time, you shall
receive proper notice.
What may not be hoped, if to other means of salvation, such ae
are always to be found in the salutary institutions of the Church, you
will add every year this, likewise, that is now suggested i if you recur
to God. the fountain of mercy and grace, through the intercession of
the Queen of Angels ? if you honor her greatest festival with peculiar
anu fervent exercises of piety, and with a determined will of making
the precepts of the Gospel the rule of your lives 1 The Church bears
her this honorable testimony, that it is often owing to her patronage
that nations preserve or recover the integrity of Christian faith and
morality. Let this be exemplified in our own country. Walk worthy
of the vocation in which you are called (Eph. iv. 1). Give no cause
of its being said of any one of you, thou that makest thy boast of the
law, by transgression of the law dishonorest God (Rom. ii. 23). On
the contrary, endeavor continually, that you may declare His virtues
whe has called you out of darkness into His admirable light,

APPENDIX.

Ml

among whom is your conversation, considering you by your y>vd
works, may give glory to God in the day of visitation Q Pet. ii. 9, 12).
For this cause I bow my knees to the Father of w Lord Jews Christ,
that he would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, that
Christ may dwell by faith in your hearts; that, being rooted and
founded, in charity, you may be able to know also the charity of
Christ, which 8u/rpasseth knowledge, that you may oe filled unto all the
fulness of God. Now to Him who is able to do all things more abun­
dantly than we desire or understand, to Him be glory in the Church,
and in Christ Jesus, unto all generations,world without end. Amen.
(Eph. iv. 16 et seq.).
John,

Bishop of Baltimore
Baltimore, May 28, 1792.

To accomplish the good which he contemplated, Bishop Carroll
had the happiness of witnessing the frequent arrival in America of
clergymen who were endowed with all the qualities for the mission­
ary life. The Dubois, the Flagets, the Dubonrgs, the Cheverus,
and many others of the same eminent character, were gathering
around him to consolidate the excellent institutions which he had
commenced, and to spread far and wide the blessings ot religion by
instruction and the administration of the sacraments. The academy
at Georgetown had been set on foot, and was acquiring reputation ;
while the seminary at Baltimore flourished in the spirit ot piety and
regularity. The missionary field, while it was supplied with additional
laborers, also presented a more abundant harvest in the numbers ot
the faithful, which began sensibly to increase under the favorable
nrcuinstances which the new political régime ottered for immigration,
and for tbe more out-spoken profession of Catholicity. Charleston and
Savannah, in the South; West Pennsylvania; the old French missions
of Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan; and the churches of Boston, New
York, Albany, Kentucky, and other places, felt the beneficial influ­
ence of the providential dispensation which had conducted so many
worthy ecclesiastics to the shores of America. The Rev. Stepheu T.
Badin, the first priest ordained in the United States, was sent to Ken­
tucky, in 1794, and for many years was the principal, and for some
time the only missionary in that region. One of the moat consoling
incidents of Dr. Carroll’s administration, was to supply with zealou·
pastors the Indian tribes in the northeast and northwestern part of the
United States. Having appealed to his pastoral solicitude, in their

632

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

earnest desire to enjoy the blessings of religion, he complied with
{heir wishes ns soon as circumstances would enable him to do so. The
Rev. Messrs. Ciquard, Cheverus, and Romagne, successively attended
the Penobscot and Passamaquoddy tribes in Maine, while Rev. Messrs.
Levadonx, Richard, and Rivet, labored among the Catholic settle­
ments and Indians of the Northwest. These missions were supported,
to some extent, by an appropriation from the United States govern
ment, through the instrumentality of Bishop Carroll.
The progress of religion in these early times was promoted, in no
small degree, by the communities of the devout female sex, which
were successfully introduced into the country. In 1790, the Carmel
ites of St. Theresa’s reform established a convent in Charles County.
Maryland. A few years after, a community of Poor Clares was
founded in Georgetown, D. C., which, however, had no permanent
existence. It was succeeded, in the same town, by a society of pious
ladies, who subsequently, under the direction of the Rt. Rev. Leonard
Neale, adopted the rules of the Visitation of St. Francis de Sales, and
now have many flourishing institutions in different parta of the coun­
*
try.
At a later period, Mrs. Seton, a convert to Catholicity in New
York, commenced an academy at Baltimore, in 1808, for the educa
lion of young persons of her sex, which resulted, the following year,
in the establishment, at Emmetsburg, Maryland, of the Sisters or
Daughters of Charity, whose benevolent administrations in orphan­
asylums, hospitals, and poor-schools, are now the theme of universal
praise throughout the land.
Contemporary with these increased resources for female education,
both secular aud religious, was the progress of institutions for th·; lit­
erary and ecclesiastical training of young men. The Hermits of St.
Augustin were introduced, at Philadelphia, by Father Carr, as early
as 1790, and the church of St. Augustin and a flourishing college,
near that city, are now under their direction. The Sulpitians, at
Baltimore, commenced the collegiate institution of St. Mary’s, in
1799, which soon rose to a highly prosperous condition.! A few
years after, a preparatory seminary, under the charge of the same
clerical congregation, was founded at Pigeon Hills, near Hanover, Penn­
sylvania, but was soon transferred to the vicinity of Emmetsburg,
Maryland, and resulted in the excellent institution of Mt. St. Mary’s
• Rev. Father Neale, an ex-Jesuit, wan appointed dishop of Gortyna, in part, and coad­
jutor of Bishep CarroU, in 1795 ; but the bulls having )>een delayed, be was not consecrated
Oil 1800.
f Ducontiuued, unfortunately, in 1850.

APPENDIX.

633

College and Seminary, which was first conducted by the Rev. John
Dubois, and which still renders the most important services to religion
and education.
Among the events which contributed materially, at this period, to
promote the interests of the Church, was the restoration, in the United
States, of the Society of Jesus. This had always been a cherished
object with Dr. Carroll and the other ex-members of the society;
and when they had received positive information that it had continued
without interruption in Russia, and that the general in that country
had authority to aggregate others, at least inforo coneciontiœ, Bishop
Carroll and his coadjutor, Dr. Neale, applied to the general, Father
Gruber, requesting to be made acquainted with the real state of
things, and, if practicable, to be allowed a participation in the privi
leges accorded to the society in Russia. Upon the receipt of Father
Gruber’s answer,
*
authorizing a renewal of vows and the appoint­
ment of a superior, Dr. Carroll held a meeting, May 10, 1805, at
μ bich six of the former fathers of the company were readmitted ; and,
on the 21st of June following, the Rev. Robert Molynenx was named
by Dr. Carroll to the charge of the renascent society. There soon
arrived from Europe other members, to give vigor and efficacy to the
college at Georgetown, and to various missions in Maryland aud Penn­
sylvania. In the spring of 1806, another important establishment for
the American Church was commenced in Washington County, Ken­
tucky, by Rev. Edward Fenwick and other members of the Order of
St. Dominic. A novitiate was soon opened for the instruction ot can­
didates for the priesthood, while the fathers of the convent labored
zealously in the performance of missionary duty.f
These numerous accessions to the ranks of the clergy, afforded Dr.
Carroll more ample means of supplying the wants of the faithful; but,
considering the extent of the harvest, the laborers were comparatively
few. The jurisdiction of the Bishop of Baltimore embraced not only
the thirteen original States, but all the territory belonging to them,
which now included Upper and Lower Louisiana, and all the country
west of the Mississippi River.ÿ New Orleans bad been made an
episcopal see, in 1793, and the Rt. Rev. Dr. Penalver had charge of
• March 12, 1804.
f Io 1804, Kev. Michael Egan, of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, was empowered to establish
* province of Franciscan Minora in tho United States ; but tho project had no favorable
result At tho same time, a community of Trappists, from Val-Sainte, Switzerland. arriveJ
.n Baltimore, aud, after successive fruitless attempts in various parts of the country to ee
w'Jsb tboir order, they returned to Europe.
J He was also charged, in 1809, with the care of the missions in severa. of the Wert

f)34

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES

flip diocese until the country was ceded to the French Another
bishop was appointed to succeed him, after his departure for Santa Fé,
the Kt. Rev. Dr. Porro, who, however, never reached his see; and the
absence of episcopal authority, or the contentions which arose on the
subject of jurisdiction, gave birth to the most lamentable discords in
that part of the Church, which continued for many years, and were
productive of the greatest scandals. Louisiana being now within the
domain of the United States (having been purchased in 1803), the Holy
See directed Dr. Carroll to administer its ecclesiastical affairs, and he
appointed successively Rev. Messrs. Olivier and Dubourg his vicars,
with full powers for that mission.
The schism at New Orleans was, unfortunately, not the only one
that saddened the heart of the chief pastor and aggravated the burden
of his administration. While the people found an occasion of scandal
at Charleston, S. C., and iu Westmoreland County, Pa., in the irregular
conduct of the priest, at Philadelphia and Baltimore they encouraged
ambitious and insubordinate clergymen to rebel against episcopal
authority, and to exercise faculties which did not belong to them
The cases of Rev. Francis From, in West Pennsylvania, and of Rev
Ca?sarius Reuter, in Baltimore, are worthy of special notice, inasmuch
as they were brought before the civil tribunals, and led to the decla­
ration of a principle which has subsequently governed the decision of
our courts. From had taken possession of the church property near
Youngstown (left by Rev. Mi·. Brauers), against tho positive prohibi­
tion of Bishop Carroll, who refused to employ him as pastor ; and
Reuter, at Baltimore, with the aid of a party, occupied the German
church, to the exclusion of a large part of the congregation, who
would not join him because he officiated without any faculties from
the bishop. In the latter instance the court decided that the
church should be restored to the pastor appointed by the bishop;
*
in the former case, the judge gave a similar opinion, thus recog­
nizing the principle, that a congregation professing to be united
with the Boman Catholic Church, must be governed, in the tenure
and administration of the church property, by the rules or canons of
said ehurch.+
During this early period, when the number of Catholics was small
ludia Islands—St Croix, St. Thomae, and St. John, belonging to Denmark—the Dutcl
Island of St. Eustatia, and the neighboring ones of St. Kitts, Antigua, and Barbouda.
• Father Brosiua was the legitimate pastor, and tho case woe Brosiua v. Reuter.—Gbm.
KaWXu's Jianwir-ipl Ahlee.
♦ Executors c‘ Brauoia i>. From, cited by De Courcy.

APPENDIX.

635

and sparsely settled, the clergy in many instances were subject to the
greatest hardships, and it may not be either uninteresting or nnirietructive for the present generation to learn, from the mort anthentie
sources, the trials which some of the missionaries had to endnre, as
well as the rude state of society which existed in some parts of the
country, and the eccentric character of some among the clergy them­
eelves. At the risk of being charged with a deviation from the
dignity of historical narration, we feel bound to present the following
extracts from original documents:
Oct. 17, 1795, Rev. L. S. Phelan writes to Bishop Carroll, from
West Pennsylvania. A log church had been commenced near Greens­
burg, but not completed. “Your reverence can have no conception
of my distress here, even for the necessaries of life, for really I have
not any thing like a sufficiency of food such as I get. and indeed poor
and filthy it is. Most of the Irish, who, though poor, were by far the
most generous, have now quit this settlement; five or six German
families alone remain, whose chaplain I may call myself, since I can
not pretend to travel for want of a horse, and these people, indeed—
abstraction made of religion—are the last of all mankind for senti­
ments of humanity. The poor man I live with is not paid what was
promised for my board, and, whether he intends it or not, he treats
me accordingly. Perhaps he can’t help it. Bread is the sole support
of his family. Morning, noon, and night, flour and water, or bread
and water, with a little burnt grease thrown over, is the support of
his starved and almost perfectly naked large family. Since my arri­
val, the onlv meat they had was a little pig about twenty or thirty
pounds, and a calf ten days old, of which we have eat this whole
week, till it became musty and green for want of salt. When I
arrived first, they had about a dozen of hens, ot which I must have
eat eight, as they still have four. . . . Thus have I spent five
months of a very rigorous Lent, that threw me into a diarrhœa, that,
in such wretchedness and cold, made me pass a most penitential
winter”
The following will show what singular characters were occasionally
met with in those days, and what a rough set of people the priest had
sometimes to encounter. A clergyman offers his services to Dr. Car­
oil, from Naples, February, 1797 : “ The purport of my troubling yon?
lordship is no other than that, as being informed there is a scarcitv of
horses, in your new found world, to cultivate the vineyard of the
Lord, should your lordship be under the deplorable necessity of sup­
plying tho defect by employing even asses, 1 should most humbly

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATER.

oner myself for one, though I can boast of nothing to recommend me
for 6" sublime a function,” &C.
Another priest, writing from Milltown, Pa., in January, 1799,
informe Bishop Carroll that he had a large tract of land about, twenty
miles from there, had placed his sister, a nun, on it, allotting her and
her Order five hundred acres. He requests the bishop to send him. in
the spring, “twenty Munster or Connaught men. and, if they are
poor, I'll pay them as much a year or a day as any other gentleman
in the country, provided they are Catholics, because there are plenty
of other descriptions here already; but I don't approve of it. Thus
you’ll free me from a reprobated clan of infamous Scotch-Irish, supe­
rior in all kinds of wickedness, only in a superlative degree, to the
most rile celebrated convicts. . . . What, a holy relief it is for me to
be so soon reprieved from such a degraded, dragooning group of in­
fections reptiles I This before I would not mention to you, until 1
could be settled, in dread you might suppose interested views might,
oblige me to exaggerate in my reports. Its as good as a farce to hear,
that since I came back, ir consequence of the cold, I am dislodged
from my spring-house, and obliged to turn into the pig-sty, that is,
the pour, honest man’s own bouse, which is worse than can be described
in the old German style, where cats, young dogs, and young fowls,
both men and their wives, sons and daughters, we all in one st: ve­
room comfortably kennel together; but what is more humorous is,
that I am kept in pledge, in this sweet-scented situation, for my quar­
ter’s diet and lodging.” We shall conclude this part of the subject
with a portraiture drawn by the pen of Father Whelan, who had many
years before been a missionary in Kentucky. Writing from White
Clay Creek, Pa., January 7,1805, he says: “As to Thos. Maguire
and his wife, a priest might as well go and lodge in a wolf-pen as with
thein—he being a wild Irish savage, she being either of the Sambo
or Shawnee breed, though some say that she is a Hottentot. But. let
the case be as it may, she is one whose exterior appearance and into
rior disposition differ totally from any woman I ever conversed with.
At the second word she will give me the lie to my face. Her hus­
band, though present, would say nothing to all this. . . . No man in
Bedlam suffers more than I do, in the company of four wolves. I hope
it is a temporal purgatory, and will atone for tome of my sins.”
IV.
Tn 1808, the number of Catholics had so much increased, in the
Eastern States and in the country west of the Allegheny Mountains,

APPENDIX.

that the Sovereign Pontiff deemed it expedient to raise Balt im- re to
the dignity of an archiépiscopal see. with four suffragan bishopria,
Philadelphia, New York, Boston, and Bardstown. The Rev. Michael
Egan was appointed to Philadelphia; Rev. John C'heverus, tn Boston ;
and Rev. Benedict, Flaget to Bardstown, who were all consecrated by
Archbishop Carroll at Baltimore, in the autumn of 181··. The Rev
L ike Concanen, of the Order of Preachers, appointed for New York,
was consecrated at Rome; but he died at Naples on the eve of em­
barking for his diocess. At this time there were about seventy priest·
and eighty churches in the United States, with a Catholic population
of probably one hundred and fifty thousand. As an evidence of the
progress of the Church, it may be stated that in 1808 six priests were
ordained on one day, and as Dr. Carroll remarks in a letter to his coad
jutor, it was “a happy day for the diocess.” Before the bishops sepa
rated for their respective sees, they adopted various points of disci
pline, and addressed a letter to the Sovereign Pontiff, in which they
pray him to aid them with such instructions, as the welfare of the
Church in general and of the United States in particular might re
quire ; to appoint chief pastors to the sees of New York and New Or­
leans, and to indicate the future mode of providing for vacant bishop
rics. They also issued a brief pastoral on a few matters of immediato
moment, reserving for another occasion a general review of the eccle­
siastical discipline observed throughout the country. Pastors ot the
different churches were admonished not to allow strange priests to say
mass, without the permission of the ordinary ; they were also informed
that the sacrament of baptism should be administered in the church,
in those towns which had one, unless necessity should otherwise dic­
tate ; that the people should be advised to have the ceremony ot mar­
riage performed in the church, when it could be done without great
inconvenience ; and that they should be dissuaded from an attachment
to entertainments and diversions dangerous to morale, such as frequent­
ing the theatre, a fondness for dancing assemblies, reading books inju­
rious to faith and morality, and the promiscuous reading of all kind·
of novels.
The extensive correspondence which these important matters re­
quired, occupied the earnest attention of Archbishop Carroll, especially
n« the see of Philadelphia soon became vacant by the demise of Dr.
Egan, in 1814, “ whose few years of administration,” as Bishop Eng­
land remarks, “were years of difficulty.” He was a pious, zealous, and
learned prelate, but deficient in that firmness which was necessary to
cope with the machinations of evil-disposed men. The Rev. Lewi
*

638

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATE·»

Debartb was appointed administrator of the diocess durio» the va
cancy of the see, and, soon after he entered upon the charge, he had
the happiness of welcoming to the city of Philadelphia a band of Sis­
ters of Charity from Emmetsburg, to take the direction of an orphan
asylum and school. This was the first colony sent by Mother Seton
to extend the work of charity. The efforts of Bishop Flaget, in his
new field of labor, were soon crowned with the most gratifying results.
In a few years he had established an ecclesiastical seminary under the
direction of Rev. John B. David, who had accompanied him to Ken­
tucky, and two institutions of religious women, the Lorettines and the
Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, who, in aspiring to the practice of
hristian perfection, would devote themselves to the education of
ung persons of their sex.
*
In the diocess of New York, the affairs
the Church had assumed an aspect of decided improvement, owing
the zeal of the learned and exemplary clergymen whom Archbishop
Carroll had stationed in that city—Fathers Anthony Kohlman and
Benedict Fenwick, of the Society of Jesus, the former of whom was
invested with the powers of vicar-general. They established in New
York City a literary institution for young men, which did much good.
To their efforts, also, was due the erection of the Cathedral, which was
dedicated in 1815. Some time before this, a remarkable case was de­
cided by the civil tribunal of New York, in which Father Kohlman
was a prominent actor, and which resulted in determining an impor­
tant principle of law. It was a case of restitution ; and the question
haring arisen, whether a priest was bound to give evidence as to mat­
ters disclosed to him under the seal of the confessional, it was decided
that a priest could not be compelled to answer in such cases.f
On witnessing these evident manifestations of progress in the
cause of religion, the Most Rev. Dr. Carroll could congratulate him­
self, that his labor and solicitude had not been vainly bestowed upon
the rising Church of the United States. He had conducted it, under
the providence of God, from a state of poverty, persecution, and dis­
tress, to a condition of comparative prosperity. He beheld it au
ecclesiastical province, with its bishops, an increasing body of clergy,
its convents, colleges, ecclesiastical seminaries, and with a bright pros­
pect of still further extension for the glory of God and the salvation
• Tho Lorettines wore instituted by Rev. Charles Nerincks, of Kentucky, one of tho most
laborious and saintly priests that have labored in the missions of America.
I A full report of this case was published by Counsellor Sampson, including a treatise by
Father Kohlman on the Catholic doctrine touching the sacrament of Penance. The volume
b aotitlad The Oalhdic Question, X. Y., 1813

APPENDIX.

639

of sonis. Under these consoling circumstances was he called to the
reward of the faithful servant, on the 3d of December, 1815, in the
eighty-first year of his age. During his last illness, he displayed the
same greatness of character which had distinguished him during life.
As he drew nearer to his end, the glow of religious hope seemed to
increase within him—the effect of his strong and lively faith in the
cross of Christ, and of his filial trust in the protection of the mother
of God. These two sentiments were dominant in his last moments,
and led him to express the wish that he should be laid on the floor,
that he might expire in the posture of the deepest humility, and to
remark to his confessor, that the greatest consolation he experienced
in that awful hour, was the reflection that he had placed his diocee·
under the patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
*
Archbishop Carroll, though of low stature, had a commanding and
dignified appearance. “The configuration of his head, his whole
mien,” says one of his friends, “ bespoke the métropolite.” While his
superior faculties and acquirements, with his great personal consider­
ation and influence, inspired universal respect, his courteous and
affable manners and the benignity of his nature attracted and de­
lighted all who approached him. His conversational powers were of
the highest order, derived from his extensive reading and his wellimproved opportunities of information, at home and abroad. As a
scholar his attainments were varied and extensive, and his writings
exhibit in general a model of classical style. But the eminent quali­
ties of Dr. Carroll shone forth most conspicuously as a prelate. His
sound judgment and great prudence, combined with equal zeal, firm­
ness, and mildness, gave him a peculiar fitness for the administration
of affairs. His letters to clergymen, whose errors of conduct and
whose scandals ho was forced to condemn, breathed at the same time
a spirit of charity and condescension which rarely failed to bring them
to a sense of their obligations. In private as in public life he was the
model of all. His piety was of the most tender and exemplary charac­
ter. 2\.lthough constantly receiving visitors, and frequently at the
close of evening, he never omitted, at the appointed hour for night­
prayer, to retire gracefully from the company, and, with the few
colored servants of his household, to recite with them the customary
devotions. In a word, Archbishop Carroll exhibited in his person the
truly episcopal character as portrayed by St. Peter : “ Feed the flock
of God which is among you ; overseeing not by constraint, but wil
lingly, according to God; not for filthy lucre, but cheerfully: nor as
• Ego mater pulchre dilectionis et agnitionis et kmcIc -jxi.

Eccli. 34.

6IC

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATER

(online it over the portions, but ne becoming a pattern of the flock
from the heart.”*
The Right Rev. Leonard Neale, coadjutor of the late archbishop,
succeeded him in the metropolitan see. Dr. Neale bad, for twentyfive years, zealously co-operated with his illustrious predecessor, in
promoting the interests of the Church, rendering the most efficient
services as pastor at Philadelphia, president of the college at George­
town, ami director of the Visitation convent in the latter city, when
he assumed the charge of the archdiocese. The burden, however, was
too great for his years and infirmities. Eighteen months after his
accession to the see of Baltimore, he died at Georgetown, having,
during his short administration, exhibited in a high degree the firm­
ness of a truly Christian prelate, in opposing the irregular proceedings
of two schismatical and scandalous priests at Charleston, South Caro­
lina. Before his demise, the Rev. Ambrose Maréchal, professor at St.
Mary’s Seminary, in Baltimore, had been appointed his coadjutor, but
he was not consecrated until December, 1817. Like his venerable
predecessor, he bad a thorny path to travel in the earlier period of his
episcopacy. Besides the tronbles at Charleston, which were eventually
composed through the exemplary zeal and prudence of Rev. Messrs.
Cloriviere and Ben. Fenwick, the pacification of the Church at
Norfolk, Virginia, was an object of his earnest solicitude and most
active exertions. In that city, the spirit of insubordination among
some of the laity, abetted by a most unscrupulous clergyman. Rev.
Thomas Carbery, threatened the Church with the most lamentable
evils. The party who were opposed to the duly appointed pastor,
Rev. James Lucas, went so far as to apply to the schismatical Bishop
of Utrecht, for the purpose of having a certain priest consecrated
bishop of Norfolk, who was afterward to consecrate bishops for all the
States of the Union, and to establish in this country an IndependentCatholic Church of the United States.” But this diabolical project
failed, by the refusal of the priest in question to enter into the
design ,f
• l Peter, v.—The funeral oration of Archbishop Carroll was delivered by the Ror. Di.
Gallagher, who applied to him, in a very happy manner, those words of Scripturo: " Ecce
sacerdos magnus qui in diebus sub placuit Deo et inventus est justus, et in temporo ira­
cundi» fsetus est reconciliatio." Eccli. -H.
f Carbery officiated as a priest at Norfolk, without faculties, nnd he openly cautioned
the civil authorities in Virginia to beware of the spiritual power of tho Pope. It was
providential tor the Church, that the true character of this man, who had a few years
before been nominated by the Bishop of New York as a fit person to fill the see of Chari···
urn. «as discovered in time

APPENDIX.

Ml

These unfortunate disturbances, which had their chief source in the
antagonism or conflict of nationalities, were a sufficient motive for the
Holy See to create a bishopric in Virginia, while the great distance of
the Carolinas and Georgia led to the creation of an episcopal see at
Charleston. In 1820, the Rt. Rev. Dr. England, formerly parish-priest
of Bandon, in Ireland, took possession of the latter diocess, and Rt.
Rev. Patrick Kelly, a native of the same country, arrived in Norfolk,
Va., where he found it more convenient to reside than in his see at
Richmond. When Dr. England arrived in his diocess, it could count
only five or six small churches (one in Charleston, three in Georgia,
and one in North Carolina), with only two clergymen in the field.
He soon succeeded in establishing a seminary, where young men could
have an opportunity of receiving a good secular and ecclesiastical edu­
cation. At a later period, he introduced a community of Sisters of
Mercy, who have rendered important service to the diocess. At the
time of which we are speaking, there were not more than two or three
churches in Virginia, and only one priest. The stay of Dr. Kelly in
America was not of long duration, it having been discovered at Rome,
upon a further consideration of the subject, that the appointment of a
bishop for Virginia had been premature.
*
In admitting this to Arch
bishop Maréchal, who had protested against the measure, Cardinal
Fontana informed him also that the circumstance was a matterot pro­
found regret at Rome, and that the Sovereign Pontiff, wishing to give
him some pledge of his apostolic kindness, would soon send him a gold
chalice of exquisite workmanship, to be a perpetual memorial of the
distinguished favor which he bore toward the Archbishop of Balti­
more and the church under his care.f Another mark of the particu
lar regard of his Holiness for the American Church, was the institu
tion of the Marian Theological Faculty in the University of St. Mary’s
at Baltimore. This grant was made, as the official decree states, “ that
young men, instructed in the various branches of knowledge, and par­
ticularly in the sacred sciences, should be qualified to conduct others
in the right way, and by the combat of error to promote the progress
of true religion.”^ The Rev. Messrs. Whitfield, Deluol, and Damphoux, were the first recipients of the doctoral honors, in accordance
with the afore-mentioned decree.
• After laboring with gront zeal for tho welfare of his people, during bis brief admin·»
«ration in America, Dr. Kelly was transferred to tho see of Waterford, in Ireland, in 1H3*
f Thia chilice is used or.ly on grand occasions in the Metropolis-· Church.
} March, 1822
Vol. rv.—41

642

THE CATHOLIC CHtJRCH IN THE UNITEO STATES.

One year after the creation of the new diocesses in the South, Cincio
nati was erected into an episcopal sec, and the Rev. Edward Fenwick,
O. P., appointed to fill it. This diocess embraced Ohio, Michigan,
and Northwest Territory. Father Fenwick had made several mission
ary visits to Ohio; but in 1818, he and Rev. Nicholas D. Young. 0.
P. , settled permanently in Perry County, where the first chapel in that
State was erected. Religion soon exhibited the signs of a rapid prog
ress. In two years after his appointment, he computed the number
of Catholics in Ohio at eight thousand, and about twelve thousand in
Michigan ; there were twenty-two congregations, and seven priests to
attend them. In a short time the diocess was blessed with establish­
ments of Sisters of Charity from Emmetsburg, and of the Nuns of St.
Dominic, for the cause of charity and education.
While the progress of the faith was promoted by the creation of
>rw episcopal sees, it was equally advanced by the appointment of
□(shops to those which had become vacant. New Orleans was now
provided with a chief pastor, Rt. Rev. Dr. Dubourg, who on his icturn from Europe, in 1S17, brought with him a zealous band of mis­
sionaries to aid him in hie arduous labors. Deeming it inexpedient to
ettle in the capital of Louisiana, he made Missouri the more immedi­
ate theatre of his apostolic zeal. Here he established a seminary and
college under the Lazarists, or priests of the congregation of the Mis
Bion ; another college at St. Louis, under the Jesuits, who aiso com­
menced a novitiate of their order at Florissant. The Ladies of the
Sacred Heart, and the Lorettines from Kentucky, with the Ursulines
at New Orleans, were his resources for the education of young ladies
and the gratuitous instruction of the poor and the people of color. In
1823, the removal of Bishop Dubourg to New Orleans made it neces­
sary that he should have the aid of a coadjutor in Upper Louisiana,
and Rev. Joseph Rosati was appointed to this responsible office.
Shortly after this, Rev. Michael Portier, who conducted a college at
New Orleans, was named vicar apostolic of the territory embracing
Alabama and Florida, and subsequently he became Bishop of Mobile,
when the same country was formed into a diocess. Owing to intoler­
able annoyances and oppositions from clergy and laity, Bishop Dubourg
resigned his see in 1826, and returned to his native country. He was
succeeded at New Orleans by Rev. Leo de Nekere, the city of St
Louis being now an episcopal see, of which Dr. Rosati was the incum­
bent.
The see of New York, vacant by the death of Dr. Ooncanen,was filled
toward the close of 1815 by the Rt. Rev. Dr. Conolly, of the Order

APPENDIX.

