Rome and the Neapolitan Revolution of 1820-1821 : A Study in Papal Neutrality

A revolt within a revolt was created when the Sicilians seized the opportunity provided by the disturbed state of affairs in the capital to strike a blow for autonomy. In the middle of July a provisional Giunta at Palermo drove out General Naselli, the Royal Governor, and sent a delegation to Naples to present Pope Pius VII was both head of the universal Church and sovereign of a temporal kingdom. It was this double character which rendered his position so difficult in the situation created by the revolution which took place at his very door. As the religious head of all Catholics, the Pope was by tradition and principle indifferent to the political changes in the nearby state. " The position of His Holiness as Head of the Church," wrote Cardinal Consalvi, Papal Secretary of State, at the time, " obliges him to have care for the interests of religion in the Kingdom [of Naples], whatever may be the form of government that may be adopted there." As long as the interests of religion were safeguarded, absolute monarchy, constitutional monarchy, even republic, were acceptable forms of government to him. Only a few months before the revolt in Naples, the King of Spain had granted the same constitution under very similar circumstances; Pius VII had readily recognized the new order of things. In the case of Naples, at least he could show no animosity to the rebel regime, lest such an attitude be harmful to the religious welfare of the Neapolitan people. ## CHAPTER I NEAPOLITAN REVOLUTION AND PAPAL QUANDARY I. BEGINNING OF THE REVOLUTION THE outbreak of the Neapolitan revolution 1 should not have been a complete surprise at Rome. Since the previous May, Monsignor Olivieri, the Delegate 2 of Benevento (a Papal territory situated within the Kingdom of Naples), had been reporting the threatening state of affairs in the neighborhood. On June 7, he had given an accurate prediction of what was to happen: a political revolution in Naples in the near future would result in the overthrow of the Papal government in the Duchy of Benevento, accompanied by his own arrest, the removal from office of all Papal employees, and the disarming of the Papal Carabinieri.' Rome, however, did nothing until news of the actual revolt had been received, when steps were taken to prevent its spread across the border or its spontaneous imitation. A hurried survey of conditions throughout the Papal State, made by Cardinal Bernetti, head of the Papal Police, at Consalvi's direction, was encouraging; except for a few groups of malcontents, notably in Bologna, Forli, the Maritime Provinces and the Campagna, the only actual danger spot was the Duchy of Benevento, where the Carbonari were admittedly numerous and in close relationship with their " cousins " of 1 No adequate history of the Naples revolution of 1820-1821 has been written. The most complete accounts are found in: Preface Table of Contents Introduction Chapter I. Neapolitan Revolution and Papal Quandary Chapter II. International Complications and Papal Policy Chapter III. Austro-Neapolitan War and Papal Neutrality Chapter IV. Aftermath Of Revolution and War Conclusion Appendix Austro-Papal Negotiations Over Ancona in 1821 Bibliography Index of Names and Places Vita