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Full text of "The Jesuits; a complete history of their open and secret proceedings from the foundation of the order to the present time"

fc. 





HISTORY OP THE JESUITS 



THE JESUITS; 



COMPLETE HISTOKY 



OS 1 



THEIR OPEN AND SECRET PROCEEDINGS 

FROM THE FOUNDATION OF THE ORDER TO THE 

PRESENT TIME. 



TOLD TO THE GERMAN PEOPLE 
BY 

THEODOR GRIESINGER, 

TRANSLATED BY 

A. J. SCOTT, M.D. 



SECOND EDITION. 



LONDON : 
W. H. ALLEN & CO., 13 WATERLOO PLACE, 

PUBLISHERS TO THE INDIA OFFICE. 



1885. 

(All rights reserved,) 



PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION. 



THE new edition of my " History of the Jesuits " is 
the best proof that the book has done its work. It 
has found thousands of readers, and no one has put 
it aside without having obtained a proper idea of 
this Society, so worthy of condemnation. And 
seeing, now, that the Imperial Government has ranged 
itself on our side, let us hope that the accursed ban 
by which, through the influence of the Jesuits, the 
spiritual resurrection of our fatherland has been 
restrained, will now be removed from Germany. 

Firstly, the crushing of the Empire's enemies, and 
now the attack on the foes of light ! When was 
there ever for Germany a greater epoch ? 

STUTTGABT, 

July, 1872. 



20C2207 



PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION. 



THERE is a structure iii the world, to the completion 
of which every thinking man is bound to lend his- 
assistance, I mean the fabric of intellectual light and 
spiritual freedom, without which real and material 
liberty cannot be attained. Providence has given to- 
some few the power of contributing a corner-stone, or 
even an entire pillar, to this building, and those few 
are the " Spiritual Knights " of whom Heine sings. 
But even when to the remainder this power is wanting, 
are they on that account to lay their hands on their 
lap and totally refrain from labour, when, perhaps, 
they might be in a position to pass on towards thia 
erection the mortar and small stones ? I say " No " ; 
and upon this " No " have I completed the " History 
of the Jesuits.'* May this book contribute a little, if 
not to the stripping-off of the fetters of superstition 
and spiritual thraldrom in which so many hundred 
thousands are still bound, at all events to the loosening 
of them and to the preparation for casting them aside. 
More I do not expect. 



TRANSLATOR'S PREFACE. 



IN reading this remarkable book, it struck the translator tliat, 
perhaps, it would not be unacceptable to the reading public of this 
country to know what is thought, in Protestant Germany, about 
the Society of which it treats. He has, therefore, devoted some 
of his leisure to rendering it into English. 

In order, however, that the reader may know something about 
the author of this worl-, he has also added a translation of what 
is said of him in the fourth volume of Heinrich Kurz's Geschichte 
der nemten Deutschen Literatur, von 1830 bis auf die Geyenwart, 
fourth and improved edition, Leipzig, 1881 : " Karl Theodor 
Griesinger was born at Kimbach near Welsach, in Wurtemberg, 
on the 10th December 1809. After a complete study of theology, 
he became a vicar, but relinquished this position in three years to 
devote himself to literature. After a severe illness, he entered in 
1841 a bookseller's shop, in order ' to make sure of his bread,' but 
again gave up this career in 1848, and founded a democratic news- 
paper, Die Volkswehr, which led to his arrest for high treason. Of 
this charge, however, he was acquitted, but, notwithstanding, it 
was the cause of his emigi-ation to America with his wife and child 
in 1852. As the mode of life there did not please him, he returned 
to Stuttgart in 1857, when he again resumed the career of author, 
and for his Wurtemberg nach seiner Verganyenheit und Gegenwart, 
<6c., received from the King the gold medal for Arts and Sciences. 
Griesinger belongs to the German Democrats, who were not pleased 
with life in America, because it was tinged with truly republican 
opinions. This may be concluded from his Lebenden Bildern am 
America (Stuttgart, 1858), which, moreover, are indicative of 
talent. These are not exactly novels, but rather descriptions of 
life among the Germans in America, more especially in New York, 
and this life is represented in a poetical manner and with spirit. 



TIC ANSI. \TORS PBBFAGB. 



His Emiyrtniti'ii (li'xrhicltte-n (Tuttlingen, lHf>.s .V.i. II.), r , luting ta 
matters connected with German emigration, show the inventive 
faculties of the poet, as well as his skill in describing situations 
and characters. Some tales are represented with the delicious 
humour which had already gained for the author many friends in 
Hnmoruttischen Hililcnt mi* Schicaben (Heilbron, 18H!h, I >ie Alte 
Buuerei odcr < 'rhninnliiiitxti-risn nm AVir \'<>rk, is a clever story, but 
rather distasteful from its exaggerated atrocities. That the reve- 
lations in the Mysterien tlr* Vaticans <><li-r ,lie ,/<-liani,-n SUnilen de* 
Papsthums (1801, II.), were, and still are, in accordance with the 
spirit of the age, is proved by the proceedings of the Jesuitical 
party in the Council of 1870. Griesinger also attempted historical 
novels, not without success, both in the L<'t:t,n T<Ki>-n '/>/ < inn; nit: 
(Heilbron, 1889), and the Jltinri<-h nm .Vnw//7<///r</ mnl Klixuleth 
von Bitsch, ;i historical novel of the end of the fifteenth century 
(Stuttgart, 1860, II.)." 

