-1799-] Mumeirs of the Life of 
improvvifatrice of her age, yether cha- 
raster was not of the moft ammaculate 
kind. 
Pius the Vth, about the year 17675 
banifhed her bee Rome. Her return, 
therefore, under Pius the Vith was ra- 
ther fingular, and gave origin to the fol- 
lowing pafquinade : 
Plaudite, lafcive : pepulit ves Quintus ab 
urbe 5 
Sub Sexto recipit ferta Corilla Pio! 
and to another, perhaps worfe— 
Sextus Alexander, Sextus Tarquinius, idem! 
Nunguam fub Sextis, Roma beata fuit!, 
The firft years of the pontificate of Pius 
VI. were as peaceful as thofe of any of his 
predeceflors ; and if. we except fome tri- 
fling juridical difputes with his Sicilian 
majefty, which were rendered important, 
more from the chicanery and ambition of 
the Neapolitan magiftrates, than from the 
wifhes of their fovereign, his holinef{s 
may, be faid to have fpent the firft fix 
years of his reign in the moft perfect 
tranquillity, both at home and abroad. 
Tn this interval he-was chiefly engaged in 
regulating the internal’ government of 
his ftate, and completing -his two favo- 
rite projects, that of draining the Pontine 
marfhes, and the erestion of the prefent 
majeftic veftry of St. Peter’s. From fuch 
a commencement it could little have been 
expected, that the latter part of his reign 
would have been one of the moft trouble- 
fome periods ever recorded in the ecclefi- 
aftical hiftory; and that he himfelf fhould 
have rivalled in fuffering the moft unfor- 
tunate of his predcceffors. 
The death of the emprefs Mary The- 
refa, in October 1780, was !the firft 
fignal of the fubfequent diftrefles of the 
holy fee. 
“Whilf that prudent and religious fove- 
reign reigned in Germany and ‘Hungary ; ; 
her own kingdoms, as well as-all the ca- 
tholic countries of Germany, were religi- 
oufly devoted to the court of Rome. Her 
fon and fuccéflor Jofephthe IId, though 
in fome refpeéts a great man, yet in 
many others proved the perfect reverfe 
of his mother. Having early in life im- 
bibed the principles of that pernicious 
philofophy which has brought fo many 
difafters upon Europe, he. thought it pru-. 
dent during his mother’s life to hide them 
as much as pofiible; but no fooner had 
he come to the empire, than be behaved 
hike a flave emancipated from his-‘mafter’s 
dominion. In lefs than half a year he 
deftroyed almoft the whole ecclefiaftical 
. @ifcipline eftabliflied in his hereditary 
VIL th. 
rian, 
the late Pope, Pius ¥T.,, '94as 
fates: and, what was more difeufling, 
copdyéted all his violent innovations in a 
military and defpotic way, a accompanied 
with the, moft unbounded rapacity, only 
equalled, perhaps, by that of Harry the 
Jews were admitted to the 
rights of citizenfhip, religious orders fup- 
prefied, the fecular clergy fubjeéted to lay 
magiftrates, ecclefialtical appeals to the 
holy fee forbidden, the vows of nuns 
fubmitted to the ‘authority of diocefan 
bifhops, matrimonial difpenfations —re- 
moved from the court of Rome, and an 
injunGtion laid on all Auftrian, Hunga- 
and Lombard -prelates never to ac- 
cept the digmity of cardinalfhip.. His 
holinefs, alarmed at fuch an unforefeen at- 
tack; was too fenfible not to fee that the 
bold oi innovating,example of this.pow- 
erful monarch, ‘the natural proteftor of 
the catholic church, would have a perni- 
cious effect on the other crowned heads ef 
Europe. 
He flattered himfelf. at firft: that fome. 
oppofition would be made to thefe imne- 
vations by the. Imperial fubjeéts them- 
felves; for.befide the remonftrances of 
the Brabantefe and Flemifh clergy, the 
venerable archbifhop of . Milan was heard 
to declare, * That his metropolitan church, 
honoured: already by the martyrdom of 
thirteen of its prelates, fhould yet have 
another to boaft of, rather than he would 
carry into effet fuch {candalous inno= 
vations.’ i 
Thele Fomcaae ances were, however, of 
no ufe. The emperor perfifted in his 
{chemes, fupported by the affiftance of 
the lay magiftrates and tne military 
ower. 
The archduke Ferdinand, 
had very nearly been deprived of the go- 
vernment of Lombardy, for fiding with 
the Milanefe clergy.. His. holinefs now' 
remonfirated himfelf againft the reform. 
He ordered his nuncio at Vienna, Mr. 
Garampi, to prefent the moft prefiing fo- 
licitations to his Imperial majeity, to re- 
fie ferioufly on what he was doing. 
This produced no effect. The prince of 
Kaunitz told the papal nuncio that his 
matter was aware of what he had done, 
aod perfifted inhis refolution. ‘The een 
of ecclefiaftical 
and his holinels, mortified at feeing fuch 
an humiliating dilapidation of the church 
under his pontificate, refolved to try whe- 
ther he could not be able to obtain, by 
perfonal entreaties from the philofopbic 
emperor, .what he defpaired to wreft trom 
him by the no longer dreaded thunders of 
the Vatican., ‘He accordingly determined 
to 
his brother, | 
cenfure was now no more; 
<— 

