Pope Gregory XVI

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Pope Gregory XVI

Pope Gregory XVI (18 September 1765 – 1 June 1846), born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari, named Mauro as a member of the religious order

Religious order

A religious order is a lineage of communities and organizations of people who live in some way set apart from society in accordance with their specific religious devotion, usually characterized by the principles of its founder's religious practice....
of the Camaldolese

Camaldolese

The Camaldolese are part of the Benedictine family of monastic communities which follow the way of life outlined in the Rule of St. Benedict, written in the 6th century....
, was Pope

Pope

The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church and head of state of Vatican City. The current pope is Pope Benedict XVI, who was elected April 19, 2005 in Papal conclave, 2005....
of the Roman Catholic Church

Roman Catholic Church

The Roman Catholic Church, officially known as the Catholic Church is the world's largest Christianity Ecclesia , representing over half of all Christians and one-sixth of the world population....
from 1831 to 1846. Strongly conservative

Conservative Christianity

Conservative Christianity is a term applied to a number of groups or movements seen as giving priority to perceived traditional Christianity beliefs and practices....
and traditionalist

Traditionalist Catholic

Traditionalist Catholics are Roman Catholic Church, or people who identify as Roman Catholics, who believe that there should be a restoration of many or all of the liturgy forms, public and private devotions and presentations of Catholic teachings which prevailed in the Catholic Church before the Second Vatican Council ....
, he opposed democratic

Democracy

Democracy is a form of government in which power is held directly or indirectly by citizens under a free electoral system. It is derived from the Greek language d?????at?a , "popular government" which was coined from d???? , "people" and ???t?? , "rule, strength" in the middle of the 5th-4th century BC to denote the political syst...
and modernizing reforms in the Papal States

Papal States

The Papal States, State of the Church or Pontifical States were one of the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia ....
and throughout Europe, seeing them as fronts for revolution

Revolution

A revolution is a fundamental social change in power or organizational structures that takes place in a relatively short period of time....
ary leftism

Left-wing politics

In politics, left-wing, leftist, and the Left are terms applied to Social progressivism and Egalitarianism positions. Originally, during the French Revolution, left-wing referred to seating arrangements in parliament; those who sat on the left opposed the monarchy and supported Political radicalism reform....
, and sought to strengthen the religious and political authority of the papacy (see Ultramontanism

Ultramontanism

Ultramontanism is a religious philosophy within the Catholic Church that places strong emphasis on the prerogatives and powers of the Pope. In particular, ultramontanism may consist in asserting the superiority of Papal authority over the authority of local temporal or spiritual hierarchies ....
).

ellari was born at Belluno

Belluno

Belluno is a town in the Veneto region of northern Italy. Located about 80 kilometers north of Venice, Belluno is the Capital of the province of Belluno and the most important city in the Dolomiti's region....
on 18 September 1765 to a noble family

Nobility of Italy

The Nobility of Italy reflects the fact that medieval "Italy" was a set of separate states until 1870 and had many royal bloodlines. The Italian royal families were often related through marriage to each other and to other European royal families....
.

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Early life

Cappellari was born at Belluno

Belluno

Nobility of Italy

Camaldolese

The Camaldolese are part of the Benedictine family of monastic communities which follow the way of life outlined in the Rule of St. Benedict, written in the 6th century....
(part of the Benedictine

Benedictine

Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy....
monastic family) and entered the Monastery

Monastery

Monastery , a term derived from the Greek language word ???ast?????, neut. of ???ast????? - monasterios denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of Monk, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in Cenobium or alone ....
of San Michele di Murano

Murano

Murano is usually described as an island in the Venetian Lagoon, although like Venice itself it is actually an archipelago of islands linked by bridges....
, near Venice

Venice

Venice is a city in northern Italy, the capital city of the Italian regions Veneto, a population of 271,251 . Together with Padua, Italy, the city is included in the Padua-Venice Metropolitan Area ....
. As a Camaldolese monk

Monk

A Monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, the unconditioning of mind and body in favor of the realization of one's true nature, and does so living either alone or with any number of like-minded people, whilst always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose....
, Cappellari rapidly gained distinction for his theological

Christian theology

Christian theology is discourse concerning Christianity faith. Christian theologians use biblical exegesis, rationality analysis and argument to understanding, explanation, test, critic#critique, defend or promote Christianity....
and linguistic skills. His first appearance before a wider public was in 1799, when he published against the Italian Jansenist

Jansenism

Jansenism was a branch of Roman Catholic Church thought which arose in the frame of the Counter-Reformation and the aftermath of the Council of Trent ....
s a controversial work entitled II Trionfo della Santa Sede, which, besides passing through several editions in Italy, has been translated into several European languages. In 1800 he became a member of the Academy of the Catholic Religion, founded by Pope Pius VII

Pope Pius VII

Pope Pius VII, Order of Saint Benedict , born Count Barnaba Niccol? Maria Luigi Chiaramonti, was Pope from March 14, 1800 to August 20, 1823....
(1800–23), to which he contributed a number of memoirs on theological and philosophical questions, and in 1805 was made abbot of San Gregorio on the Caelian Hill

Caelian Hill

The Caelian Hill is one of the famous seven hills of Rome of Rome. Under reign of Tullus Hostilius, the entire population of Alba Longa was forcibly resettled on the Caelian Hill....
.