Dr. Griesinger, in addition to the above mentioned, published 
also several other historical works, such as Dux I>inm-n llxjiinrnt 
nn den verschiedem-n ///<// {-'.uro/m* ( Stuttgart, 1871-72), and Die 
Geheimnisse des K*>-uiinl (Stuttgart, 1869), Oeschi<-ht,- >/.r Ihntm-ltrn 
(Stuttgart, 1874, IV. I, now out of print. His M>/.<t>ri>n ///-.s I'nti- 
cans, a most interesting work, containing startling revelations as 
to the great depravity which the Church of Rome had fallen into, 
previous to the Reformation, was published in 1861. It was trans- 
lated into English and published in 1864 by Messrs. W. H. Allen 
and Co., of Waterloo Place. The History of tin' Jfsnitx was pub- 
lished in 1860, and a second edition in 1878. This Society had 
been used by the Papacy in order to combat the Reformation. 
Some uphold the sons of Loyola, others, like the author, condemn 
them, but it cannot be gainsaid that the Society has been expelled. 
from almost every Christian State, and from some of them more 
than once. This work is now presented to the reading public 
in an English dress, and the translator's task ends with the 
translation. 



CONTENTS. 



BOOK I. 

THE ORIGIN OF THE JESUITS ; OB, THE SAINT 
IGNATIUS LOYOLA. 



CHAPTER L 

PAGK: 

IGNATIUS LOYOLA BECOMES HOLT . 3 



CHAPTEE II. 

THE VICISSITUDES OF THE NEW SAINT AND THE SEVEN 

FIRST JESUITS 15 

CHAPTER in. 
LOYOLA IN ROMS , 29 

CHAPTER IV. 

THE ORGANIZATION AND STATUTE BOOK OF THE NEW 

ORDER . . . . . . . . .46 

CHAPTER V. 
IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENERAL OF THE ORDER . 54 



ill CONTENTS. 

BOOK II. 

THE SHREWDNESS OP THE JESUITS, AND THE GIGANTIC 
PROGRESS OP THEIR GROWTH. 

CHAPTER I. 

PAGE 

THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN DISTANT REOIONS OF THE 

WORLD 85 

CHAPTER II. 
THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS IN EUROPE . 145 



BOOK III. 

THE MORALITY OF THE JESUITS J OR, THE VOW OF 
CHASTITY. 

CHAPTER I. 
THE OLD ADAM UNDER THE MASK OF HOLINESS . . 283 

Chapter II. is omitted. 

CHAPTER III. 

THE SPIRITUAL EXERCISES, OR THE REFINEMENT OF 

ENJOYMENT . . 306 



BOOK IV. 

THE DISINTERESTEDNESS OF THE JESUITS ; OR, THE 
VOW OF POVERTY. 

CHAPTER I. 
THE CONFESSIONAL AS THE KEY TO THE MONEY-CHEST 333 



CONTENTS. Xlll 

CHAPTER II. 

PAGE 
ROBBERT AND THEFT AMONG LAITY AND ECCLESIASTICS . 358 

CHAPTER III. 

JESUIT COMMERCE AND USURY, COMBINED WITH FRAUDU- 
LENT BANKRUPTCY . . . 410- 



BOOK V. 



THE PROBITY OF THE JESUITS ; OB, THE SONS OF LOYOLA. 
IN THEIR TRUE ASPECT. 

CHAPTER I. 

THE EVERLASTING CONFLICT OF THE SONS OF LOYOLA 

WITH THE REST OF THE CATHOLIC ECCLESIASTICS 443 



CHAPTER H. 

THE REPULSIVENESS OF THE JESUIT CONSTITUTIONS, 

DOCTRINE, AND TEACHING 473 

CHAPTER in. 

INCREASING ENLIGHTENMENT, AND THE STORM WHICH 

AROSE OUT OF THEIR OWN MIDST ..... 492. 



BOOK VI. 

THE BENEVOLENCE OF THE JESUITS; OR, THE PERMISSION 
TO MURDER AND ASSASSINATE. 

CHAPTER I. 
JESUIT ATTEMPTS IN GERMANY . . 507' 



XIV CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER II. 

PAGE 

THE GUNPOWDER PLOT IN ENGLAND, AND THE POLITICAL 

INTRIGUES OF THE JESUITS IN THAT COUNTRY - . 519 

CHAPTER III. 
THE ATTEMPTS ON THE LIVES OF PRINCES WILLIAM AND 

MORICE OF ORANGE 544 

CHAPTER IV. 

THE GREAT COMMOTION AT PARAGUAY, OR DON SEBASTIAN 
JOSEPH CARVALHO E MALLO, COUNT OF OKYRAS AND 
MARQUIS DE POMBAL . . .... 555 

CHAPTER V. 

DON PEDRO PABLO ABARACA DE BOLEA, COUNT OF ARANDA, 

OR THE ABOLITION OP JESUIT NESTS IN SPAIN . . 587 

CHAPTER VL 
REGICIDES IN FRANCE . 597 



BOOK VII. 

THE APPARENT DEATH OP JESUITISM, AND ITS TERRIBLE 
REVIVIFICATION. 

CHAPTER I. 

THE ABOLITION OF THE JESUIT ORDER BT POPE CLEMENT 

XIV .629 

CHAPTER H. 

THE RE-ESTABLISHMENT OF THE JESUIT ORDER, OR THE 
NULLIFICATION OF THE BULL " DOMINUS AC REDEMPTOR 

NOSTER " 648 



CONTENTS. XV 

CHAPTER in. 

PAGE 

THE JESUITS IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE NINETEENTH 

CENTURY 664 

CHAPTER IV. 

