Lentorama 2010: Two Millennia of Pointy Hats

Day 37: Pius VI (1775-99)

Pius started out as an auditor and secretary in the Vatican heirarchy, and would become a priest in his early 40s. As Vatican treasurer he was one of the few men to then to actually administer finances carefully. This led to a plan where those who wanted looser purse strings to convince Clement XIV to make Pius a cardinal-priest in one of Rome's churches.

This worked, at least until Clement XIV died. The conclave that followed took over four months to elect a successor, as there was no clear favorite given the divisions within the College of Cardinals. There were two large factions, each defined by their support or opposition to the suppression of the Jesuits. Both factions had smaller sub-factions based on the strength of their belief and nationality. There were also no favored candidates, which allowed early voting to shift among a number of cardinals.

As the months passed, it became clearer that no candidate squarely in either bloc would get elected. A pair of French cardinals struck upon Pius as the most likely candidate to be approved by enough cardinals to get the votes needed, and after much negotiation - including a pledge by Pius to ratify the suppression of the Jesuits - Pius was elected.

Pius started out by initiating a number of reforms, both financial and agricultural, aimed at improving the standing of both the Vatican and Rome (ironic given that he would develop a reputation for spending lavishly on family and on civic improvements that did little to help average Romans). He would also become involved in a crisis involving the Germanic churches and their desire for more independence from Rome. He would visit Vienna in the hopes of reversing that sentiment, but failed. On the issue that allowed his election, the suppression of the Jesuits, Pius took a moderate road, upholding the suppression but not furthering it, leading both sides to be disappointed.

But it was events in France that had the most lasting impact on Pius. The French Revolution saw the confiscation of church property and a general backlash against the church and clerics generally. French Republican troops under Napoleon would invade Italy in 1796, and after short-lived peace the following year the French would enter Rome unopposed in 1798. Pius refused to renounce his authority over the Papal States, and was arrested.

His captivity would see him taken on a six month trek through Italy and France, and he died just six weeks after being settled in Valence. He would not be buried until 1800, as Napoleon sought to gain political advantage by having Pius buried in Rome. That wouldn't happen until 1802, and Pius would finally get to join the popes buried in St. Peter's when his remains were moved there in 1949.