Chapter III: Opening of the Nineteenth Century (1)

Never did the shadows of night gather with more sorrow and hopelessness around the afflicted Spouse of Christ, than on that sad August 29, 1799, when, in the prison house of Valence, the form of the gentle Pius VI. lay still and cold in death. Gazing out from that Chamber of silence, upon the races of men, she might well be tempted to apply to the troubled world that expression whereby the prophet characterized the abode of eternal misery: _Ubi nullus ordo, sed sempiternus horror inhabitat_; "where no order, but sempiternal horror dwelleth." Politically, all Europe was in a frenzy of hope and despair, of triumph and defeat, of luxury and of poverty. The directing reins had been torn from the hands of government, and wild, uncouth, savage, insane mobs held high carnival over the ruins of desecrated homes. In the Sanctuary itself the forces of disorder had pushed their way, Jansenist, Gallican, Josephist and every other form of fanatical heresy fighting for possession of those altars from which they had driven the ministers of the living God. The Church, indeed, had been so utterly buried beneath the accumulated ruins of her external institutions, and so utterly prostrated through the humiliations poured out upon her, that a triumphant world was almost forgetting that she was, indeed, a power to be dealt with. And now, when the news that her visible head was laid low, was spread abroad, the exultation of anti-Christianism knew no bounds. In Paris, in every dark alley and lane, as well as in the halls of the mighty the voice of congratulation was heard, for that he, who had stood forth a barrier against the immoral slavery of whole peoples to the passions of the demagogue and the anarchist, was now silent forever. Jacobin, Constitutionalist, Jansenist, Gallican, Caesarist and Protestant, all united in the conviction that Catholicity was at an end, and that the superannuated institution of the Papacy had fallen into a grave from which no power human or divine might ever again resuscitate it. They had forgotten the promise made by Christ of old: "For, behold, I am with you all days even to the consummation of the world."

In the meantime divine Providence had so ordered the course of European affairs as to confound all the schemes of the enemy. Just as Napoleon Bonaparte was on his way to the distant campaign of Egypt, the great Powers coalesced in one desperate attempt to overthrow the domination of France, Russia and Austria, with their combined forces, drove the French from Northern Italy, and finally Austria alone contrived to wrest from French control all those rich provinces for the conquest of which Bonaparte had expended so much blood and treasure. Thus, it so happened, that when the great General returned from his Egyptian wars, all Italy was in the hands of the Austrians and Neapolitans. In Europe at the same time, George III. was reigning in England, Francis II. in Austria, Paul I. in Russia, while the Directory at Paris dominated directly or indirectly all the more insignificant States.

In the Church itself the administration of all external ecclesiastical affairs was rendered almost impossible. The Cardinals were dispersed in all directions; ten of them with Cardinal Albani, Dean of the Sacred College found refuge in Naples, whence they sailed at the invitation of Austria to Venice.

_CONCLAVE OF VENICE._

In the hush that followed the death of Pius VI. the great question began to be asked: How and where shall the Conclave be held? It is true, the political changes of the past year had left Italy entirely free for such deliberations; and moreover, the martyred Pope, before reaching his place of exile, in 1798, had provided with singular wisdom for just such an event. In his Encyclical, _Quum in superiori anno_, written while at Florence, he had enjoined upon the Cardinals that, in the event of his death in exile, the Conclave for the election of his successor should be held in that city which, while in the dominions of a Catholic sovereign, should contain the largest gathering of Cardinals, together with any others who should join them. This provision of the late Pope seemed thus to point to Venice, especially as the Emperor, Francis II., graciously offered for that purpose the Benedictine Abbey of San Georgio, on an island directly opposite to St. Mark's Square. There, accordingly, it was determined to hold the Conclave.

Out of the forty-six Cardinals of the Sacred College thirty-five repaired to Venice. Among these were many of international celebrity, as statesmen or writers upon questions of general importance. Towards the end of November the Conclave had practically begun its preparatory business; Mgr. Hercules Consalvi was elected its secretary, and among his first official acts was that of sending to the European Powers a notification of the death of Pope Pius VI. Among those thus remembered was the exile of France, Louis XVIII., known at the time as the Count of Provence, and living in Poland. As the elder brother of the murdered Louis XVI., he was regarded among the Courts of Europe as the rightful sovereign of France.

Before the Conclave was formally opened the usual interest of the Powers began to be felt, although only Austria made any public avowal of its determination to interfere in regard to the choice of a new Pope. France itself was not altogether indifferent as is shown by the correspondence both of Napoleon and of his Minister, Talleyrand. It was only two years previously that the General, then at Mombello, in Italy, wrote to his government: "The Pope is yet unwell. I beg you to send me new powers with reference to the Conclave, so that when it becomes necessary, I may communicate them to the French minister at Rome. We have the right to exclude one cardinal; and that one should be Albani, if he is put forward." Later still in the same year, 1797, he wrote to his brother, Joseph, at the time French ambassador in Rome: "Should the Pope die, do all in your power to prevent the election of another, and bring about a revolution. If that is impossible, do not permit Cardinal Albani to be considered. You should not merely use the right of exclusion; you must threaten the cardinals, declaring that I will march immediately on Rome." During the progress of the Conclave, Talleyrand wrote, on February 18, 1800, to Musquiz, the Spanish ambassador in Paris, protesting against the influence of Austria in the Conclave, declaring for reasons of no account except to himself, that the election from such Conclave must be illegal, and signifying that it would be for the interest of Spain to refuse to acknowledge such an election. As, however, there was only one French cardinal in Venice at the time, namely Maury, who was then entirely in the interests of Louis XVIII., it is easy to see that any direct influence from France would hardly be considered.