THE DEVELOPMENT OF CATHOLICISM INTO JESUITISM, OR 

THE JESUIT PAPAL INFALLIBILITY .... 712 



BOOK I. 

-* 
THE ORIGIN OF THE JESUITS; 

OB, 
THE 8AINT IGNATIUS LOYOLA. 



MOTTO. 

Der Teufel sass in der HOll' und kriimmt sich vor Schrnertz 

Weil der Monch Luther sich Kef asset das Herz 

Einzugreifen in der Welten Ring, 

Und zu stiirzen die Alte Ordiiuug der Ding'. 

" 1st nicht genug," BO heult er, "dags es weithin schalt 

Dass die Arge sich wagt an die geistliche Gewalt ? 

MUKH er auch noch mein eigen Reich und Domiuium. 

Sich erkiihneu zu stiirzen urn und urn ? 

I'.t i meiner Grossmutter, er ist im Stand und erobert die IlOll' 

vt'c-nn ich ihtn nicht eine grossere Macht eutgegen stall' ! 

Doch wer hilft mir in dieser schweren Noth, 

Wo die Welt aus den Fugen zu gehen droht ? " 

80 heult der Satan und schlug sich vor's Hirn 

Dass blutgefarbt war bald die schwarze Stirn. 

Da trat er die Schlang' zu ihm und alt giftig' Tliier 

Welcher von Bosheit, Trug und List der Bauch berstet senior. 

Und fliistert' ihm leis' ein paar wort' in's Ohr, 

Der Teiifcl in seinem Innern nicht eins davon vcrlor, 

Aufsprang er und erleichtert schwoll ihm die Brunt 

Und seiu Auge leuchtet vor Wonn' und Lust. 

Neun Monat drauf ein Weib einen Jungen geb&r, 

Dess' Name Don Innigo von Loyola war. 

Au der alt en Reimschronik den I'attr Cyprian. 



(TRANSLATION.) 

The Devil sat in hell and doubled himself up with pain, because the monk 
Luther was courageous enough to encroach on the round world, and to 
upset the old order of things. " Is it not sufficient," he screamed, " that it 
resounds from afar that the wicked one dares to venture an attack on the 
spiritual power ; must he also be bold enough to turn everything upside 
down in my own kingdom and dominion ? By my grandmother, he has 
tuken up a position and will rob hell if I do not oppose him by a greater 
power. And who will help me in this severe exigency, when the world 
threatens to depart from its course ? " Thus howled Satan, and flogged his 
brains in such a way as to make his black forehead the colour of blood. At 
this juncture the Serpent approached him, the old poisonous beast, who 
nearly burst his belly with malice, deceit, and cunning, and whispered 
softly a couple of words into his ear. The Devil lost not a syllable in his 
innermost thoughts. Up he sprang, and his swollen breast was relieved, 
and his eye shone again with pleasure and lust. Nine months after that a 
woman gave birth to a youngster whose name was Don Innigo de 
Xioyola. 

From tlie old Rhyniat of Father Cyprian. 



CHAPTER I. 

IGNATIUS LOYOLA BECOMES HOLY. 

IT Is a fact regarding which, according to the views of all 
enlightened people, the Germans have reason to be not a little 
proud, that almost all orders of monks belong to the Romaic 
speaking races, i.e. French, Italian, and Spanish, the Germans 
not having the slightest connection therewith. Thus formerly 
the widely extended Order of the Benedictines has to thank for 
its origin the holy Benedict of Nursia in Umbria, a province of 
Italy. So also the Camaldolenses, whose founder was the holy 
Romuald, from the family of the Dukes of Ravenna, while 
they derive their name from the Abbey of Camaldoli near Arezzo 
in the Appenines. The grey monks of Vallombrosa come from 
Fiesoli in the territory of Florence. Further, the Carthusians 
so named from the solitude of La Chartreuse near Grenoble, 
where the holy Bruno, in the year 1086, built the first 
hermitage for the companions of his persuasion. Then come the 
Colestines, called into existence by the hermit Peter de Murrhone, 
who in the year 1294 ascended the Papal throne under the name 
of Colestine V. ; after them we find the Cistercians created by 
Robert Abbot of Citeaux, or Cistercium, followed by the Sylves- 
trians, the Grandimontines, and others. In like manner the 
Augustines and all those congregations who regulated their 
cloisters according to the rules of the holy Augustus, viz. the 
Premonstratenses,* the Servites, the Hieronymites, the Jesuaden, 

* I am well aware that this Order was founded by the Canon Norbert, 
from Zanthen, in the territory of Cleve, a man of German extraction, who 
was afterwards, from his zeal for the Church, nominated Archbishop of 



4 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

and the Carmelites, as well as the Dominicans, Franciscans, and 
Capuchines, along with theMinimen, the Minorites, and the whole 
tribe of Beggar Orders, have all likewise a pure Italian origin. The 
fact is, that all the cloisters and instituted Orders have, in a word,, 
their homes to find in Italy, France, and Spain. The reason 
thereof is not difficult to discover. The spirit of the German 
nation is, indeed, by no means of a very imaginative nature, 
and does not allow itself to be overruled by fancy, especially in 
regard to religion. In other words, the German has altogether 
a too cold-blooded, calculating, deliberate temperament, to allow 
himself to be easily and thanklessly enthusiastic, and is much 
more inclined to indulge in subtle inquiries and investigations : 
on this account expelled from Rome in a most bitter way, the 
chief heresy, namely, Protestantism, owes its birth to Germany. 