643

of St. Dominic. lie was a zealous and laborious prelate, and had to
contend with many difficulties in his episcopal administration. Ho
had the happiiness of welcoming to the city of New York a colony of
Sisters of Charity from Emmetsburg, for the care of orphans and the
instruction of the poor—which was the second foundation of that ex­
cellent society in the United States. On the death of Dr. Conolly, in
1825, the diocess was wisely administered for two years by Very Rev.
John Power, a learned, eloquent, and airtiable clergyman, when the
Rev. John Dubois, president of Mount St. Mary’s College, was ap­
pointed bishop of New York. At that time he computed the number
of Catholics in his diocess at one hundred and eighty-five thousand,
with fourteen churches and about the same number of priests.
In the diocese of Bardstown, religion was advancing with rapid
strides. A new and elegant cathedral was consecrated in 1319, and
the same year Dr. Flaget had the happiness of conferring the episcopal
character on the Rev. Father David, who had been appointed his coad­
jutor, and was his right arm in promoting the interests of the Church
in that region. Shortly after, the colleges of St. Mary’s and St. Jo­
seph’s were founded in the diocess ; the former by Rev. William Byrne,
the latter by Rev. George A. Elder, both distinguished by their zeal
and piety. A convent of religious women, under the rule of St.
Dominic, was also commenced in this diocess about the year 1819.
The spiritual vineyard embracing the New England States, of
which the see of Boston was the centre, had also borne its fruits. In
1818, a convent of Ursulines was established in that city, and subse­
quently transferred to Charlestown, where it became a flourishing
house of education for young ladies.
*
Soon after this foundation, the
diocess was deprived, by the death of Rev. Dr. Matignon, ot a mis­
sionary who had given the first impulse to the prosperity ot the Church
in New England, and who was universally respected for his eminent
abilities and virtues. But the Church was to suffer an equal, if not
greater loss, by the departure of Dr. Cheverus, bishop of Boston, for
hie native country. He had long resisted the urgent appeals of his
family to return among them ; but the solicitations renewed from still
higher authority appeared to him an indication of the divine will, and
he left America in the autumn of 1823, to take possession of the see of
Montauban, in France.! He was succeeded by the Right Rev. Beue• Rev Mr. Thaye.·, to whom we have already alluded, was the originator of this reli­
gious hoase, after his final departure from the United States to fix his residento in Ireland
f Afterwards transferred to the archiépiscopal see of Bordeaux, and invested with th«

644

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THB UNITED STATES.

diet J. Fenwick, who in entering upon his new field of labor found
only three priests and nine churches or chapels in the immense district
placed under his charge. The number of Catholics was about fifteen
thousand, the one-half of whom were in Boston and its vicinity.
Thesee of Philadelphia, after a vacancy of six years, during which
it was ably administered by Father Debarth, was tilled by the Right
Rev. Henry Conwell, who had been previously vioar-general of Ar
rough, in Ireland. The mitre for him was truly a crown of thorns.
The whole period of his administration (about eight years) was an open
and deplorable conflict with an unprincipled clergyman, the Rev. Wil
liam Hogan, pastor of St. Mary’s Church, Philadelphia, and his party.
Thi? priest, whose faculties had been withdrawn by the bishop, con­
tinued to exercise the ministry, and was upheld in his scandalous pro­
ceedings by the trustee? of the church. He would probably have re­
canted and returned to a sense of duty, if his false friends among the
laity, who were totally destitute of the spirit of religion, had not eucour
aged him in his wicked course. At length, this unhappy man quitteu
the scene of his scandals, went South, took a wife, published several
infamous attacks upon the Catholic Church, and died without giving
any sign of repentance, verifying the words of Scripture, “ the wicked
inau, when he is come into the depth of sins, contemneth ; but igno­
miny and reproach follow him.”* The departure of Hogan, however,
did not quell the storm.f Such was the excitement created by the
scldsmatical party, that the good bishop, anxious to restore peace to
his distracted flock, entered into a compromise with the trustees, rela­
tive to the appointment of pastors. This arrangement was condemned
by the Holy See as an infringement of the ecclesiastical authority, and
Dr. Conwell was summoned to Rome, ostensibly for the purpose of
presenting a full exposition of the state of things in his diocese, while
the Rev. William Matthews, of Washington City, was appointed to
administer its affairs. Soon after this, the spirit of discord began to
subside, but not without leaving behind it a scene of desolation—
many lost to the Church by a total extinction of the faith, and a still
greater number become obdurate in refusing to avail themselves of its
consoling ministrations.
Amidst the scandals which a portion of the Church in Philadel­
phia exhibited, Archbishop Maréchal witnessed with joy the progress
of religion in other parts of the United States ; and among the events
• Prof, xviil
< Rev. Messrs. O'Moolly, Harold, and Uy an, flgured very unreputably in this schism.

APPENDIX.

64 &

which justly claimed his gratitude to Heaven, was the manifestati· ·η
of a supernatural power in confirmation of the true faith. The gift of
miracles resides in the Church, in virtue of the promises of her divine
Founder, and He displays this extraordinary intervention of His power
as times and circumstances may require. An event of this kind,
beyond all question miraculous, occurred in the case of Mrs. Ann
Mattingly, of Washington City, sister of the Hon. Thomas Carbery,
then chief magistrate of the national metropolis. After a sickness of
several years’ duration, which subjected her to the most intense suffer­
ings, and which had resulted in the formation of external tumors and
ulcers, she was at length reduced to the point of death, and her physi­
cians pronounced her situation heyond the reach of medical skill. In
this condition she was advised to resort to the prayers of Rev. Prince
Hohenlohe, canon of Olmutz, who was renowned for his sanctity, and
who had the reputation of obtaining the most extraoidinary favors
from God. She accordingly performed a novena, or nine days' devo­
tion, in union with some of her pious friends, as the prince had
directed, and on the 10th of March, 1824. immediately after the recep­
tion of the Holy Communion, she was instantly restored to health.
The tumor had disappeared, the ulcers on her back were healed, and,
rising from her bed, she spent some time in prayer and thanksgiving,
and during the day received hundreds of visitors who crowded to see
her. Various miracles of the same kind were wrought at the Visitation
convent, Georgetown, D. C., at St. Joseph's Sisterhood, Emmets­
burg, and other places, which aroused the attention of many persons
outside of the Church to this brilliant evidence of her claim to their
respect and submission.
*
While miracles of this kind attested the truth of Catholic doctrine,
other supernatural events had many years previously been permitted by
the Almighty within the present limits of the United States, which are
worthy of record, inasmuch as they tend to confirm and illustrate the
famous saying of St. Thomas Aquinas, that God would send an angel,
if necessary, to instruct in the faith those who sincerely seek after it
by making a right use of the gifts of nature. The grounds on which
this opinion of the angelical Doctor was based, were not of a purely
epeculative nature. It rested equally upon the experience of the
Christian Church; and it is a source of gratification to know that this
experimental evidence has been witnessed in this country, as in other
• Seo » full report of the evidence in regard to these facta, by Dr. England, bishop ai
Charleston in I.'·· third volume of his works, p. 393.

04G

CATHOLIC CHURCH IX THE UNITED STATES.

parti of the world. Abont the commencement of the present century
there lived in Jefferson County, Virginia, a man named Adam Liv
ingston, a Pennsylvanian by birth, and a Lutheran in religion, A
short time after his settlement in Virginia, be was much disturbed by
invisible beings that haunted hie Iwuse. Hia property was destroyed,
his barn was burnt, bis cattle all died, his clothes were cut in pieces.
Chunks of fire were thrown or thrust into the beds, the crockery ware
was scattered upon the floor, and (what was most astonishing) articles
of clothing were ent in the form of a half-moon, while boots, saddles,
and other things were all demolished in the same way. Three men
came from Winchester,in order to free the house from its annoyances;
but they no sooner entered it, than a huge stone was seen to issue
from die fire-place, and whirl round upon the floor for more than
fifteen minutes, when the gentlemen sneaked away. Livingston
applied also to three conjurers, who gave him some herbs, a book
(common prayer), and a riddle, by way of catching the devil ; but the
first night, the book and herbs were found in a very ignominious
piece of chamber-furniture, which was covered with the riddle. After
some time,Mr. Livingston had a dream: he seemed to be climbing a
high mountain, with great difficulty, catching at roots and bushes to
efl'ect the ascent; and, after reaching the summit, be saw a man
dressed in a peculiar costume, and heard a voice, saying to him, “That
is the man who can relieve you.” He immediately inquired about
the neighborhood, to ascertain what kind of a man this could be; and
having been informed that Catholic priests wore the sort of dress
which he had seen, and that one of them would officiate on the fol­
lowing Sunday at Shepherdstown, he determined to be there on that
day. As soon as the priest came to the altar, for the celebration of
mass, Mr. L. was so much overcome that he burst into tears, and
said, “That is the very man whom I saw in my dream—that is the
one to relieve me.” The service ended, Livingston related his sad
story to the clergyman, the Rev. Dennis Cahill, who at first looked
upon it as a mere delusion ; but having been persuaded to visit the
residence of the Livingston family, and after investigating the matter,
he sprinkled the premises with holy water ; and before he left, a sum
of money, which had been taken away, was found at the door. He
afterward celebrated mass in the house, when the work of destruction
ceased. Mr. Livingston joined the Catholic Church, and after this
event he and his family were frequently favored with the visits of an
invisible person, whose voice instructed them in the different pointe
of Catholic doctrine and practice, recited the rosary with them, >ind

APPENDIX.

647

exhorted them to prayer and penitential works. Fourteen persona were
converted to the true faith in one season by these extraordinary revelatione, while Catholics themselves were inspired with more religions
sentiments. Mr. Livingston afterward removed to Loretto, in Penn­
sylvania, and some of his family are said to have died in the odor of
sanctity.
*
It may not be out of place, although not strictly in the chrono­
logical order, to mention another supernatural fact, which took place
within the present limits of the United States, in the first quarter nf
the seventeenth century. The Sons of St. Francis were then evan­
gelizing the Territory of New Mexico, and Father Benavides, superior
of the mission, was applied to by a distant tribe of Indians, who had
not yet been visited, and who wished to be baptized. These Indiana
stated that they had been instructed in the Christian faith by a lady,
who frequently visited them, and then disappeared, without their
knowing anything further about her. Missionaries were, however,
sent to this Indian tribe, who were found to be well acquainted
with the doctrines of the Church, and were at once admitted to the
sacraments. Some years after, Father Benavides, on a visit to Spain,
related this circumstance to the general of the Franciscans, who was
at once reminded of the supernatural favors accorded to Mary of
Agreda, a nun of the same religious institute. Upon a careful investi­
gation of the subject, it was discovered that she was perfectly acquainted
with all the details of the missionary enterprise among the above-men­
tioned tribe of Indians: she described the localities, stated the precise
day and hour when certain events took place, so that Father Benavides
was fully convinced of her having been the chosen instrument in the
hands of God for bringing that portion of the Mexican Indians to a
knowledge of the Christian religion.f However extraordinary such a
fact may appear, it is by no means incredible to those who know that
the very life and substance of the Christian Church lies in the super
natural order.
Within the period of Dr. Marechai’s administration as archbishop
of Baltimore, Catholic charity gave birth to an institution, the origin
and benefits of which, being largely connected with the Church on this
side of the Atlantic, deserves particular notice. In 1815, Bishop Du• Letters of Rev. Demetrius Λ. Gallitzin, in St. Louie leader, December, 1855—Dr
Gallitzin’s work on Holy Scripture, where he cites the above-mentioned facts as an evi­
dence of the supernatural power residing in the Church of Christ.—Also manuscript narr»·
tiros of Mrs. Dr. MeSherry, an eye-witness to the circumstances which are here related.
t Gorres, Ia Uydiyue. torn. 3, p. 341.—Also Memorial of Father Benaridee, 1630.

8

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

honrg, of New Orleans, occupied with the wants of his diocese, made
nn urgent appeal to hie friends in Lyons, in behalf of that object, and
suggested the formation of a society for the aid of the Church in Lou­
isiana. A similar project was started about the same time for the
benefit of the missions in the East. A few years after, a new impulse
was given to this charitable work by the proposal, on the part of a cler­
gyman from New Orleans, to make it universal or <atholio in its ope­
ration, by assisting the labors of the apostleship throughout the world
This idea prevailed, and on the 3d of May, 1822, feast of the Finding
of the Holy Cross, was organized the “ Association for the Propagation
of the Faith,” which received the approbation of the Supreme Pontiff
of Christendom, and was enriched by him with the spiritual treasures of
the Church. Subsequently, all the bishops of France encouraged it by
their official recommendation, and it has since been established in
every part of Europe, in Asia, and in different parts of North and Soutr
America. The institution has for its object, to assist, by prayers an
alms, the labors of Catholic missionaries throughout the world. On<
member receives the subscriptions (one cent a week) of ten others
the amount of which he hands over to another member, who receives
ten such collections, or one hundred subscriptions, which are placed
in the hands of the treasurer. Two committees, one at Paris and the
other at Lyons, administer the affairs of the association and distribute
the funds. An account of the receipts and expenditures is published
annually in the Annale of the Propagation of the Faith—a brochure
which appears every two months, containing a variety of missionary
intelligence, especially as communicated in letters of missionaries, from
different parts of the world. Over 227,000 copies of the Annals are
published every second month—in French, 145,000; Breton, 2,600;
English. 20,000 ; German, 20,500 ; Spanish, 2,000 ; Flemish, 6,200 ;
Italian, 26,000 ; Portuguese, 2,500 ; Dutch, 2,000 ; Polish 500. The
receipts of the association, for the year 1864, amounted to $1,000,000,
about $130,000 of which were sent to the United States.
While tliis truly Catholic institution was increasing in usefulness,
Archbishop Maréchal, of Baltimore, was called to the reward of his
many virtues, on the 29th of January, 1828. In his person were
blended the most extensive learning and most active zeal, with a
sweetness of temper and affability of manner which made him uni­
versally respected and beloved. Before his death, he had secured tho
appointment of the Very Reverend James Whitfield as his successor
«ii the metropolitan sec, who was consecrated ou the 25th of May of
the same year. One of the earliest acts of Dr. Whitfield’s administra-

APPENDIX.

649

tion was to sanction the establishment at Baltimoieoi tl.e Oh'.stc
*
Sis­
ters of Providence—a society of colored women, formed by the zeal
of Rev. II. Joubert, of St. Mary’s College. Thia community was
subsequently recognized at Rome, and it has done much good in the
religious education of colored children, chiefly in ’Baltimore, as only
one foundation of the institute has been elsewhere made. But the most
important event of this period, was the holding of the first Provincial
Council of Baltimore, which was opened on the 4th of October, 1829.
There were present, the Archbishop of Baltimore, and the Bishops of
Bardstown, Charleston, Cincinnati, St. Louis, and Boston ; also, twelve
priests, as theologians or superiors of different religious communities.
Four prelates were absent, the Bishop of New York, the coadjutor
Bishop of Bardstown, tho. Bishop of Mobile, and the Bishop of Phila­
delphia, who was represented by the administrator, Very Reverend
William Matthews.
*
The Fathers of the Council published thirty­
eight decrees, conducive to a better observance of ecclesiastical disci­
pline, which were confirmed by the Holy See, and the spirit of which
was embodied in an admirable pastoral letter,! from which we must
quote at least the following words: “ When we look around us, and
behold how, within a few years, our churches have multiplied and our
numbers increased, we feel deeply grateful to Him who, being able
‘from the very stones to raise up children to Abraham,’ has allured
them to the paths of salvation.” There was certainly just ground for
these words of congratulation, when we consider the progress ot the
Church from 1800 to that time. We then see Bishop Carroll,
with his coadjutor, charged literally with “ the solicitude ot all the
churches,” Catholics scattered in every direction to the number of
sixty thousand, and but few clergymen, perhaps not more than forty,
to supply the wants of this increasing population. For the higher
education of young men there were but two institutions, while there
was but one academy for young ladies. The Carmelite and Ursuline
convents alone ofl’ered a retreat to female piety, that aspired to the
practice of the evangeb'eal counsels. Such was the numerical force of
the Church thirty years before the opening of the first provincial coun­
cil. Now, there were eleven diocesses, ten bishops, two hundred
and thirty-two priests, two hundred and thirty churches, nine ecclesi­
astical seminaries, eight colleges, twenty female academies, and a
Catholic population of at least half a million. The number of priest»
• Rev. Leo de Nokere still hesitated to accept tho mitre,
f Drawn up by tho Right Reverend Dr. England.

650

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

vmdistributed ns follows: in the diocesees of Baltimore and Rich
mond, fifty-two; in New Orleans and St. Louis, eighty ; in New York,
twenty; in Boston, eight ; in Philadelphia, eighteen ; in Bardstown,
twenty-one; in Charleston, ten ; in Cincinnati, eighteen; in Mobile,
five These figures show a decided and rapid progress of the Church,
considering the various obstacles it had to contend with ; and although
the Catholic population would have been much greater if there had
existed, from the beginning, every facility for the instruction and
spiritual assistance of those who belonged to the household of the
faith, it cannot be denied that Catholicity had advanced, in spite of
the numerous difficulties it encountered, much in the same way that
its triumphs have been effected in every part of the world.

V.

In glancing at the subsequent history of the Church in the United
States, we are compelled, by various reasons, to avoid entering into
details, and we shall, therefore, merely refer to the more prominent
events that have taken place. Of these, the principal are the different
councils that have been held, and the multiplication of diocesses.
The second provincial council of Baltimore was convened in Octo
oer, 1833, under the presidency of Archbishop Whitfield. Five other
bishops assisted at it, among whom were the Rt. Rev. Francis P. Kenrick, coadjutor of Philadelpliia, Rt. Rev. John B. Purcell, of Cincin­
nati, and Rt. Rev. Frederick Rézé, of Detroit.
*
On this occasion the
Fathers of the council adopted a regular mode of nominating bishops
to vacant sees, and proposed that the Indian tribes in the far West,
and the Catholic negroes in the colony of Liberia, should be confided
to the care of the Society of Jesus. As early as 1823, Dr. Dubourg,
of New Orleans, had taken steps for providing the Indians of Missouri
Territory with spiritual assistance, and Fathers Vanquicken born,
Hoecken, and other Jesuits, labored with the most signal success
among the Kickapoos, Potowatomies, Osages, and different other
tribes, until 1850, when the Indian Territory was made an apostolic
vicariate, and the Rt. Rev. F. B. Miège, S. J., was appointed to that
field. There are two principal missions for the Indians in this dis­
trict, that of the Potowatomies, on Sugar Creek, and that, of the
Osages, on the Neosho River, both in the State of Kansas. Sellouts
•Bishop Fenwick, of Cincinnati, and Bishop de Nekere. of New Orleans, had died_ th·
former in 1832, and the latter only one month preceding the meeting of the prelate
*
Detroit had been made an episcopal sec, embracing Michigan and the Northwest Territory

APPENDIX.

651

tre conducted for their benefit by Ladies of the Sacred Heart and the
Sisters of Loretto. There are several thousand Indians belonging to
this mission. Repeated deputations having been sent to St. Louis,
from the Flat-heads, west of the Rocky Mountains, who had been
drawn to the faith, many years before, by some Catholic Iroquois
from Canada, and who earnestly solicited the aid of the Black-gowns
for their spiritual wants, Father de Smet set out for their distant
country in 1840, and in the course of a few years established flourish
ing missions among that and other tribes. A few years before the
Jesuits had commenced their labors in the eastern part of Oregon,
the Rev. Francis N. Blanchet and Rev. Modest Demen’, priests from
Canada, had penetrated to the western portion of the territory, where
they formed missionary stations among the Chinooks, the Nez-Percés.
and among other sections of the aborigines. At a later period, Dr.
Blanchet was appointed archbishop of Oregon City, with several suf­
fragan bishops. To the Rev. Magloire Blanchet, bis brother, was
assigned the diocess of Walla-Walla (now Nesqualy), and that of
Vancouver’s Island, in British territory, was confided to the charge
ef Rev. Mr. Demers. The number of converted Indians in this
region is about six thousand. In Michigan and the surrounding
country, the missions among the Indians have been eminently success­
ful. The Rev. Gabriel Richard, Vincent Badin, and Samuel Mazzuchelli, were among the earlier laborers in this interesting field.
*
They were succeeded by Rev. Messrs. Déjean and Baraga, the latter
of whom is now bishop of Marquette, Michigan, and has the super­
intendence of al! the Indian missions in that region, which num­
ber several thousand souls. Bishop Baraga has published different
works in the Indian dialects, such as catechisms, prayer-books, medi­
tations, bible-history, etc., which form an admirable collection for the
instruction and edification of this interesting portion of his flock.
We have already alluded to the Penobscot and Passamaquoddy In
dians, at Old Town and Pleasant i oint, in Maine. This mission wat
commenced by the Jesuits more than two hundred years ago, and
Father Rasle, after laboring among the tribe for many years, was
murdered by the New Englanders, at Norridgewalk, in 1724. “Just
one hundred and ten years after,” says Bishop Fenwick, “ on the 23d
of August, 1834, I erected a beautiful monument over his grave, and
• Mr. Bichard was one of tho most laborious and devoted missionaries of the North,
west, where ho spent forty years. He established at Detroit the first prititing-preee in
Chat part of the United States, started the first paper, tho Michigan Kuav, and in 1833
«•nt to Congress to represent the interests of the territory.

652

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

delivered n discourse co upward of twelve thousand persons assem hied
on the occasion.”* After Dr. Carroll had become bishop of Balti­
more, these Indians, who had long been deprived of a resident pastor,
were attended more regularly, chiefly by Father Romaguô, who was
eighteen or twenty years among them. Since 1848 they have been
confided to the care of the Jesuits.
In conformity to the recommendation of the prelates of the second
council, an attempt was made to establish a Catholic mission among the
blacks of Liberia. The Jesuits being unprepared to furnish laborers for
this field, two priests of Irish birth, Rev. Edward Barron and Rev.
John Kelly, offered their services for this arduous enterprise. They
embarked for Africa in 1841, and, after a partial success, Dr. Barron
was appointed vicar apostolic of Upper Guinea; but the climate prov­
ing fatal to most of the missionaries associated with him, the good
work was eventually abandoned.!
The third provincial council of Baltimore was held in April, 1837.
A few years previously, upon the death of Archbishop Whitfield,
Rev. Samuel Eccleston, a native of Maryland and a convert to the
Catholic Church, succeeded to the metropolitan see. At the council
over which he was now called to preside, there assisted eight other
prelates. In compliance with their request, new episcopal sees were
created at Nashville, Natchez, and Dubuque—the first being assigned
to the care of Rev. Richard P. Miles, Ο. P., the second to Rev. John
J. Chanchc, Sulpitian, and the third to Rev. Matthias Loras, vicar­
general of Mobile.^ The pastoral letter which the prelates addressed
to their flocks on this occasion, contained a vigorous protest against
the misrepresentation and persecuting spirit which had resulted in
the destruction of the Ursuline Convent, at Charlestown, Mass., in
'834, by a fanatical mob.g The faithful were also exhorted “to sus­
tain with better efforts those journals which,” the Fathers say, “ though
not officially sanctioned by us, still are most useful to explain our
tenets, to defend our rights, and to vindicate our conduct.” Catholic*§
* Manus. Letter to B. 0. Campbeu, Jan., 1844.
f Dr. Bvron died in 1854, at Savannah, Ga., victim of hie charity during the prevalence
of yellow fever.
t Rev. Thomae Heyden, of Bedford, Pa., had declined the appointment to Natchez.
§ The same spirit has led to acts of violence, pillage, and destruction in other places, as
m Baltimore, where the Carmelite Convent was threatened by a mob, in August, 1839 ; al
Philadelphia, where, in 1844, St. Michael's Church was burned. But fanaticism rose to its
highest pilch during the Know-Nothiny movement, especially in 1854, when several churches
were destroyed, and a priest tarred and feathered. Most of these outrages occurred in New
Kn gland

1
APPENDIX.

journalism was then in its infancy. There were five weekly papers—
the United States Catholic Miscellany, of Charleston, the Tmfh-TelLr,
of New York, the Catholic Telegraph, of Cincinnati, the Catholic
Herald, of Philadelphia, the Catholic Advocate, of Bardstown, and
the Wahreits Freund.) a German paper, of Cincinnati. Several other
periodicals had been started within a few years previous, but they had
only a brief career.
*
The Miscellany, at Charleston, was the first
champion in the field, having been introduced in 1822, nnder the anapices of the illustrious Dr. England, whose genins, erudition, and un­
tiring zeal supplied its pages for many years with the most able and
interesting articles. This journal was continued until the breaking ont
of the late civil war, and its series of volumes constitutes one of the
most valuable repertories of information of which our Catholic litera­
ture can boas
*
During the last thirty years our periodicals have had
a very fluctuating existence—frequent undertakings succeeded by
equally frequent failures. Among the monthlies, the United States
Catholic Magazine, followed by the Metropolitan, the Catholic Cabinet,
aud the Expositor, did good service to the cause of religion, while Brownson's Review, the only quarterly that Catholicity has produced in this
country, from 1844 to 1861, was, with some exceptional articles, a lucid
exponent and vigorous defender of Catholic principles. The Catholic
Tract Society of Baltimore, which commenced its monthly publicatione
in 1839, and continued them for five or six years, deserves honorable
mention, as having produced some of the best essays that we possess in
vindication of the true faith.f The “Catholic Almanac and Laity s
Directory,” from 1833 to the present time, is a most useful publication,
and abounds with articles of the greatest historical interest.
*
Ot the
three or four monthlies now in existence, the principal is The Catholin
World, the contents of which are chiefly selections, which are judi­
ciously made, furnishing a great variety ot interesting and instructive
reading. We have now ten Catholic weeklies, with several published
in the German language, the respective merits of all which are justly
appreciated by the public. Among them is the Ave Maria, which ia
devoted to subjects more particularly connected with the honor of Our
• The Metropolitan a monthly, and the following hebdomadale : the Jesuit. the Cathoiie
the Shepherd of the Valley, the Green Banner, the New York Weekly Register and Cathode Diary.
f A similar undertaking lias been started in New York.
[ A Laity's Directory was published in New York, in 1817 and 1822, but the work men­
tioned above la the only ono of the kind that has appeared in a regular seriea. riven in
Sut there was an interruption for two years during the Lite war, which wue the cause ale
of some defecte in the more recent numbers.

