420 



ITALY. 



The army, on the peace-footing, consisted on 

 September 30, 1870, of 183,441 men; on the 

 war-footing, of 376,163 ; and, inclusive of the 

 reserve, 519,630. 



The navy, on January 1, 1871, consisted of 

 21 iron-clad steamers, carrying 200 guns ; 28 

 screw-steamers, with 358 guns ; and 25 side- 

 wheel steamers, with 86 guns. The naval offi- 

 cers were : 1 admiral, 1 vice-admiral, 10 rear- 

 admirals, 30 captains of ships-of-the-line, 20 

 captains of frigates of the first class and 30 of 

 the second class, 80 lieutenants of the first 

 class and 100 of the second class, 150 sub-lieu- 

 tenants. 



The transfer of the seat of government to 

 Rome was, according to a resolution passed 

 hy the Second Chamber, on December 13, 

 1870, to have taken place on April 1, 1871 ; 

 but, as the Government insisted on a longer 

 delay, it was ultimately fixed for June 30th. 

 The King intended to make his entry into Eome 

 on January 10th, but a great inundation of 

 the city gave him an occasion to get here on 

 December 31st. The National party of Italy 

 was thereby much pleased, and a considerable 

 portion of the Roman population received him 

 with great enthusiasm. The King on the next 

 day returned to Florence, but, at the close of 

 January, the Crown-Prince took up his residence 

 at Rome. The relations of the Government 

 with the Pope remained unchanged, and all its 

 offers for a reconciliation were firmly declined. 

 The Government declared its determination to 

 suppress all hostile demonstrations against the 

 Pope and the clergy, but, on the other hand, it 

 allowed the Romans to have their full share 

 of the liberal legislation of Italy concerning 

 religious affairs. Thus, on January 12th, the 

 first Protestant church was opened within 

 the walls of Rome. The attention of the Par- 

 liament was chiefly occupied by the law relat- 

 ing to the guarantees of the prerogatives of 

 the Pope and the Holy See, and the relations 

 of the state to the Church. A large party in 

 both Houses opposed several clauses of the 

 Government bill, as making too extensive con- 

 cessions. The discussion was protracted until 

 May 9th, when the Chamber of Deputies passed 

 the bill after agreeing to all the modifications 

 it had received in the Senate, where, on May 

 8d, it had been passed by a vote of 105 to 20. 

 The first part of the law relates to the rights 

 and prerogatives of the Pope, and declares his 

 person to be sacred and inviolable, and places 

 crimes and offences against the Pope on a level 

 with those committed against the King. The 

 law concedes to him royal honors, grants to 

 him a precedence of honor, and the liberty to 

 keep an unlimited number of guards for the 

 protection of his person and palaces. His 

 yearly dotation is fixed at 3,225,000 lire, the 

 same sum which in the budget of the Papal 

 States was fixed for the palaces, the sacred 

 college, the priests and congregations, the 

 Secretary of State, and the diplomatic agents. 

 The palaces of the Vatican and the Lateran, 



and the Castel Gandolfo, with all their appur- 

 tenances, remain in the possession of the Pope, 

 as a property inalienable and free from taxes. 

 The libraries of these palaces were at first de- 

 clared by the Chamber of Deputies to be na- 

 tional property, but inalienable. The public 

 officers are not allowed to enter the papal pal- 

 aces, or the temporary residence of the Pope, 

 except with his consent. The same rule ap- 

 plies to the places in which a conclave or a 

 council is assembled. The correspondence of 

 the Pope with the bishops and the entire 

 Catholic world is declared to be free, and that 

 in all his residences he should have his own 

 postal department and telegraph. All eccle- 

 siastical institutions in Rome and in the sub- 

 urban dioceses are declared to remain under 

 his exclusive authority. In the second part 

 of the law concerning the relations of the state 

 to the Church, the Government renounces the 

 right of the apostolical legation in Sicily, as 

 well as the right of appointing, presenting, or 

 proposing candidates for ecclesiastical offices 

 which it has thus far held in virtue of con- 

 cordats, laws, or traditions ; but it makes this 

 resignation dependent upon the condition that, 

 with the exception of Rome and the suburban 

 offices, the benefices must be conferred only 

 upon Italian citizens. The bishops are de- 

 clared to be released from the oath of fidelity 

 to the King. The " exequatur " and "placetum 

 regium " are abolished for all acts and publica- 

 tions of the ecclesiastical authority except those 

 relating to church property. In ecclesiastical 

 and disciplinary cases, no appeal is to be al- 

 lowed from the Church authorities ; on the 

 other hand, however, no aid can be asked for 

 the execution of ecclesiastical sentences from 

 the secular power. Their efficiency before 

 the civil law is subject to the decision of the 

 proper court, and they are null and void if 

 they are at variance with the law of the state. 



The Pope decidedly declined to recognize 

 or accept the guarantee law. The financial 

 question assumed an alarming aspect, and 

 threatened to bring on a ministerial crisis, 

 which, however, was finally averted when the 

 Minister of Finances declared his satisfaction 

 with the measures adopted for meeting the 

 immediate wants of the Government. The 

 Pope's Jubilee, on June 16, 1871, gave occasion 

 to various demonstrations of the Catholic world. 

 His refusal to receive General Bertole Yiole, 

 who was charged with presenting to him the 

 congratulations of the King, called forth a 

 counter-demonstration on the part of the Na- 

 tional party, which manifested itself in adorn- 

 ing the entire city with tricolor banners. A 

 solemn Te Deum, on June 21st, concluded the 

 festivities. 



On July 1st the seat of government was 

 transferred from Florence to Rome. Simul- 

 taneously with the ministers Lanza, Correnti, 

 Visconti-Venosta, De Falco,and Castagnola, the 

 ambassadors of Portugal, Greece, Brazil, Swit- 

 zerland, and Bavaria, arrived on that day in 