In reviewing all these many orders more closely, or even 
merely running over their names superficially, the question 
naturally suggests itself, which of them might, be considered 
the best, the most excellent and most esteemed ? This question 
was formerly much discussed, especially among the Orders them- 
selves, and it gave rise among them to an infinity of strife, 
jealousy, discord, and mutual depreciation. In short, formal 
war took place between the individual Orders, and I need only 
mention Thomists and Scotists (Dominicans and Franciscans, the 
former followers of Thomas Aquinus, the latter of Duns Scotus) 
in order to render superfluous all further explanation. If, in 
this manner, disputes took place among the members of the 
Orders themselves, how much less could the public, the lay world, 
be expected to agree as to their value or excellence, especially 
while the national jealousy of French, Italian, and Spanish was 
mixed up with the question. 

In the sixteenth century, two circumstances occurred which at 
once put a termination to the contention, namely, the Reforma- 
tion and the institution of the Order of the Jesuits. 

Magdeburg, and still later translated, indeed, among the saints ; but in the 
first place the Premonstratenses are only a new edition of the " Canonici 
regularis Sancti Augustini," who, it was well known, derived their origin 
from Italy ; secondly, Norbert lived so long in France that he was no longer 
German, but simply thought and acted as French ; thirdly and lastly, the 
foundation really took place in France, namely, in Sprenge, in the Bishopric 
of Laon, in the forest of Coney, on a meadow indicated by heaven itself 
(Pre montre, hence the name Premonstratenses), and the immigration of the 
brethren of the Order into Germany only took place several years after- 
wards. 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA BECOMES HOLY. 5 

Before the clearing thunderbolts launched forth by the 
Reformers, Monachism, then flourishing, could no longer 
maintain itself; so it collapsed like a decayed building, and 
all its former admirers were at once converted into mockers and 
^corners, if not into haters and persecutors. 

On the other hand, through this Reformation, that is, by the 
insight thereby obtained, the Catholic world and the Papacy 
could no longer possibly, by the means hitherto employed, ward 
off the frightful attacks with which it was assailed ; so a new 
Order, I mean that of the Jesuits, was called into existence, 
which at once not only threw totally into the shade all previous 
monkish brotherhoods, but which accomplished more in a single 
century than the whole of them put together had effected during 
the long period of their existence. All were amazed at the new 
Order, and all, whether friend or foe, were unanimous in the 
belief that the Jesuits, in relation to power, influence, exten- 
sion, empire, and mastery, had made even the impossible pos- 
sible. All, however, agreed, that never so long as the earth had 
been inhabited by man had there been a society so steeped in 
meanness and vileness as were the Jesuits ; indeed, should the 
tenth part of the crimes and shameful deeds attributed to them 
be true, they are unworthy to exist among men. Briefly, every- 
one could not but admire the intellect, the extraordinary activity) 
and the remarkable organisation of the Order of Jesuits ; on the 
one hand, there were numbers who actually shuddered at the 
bare mention of their name, whilst, on the other, not a few broke 
out into excessive and rapturous praises of the fraternity. 

Thus was it judged of the Jesuitical Order in the last century, 
and precisely the same opposite opinions may be heard in the 
present day, when the Order seems about again to raise itself in 
.all its pristine glory. Under these circumstances can it be other- 
wise than of the highest interest to hear something more in 
detail of this society ? Is it not the duty of the historian, then, 
to make people acquainted with all that is true respecting this 
hate and this admiration, and to penetrate into all the secrets 
-with which the Jesuits are alleged to be surrounded ? 

I believe the only answer to this question must be an unqua- 
lified Yes, and thus will I at once forthwith begin to make the 
reader acquainted with the founder of this Order. His country 
is also a foreign one, as in the case of the founders of all the 



6 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

other Orders. Spain, indeed, that most Catholic of all Catholic 
countries, had the good fortune to bring him into the world. In 
the Basque province of Guipuscoa, between the two small towns 
of Azcoitia and A/peitia, rose a proud feudal castle, which 
belonged from the thirteenth century to a highly aristocratic 
family bearing the name of Loyola, and in this castle, the 
ancestral seat, resided towards the end of the 15th century, 
Bertram, son of Perez, lord of Loyola and Ogne, or, as it is also 
written, Onate. As spouse he had Donna Mnrinnna Saez of 
Licona and Balda, so called from her father being the knight 
Martin Garcia de Licona and her mother the Marchioness de 
Balda ; but to this high-sounding title her dowry did not at all 
correspond, consequently Knight Bertram found himself pos- 
sessed of no very splendid property, besides the two castles and 
the land surrounding them. More fruitful, however, was it 
ordered in the domain of love, seeing that the tender pair were 
blessed by degrees with eleven children* seven sons and four 
daughters ; of the former, the youngest, who came into the 
world in 145)1, i.e. eight years after the birth of Luther, 
received the baptismal name of Don Innigo (or Ignatius) Lopez 
de Ricalde in the church of the holy Sebastian de Soreasu in 
the before-mentioned small town of Azpeitia. This Ignatius was- 
destined to become the founder of the most celebrated and at the 
same time the most ill-famed Order ever instituted. Don Innigo 
showed, while yet a boy, the most remarkable capabilities, but 
unfortunately they were not cultivated as they might have been, 
it being thought unnecessary for him to do more as regards 
learning than to be able to read and write his own mother- 
tongue. Moreover, an uncle domiciled at Arevalo in old Castile, 
with whom he passed the greater part of his childhood, had liiin 
instructed in fencing, dancing, and playing on the mandoline, ia 