In the case of Austria the matter assumed greater importance. It is true that Austria had proven itself no generous upholder of Papal prerogatives for the fifty years past; yet, in the present hour, the prestige of Papal influence was something desirable especially by countries which still claimed to be Catholic. Moreover, the Sovereign of Austria was still adorned with the title of Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire which he was not to lose until six years later; he was thus bound, in a way, to the interests of the Papacy. Still more, it was in his dominions, and under his protection that the Conclave was to be held. Hence, his determination to make use of every privilege, real or apparent, which he deemed inherent in his house.

It was with this purpose in view that the Emperor, Francis II., presented detailed instructions to Cardinal Herzan, who was to represent Austrian interests in the Conclave. The instructions are very sweeping in their scope, and were they followed out, the Conclave would have proved only a formality for ratifying the choice of Austria. They are as follows: "We oppose most seriously the election of any cardinal from the dominions of Spain, Sardinia, Naples, or Genoa; or any cardinal who has given evidences of devotion to the interests of any one of the three crowns mentioned. We oppose all cardinals of French origin, and all those who have shown any disposition to espouse the cause of France. Especially do we formally and absolutely exclude Cardinals Gerdil, Caprara, Antonelli, Maury, and those of the Doria family. Our paternal heart discerns only two cardinals whose qualifications promise a capability to encounter present difficulties.... In the first place stands Cardinal Mattei, in whom we place more confidence than in any other.... Our second choice is solely Cardinal Valenti." Unfortunately for the hopes of the Emperor, neither of the two cardinals mentioned was elected.

The Conclave was formally opened on December 1, 1799. The cardinals were divided into three parties, one of which under the leadership of Cardinals Antonelli and Herzan espoused the candidacy of Cardinal Mattei; a second party was led by Cardinals Braschi and Albani; and in the interests of the papal prerogatives, gave their preferences to Cardinal Bellisomi at first, and later to Cardinal Gerdil; a third party called the volauti or unattached, voted independently; among these latter were the French Cardinal Maury, and the Neapolitan, Ruffo. In the first ballotings the votes stood 22 to 13 in favor of Bellisomi. When it became evident that the latter cardinal would soon secure the necessary two thirds of the votes, Cardinal Herzan contrived to turn the tide. Unfortunately for his interests, however, the favor of the Sacred College began to look to Cardinal Gerdil, one of those whom the Emperor had formally and absolutely excluded. Thereupon, Cardinal Herzan applied his right of veto, thus placing Cardinal Gerdil outside all possibility of election. Austria, however, could utilize its power of veto only once in a Conclave; hence the cardinals were now practically free to act in disregard to the wishes of Austria. In the meantime the favor had again turned to Bellisomi, and Cardinal Herzan begged as a matter of courtesy that the Austrian Court be asked in regard to its attitude towards the popular candidate. Much time was expended in sending a courier to Vienna and awaiting his return. In the meantime, Mgr. Consalvi, secretary of the Conclave, contrived to arouse interest in an entirely new candidate, a man whose saintly life and great learning was added to the fact that he appeared wholly outside the quarrels of the nations. This was Cardinal Chiaramonti, Bishop of Imola. Cardinal Maury took up the suggestion with enthusiasm, and employed all his eloquence to impress the Sacred College with the idea. As the Conclave had now lasted for one hundred and four days, the cardinals already weary of procrastination, were only too eager to manifest their approbation. When the final ballot was taken, on March 14, 1800, Cardinal Chiaramonti received every vote except his own. He was accordingly elected Pope, taking the name of Pius VII.

_POPE PIUS VII._

Barnabas Louis Chiaramonti was born at Cesena, in the Legation of Forli, August 14, 1742. His father was Count Scipio Chiaramonti; his mother Jane, was a daughter of the Marquis of Ghini. The boyhood of the future Pope was without any of those marvelous incident which usually give promise of coming greatness. That he was nurtured in a love of God and of religion is evident from the character of his gentle mother, who in 1762, entered the Convent of the Carmelites, at Fano, where she died, in 1771, with the reputation of a saint. Indeed, many years later, the cause of her beatification was suggested to her illustrious son, then Pius VII., who with his characteristic delicacy, put the proposition aside lest his filial love might seem to dictate where motives of disinterested justice ought to preside.