664

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

Blessed Lady. The Annate of the Propagation of the Faith, already
alluded to, are also republished at Baltimore.
It is much to be regretted, that our Catholic journals, with a few
exceptions, have had so ephemeral an existence, because there is nc
country, perhaps, where they could accomplish more good than in the
United States, if they were established on a solid footing and conducted
in a proper spirit. There always has been, but never so much so as at
the present time, a disposition on the part of those who are outside of
the Church, to accept the truth when proposed to them with its nume­
rous and invincible evidences, while the Catholic population, from the
many dangers to which they are exposed by the peculiar state of soci­
ety in this country, have need of all the light and information that
Catholic genins and learning can impart, to make them duly sensible
of the inestimable blessing of faith and of the obligations which it im­
poses. The causes of the frequent failures in Catholic journalism mat
be reduced to one—the want of sufficient funds to carry on the work,
if these funds existed, they would enable publishers to employ compe­
tent editors, and an ample corps of writers could be obtained, to sup­
ply the pages of a periodical with articles which, by their variety and
interest, would command public attention. No Catholic journal can
live long in this country, as experience has proved, unless it force itself
as it were upon the popular favor. The great mass of our population
read little more than the newspapers. Political, commercial, and busi­
ness journals are the great sources of their information, because they
are filled with matters which interest them. If religion, the Church,
with their grand and elevating truths, their historical interest, their
ennobling and beneficent influence upon society, are not presented in
our Catholic journals with an indisputable claim to be the successful
rivals of the world, these journals cannot accomplish their mission per­
manently. Those of our weekly papers that have been in existence
for fifteen or twenty years, owe their continuance only to the great tal­
ent and extraordinary efforts that have been exerted in the cause. But
it is a question, perhaps not unworthy of consideration, whether
the ends of Catholic journalism could not be more effectually pro­
moted, by adopting some system or organization similar to that of the
uon-Catholic sects in this country, who have their weekly and quar­
terly publications, the recognized exponents of their peculiar opinicns.
and who sustain their periodicals by a common fund levied upon all
their members. Why could not some arrangement of this kind be
effected for our owm purposes î If each diocess in the Union would fur­
nish on an average three hundred subscribers, at three or four dollars

APPENDIX.

655

annually, to the work of Catholic publication, a fund of over fifty
thousand dollars would be realized, which would be sufficient to meet
the expense of several weekly papers and a quarterly review, on the
most enlarged, respectable, and influential scale. While the great mass
of the people would be satisfied with a weekly journal, there is a cer­
tain class, both in and out of the Church, who would require the more
dignified and more elaborate form of the quarterly. In fact, for the
more intelligent and the better educated class among outsiders, the
quarterly is the only means of reaching their intellect and conscience.
Every phase of error in this country has its organ ; why should not
Catholicity, which numbers at least one-seventh of the population, have
a periodical which, by its ability in treating the great social questions
of the day, as well as by its variety of theological, philosophical, lite­
rary, and scientific essays, and a well-digested summary of general
intelligence from all parts of the world, would force itself upon the
attention of thinking men, and dart some rays of light into the darkness
and confusion of mind, which are misleading so many thousands of
our countrymen ? We want for America what the Civilta Cattdica
is for Italy, what the Dublin Review is for Great Britain ; a peri­
odical wliich will exhibit the Catholic sentiment in regard to the ques­
tu ns which are of special interest to the people of this country; and
until we have supplied this desideratum, we can scarcely be said to
have made the best investment of the talent and resources which God
in his infinite goodness has vouchsafed to our Church.
•After alluding te our periodical literature, it may not be out of place
here to notice briefly the other productions of Catholic genius and learn­
ing in this country. Archbishop Carroll, prior to his receiving the mi­
tre, was the first to lead the way in theological discussion with the adver­
saries of the Church. We have already referred to his able controversy
with the apostate Wharton. Father Anthony Kohbnan next distin­
guished himself by his lucid exposition of the Catholic question in re­
gal’d to the Sacrament of Penance, and by his Un itarian ism. jExamined,
λ profound and unanswerable argument against the Anti-Trinitarians.
Dr. Gallitzin has left us his Defence of Catholic principles and Letters
on the Holy Scripture, which are well suited to the wants of inquirers
into the grounds of Catholic faith. Besides these works, the principal
•uiblications of a doctrinal and controversial character are, the Discueti&x between Hughes and Breckinridge, the Dehate between Purcell
ana Campbell, the work of Dr. England on the Roman Chancer·/, that
on the CtremoniM of the Mass and Holy Week, and other writings <>l

656

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES

the same distinguished author;
*
the volume of Dr. Pise on Christian
t/y and th·' Church, Fredet’s Defence of the Eucharist, Bishop M’Gill’>
Our Faith, the Victory, and Weninger’s Protestantism and Infidelity.
Rut the most important publication on Catholic theology is that of
Archbishop Kenrick, in five volumes, 8vo, which has been adopted ns
a text-book in several of onr ecclesiastical seminaries. His other works,
Primacy of the Apostolic See, Vindication of the Catholic Church,
aud his treatises on Baptism and Justification, with the revised transla­
tion of the Bible, are all indicative of the most varied and extensive
learning. The Evidences of Catholicity, by the Most Rev. Dr. Spald­
ing, is also a finished specimen of theological argument in a popular
form, while his D'ubigné Reviewed is a full and victorious refutation
of that arch-perverter of history. The Miscellanea of the same author
is a collection of the most able polemical and other essays. Rev.
Father Hecker has supplied a great want for this country, in his Ques­
tions of the Sind and Aspirations of Nature, which are admirably
adapted to the necessities of those who have yet to learn the first prin­
ciples of religious inquiry, and of whom the number is legion.
In the domain of ecclesiastical history, including biography, our
literature can boast of Dr. Pise's History of the Church, not completed
and not well digested, and his Biography of St. Ignatius and his com­
panions, which is a much better constructed work. Archbishop Spald­
ing’s Sketches of Kentucky and Life of Bishop Flaget are full of
interest, and written in an attractive style. Besides these, we have the
Life of Mrs. Seton ; Bishop Bayley’s Catholic Church in New York,
and his Life of Bishop Brute ; Father de Smet’s Indian Sketches
and Oregon Missions; Catholic Missions, by John G. Shea, a most
valuable compilation; History of the Catholic Church in the United
States, by Shea and De Oourcy, containing many facts and evidencing
much research, but incomplete, and, as a history, devoid of method.
The articles published in the United States Catholic Magazine, on the
Life and Times of Archbishop Carroll, by the late B. U. Campbell,
of Baltimore, are valuable contributions to our Catholic history.
It would be unpardonable in us not to state, before dismissing this
subject, that several of our Catholic authors have earned for themselves
a well-deserved reputation in the field of fiction. The names of Dr.
Pise. Mrs. Anna Dorsey, Mrs. Sadlier, Messrs. McLeod, Huntington,
McSherry, Cannon, Bryant, and Rev. Mr. Boyce, are conspicuous in
this particular branch of writing, which is not without its influence in
V'dueing the most salutary impressions. As to poetry, we shall
• His works have been published iu live large volumes, 8vo

APPENDIX.

657

confine ourselves to the remark, that the sweetest effusions of the muse
that have graced the pages of our Magazine
*,
are from the pens of two
ladies in the West, “Moina” and “S. R. T.”
The brief exposition which we have given of the principal publica­
tions, bearing immediately upon Catholic interests, is sufficient to show
that our literature is steadily advancing. According to the progress
of the Church Catholic genius, learning, and piety, must find their
expression in works which circumstances will call forth, and it is grati­
fying to note particularly that the present period is developing one of
the most important branches of Catholic science, the history of the
constitution, trials, and triumphs of the Church.
*
In the month of May, 1840, was convened the fourth council of
Baltimore, at which thirteen bishops assisted. At the request of the
prelates, the see of Bardstown was transferred to Louisville, and that
of Richmond was provided with a chief pastor in the person of the
Right Rev. Richard V. Whelan, a native of Baltimore. One of the
most important decrees of this council was in relation to the security
of church property, a subject which, in the present condition of our
civil law, is of a very perplexing nature.
At the fifth council, which met in May, 1843, sixteen bishops were
orcr-ent, and upon their application to Rome the new sees ot Little
Rock, Chicago, Hartford, Milwaukee, and Pittsburg, were erected.
Among the other wise regulations adopted by the prelates, was that
which requires the pastors of congregations to keep a distinct record
of the property, real or personal, which belongs to the church, so that
in case of removal, by death or otherwise, the rights of the church may
be properly guarded and secured.
The sixth council was held in May, 1846, and twenty-three bishops
took part in its deliberations. By their action “ the Blessed Virgin
Mary conceived without sin was chosen as the Patroness of the Church
in the United States/ and at their request new sees were established
at Buffalo and Albany, in the State of New York, and at Cleveland,
in Ohio. Texas, before an apostolic vicariate, was made a diocese,
with Galveston as the see.
In May, 1849, the seventh council of Baltimore was assembled,
and attended by twenty-five bishops. The Fathers signified that they
would hail with pleasure the definifion of the Immaculate Conception
of the Blessed Virgin Mary, as a doctrine of the Catholic Church, if
• Darrae' Biftor'j of the Church, now published by Mr. P. O’Shea, New Fork, and
Artaud1· Um ifthe Pepes, under presa by Sadlier ft Co., will supply a great want, and one
which baa been long felt in the United Slates.
Vol. rv.- -42

658

TRB CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

the Holy See deemed it expedient to proclaim the dogma. By another
decree, they strictly enjoined upon pastore not to officiate at marriages
already performed by non-Catholic. ministers, nor at those in which
any such ministers would be subsequently resorted to. At the recom­
mendation of the prelates, new episcopal sees were erected at Wheel­
ing, Virginia ; Savannan, Georgia; and St. Paul, Minnesota. The
territory of New Mexico was made an apostolic vicariate, ami Mon­
terey, in Upper California, was provided with a bishop.
*
The see of
St. Louis had been raised to the metropolitan rank in 184T, and at the
reqnest of the seventh council, other metropolitan churches were created
in 1850; at New Orleans, with Mobile, Natchez, Galveston, and Lit­
tle Rock, as suffragans ; at Cincinnati, having for suffragans Louisville,
Detroit, Vincennes, and Cleveland; at New York, with Boston, Hart­
ford, Albany, and Buffalo, as suffragans. There were now six eccle­
siastical provinces, that of St. Louis embracing the sees of Dubuque,
St. Paul, Chicago, Milwaukee, and Nashville ; and that of Baltimore
retaining those of Philadelphia, Pittsburg, Richmond, Wheeling,
Charleston, and Savannah. Soon after these arrangements, Arch··1
bishop Ecdeston was called to his reward, in April, 1851. lie was of
a tall and commanding figure, and remarkable for his fine manners
and ease in conversation. Gifted with talents of a high order, he had
cultivated them with diligence, and as a preacher he was eloquent,
graceful, and persuasive. He was succeeded in the course of a few
months by the Right Rev. Dr. Kenrick, bishop of Philadelphia, who
was transferred from that see to Baltimore, and was also appointed
apostolic delegate, to preside at the plenary coiuicil of the episcopate
of the United States. At this council, which wu held in May, 1852,
there were present six archbishops, and twenty-six bishops. By their
recommendation eight new sees were created, viz. : Erie, Pa. ; Burling­
ton, Vermont ; Portland, Maine ; Brooklyn, New York ; Newark, New
Jersey; Covington, Kentucky ; Quincy, Illinois ;f and Natchitoches,
Louisiana. San Francisco was made an archiépiscopal see, with
Monterey as its suffragan, and Upper Michigan became an apostolic
vicariate. Since this great expansion of the Catholic hierarchy in the
United States, councils have been hold in several of the new provinces,
* California and New Mexico were coded to the United States in 1848. Monterey had
been made an episcopal see in 1840, and a bishop appointed. Tho see becoming vacant,
Rev. J. 8. AJetnany, Ο. P., became ite second bishop in 1850. At that time there were
■bout fourteen prieste in Upper California, and thirty in New Mexico Rev. John Lamy,
of Ohio, was appointed vicar apostolic of the latter country.
* Now Alton. Illinois.

APPEXDTX.

659

and additional sees have been created. Archbishop Kenrick, who
preaided over that of Baltimore for nearly thirteen years, had the
proud satisfaction of witnessing before his demise this increasing devel­
opment of the Church, and the steady and rapid multiplication of its
resources for the accomplishment of its divine mission. His name will
always be conspicuous among the most distinguished prelates, for
piety and learning, and for the many excellent works with which he
has enriched our literature. By a decree of July 25, 1858, the pre­
rogative of place waa granted to the see of Baltimore, so that in coun­
cils, assemblies, and meetings of every kind, precedency is given to
the Archbishop of Baltimore for the time being, and the seat of honor
above any archbishops of these provinces that may be present, without
regard to the order of promotion or consecration. In 1864·, the Right
Rev. Dr. Spalding, bishop of Louisville, was transferred from that see
to the Metropolitan Church of Baltimore, and the eminent qualities
which he possesses warrant the assurance, that his administration of
ecclesiastical affairs will add another bright chapter to the history of
Catholicity in the United States.
Within the period now under consideration, some of the most
distinguished prelates of the American Church, besides those already
.mentioned, passed from the scene of their labors. The names ot
Bruté, David, Dubois, England, Rosati, the two Fenwicks ot Cincin­
nati and Boston, Flaget, Hughes, and others, will ever be cherished
with grateful recollection, for they were “ men of renown, and our
fathers in their generation.”* Like St. Paul, they would willingly
“ spend and be spent ”f themselves for the souls committed to their
care. “ In the midst of the Church they opened their month, and the
Lord filled them with the spirit of wisdom and understanding.”!
“ When they went up to the holy altar, they honored the vesture of
holiness.They strove with zeal for the glory of God. and He made
them “ honorable in their labors, and accomplished their labors.”^ In
a word, they labored “as good soldiers of Christ Jesus” . . .
“ they preached the good; they were instant in season and out of
season, reproving, entreating, rebuking, in all patience and doctrine.”|
Hence, “ nations shall declare their wisdom, and the Church shall
shew forth their praise.”**
Tho Church in this country now counts seven archbishopric·,
thirty-six bishopries, and four apostolic vicariates. The religious
• Ewd. xlir, L f 2 Cor. xiL, 15. J Eccli. XT., 6; Offic. Doot. § Eccli. L, 12. 5 Wunlom
c_, 10 I 2 Tim it. iv. ·* Ecnb mix. 14

660

THE CATHOLIC CHÜRCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

orders and congregations, both of men and women, have also great! s
increased in number and in the sphere of their operation, while tho
Trappists in Kentucky, the Benedictines in Pennsylvania, and the
Cistercians in Iowa, have their mitred abbots. According to the last
issue of the Catholic Almanac, there are two thousand five hundred
and seventy eight priests, and about the same number of churches.
There are thirty ecclesiastical seminaries, and about three hundred
literary institutions of the higher class, for youth of both sexes, con­
ducted for the most part by members of religious congregations.
*
In
recording this consoling advancement of Catholicity throughout the
United States, especially in the North and West, justice requires us to
state, that it is owing in a great measure to the faith, zeal, and
generosity of the Irish people, who have emigrated to these shores,
and their descendants. We are far from wishing to detract from the
merit of other nationalities:! but the vast influence which the Irish
population have exerted in extending the domain of the Church is
well deserving of notice, because it conveys a very instructive lesson.
The wonderful history of the Irish nation has always forced upon us
the conviction, that, like the chosen generation of Abraham, they were
destined in the designs of Providence to a special mission for the pre­
servation and propagation of the true faith. This faith, so pure, so
lively, so generous, displays itself in every region of the globe. To its
vitality and energy must we attribute, to a very great extent, the
rapid increase in the number of churches and other institutions which
have sprung up and are still springing up in the United States, and to
the same source are the clergy mainly indebted for their support in
the exercise of their pastoral ministry. It cannot be denied, and we
bear a cheerful testimony to the fact, that hundreds of clergymen who
are laboring for the salvation of souls, would starve, and their efforts
for the cause of religion would be in vain, but for the generous aid
which they receive from the children of Erin, who know, for the most
part, how to appreciate the benefits of religion, and who therefore
joyfully contribute of their worldly means to purchase the spiritual
blessings which the Church dispenses.
As to the parish-schools throughout the country, we can only form
a conjectural estimate of them. Probably not one-sixth of the con­
gregations that are served by the clergy, enjoy the benefits of a
• About one-third οΓ these are for the education of young men.
f Tho Catholic Germans have shown great zeal and energy in our largo cities, and parHeularly in the region of the Northwest. Somi of the largest and most tasteful oilifl™» for
divine worship have been erected by their active and liberal efforts.

APPENDIX.

6β1

parochial school : and when we take into consideration the important
facts, that most of the parochial schools for boys are nnder the charge
of teachers who are but very imperfectly qualified for this important
office, and that the onus of supporting these schools falls upon the
clergy, whose only reliance is the charity of the faithful, we cannot
wonder at the earnest attention which was given to this subject by the
prelates of the Plenary Council. “ We exhort the bishops,” they say,
“ and, considering the very serious evils which commonly follow from
a defective training of youth, we beseech them, through the bowels of
the divine mercy, to see that schools be established in each of the
churches in their diocesses ; and should necessity require it, and cir
cumstances permit, to provide for the employment of competent
matructora from the revenues of the churches to which the schools are
attached.”* A similar decree had been enacted in the first Provincial
Council of Baltimore. This legislation of the bishops in the United
States was but an expression of the Catholic sentiment universal
throughout the world, that the religious education of youth is the very
life and substance of the Church, for the preservation of the true faith,
and its development in the order of Providence, for the welfare of
society and the salvation of souls. There is no country, perhaps, in
which these considerations should have more weight than in the
United States of America. The general mixture of Catholics with
errorists of every description in social and political life, the inter­
marrying with the sects, the gigantic efforts made by the State for the
support of schools, in which religion is ignored, and which by the
completeness of their outward arrangements present every attraction
to the poorer class of people, are serious obstacles which Catholicity
has to contend with. For this reason, there was nothing that so en
grossed the attention of the first bishop of Baltimore, as the establish
ment of a Catholic institution for the religious education of youth ; and
his successors, with their collaborators in the episcopal charge, have
always exhibited the same solicitude. During the administration of
Archbishop Maréchal, the Holy See urged upon h.m, with peculiar
emphasis, the obligation of having such schools, in order to oppose the
efforts and influence of heterodox combinations ; and it may not be
amiss to quote the words of Cardinal de Somaglia, in his circular of
August 5, 1820. After alluding to the efforts of the sects to mislead
the people, he says : “ You therefore see how solicitous and energetic
the pastors of the Church should be, to guard their flocks against the
Decree 13 of Plenary Council—No. 90 in th· general coUectioe.

662

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES.

assaulU of wolves who come to them in the clothing of sheep. If the
enepherdt deep, the enemy will come, and soon the cockle will grow
np in the midst of the wheat. Hence it is necessary to make every
effort to withdraw children from these sectarian schools, and to
admonish parents of their duty in this respect. The most effectual
means for this purpose, would be to establish schools in which the
ooorer class could be properly instructed. Will the necessary funds
lor this be wanting? A useful lesson on this point may be learned
from the heterodox societies themselves ; for, as we are informed, they
support their schools by a penny contribution levied upon all the
members. Wliy should not Catholics do the same? We therefore
exhort you, and through the bowels of our Lord Jesus Christ beseech
you, to adopt the most effectual means of guarding your flock against
the attacks of those who would lead it astray, and that, mindful of the
words of the apostle, ‘ there shall be false teachers, who shall bring in
sects 01 perdition,’ you exert every effort to prevent Catholic youth
from bea g perverted.” The only means of counteracting the evil
Influences above mentioned, and others which lead to the same result,
is the moi. general establishment of parish-schools, in which Catholic
youth will be trained to the knowledge and practice of their religion,
and a nuns enlarged and earnest attention to the sacred sciences in
our highei institutions of learning, by which the faith will acquire a
more solid and influential character. Thus will the Church and the
momentous objects of its existence acquire gradually a greater irnpor
tance in the eyes of the Catholic population : thus will innumerable
vocations to the priesthood and the religious life be secured, while
they are now lost amidst the worldliness and materialism of the age.
It is not for ns to suggest the ways and means of effecting these happy
results: but the wisdom of the chief pastors, “who have been ap­
pointed to govern the Church of God,” who from the beginning until
now have so nobly struggled against all difficulties in extendi/.g the
kingdom of Jesus Christ in this part of the world, and whose labors
have been crowned with such glorious results, will judge how to com
bine the various resources which Catholic piety and generosity present,
both here and from the admirable association for the propagation of
the faith, for insuring the great victory of faith in this hemisphere.
“ This is the victory which overcometh the world, our faith.”*

ALPHABETICAL LIST
OP THE

ARCHBISHOPS AND BISHOPS
IN THE UNITED STATES. A. D- 1899.
DELEGATE APOSTOLIC.
Hie Excellency Most Rev. Sebastlano Martinelli. Washington. D. C.. 2011st 81.. N. W.
CARDINAL.
His Eminence James Cardinal Gibbons. Archbishop of Baltimore. Baltimore. Md.
408 N. Charles St.

ARCHBISHOPS.
Most Rev. Chapelle, Placide Louis......... New Orleans. La., 1114 Chartres St.
Corrigan. Michael Augustlne.Ncw York City. 4M Madison Ave.
Elder. William Henry....... ...Cincinnati. Ohio. 825 W. 8th St.
Feehan. Patrick A................. Chicago. DU Corner North Ave. and State St
Hennessy, John................... Dubuque. Iowa, Bluff and 2d Sts.
Ireland, John........................St. Paul. Minn.
Kain, John Joseph................St. Louis. Mo.. 3810 Undell Boulevard.
Kntzer. Frederic Xavier...... Milwaukee. Wis.. 224 Chestnut St.
Riordan. Patrick William..... San Francisco. Cal.. 1123 Eddy St.
Ryan. Patrick John............. Philadelphia. Pa.. 225 N. 18th St.
Williams. John Joseph..........Boston. Mass.. 75 Union ParkSW

BISHOPS.
Right Rev. Allen. Edward Patrick.
Beaten. Thomas Daniel
Becker. Thomas A.........
Bonarum. Thomas........

Springfield. Maas. CatbedraL .
Savannah. Ga. Barris and l.in^n’ta.
Unrein. Neb.. Bishop'« House
Tucson. Arix.. 8L Augustine·, Chnrtb.
Manchester. N H-. St- Joseph’s Cathedral.
Bradley. Denis M............
South Boston. Mom.. » Broadway.
Brady. John..................
Helena. Moot.. Cathedral.
Brondel. John Baptist·· ..
Burke, Maurice F........... .81. Joseph. Mo.. Cathedral
Albany. N. T . SSI MadHon Av».
Burke. Thus. Marlin A. ..
Nashville. Teno.. W! Capitol Square.
Byrne. Thomas Sébastian.
Chaturd. Francis Silas.... .Indianapolis, Ind.. Meridian nnd 14th Sis.
Christie. Alexander.... . .Victoria, V.I.. B. C.
Cosgrove, Henry............ . Davenport. Iowa. 080 E. 7th St.
Cotter. Joseph B............ .Winona. Minn.. Wabashaund CummingsSte.
• Concordia. Kans.
Cunningham. John F.....
Curtis, Allred A. (resigned) ...Baltimore. Md„ its N. Charles St.
De Goesbriand. Louis........... Burlington. Vt.. Cathedral.
Donahue. Patrick James ..... Wheeling. W. Va.. 13 13th St.
Dunne, Edward Joseph........ Dallas. Tex.. Pro-Cathedral.
Durter. Anthony.................. Natchitoches. La.. Cathedral.
Farley, John M.................... New York City. 30H E. 37th St.
Fink. Louis M..o. ·. b.........Kansas City. Kaus.. PAS Sandusky Ave.
* Gerald. Edward............. Little Rock. Ark., st. Andrew's Cathedral.
Fit
Fltïmsurlce. John E............. Erie, Pa.. Cathedral.

664

archbishops and bishops in the united states.

Foley. John 8...................... Detroit, Mich., 33 Washington Are.
Forest, John Anthony.......... San Antonio, Tex., 310 Dwyer Ave.
Gabriels Henry....................Ogdensburg, N. Y., Cathedral.
Gallagher, Nicholas A...........Galveston, Tex.. 8t. Mary's Cathedral.
Glennon, John J................... Kansas City, Mo.. 41» W. 12th St.
Glorieux. A. J...................... Boise, Idaho. 11830th St.
Grace, Thomas..............
Sacramento, Cal., Cnihedral.
Baht. Loo, o. t. b........
Belmont, N. C.. Mary Help Abbey.
HDktnv. Matthew................ Providence. 11.1., Bishop's Mouse.
Healy. James Augustine.......Portland, Aie.. 307 Congress St.
Hennessy. John Jceepb.........Wichita. Knns„ Central and Lawrence Aves.
Heslln. Thomus.................. Natchez. MIm., Cathedral.
Hoban. Michael John........... Ashley. Pa.
Hogan, John Joseph............ Kansas City. Mo.. 418 W. 12tb St.
Horaimann. Ignatius F..........Cleveland, Ohio. 583 Superior St.
Janssen. John...................... Belleville, HI., 222 S. Race 8t.
Lenlban. Thomas Matthias....Cheyenne, Wyoming.
Ludden. Patrick A.............. Syracuse. N. T.. Fayette Park.
McCloskey, William George.. . Louisville, Ky.. 1307 Brook St.
McDonnell, ( bas. E.............. Brooklyn. N. Y.. 307 Clermont Ave.
McFaul. Janice A..................Trenton, N. J.. 158 N. Warren St.
Metiolrtek. James.................. Dululti. Minn., Cntbedrnl.
McQuaid. Bernard J.............. Rochester. N. Y.. Bishop's House, 70 Frank St.
Maes. Camillus Paul.............. Covington, Ky., 1140 Madison Ave.
MaU, Nicholas Chrysostome.. Denver. Colo., 235 So. Evans St.
Meersclniort, Théophile....... Guthrie. Okla. Ty.
Messmer. Sebastian Gebhard. Green Bay. WIs., 13» Madison St.
Michaud. John Stephen......... Burlington. Vt.. Cathedral.
Monaghan. John James......... Wilmington. Del., Oth and West Sts.
Montgomery. George....... .. Loa Angeles, Cal.. 118 E. 2d St.
Moore. John......................... St. Augustine. Fla.. Cathedral.
Mrak. Igu. (resigned) . .Marquette. Mich., St. Mary's Hospital.
Mullen. Tobias .................. Erie. 1·«., St. Peter's Cathedral.
Northrop. Henry P................Charleston,8 C.. Ill Broad St.
O'Dea. Edward ................... Vancouver, Wash.. Cathedral.
O'Honmiu, Thomas............. Sioux Falls. 8. Dak.. Bishop's House.
O'Hara. William...................Scranton. Po.. 315 Wyoming Ave.
Phelan. Richard................... Pittsburg. Pa.. 519 Grant St.
Prendergast. Edmund F........Philadelphia. Pa.. 142» N. 11th St.
Quigley, James Edward......... BulTiüo. N. Y., 1025 Delaware Ave.
Rademacher. Joseph.............Ft. Wayne. Ind., 172 Clinton 8t.
Richter, Henry Joseph.......... Grand Rapids. Mich.. 1W Sheldon St.
Ryan. James
................Alton, HL. 88. Peter and Paul's Cathedral.
Scanlan, Lawrence.............. Salt Lake City. Utah. 8t. Mary Magdalen's Church.
Scannell. Richard................. Omaha. Neb.. Park Place, H» N. 36th 8t.
Scbwebarh. James ............ La Crosse, WIs.. 008 8.11th 81.
Sbanley. John...................... Fargo, N. Dakota.
Spalding. John Lancaster.
Peoria. III.. <07 N- Madison Ave.
Tierney. Michael
..........Hartford. Conn.. 1*0 Farmington Ave.
Trobec. James......................8t. Cloud. Mino.
Van de Vyver. A...................Richmond. Va.. G race and Sth Sts.
Verdaguer. Peter................ Laredo. Tex.
Vertlo. John
.................. Marquette. Mich.. 81. Peter's Cathedral.
Watterson. John Ambrose . Columbus. Ohio. 198 E. Broad 8t.
Wlgger. Wlnand Michael......Routh Orange, N. J.. Betnn Hall College.