Some biographers make out that there were fourteen children, nine sons 
and five daughters, but the names of eleven only are preserved to us, and 
these are as follows : (1) Don Joannes, who lost his life in the Neapolitan 
war ; (2) Don Martinus, who inherited Loyola on the death of Joannes ; 
(3) Don Bertram, who also died young on the field of Nona ; (4) Don Ochoa,. 
who was taken off, too, in his youth ; (5) Don Hernandus, who died in India ; 
(6) Don Petrus, who entered the Church, and who officiated in the cathedral 
of Aspezia, that is, in that of the holy Sebastian ; (7) Don Innigo, whose life 
I am now describing ; (8) Donna Magdalena, married to Don Joannes Lopez 
de Gallay Itaqui ; (9) Donna Mariana, married to Don Stephano de Arqueza ; 

(10) Donna Katherina, married to Don Joannes de Martinez de Lasuo:, 

(11) Donna Maria, who died unmarried. 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA BECOMES HOLY. 7 

all which accomplishments the young Innigo was made to excel. 
At the age of fourteen, Don Antonio Mariquez, Duke of Majera, 
and grandee of Spain, a distant relation of the Loyola family, 
obtained for him the situation of page at the Court of Ferdinand 
and Isabella, and here, in this brilliant and luxurious atmo- 
sphere, he received the last finishing strokes of his knightly 
education. In other words, he learned to make love declarations 
to the ladies in finely-turned phrases sung, it may be well 
understood, to the accompaniment of the mandoline and when 
the jealousy of husbands, brothers, and bridegrooms was raised 
thereby, he was quite ready to defend himself in his nightly 
serenades sword in hand. In a word, he obtained for himself, as 
did others of his age and rank, the reputation of being a very 
vain, high-spirited, and withal eccentric but at the same time 
agreeable, brave, and self-sacrificing comrade, who never broke his 
word. With all this, he was well made, and had a broad open 
forehead, grey eyes, and a fine roman nose somewhat bent, a 
healthy colour, and asymmetrical strong build, though not above 
the middle height. It was, therefore, not to be wondered at that 
he obtained favour with the fair sex, without on that account 
being unpopular with the men. After he had thus employed 
himself during several years in such-like trifling, and esta- 
blished for himself the reputation of being a first-rate " Cabel- 
leros," he came to the conclusion that such a life was truly pur- 
poseless, and seized with most vehement ambition, he resolved 
upon entering on a military career, in order that his brows 
might be crowned with laurels. This time, also, the Duke 
Rosera gave him a helping hand, and soon advanced him to the 
rank of officer. Of this distinction he well knew how to render 
himself worthy in every respect, and he not only gave most 
glorious proof, on the battle-field, of a brave heart and a strong 
arm, but also in his leisure hours he sought to perfect himself 
theoretically in systematic study of the art of war. Still, I 
should not conceal that he continued while in winter quarters 
to devote himself with true knightly art to gallantry, and in the 
arms of love he sought to console himself for the hardships of 
the summer campaign. 

In this manner did he spend several years, which brought him 
pretty soon to the rank of captain, while he confidently trusted 
that his acknowledged bravery would eventually raise him to 



8 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

become a general. He dared the more to hope this, as at thnt 
time there existed much strife and contention, in that Charles V , 
the successor of Ferdinand and Isabella, and at the same time 
Emperor of Germany, strove for ten long years for the mastery 
of Europe with Francis I., King of France. But now a sudden 
accident put an immediate end to all these brilliant expecta- 
tions. In the year 1521 the French, led by Andre de Foix, 
Lord of Esparre, besieged the town of Pampeluna, and on the 
20th of May, after a breach had been effected, the assault was 
made. The defence of the citadel was, however, entrusted to a 
man, even to Don Innigo Loyola, who resolved rather to be 
buried under the ruins than that his heroic reputation should be 
stained by a cowardly surrender, so that the French could not 
gain a foot without paying for it with rivers of blood. Whilst 
the brave Loyola received a wound on his left foot from a frag- 
ment of a broken wall, he at the same time had his right leg 
shattered by a cannon-ball, and consequently all resistance was 
now at once at an end ; and the Spaniards, seeing their leader 
fall, lost courage and yielded unconditionally. The French 
commander behaved nobly on the occasion, and caused the 
wounded Don Innigo to be attended by his own surgeon, and, 
not contented with this merely, gave him his liberty at the end 
of a fortnight without ransom, and when his cure was com- 
pleted caused him to be removed to his ancestral castle. This 
was done with great care, the wounded man being carried in a 
litter, notwithstanding which, however, the journey had indeed 
a most prejudicial effect, as it seemed that the bandages had 
become displaced, and the medical attendants, who were imme- 
diately summoned, declared that it would be necessary, in order 
to effect a good cure, that the bone should be broken ngain, 
which involved the extensive wound, already half healed, being 
torn open afresh. This cruel operation was most painful, as a 
number of broken splinters of bone had to be removed ; but 
the courageous Loyola at once gave his consent thereto, and 
conducted himself like a hero while the doctors were then most 
cruelly torturing him r not a single cry escaped from him, and 
he obliged himself to put on a pleasing smile while his sisters 
-were shedding tears of pity. The loss of blood and consequent 
fever reduced him so low that it was considered well to 
administer to him the sacrament for the dying, and at last the 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA BECOMES HOLY. 9 