When Pius VII was carried off from Rome in 1809, Cappellari withdrew to Murano

Murano

Murano is usually described as an island in the Venetian Lagoon, although like Venice itself it is actually an archipelago of islands linked by bridges....
, near Venice, and in 1814, with some other members of his order, he moved again, this time to Padua

Padua

Padua is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic and communications hub of the area. Padua's population is 212,500 ....
; but soon after the restoration of the Pope in 1814 he was recalled to Rome, where he received successive appointments as vicar-general of the Camaldolese Order, councillor of the Inquisition

Inquisition

The term Inquisition can refer to any one of several institutions charged with trying and convicting Christian heresy within the Roman Catholic Church....
, prefect of the Propaganda, and examiner of bishops. In March 1825 he was created Cardinal-Priest

Cardinal (Catholicism)

A cardinal is a senior Ecclesiology official, usually a Bishop , of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope....
of San Callisto
Catacombs of Rome

The Catacombs of Rome are ancient catacombs, or underground burial places under or near Rome, Italy, of which there are at least forty, some discovered only in recent decades....
(in pectore

In pectore

In pectore is a term used in the Roman Catholic Church to refer to appointments to the College of Cardinals by the Pope when the name of the newly appointed cardinal is not publicly revealed ....
) by Pope Leo XII
Pope Leo XII

Pope Leo XII , born Annibale Francesco Clemente Melchiore Girolamo Nicola della Genga, was Pope from 1823 to 1829....
(1823–29), and shortly afterwards was entrusted with an important mission to adjust a concordat
Concordat

A concordat usually refers to an agreement between the Apostolic See and a government of a certain country on religious matters, although it is also used in relation to some other agreements in internal United Kingdom and others counties' politics....
regarding the interests of the Catholics of Walloonia in the predominantly Protestant United Kingdom of the Netherlands
United Kingdom of the Netherlands

United Kingdom of the Netherlands was the unofficial name used to refer to a new unified European state created from part of the First French Empire during the Congress of Vienna in 1815....
. He negotiated peace on behalf of Armenian Catholics with the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire , also known by its contemporaries as the Turkish Empire or Turkey , was an empire that lasted from 1299?1923. It was Treaty of Lausanne by the Republic of Turkey, which was officially proclaimed on October 29, 1923....
. He discouraged Polish
Congress Poland

Congress Poland [], officially and formally Kingdom of Poland and informally known as Russian Poland was a constitutional personal union of the Russian Empire created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna, replaced by the Central Powers in 1915 with the Kingdom of Poland ....
revolutionaries who undermined Tsar Nicholas I
Nicholas I of Russia

Nicholas I , , was the Emperor of Russia from 1825 until 1855, known as one of the most reactionary of the List of Russian rulers. On the eve of his death, the Russian Empire reached its historical zenith spanning over 20 million square kilometres....
's efforts to support the Catholic royalist cause
Bourbon Restoration

Following the ousting of Napoleon I of France in 1814, the Allies restored the House of Bourbon to the France throne. The ensuing period is called the Restoration, following French usage, and is characterized by a sharp conservative reaction and the re-establishment of the Roman Catholic Church as a power in French politics....
in France, by the necessity of diverting troops to Poland.

Election as Pope

On 2 February 1831, he was, after sixty-four days of conclave, unexpectedly chosen to succeed Pope Pius VIII
Pope Pius VIII

Pope Pius VIII , born Francesco Saverio Castiglioni, was Pope in 1829 and 1830....
(1829–30) in the papal chair. His election was influenced by the fact that the cardinal considered the most likely papabile

Papabile

Papabile is an unofficial Italian language term first coined by Vaticanologists and now used internationally in many languages to describe a Cardinal of whom it is thought likely or possible that he will be Papal conclave pope....
, Giacomo Cardinal Giustiniani, was vetoed by King Ferdinand VII
Ferdinand VII of Spain

Ferdinand VII was list of Spanish monarchs twice, in 1808, and from 1813 to 1833 . He was also known as 'Ferdinand, the desired'.The eldest surviving son of Charles IV of Spain, king of Spain, and of his wife Maria Louisa of Parma, he was born in the vast palace of El Escorial near Madrid....
of Spain
Mid-nineteenth century Spain

Spain in the nineteenth century was a country in turmoil. Occupied by Napoleon Bonaparte from 1808 to 1814, a massively destructive "Peninsular war" ensued, driven by an emergent Spanish nationalism....
. The other major candidates, Emmanuele De Gregorio
Emmanuele de Gregorio

Emmanuele de Gregorio was an Italian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church.De Gregorio was born on at sea while his mother was travelling to Spain....
and Bartolomeo Cardinal Pacca, had been candidates in the previous conclave. When a deadlock arose between them, the cardinals turned to Cappellari, but it took as many as eighty-three ballots for a decisive result to be obtained.