At the age of sixteen, after finishing his course of studies at the College of Ravenna, Barnabas, feeling the call of God, abandoned the allurements of the world, and entered as a novice at the Benedictine Abbey of Santa Maria del Monte, near Cesena, where he received the name of Gregorio. His career of studies was completed in 1768, when he defended a series of theological propositions in the presence of Cardinal Ganganelli, destined the following year to become Pope Clement XIV. After his ordination to the priesthood he acted as professor in the Colleges of his Order, especially at Parma and at Rome. He was thus engaged at the Monastery of St. Calixtus in 1775, when Cardinal Braschi, his townsman and relative, ascended the throne of St. Peter, as Pope Pius VI. Through the good offices of the new Pope, the young monk was made an abbot of St. Paul outside the Walls; but this title thus conferred without the concurrence of the regular Chapter of the Order, while assuring some privileges, did not dispense the incumbent from obedience to the titular abbot. His conduct in the delicate post, thus thrust upon him, so charmed Pope Pius VI., that on his return from Vienna in 1782, he took the humble abbot away from his monastery and raised him to the episcopal See of Tivoli. For three years he governed that diocese with such rare wisdom and intelligence that the Sovereign Pontiff decided that he ought to be placed in a position wherein his abilities and zeal might have a wider field. Accordingly, in 1785, he was transferred to the See of Imola, and in the same year was created a cardinal.

He was Bishop of Imola more than ten years, when the Austrians, pursued by the armies of Bonaparte, took refuge at Bologna. His conduct in the wars that followed was dictated by the feeling of duty divinely committed to him. His courage in the face of the opposing armies won from Bonaparte an expression of admiration and praise; for when that General, on entering Ancona, found that the Bishop of the place had fled, he exclaimed in the presence of suite. "When I was at Imola, I found its Bishop at his post." In the uprising at Lugo against the French invaders, Cardinal Chiaramonti was at hand counselling patience on the part of the Italians, and later begging mercy when the French were preparing for sanguinary revenge. At times, as in his Christmas sermon of 1798, he encouraged the people to accept, at least under existing circumstances, the Democratic form of government then forced upon them, as being in no way "opposed to the Gospel, and requiring in fact the sublime virtues which are taught in the school of Jesus Christ, and which if practised religiously by you will redound to your own happiness, and to the glory and spirit of your Republic." During the year following the saintly Pope Pius VI. died at Valence and Cardinal Chiaramonti, a few weeks later repaired to Venice to become Pope Pius VII.

The general satisfaction manifested over the election of Pius VII. was not shared by Austria. Apart from the fact that her choice had been disregarded, it began to be rumored about that the new Pope was not altogether unwelcome to France, and that the new Consul not only admired but sought him. Nor was Austria slow in displaying marks of her displeasure. The ceremonies of the coronation and consecration coming so soon after the election, it was naturally supposed that the great Cathedral of St. Mark's would be offered for that purpose. This favor, however, the Emperor refused to grant, so that the new Pontiff was restricted to the insignificant monastery church of St. George for a function that called for the splendors of a mighty temple.

Austria went still farther in her vulgar reprisals. Her government had the hardihood to ask the Holy Father to visit Vienna before returning to his own States, alleging that "such a journey would prove an incalculable benefit to the Holy See, that the personal acquaintance of the Emperor would be very useful to His Holiness, and for the good of both Church and State, and that, since the Pope happened to be at Venice, he ought not lose so precious an occasion of undertaking a journey, the expenses for which should be payed out of the imperial treasury."

The Holy Father, though declining the offers of the Austrian Monarch, wrote to him within a week after his election, in terms full of fatherly affection, and ignoring altogether the cowardly treatment he had just received from that source. The answer of Francis II. was one of empty felicitation, which he proceeded at once to falsify by his subsequent actions. At that very time he sent to Venice a diplomatic agent, the Marquis Ghislen who declared that it was his master's formal intention to retain possession of the three Legations. It will be remembered that in 1797, the Pope, Pius VI., by the Treaty of Tollentino, ceded to France the Legations of Bologna, Ferrara and the Romagna. In the signing of this treaty Cardinal Mattei represented the Holy See. In 1799, the Austrians gained possession of the Legations by conquest over the French. It was for this reason that Austria desired to see Mattei elected to the papal throne, imagining that in such an event he would honor his signature to the document of Tollentino, by permitting Austria to keep her spoils of war. As the new Pope appeared too earnest a defender of papal rights, it was considered necessary to inform him in this categorical manner of Austria's intentions with regard to the conquest territory. The Pope opposed most strongly these claims, and announced his resolution of proceeding immediately to his own States. The natural route for such a destination would lead overland through the disputed Legations; but again Austria stood in the way compelling the Pope to proceed to his own territory by sea. In fact, on June 6, 1800, Pius VII. embarked on the Bellona, a small vessel which the Austrian government had placed at his disposal without the courtesy of providing its crew or provisions. The ship was so utterly unseaworthy, and the hap-hazard crew so inexperienced that the voyage which ought to have taken only twenty-four hours, consumed twelve days. Landing at Pesaro, in his own States, the Pope proceeded to Ancona, where the vessels of England and Russia harboring there, rendered him military honors. From Ancona to Rome the journey of the Holy Father proved to be a triumphal march. He arrived in the Eternal City on July 3, 1800, in the midst of a people intoxicated with joy. As he knelt before the great altar of St. Peter's, his heart expanded with gratitude to God, who, after permitting the exile of His Vicar for two long years, was now graciously providing for a new era for His afflicted Church.

One of the first acts of Pope Pius VII., after his election was the appointment of an official to act as his Secretary of State. Even in this matter the intermeddling policy of Austria made itself felt, for on being denied in so many other pretensions, the Emperor sought at least to control the Papacy through its chief functionary. Hence its request sent to the new Pope that he would favor Austria by appointing Cardinal Flangini to that post. The Holy Father answered that as he had not at present any State he could not appoint a Secretary of State; he would, however, name a pro-secretary, and in fact had already provided for such an official. The ecclesiastic chosen for this emergency was that Mgr. Ercole Consalvi, who had already acted as secretary for the Conclave.