INDEX.
—
Abbo, 8t., abbot, his labore to effect a
religious reform, iit......................... Π
Abderahman invades Gaul, ii. 319; de­
feated by Charles Martel at the bat­
tle of Poitiers..................................... 322
Abelard, his genius, iii. 191 ; his errors,
233; condemned, 234; his penance
and holy death................................... 234
Abyssinia, receives the true faith, i.... 615
Aeacius, patriarch of Constantinople;
his courageous opposition to Basilis­
cus, ii. 11 ; inconsistency in his treat­
ment of Talafa, 15; embraces Eutychianism, 15 ; condemned by the Holy
See. 26; his death.............................. 32
Acephali, * branch of tho Eutychian
heresy, ii............................................. 29
Acæmetes, monks of Constantinople;
their excommunication, ii................ 127
Achillas of Alexandria,'·...................... 278
Acts of the Apostles, i........................... 63
Adamites, heretics, i............................. 121
Adelard, St., founded the monastery of
New Corbie, ii.................................... 437
Adalbero, bishop of Metz, bis zeal and
charity, iii....................................... 12
Adeodatus, Pope, his election, ii. 265 ;
confirms the right of the Venetians
to elect their doges, 272; his death 272
Adoptionist heresy, its rise and con­
demnation, ii................................368, 369
Adrian, Roman emperor, his character,
i. 96 ; his order respecting the Chris­
tians in Asia, 105; his death ........ 109
Adrian I., Pope, his election, il., 364 ;

revokes the Constitution of Gregory
X. regarding the conclave............... 408
Adrian VI., Pope, bia election, iv. 69 ;
efforts to reform the Roman court,
70, sends missionaries to America,
72 ; his death................................... 72
Ætinns, or Eunomians, heretics, i..... 463
Agapæ, how spoken of by Tertullisn, i. 79
Agapetus, SL, Pope, his el-ctioa. ii 137 ;
his voyage to Constantinople, 140;
his death......................................... 141
Agepetus II, Pope, his election and
happy Pontificate, ii. 584; death.... 689
Agathe, St., Pope, his election, ii 276:
convokes the sixth general council,
277 ; letters to the East, 277 ; his
death...................................····.··· 381
Aglnc, her remarkable conversion, i... 311
Ahrie, king of tLa Visigoths, invades
Rome, i...............................
555
Alario Π., hie code of laws, it 74; de­
feat and death at Veuille.................. 78
Albigensian heresy, iii........... ............. 33
Alboin, king of the Lombards, ii.......... 163
Alcoran. Ι7Λ Koran.
Alcuin, bis works and teaching, ii. 403-412
Alexander 1, St, Pope, his ordinances,
L 90; his martyrdom........................ 96
Alexander II., Pope, hiselection, iii. 94;
death................................................. 104
Alexander HI.. Popo, eulogized by Vol­
taire, iii. 270 ; leaves Rome, 271 ; ex­
communicates Barbarossa, 271 ; the
Popo head and leader of the Italian
cities, 273; noble answer to tho
Greek omperor, 274; honorable re­
ception in FT .nee, 274: new troubles,
Thassillon, 368; his death, 374; in­
277 , receives the submission of Bar­
scription pluoed by Charlemagne up­
barossa. 280: excommunicates Henry
on lus tomb......................................... 374
II. of England, 237 ; convokes the
Adrian Π., Pope, apprehensions nt his
election, it 509 ; his mercy, 510 - his
eleventh general council, 268; hia
solemn protest, 511; protects Teutdeath ................................ i......... 390
berga against LotbaireIL, 513; sends
Alexander IV., Pope, his election, iii
legates to the East, 516 ; his death.. 622
377 ; leaves Rome. 379; establishes
Adrian III., Pope, his brief Pontificate,
the Inquisition in France, 379 ; pro­
i......................................................... 537
tects the 1'orainions on J i'ruiasAdrian IV., Pope, his antecedents and
cans.381; his death.......................... 397
election, iii. 358; troubles in Italy,
Alexander V., Pope, his antecedents
269; difficulties with Barbarossa 263, noie
and election, iii. 5? ' ; lus death. .. . 6U>
Adrian V„ Pope, his election, iii 405 ;
Alexander VI., Pope, his election, üi.

666

INDEX.

41 ; his hypocrisy and persecutions,
634; two phot's in his life. 635; restares order in Rome, 636; lesson
47 ; prevents the restoration of peace
taught by hi’ Pontificate. 639; his
in the East, 64 ; persecutes the Oatho
death, good effects of his Pontificate 645
lies, 85-87 ; attempts to change the
Alexander VII, 1’ope, his election, iv.
gospels and the liturgy, 02 ; revolu­
tion, 93 ; his death, 96 ; origin of
311; difficulties with France, 313,
317; bull ngninst Jansenism, 319;
his surname.................................
9<;
Anastasius IL, emperor, dethrones Barformula of Alexander VIL, 322 ; bis
death................................................ 323
danes, ii. 303 ; effects a reconciliation
with Rome.......................................... 302
Alexander VIII, Pope, his promotion,
iv. 382; restoration of the Comtat-VoAnatolius, patriarch of Constantinople, i. 590
Angelical salutation, addition made by
naissin, by Fratice. 383 ; bull Inter
multiplices. 383; death of the Popo 384
Popo St. Celestin, i................................ 575
Alexander, St,, coadjutor of Jerusalem, i. 190 Angelus, its origin, iii.............................. 606
Anicotus, St., Pope, i.......................... 119-126
Alexander Severus, emperor, i. 204 ;
Anniversary of martyrs solemnized, i.. 231
favorable disposition toward the
Christiana.......................................... 205 Anointing icings at their coronation, ii.. 332
Alexander, St. (the collier), raised to
Anomreans. heretics, their doctrine, i.. 463
Anselm, St., made archbishop of Can­
the seo of Comana, i.................... 221
terbury, iii. 157 ; troubles with the
Alexander, St., bishop of Alexandria,
king, 158, 159, 175; his death....... 176
opposes Arius, i. 369, letters against
Auterus, St., Popo, i................................. 215
the Arian error.............................. 375
Anthony,
St., hermit, i. 315; comes to
Alexandria, its Christian school, i. 165 ;
Alexandria, 403; his letter to Con­
persecution of the Christians there,
by Septimius Severus, 177; massacre
stantine, 416 ; death............................. 452
Anthropomorphites,heretics, i................ 542
by order of Caracalla, 193; massacre
Antipopes—
by the pagans, 229; burning of its
libraries by Amru, ii....................... 223
Novation, i.............................................. 246
Felix, i..................................................... 464
Alfred the Great, ii............................. 534
Alms, division made by Pope St. Sim­
Ursinus, or Ursicinus, i........................ 503
Eulalius. i............................................... 563
plicius, in distributing those of the
faithful, ii......................................... 21
Lawrence, ii............................................ 65
Dioscorus, ii........ *................................. 118
Alphonsus do Liguori, St., iv................ 514
Pascal, ii................................................. 289
Altara, consecrated by relics of martyrs,
Theophylactus, ii.................................. 353
i 277 ; to be made of atone, 412; to
be stripped on Holy Thursday, ii.... 299
Constantine, ii........................................ 358
John, ii.................................................... 468
Ambrose, St., his birth, i. 485; is made
bishop of Milan, 5()9 ; persecuted by
Anastasius, ii.............................................486
Sergius, ii................................................ 549
the Empress Justina, 524; discovery
of the relics of Sts. Gervasius and ProLeo VIII., ii........................................... 596
Boniface VIL, ii.................................. 606
tasius, 524 ; his mission to the usurper
John XVII., ii....................................... 617
Maximus, 525; subjects Theodosius to
rtiblic penance, 529; his death, 531 ;
Sylvester III., iii................................... 53
is writings........................................ 531
John, called Benedict X., iii............... 86
Ammiauus-MarceUinus, his statement
Cadnloüs, called Honorius II., iii... 95
concerning the ree[>ect shown to the
Guibert, called Clement III., iii........ 132
Popes, i. 447 ; confirms the account
Albert, iii................................................ 174
of the miracles preventing the recon­
Theodoric iii........................................... 171
struction of the Temple................. 496
Muginulf. ............................................... 174
Ammon, St., hermit, i.......................... 358
Maurice Bourdin, called Gregory
Anabaptists, iv. 82; their disorders
VIII., iii............................................ 193
at Munster......................................... 121
Peter de Leone, called Anacletus IL,
Anacletus, Pope, his election, and the
iii..................................................... 217
question of bis real name, i............ 53
Octavian, called Victor Ill., iii......... 270
Anastasia, the first church of St. Greg­
Guy, called Paschal III., iii............... 276
ory Naziauzcu, in Constantinople, i.. 516
John, called Calixtus III., iii............. 278
Anastasius L, St., Pope, i............. 539-544
Lando, called Innocent III., iii.......... 281
Anastasius IL, St., Pope, election, ii. 54 ;
Nicholas V., iii...................................... 486
tetter to Clovis, 62 ; his death.......... 64
Robert of Gcnovu, called Clement
Anastasius III., Pope, ii............... 664-566
VIL. iii.............................................. 537
Anastasius, antipope, ii........................... 486
Peter di Luna, called Bnedict XIII.
Anastasius the Silcdiary, his accession
iii...................................................... 5*8
Felix
V.. iii....................
593
» the throne of Constantinople, ii.

INDEX.

hotitactes, heretics, i............................. 121
Antonines or Hospitaliers, ni.............. 432
Antoninus Pius, Roman empj>or, edict
in favor of the Christians, L lid; his
death................................................. 126
Apollinaria, bishop of Laodicea, his er­
rors, i............................................... 611
Apostasy—Defection of Christians at
Carthage, in the seventh general per­
secution, L 240; different degrees,
241; letter of Lucian, confessor of
Carthage, to St. Cyprian, 242 ; reply of
the Roman clergy to St. Cyprian, 243 ;
canons of St. Peter, patriarch of Alex­
andria ............................................ 313
( Vide Lapsi, and Penance.)
Apostles, the twelve, called by Christ, L
22; their first preaching, miracles
and sufferings, 29, 30 ; their disper­
sion, 36 : their martyrdom....... . 58
Appeal—Attempt of a council to abolish
the right of appeal to the Hoiy See, L. 663
Aquila, his version of the Scriptures, i. 109
Arator, patronized by Pope Vigilius, ii. 157
Arcadius, emperor, i............... ... 530, 553
Architecture—Origin of Gothic architec­
ture, HL 6; churches of the middle□ges....................................................... 436
Arethas, king of Nadirau, ii................. 101
Arianism, condemned in the Council of
Nice, L 378-383: protected in the
East by Valens, 503; its influence in
the fourth century, 616; proscribed
by Justin the Elder, ii....................... 107
Kriosto, iv.............................................. 33
Aristides, Christian philosopher, his
apology, i.......................................... 104
Arius, heretic, his antecedents, L 369 ;
his heresy, 370; condemned by tne
council of Alexandria, 371 ; his league
with Eusebius of Nicomedia, 372;
composition of the Thalia, 375; be­
fore the Council of Nice, 378; his
death...................................
415
Armngh. foundation of the metropolitan
see οζ by St. Patrick, i................. 671
Armenia, heroic perseverance in the
faith, ii- 55 ; flourishing state of the
Church thsro........ ........................ 103
Arnauld, Auto.ne, iv.......................... ■ 333
Arnobius, his conversion, i. 287; his
seven books against the Gentiles.... 288
Artaud do Monter, sound remark on
the attachment of certain Popes to
their power, iii........................ 566, note
Ascetic works in the sixteenth and
seventeenth centuries, iv ............ 296
Aetolphus. king of the Lombards, his
Tarages in Italy, ii............... 339, el eeq.
Asylum—Right of asylum granted to
churches, ii................
79
Athulanc, king of the Italian Ostro­
goths, his law in favor of tho Roman

66

clergy, ii. 116; attempta to interfere
with tho election of Pope Boniface
IL, 118; claims a tax on ecclesiasti­
cal elections..................................... jjj
Athanasiu’, St, deacon of 3t. Alexan­
der, nt the Council of Alexandrin. L
371 ; his accession to the patriarchal
throne, 401 ; opposes Arius, 403 ;
Arian Council of Tyre against him,
405 ; calumnious chargee of tho
Arians refuted, 407 ; banished, 411 ;
his recall, 418; second exile, 420;
returns, 426; again persecuted by
the Arians, 447 ; third banishment,
451 ; return, 492 ; persecuted by Ju­
lian, 494; narrow escape and return
to Alexandria, 495 ; his death.. 501
Athenagoras, his apology, i. 150; trea­
tise on the “ Resurrection of the dead" 151
Atticus, patriarch of Constantinople,
claims jurisdiction over all the Asiatic
churches, i.................................... 564
Attila, his invasion, L 579; his appear­
ance, 593; ravages Gaul, 594; de­
feat at Chalons, 595 ; retiree before
St. Leo the Great ......... ........ 59·
Augustin, St, " Doctor of Grace," his
birth, i. 485 ; his conversion, 532 ·
his works, 534 ; made bishop, 535 ;
the “ City of God," 556, 622 ; con­
ference with the Donatists, at Carthage, 556; opposes Pelagianistn,
557-559 ; Ids death..................... 569
Augustine, St, apostle of England,
sent to England by Pope 3t Gregory
the Great, ii. 185; archbishop of
Canterbury.................................... 186
Avitus, St., bishop of Vienne, his
letter to Clovis, king of the Franks,
ii. 62; his works, 63; letter on the
independence of the Roman See, 71 ;
efforts to convert Gundebald, king of
die Burgundians.............................. 72

Baius, his errors, iv..............................
Bajazet L, sultan of Turkey, invades
Hungary, HL........................
Bamberg, erected into a see, iii...........
Bangor, foundation of its celebrated
monastery by St DanieL ii............
Baptism, how administered in the early
ages of the Church, L 77 ; ordinance
of Pope Victor I., 170; question of
the baptism of heretics, 256 ; end of
the question, 260; decree of Pope St
Sylvester 1,412; decree of the Coun­
cil of Constantinople concerning the
baptism of heretics, 52u ; seasons of
the administration of solemn baptism,
fixed by Pope St Gelasius L, ii. 50.
validity of baptism administered by
excommunicated prela tee, 65; deci­
sion of Pope St Zachary concerumg

224
5*5
19

10*

668

INDIX

the form».)·, 380; decree· on tho
mutter............................................... 343
Barbarians, inredo the Roman empire,
L 266, 277; settled by Theodosius, as
•Die·, in Roman provinces, 616;
invade the Western empire, 664;
their inroads in the middle-ages, iL
376; their form of government..... 382
Barohocebim, a Jewish impostor, loads
a Jewish revolt, L........................ 106
Bardesanus, his defection, i............... 138
Barnabitos, iv........................................ 73
Basil, St., Of t'æsaroa, his early life, L
475; his friendship with St. Gre­
gory Nazianzen, 476; is raised to
the metropolitan see of Oæsarea,
504; his appeal to Popo Damasus,
504; his interview with the prietorian prefect Modestus, 506; his
activ’ real it behalf of the East­
ern Gnurch, 507, 508; his death,
514; he works.......................... 514, 615
Basil the Macedon in, emperor of Con­
stantinople, his antecedents, iL 498,
his accession, 499; his opposition
to the schism of Photius, 499;
sends ambassadors to Rome, 515;
bis zeal for the true faith, 616; hit
address to the fathers of the eighth
general council................................ 51«·
Basilicas—Foundation of Roman basili­
cas, by Constantine, i. 396; Lateran and Vatican, 396,397 ; St. Sophia
at Constantinople, 470 ; Liberian.... 601
Basiliscus, dethrones Zeno and seizes
the Eastern sceptre, ii. 10 ; is warn­
ed by Daniel, the Stylite, of his ap­
proaching fall, 12; his banishment
and death........................................ 13
Basle, Council of, wretched cabal, iii. 583-585
Bayard, Chevalier, his death, iv........... 76
Beds, Venerable, his works, ii.............. 309
Belisarius, quells the insurrection of the
Greens and Bluer in Constantinople,
iL 127 ; puts an end to tho Vandal
rule in Africa, 129; sent against
the Goths in Italy, 140 ; his suc­
cesses in Italy, 144; at tho instiga­
tion of Theodora, he banishes the
Pope to Patnro, 145; his disgrace
and death, 148; tho story of his
blindness, a mere Action.......... 149, note
Bellarmine, Cardinal, iv.......................... 226
Beizunce, bishop of Marseilles, his
heroic charity, iv............................... 436
Benedict, St, patriarch of tho monastic
life in the West, iL 121; his rules,
122 ; benefits conferred by his order,
123; attempts against his life, 123;
visit of Totila, king of the Ostrogo».hs, 124; his death................... 124
Benedict, St., of Aniuno, his labors in
ecclesiastical reform, iL.................... 433

Benedict I, Popo, his election, it Ι6Λ ;
his death.............................................
Benedict IL, Popo, his election, ii. 283 ;
adopts tho sons of Constantine IV.,
285; his death...................................... 2âj
Benedict III., Popo, bis election, iL 485 ;
his death............................................ «sj
Benedict IV., Pope, character of the
age, ii. 555; his mild and prudent
government, 569; his death.......... 659
Benedict V., Pope, nis election, ii. 697 ;
his banishment to Hamburg............... 59·
Benedict VI., Pope, his imprisonment
and death, ii........................................ 604
Benedict VII., Pope, bis election troubled
by anwmtipope, ii. 606; his death. .611
Benedict VIII., Pope, election, iii. 24;
Hies to Saxony, 24 ; return to
Rome, 25; crowns Henry 11. of
Germany, 36; gives proofs of he­
roic valor, 29; induces Henry to
defend Italy ngainst the Greeks,
30; death.............................................. 34
Benedict IX., Pope, election, iii. 50 ;
scandals, 50, 51 ; permits Casimir
to return to the world, &c., 53; is
expelled from Rome, 57 ; returns,
63 ; repents, abdicates, and dies.... 6 J
Benedict X., Pope, intrusion of, iiL
86; repents .................................... 87
Benedict XL, Pope, election, .oavos
Rome, revokes tho censures incurred
by Philip and the French clergy,
iii. 457 ; excommunicates all the per­
secutors of Boniface VIII., 458 ; sud­
den death.........................
458
Benedict XII., Pope, singular election,
iiL 490 ; noble character ; compelled
to remain in France, promulgates
the decretal Benedictus Deus, 491;
strives to reconcile Louis of Bavaria
to the Church, 492 ; also, France aud
England, 493; triumphs in Spam
over tho Moore, 494 ; in Italy over
the factions, 495; death................. 496
Benedict XIII., Pope, council in Rome,
iv. 446 ; Office of St. Gregory VII.,
452 ; his death...................................... 458
Benedict XIV., Pope, antecedents and
election, iv. 473, 471; his prudence,
480; his brief on tho OnigenAus, 48f> ;
bis death, 486. bis bullary an analy­
sis, Ac., 486 ; his treatise on the diocesan
synod......................... 487
Benedictines, Congregation of St. Maur,
iv....................................................... 292
Ben FratelU, iv.. . ..........................
74
Berengariue, iiL....................................... 7O-7S
Bernard, St? iiL 189 ; sketch of, 189 ;
enters Citeaux with thirty young
nobles, founds Clairvaux, 190; bis
great reputation, 208 ; style im an
orator and writer, 209; admirable let-

INDEX.

ter, 110; conversion», 111, 214; lie
frames n constitution for the Tomplan·, 215; declares in favor of In­
nocent II., 218; goes with the Pope
to Rime, 223; a triumphal march,
acenes at Milan, 225; meets the
Duke of Aquitaine, 225; wins over
Cardinal Peter of Pisa, 228; and the
antipope Victor IV , 228 : first con­
ference with Abelard, 233 ; letter on
the election of Eugenius III., 240;
dedicates to him the work “De
Consideratione," 242 ; preaches the
second Crusade, 243 ; numerous mi­
racles in Germany, 244 ; preaches
against the Petrobrusians, 253 ; grief
for the issue of the Crusade, 255 ;
last act of charity and triumph, 255;
death of St. Bernard, 256 ; his devo­
tion to the Blessed Virgin........ 255, note
Bernard, St,, of Menthon, his labors in
tho Alpine country, ii. GOO; founds
the Hospice of Mount St. Bernard.. 609
Bernardin, St., of Sienna, iii................... 554
Beyyllus, bishop of Bozra, falls into
heresy, i.............................................. 224
Billets of recommendation from mar­
tyrs, i. 241; abuse of the usage .... 242
Bishops, manner of their election, L
70; their functions, 71; their dis­
tinctive dress, 71; in what venera­
tion held by the primitive Christians,
72; ordinance in their regard by
Pope Sixtus I., 101 ; decree of Pope
St. Zephyrinus concerning the attend­
ance of tho clergy when the bishop
celebrates Mass, 197 ; decree of Nice
concerning their ordination, 399;
suffragans not to be consecrated
Without tho consent of the metro­
politan, 623 ; tho bishops of Italy
forced to take upon themselves the
defence of their flocks, iL................. 38
Blessing, used among the first Chris­
tians, L 78; benediction of trees and
fruit..................................................... 280
Boetius, his works on Christian philos­
ophy, ii. 109; imprisoned by Theodoric, 109; his torture and daath.. 110
Bollandists, iv........................................ 225
Boua. Cardinal, his works, iv............... 310
Bonald, Viscount de, iv....................... 580
Bonaparte. Vide Napoleon.
Boniface, steward of a Roman lady,
his extraordinary conversion and
martyrdom, L................................. 311
Boniface St. apostle of Germany, com­
missioned by St Gregory IL to
preach, iL 308 ; founds the archiépis­
copal eoe of Mayence, 308; hie labors,
308 ; is made Vicar Apostolic in Ger­
many. 328; his labors there.............. 329
Boniface I , 8t, Pope, his election, i.

«569

563, Enlallus seises the Letem
basilica and is consecrated antipope,
563; difficulty with the sixth Coun­
cil of Carthage, 563 ; bis death
MM
Boniface II.. St, Pope, his election, first
*
his own suc­
acts, ii. 117 ; appoint
cessor, 118; retracts the appointment
118 ; his regularity in holding wnn
cils, 119; case of Stephen of Larissa,
119; his death............................... 124
Boniface III., Pope, his election, il
196; settles the difficulty with the
Pa.rMcha of Constantinople, 197;
his death .................................... 19»
Boniface IV, Pope, his election, ii. 198 ;
turns the Pantheon into a Christian
church, 198; his death.................. 201
Boniface V., Pope, his accession. iL
202 ; bis care of the Church in Eng­
land, 210; his death.................... 212
Boniface VI., Pope, his short Pontifi­
cate, ii...................................... - · 547
Boniface VII.. antipope. iL................... 606
Boniface VIII., election, seis »«t for
Rome, iii 412; state of the Christian
world, vigorous measures of the
Pope. 444 ; publishes the centennial
jubilee. 445; excommunicates Albert
of Austria, 447 ; st-mmons Philip IV.
of France, and Edward I. of England,
to appear before him, 449 ; publi-bos
the famous bull. AtueuUajiJi, 451;
rebukes the Gallican bishops, 453;
the bull Unam Sanctam, 454 : the
Pope seized and thrown into prison
456; returns in triumph to Rome,
noble character, death....................... 454
Boniface IX, election, iiL 543 ; restores
the temporal power of the papacy.
544 ; ratifies the deposition of Wenceslaus, kingof Bohemia. 548; dies .. 551
Books, list of those allowed and forbid­
den by the Council of Rome, under
Pope St Gelaaius I, iL 49; cata­
logue of a monastic library in the
tenth century................................. 573
Boeauet, iv. 358; his “Defence of the
Declaration of the French Clergy.’’
367; his death................................ 425
Bridget, St, patroness of Ireland, her
life there, if..................................... 106
Bridget, St, of Sweden, iii 521 ; Order
of.................................................... 657
Britain. ΙΊΛ England.
Brittany, is made an indepenieot king­
dom, ii............................................. 18.
Brownists, in England, iv. .. ........... ..232
Bulgarians, their conversion, ii. 507 ;
question of jurisdiction over the
church of Bulgaria............................. 528
Bur ch i rd, bishop of Worms, his - Or>L
lection of Canons," iiL.................... 17
Burgundians, their eutraura into Gaul, I. 618

•70

INDEX.

MO·
Oadoloiii. anupope, under me name οΓ
Honorio» IL. iii................................. 95
(hdoa St., his labora In Wales, ii........ 105
Cainitea heretics, i................................ 121
Gaius, St. Pope, hie election. I. 280 ;
hie death............................................ 291
Calendar, reformed by Pope Gregory
XIII. iv............................................. 234
Callistus I.,St, Pope, i. 197; hia death. 204
Oalirtus II, election, iii. 194; closes
the war of investiture, 200 ; convokes
the ninth général council, 200; réal­
ités the great purpose of Gregory
VH., 201 ; death............................. 201
Calvin, sketch of his early life, iv. 124; his
system, 125; political life, 127; his
death.............................................. 129
Calvinism compared with Lutheranism,
iv. 129; its progress in France, 183;
troubles excited by them...205-210;
213, 214; 241-245
Camnldoli, Order of, iii.......................... 33
Cano, Melchior, theologian, iv ............. 161
Canon of Scripture. Fide Scripture.
Canons of the Council of Nice, L........ 387-393
Vide Primacy, Patriarchs, Metropoli­
tans, Bishops, Celibacy, Penitents, and
Matrimony ; of the Council of Trent.
vide Councils, eighteenth general
CanoLP, regular, their flrst establish­
ment in France, their rule, ii........ 357
Canterbury, foundation of the school by
Sts. Adrian and Theodore, ii.............. 262
Canute, of Denmark, at Rome, iii. 40 ;
his noble character............................. 41
Capétien dynasty, established in France,
Ü......................................................... 613
Capistran, St. John, heroism of, iii.... 606
Capitularies of Charlemagne and Louis
the Mild, first collected, ii.............. 449
(hracaila, Roman emperor, i................. 193
Cardinals, date of the origin of the Car­
dinalats, LIU; their number, ii. 444;
445; Papal election confined to the
College of Cardinals....................
446
Oarlomap. king of the Franks, his acces­
sion, ii. 327 ; withdraws to tho mo­
nastery of Monte Cassiuo................ 334
Carlstadt, troubles al Wittenberg, iv... 81
Carthage destroyed by Genseric, i....... 579
Carthusians, iii.............................. 141, 430
Casimir I., king of Poland, iii................ 53
Caasian, John, i............................. 568, 572
Oasaiodorus, minister of Theodoric the
Great, ii. 65 ; his influence favorable
to the Catholics.................................. 68
Catacombs, their use by the early Christj.ns, i............................................ 80
Catherine, St., of Genoa, iii.......... 661, 662
Catherine, St., of Sienna, iii.................. 536
Cecilia, St., martyr, i................................209
Ociliau, bishop of Carthage, attacked
hy the Donatista, i........................ 360-362

' Celestin I., Pope, .. 566; condemns
I the Nestorian heresy, 572 ; death... >7»
Celestin II., brief Pontificate, iii.. .237 2?.i
Celestin III., election, iii. 303; opens
the third Crusade, 304; his death... 3|.
Celestin IV., iii........................................ 3d
Celestin V., St., iii..............................414. 415
Celestius, heretic, 1............................. 557, 565
OeHbnoy strictly enjoined upon the
clergy in the early ages of the
Church, i. 73; Eusebius of Cæsarea
and the Council of Nice, 390, 391;
decretal of St. Sericius, 523 ; remarks
of Monsignore Palma, iii........... 141, 142
Cerdon, heretic, i...................................... 110
Ceremonial observed in the Council of
Carthagena (a. d. 633), ii..................... 249
Cesarius, St., of Arles, sketch of his
life, ii. 75; bisbop of Arles, 76;
calumnies uttered against him, 83,
84; opposes Semi-Pelagianism......... 117
Charlemagne, his accession, ii. 358; his
youthful irregularities, 362, 363 ; re­
lations with Pope Adrian I., 364;
confirms Pepin's gift to the Holy See,
366; the Carolin Books, 373; crown­
ed emperor of the West, 403 ; hie
court, 405; liberal administration,
406-415; domestic afflictions, 419;
his death............................................. 422
Charles Borromeo, St., iv........................ 191
Charles Edward, the Pretender, iv ... 480
Charles L of England; sketch of his
career, iv ........................................306-310
Charles V., emperor of Germany, iv.
66; the Interim. 138; abdication,
163; his death, 166; his character, 166
Charles Martel, protector of the Holy
See, ii. 316, 318 ; defeats Abderahraan at Poitiers, 322 ; protects Rome
from invasion.................................... 325
II Chinese Rites," question decided Ly
the Holy See, iv.................................... 428
Chivalry, Christian, origin, iii............... 4o
Chosroes, king of Persia, his ravegw
in the East, ii............... ...................... 151
Chrism, to be used in baptism, i........... 412
Christian era, adopted in chtono'.o
Christianity, its connection with tb
*
past, i. 13 ; introduced into Gaul
Germany,54 ; progretwafter the oighth
general persecution, 269 ; made the
religion of the empire, 329; position
at the time of Constantino, 332 ; rapid
extension in Italy, 333; in the West,
334; in the East, 336; obstacles,
337 ; causes favorable, 340 ; hostile
writers, 341; reaction against Chris­
tianity under Constantine, 367 ; pro­
gress beyond the limite of the Romas
Empire, 395; in the seventh cen
tury, ii........................................... 25s

INDEX.