medical men even declared that he could not be saved. In 
spite of all, however, it did not corne to this, but his naturally 
strong constitution overcame the debility, and he began to get 
better, although, indeed, very gradually and in the course of 
several months.* Bat, alas ! as he at length was able to leave 
his bed, and tried to walk up and down his room, it became 
apparent that the limb had become an inch too short, and 
besides, below the knee there was an unsightly projecting piece 
of bone which made it impossible for him to wear the high tight- 
fitting boots which were at that time in fashion. This was a mis- 
fortune that his vanity could not endure, and he forthwith resolved 
to have the detestable bone sawn off. His physicians explained 
'to him that he would run a great risk in having this done, and 
that the operation would be uncommonly painful. However, he 
insisted upon it, and the bone was sawn off. Hardly had he 
got over the effects than he began to have the limb stretched, 
and with this object he caused an iron machine .to be made, in 
which he forthwith inserted the leg. It was then turned, in 
order that the muscles should become more and more lengthened, 
and, in spite of almost maddening pain, Loyola bore up reso- 
lutely, giving the best proof of the very great energy he 
-possessed ; but, unfortunately, the desired result was far from 
being accomplished, and Ignatius could no longer conceal from 
himself that he had become lame for life. Moreover, the mirror 
told him too plainly that his features, in consequence of his 
long sufferings and agonizing pains, had become old and 
withered, his hair thin, and his forehead wrinkled. It was a 
-subject for despair. He who had hitherto been the favourite 
of the ladies, and through las agreeable manners had outstripped 
.all rivals, arousing envy and admiration at the same time 
wherever he went, should he now be slighted, and even, perhaps, 
become an object of pity and contempt ? No, it was impossible 
.for him to endure such an affliction, and an escape from it 
must be found in some way or another. Already, during his 
long confinement to bed, had he taken to reading in order to 
overcome the deadly weariness, and by accident he found in the 
castle either Aniadis or some other work, but all of a particular 

* His historian attributes this recovery to a miraculous work of the 
Apostle Peter, the latter being greatly interested in keeping Ignatius Loyola- 
alive, at all events until he had founded the Order of Jesuits. 



10 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

description, namely, different kinds of legendary lore, as the- 
Flare* Sanctorum (Flowers of the Saints). This latter book 
superabounded in the extraordinary adventures which the saints 
had to go through before they became truly holy ; and one can: 
easily understand what an impression such flowery pictures 
might have made on such an excitable, fanciful, and eccentric 
man as Loyola. He was, indeed, firmly impressed by it with 
irresistible fascination. " The holy Francis did thus and I will 
do the same. The holy Dominic behaved thus, and I will do- 
the same," he exclaimed. Indeed, at times he was so completely 
absorbed as regards the oppressions, expiations, griefs, mortal 
pangs, and former heroisms of the saints, that the experiences 
of a Florisando of Gaul or a Lisnarde of Greece appeared to 
him trifling and insignificant. It is true these impressions were 
at first not permanent, but merely transitory, and the image of 
the beautiful Donna Isabella Rosella, for whom he formerly enter- 
tained the most ardent affection, always dispelled them again ; 
but now, however, as he became convinced that his beauty 
was a thing of the past, and that he had become a lame cripple, 
whilst his beloved Donna declined to listen any more to his love 
speeches, and began to trifle with others, he tore her forcibly 
from his heart, and instead there appeared to him an unspeak- 
ably beautiful virgin, even the Queen of Heaven herself, to whom 
he at once most heartily devoted himself. Henceforth he resolved 
to make her the queen of his heart, to whom he would render 
homage, and if he met with her favour he most certainly must 
become as perfect a saint as a Januarius or Eustachius. What 
blessedness would it be if he, like them, could make the blind 
to see, the dumb to speak, the deaf to hear, and all kinds of 
diseases to heal ! when he obtained the power to fly through the 
uir like a bird, to walk through the sea dry-shod, and to pass 
through the blnzing fire uninjured ! when he should equally be 
able to drive out the devil, conquer hell, and gain heaven 
alive ! 

In this manner, a complete change took place in the mind of 
Don Innigo Loyola, and the formerly gallant cavalier trans- 
formed himself into a strict imitation of an Anthony or a 
Pachomius in order to gain the favour of the Virgin. 

He now clothed himself, as his biographers narrate, in thick 
filthy garments, and over his attenuated and unwashen face fell 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA BECOMES HOLT. 11 

his uncombed hair, formerly redolent of costly ointments- He 
also imposed upon himself the greatest abstinence, and not un- 
commonly fasted so long that he fainted from sheer weakness. 
While during these trances, he frequently had, according to his 
own affirmation, visions of the saints, and especially of the 
Virgin Mary he even saw himself translated direct into heaven, 
where God Almighty with His own hand placed him close beside 
His Son Jesus Christ. 

It now seemed apparent that the former brilliant warrior had 
turned a complete fool, so much so that his own brother Don 
Martin Garcia, at that time head of the family, very earnestly 
urged him to give up all this nonsense without delay, and he 
again like other men. The idea of becoming a saint was already 
so firmly fixed in Ignatius's mind, that reasoning with him was 
useless, and he consequently resolved to quit the Castle Loyola 
under some pretext or another, in order, in the cloister,, 
at a place of pilgrimage at Montserrat in Catalonia, renowned 
for its miraculous image of Mary, to devote himself formally 
for life to the service of the Mother of God. The excuse was 
SOOD found, in that he intimated his intention of riding out to 
meet the Duke of Majera, who was at the time sojourning at 
Navarette ; but presently, dismissing his attendants, he quickly 
made his way to Montserrat, and having arrived there in March 
15X2, he first of all exchanged his knightly costume, which he 
had resumed by the order of his brother, for a beggarly pilgrim's 
garment, consisting of a long coat of coarse sailcloth, a rope 
round the body, from which a hollow gourd was suspended in 
place of a 'flask, a long staff, and a pair of sandals. He then 
flogged his body until the blood came, in order to chastise him- 
self for the love of earthly pleasure he had hitherto cherished, 
made a three days' general confession to the hermit Clanon, one 
greatly esteemed for his exemplary piety, and lastly, following 
the example of Arnadis and other heroes of romance, kept a 
solemn night-watch before the chapel of the Queen of Heaven, 
to whose gracious image he consecrated his sword and dagger, 
giving thereby a sign that he had, henceforth, entirely devoted 
himself to her service as her spiritual knight. 