_CARDINAL CONSALVI._

This celebrated man was born at Rome, June 8, 1757, of a noble family. The eldest of five children, he was left an orphan in his earlier years. He was educated at Urbino, by the Piarist brothers founded by St. Joseph Calasanzio in 1617. After four years at this school, he entered the school at Frascati, lately opened by the Cardinal Duke of York. The latter was a grandchild of King James II. of England, and a brother of Charles Edward the Pretender, known in Italy as the Earl of Albany. When Charles Edward died, the Cardinal-Duke assumed the title of Henry IX., King of France and England.

The young Consalvi became a favorite with the princely protector who recognized in his young protege a gift of character, self-reliance and enthusiasm. During his term at Frascati, the future Secretary distinguished himself by his literary productions in prose and verse. In 1776, he entered the great ecclesiastical academy in Rome, where his abilities brought him to the notice of Pope Pius VI., who in 1783 raised him to the dignity of a cameriere segreto, with the duty of providing for audiences at the Vatican. In 1784 he was made a domestic prelate. Promotions followed rapidly in the Curia; in a few months he became a member of the Governmental Congregation, and a secretary of the great hospital of San Michele. Still later he became a member of the pontifical _segnatura_. In 1786 he was offered the post of nuncio to Cologne, which he declined in favor of Mgr. Pacca. He next became a member of the Roman _Rota_, the tribunal of Justice. Again, he was made Assessor of the Department of War wherein he effected much good during the times of the French invasion of Italy.

It was shortly after the celebrated Treaty of Tollentino, that the unhappy affair of General Duphot occurred. On December 28, 1797, that officer, while commanding a mob of infuriated soldiery, was fatally shot by one of the Pontifical troops, and although no blame could be placed upon the government of the Pope, nevertheless the assassination was taken up as an excuse for hostility on the part of the French, who descended upon Rome, took possession of the city, and drove Pius VI. into that cruel exile which caused his death. Upon Consalvi especially, because of the position he then occupied in the Department of War, the full anger of the invaders fell. After an imprisonment in the Castel Sant Angels, he was subjected to many humiliating hardships. He was hurried off from Rome to Civita Vecchia with some Cardinals for the purpose of being transported to Cayenne. At Civita Vecchia, however, they were liberated with permission to go where they might choose, except to the Roman States. If found in that territory they were to be punished with death. Consalvi was again taken prisoner and confined in the Castel Sant Angelo. At this time it was determined to inflict a most trying humiliation upon him; he was to be led through the streets of Rome, mounted upon an ass, and beaten by ruffians hired for that purpose. Escaping this indignity through the scruples of a French official, he was sent to Naples. Thence, he was permitted to go to Venice, in which journey he met the Holy Father, Pius VI., then at Florence on the sorrowful way to death. It was while at Venice, that he learned of the death of the Sovereign Pontiff and remaining there took part in the Conclave that elected a successor.

_PROPOSALS OF BONAPARTE._

In the meantime affairs in France were gradually assuming an aspect of peace and religious freedom. By the _coup d'Etat_ of the 18 Brumaire. Bonaparte, returning from his Egyptian campaign, overturned the Directory, and effected a new government, December 15, 1799. The new power was to be presided over by a First Consul (Bonaparte) with two colleagues. Subordinate to these were the Senate of eighty members, the Tribunate of one hundred; and a Legislative Assembly of three hundred. The new government by proclaiming Bonaparte First Consul for life made him thereby a dictator, and placed practically the whole powers of the nation in his hands. It was with the glory of his triumphant elevation still fresh within his soul that the young conqueror set out early in the following year for the campaign of Italy. On June 14th, 1800, occurred the decisive victory of Marengo, whereby the French gained in a single day in Italy almost all that they had lost during the course of the last two years. The Austrians driven beyond the Mincio lost the Legations, and were finally forced to accept the Adige as the boundary of their possessions in Northern Italy.

In the midst of his glory the religious sentiment which had ever lain dormant in the heart of Napoleon came to the surface, inspiring him to a course of action which was to have immense importance in the future history of France. His intentions are best summed up in a letter which Cardinal Martiniana, Bishop of Vercelli, sent, at the request of Napoleon, to Pope Pius VII., just then entering the Eternal City after the Conclave of Venice. The contents of this letter are found in another letter sent by Cardinal Maury to Louis XVIII. to inform him of the turn events were then taking in the affairs of Rome and of France:

"The Consul Bonaparte paid a visit to Cardinal Martiniana (at
Vercelli). He desired him to go to Rome and announce to the
Pope that he wished to make him a present of 30,000,000
French Catholics; that he desired the return of religion to
France; that the intruders of the first and second order (the
constitutional bishops and priests) were nothing but a parcel
of dishonored rascals of whom he was determined to rid
himself; that the dioceses were formerly too numerous in
France, and that their number ought to be restricted; that he
desired to establish an entirely new clergy; that some of the
old bishops were almost forgotten in their dioceses where
they had hardly ever resided; that many of them had emigrated
for no other purpose than to cabal, and that he did not care
to have them return; that he would consider in their regard
only their dismissal, although he was willing to grant them a
proper salary; that, while waiting until he could donate
funded property to the clergy, he would assure them of a very
honest living, and that the poorest of the bishops should
receive 15,000 livres a year; that the exercise of the Pope's
spiritual jurisdiction should be carried on freely in France;
that the Pope alone should institute the bishops, who should
be nominated by whoever should administer the sovereign
authority; finally, that he desired to re-establish the Pope
in the possession of all his States."