671

VMI
Christiana—manners of the primitive
presses the Society of Joaos, 510;
Christians, i. 30 : how regarded by
his death.......................
.. 512
Pliny the younger, 85; Trajan's de­
Clement of Alexandria, his worts, i... 167
cree, 86: edict of Antoninus Pius,
Clergy, during the middle-ages, ii. ... 624
118 ; relaxation of morals, 222 ; their
Clerics, decrees of the Council of Nice,
charity, 263, 269 ; deliverance after
l 389 ; decree of the Council of Agde,
the tenth general persecution........... 321
ii. 75; decree of Lerida, 112; ac­
Christina of Sweden, her conversion,
countable to the bishop.................... 118
iv..........................................................312
Clinics, origin of the name, i......... .
71
Clotilda, ii............................................ 59
Christmas, to be celebrated on the 25th
of December, i................................ 445
Clovis, king of the Franks, ii. 58; his
conversion, 60, 61 ; liberality to the
Church, foundation, i. 21; her doc­
trine, 60; government, 69; during
churches...................................... 80
Cluny, monks of. iii... .................... 209. 429
the first centuries, 349 ; marks of the
Codes—Theodosias, i. 579; Code of
true Church, 510; position in respect
GuXdebald, king of the Burgun­
to paganism, 621 ; at the fall of the
dians, ii. 74; of Alabio IL, king of
Western Empire, ii............................
2
the Visigoths, 74 ; JOSTIXIAS Code,
Church property, anathema against the
114; Penitential Code of Egbert,
unjust holders of, ii........................ 83
archbishop of York............................ 332
Circumcellians, schismatics, i............... 430
Citeaux, foundation of, iii.........................173 Collins, Anthony, English sceptical
Civil Constitution of the Clergy, in
writer, iv......................................
France, iv............................................ 528 Colette, St, iii......................................
Clement I., St., Pope, i.......................... 55 Colly ridions, error concerning the Bless­
ed Virgin Mary, i.......................... 511
Clement II.. brief Pontificate, iii.... 61, 62
Communion, difference between the
Clement HI., his élection, iii. 299;
Gilhalic communion and the Episco­
death....................................................... 303
pal communion, it .......................... 32
Clement IV., iii............................ 389-392
( Vide Eucharist.)
Clement V., his election, iii., 460;
Confession of Augsburg, iv................. 94
slanders against his Pontificate, 460 ;
Congregations of cardinals, iv............. 238
removes the Holy See to Avignon,
Conon, Pope. ii.......................... · · .286-287
460; his death................................ 475
Conrad, emperor of Germany, his jus­
Clement VI., his election, iii. 496;
tice, iii. 36 ; crowned by the Pope... 39
shortens the interval of the Jubilee, 497
Constantine, Pope, ii............... . · · - -’99, 304
Clement VII., election and difficult
Constantine, emperor, proclaimed, i.
situation, iv., 75; Home in the hands
314; contest with Maxentius, 325of the imperial troops, 79; reply to
327 ; Christian legislation, 363 ; his
the application of Henry VIII. for a
cruelty, 365 ; treatment of Arianism,
divorce, 101; annuls the union with
376 ; kindness to the Fathers of Nice,
Anne Bole<n, 105; his death........... 106
394;
foundations of churches, 4c
Clement VUJ., election, iv. 248; the
396; his death.................................. <17
duchy of Ferrara annexed to the
Pontifical domain, 254; his death... 256 Constantino Copronymus, emperor, his
impious excesses, ii. 333 ; forfeits his
Clement IX., “Clementine Peace," iv.
claim to his Italian possessions, 340 ;
323, 321; brief to die refractory
an Iconoclast...................................... 341
French bishops, 324; death..........338
Clement X, iv................................. 341-342 Constantine Drogases, heroic defence
of Constantinople, iii........................... 603
Clement XI., his antecedents, iv. 403;
Constantinople, founded by Constan­
election, 405 ; political concessions
tine, l 400; great fire, 608; threat­
wrung from him by the Imperial
ened by the Russians, ii. 606 ; taken
forces, 411; troubles with Sicily,
by Miihomet Π-, iii......................... 603
413 ; bull Vineam Damini Sabaoth,
418: bull Unigenitus, 422 ; bull JW»··
Constantius, emperor, character, i. 418;
alis, 427 ; bull Az ilia die, 427; sends
mania for councils, 450; decree
relief to Marseilles during the plague,
against tho CansuMuntial.................... 4SI
437; his death................................ 433
Councils—First council, held at Jeru­
Clement XIL, iv.............................. 456-472
salem, L 40 ; first Council of Cartilage,
Olomeut XIII., his character, iv. 492 ;
decrees on tho lapsi, Ac., 247 ; of
position respecting the Jesuits, 495Romo, against Novutian. 2tS; second
601 ; bull Apostolicum, 602 ; brief to
of Carthage, 248 ; another at Car­
tho King of Spain, 507 ; death....... 507
thago, on the baptism of heretic»
(Bement XIV, position m respect to the
256 ; of Elvira, 295 ; first Lateran,
Buropeau Powers, iv. 508 ; supagainst the Donatists, 330; of Arles.

672
«gsir..M the DonatisU, 360; of An·
erra. Gangrea, and Neocæ«aren, 362;
of Alexandria, against Artus, 371;
Finer Ecumenical Council, held at
NICE, in Bithynii, 377 ; louions, de­
crees. 4c., 380-394; Arian Council
of Tyre, 405 ; of Constantinople, 414 ;
Council of Rome, under Pope Julius
I., 421; Council of Milan, 423; of
Sardio». 423; of Carthage, against
the Cir<
*meiUian\
431; of Milan,
460; of Constantinople, 470; first of
Pari·. 470; of Antioch, 471 ; of Alex­
andria, 493; of Lampsacus, 499, 600·
of Rome, egainat the antipope Ur­
sinus and the Arians, 505; of Con­
stantinople,. 617-520 ; of Saragossa,
against the Priscillianist.s, 521; of
Aquiieia, 521; of Rome, 622; of
Toledo, 540; sixth of Carthage, 563;
Third General Council nt Ephesus,
673; of Reez, in Gnul, 583; of
Orange, 583; the Latrocinale of
Ephesus. 586; of Rome, against the
Latrocinale, 588; Fourth General
Council at Chalcedon, 588; of
Arles, Tours, and Vannes, in Gaul,
807 ; of Arles, against the Predestinarians, ii. 3 ; of Rome, in behalf of
John Talaia, 22; of Rome, against
Eulychianism, 30; of Rome, 36, 48,
66; of Agde, in Languedoc, 74; of
Orleans, 79; of Junque and Car­
thage (a. D. 524-525), 111 ; of Arlee,
Valence, and Lerida, 111 ; of Orange,
against Semi-Pelagianism, 117; of
Rome and Orange, profession on the
question of Grace, 119; of Vaison,
idea of Seminaries, 120; of Toledo,
Holy Order», 120; of Orleans. 135;
of Carthage. 139; Fifth General
Council at Constantinople, 165;
provincial councils in Gaul, 1G9; in
Spain, under St Gregory the Great,
189 ; of Jerusalem, against thr- Mono­
thelites, 218; of Rome against the
eame, 234; of Corthagena, 249; of
Hereford, tn England, 261 ; in Spain,
270 el ·>■<].; Sixth General Council
at Constantinople, 278; fifteenth,
and sixteenth, and seventeenth of
Toledo, 289, 290; council in 7¥uU>,
291; of Nesterlield. England, 295;
of Rome, against the Iconoclasts,
324 ; of Soiesons (a. D. 744), 331 ; of
Clove-shoe (Cliff), England, 332; of
Rome, 360; Seventh General
Council at Nice, 372; of Frankfort,
37 o, of Calcuith (or Celchyt), Eng­
land, 428 ; of Paris, 447 ; of Rome,
449; councils in Gaul, 470; Eiobth
Geneval Council, at Constanti■OPLE 51 517 ; of Tribur, 545;

INDEX.

of Rome, 549 ; of Ravenna, 660 of
Trotly, 562; of St. Pierro-do-Mo isson, Ingelheim and Triors, 581 of
Clermont, for tho first Criisadoj HL
163; Ninth General Council of
Lateran, 200; Tenth General
Council, Latkran, 229; of Tours,
275; Eleventh General Council,
Lateran, 288, Twelfth General
Council, Lateran, 339 ; Thirteenth
General Council at Lyons, 365;
Fourteenth General Council at
Lyons, 399 ; Fifteenth General
Council at Vienne, 469 ; Sixteenth
General Council at Florence,
694; Seventeenth General Coun­
cil, Lateran, 647, and iv. 7-23;
Eighteenth General Council of
Trent, iv. 134 ; histories of tho coun­
cil by Fra Paulo and Pallavicini, 13G,
137; sessions, 138, 141, 142; trans­
ferred to Bologna, 145 ; opposition in
France. 147 ; bull of Julius III. for
the reopening of the council, 155;
sessions resumed, 157 ; second sus­
pension, 162 ; bull of Pius IV. for
resuming tho council, 192 ; sessions,
193, 195, 197, 201; last session and
closing discourse.................................. 203
Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury, iv. 104
Creed (Nicene), composed in tho coun­
cil against Arius, i. 383 ; to be rocited ut Maas, 414; Insertion :i the
Filioque, IL 417 ; sung at Mnss 'n Ger­
many and Gaul .......................... 418, note
Cromwell, Oliver, iv.................................. 306
Cromwell, Thomas, iv.............................. 101
Crusades, origin of, iii. 137 ; first Cru­
sade, 162 ; second, 243 ; third, 299303; fourth, 330; fifth, 346; aixt-h,
357 ; seventh, 370; eighth and last,
394 ; true idea of the Crusades........ 397
Cyprian, St., his conversion, i. 225;
his writings, 227, 248; bishop of
Carthage, 228; his charity, 263;
letters, Ac., 254 ; martyrdom............ 261
Cyril, St., bishop of Jerusalem, letter on
tho miraculous cross, i 444 ; his
labora and promotion to tho episco­
pate, 478; troubles with tho Arians, 478
Damasus, St., Popo, his election and
character, i. 602; election of an anti­
pope, 503; his decision in tho caso
of tho two bishops at Antioch, 505 ;
his position aa head of the Uhurch,
511; his death................................. 622
Daniel, St., the Stylite, i......................... 6U8
Dante, Ids Düina Commcdia, iii............ 469
Dardania, ita twenty-four cities destroy­
ed by an earthquake, ii....................... 96
David, St, archbishop and patron of
• Wales, his labora, ii................
104 Ot

INDEX.

OetM'uns—election of tho Orel sovon
,
*
deacon
i. 31 ; their duties, 13; de­
cree of tho Council of Arles (A. D
424) concerning the canonical age, it 111
Ooaconcssus, their institution and du­
ties, i. 74; end of the order............ 583
Declaration of tho French Clergy in
1682. iv................................................. 362
Decretals, of St. Sericius, i. 523 ; Mer­
cator's, iii. 18; of Gregory IX........... 359
De Lamennais, iv. 682 ; his condemna­
tion.............................
594
Do Maistre, Count Joseph, iv............... 580
Demetrius, patriarch of Alexandria, his
relations with Onge», i.................. 214
Deogrntins, bishop of Carthage, his
charity to tho Roman captives of
Genseiic, i ...................................... 600
De Qut'len, archbishop of Paris, iv.

673

Easter, ,|U'Æt>vr of the re'ennitioi..
121, r.-nowtd under Tope f'.etor I
15'·, Utt».· I roc, »»ηο·.4 t .«hops tn
him, 143-162, c*ncn d.iw.i ii/ by
order of Pope St l^o
599 ; the
question in Oa-il, !i 190; In Britois. 25«
Ebionites. Vide Heresies.
Ebroin, mayor of the palace, hi
* power,
il. 26i ; bi
* cruelty............... 166. el «eq
Ectherie of Hamelins, ii........................ 221
Ecumenical councils—for the various
councils, tide Omnols—dshvatkn of
tho nam», l 376; the rowlilions re­
quired co make a council ecumenical,
518; is a general council superior to
tho Pope? 625; the number deter
mined by the Council of Home, ii.. 46
Egbert, archbishop of York, his pen1
tentiiil code and pontificii, il........... 332
Elcesaitæ, heretics, i.............................. 225
Descartes, his philosophy, iv .............. 3 53
Election of the Roman Pontiffs, canons,
Dejsdodit, Pope, his brief Pontificate,
ii. 66 : interference of temporal rulers,
J17 ; decrees, 197 ; Constantine Pogoii........................................................ 202
Dimissorial letters, first issued by Pope
natus relinquishes die claim of tbs
Anastaaius L, i................................... 540
emperors on their confirmation.
283; eligible candidates, 360. con­
Diocksiun. Roman emperor, i. 281;
fined to tho college of cardinals. 445;
partition of the empire, 289; his
how far the crowns enjoy the privi­
court, 290; abdicates, 303; hie
lege of exclusion, iv...........................4-tO
death................................................ 309
Eleutherius,
SL, Pope, i................. 143-151
Dionysius, St, the Areopagite, his
Elizabeth, queen of England, her hos­
works, i........................................... 93
tility to the Catholic religion, iv.
179-183; excommunicated by St
Dionysius the Little, introduces the
Pius V........................
215
reckoning by the Christian era, ii... 137
Ember-days, regulations of St. Callistus
Dioscorus, patriarch of Alexandria, i.
L, i............................
204
581; arraigned before the Council of
“Emperor of the Priests,” iii............ 500
Chalcedon....................................... 590
Dioscorua, antipope, ii.......................... 118 England, state of religion in the sixth
century, ii. 104; foundation of the
Diptychs, ii......................................... 44, note
English hierarchy, 183; progress of
Discipline, in the first ages, i. 75 ; how
rhrkti.inity and foundation of West­
spoken of by Athenagoras and Torminster Abbey, 199; persecution by
tulliun..................................
76
tho Saxons, 2t>2; state of the Church
Divorce, canons, i. 393 ; decree of the
in England, 210, 220, 255; progress
council of Hereford, England, ii.... 262
of religion and learning, 296, 332 ;
Docetes. ride Heresies.
Norman conquest, iii.................. 104
Doge—right of the Venetians to elect
Ephesus, corned against Nestorius,
their doges confirmed by the Popo, ii.
i................................................ 57:i, 574
272; ceremony of “ Wedding the
Ephrem, Sl, disciple of St James of
Adriatic," iii............................. 280, note
Nisibis, i............................................ 440
Domitian, persecuted the Church, L.... 52
Domnus, or Donus, I., St, Pope, ii..273-276 Epipbanius, SL, bishop of Pavia, i.
Donations—bishops no· to touch dona
*
610; ii.......................................... 42,43
tious made to monasteries, ii........ 112
Epipbanius, St. archbishop of Salamis,
Donatists, schlsmatical proceedings at
his works, i. 508; his death........ 649
Carthago, i. 322 ; kept in their sees,
Epipodms, St, martyr of Lyons, i.... 147
in Africa.............
5J3
Epl-copacy, L........................................ 76
Bonus II., St, Popo, ii.......................... 605
Episcopalians, validity of their ordinaDorotheas, priest at Antioch, i............ 278
tiens, iv.................................
429
Dunean, Jewish king of the Hamiars,
Epistles of St James, St Peter, St
persecutes tho Christians in Arabia,
John, SL Jude, and St Paul, 1...... 64
th.......................
101
Eucharist, to be received under tolh
Dunstan, SL, archbishop of Canter­
kinds, and how long Observed, ii
bury, ii........................................... 60’
•4; decree of th· Council of Agde

I

VOL. IV,—4 :

674

INDEX.

ccmrerning tho twt of orthodoxy by
th· reception of the Sacrement........ 74
Rudoxia, empress, persecutes St. John
Chrysostom, i............................... 649-551
Euceno, Prince, iv. 399, no
;
*
defeats
the tinta nt Temesmr, 400; at Feterwaniein nnd Belgrade.............. 433,434
Eugenios 1, Popo, governs the Church
of Romo during the exile of St.
Marlin, ii. 244 ; is confirmed in the
Pontifical dignity. 240; his death... 248
Fugemus II., Popo, ii...................... 446-450
Eugenius III., Pope, election, iii. 240 ;
opens tho second Cnisndo, 243; hie
death............................ ................ 254
Eugenius IV., Pope, election, iil. 684 ;
conciliatory conduct toward the Coun­
cil of Basle. 588 d stq. ; dissolves it,
692 ; convokes the sixteenth general
council, 594 ; his death.................. 698
Eunomians. Γύ/e Ætians.
Eupsychinns, heretics, i......................... 404
Eusebius of Ciesarea, his works, I. 356,
622 : his leaning to Arianism........ 3S3
Eusebius of Nicomedia, league with
Arius, L 312; fraud in signing the
Nicene profession of faith, 381 ; de­
posed, 395 ; usurps the see of Con­
stantinople ..................................... 418
Eusebius of Vercelli, his community of
clerics, L 449 ; present at the council
of Alexandria.................................... 493
Eusebius of Dorylæum, opposes Eutyebes, i.......................................... 585
Eustathius, patriarch of Antioch, i.... 402
Eustochium, St., places herself under
tho direction of St. Jerome, i........ 635
Eutropius favorite of the Emperor Ar­
cadius,!. 531 : his disgrace, 640, 641;
saved by St. John Chrysostom. ..540, 541
Eutyches, i............................................ 684
Eulychian, St , Pope, i.................... 217-280
Eutycbiiiniem, its origin, i. 584; causes
new troubles in the East, 596 ; end of
its reign in the East, ii...................... 99
Evangelists, their emblems, L............. 63
Evaristus, St, Pope, i......................... 84-90
Exclusion, privilege enjoyed by the
crowns, in Pontifical elections, iv.... 440
Ezselino the Ferocious, lit........................ 362
Fabian, St.. Pope, manner of his elec­
tion, L 211 ; his martyrdom.......... 230
Famine, dreadful, in France, iii............. 45
False Decretals, ii..........................
466
Fanaticism, popular, strength of, iii.... 598
Fast»—to what exteut practised in
the first ages of the Church, i. 18;
fast of Saturday not of universal obli­
gation. .................................................. 627
Fathers whose authority is admitted by
the Church, ii.................................. 49
Faustus, bishop of Rees, withdraws Lu­

cidius from error, it 4 ; his error and
noble submission....................................
|
Feast of Fools, probable origin, ii.......... 682
Feh'cis’imus, schismatic, i........................ 245
Felix I., St , Pope, i.............................. 273-277
Felix II., 8t, Pope (vide note on Felix
Hi-), ii..................................................... 22
Felix III, St., Pope, his election, ii. 22,
sends legates to Zeno, 23 ; his letter
to Zeno ns a last appeal, 33; his
death..................................................... 3»
Felix IV., St., Pope, ii......................... 113-117
Felix, St., of Nola, i.................................... 278
Fénelon, sketch of his enrly life, iv. 391 ;
involved in the question of Quietism,
395; hia disgrace at court, 396; his
noble submission.................................... 398
Ferdinand nnd Isabella, their court nnd
administration, iii.............................. 631
Ferio, applied to the days of tho week
except Saturday and Sunday, i....... 412
Feudal laws, ii.....................................384, note
Filioque, Aral inserted in tho Nicene
Creed, ii................................................... 417
Firmicus Maternus, apologist, i............. 622
Flagellantes, sect, iii.................................. 401
Flavian, consecrated bishop of Antioch,
i. 6)8; his appeal to Theodosius utter
the revolt of Antioch...................... 526-628
Fleury, hie “ History of the Church,”
iv. 360 ; discourse on the “ Liberties
of the Gallican Church”............ 351-356
Flodoard, canon of Rheims. ii............... 567
Formosus, Pope, transferred from the
see of Porto to that of Rome, ii. 543 ;
settles the question of the ordinations
of Pliotius, 543 ; political troubles in
Italy..................................................... 646
"Four Articles" of the Gallican Church,
iv................................................. 362—366
Francis. St., of Assisi, iil 337 ; troubles
in his order................................... .. 481
Francis, St., of Paula, iii.......................... 626
Francis, St, of Sales, iv............................ 272
Francis Xavier, St., iv.............................. 160
Franks, their advance into Gaul, i. 570;
account by Gregory of Tours, ii. 67 ;
their conversion to Christianity........ 60
Frederick Barbarossa, bis designs upon
Italy, iil. 261 ; crowned emporor, 263 ;
destroys Milan, 272; ravagea Italy,
273-277 ; reconciliation with tho Popo,
281 ; treaty with the Lombard cities,
292; departure for the Holy War,
299: hia successes, 301; death....
Frederick II., emperor of Germany,
placed under the care of the Holy
See, iii. 318; receives the crown of
Germany, 326; his qualities. 356 ; ex­
communicated by Pope Gregory IX.,
357 ; his expedition to the Holy Land,
357 ; feigned submission to tho Pope,
359; again in arms against the Holy

INDEX.

See, 361 ; excommunicated, 362 ; hia
death.. 4»....................................
368
freemasonry, condemned by Clement
XII., iv..................................................... 471
French Itevolntion, its origin and pro­
gress, iv.......................................526-540
Fronde, in Franco, iv................................. 310
Fulbert, 3t., bishop of Chartres, his
labors in Gaul, iii............................ 13
Fulgentius, St., his pious studies and
labors in Africa, ii. 81 ; raised to
the see of Ruspa, 82 ; return from
exile.................................................. Ill
Fulk-Nerra, Count of Anjou, his con­
version and pilgrimage to Palestine,
iii..................................................... 14, 15

67R

visits Britain. 570; icoond visit to
Britain, 581; his death....................
Germany, progress of Catholicity in the
seventh century, ii...................... 2g(
ijersnn, iii 551. sttMch of ............... $5|
Giovio. Paolo, his works, iv .. . ............ JO
Glastonbury Abbey, its foundation, ii . 104
Gnostics, their doctrines, i. 97 ; various
branches ...............
120
Golden Number, i......................
385
Gordan, king of the Huns, his conver­
sion, il.......................................... lie
Gospels, i............................................. 62
Gotescalc, hia restlessness nnd presump­
tion, ii........................................... 478
Gothic Architecture. Vide Architecture.
Got lis, their embassy to Valens, i. 512 ;
they invade the empire, 51'.’ ; were
Gaius, controversy with Proclus, a
the first Germans baptized, 616 ; in­
Montanist, i..................................... 187
troduction of Arianism amongst them 617
Galerius, Homan emperor, his edict in
Grand-mom, Order οζ ut ... ............ 43·
»avor of tho Christians, i. 320, note;
Gregorian calendar. Tide Calendar.
his death............................................ 321
Gregory the Great St., Pope, his desire
Gaul, invaded by the barbarians, i.
to go and preach the Gospel in Britain,
554 ; flourishing state of religion at
ii. 166; his elevation tn the Sovereign
the time of the Frankish invasion,
Pontificate, 174; his character au.i
569, 670; holy bishops, 611 et sea.
influence,
175; his Pastoral, 176; bis
ii 5; bishops of Gaul in the s,x:h
zealous labors, 177 ; hie Dialogues,
century, 131, 132; monasteries, Ac.,
179; bis letter to the Emperor Mau­
157, 160 ; bishops, Ac. (a.d. 530-609),
ritius, 182 ; case of John the Faster,
170; foundation of monasteries, Ac.,
patriarch of Constantinople, 183 ;
under Boniface V, 211; growth of
settles the case of Maximus, bishop
monastic institutions in tho seventh
of Salona, 183 ; treats with Agilulpti,
century, 251, 269; numerous councils
king of the Lombards, 184 ; sends
under Pope Sergius II...................... 470
missionaries to Englund, 185 ; his
Gelasiua I., St., Pope, his election, ii 40;
efforts to maintain ecclesiastical dis­
his letter to Euphemius, patriarch of
cipline
in Gaul, lo8 ; receives un em­
Constantinople, 44 ; his circular to the
bassy
from Brunohauli, and Theodoric,
Kastern churches, 45; his letter to
king of the Burgundians, 190 ; the
Anastasius, 46 ; his zeal for the main­
Sacramentary and Gregorian chant,
tenance of discipline, and regularity
192 ; his death, 194 ; review of his
and grandeur of the Liturgy, 51, 52;
Pontificate...................................195, Î78
his treatise on tho “ Anathema," 52;
Gregory IL, Pope, his election, fl. 307 ;
hie character, 53 ; his death.......... 54
restoration of monastic discipline in
Gelasius Π., elected, iii. 193 ; sad state
Italy, 307 ; hia labors for the spread­
of Rome, 193 ; dies........................ 194
ing of tho faith, 308 ; attempt on the
Gelimer, dethrones Mid murders HdPontiiTs life, 314; turns away Luitderic, king of the Ostrogoths, it 111;
praild from the sack of Rome, 316 ;
captured by Belisarius................... 130
his
death......................................... 31t
Genesius, a comedian, his wonderful
Gregory III., Popo, his elevation to tho
conversion arid martyrdom, i.... 307, 308
Papal chair, ii. 317 ; his opposition to
Geneva, asylum for heretics as early as
Iconoclasm, 317; places tho Holy
the tilth century, ii.................
85
•See under the protection of Charles
Genevieve, St, patroness of Paris, re­
stores tho courage of the inhabitants
Murtel, 313; appeals to Charles for
at tho approach of Attila, i. 595; her
help against Luitprand, 325 ; his death,
death, ii. 80 ; glorious miracle through
326; bis virtues and great works... 326
her intercession, iii.......................... 319
Gregory IV., Pope, his electiou, it 450;
Genscnc, his invasion of Africa, i. 568 :
rebuilds the city and walls of Ustia,
destroys Carthage, 679 ; invades
452 ; fruitless mediation between
Romo..........................................
599
Louis the Mild and his sons, 456 ; fus
Gentiles, first received into the Church
death..................................................
by St Petor, i................................ 35
Gregory V., Pope, his election, ii. 6Π ·
Germanus. St., bishop of Auxerre, 1570;
Pliilagalhos, antipope, 617; excoin

676

LNDBX.

mnnioalM Robert the Pious of Franco,
619, note; his death... .................... 620
G regar r VL, election, iii. 68 ; wise
policy, 60; death........................... GI
Gregory VII.. St, Voigt's view of his
Pontificate. iii. 106; enthusiasm of the
people, election, 107 ; political stato of
tbe Catholic world, 103—110; Matilda
of Toscany, 110; investitures, stato of
the clergy, 112 ; first act of St. Grego­
ry, 114; its reception. 115; Henry IV.
triumphs over the Saxons; Giiibort
and Cencius plot against the Pontiff,
118; St Gregory dragged from tho al­
tar, 119; rescued by the people, 119;
deposing power, remarks of Gosselin,
Ac, 122 ; deposition of Henry IV. ;
•ensation in the Catholic world, 125 ;
Henry at Canossa, 127, note; Ru­
*
dolph'
victory at Fludenhoim, 130 ;
Asath, 133 ; schism of the Henricians,
133; Henry before Rome, 134; enters
the city with the antipope, Guibert,
135; St. Gregory retires to Salerno;
bis last words, 136; relation of St
Gregory to general society; examples
of virtue, 139; clerical celibacy; re­
marks of Palma, 141; St Gregory's
place in history............................... 143
Gregory VIII., election ; rouses Europe
in behalf of Jerusalem, iii. 298; death 299
Gregory LX., election, iii. 366 ; excom­
municates Frederick Barbarossa, 357,
3»9 ; deposes Brother Elias, 360 ;
death ............................................ 363
Gregory X, election, iii. 398 ; convokes
fourteenth general council at Lyons,
399; condemns the ELigellautes, 401 ;
approves of the Cannelites, 402 ;
claimscounty Venaissin, 403 ; singu­
lar effect ; death, 404 ; Sismondi's
judgment of his Pontificate............ 404
Gregory XI., last of the IGeucb Popes, fii.
622; noble character; leaves Avignon,
enters Rome; public enthusiasm, 625;
fickleness of the Romans, 526 ; Gre­
gory dies at Anugni......................... 527
Gregory XII., election; writes to Bene­
dict XIII., iii. 55C; deposed.......... 660
Gregory XI1L, his election, iv. 229;
reform of tho calendar, 234; his
death.............................................. 236
Gregory XIV., his abort Pontificate,
iv.................................................... 24G
Gregory XV., bis election, iv. 269 ; adlition of the Palatine library to that
of the Vatican 271 ; his death...... 271
Gregory XVI., election, iv. 588 ; first acts
and domestic administration, 639 ; his
death............................................. 595
Gregory, St., Thaumaturgus, meets with
Ongen nnd embraces Christianity, L
218; ia elected to the bishopric of