He named himself, also, henceforth, not only Knight of the- 
Virgin, but now and then also, by way of a change, Champion 
of Jesus, and formed the resolution, in order to put a crown 



12 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

upon his striving after sanctity, to undertake a pilgrimage 
to Jerusalem. He was anxious, however, first of all, in order to 
.render himself more worthy for such an enterprize, to make 
preparation by works of penitence of such an extraordinary 
nature that the whole world might acknowledge that no man had 
ever before submitted himself to such self-inflicted torture. He 
selected for the scene of this penance the small town of Manresa, 
on the road to Barcelona, from the harbour of which he intended 
ultimately to embark for Jerusalem, and he took himself at 
once to the local hospital dedicated to the holy Luca, with the 
intention of living amidst beggars and sick people. He never 
slept in a bed, not even on straw, but upon the bare naked ground, 
and subsisted during the whole week on nothing but water and 
bread, which last he obtained by begging in the streets. He 
girded himself, too, round the body with an iron chain, with 
which he daily publicly flogged himself three times ; he no 
longer made use of any comb or scissors, so that his appearance 
became perfectly horrible, to a degree that whenever he made 
his appearance he was surrounded by the street boys, who ran 
screaming after him, bespattering him with rotten eggs and 
inud. He endured all this, however, without a murmur, and 
rejoiced so much more over it, as it was proof to him that his 
body was now sufficiently unclean to present a worthy vessel for 
the destruction of sin. 

He thus conducted himself during several months, until by 
accident his noble birth was discovered, when he then attracted 
the attention not only of the street boys, but also of the grown- 
up people, who hitherto disregarding him as a beggarly and 
half-crazed vagabond, were now anxious to see a man who, 
instead of taking his position, as he had a right to do, among 
the happiest and foremost of the earth, voluntarily made himself 
the most wretched among men. This, however, was not at all 
after his mind indeed, such cruel obtrusiveuess concealing deri- 
sion and scorn under the mask of sympathy annoyed him much ; 
he therefore betook himself to a neighbouring cave, to which he 
made his way through thorns and prickly bushes. Here in the 
cavern he carried on his penances more severe even than before, 
and often took no food or drink for several days ; when, how- 
ever, in order that he might not be reproached with the crime 
of self-murder, he did break his fast, he was content with roots 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA BECOMES HOLY. IS 

growing in front of the cave, or with old spoilt bread which he 
had brought with him from the hospital. In addition to this* 
he now flogged himself with his chain six times a day instead of 
three times, prayed for seven long hours, resting on his naked 
knees, and, as much as he could, deprived himself of sleep in 
order to fill up as far as possible the measure of his bodily mor- 
tification. In consequence of all this, as one may well imagine, 
he assumed the appearance of a perfect martyr, and became so 
weak that he fell from one fainting fit into another. He was 
continually afflicted, moreover, with the most frightful remorse 
of conscience, while he always considered that he still had not 
done sufficient penance, and his disordered imagination pic- 
tured to his mind the most insane visions, such as that he saw 
the devil more than a dozen times, with claws, horns, club feet, 
and black face; he also beheld the Saviour surrounded by hosts 
of saints, ready to combat Satan and his underlings. On another 
occasion, he witnessed the Holy Trinity in the form of three 
piano notes, closely bound together, hanging upon a stalk ; and to 
his holy eyes, moreover, the Host was represented transformed 
into the true God-man. In short, during this period of his life 
he had the most marvellous apparitions, and whoever wishes to 
become further acquainted with them may read the book, Holy 
Exercises, in which they are described, with many other won- 
derful statements concerning him. 

He bought this ecstatic mental condition, however, but too 
dearly, so much so that on one occasion he lay unconscious 
during eight days, and would certainly have died had he not 
by accident been discovered by some passers by, and immediately 
conveyed to the hospital of the town. There he soon recovered, 
not only bodily but mentally, owing to the good care bestowed 
upon him. 

From several conversations which he had with the priests to 
whom he made confessions, he was at length brought to the 
conviction that he could not attain sanctification, so well, at all 
events, solely by severe penance and self-inflicted macerations,, 
as by leading others to repentance, and especially was it pointed' 
out that the conversion of the heathen would bring him more 
quickly and surely to his goal. Penance certainly is of great, 
worth, his father confessor told him, but preaching, which 
touches the heart, would be more valuable still, and every 



14 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

heatheii won over to Christianity might be regarded as a round 
in the great ladder by which man may climb up into heaven. 
This enlightened the mind of the Knight of the Virgin, nnd he 
;felt, besides, that in order to be able to undertake the business 
of conversion of the heathen, one must be possessed of health 
and strength. For this reason he no longer fasted so strictly, 
nor did he flog himself so often. He cut his hair and nails and 
threw aside his coarse smock coat, becoming again a polished 
man for whom loathing and disgust need no longer be enter- 
tained. He also declared at the same time that he would not 
put off any further his pilgrimage to Jersusalem, as his deter- 
mination was to convert all Turks and Mahomedans. 