This letter of Cardinal Martiniana was brought to Rome by Count Alciati, nephew of the Bishop of Vercelli, and was presented to the Holy Father shortly after his entrance into the Eternal City.

Very naturally the proposition of the First Consul met with hostility and protest from many quarters, notably from Louis XVIII., and from the old Catholic party under the leadership of the emigrated bishops. Every conceivable objection to such a treaty was placed before the Holy Father in the hope of influencing him to reject the overtures of the French ruler. He was reminded that the First Consul was the same Bonaparte who had imposed upon the Holy See the Treaty of Tollentino with its spoliation of Papal territory, its seizure of 30,000,000 francs, and other like exactions; it was the same Bonaparte who but a short time before had become a Mussulman in order to gain the good graces of the Eastern peoples. Moreover, what real favor might the Pope expect from that French government which he had ignored at the time of his election by neglecting to send to France the notification of that fact, especially when he had taken pains to recognize the rightful authority of Louis XVIII., by including him among the sovereigns to whom letters of greeting were sent upon his accession to the Papal throne? To the great mass of the French Catholic people the Church and the throne were inseparably bound together; they had existed together for fourteen centuries; they had fallen together amidst the horrors of the Revolution, and hence if one was again to rise to its ancient place of power and usefulness it should only be in conjunction with the restoration of the other. Added to this was the personal claim of Louis XVIII., expressed in very decided terms, whereby he declared himself as the only ruler of the French people whom the Holy See should recognize, as he was the only one the Pope had hitherto recognized; hence if the Concordat of 1516, contracted by Leo X. and Francis I., was to be abrogated and supplied by another, this work belonged by right to the successor of that king and not to a usurper. In presenting these and similar objections to the Pope the exiled king had a worthy representative in the person of Cardinal Maury, a man of singular eloquence and of great personal influence, all of which was brought to bear upon the mind of the Holy Father and the members of the Sacred College.

Pope Pius VII., however, regarded the project from a different standpoint. Much as he desired the restoration of the Bourbons and of Louis XVIII. in particular, of whom he had said to Cardinal Maury, "I would give my life to restore His Majesty to the throne," nevertheless the interests of religion appealed more strongly to his heart than the claims of any human affection. The letter of Cardinal Martiniana thus appeared providential in the midst of the difficulties that beset him, and from which neither Austria, Naples, Spain, or any other human power could liberate him. With every reason to expect hostile measures from Bonaparte, he could not but feel relieved by these expressions of cordial good feeling; nor could he help reflecting that this was the first time for many years since a French general had sent to Rome any other message than those of threats and exaction. The proposition of the First Consul opened up before him visions of future peace and prosperity for the universal Church, and seemed like a very answer from heaven to the prayers he had offered up ever since the day of his election. His gratification, therefore was expressed in the letter which he sent in return to Cardinal Martiniana.

"We can certainly receive no more agreeable news than that
which is contained in your letter. The overtures it speaks of
on the part of the First Consul cause us the greatest
consolation, since they promise to bring back so many
millions of souls to the fold of Christ, of whom we are the
unworthy vicar. We shall regard it as our glory and an honor,
and at the same time as something of benefit to the whole
world, to behold the re-establishment in France of that most
holy religion which has been the source of her happiness for
so many centuries. You may say to the First Consul that we
lend ourselves willingly to a negotiation whose object is so
important.... Your presentation of his ideas gives us a
well-founded hope that we shall be able to arrange affairs
satisfactorily. However, your penetration must certainly
perceive all the difficulties they present in themselves and
in their application. But we confide in God's mercy and in
His assistance in favor of the Church.... Observing that the
First Consul has taken you into his confidence, we gladly
accept you as a negotiator counting upon your zeal for the
re-establishment of religion. With the object of hastening
that result, and reflecting upon the extreme difficulty of
explaining by letter affairs so intricate and so delicate, we
have resolved to send you as soon as possible a person who
has our confidence and who will be able to explain our
intentions more easily, and to aid you in the
negotiations...."

The person spoken of in this letter of Pope Pius VII., was Mgr. Spina, titular Archbishop of Corinth, a prelate well versed in the study of canon law, of a mild and pious disposition, one who had accompanied the late Pope during his exile and was with him in his last hours, and who had formed some little personal acquaintance with Bonaparte, as the latter was returning to Paris after his campaign in Egypt.

_PRELIMINARIES OF THE CONCORDAT._

Mgr. Spina set forth on the way to Vercelli on September 20th, 1800, and after many reverses, being at one time arrested at Modena, he arrived at his destination. It was the understanding of Pius VII. that the negotiations should be opened at Vercelli, or near at hand. The consternation of Mgr. Spina was therefore very great when, on reaching that city, he was confronted with the information that the First Consul had determined to transfer the place of meeting to Paris, a movement inspired no doubt by the twofold reason of making the whole proceeding seem to proceed from the petition of the Pope rather than from his own initiative, as also to prevent the appearance on the part of the French government of "going to Canossa." The Holy Father upon being informed of this new move of the First Consul yielded in the interests of peace, and directed Mgr. Spina to proceed as soon as convenient, in the company of Padre Caselli, General of the Servites, to Paris. The two negotiators arrived in that city on November 5th following.

