The National Register.
London, England, 1815-10-08 00:00:00

THE NATIONAL REGISTER.

OCT. I.

result of which was, the restoration of the three Legations;
and thus proceeds:]

This glory is also shared by those Princes who do not be-
long to the Romish Church, and whom we have likewise
found filled with good dispositions and kindness towards us.
And whom ought we to name with greater honour than
the most august Emperor of Russia, Alexander, a Prince as
illdstrious for his military glory and his victories, as for the
wisdom of his government. This august Monarch took cog.
nizance ofour claims with peculiar friendship, and supported
oJr interests with all his power and authority. Could we
pass over in silence the services rendered us by Frederick,
King of Prussia, who has constantly shewn himself disposed
in our favour? We have the same obligations to Charles,
King of Sweden, who has voluntarily concurred in, and so
ardently wished for the settlement of our affairs. But how
can we abstain from anew expressing our gratitude to his
Royal Highness the Prince Regent of England, who has
teen so earnest in our behalf, that the orders which he him-
self gave have been of great advantage to our interests in
the Congress of Vienna! We acknowledge that we are the
more obliged to these Princes, because they had fewer
motives for supporting and protecting the cause of the
Apostolic See. We ssill not finally forget the Ministers
Plenipotentiary by whom the important affairs of the Princes
have been discussed at the Congress: their services have
been marked in our behalf, and by seconding, with their
counsels and influence, the excellent dispositions of their
sovereigns, they have greatly contributed to the happy issue
of the business of the church. Let us loudly confess, 0
venerable fathers ! that the consolation which we experience
at the restitution of the provinces of which we have spoken,
has not been so entire as we had hoped; that the province
of Avignon, acquired by the Holy See, and possessed for
five centuries, the county of Venaissin, likewise, possessed by
it during a longer space, and lastly, the province of Ferrara,
situated on the left bank of the Po, all districts belonging
to the Holy See as much as the other ecclesiastical do-
mains, remain still separated from their legitimate sovereign.
We have, through the ministry of our Legate, laid our re-
clamations on this subject before Congress ; we have more-
over petitioned our dearly beloved sons in Jesus Christ,
Francis, Emperor of Austria, and Louis, the most Chris•
tian King, under whose government these countries lie,
that they would with that magnanimity which belongs to
them, restore them to the holy See. We hope that our
labours will not be unproductive. We have placed great
confidence in thetried religion and piety of these two princes,
and we doubt not but that sovereigns so great, so powerful,
will perfect their glory, either by restoring to us the pos.
susion of territories which belong to Saint Peter, or in-
demnifying us for their loss by some equivalent compensa-
tion. Nevertheless, that the delay of restitution or compen-
sation might not prejudice the rights of the Holy See, our
Legate made a legal protest to Congress against their reten-
tion both in our name and in that of the Apostolic See.
[After this, the Holy Father proceeds to detail 'he state of
the spiritual concerns of the Papacy. He mentions that his
Legate had been instructed to seize the favourable oppor-
tunity which the projected re-establishment of the affairs
of Germany might present, to secure in that country the
interests of the Catholic Church upon their ancient foot-
ing; that he bad laboured for that purpose during the
whole time of the sittings of Congress; that he had more
particuharly endeavoured to exert the influence of his mis-
sion. with the 'Committee'to whose management the settle-
ment of the Germanic interests had beets entrusted, and. that
Lopes had at one time been entertained of the so much

647

desired success, but that finally Congress had been dissolved
without any definitive arrangement, and that the Legate
could do nothing further than present a note to the Am-
bassadors of the different Powers relative to this important
subject. His Holiness expresses strong hopes, that at a
second Congress of the Powers of Europe, the ecclesiastical
affairs, and particularly the rights of the Church of Ger-
many, will meet with a pious deliberation and a wise ad-
justment. He then concludes with an encomium •n the
fidelity and talents of his Legate, and with prayers to the
Virgin Mary and the Apostles for their intercession in Ile-
half of the Church.]