Page:EB1911 - Volume 21.djvu/716

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PIUS (POPES)
687

occupied by General Miollis; a month later the provinces of Ancona, Macerata, Fermo and Urbino were united to the kingdom of Italy, and diplomatic relations between Napoleon and Rome were broken off; finally, by a decree issued from Schonbrunn on the 17th of May 1809, the emperor united the papal states to France. Pius retaliated by a bull excommunicating the invaders; and, to prevent insurrection, Miollis - either on his own responsibility, as Napoleon afterwards asserted, or by order of the latter - employed General Radet to take possession of the pope's person. The palace on the Quirinal was broken open during the night of July 5th, and, on the persistent refusal of Pius to rescind the bull of excommunication and to renounce his temporal authority, he was carried off, first to Grenoble, thence after an interval to Savona on the Gulf of Genoa. Here he steadfastly refused canonical institution to the bishops nominated by Napoleon; and, when it was discovered that he was maintaining a secret correspondence, he was deprived of all books, even of pen and ink. At length, his nerves shattered by insomnia and fever, he was willing to give satisfactory oral assurances as to the institution of the French bishops.

In May 181 Napoleon, on the pretext that the English might liberate the pope if he were left at Savona, caused the aged and sick pontiff to be transported to Fontainebleau; the journey was so hard that on Mount Cenis Pius received the viaticum. Arriving safely, however, at Fontainebleau, he was lodged in a suite of regal magnificence to await the return of the emperor from Moscow. When Napoleon arrived, he entered into personal negotiations with the pope, who on the 25th of January 1813 assented to a concordat so degrading that his conscience found no relief till the 24th of March, when, on the advice of the cardinal Pacca and Consalvi, he abrogated it; and on the 9th of May he proceeded to defy the emperor by declaring invalid all the official acts of the new French bishops. In consequence of the battle of Leipzig and the entry of the allied forces into France, Napoleon ordered in January 1814 that the pope be returned to Savona for safe keeping; but soon the course of events forced him to liberate the pope and give back the States of the Church. On the 19th of March Pius left Savona, and was received with rejoicing at Rome on the 24th of May. While Consalvi at the Congress of Vienna was securing the restitution of nearly all the papal territory, reaction had full swing at Rome; the Jesuits were restored; the French legislation, much of which was of great social value, was repealed; the Index and the Inquisition were revived. On his return Consalvi conducted a more enlightened and highly centralized administration, based largely on the famous Motu proprio of 1816; nevertheless the finances were in a desperate condition. Discontent centred perhaps in the Carbonari, a Liberal secret society condemned by the pope in 1821. The chief triumphs of Consalvi were the negotiation of a series of valuable concordats with all the Roman Catholic powers save Austria. In the latter years of Pius's life royalty often came to Rome; the pope was very gracious to exiled kings and showed notable magnanimity toward the family of Napoleon. He also attracted many artists to the city, including the greatest sculptors of the time, one of whom, the Protestant Thorwaldsen, prepared the tomb in which repose the remains of the gentle and courageous pontiff, who passed into rest on the 10th of August 1823. His successor was Leo XII.

Authorities: Zopffel and Benrath, "Pius VII.," in Herzog Hauck, Realencyklopädie, xv. 451-458 (Leipzig, 1904), (long list of older literature); Ilario Rinieri, La Diplomazia pontificia nel secolo XIX. (Rome, 1902), two volumes treating the years 1800-1805, based largely on Vatican sources; I. Rinieri, Napoleone Pio VII. (1804-1813), relazioni storiche su documenti inediti dell' archivio vaticano (Turin, 1906); H. Chotard, Le Pape Pie VII. a Savone (Paris, 1887); Mary H. Allies, Pius the Seventh (London, 1897), a popular Roman Catholic biography; Leo Konig, S.J. Pius VII. Die Sakularisation and das Reichskonkordat (Innsbruck, 1904), based chiefly on Vienna material; H. Welschinger, Le Pape et t'empereur, 1804-1815 (Paris, 1905); Louis Madelin, La Rome de Napoleon: la domination francaise a Rome de 1809 a 1814 (Paris, 1906), an elaborate study; L. G. Wickham-Legg, "The Concordats"(Cambridge Modern History, vol. ix. ch. 7, 1906); Lady Blennerhassett, "The Papacy and the Catholic Church" (Cambridge Modern History, vol. x. ch. 5, 1907). Both these last have good bibliographies. (W. W. R.*) 