Of the two Papal representatives Spina alone was regarded as a negotiator, Father Caselli acting merely in the capacity of a companion, but having no voice in the deliberations. Even Spina himself was limited in his faculties, having no actual power of treating or of affixing his signature to the definitive documents. He was simply a delegate charged with exploring the ground, listening to the propositions, and of suggesting freely, but obliged to send his report to Rome _ad audiendum et referendum_.

The Papal commissioner was not long left in uncertainty as to the character and intentions of the French officials with whom he had to deal. Of these the most conspicuous were the First Consul himself, Talleyrand, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gregoire, the constitutional Bishop of Nancy, and the Abbe Bernier, the official negotiator in the deliberations.

The First Consul, then in his thirty-second year, was just beginning that role of supreme dictator which was to last to the end of his successful career. In the matter of religious convictions much has been said both in his favor as well as against, though the most probable opinions concede in him a certain undercurrent of religious belief, vague indeed, and clouded by the passion for glory and supremacy which possessed his soul. There was enough of Christian sentiment within him to make him esteem the faith of his youth as the most sacred thing on earth and worthy of his best efforts. These convictions, however, were weakened and at times entirely overcome by the overpowering allurements of a life wherein glory was offered at the price of honor, and power was purchased in the surrender of moral restraints. Hence, although it may be said that the ruling motive of Bonaparte in proposing the Concordat was political in its nature, it would be wrong to deny that a sense of religious propriety and affection for his old faith entered also into the influences which moved him. Young, popular, penetrating in his genius, and subtle in his political doctrines, he comprehended the necessity of procuring peace of conscience for the people, and saw clearly the immense benefit the State would derive from an understanding with the Church, as well as the personal advantage that must accrue to himself therefrom.

A few days after his arrival in Paris the Archbishop of Corinth was received by the Minister of Foreign Relations, who obtained an audience with Bonaparte almost immediately. "The welcome of the First Consul was, I must confess, a welcome full of enthusiasm. He spoke very respectfully of His Holiness and manifested towards him very favorable dispositions. He did not, however, conceal his displeasure that His Holiness had not officially notified him in his capacity of First Consul of the fact of his elevation to the Papacy, as he had the kings of England and Prussia and the emperor of Russia."

The audience was terminated by the order of conferring with the Minister of Foreign Affairs--and the party designated by him--upon all matters regarding the Concordat. It lasted fully half an hour, and was very satisfactory to the Papal Delegate.

Another figure destined to play an important part in the framing of the Concordat was the celebrated character of the Revolution, Charles Maurice Talleyrand, the former Bishop of Autun, an apostate who had added to his iniquities the crime of marrying a divorced Protestant. The whole work of this strange personage consisted in placing obstacles to the completion of an understanding between the French government and the Holy See. In fact, it was only during his absence from Paris, while he was taking the waters of a bath, that the negotiators could finally place their signatures to the definitive document. Gregoire, the constitutional Bishop of Nancy, performed with Talleyrand, the office of instructor in ecclesiastical matters to the First Consul. A Gallican of Gallicans, an intense hater of the old regime, jansenistic and puritanical in his perverted piety, and obstinate in his adhesion to the principles of the Revolution, neither he nor the Minister of Foreign Affairs was a worthy interpreter of the mind and doctrines of the Church, especially in an affair of such great importance. It is, no doubt, due to the influence of these two ambitious men that the First Consul showed himself at times, during the discussions, somewhat hostile to the interests of the Church, and disposed to throw over the whole tenor of the Concordat the restrictions of pure Gallicanism.

The Abbe Bernier, doctor in theology, and former cure of St. Laud of Angers, was the most intimate of all the officials concerned in the work of the Concordat. A man of retired and mysterious ways, living alone in the third story of a house in a side street of the city, he carried into the discussions a mind fully attuned to the demands of Bonaparte, and directed by the instructions Of Talleyrand. He was far from being a Revolutionist, having played an important part in the Royalist army during the war of the Vendee, an episode in his life which was never fully forgiven by Bonaparte; yet he could be relied upon by his master as one who would grant to the Pope the least possible concessions, while exacting from the Holy See as much as one could under the circumstances.

Against these minds, all astute and all varying in their religious and political doctrines, Mgr. Spina found himself practically alone. After many discussions, beginning at the first week of November, 1800, and lasting for six months,--during which time many drafts of the Concordat had been drawn up only to meet with rejection,--the deliberations seemed nearing their close by the completion of the fourth draft. When this document was at length finished the Papal negotiator received peremptory orders from Talleyrand to at once affix his signature, in spite of the fact that it contained articles which could not meet with the Papal approval. Mgr. Spina protested in vain that he had no faculties for signing, and begged a delay sufficient for sending the document to Rome for examination. The Minister of Foreign Affairs continued obdurate until the Papal Delegate appealed to the First Consul. The latter granted the delay, but required that the messenger chosen for the journey should bear personal instructions from him. When these instructions were opened at Rome, March 10, 1801, they were found to contain an entirely new draft of the Concordat drawn up by the First Consul himself, thus setting aside definitely that fourth form for the signing of which Talleyrand had betrayed so much animosity.