Neocw.'nre·, 220; his miracles, 220;
his denth................................................. 272
Gregory, St., Nazianzen, his childhood,
i. 474; early studies, 475; his intimacy
with St. Basil, of Cæsnron, 476 ; con
secrated bishop of Suslina, 508 ; ia
called to tho seo of Constantinople,
616-518; retires from tho episcopal
dignity, his farewell address, 519;
his death, 536; his works............... 536
Gregory, St, of Nyssa, his writings, i.. 536
Gregory, or George, of Cappadocia,
usurps the seo of Alexandrin, i. 420,
453 ; bis death.................................. 49)
Gregory of Tours, his account of tho
entrance of tho Franks into Gaul, ii.
57 ; his account of the murder of the
children of Clodomir, 133 ; his writings
and stylo.............................................. ice
Gretcs, king of tho Ilcruli, offers his
services to Justinian, ii. 115; his
conversion.......................................... 11J
Gnelphs and Ghibellines, iii. 323, note.. 356
Gueux, their revolt in the Netherlands,
iv.............................................................. 217
Guicciardini, iv........................................... 32
Gundnmuud, his rule in Africa, ii...... 36
Gundooald, king of tho Burgundians,
efforts of St. Avitus to convert him,
ii 72 ; bis code of laws.................... 74
Gunpowder plot, iv................................... 26Σ

Hair, ordinance of Popo Anicetus con­
cerning the length of, for clerics, i... 12£
Hegesippus, St., his journey to Rome,
where ho writes an ecclesiastical his­
tory, i.................................................. 123
Helena, St., mother of Constantine, finds
the true Cross, i................................ 397
Heliogabalus, emperor, i.......................... 198
Henoticon, Zeno publishes the famous
edict, ii. 17 ; theological estimate of
the edict.............................................. 18
Henry II, St., emperor of Germany, his
brilliant qualities, iii. 9 ; crowned by
Pope Benedict VIII., 25; his dosiro
to embrace a religious life, 28 ; his
death.................................................. 34
Henry IV., ward of the Holy See, iii
82; disorders in his court. 93; at­
tempts to repudiato his lawful wife,
98; subdues tho rebellious Saxons,
116 ; deposed by Pope Gregory VIL,
124; Henry at Canossa, 126; Heury
rakes Rome, 135; continues hostile
to the Holy See after tho death of
Gregory VII, 147 ; abdicates in favor
of his sou, 178; again in arms, 179;
his death.......................................... 180
Henry V., in arms against his father,
ill 176 ; claims the right of investi­
ture, 180; seizes the Pope, 182;
«owned by the Pope. 184; again

WDEX.

marche» upon Rome, 186 ; seizes
Rome, 192; attempt at a reconcilia­
tion with the Pope. 195; is excommu­
nicated, 196; reconciliation, 200; his
death ..................................................... 201
Henry VI, crowned emperor, iii. 303 ;
excommunication and death.............. 309
Henry, Cardinal, king of Portugal, iv.. 233
Henry IV., king of France, his se­
cession, iv. 244; his conversion,
250 ; restores the Jesuits to France,
265; his zeal for the faith, 268; bis
death................................................... 268
Henry VIII.. of England, his work
against Luther, iv. 59 ; attempt to
obtain a divorce from Catherine of
Aragon, 100; his cruelty and licentious
disorders, 111-117; excommunicated,
114; his death............................... 116
Heraclius, emperor, dethrones Phocas,
ii. 198 ; his victory over the Persians,
204; gives up Jerusalem to Omar,
219; disowns the Ecthesis, 223 ; hie
death.................................................. 222
Heresies—Ebionites, Nazarene», Corin­
thians, and Docetes, L 56 ; review of
the heresies of the first ages of the
Church........................................ 346,347
Heretics of the first century, i. 56; do
cision of the Council of Arles concern­
ing their return to the Church...... 391
Hermas, writes his Pastor, an allegory, i. 57
Hvrmee, bishop, his difficulty in the see
of Narbonne, i........................... .. 605
Hermias, his work against paganism, i, 153
Hermogenes, heretic, i...................... . 153
Heruli, their conversion, ii................... 116
Hieracithæ or Uieracites, an Egyptian
sect, i.......... .................................. 286
Hilarion, St., hermit, i......................... 359
Hilary, St., of Poitiers, his conversion, L
480 ; his remonstrance against Arian
violence addressed to Constantius,
482 ; is banished to Phrygia, 482 ;
his books on the Trinity, 182, 483;
his fearless zeal in the East.............. 484
Hilary. St., archbishop of Arles, L 570 ;
his labors in Gaul, 583 ; his difficulty
concerning Chelidonius, bishop of
Besançon, 683 ; his death.............. 584
Hilary, St., Pope, his election, L 604 ;
his efforts to uphold the laws of the
ecclesiastical hierarchy, 605, 606; his
death............................................... 609
Hilderic king of the Ostrogoths, his ef­
forts to raise the Church of Africa, ii.
Ill ; dethroned and murdered by Gelimer ............................................... Ill
Iliucmar, archbisnop of Rtieims, it.... 474
Hippolytus, St, bishop of Porto, his
works, i ......................................... 195
Holy Oto-a. his descent upon tho
Apostle·. L 29 ; error of Macedomus,

677

condemned n> the Council of Alexin,
dria............................................ 493.4
*7
Holy Orders, in first age of the Church,
I. 73 ; decree of Popo St. Lucius concoming candidate·, 261 ; decree of
Pope St AnMtaains I., antmuing
bodily defects as an impediment, 539 ;
decrees of Popo 3t. Gelasiui 1, con­
cerning the intervals, ii 49: the
qualities necessary for the candidate^
SO; validity of Order» when admini
*.
tcred by an excommunicat'd prelate,
65 ; decree ofthe Council of Orleans roJative to king's rights in the ordination
of subjects, 79; decree of the Council
of Toledo on the promotion of candi­
dates ........................................... 120
Holy water, i... . ................................ 96
Homerite?, or Hamiars, persecute tho
Christiana in Arabia, ii...................... 101
Honorius, Pope, his accession, il 214;
state of the Church and of the Chris­
tian world, 214; his opinion of die
Monothelite heresy, 218 , his death. . 221
Honorius Π.. enthroned, iii 205; his
authority and happy influence, 206 ;
death............................................... 2,7
Honorius ΙΠ, election; opens the flfib
Crusade, iii. 345; fifty tuouaand chil­
dren going to Jerusalem, 349 . death
of tho Pope............................
35«
Honorius, emperor of the West, i. ... 530
Hormisdus, St, Pope, hie election, il
92 ; his desire to effect a reunion with
the East, 94 : reconciliation of the
Eastern churches, 99 : his letter to
legates in the East, counselling mode­
ration. 100; his treatment of the
Scythian monks, 100; bis death.... I'll
Hungary, erected into a kingdom, iii... S
Hunneric, persecutes the Church in
Africa, ii. ........................................
6
Hussites, before the Council of Basle, iii 589
Hyginus, St, Pope, succeeds St. leles·
phonis, i. 110; his death. 111 : his
regulations...................................... ill
Iconoclaste, their rise in the East ii
310; increase under the patronage
of the emperor. 324 ; end of their
heresy in tho East......................
<64
Ignatius, St, bishop of Antioch, at
Philadelphia, L 87 ; his Journey to
Rome. 88 ; his martyrdom........... 89
Ignatius, St, founder of the Society of
Jesus, iv............................................ 109
Wyria—noble conduct of tho bishops of
Illyria in the persecution of Anaetaaiiu the Sileutlary, ii................. 94
Image·, their use in the Church, ii.... 35»
Incest—decree of Lerida (a. o. 524) axcommunicating persons guilty of ths
crime, ii........................................... Ill

678

INDEX.

Index. Cengregition of tho, first montinned in tho Ooùnoil of Rome, undor
Pope Su Getwins I., ii.................... 49
Mulp'DCr». Cetholic doctrine on the
•abject, i»....................................... 46
foftll b iitv at the Pope in matters of
Aith, 1. ’... ................................... 626
Innocent I, St., Popo, his election, i.
545 ; relative position of the Church
Mid the empire nt the time of his no>
eossion, 546; his .otters to various
bishops of France, Spain, and Africa,
546, 547 : his zeal to relieve the suf­
fering. 560; his death..................... 661
Innocent IL, election, iil. 217: leaves
Rome, opens a council at Rheims;
address to Louis of France, 220;
visit to Clairvaux, 222; enters Rome,
223; convokes tho tenth general
council, second Lateran, 229; excom·
manicates Roger, duke of Sicily, 230;
excommunicates theOountof Verman·
dois, 231 ; consternation in France,
232 ; death of tho Pope............... 233
Innocent III., power of tho Papacy, iii.
311rf«7.; ejection of Innocent, 313;
state of tho world, 314 ; great charity
and popularity of Innocent, 316;
triumphs over spoilers of tho Holy
See, 317 ; the factions in Sicily, 318;
over Philip Augustus, 319-323; in­
tervenes in tho election of Otho, em­
peror of Germany, 323-326 ; in be­
half of John of England, 327 ; excom­
municates King John, 329; opens the
fourth Crusade, 330; establishes a
league against the Moors in Spain,
333 ; opens tho Ôrusado against tho
Albigenses, 334-336; convokes the
fourth Lateran Council, 339; death
of Innocent, 341 ; glorv of his Ponti­
ficate........................’......................... 341
Innocent IV., election, iii. 365 ; flies to
France, 365 ; proclaims another Cru­
sade, 369; death............................ 376
Innocent V., iil....................................... 405
Innocent VT, election, iii. 508; saves
France, 512; his death..................... 514
Innocent V1L, election, iii. 652; troubles
in Rome.......................................... 553
Innocent VHL, his antecedents, iii.
628 ; troubles in Italy, 630 ; his
death............................
633
Innocent IX, brief Pontificate, iv.... 248
Innocent X-, election, iv. 302 ; case of
Cardinal Antonio Barberini, 302 ;
bull Own occanone, 310, death........ 311
Innocent XL, election and first acts, iv
346; difficulties with Louis XIVn
356 ; reply to the letter of tho French
dergy, 360 : condemns their “ Dec­
laration," 366 ; trouble with France,
370-372; lus death............................382

Innocent XII, election, iv. 386: abol­
ishes nepotism, 387; settles the dif­
ficulties with Franco, 391 ; his death 399
Innocent ΧΠΓ., brief Pontificate, iv. . 141
Inquisition, first appearance under
Theodosius, i.......................................... 53·
Investiture, tho war of, iii. 78; true
idea of............................................ 79-185
Ireland, its saints in the sixth century,
ii. 105; granted by Pope Adrian IV
to Henry Π. of England, iii. 260,
note; erected into a kingdom, iv........ 173
Irone, empress of the East, ill-treat­
ment received from Leo IV., ii. 370;
her regency favorable to tho Catho­
lics, 371; reconciles tho East with
Rome, 372; her banishment and
death................................................... 404
Isabella, the Catholic. Vide Ferdinand.
Isidore, St·., of Seville, his works, ii. 212, 213
Islamism, its evil influence, ii................. 390

Jamblicus, pagan philosopher, i............. 343
Jansenism, its origin, iv. 277 ; the
“Augustinus" condemned, 279, 280 ;
causes disorders in France, 310, 318
-335, 415-424, 426, 427; sketch of
its progress by Fénelon. 445; new
troubles....................... 463-468, 481-4»«
Jansenius. Vide Jansenism.
Jerome. St., his birth, i. 485; publishes
the Vulgate, 503 ; sketch of his earty
life, 610; goes to Palestine, 510;
discussion with Rufinus, 540-542 ;
death, 565; his style, &c........... 665, 566
Jerusalem, destroyed by Titus, i. 51 ;
dedication of a church by the Arians,
411; captured by Chosroes, ii. 200;
conquered by the Crusaders, iii. 171 ;
kingdom of..... . ....................... 187
Jesuits, foundation of the order,, iv.
110; character, 287 ; constitution
and hierarchy, 288 el seq. ; labors
and teaching, 29h : missions iu Japan
and China, 258, 259 ; in America, 262 ;
expelled from Holland, 270; from
Portugal. 495 ; suppressed in France,
497—199; expulsion from other Eu­
ropean States, 505-507 ; suppressed
by Clement XIV., 512 ; received in
Prussia and Russia, 619; restored by
Pius VII............................................ 678
Jesus Christ, His birth, i. 17 ; baptism
and public life. 18-20 ; His passion
and death, 24—26; resurrection and
ascension, 27; can Jesus Christ be
called one of the Trinity? iL........ 127
Jews, In Spain, ii.............................. 289, 290
Joan of Arc, iii................................ 5b0-t>82
Joao, Pope, refutation of tho calumni­
ous fable, ii................ ....................... <87
John, St., Baptist, i....................................... 18
John, St,, Clitnacus, il ......................... jhv

INDEX.

679

John, St., Evangelist, t................. . . .57, 58 iJohn XIX, ill 10; state of the Church,
John, St., Chrysostom, his youth, i.
19; abdicates ............................ ie
52.7 ; bishop ot Constantinople, 637 ;
; John XX., his election, iii. 37 ; refusal
exiled, 547, 549, 551; his death ... 553 I of ’.he title of Ecumenical Patriarch to
John, St., the Almoner, it...................... 201
the b-ahop· of Constantinople, ]<. iis
John, St., Damaacen, early life, ii. 312;
death....... ..................
t*
efforts against Iconoclasm, 313, 349;
John XXL, piety and zeal, death.. .. V34
his death...............................................350
John XXII.. election, iii 479; difflJohn I., St., Pope, election, ii. 107 ;
i culties with Louis of Bavaria, 483;
his mission to Constantinople, 108;
hia death, 488 ; his view of the bea­
3ealh................................................. 110
tific vision .....
488
John IL, St., Pope, his election, ii. 125;
John XXIII., election, iii. 562; triumphs
his death............................................... 137
and reverses, 563; abdicates, 566,
John III., Pope, his election, ii. 101;
deposed 568: his submission....... 568
hie death.............................................. 164 John Izicklnnd, king of England, hia
John IV., Pope, his election, ii. 222;
character, iii 317 ; seeks an alliance
clears Popo Honorius from the charge
with the Saracens, 323; excommuni­
of Monothelitism, 221; his death... 224
cated, 329; his submission, 329; hia
John V., Pope, short Pontificate and
death............................................. 330
death of, ii....................................... 285
Joseph II., his schismatical proceedings,
J shn VI., Pope, his election, ii. 293 ;
iv................................................... 521
Jovian, Roman emperor, proclaimed by
the Romans defeat the attempt of
Tiberius Apsimar to control Pontifical
the legions, i 497 ; favors the Chris­
tians and seeks instruction from St
•lections, 293; his charity, 294; his
Athanasius. 497; his death..........498
death. ..............................................297
Jubilee, institution attributed to Pope
John VII., Pope, his promotion, ii. 297 ;
Sylvester II., iii....................
7
tho territory of the Gottian Alps pre­
Judgments of God, forms of ordeal, it.. 138
sented to tho Holy See, 297 ; his
Julian the Apostate, his character in
death................................................. 299
youth, i. 477; his accession to the
John VIII., Pope, state of tho world
empire, 485; restores the pagan wor­
at his election, ii. 525 ; is obliged to
ship, 446 ; his system of persecution
seek refuge in France. 529; agrees to
486; naturo and causes of bis personthe reinstatement of Photius, 531;
tion, 488, 489; his edict recalling tie
apostasy of his legates in Constanti­
banished, Ac., 490; his decree for­
nople, 533; excommunicates Photius,
bidding the study of belles-lettres
532 ; death of the Pope................. 533
among the Christians, 495; his at­
ι/ohn IX., Pope, hi« election, iL 549;
tempt to rebuild the temple of Jeru­
councils of Romo and Ravenna, 519,
salem. 496; his expedition into Asia,
550; his death................................... 551
496; his death......................
197
John X., Pope, calumnies, ii. 567; de­
Julian,
St., of Toledo, his works, ii ... 271
feats tho Saracens on the Garigliano,
Julian, Count, governor of Ceuta, in568; his letter to tho Archbishop of
, vites tho Moors into Spain, ii............. 303
Rheims, 568 ; his authority, 570; his
Julian of Cos, papal legate at Constan­
death................................................ 571
tinople. i.........................................
John XI., Pope, his election and cap­
Julius I., St., Pope, bis election, L 416;
tivity, ii. 574; his death............... 575
his death................................. ..
John XII., Pope, his election, ii. 591 ;
Julius II , his character, iii. 646; ex­
changes his name from Octavian to
communicates Louis XII.. convokes
John, 592; his faithlessness, 593; de­
the fourth La term Council, 647; Ponposed b» a council held in Rome, 596 ;
ti Acute of Julius II ...... ........
restored, 196; his death................ 597
Julius
HI., Pope, nis election, iv. i54;
John XII. Popo, state of tho Catliolio
world at his accession, ii 599 ; his
his bull for the resumption of the
Council of Trent, 155; hostility of
death............................................... 604
John XIV. Pope, hie imprisonment and
I France toward tho Holy See, 156;
death, ii .................................. Oil, 612 I
suspends Clio Council of Trent, 16)
John XV., Pope, dies before his conse­
his death............................. ...........
cration. ii.......... ........................... 612 I Julius Africanus, bis works, i............... 20f
John XV/., Pope. his promotion, ii
' Jhistiii the Elder, his arrival at Con­
612; oinonization of St Udalrif
stantinople, ii. 96 ; his military career,
bishop ·'■( Augsburg, 616; his death. 617 I 97 his accession to tho laperial
John XVn., untipope, ii........ ............... 617 1
throne, 97 ; his efforts to coasumJufw 1 ."ill., iii..................................... 10 !
mate the reunion of the Eastern with

680

INDEX.

bestow upon him tho title of Great,
696 ; his legates in tho East, 698 ;
shields Romo from destraction by
Gonsoric, 600; bis death, 603, his
letters, discourses, Inbors, Ac............... 60.1
co IL, St., Popo, his accession, ii. 281 ;
sends legates to the East, 282. his
death..................................................... 281
Leo ΙΠ., St., Pope, his accession, ii.
398; attempt upon tho life of tho
Pope, 400; his visit to France, 401 ;
his vindication. 402; second visit to
France, 415; his view of tho intro­
duction of the Filfoque into the Creed.
418; his death..................................... 426
Loo IV., St.. Pope, his election, ii. 476;
saves Rome and Italy from a Saracen
invasion, 476; ceremony of the conse­
cration of the Leonine City, 478 ; his
denth................................................... 486
Leo V., Pope, his death in a dungeon,
ii........................................................... 560
Leo VI., Pope, his short Pontificate, ii.. 671
Leo VII, Popo, his election, ii. 577 ; his
virtues, 578; his death.................... 579
Leo VIII., antipope, il............................ 696
Leo IX., St., his election ; public rejoic­
ings, iii. 66; visits tho Western church
es, 67 ; Vollie Umbrosa, and St. John
Gualbert, 68; spirit of reform. 70; Be
rengariusandLanfranc,7l; Rome and
Kentigem, St, his labors in Scotland, iL 105
the Byzantine Greeks, 73; Cerularius;
decisive crisis; rise of the Seljukian
Koran, view of its doctrines, ii............. 208
Turks, 73-7C; tho brothers Robert
Labarum, the standard of Constantine, i. 326
and Roger Guiscard ; death of Leo.. 77
Lactantius. his works, i................... 355, 622 Leo X., Pope, his election, iv. 4 ; his
generous and liberal administration,
lambert, bishop of Maastricht, his mar­
5 et stq.; his relations with Francis
tyrdom, ii...................
268, 209
Laudo. Po|«, his short Pontificate, ii... 506
I., 16; Concordat, 20; bis prudence,
Lanfrune, iii.......................................... 71
24; b;s patronage of literature and
art, 26-37, conspiracy against tho
Lapsi, i. 241 ; decree of Pope St. Lucius. 251
Popo, 37 ; his condemnation of the
Laterati Basilica, founded by Constat
immeran errors, oz ; ins aeatn....
oi
line, i.............................................. 396
Latrocinale, of Ephesus, convoked
Leo XL, his brief reign, iv...................... 256
against Butyches, L 586 ; insults to
Loo XIL, Pope, his election, iv. 57»;
the Papal legates, 586: disorders in
Concordat with Hanover, 583; his
the assembly.....................................587
death...................................................... 586
Lawrence, St., martyr, i......................... 265 Leo, the leaiirian, his accession to the
Uwrenoo, untipope, ii.......................... 65-68
Eastern throne, iL 307 ; repels the
Turks before Constantinople, 310 ; his
League formed against the Calvinists in
France, iv......................................... 241
Iconoclastic fury, 311 ; attempt upon
Legates—St. Leo 1. appoints resident
the life of the Pope, 314 ; I^o's death 326
legates in the East, i...................... 698
Leo IV., Porphyrogenitus, his leaning
Liger, or Leodogarius, St., persecuted
to Iconoclasm, ii. 370 ; his death. ... 370
by Ebroin, ii. 266 ; bis death........ 268
Leo V., tho Armenian, his accession, ii.
Leibnitz, his esteem for the Catholic
425 ; hie persecution of the Catholic
faith, iv........................... ............ 420
patriarch, 428 ; Iconoclasm in the as­
Lent, regulations under Pope Telesphocendant, 430; his persecutions in the
East, 439-443 ; bis death.................. 443
rus, i............................................... lf·'
Leo L, St., the Great, his antecedents, i.
Leonides, St., father of Origon, mar­
581 ; his election, 582 ; state of the
tyred at Alexandria, i........ .... 177
Leonine City, its foundation, ii.............. 471
Church at his accession, 582 ; his in­
terview with Attila, 696 ; the people
Lepanto, battle ot, iv.................................. 921
the Romen Church, 98 ; proscribe»
*ni«m
Ari
In the Emit, 107 : receives
Pope John I. at Constantinople, and
Is the Bret emperor crowned by a
Pope, 108; liestowa tho crown, under
the title of August j s, upon his nephew
Juslinitn, 11-1 ; his death ................ 113
Justin the Younger, bis accession, ii... 162
Justins, empress, persécutée St. Am­
brose. i............................................ 624
Justinian, emperor, his accession, ii.
113 ; his unworthy union with Theo­
dora, 113; his personal qualities,
118; rebuilds Palmyra, 114 : his legis­
lation; his‘ Code.” 114; "Pandec's,"
“Novellrt!.'· *C., 115; his efforts in
behalf of the Catholic faith in tho
East 126, 127; seditions quelled by
too imperial troops, 127. 128; his
honorable reception of St Sabas, 128;
his death............................................ 1G2
Justinian II., eastern emperor, hie ac­
cession, ii. 285; revokes his father's
concession in favor of the Pontifical
elections, 286; reverses in Africa,
292; his return from captivity, and
acts of violence, 298; invites the
Popo to Constantinople, 300 ; his re­
ception, 301 ; death of Justinian.... 302
austiniau Code, ii................................... 114

I

INDEX.

U^prosy, decrees of Gellio council· In
behalf of the sufferers ii................ 169
Letter from tho church of Smyrna to
the church of Asin, i. 128; loiters
from the Eastern bishops to Popo
Victor I-, on the question of Easter,
160, 16), 162 ; letters of Innocent L,
to various bishops, 546, 547; letter
of Pope St. Felix III. to Zeno, ii. 33;
letter of Pope St. Gelasius I. to Eu·
phemiuB, patriarch of Constantinople,
4-4 ; letter of Pope St. Anastasius II.
to Clovis, king of the Franks, 62;
letter of St. Avitus, bishop of Vienne,
to Clovis, 62; letter of the Gallic
bishops, protesting against tho coun­
cil sitting in judgment upon the Pope,
11 ; letter of Pope St. Symmachus to
Anastasius, the Silentiary, repelling
his charge of heresy, 87 ; letter of
the Eastern bishops, appealing to the
Pope, in their persecution, 89 ; letter
of Justinian to Pope St. Agapetus,
on his accession, and the Pope's re­
ply, 138; letter of St. Gregory the
Great to the Emperor Mauritius, 182;
letter of Pope Vitalise to Oswiu,
king of Northumbria, 260; letter of
Honorius to Sergius, examined and
condemned by the sixth general
council, 280 ; letter of Pope Stephen
ILL to Pepin........................345, note
Liberalism in Europe, iv.......................... 579
Liberian Basilica, church of St. ManMajor, dedicated by Popo Liberius, L 501
Liberius, Pope, his election, i. 446 ; dis­
avows tlie conduct of Vincent of
Capua, his legate, 449 ; his letters to
the bishops exiled by Constantine,
453; his interview with Constantine,
and banishment to Berea, 454 ; intru­
sion of Felix into the See of Home,
454; controverted question of the
Pope’s fall, 456; statement of the
question by Bossuet, 456; Kohrbachor’s account of the return of Liberius
from banishment, 45»; receives the
envoys of the Eastern bishops into
communion, 500 ; his death, 501 ; tes­
timonies of tho fathers and martyrolo­
gies ................................................. 501 I
Librarie·, St. Hilary establishes two in
the Lateran Basilica, L 609; catalogue
of a monastic library in the tenth
oentury, ii.......................
573
Linus, St., Pope, L............................... 49-53
Liturgy—Introduction of the Sanctus,
«. 101 , of tho '"Gloria in Excelsis,"
104; insertion of the Communicantes
into the canon, 539; additions by Pope
St Gelasius I., ii. 51 ; revolution in
the liturgy in France, iv.................... 463
" Lot of the Saints," i. 607 ; ii............ 76, 80

681

Lithaire L, called to the throne, iL 434,
revolts against his father, 453, 455,
458; hi· death........................... 487
Lothairo II, disorders and conflict with
the Holy See, iL 600-512; sacrilege
•nd death. ................................ 514
louis the Mild, succeed· Charlemagne
ii. 420, 425; crowned by the Pope,
426; division of the empire, 434,
troubles with hie children, 435. 436;
453-157; his death....
44»
Louis LX, St , iii................................. 157
Louis XL., his character. iiL 611; rela­
tions with the Holy See, 612; his
death.................................................. 626
Louis XIV, iv. 316 : relations with the
Holy See. 317 ; splendor of his reign,
348; reverses, 107 ; his dea h..... 4M
Lower Empire, its condition at the fall
of the Western Empire, ii. 2 ; persecution of the Catholics.... ... 18 rf
Lucian, his hostility to tho Christian re­
ligion. 1...................
Ml
Lucidius, a priest of Arles revives the
Pelagian error, ii 3; retractation and
letter to the Conned of Arles.....
*
Lucifer, bishop of Cagliari, sent to the
emperor by Pope Liberius, i. 449;
papal legate in the Council of Milan,
450 ; bis works, 435 ; his schism ... 49·
Luciferians, followers of Lucifer, bishop
of CaglLiri, L...................................... *9·
Lucina, her hospitality to the Roman
Pontiffs and clergy, i .............
317
Lucius I, St, Pope, i....................... 250,251
Lucius, a king of Britain, converted to
Christianity, i............. ...................... 154
Lucy, St, martyr, L.............................. 305
Luitprani bishop of Cremona, his char­
acter and writings, iL 556 ; his mis­
sion to the East..............................·. 602
Luitprand, Lombard king, in Italy, iL
307; retires from Rome, before St.
Gregory............................................... 316
Lupercalia. efforts of Pope St Gelasiua
to abolish them, ii....................... 51, 52
Lupus, St., bishop of Troyes, i. 570;
his conduct in the invasion of Attila. 594
Luther, causes of his success, iv. 40;
sketch of his early life, 43 ; sermon
against indulgences, 17 ; beginning
of his strugglo against the Church,
48; condemned, 53; his work on
••Christian Liberty,” 57 ; contest with
Henry VIII.. 59; review of his er­
rera 64 ; division between Luther and
Carlstadt, 66; new manifesto. 71;
war against vows and the Mass. 83 ;
troubles -sued by him in Germany
84-92; discussions on the Holy Ke·
diarist, 92 ; his marriage, 119; au­
thorizes polygamy. 120; interview
with Vergerio, 13U; his death. ... IM

682

TNDRX.