Pius VIII (Francesco Xaviero Castiglioni), pope from 1829 to 1830, who came of a notable family at Cingoli near Ancona, was born on the 10th of November 1761. He studied canon law at Rome, became vicar-general at Anagni and later at Fano, and in 1800 was appointed bishop of Montalto. Because he refused the oath of allegiance to the Napoleonic king of Italy he was carried captive to France; but in 1816 his steadfastness was rewarded by his being created cardinal-priest of Sta Maria in Trastevere; and this same year he was translated from the see of Montalto to that of Cesena. In 1821 he was made cardinalbishop of Frascati, also grand penitentiary; and later he became prefect of the Congregation of the Index. In the conclave which followed the death of Leo XII., Castiglioni, the candidate of France, was elected pope on the 31st of March 1829. He avoided nepotism, abandoned the system of espionage employed by his predecessor, and published an encyclical condemning Bible societies and secret associations. He rejoiced over Catholic emancipation in England, recognized Louis Philippe as king of the French, and exhibited a pacific spirit in dealing with the problem of mixed marriages in Germany. Worn out with work, he died on the morning of the 1st of December 1830. His successor was Gregory XVI.

Authorities: Zopffel and Benrath, "Pius VIII.," in HerzogHauck, Realencyklopädie, xv. 458 seq. (Leipzig, 1904, with bibliography); F. Nielsen, A History of the Papacy in the 19th Century, ii. 31–50 (London, 1906); P. B. Gams, Series episcoporum ecclesiae catholicae (Regensburg, 1873).  (W. W. R.*) 

Pius IX (Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti), pope from 1846 to 1878, was born on the 13th of May 1792 at Sinigaglia, the fourth son of Count Jerome and Countess Catherine Vollazi; the family of Mastai was of ancient descent, and the title of count came to it in the 17th century, while later the elder branch, allied by marriage with the Ferretti family, took that name in addition. He spent some time at the College of Piarists in Volaterra, and then proceeded to Rome with the intention of entering the pontifical guard as an officer. In spite of his good connexions, he was disappointed in this aim as it became known that he suffered from epilepsy. The malady, however, was surmounted; and in 1819 he was ordained priest. After ministering for some time in his native town, he accompanied Cardinal Muzzi to Chile (1823). On his return he was entrusted by Leo XII. with the direction of the Roman hospital of San Michele: in 1830 he received the archbishopric of Spoleto, in 1832 the bishopric of Imola, and in 1840 Gregory XVI. created him a cardinal, with the title Santi Pietro e Marecellino.

On the death of Gregory XVI. (June 1, 1846) the College of Cardinals met in conclave on the 14th of June. But their deliberations were destined to last but a short while; for, on the 16th of June, Cardinal Mastai Ferretti had already obtained the requisite two-thirds majority, and ascended the papal chair under the title of Pius IX. In his various capacities he had gained much popularity: he had shown himself to be of a kindly disposition and a zealous churchman, and his reputation for piety and tact stood high; he possessed, too, a winning personality and a handsome presence.

The reign of Pius IX. began at an extremely critical time. The problem of the government of the Papal States, transmitted to him by his predecessor, stood in urgent need of solution, for the actual conditions were altogether intolerable. The irritation of the populace had risen to such a pitch that it found vent in revolts which could only be quelled by the intervention of foreign powers; and the ferment in the dominions of the Church was accentuated by the fact that the revolutionary spirit was in the ascendant in all the states of Europe. The proclamation of a general amnesty for all political offenders made an excellent impression on the people; and Pius at once instituted preparations for a reform of the administration, the judicature and the financial system. The regulations affecting the censorship were mitigated, and a breath of political liberalism vitalized the whole government. Pius at once acquired the reputation of a reforming pope. But the prestige so gained was not sufficient to calm the people permanently, and two demands were urged with ever increasing energy—a share in the government and a national