While preparing the text of this document the First Consul had been casting his eyes around to discover some one capable of representing him at Rome in the discussions which must inevitably follow the reception of the new Concordat. An aged Breton, loyal to his country, moderate and full of tact, who had already performed some important missions in Italy--such was M. Cacault, the person chosen by Bonaparte for this purpose. He was already in his sixtieth year, and notable as a member of the _Corps Legislatif_, a man in whom the First Consul could place the utmost confidence. When departing for Rome, during the last week of March, upon asking of Bonaparte how he should treat the Pope, the General answered: "Treat him as if he had two hundred thousand men." Cacault arrived in Rome on April 8th, and entered at once upon his duties as Minister Plenipotentiary of the French government at the Court of the Holy See.

* * * * *

The Holy Father conceived fully the importance of these new moves of the First Consul, and began at once to give to them the attention they merited. The draft of the Concordat was first submitted to the scrutiny of three cardinals--Antonelli, Carandini and Gerdil--who were charged with the duty of studying the text and proposing such additions or changes as they might deem necessary. Their work was then submitted to a commission of twelve cardinals under the presidency of the Pope, and entitled the Particular Congregation. These twelve ecclesiastical princes had all been victims of the Revolution, suffering especially in 1798 all the evils of ruin, exile and imprisonment. It can thus be easily conceived that their sentiments towards Bonaparte and the Republic were tinged with something of acerbity, which, however, vanished under the claims of justice and that expediency which the unhappy conditions of the Church demanded. To ensure perfect immunity from all external influences, the members of the Commission were at once subjected to the oath of secrecy of the Holy Office. "The slightest revelation would produce most disastrous consequences. Each cardinal must study the questions by himself without consulting either theologian or secretary. Each should cast a vote written by his own hand and should exercise the greatest care that no familiar or acquaintance should either by day or by night, obtain the least information upon this affair, which is certainly one of the gravest with which Holy See has ever had to treat." (_Consalvi to the Cardinals of the Commission._)

In spite of the fact that the First Consul desired the prompt signing of his document, and was already planning to celebrate its completion during the same ceremonies which would accompany the formal ratification of the peace of Austria, nevertheless the work of the cardinals dragged out for nearly two months. In Paris the delay was the cause of excitement and anger. Mgr. Spina was harassed with questions and reproaches; Bernier was loud in his complaints; while Talleyrand in a fit of jealousy declared that the fault was Cacault's who thus hoped to draw to himself the glory of concluding the Concordat. The impatience of Bonaparte was expressed in the commands which he gave to Spina on the twelfth of May, while waiting for the advent of the Papal messenger bearing the results of the cardinals' deliberations:

"Rome wishes to draw out this affair as long as possible in
the hope of some political change which might favor her
pretensions. I love and esteem the Pope very much, but I have
little confidence in the cardinals, and in particular
Cardinal Consalvi, who has broken his word with me, and is an
enemy of France. He promised that the courier would arrive by
the end of April; here it is the twelfth of May and he has
not appeared; perhaps he has not even left Rome. More than
that, my project of the Concordat has been changed and I
shall not consent to that. Cacault writes that the Pope is
unwilling to admit the article concerning the bishops and
wishes me to send him the list of those whom I rejected,
together with the reasons for their exclusion. Now, I declare
that I do not want any of the former bishops, and I shall not
yield upon that point. Why does the Court of Rome allow
itself to be influenced by these non-Catholic powers? It
confers with Russia, with Prussia, with England. Do the
affairs of the Catholic world concern heretics and
schismatics? It is I alone and the King of Spain who have the
right to enter into such matters. You have just wounded
Spain, and committed an awkward mistake in re-establishing
the Jesuits at the request of the Tzar Paul I. Take care; it
may cost you dearly to put yourself thus under the protection
of Russia. For doing that the King of Sardinia has just lost
Piedmont.

"It is with me that you should arrange matters; it is in me
that you should place your confidence; it is I alone who can
save you. You demand the restoration of the Legations? You
wish to be rid of the troops? Everything will depend upon the
answer you make to my demands, especially with regard to the
bishops. I was born a Catholic, I wish to live and die a
Catholic, and I have nothing more at heart than the
re-establishment of the Catholic worship, but the Pope is
acting in a way that serves me as a temptation to become a
Lutheran or Calvinist, and to draw all France along with me.
Let him change his behavior and listen to me. If not, I shall
establish a religion, I shall give the people a worship with
bells and processions, I shall ignore the Holy Father, he
shall no longer exist for me. Send a messenger this very day
to Rome to tell him that."

On the following day Spina, Talleyrand, and Bernier, each sent a letter to Rome, with accounts of the First Consul's anger. The fears of the Holy Father at the news thus received were still further intensified by the orders contained in a letter written by Talleyrand to Cacault and dated the nineteenth of May:

... "I have formal orders from the First Consul to inform you
that your first move in regard to the Holy See must be to
demand of the Pope, within the term of five days, a
definitive determination in regard to the project of the
convention and the Bull in which the convention is to be
inserted, which have been proposed to him for adoption. If in
the respite which you are charged to offer, the two projects
are adopted without any modification the two States bound
together by the ties of peaceful relations whose importance
and necessity the Holy See ought to perceive now more than
ever.... If changes are proposed to you, and the granted time
expires, you will announce to the Holy See that your presence
in Rome having become useless for the object of your mission
you see yourself obliged with regret to betake yourself to
your general-in-chief, and you will leave at once for
Florence."

