The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1899-07-28
THE POPE AND SECESSION
The Attitude OF Ia Vatican Toward
the Southern ~C0nfedeFary


reader Of The Record I would say that
n pope Of Rome never recognized the
Confederate States Of America There
was, however, some very interesting
correspondence between the Vatican
and the confederate authorities at Rich
mond. Queen Victoria recognized the
belligerency OF the confederate states
May Is. 1861. Emperor Napoleon, Of
France. did the same June 10th Of that
year; the king of the Netherlands, June
10th; Queen Isabella. of Spain, june
18th, and the emperor of Brazil, August
1st.
Dr.. Jose Ignacio Rodriguez, who is
one Of the ablest and most learned OF
d~iplomatists and a recognized authority
on diplomatic history, says:
On October u, 1862, Pope Plus TX
wrote a letter to the archbishop Of New
York, and another of the same
to the archbishop of G Orleans, max
ing an appeal to their apostolic zeal and
their episcopal solicitude for the hap
piness n welfare Of thei respective
people, ~eXhorting them to make eff
forts. in his Ghe pope's) name, as we'll
as in theirs, for the restoration OF
peace, the termination of the disastrous
civil war then raging in America. n
the re-establishment OF concord n
charitable love throughout the whole
country.
This letter, of a purely ecclesiastical
character, having 40 bearing on poll
tics, may ave been published, if pub
lished at alls in the catholic papers of
those days, as, for instance, The Free
mans Journal. of New York, The Cath
Ollie Mirror, of Baltimore, the Pilot, of
Boston, and others.
A. th1 1ota or, -l;1h = v-a- .r-~;t
ten New Orleans had been captured
april %, 1862 by the forces of the
United States and General Butler
GMay 1, 1862 had proclaimed martial
law there.
The two prelates to whom the pope
wrote were Archbishop Hughes, OF
New York, and Archbishop Odin, of
New Orleans. Both of them complied
with the riders of the pope and order
ed prayers for peace.
The Washington government sent
Archbishop Hughes to Europe on a kind
OF diplomatic mission. There was dan
ger of the recognition of the cOnfed-
crate states by the European govern
ments, especially after the Trent af-
fair November, 1861, and Mr.. Seward
n Mr.. Lincoln requested Archbishop
Hughes to go to Europe and work in
favor of the United States. He left this
country in the latter part of 1861, a
Si LII Z Win ILL.,, D1Lol Z
whom he placed the situation in a clear
light. He went to Rome and did sue
cessful work.. He came back to Ameri-
ca in August. 1852
The letters Of Plus TX, written about
two months after this visit, were in
keeping with Archbishop Hughes mis-
sion land with the conservative spirit
of the church. Prayers for eac and
efforts to restore it are always in their
proper place in any action of the
church
jefferson Davis became acquainted
with the contents of those letters eleven
months after they had been written,
and naturally he made an effort to
draw from them some advantage. They
at least furnished him an opportunity
to enter into correspondence with the
pope and see what might come out of it.
so ON the 23rd of September, 1868,
he wrote a letter to the pope which he
~intrusted to some persons whom he di-
rected to a n it to the pontiff. and
which read as follows:
"To His Holiness, Pope Plus TX,
Most Venerable Head of the Holy See
and Sovereign Pontiff of the Holy Ro-
man Catholic Apostolic Church.: The
letters addressed by your holiness tc
the venerable heads of the Catholic
clergy of New Orleans and New York
nave been communicated to me, and
l have read with emotion the terms in
which your holiness has been pleased tC
express the profound sorrow which the
arnage, ruin and devastation of the
present war, Waged by the government
OF the United States against the state
and the people which have elected me
to be their president, have produced in
your holiness. l refer to those letters
by which your holiness directed tine
p%relates above alluded to and theil
clergy to exhort the people and the au-
thorities to exercise charity and show
love for peace.
II deeply appreciate the Christian
charity n sympathy which inspired
your holiness when making such ar
earnest appeal to the venerable clergy
or the Catholic church to work for the
establishment of peace and concord
1t is for this reason that I have con-
sidered myself bound by duty to assure
your holiness, personally in my own
name, and in the name of the people OF
the Confederate States, that we lay
been very deeply move in our heart:
by the feelings of love and Christian
charity which lave guided your holi-
ness on this occasion, and to state fur
thermOre that these people, though
threatened with cruel oppression AND
horrible image even in their own in.
d1vidual homes, wish, nevertheless, an(
so they have always wished with fer
WI, " see the emu OIL lUlS lIHplOuS war
that in our prayers to the Heavenly
Father we have expressed the sam
feelings with which your holiness il
animated; that we have no i'll will to-
ward u enemies: that we do no
covet any possession of theirs; that W.
struggle against them only to caus,
them to cease to ~devastate u countr,
n shed the blood of our people, anC
that our only desire is to be allowed t.
live in peace under our institution.
and laws which protect everybody
not only in the enjoyment of all tenn
poral rights, but also in the free exer
else of religion.
=. II pray you holiness to accep
from myself and from the people of tn
Confederate States our sincere thank
for your holiness efforts in favor o
peace. May the Lord prolong the day
of your holiness and keep your holi
ness in His holy guard.
"JEFFERSON DOVIS,
President of the Confederate States
Etc
Tt this letter Pope Pius TX. reptile