To kidnap a Pope : Napoleon and Pius VII /
Caiani, Ambrogio A.,author.
In the wake of the French Revolution, Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of France, and Pope Pius VII shared a common goal: to reconcile the church with the state. But while they were able to work together initially, formalizing an agreement in 1801, relations between them rapidly deteriorated. In 1809, Napoleon ordered the Pope's arrest. Ambrogio Caiani provides a pioneering account of the tempestuous relationship between the emperor and his most unyielding opponent. Drawing on original findings in the Vatican and other European archives, Caiani uncovers the nature of Catholic resistance against Napoleon's empire; charts Napoleon's approach to papal power; and reveals how the emperor attempted to subjugate the church to his vision of modernity. This book shows the struggle for supremacy between two great individuals, and sheds new light on the conflict that would shape relations between the Catholic Church and the modern state for centuries to come. --Provided by publisher.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Introduction: A sleepless night in the eternal city, 1809 -- God and revolution: France in turmoil, 1789-99 -- Electing the Pope in Venice, 1799-1800 -- Divisions healed? The Concordat of 1801 -- Crowning Charlemagne: Napoleon's coronation, 1802-05 -- A new Babylonian captivity: the French annexation of Rome, 1805-09 -- One wedding and thirteen black cardinals, 1809-1810 -- The empire of God: the national council of 1811 -- The last concordat, 1812-13 -- Christianity restored: the papal return to Rome and the hundred days, 1845-15 -- Conclusion: The emperor's ghost -- Appendix: The four Gallican articles of 1682.
In the wake of the French Revolution, Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of France, and Pope Pius VII shared a common goal: to reconcile the church with the state. But while they were able to work together initially, formalizing an agreement in 1801, relations between them rapidly deteriorated. In 1809, Napoleon ordered the Pope's arrest. Ambrogio Caiani provides a pioneering account of the tempestuous relationship between the emperor and his most unyielding opponent. Drawing on original findings in the Vatican and other European archives, Caiani uncovers the nature of Catholic resistance against Napoleon's empire; charts Napoleon's approach to papal power; and reveals how the emperor attempted to subjugate the church to his vision of modernity. This book shows the struggle for supremacy between two great individuals, and sheds new light on the conflict that would shape relations between the Catholic Church and the modern state for centuries to come. --Provided by publisher.
Ambrogio A. Caiani is senior lecturer in modern European history at the University of Kent. He is the author of Louis XVI and the French Revolution 1789-1792.
Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, 1769-1821.
Pius VII, Pope, 1742-1823.
Catholic Church
Church and state