Macedonius, intruded bishop of Con­
stantinople, his «rror concerning the
Holy Ghost, L.......................... 493, 497
Macedonios, patriarch of Constantino­
ple, resists the impious orders of
Anastasias the Silentinry, it 85 ; at­
tempt to murder him, 85; is deoeived by Anastasias, but publicly
recells his signature, 86; his exile,
86 ; is deposed by a false council. 87
Machiavelli, his works and historical ge­
nius, iv................................................ 29
Magyars, their invasion of Germany, ii. 588
Mahomet, sketch of his life and dootrines, ii.... .....................
205
Mahomet II., besieges Constantinople,
iii. 601 ; takes the city, 603; before
Bolgvniio, 606: defeat before Rhodes,
623; bis death................................ 624
Malebmncho, iv..................................... 345
Mammertus, St, bishop of Vienne, his
claim to jurisdiction over tho Church
of Din censured by Pope St. Hilary,
i. 606 ; institutes the rogation days. 606
Manes, heresiarch, i. 274; his letter to
Marcellus, 274; his error, 275; his
conferences with St. Archelaus, bish­
op of Oarrhes, 275; conference with
the priest Diodorus, 276; his death. 276
Manfred, his contest with the Holy See,
iii. 377, 387, 388; his death..... .. 390
Manicheism, its progress in Egypt and
Syria, 1.............................................. 279
Marcellinus, St, Pope—calumny of tho
Douatists against this Pope, i. 293,
805.306, note; his death................ 305
Marcellus, St., Pope, his election and
firmness in imitating tho law of tho
lap.ii, 1313; his martyrdom.......... 317
Marcellus II., Pope, his character and
shoit Pontificate, iv...................... 170
Marciae, emperor, bis accession, L 589 ;
his decree enforcing the observance
of the profession of faith of the Coun­
cil of Chalcedon, 591 ; his death, 601 ;
his character...................................... 601
Marcion, heretic, i................................. 110
Maria Theresa before tho Hungarian
nobles, iv........................................ 4'7
Mark, St, Popo, his election, L 413; his
death............................................. 415
Marmontiers, abbey founded by St
Manin of Tours, i............................ 509
Marinus I., Pope, Ids election and death,
ii..................................................... 534
Marinus II., Pope, his election, ii. 580 ;
bis death............................................583
Maronites, their origin aud progress, il
274 ; their rules confirmed by Pope
Clement XU., iv................................ 472
Marriage. Vide Matrimony.
Martin L, St., Pope, his election, Ü. 234,
hia statement of the Monothehv

heresy before tho Council t f Romo,
234; bestows the title of apostolic
vicar upon John, bishop of Philadel­
phia, 238; attempt to assassinate the
Pope, 239 ; his forcible removal from
Rome, 241 ; brutal treatment in the
East, 242; his banishment. 244; his
death...................................................... 245
Martin IV., election, iii. 409 ; singular
treaty with tho Romans, 409; death. 411
Martin V.; state of Europe, iii. 574;
election, 575; end of tho Western
schism. 575 ; its effect on the Papacy,
state of Rome, 578; death of tho Popo 585
Martin, St., of Tours, disciple of St. Ilil
ary of Poitiers, I. 481 ; made bishop
of Tours, 509 ; his labors in Gaul,
509; his death.................................. 54
*
Martyrs of Lyons and Vienne, i. 144; in
the seventh general persecution, 231
et se/).; principal martyrs in the
eighth general persecution, 262 ; de­
cree of Pope Eutychian, concerning
their burial, 280 ; martyrs in tho
household of the Emperor Dioclesian,
298; martyrs in the East and West..
300 et M
Mary, B. V., errors of the An tidicomarianites and Collyridians concerning her, i.
511 ; her divine maternity denied by
Nestorius, 571; vindication of the
Council of Ephesus, 573 ; attacked by
tho Acrcmetes, Eastern monks, ii
125 ; devotion in the middle-ages, iii. 127
Mary, St., of Egypt, her penitential
life, i....................................................... 577
Mary Stuart, sketch of her career, iv.
214; her death...................................... 240
Mary Tudor, her accession to tho Eng­
lish throne, iv. 167 ; reconciliation
with Rome, 169; Protestant calum­
nies, 170; her death............................. 171
Mass—For tho liturgy of the Mass, vide
art. Liturgy—ordinances concerning
unleavened bread, and mingling wino
and water, i. 96; time of celebrating,
104; decree of Popo St. Zephyrinus
concerning sacred vessels, 197; cele­
brated on tho tombs of martyrs, 277 ;
institution of the offertory, 280; de­
cree enjoining the clergy to stand
during the reading of the gospel at
Mass, 540 ; how often celebrated in
the first ages, 627 ; decree of th·
Council of Agdo concerning tho cele­
bration of tho holy sacrifice in private
oratorios, ii. 74 ; origin of the numo
Mow, 74; decree of the Council of
Lerida that the gospel shall be read
before the offertory, and why, 112;
decree of the Council of Braga conI corning tho offerings made, and the
I wearing of tho stole, 271 ■ the cere-

INDEX.

«13

386-387; doctors and writers, 388;
of he kiss of peace, and the
religious monuments...........................38J
g- r Jgulntedby Pope St. Leo II.,
Miltiades, apologist, 1........................... 151
; names of tho different parte of
Mane.............................................. 303 Minims, iii.....'......................................651
i
Minucius
Felix, his conversion, with his
ο-.τθ of St. Bartholemew, iv... .229, 230
friend Octavius,!. 191; converts Ce««liane, heretical monks, i.................. 629i
cilius................................................. 192
.ritnony—Roman law in regard to
Miracles, confirmation of tho doctrine
brother-in-law and aiater-in-law, 1.
relating to them, i........................ 61
393 ; canon of tho Council of Elvira,
393 ; Council of Noocæsarea.............. 393 I Misenus, sent as legate by Pope Felix
III. to Zeno, it 23; his imprisonment,
Maximian-Hercules, emperor, his death,
24 ; hia fall, 25 ; is deposed, 25 ; re­
1··.···.................................................. 319 ;
pents and is received into tho comMaximtlla, follower of the heretic Mon;
munion
of the faithful....................
16
to“u.3. »............................................. 140
Mohammed. Vide Mahomet.
Maximin, Daia, Roman omperor, his ac­
Molina, his system, iv.......................... 252
cession, i. 308; his cruelty, 309 ; re­
news the persecution...................... 323 ; Monasterii·’, foundations in Gnul, 1.... 568
Monastic life, different classes of monks,
• Maximus, abbot, his efforts against
i. 626 ; development of the monastic
Monothelitism, ii................................. 2265
life in the fourth and fifth centuries.. 626
Maximus, his schism at Constantinople,
Monasteries, established by St. Sabas,
L 517 ; condemned and driven from
in Palestine, ii. 34, 35 ; established in
the city............................................... 518 3
the West by St Benedict, 121 ; in the
Mazaniello, iv....................................... 303j
middle-ages, 387 ; catalogue of a moMazarin, his character, iv...................... 315;
nastic library in tho tenth century,
;
Medard, St., bishop ofNoyon, ii........... 135
573 ; reform by St. Odo, 576 ; its state
Melchiades, St., Pope, hia election, L 322;
in the East, iii.................................... Ü
his death................................................ 331
Monks. Vide Monastic life.
Meletians, the schism settled by the
Nicene Council, i........................
385; Monopbysites, meaning of tho name, ii. Si
Monothelites, heretics, ii. 216; their
Moletius, St., bishop of Antioch, his
errors refuted in tho Conned of Jeru­
election, i. 471 ; his inaugural address,
salem, 218; exposition of the doctrine
472; is exiled, 472; his claim dis­
by Popo Martin I., 234; persecuto
puted by Paulinus, 505 ; his death... 518
Catholics in the East, 246; moment­
Melito, St., bishop of Sardis, his apolo­
ary
revival........................................ 302
gy. i..................................................... 152
Montanus,
heretic, his doctrine, i......... 140
Menander, heretic of the first century, i.. 56
Methodists, their origin, iv...................... 431 Mont-de-piété, institution, and decrees of
the Luteran Council, iv.................... 11,12
Methodius, St., bishop of Tyre, his la­
Monto Caesino, foundation by SL Bene­
bors and writings, i........................ 315
dict, ii. 121; destroyed by the Sa
Metropolitans, decision of the Council of
rucens................................................ 536
Nice, i. 339; their consent necessary
for ordination of suffragan bishops... 523 Moravians, their rise, iv..........................232
Mühlberg, victory of Charles V. at, iv... 132
Michael Curopalu’os, his generosity, it
Musa, lieutenant of Walid, enters
424 ; his abdication........................ 425
Spain, ii.............................................. 304
Michael II., tho Stammerer, emperor, his
antecedents aud accession, ii. 443 ; his
Napoleon Bouaparte, his first (Jolde, iv
disguised Judaism, 446; dismember­
640;
restores tho Catholic worship
ment of hie empire, 451 ; his death.. 462
to France, 5-19 ; coronation, 556 ; hoa
Michael HI., Porpbyrogonitus, regency
tilitics toward the Holy See, 558, 562 ;
of bis mother, the Empress Theodora,
excommunicated, 562; removes the
ii. 464 ; his accession and disorderly
Pope from Rome, 563 ; divorces Jose­
life................................................... 488
phine, 565 ; tyrannical abuse of power,
Michael IV., dies of remorse, iii............ 56
566, 673; Russian campaign, 571;
Micliael V-, bis ephemeral reign, iii.... >6
Michael Politologue, his efforis to effect
abdicates, 574; “the hundred days,'
a reconciliation with the Roman
t>76; his death....................
578
Church, iii........................................ 399
Narcissus, Si., bishop of Jerusalem, i... 189
Michael Ccrulariua, patriarch of Con­
Norses, eunuch, his reception by Justi­
stantinople, leads the East into the
nian, ii 1)6 ; his zeal in behalf of Che
great schism, iii.............................. 73
truth. 159; invites Alboin, king o.
*
Michael Angulo, iv................................. 34
tho Lombards, into Italy................ 183
Middle-ages, their charaotor, ii. 375;
Naxarenes. Vida Heresies.
legislation, Jettera, arts, and sciences,
Ncpcmucene, St. John, martyr, id. ... >4"

684

INDEX.

Nepotism. abolished by Pop" Inno«nceming tho offering of the Holy
cent XII., iv................................... 387
Sacrifice in private oratories, ii.
7<
Nestorians, their ntlempts to restore
Order. Vide Holy Orders.
their doctrine, i............................
578
Orders, religious, germs in the aposto­
Kestorius, his heresy, L ft” 1 ; condemned
lic age, i.............................................. 74
by tho Counoilof Ephesus, 673; rs
Orders, mendicant, iii 657 ; self-sacri­
banished.......................................... 675
fice and zeal of... ............
... 658
Nioephoms, emperor of Constantinople,
Ordination—decree of St. Zephyrinus,
his necossion, ii. 404: his persecution
Popo, concerning ordination of priests
•f Sis. Plato and Theodora tho Stui and deacons, i. 197; decrees of the
dite, 422; his death........................ 424
Council of Nice, 389 ; decision in the
Nicholas I., Pope, his election, ii. 490 ;
decretal of Pope St. Sericius, 523;
his letter to the Gallic bishops as­
the canonical
for priests fixed
sembled at Troyes 500; his sagacity
at thirty years, 566 ; time of holding
and firmness, 503; his advice con­
ordinations fixed by Popo St. Gela­
cerning the obedience due to tho sec­
sine I., ii. 50; St. Hormisdas forbid·
ular power, 504, 505, note ; affair of
the ordination of priests per naUum.
Rothade, bishop of Boissons, 606 ;
106; decrees of the Council of Arles
bis death.......................................... 609
(a. d. 521) concerning ordinations .. 11)
Nicholas II, brief, but glorious Pontifi­
Origen, his disciples martyred nt Alex­
cate, iii. 87 ; relations with the Cath­
andria, i. HI ; his visit to Rome. 137
olic world, 92 ; state of Germany, 93 ;
his works, 188; his Hight toCæsarea,
death.......... ................................ 93
193; his interview with Alexander
Nicholas III., election, iii. 407 ; ef­
Severus, 199; his labors, 200; his
forts in behalf of the Church, 408 ;
visit to Greece, and his ordination,
death............................................... 408
201 ; is excommunicated, 206 ; his
Nicholas IV., election, iii. 413; factions
plan of Christian education, 218; his
in Rome, 413 ; death of Nicholas.... 413
death, 251 ; doubts of his orthodoxy. 262
Nisibis, besieged by Sapor II., king of
Osins, legate of Pope St. Sylvester I., at
Persia, L...................................... 433, 438
the Council of Nice, i. 377 ; his fall.. 451
Noetus, heretic, bis condemnation, i... 194 Ostrogoths, their warlike character and
Nominalism, iii....................................... 159
movements in the East, ii. 37 ; they
Norbert, St., iii. 196 ; conversion, 197 ;
establish their rule in the West... .37, 38
founds the monastery of Prémontré,
Oswiu, king of Northumbria, holds tho
198; rapid spread, Ac., 198; death.. 199
conference of Streaneshalch on the
Normans, their depredations, ii. 465,
Easter celebration, ii. 258 ; his rela­
48t ; invasion of England and France,
tions with the Holy See.................. 260
522, 523,536,542; their conversion. 566 Otho the Great, of Germany, his acces­
Novation, first antipope, i...................... 246
sion, iL 580; his glorious administra­
Novatians, their rise, i. 245; decision
tion, 585; is crowned emperor, 592;
of the Council of Nice in their re­
difficulties with Pope John XU.. 593 ;
gard..........................
392
besieges Rome, 597 ; his power and
Novatus. Vide Novatians.
influence, 600; his efforts in behalf
of the Church, 600 ; his death...... 604
Oaths, decree of Pope St Cornelius, i.. 250 Otho LU,, iii............................................26, note
Ochino, general of the Capuchins, his
apostasy, iv..................................... 140
Pacotnius, St,, hermit, L.......................... 359
Odoacer, prophesy of the monk Seve­
Palace School or Palatine Academy, its
rinus, L 613; proclaimed king of Italy,
origin, iL............................................ 409
614; degrades Romulus Augustulus
Palestrina, saves Church music, iv....... 223
from the purple, 614; claims the
Pallium, mark of honor to bishops, ii... 84
right of confirming Pontifical elec­
Palmer, origin of tho term as applied
tions, ii. 22 ; his movements in tho
to pilgrims returning from the Holy
West, 37 ; hie death..................... 38
Land, iii.................................. .... 15
Olaus, *f Norway, seal for religion, iii.. 42 Pandects, published by Justinian, ii.... lie
Omar takes Jerusalem, ii. 219; his
Pantenus. St., at Alexandria, i. 166; his
moderation.................................... 220
death................................................. 167
Onesimus. St, bishop of Ephesus, his
Papins, bishop of Hierapolis, his wri­
martyrdom,!..................................... 91
tings and doctrine, i......................... 93
Ophites, heretics, i...................................121 Pascal, his writings, iv............................ 333
Oputua, Bt., bishop of Milevutn, his zeal
Pascal 1., St., Pope, his elect on, ii. 431,
against the Donatists, 1....................... 510
bis death...................................
444
Paschal celebration. Vtie Easter.
Oratories, decree of the Council of Agde,

INDEX.

Paschal IL, Pope, his election, iii. 174
stato of Italy and Germany, 17ç; the
Pope and Philip I. of France at St.
Denis, 180; sacrilegious attempts of
Henry V., 180; marches upon Rome,
181; scenes of blood in Rome, 182;
cruel treatment of Paschal IL, he un­
happily yields, 184, note; Baronius on
the '‘right of investiture," 185; last
act of Paschal's Pontificate........... 187
Paschasi„s Radbertus, his treatise on
the Body and Blood of our Lord, ii... 460
Patiens, St., archbishop of Lyons, his
zeal and charity, i...............................en
Patriarchs, their hierarchical authority
defined by the Council of Nice, L 388;
canon of the Council of Constantino­
ple concerning the rank of the differ­
ent patriarchs. ................................ 520
Patrick, St., consecrated bishop of Ire­
land, i. 571; sketch of his life and
labors in Ireland............................ 620
Patrimony of St. Petor—for the grants
made by Charlemagne and Pepin, tide
under their names—validity of the
deeds of gift, iL.................................. 432
Paul, St., hte conversion, i. 33; his la­
bors, 37, 41; his martyrdom, 49 ; his
epistles............................................. 64
Paul, St., first hermit, L 247; his death. 429
Paul I., St., Pope, his election contested
by an antipope, ii. 353; his presents
to King Pepin, 353; his death...... 356
Paul IL, Pope, election, iii 616; the
Turkish war, 617; the Pragmatic Sanc­
tion, 618; introduces printing into
Rome.............................................. 620
Paul 111., Pope, his election and first
acts, iv. 108; excommunicates Henry
VUL, 114; mediation between Charles
V. and Francis L, 123; last contests
and death of Paul III.................... I* 7
Paul IV., election and character of this
Pontiff, iv. 171 ; erects Ireland into a
kingdom, 173; leagues with Henry H.
of France against Philip IL of Spain,
174; the Duke of Alva in Italy, 175;
the Pope banishes his nephews from
Rome, 178; his death.................
179
Paul V, his election, iv. 257 ; difficulties
with Venice, 264; progress of Catho­
licity in this Pontificate, 266; his
death............................................... 269
Paul, of Samosqta, his heresy, L............ 27
Paul, St., patriarch of Constantinople,
exiled by Constantine, i. 416; his re­
call :md second exilo, 418; again re­
called, and exiled a third time, 422 ;
his return, 428; his fourth and last
exila, 443; his death........................ 444
Paulinos, St, of Nola, i.............................535
Pax, the kiss of pence, at Mass, ceremo­
nial regulated by Popo St. Leo IL, ii 283

686

Pelagius L, Pope, his election, it 158;
troubles attending his election, 15»;
his charity and prudence, 159; hi·
death.............................................. |<|
Pelagius IL, Pope, his election without
consulting tho Eastern emperor, ii.
167 ; treats with the Lombards and
obtains the freedom of Italy, 168 ; his
death............................................... Ill
Pelagianism, error in tho question of
grace. 1 557 ; condemned by Pope St.
Zosimus, 561; anathemas of the
Council of Arles against the heresy, it J
Penance, different degrees for Zapri, L
351 ; decisions of the Council of Nice,
392 ; the Councils of Nice and Arles
forbid a return to secular warfare
after public penance, 392,393 ; decree
of St Leo 1, concerning tho reading
of the sins of penitents, 604; decrees
of the Council of Rome (λ. d. 487), on
public penance, ii. 36 ; decree of the
Council of Lerida concerning tho
length of public penance for chüdmurder............................................ 113
Penitents, associations of, iii..................431
( Vide Penance.)
Pepin the Short, king of the Pranks, bis
zeal for the faith, 331 ; is mayor of
the palace, 336; becomes sole king
by the death of Carloman, 336 ; res
cues Rome from the inroads of the
Lombards, 34! ; receives the Pope in
France, 342 : his srift to the Holy See,
346 ; friendly relations with the Popes,
353 ; his death, 358 ; defence of his
legitimate accession................... 383, nett
Perpetua, St, martyred at Carthage,
L..................................................... 173
Persecutions—First general persecu­
tion under Nero, i. 47 ; second gene­
ral, under Domitian, 57 ; third gene­
ral, under Trajan, 84; fourth gene­
ral. under Marcus Aurelius, 126; re­
newal of the persecution after the
miracle of the Thundering Legion,
143; fifth general, under Septimius
Severus, 172; persecution at Rome,
208 ; sixth general, by Maximinus the
Thracian, 215; seventh general, under
Decius, 230; its character, 233 ; eighth
general, under Valerian, 259; end of
tbe persecution, 266 ; ninth general,
under Aurelian, 276 ; persecution by
Galerius, 294; tenth general, under
Dioclesian, 296, 306; persecution of
Licinius, 366; persecution of Sapor
IL, king of Persia, 431-433; under
Julian the Apostate, 486 eteq.; 507;
persecution of the African church by
Hupneric, ii. 6; of the Persian mon­
archs in Armenia, 55; of the Vandal
king, Thraaimund, in Africa............ 91

686

INPEX.

Nwr, St, i» made head of tho Apostolic
College, i ........................................... 23
Peter, of Alcantara, St, iv................... 74
Peter Bruys, iii...................................... 251
Peter the Venerable, of Cluny, ill........ 209
Peter < hrysologus, St-, Hahop of Ra­
venna. his totter to Eutyches, i......... 585
Peter tho Fuller, professes Eutychlanistn. and is exiled, ii. 10; recalled by
Basiliscus. 10; is deposed by Zeno,
13; again intruded into the see of
Antioch. 28 ; his'disordere and sepa­
ration from Acacins, 31 ; his death.. 32
Peter the Hermit, iii............................. 163
Peter Igneus, why so called, iii............ 97
Peter Mongus, heretical intruder in the
see of Alexandria, iL 13 : his death.. 32
Peter pence, origin of tho tribute, ii.... 399
Pbnntasiasts or Incorruptieoke, their
error, ii....................................... · · · 161
Phebadius, St., bishop of Agon, his re­
marks on the fall of Osius of Cordo­
va, i................................................... 466
Philip, Roman emperor, subjected to
penance by St. Babylas, bishop of
Antioch, i........................................ 224
Philip I, of Fmnce, excommunicated by
St Urban II., iii 153; his submis­
sion................................................. 154
Philip Augustus, king of France, his
departure for the Holy War, iii. 304;
his return, 306: is excommunicated,
321 ; his submission....................... 322
Philip the Fair, his character, iii. 448 ;
difficulties with the Holy See, 419 el
eeq.; his share in the affair of the
Templars................................ 467, 471
Philagalhos, antipope, under the title of
John XVIL, iL............................... 617
Phocas, Eastern emperor, raised to the
throne by revolution, u. .33; his fall. 198
Photios, author of tho Eastern schism,
his irregular accession to the see of
Constantinople, ii. 489 ; his schism,
491 ; deposition of the Catholic patri­
arch, 493 ; his hypocritical letter to
the Pope, 494; excommunicates the
Sovereign Pontiff, 496 ; his disorders,
497 ; hia banishment, 499 ; is restored
630; excommunicated by John V1LL,
632 ; his work on the 11 Procession of
the Holy Ghost,” 538 ; his infamous
machinations against Leo the Phi­
losopher, 539; exile and death, 541 ;
his works....................................... 541
Pico dello Mirandola, his great learn­
ing, iii............. ..................
633
Pilgrimages to the Holy Land, ii.......... 296
Pitts L, St., Pope, i.......................... 112-119
Pius 11., election, iii. 608; bull ExécraMû, 610; efforts in behalf of the
East. 013; sets out for the Holy
Laud, 613 ; death................................ 614

Pius III, election. .11...................................648
Pius TV., accession, iv. 186; buU to
resume the Council of Trent, 192 ;
death.......................................
210
Pius V., principal features of his Ponti­
ficate, iv. 211 ; election, 212 ; ex­
communicates Qneon Elizabeth, 215 :
death................................................. 225
Pius VI., glance at his Pontificate, iv.
517; election, 518; journey to Vien­
na, 522; grief at the execution of
Louis XVI., 537 ; persecuted by tho
French Directory, 542; dies in exile. 515
Pius VII., election, iv. 547 ; tho Con­
cordat, 549; bull Ecclesia Christi,
550; bull Qui Christi Domini, 551 ;
Pius VII. in Paris, 555 ; difficulties
with Napoleon, 557 el seq. ; bull of
excommunication, 562; removed from
Rome, 563 ; concessions forced from
him, 568; Concordat of 1813, 572;
revokes the Concordat, 573; returns
to Rome, 576; death.......................... 578
Pius VIII., election, iv. 585 ; encycli­
cal letter, 585; death...................... 588
Pius IX., his election, iv......................... 595
Plague, in A. D. 253-254, universal, i.
252; plague in Rome, IL 175; in
Marseilles, in 1720, iv........................ 43b
Pliny, the younger, letter to Trajau con­
cerning tho Christians, i.................. 85
Polycarp, St., bishop of Smyrna, L 91,122-131
Pontianus, St., Pope, i...................... 213-215
Popes, their principal duties in the first
ages, i. 141 ; to be consecrated on a
Sunday or feast, 412 ; the name first
exclusively applied to the Sovereign
Pontiffs, 539, 540; their influence,
627 ; their rights in the confirmation
of bishops, ii. 16; right to judge
without appeal, 30 ; independence of
all other power, 67, 69, 71; cannot
apnoint their own successor, 118;
their power supreme, 126; hereditary
firmness in defence of the faith, 225 ;
receive the title of Sovereign Pon­
tiff, 232; their nationality, 305; pro­
tective authority, 377; virtue and
morality, 552; charges against thoso
of the tenth century, 556; change o'
name at their Bccesaiou, 592; tbotr
position in the middle-ages........... 62»
Porphyry, philosopher, i......................... 343
Pragmatic Sanction, iii...................... 392, 599
Pre-Adamites, iv..................................... 313
Prodostinarians, L.................................... 577
Presbyterians, iv..................................... 434
Priests, manner of their election to the
sacerdotal dignity, i. 72; means of
subsistence, 73 ; canonical age for or­
dination, 566; and ii. Ill; forbidden
to shed liumun blood....................... til
Primacy of the Apostolic flee, i 70:

INDEX.