At the time of election, Cardinal Cappellari was not yet a bishop
Bishop

A bishop is an ordination or consecration member of the Clergy#Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight....
- the last man to be elected Pope without episcopal consecration. Hence, after his election he was consecrated bishop by Cardinal Bartolomeo Pacca, seniore, bishop of Ostia and Velletri, dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals, with Cardinal Pier Francesco Galleffi, bishop of Porto e Santa Rufina, sub-dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals, and Cardinal Tommasso Arezzo, bishop of Sabina, acting as co-consecrators.

The choice of Gregory XVI as his regnal name
Regnal name

A regnal name, or reign name, is a formal name used by some popes and monarchs during their reigns. Since medieval times, monarchs have frequently chosen to use a name different from their own personal name when they inherit a throne....
was influenced by the fact that he had been abbot
Abbot

The word abbot, meaning father, is a title given to the head of a monastery in various traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not actually the head of a monastery....
of San Gregorio monastery on the Coelian Hill for over twenty years. This was the same abbey from which Pope Gregory the Great had dispatched many bishops to England in 596.

Pontificate
The progressive revolution of 1830 had just inflicted a severe blow on the Catholic royalist party in France, and almost the first act of the new government there was to seize Ancona
Ancona

Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche, a region of central Italy, population 101,909 . Ancona is situated on the Adriatic Sea and is the center of the province of Ancona and the capital of the region....
, thus throwing Italy
Italian unification

Italian Unification was the political and social movement that annexed different states of the Italian peninsula into the single state of Italy in the 19th century....
, and particularly the Papal States
Papal States

The Papal States, State of the Church or Pontifical States were one of the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia ....
, into an excited condition which seemed to demand strongly defensive measures. In the course of the struggle which ensued, it was more than once necessary to call in Austrian defenders against red shirted republicans engaged in a terrorist campaign. The conservatives postponed their promised reforms after bombings and assassination attempts. Nor did the replacement of Bernetti by Luigi Cardinal Lambruschini in 1836 mend matters.

Pope Gregory and Cardinal Lambruschini opposed basic technological innovations such as gas lighting and railways
Rail transport

Rail transport is the conveyance of passengers and goods by means of wheeled vehicles running along railways . Rail transport is part of the logistics chain, which facilitates international trade and economic growth....
, believing that they would promote commerce and increase the power of the bourgeoisie
Bourgeoisie

Bourgeoisie is a classification used in analyzing human societies to describe a social class of people. Historically, the bourgeoisie comes from the middle or merchant classes of the Middle Ages, whose status or power came from employment, education, and wealth, as distinguished from those whose power came from being born into an aristocrati...
, leading to demands for liberal reforms which would undermine the monarchical
Monarchy

A monarchy is a form of government in which supreme power is absolutely or nominally lodged in an individual, who is the head of state, often for Life tenure or until abdication, and "is wholly set apart from all other members of the state." The person who heads a monarchy is called a monarch....
power of the Pope over central Italy. Gregory in fact banned railways in the Papal States, calling them chemins d'enfer (literally "ways of hell
Hell

In many religious traditions, Hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife, often in the underworld. Religions with a linear Divinity history often depict Hell as endless ....
," a play on the French
French language

French is a Romance language spoken around the world by around 80 million people as first language, by 190 million as second language, and by about another 200 million people as an acquired tongue, with significant speakers in 54 countries....
for railroad, chemin de fer, literally "iron road"). However, under pressure from the French, Gregory was liberal in forgiving imprisoned revolutionaries, a policy which might have aided the final overthrow of Gregory's successor, Pope Pius IX
Pope Pius IX

Blessed Pope Pius IX , born Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti, was Pope from June 16, 1846 until his death. His was the longest reign in Church history, lasting 32 years....
, as temporal ruler in 1870.

The financial condition in which Gregory XVI left the States of the Church makes it questionable how far his expenditures for defensive, architectural and engineering works, and his magnificent patronage of learning in the hands of Mai
Angelo Mai

Angelo Mai was an Italy Cardinal and philologist. He won a European reputation for publishing for the first time a series of previously unknown ancient texts....
, Mezzofanti, Gaetano, Moroni
Gaetano Moroni

Gaetano Moroni was an Italian writer, the author of the well-known Dizionario di erudizione storico-ecclesiastica....
and others, were for the real benefit of his subjects.

The insurrections at Viterbo in 1836, in various parts of the Legations in 1840, at Ravenna
Ravenna

Ravenna is a city and comune in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. The city is inland, but is connected to the Adriatic Sea by a canal. Ravenna once served as the seat of the Western Roman Empire and later the Ostrogoths and the Exarchate of Ravenna....
in 1843 and Rimini
Rimini

Rimini is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It is located on the Adriatic Sea, near the coast between the rivers Marecchia and Ausa ....
in 1845, were followed by wholesale executions and severe sentences, hard labour or exile
Exile

Exile means to be away from one's home while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened by prison or death upon return....
; still the Papal States seethed with unrest.

However, on 3 December 1839 Gregory also issued the encyclical In Supremo Apostolatus stating:

Pope Gregory XVI also canonized St Veronica Giuliani, an Italian mystic.

He died on June 1 1846.

Pope Gregory XVI

Early life

Election as Pope

Pontificate

See also