M. Cacault made haste to transmit this ultimatum to the Holy Father, who received it with mingled feelings of astonishment and anxiety. Though fully determined never to yield upon points that concerned the dogmatic teachings of the Church, nevertheless he was careful not to act without first consulting his advisors in the Sacred College--the twelve cardinals of the Particular Congregation. Their sentiments agreed fully with his own. They thought it necessary for M. Cacault to withdraw from his diplomatic post, but the principle involved was altogether too important to permit of mere temporal considerations. The turn taken by events brought back to the mind of the Pope the unhappy episodes of 1798, the exile and death of Pius VI., the certainty of eventual schism in the Church not only in France but throughout Europe. There was apparently much to be gained by a passive yielding to the demands of the First Consul; but the loss on the other hand would prove incalculable, besides meaning eventual ruin to the whole Church. It was not surprising therefore that after considering the matter from every standpoint the Pope finally intimated to the French minister his unalterable resolution of maintaining the position he had taken at any cost.

It was in this junction that the genius of M. Cacault was called into play. Fully acquainted with the temperament and disposition of Bonaparte he determined upon a measure that at first seemed foolhardy, but which upon mature reflection commended itself to the Roman Court. He would carry out the instructions of the First Consul to the letter, but at the same time he would so arrange matters that the affair in question should be settled to the satisfaction of every one concerned. His plan, in short, was to induce Cardinal Consalvi, the Papal Secretary of State, to proceed at once to Paris, and there personally conduct the discussions, feeling certain that the diplomatic skill of the young statesman could effect the result when all other means would be destined to failure.

_DIPLOMACY OF CARDINAL CONSALVI._

Full of this idea the French minister approached the Cardinal, and urged upon him the duty of hastening at once to Paris, to superintend personally the disentangling of the situation.

"The First Consul does not know you," he said, "he knows
still less your talents, and your tact, your persuasiveness,
your coquetry, your desire to bring this affair to
completion; go to Paris.... Go tomorrow, you will please
him, you will both understand one another; let him see that a
cardinal can be a man of spirit, you are the one to conclude
the Concordat with him. If you do not go to Paris I shall be
obliged to break with you--remember there are ministers there
who persuaded the Directory to transport Pius VI. to Cayenne.
There are counsellors of state who are pleading against you,
and generals who sneer and shrug their shoulders. If I break
with you, Murat, a second Berthier, will march on Rome."

The words of M. Cacault made a deep impression upon the Cardinal, and together the French minister and the Secretary of State went to lay the plan before the Holy Father. The latter, desolated by the thought of losing if only for a time his beloved Secretary, yielded only after the necessity of the move had been demonstrated and had received the approval of the Sacred College.

On June 6th, the day following the expiration of the time allotted by Bonaparte, Cardinal Consalvi departed from Rome, seated in the same carriage with Cacault, who, in accordance with his instructions, was taking the way to Florence. In the latter city the two diplomats separated, the former continuing his journey to Paris, where he arrived on June 20th, and took up his lodgings at the Hotel de Rome, in company with Mgr. Spina. The Cardinal writes in his _Memoires_:

"My first thought on the following morning was to inform
General Bonaparte of my arrival and to learn at what hour I
might have the honor of seeing him. I asked at the same time
in what costume he wished me to present myself. This question
was necessary, since at that time the ecclesiastical dress
was no longer in use in Paris, or in the whole of France. The
priests were clothed as laymen; the churches consecrated to
God were now dedicated to Friendship, to Abundance, to Hymen,
to Commerce, to Liberty, to Equality, Fraternity, and to
other divinities of the democratic reason. Every one was
entitled citizen; I was so addressed myself during my
journey, even though covered with the insignia of the
cardinalate. I would not discard that garb for a single day,
though I thereby gave proof rather of courage than of
prudence.

"The Abbe Bernier returned immediately with the information
that the First Consul would receive me at two o'clock that
afternoon, and that, as to the costume I was to appear as a
cardinal as far as was possible."

At the stated hour Consalvi appeared at the palace.

"I entered," he said, "a salon in which I perceived only one solitary individual who advanced toward me, saluted me in silence, and then striding on before introduced me into a neighboring hall. I did not then know who this personage might be, but I learned later that it was the Minister of Foreign Affairs, M. de Talleyrand, a name too well-known in the annals of the Revolution to need any additional description from me. I imagined he was about to lead me to the private cabinet of the First Consul and I was congratulating myself in the hope of being alone with him. But what was my surprise when, on opening that last door, I saw before me in a vast hall a multitude of persons disposed as if for a scene in a drama. In the centre of the hall were symmetrically arranged the various corps of the state government (which were, as I afterwards learned, the Senate, the Tribunate, the Corps Legislatif, and the High Courts of the Magistrature) and, at the sides, generals, officers of all degrees, ministers, grand state functionaries, and before all others, detached and isolated, three persons whom I learned later were the three consuls of the Republic.