687

cannn of Nice, 38" 388 ; recognised
Romanus Lecepenus, emperor of Con­
en., respected by all the churches, ii.
stantinople, his usurpation, it 582;
21 ; circular of Pope St. Gelaeius to
his enle................................. ... 5»'
tho Eastern churches............................ 45 Rome—the Roman Empire, by its con­
•’riscilla, follower of Montamus, i........ 140
quests and centralizing influence,
Priscillian, his heresy, i........................... 521
realizes the “ fulness of time." L 15;
Propaganda, College and Congregation
decay of the empire under Gallienus,
of, iv......................................................... 293
269 ; invaded by barbarians, 266. 277 ;
Protestantism, its growth fostered by
new partition of the empire under
the state of the times, iv. 2 ; by hu­
Dlociesian, 289; division at the death
man passions, 284 ; practical applica­
of Constantine, 4)7 ; beginning of the
tion of its principles, 285 ; progress
decLin'S of the empire, 54«; Roma
in northern Europe............................. 286
invaded by Alarie, 555 ; invaded by
Prudentius, i............................................. 576
Genseric, 599 et ieq.; Odoacer de­
Prussia, erected into a kingdom, iv.
grades the last of the Roman emperors,
407. note
614; fall of the Western Empire,
Pyrrhus, Monothelite patriarch of Con­
614; political division among the bar­
stantinople. ii........ .................. .228,229
barians, ii. 2. (For subsequent history
of the Roman Empire, ride Loweb
Quakers, iv................................................. 430
Expire.) Romo taken by Totila. ... 15·
Quartodecimans, decision of the Coun­
Romulus Augustulua, last Roman em­
cil of Nice, i....................................... 384
peror, L.. . ................................... 614
Quesnel, iv........................................... 416-123 Roswitha, nun of Gandersheim, her
Quietism, system of Molinos condemned,
works, ii....................................... 609
iv. 381 ; Mme. Guyon’e theories..... 395 Rousseau. Jean Jacques, iv................. 490
Rubrics—for the Rubrics of the Mass,
Rabanus Maurus, archbishop of Mentz,
vide Mass.
ii. 474; disputes with Gotescalc..... 479 Rutinus, his discussion with St. Jerome,
i. 540-542; his works............ 542, 543
Radegundes, St., wife of King Clotaire,
Russians, their conversion, ii............ .. 614
tikes the veil during the lifetime of
Rusticus, bishop of Narbonne, his
her husband, ii................................ 135
Raphael, iv.............................................. 34
troubles with the inhabitants of
Reform, sound remarks on, iii. ... .655, 656
Beziers, i. 605; his death.............. 605
Reformation. Viife Protestantism.
Sabas, St, his solitary life in Palestine,
Regale, iii.......................................... 155, 401
ii. 34 ; monasteries founded by him,
Remigius, St., bishop of Rheims, in­
35; his visit to Auastasius the Silenstructs and baptizes Clovis, king of
tiary, 88 ; his mission to Justinian,
the Franke, ii................................ 60, 61
128; his death............................... US
^vocation of the Edict of Nante», iv.. 374
Sabbas, John, his works on mysticism, in 104
Riccius Varus, his cruelties against the
Christians, i.......................................... 286 SabeUius, his heresy, L...........................270
Sabinian, Pope, his brief Pontificate,
Richard Cœur de Lion, king of England,
during which Rome is ravaged by
takes the cross, iii. 304; jealousy of
famine, ii.......................................... 193
Philip Augustus, 305; exploits in
Sacramentary, of Pope St Getasius L, ii. 51
Palestine, 306; his last look at Jeru­
Salic taw, ii........................................... 224
salem, 308 ; unjust detention in
Salvian, his writings, i............. ............... 570
Austria............................................ 308
San Marino, republic of, places itself
Robert the Pious, king of France, ex­
under the protection of the Popes, iv. 463
communicated by Pope Gregory V.,
ii. 619; lus submission. 019; death, iii. 45 Sannazaro, iv......................................... 33
Rodolpb of Hapsburg, emperor of Ger­
Schism, of Felicissimus and Novatus,
at
Carthage, i. 245; of Fortunatus.
many, his piety, iii.......................... 403
Rogation days instituted by St. Mam249 ; of Che Meletians. 295 ; view of
mertus, bishop of Vienne, L 606; tho
tl>e various schisms in the first ages
Council of Orleans decrees their ob­
of the Church, 347, 348; end of the
servance in all the Galbe churches, ii. 80
Butychian schism in Constantinople,
Boger, dukeof Sicily, supports theantiit 97-99 (great schism of Michael Cepopo Anacletus, iii 221 ; is excom ■
rularius, vide Michael); Great Western
muuicated, 230; his treachery and
schism, iii........................................... 530
recognition as king of Sicily.......... 230 . Scotland, progress of the faith in the
Boman us, Pope, his election and death, ii. 548
sixth century, in............................. 101
Romanus Argyrus, emperor of Con­
Scotus Erigens, hie character and atstantinople, iii..................................... 44 I
taiaiueata, ii................................ HQ

688

INDEX.

! Simony—decree of Popo St. Golnsius I.
Scripture’ (snored), version of Theoagainst sinionincal clergymen, ii. 50;
dation, i. lt>S; canon of Scripture de­
decrees of Pope Boniface II. against
cided by the Council of Rome, under
simoniacnl elections of bishops, 120;
St. Gelnsiue I., il 48 ; commentaries,
decrees of Pope St. John.............. 125
>t..................................................... 295
Simplicius, St., Pope, his election, i. 609;
Sehssto, martyrdom of forty Christian
his efforts to restore poaco to the
soldiers, I................
367
Eastern Church, ii. 11 ; his zeal in the
Sebastian, St,, his martyrdom, i,.. .281, 284
defence of the Catholic cause in tho
Sedia gestatoria, its origin, ii................. 339
East, 16; his death, 20; various acte
Sedtiliiis, his works, i............................ 577
of his Pontificate in tho West........ 20
Sclingstadt, Council of, iiL 31 ; curious
Sisinnius, Pope, his short Pontificate, ii. 299
canons........................................... 31,32
Seljukian dynasty, iii........................... 76 Sixtus I., St., Pope, succeeds St. Alex­
ander!., i. 97 ; his ordinances concern­
Semi-Arinns, i........................................ 463
ing the liturgy and ritual, 101; his
Seminaries, first mention by tho Council
martyrdom........................................ 101
of Vaison (λ. D. 529), ii.................. 129
Sixtus Π., St,, Pope, his election, i. 260 ;
Semi-Polngiaus condemned by Popo St.
his martyrdom...................................... 264
Celestin I., a sketch of their errors,
Sixtus III., St., Popo, his election, i.
L 567 ; reappear in Southern Gaul,
576; his letters to the East, 576;
ii......................................................... 117
his death.................................... ... 58·
Seneca attempts to revive Pelagianism
Sinus IV., Popo, his election, iii. 621
in Picenum, ii................................. 48
defends Europe against the Turks,
Septunginl, version ofAquila, i............. 109
621 ; excommunicates Lorenzo de
Serenius Granianus, proconsul of Asia,
Medici, 625 ; crushes the tyranny of
his letter to Adrian,i....................... 104
petty lords. 626 ; his death....... ... 62«
Sergius L, St, Pope, troubles attending
Sixtus V., Popo, liis antecedents, iv.
his election, ii. 289; attempt upon
the life of tho Pope, 29) ; his death. 293
236; his Life by Gregorio Loti, 237 ;
Sergius II., Pope, bis election, ii. 468 ;
domestic administration, 238 ; con­
his death........................................ 475
gregations of cardinals, 239 ; excom­
Sergius III., Pope, unjust charges re­
municates Queen Elizabeth. 240 ; his
futed. ü 561 ; testimoniale of venerarelations with Henry IV. of France,
242, 244; his death.'....................... 246
tien and respect fromvarious churches,
561 ; liis death.............................. 564
Slaves, decree of the Council of Agde
Sergius IV., election, iii. 21 ; bis death. 24
concerning those attached to ecclesi­
Sergius, patriarch of Constantinople,
astical estates, ii. 74; the Council of
author of the Monothelite heresy, iL
Orleans declares that they be freed
215; bis letter to Pope Honorius.... 217
from labor during the rogation days,
Sericius, St., Pope, his election, i. 523;
80; the Council of Lerida (a. d. 524)
his decretal to Himerius, bishop of
forbids that they be taken from the
Farragona, 523; his authority uni­
church where they have sought an
versally granted and respected, 538 ;
asylum................................................ 112
his death........................................ 539
Smalcald, league of,iv............................... 132
Severin··, Pope, his election and death,
Sobieski, king of Poland, saves Vienne,
iL................................................... 222
iv............................................................ 38·
Severinus, a Pannonian monk, bis in­
Socininnisin, slight sketch of, iv............ 223
fluence, i. 612, 613; his prophesy to
Solitaries—of the fourth century, i.
Odoacer............................................ 613
358 ; in France in the ninth cen­
Severus, a heretical monk, intruded into
tury, ii................................................. 546
tbs see of Antioch, iL 95 ; his per­
Somasques, religious order, iv................. 73
secution of the Catholics................ 95
Soter, St, Pope, succeeds St. Anicotus,
Sforza, Ludovico, calls the French into
L 126; his death................................... 142
Italy, iii.......................................... 636
Sovereign Pontiff, title when first given,
Sidonius Apollinaris, St., bishop of Cler­
mont, his brilliant qualities and elec­
Spain—the churches of Spain under
tion to the episcopal dignity, i...... 612
Popo Eugenius 1, ii. 249; councils,
Sigismund, Burgundian prince, son of
Ac, under Popo Adeodatus (a. d.
Guudebald, abjures Arianism, iL 84;
672-676), 270, 271; entrance of the
is called by his father to a share in
Moore, 303; they peiuc.ite the
the royal power............................ 85
Christiana...................................... 4
Simeon, St- bishop of Jerusalem, Ida
Spinoza, iv..................................... . ’. ’. 342
martyrdom,!.................................. 86
Stephen I, St., Pope, his election, i.
Simon Metaphrastes, lus works, IL........ 587
252; his martyrdom............................... 260

INDEX.

689

etephon IL, Pope, dies before his instal­
IMius of heresy; his letter in refuto,
tion of the charge, 8* ; his death . 9·
lation, ii................................................338
Stephen HI., Pope, hie election, ii. 330;
Symmachus, the father-in-law of Boe­
appeals to Pepin the Short, for help
tius, is put to death by Theodoric,
against the Lombards, 3-10 ; hie jour­
II....................................................... 11·
ney to France, 342 ; his merciful dis­
Symphonan, 8t., martyr at Auto·, i
. 19
position, 344; returns to Rome, 344 ;
Symphorosa, St., and her seven ions,
bin letter to Pepin, again asking for
martyrs, i.................................... lOO
help, 345, note; his death........... 351
Synesiu», the Christian Pindar, i......... 537
Btophen IV., Pope, his election, ii.
Synods—Pope St. Honnisdaa decrees
359; Didier's attempt against the
the holding of provincial synods every
year, iL....................................... 10«
Pope, 361 ; his efforts to prevent
Charlemagne's divorce, 362; his
Talmud, the, L............................. ... 103
death................................................ 364
Stephen V., Pope, his promotion, ii.
Tatian, heretic, L................................. 137
425 ; crowns Louis the Mild at
Tauter, iii. 659; eloquence of.............. 65·
Rlieims, 426; his death................ 430
Te Deum, ascribed to St. Ambrose and
Stephen VI., Pope, his great charity, ii
St. Augustine, i................................ 531
538 ; liis death................................ 542
Telesphortis, St., Pope, bis regulations,
Stephen VII., Pope, his election, ii. 547 ;
i. 103; martyrdom....................... 110
Talain, John, elected to tho see of Alex­
disgraceful proceedings in the Coun­
andria, ii. 14; is banished by order
cil of Rome, 548 ; his death......... 548
of Zeno, 13; receives the provisional
Stephen VI1L, Pope, absence of histor­
government of the Roman Church in
ical date on this Pontificate, ii..... 572
Campania............................... .... 2 J
Stophen IX., Pope, his election, ii. 579;
his death........................................... 580
Tell, William, iiL.......................... ... 474
Templars, suppression of the order,
Stephen X., Pope, his election, iiL 83;
fij............................................. 465—472
his death.......................................... 85
Temporal power of the Popes, not im­
Stephen, king of Hungary, his zeal for
pugned by the words of Pope St. <>ethe spread of the faitii, iii. 8 ; receives
lasius L, it 53 ; its origin and growth,
the title of Apostolic Majesty.....
9
379; benefit conferred by this power,
Stilicho, minister of Honorius,’ L 536;
381; its necessity......................... 452
defeats the Goths, 554 ; twice victo­
181
rious against Al uric, 555 ; his death, 555 Tertullinn, L..................
Testament (New), why and when writ­
St. Sophia, basilica of, its dedication by
ten. i. 62 ; principal points of doctrine
Constantius, i........................
470
contained...................................... β·
Sulpitius Severus, St., his stylo and
Thalia, composed by Arius and Eusebius
various writings, i.......................... 536
of Nicomedia, i............................... 375
Buso, Henry, iii....................................... 665
Theatines, iv................... ,.................... 73
Sylverius, St., Popo, his election forced
Theban legion, its martyrdom, L.......... 284
by Theodatus, king of the Ostro­
Thebutis, heretic, L................................ 87
goths, iL 143 ; is exiled by Belisarius,
Theodora, raised to the throne by Jus­
to Patara, 146; restored by Justin­
tinian, iL 113; her vices, 114; her
ian, 146; his death....................... 147
efforts to obtain the election of a Eu·
Sylvester I., St., Pope, his election, L
tychian Pope..................................... 143
354; his death, 411; celebration of
tho twentieth year of his Pontificate 412 Theodora, empress, regent for Michael
LU., ii. 464; end of the Iconoclast
Sylvester IL, Pope, his antecedents, iii.
heresy, 464; progress of the faith in
3; his election, 5; bis efforts in behalf
the East............................................... 473
of the holy places, 7 ; his death.... 10
Symmachus, St., Pope, his election, ü.
I Theodore L, Pope, his accession, iL 225;
troubles in the East, 230; state of the
65; election of au antipope, 65; the
I
Western Church, 231 ; death of The­
question of tho rightful Pontiff sub­
mitted to Thoodoric, 65 ; calumnious
I odore .................
231
chargee brought against him by
Theodore IL, Pope, his election and
Festus, 67 ; convokes the Council of
death, ii........................................... 549
Rome, 67 ; attacked by the seditious
Theodore, St., of Siceon, made bishop,
followers of the antipope, 68; his inI
ii. 181; his death...................
182
noconce of the charges brought
Theodore, St, archbishop of Canterbury,
against him proclaimed by tho CounI is consecrated by the Pope, iL...... 261
oil of Home, 68 ; his charity t ward
Theodorei of Cyrrhus. papal legate is
the persecuted Catholics of Africa,
the East, L...............
5M
13; is accused by the Emperor Anasheodoric, king of the Vuigoths. defeats

690

INDEX.

Attih before Cb-v. ·, I. «96; h'» nr
death................................................. 696
Theodoric the Orest, kin? of tho Ostro­
goths, hie training nnd character, ii.
37; establishes his power in Italy,
38; his wise administration, 41 ; is
made arbiter in the case of St. Symmaohns and the antipope Lawrence,
65: his decision, 66; his charity, 82:
his regard for Church property, S3;
reaction in favor of Arianism, 107,
109: imprisons the Pope, 110; his
death............................................. Hl
fhoodosinn Coda, published by Theodo­
sius the Younger, i. 579; abrogated
ia the East by Justinian................ 579
Theodosius tho Great, called to the
throne by Gratian, i. 513; his Chris­
tian legislation. 515; defeats Maximus
tho usurper, 526; his clemency to­
ward the revolted city of Antioch,
62«; his severity in regard to Thes­
salonica, 528; his penance, 529; de­
feats the usurpers Eugcnius and Arbogastes at the battle of Aquileia,
530; his death............................... 530
Theodosius the Younger, hie accession,
i. 553 ; his dentb.............................. 689
Thewiosius the Conobitc, ii.................... 35
Thewloiiaus heretics, 1.103; refuted by
the priest Caius.............................. 104
Theophilus, St, bishop of Antioch, i... 153
Theophilus, patriurcli of Alexandria, his
violence toward tho monks of Scete, i.
548; becomes an admirer of Origen.. 550
Theophilus tho Unfortunate, emperor
of Constantinople, persecutes the
Catholics, ii. 462 ; his cruelty in the
agonies of death............................ 404
Thoophylactus, antipope, ii............. 358, 359
Theopbylactus, patriarch of Constanti­
nople, his scandalous conduct, iL.... 682
Thérapeutes, mentioned by St. Diony­
sius the Areopagite, aud Philo the
Jew, i............................................ 93
Theresa, St., iii. 663 ; iv....................... 226
Thessalonica, mnssacro of the inhabit­
ants by Theodosius, i...................... 528
Tbrasimuud, king of tho Vandals, his
persecution in Africa, iL.................... 81
Thomas à Becket, St., archbishop of
Canterbury, iii. 282 ; tho meeting nt
Clarendon, 283 ; fortitude of SL Tho­
mas, 284, 285; Henry IL, at Sene,
386 ; St. Thomas returns to England,
266; martyrdom............................... 287
Thomas Aquinas, St., the Summa, iii... 386
Thundering Legion, miracle of, L.......... 136
Tfera, supposed to have been first worn
by St. Sylvester I., L 355; time at
which it received its present form,
iL 396, note; its meaning, iii........495
Tiberius Apsimar, emperor of the

East, hit accession, ii. 293; au
tempts to control tho Pontifical elec­
tion.......................................................... 391
Timothy, St, disciple of St. Paul, his
martyrdom, i..................................... 91
Timothy /Elurus, his disorders nt Alexnndri.i, i. 602; his exile, 602; re­
called by Basiliscus, ii. 10 ; his
death......................................
Timothy Solo/acMus, patriarch of Al­
exandria, his election, i........................ 602
Titus, St, martyred, i................................ 91
Tolbiac—victory of Clovis, king of the
Franks, on the Held of Tolbiac, ii... GO
Torquemada, inquisitor-general in Spain,
iii............................................................ 632
Tolilo, king of the Ostrogoths, his visit
to St. Benedict, ii. 124; his successes in
Italy, 149 ; besieges and takes Rome,
150; hie death................................... 160
Tradition, i................................................. 61
Trajan, Roman emperor, persecutes the
Christians, i. 84 ;his death.................. 96
Treaty of Westphalia, iv........................... 104
Trinity—the proposition of tho Soythinn
monks, “Phus de Trinitate passus ωί,"
not condemned by Popo Horrnisdas,
ii. 100; discussion renewed under
John II........................
126
Trinitarians, or Fathers of Mercy, iii... 432
Truce of Gud, iii....................................... 47
Turks, their efforts to overrun Europe,
iii........................................................ 605
Tutus, legate of Pope St. Felix III., to
Constantinople, ii. 27 ; his fall, 28 ;
is excommunicated........................... 20
Type, of the Emperor Constans, ii____ 230
Urban L, St,, Pope, i. 204 ; his martyr­
dom..................................................... 213
Urban II., Pope, four great events of
his Pontificate, iii. 147 ; religious ten­
dency of European society, 149; first
Crusade, 162; the fall of Antioch,
167; of Jerusalem, 171; death of
Urban II................................................ 172
Urban III., election, iii. 296; dies of
grief................................................... 298
Urban IVM raised to the papal chair;
writes to James II., of Arragon,
mi. 3S7: untimely death, 388 ; insti­
tuted the feast of the Blessed Sacra­
ment................................................... 383
Urban V., election, iii. 515 ; expedition
against the Mussulmans, 515 ; against
Peter tho Cruel, 516 ; Urban's wise
policy, 517; leaves Avignon for
Rome, 519; public joy; receives the
emperors of tho East and West, 520:
factions in Rome, 521; returns to
France, 521 ; dies.......................... 523
Urban VI, state of the Church, iii. 529
election, 530; the Great Westen

13

INDEX.

Schism, 530 et eeq. ; Urban's course
at Romo, 539; take» refugo in the
castle of Nocera, 642 ; death............643
Urban VII., hie brief Pontificate, iv... 246
Urban VIII., hie election, iv. 274; es­
cheat of the duchy of Urbino to the
Holy See, 277 ; the bull In Eminenti,
279; hie death..................................281
Ursinus, third antipope, opposes St.
Damasus, i............................................. 603

691

Pnro St Boniface L, though still re­
taining the liturgy and fast, i . .. 5M
Vincent, St., martyr, 1......................... 101
Vincent, of I'spus, Papal legate at the
I Council of Nice, L 378; hi» fall.... 44»
i Vincent, St., of Lorins, i...................... 5*0
! Vincent Ferrer, St., iii......................... 6-',0
I Virgins, time at which they may take
the veil, ii.................................. 50
Visigoths, their movement, in Gaul, L
619; state of religion among them . 619
Vitalian, St, Pope, his election, iL 255;
his letter to iJswiu, king of NorI thumbria, 260; hi» death, 262 ; his
learning and charity............ 262, 263
■ Vuwe, decree of Pope St. Comelina, i 25·

Vacancy, in the See of Rome, on ac­
count of the seventh general perse­
cution, i. 233; in the tenth general
persecution, 306 ; third vacancy, a. d.
310, 318; decrees of Valence, a. d.
524, concerning vacancies in episco­
pal sees, ii 112; fourth vacancy,
Wamba, king of the Visigoths in Spain,
155; fifth vacancy......................... 221
J Washing of feet on Holy Thursday, il ÎÏ9
290
Vahan, frees Armenia from the perse­
cution of the Persian monarchs, ii.. 56 Wilfrid. St, bishop of York, efforts to
Valens, emperor of the East, i. 498,
regulate the Paschal celebration, iL
499 ; becomes persecutor, 500, 503 ;
I 258 ; persecuted in England.... .276, 395
his death........................................... 513
i William the Conqueror, defeats the
Valentine, Pope, his short Pontificate,
Saxons at Hastings, iii- 101 ; death. 154
460 William Rufue, encroachments on ec­
clesiastical jurisdictions, fit 155 ;
Valentinien, emperor of the West, i.
498 ; bis decrees in favor of the
persecutes St Anselm. 158; his
Christians.........................................
499
death............................................
Willibrord, St, his labors in Friesland.
Vendais, thoir invasion of Africa, L
Ü................................................ 286, 287
568; persecute the Catholics, ii__
Winfrid, St. Vide Boniface, apostle of
Vatican Basilica, founded by Constan­
tino, i................................................
397
Germany.
Veni Creator, when first sung, iii........ 70 Women not to appear in the assemblies
of the faithful without a veil L 63;
Vergerio, Apostolic legate, his apostasy,
not to bo employed in the dwellings
139
of the clergy, 251, 391 ; nor to serve
Veronica, St., of Milan, iii........................ oou
660
50
at
tho altar, ii...............................
Victor I, St., Pope, i. 159; his death. 170
Worship,
among the early Christians,
Victor IL, election, iii. 79; presides at
the Council of Florence, 80 ; efforts
for general reformation. Ac., 81; ac­
Zachary. St, Pope, it 327; affair of the
cepts the guardianship of Henry IV,
antipodes, 331 ; his works ............ 33»
82
of Germany, 82; death................
Zeno, emperor of tho East ii 3 ; favors
Victor III., proclaimed Pope, iii. 143;
the Catholics, 6; exiled, 10, his re­
troubles in Rome, 144; sends de­
turn, 13: energy against the here­
crees of the Council of Beneventum
tics, 13; the Emoticon, 17; attempts
to Henry IV, 144 ; dies................ 146
to dethrone him, 19; disorders ot his
Victor, St., of Marseilles, his martyr­
dom, i................................................. 285 . __last
j
y ears.
_....................
....................................... 33
i.................. 171-197
Vienna besieged by the Turks, iv.... 378 Zephyrinus, St, Pope, i.
, Zizim
seeks
in Rhodes, iii.
Vigilantius heretic, is attacked by St
------*·· fchospitality
—
Jerome, i............................................. 566 I 628; is the guest of the Pope.......... 629
I Zoe, empress, iii............................ 44, 56, 67
Vigilius, bribed by Theodora to usurp
I Zoeimus Sr., Pope, bis indulgence to­
the chrir of Peter and failure of his
first attempt, ii 144; usurps the
ward Pelagius and Colestius, L 661 ;
Holy See.......................................... 146
condemns the Pelagian heresy, 662;
Vigil·—vigils or saints abolished by
hi· death... ................................ sen

INDEX TO APPENDIX

Althiun, Father, tn Maryland................ 603
Augustinians, established in Philadel­
phia........................................................ 632
Association for tho Propagation of the
Faith, organized.................................. 048

Druillettes', Father, mission among the
Abnnkis................................................002
Dubois, Rev. John, conducts Mt 8t
Mary’s College, 633; appointed
bishop of New York..................
Dominicans in Kentucky......................
Debarth, Rev. Lewis, appointed admin­
istrator of Philadelphia................
Dubourg, Rt. Rev. Dr., appointed bishop
of Ne w Orleans, 642 ; resignation of.
Dubuque made an episcopal see.........

3s s sâ

Badin, Rev. Stephen T., sent to Ken­
tucky..................................................... 631
Baltimore, made an archiépiscopal see.
637 ; provincial council of, 649 ;
second provincial council of, 650;
third provincial council of, 652 ;
fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh
councils of, 657 ; first plenary coun­
cil of, 658; prerogative of place
granted to the see of.................... 559
Blanchet, Dr., appointed archbishop of
Oregon........................
651
Blanchet, Rev. Magloir», appointed
bishop of Walla-Walla................. 651
Baraga, Rt. Rev. Bishop, published
prayer-books in the Indian dialects.. 651
Barron, Rev. Edward, goes to Liberia. 652

bishop of Philadelphia, 644; trou­
bles in his diocese.......................... 644

Egan, Rt. Rev. Michae, appointed
bishop of Philadelphia, 637 : death
of...................................................
England, Rt Rev. Dr., appointed to the
see of Charleston.......................... 641
Eccleston, Rev. Samuel, succeeds Arch­
bishop Whitfield........................... 652

Fenwick, Rev- Edward, commences a
Dominican establishment in Ken­
Calvert, Sir George, arrival of, in Mary­
tucky, 633 ; appointed bish"p of Cin­
land ......................................... 603
cinnati.............................................. 642
Carroll, Bishop, MS. relation of 605;
From,
Rev. Francis, improper conduct
application of Congress to, 607 ; an­
of................................................... 634
swer to Whnrton, 607 ; appointed
Flaget, Rt. Rev. B., appointed bishop of
superior of the mission, 608 ; appoint­
Bardstown........................................ 637
ed bishop of Baltimore, 612; conse­
Fenwick, Rt Rev B. J, succeeds
cration of, 623 ; installation of, 615 ;
Bishop Cheverie..................... ........ 644
convokes a synod, 619; pastoral let­
ter, 620; death of, 639; character of. 639 Franciscans in New Mexico................. 647
Carbery, Rev. Thomas, insubordination
Greaton, Father, founded the church of
of...................................................... 640
St. Joseph in Philadelphia.............. 605
Catholics in the United States, their
number in 1785, 610; memorial to
Hogan. Rev. William, scandalous con­
Congress........................................... 611 I
Carmelites, established in Maryland .. 632 I duct of........................................... 644
Cheverns, Rt. Rev. John, appointed
|
bishop of Boston, 637 ; departure
I Jesuits, in Florida, 601 ; in tho North,
602 ; in the West, 602 ; put to death
thence................................................. 643 I
Ohlomaoon conversion of..................... 603 I in Maryland, 603 ; in the Slate of
Conolly. Rt Re r. Dr., appointed bishop
I
Now York, 605; restoration in the
of New Fork, 642; controversial
I
United States................................. 63J
publications. ..................................... 055 I Journalism, Catholic, in tho United
Conwell, Rt. Rov. Henry, appointed
|
States................................................... 45J

694

INPEX TO APPENDIX.

Kohlman, Rot Anthony, remarkable
legal decision in his case................ 638
Kelly, Rt Rev. Dr., appointed bishop
of Richmond................................... G41
Kelly, Rot. John, goes to Liberia........ 652
Kcnrick. Rt. Rer. Dr., succeeds Arch­
bishop Ecdeston............................ 658

Pennsylvania, freedom of tho Catholics
in.........................................
604
Plowden, Rev. Charles, discourse of.. 613
Pheian, Rev. L. 8., letter to Bishop
Carroll.................................................... 635
Portier, Rt. Rev if., appointed bishop
of Mobile.... ....................................... 642

Livingston, Adam, remarkable dream
and conversion of........................... 646
Ladies of tho Sacred Heart conduct
schools for the benefit of tho In­
dians ............................................. 651

Reste, Father, residence among the
Abnakis................................................ 602
Rebellion in Maryland............................ 604
Router, Cmsarius, Rev., improper con­
ductor................................................. 634
Rosati, Rev. Dr., bishop of St. Louis.. 642

Marquette, Father, discovered the Mis­
sissippi............................................. 602
Maryland, rebellion in, 604; persecution
of the Catholic population............ 604
Molyneux. Rev. Robert, appointed to
take charge of the Society of Jesus
in tho United States .................... G33
Miège, Rt. Rev. F. B., appointed vicar
Apostolic....................................... 650
Maréchal, Rov. Ambrose, succeeds
Archbishop Noale............................. 640
Mattingly, Mrs. Ann, miraculous cure of 645

New Orleans, made an episcopal see,
634; schism of................................. 634
pointed bishop of, 637; erection of
the cathedral....................................... 638
Neale, Rt Rev. Leonard, succeeds
Archbishop Carrol'............................ 640
Nashville made an episcopal soo........ 652
Natchez made an episcopal see.......... 652
Padilla. Fathe-. martyrdom ot.

... 601

Sulpitians, arrival in the United States, 619
Sisters of the Visitation, established in
Georgetown...................................... 632
Seton, Mrs., commenced an academy.. 632
Sisters of Charity, established at Em­
metsburg, 632; at New York...... 643
Sisters of Providence, establishment
of......................................................... 649
Smet, Father de, commences bis West­
ern mission......................................... 651
Spalding, Most Rov. M. J., succeeds
Archbishop Kenrick............................. 659

Ursuline Community, founded at New
Orleans, 603; established in Boston.. 643
Ury, John, his execution.......................... 605
United States, Catholic population of, in
1810................................................... 637
White, Father, residence among tho
Piscataway Indians.
................ 603
Whitfield, Very Rov. James, succeeds
Archbishop Maréchal...................... 648