Such changes took place in the mind of Don Innigo Lopez 
Loyola in the short space of one year, and one sees from this 
what enormous results may be brought about by a broken leg 
Jiealed defectively. 







15 



CHAPTER II. 

'THE VICISSITUDES OF THE NEW SAINT AND THE SEVEN 
FIRST JESUITS. 

""To Jerusalem and Palestine for the conversion of the Turks," 
was now the watchword of the converted Loyola, and, in fact, he 
betook himself immediately, at the commencement of the year 
1523, towards Barcelona, in order to embark from there, first ot 
all, to Italy. Money had he none, but that did not distress him, 
for, being already accustomed to beg, he soon collected enough 
not only to keep himself from starving but to pay his passage- 
money to Gaeta in the Neapolitan dominions. Having arrived 
there, he proceeded forthwith further towards Rome, always 
begging his way, reaching it on Palm Sunday. His first care, 
-naturally enough, was to perform his devotions in all the stations 
and churches where pilgrims are wont to resort. He also had 
the unspeakable good fortune, on Good Friday, the 5th of April, 
to receive, along with other pilgrims, the blessing of His Holiness 
Pope Hadrian VI., and, according to some of his biographers, 
he was permitted to kiss the Pope's foot. Be that as it may, I 
have only to remark that Innigo continued to support himself by 
begging, and that he generally passed the night in a miserable 
shed. On the 12th of April he prosecuted his journey further 
towards Venice, always, be it understood, on foot, and begging 
his way. But although he was now so used to this mode of 
travelling, he this time nearly fell a victim to it, as from his 
miserable appearance he was universally looked upon as a plague- 



Ifi HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

stricken person, and on that account not to be allowed to enter 
any town, seeing that the plague at the time was raging, in a 
truly unmerciful manner, in Upper Italy. He was, therefore, 
often compelled not only to sleep in the open air, which proved 
very prejudicial to his health, but he also found on this account 
little opportunity of soliciting alms, and accordingly at times 
endured frightful sufferings from hunger. At last he succeeded 
in reaching Venice, and contrived to introduce himself through 
the gate without detention by the sentries. He had no longer 
any lack of nourishment, as many benevolent hearts are every- 
where to be found, and fortune favoured him so much that a 
Spaniard of rank, the Duke Andrea Guitti, obtained for him a 
free passage in an Italian State galley to Jaffa in Palestine. It 
nearly went badly, however, with him in this ship, on which he 
embarked on the 14th of July. Having plenty of spare time 
during the voyage, he employed it in preaching better manners to 
the sailors, accustomed as they were to swearing and obscene lan- 
guage, and, being provoked thereby, they nearly threw him into the 
sea. But God and the captain of the ship protected him, and he 
thus reached his intended destination, on the 1st of September, in 
safety. He was now in Palestine, which he had so long earnestly 
desired to visit, so, proceeding to Jerusalem with a caravan of 
pilgrims, he arrived there in good condition on the 4th of Sep- 
tember. But scarcely had he visited the holy places, and per- 
formed his devotions at the different spots over which Christ had 
wandered 1,500 years before, than he hastened to carry out the 
great aim he was desirous of accomplishing. In other words, he 
presented himself forthwith to the Provincial Father of the 
Franciscans, and craved permission to commence his work of 
preaching and converting. The Provincial, entering into con- 
versation with the new labourer in the Church's fold, found, to 
his great astonishment, that the latter was not only completely 
ignorant of the language and religion of the Turks, but that the 
same was the case even as regards Christianity itself, that is to- 
say, in " Theology " (the knowledge which Christ taught) he 
was quite a tyro. And for such a thoroughly ignorant man, who. 
had also a perfectly beggarly and vagabond appearance, to believe 
himself fit for such a weighty undertaking as the education of 
those who did not believe in the Christian religion, appeared to the 
Provincial to be the purest nonsense, and so he told Ignatius to 



THE VICISSITUDES OP THE NEW SAINT. 17 

his face. The latter advanced that God might, perhaps, bring 
about a miracle, and produce such a powerful effect upon the 
Turks that they might understand his preaching in the 
Spanish tongue ; but, disregarding such views, the Pro- 
vincial shook his head still the more vehemently, and ordered 
Ignatius to return forthwith to Europe. As the latter did not 
at once acquiesce in this suggestion, he nominated him a beggar 
missionary, and, under an authority from the Pope to banish all 
pilgrims who were not compliant to his decrees, he had him con- 
veyed on a certain small ship bound for Venice, where he safely 
arrived in January 1524, after a four months' voyage. Thu? 
ended, in an almost laughable manner, the pilgrimage to Pales- 
tine; but it had so far done good, that Ignatius obtained a full 
comprehension of his ignorance, and became convinced how 
impossible it was for him to do anything as a preacher or con- 
verter while he had not previously made himself acquainted with 
the science of Christianity and studied holy theology. He had 
now already attained his thirty-third year, and had not the 
slightest idea of even the rudiments of the Latin language. 
Moreover, the sole property he possessed consisted of the cloak 
that covered his body, miserable trousers which hardly reached 
to his knees, and a long frock of ticking, full of holes. How- 
ever, he disregarded all this, and resolved to return to Barcelona, 
to commence there his studies. " God and the Holy Mary, 
whose knight I am," he thought, " will further assist me, and I 
hope that I will with ease collect sufficient by begging to com- 
plete my studies." In short, he made his way from Venice, by 
Genoa, forthwith, but had to encounter many dangers before he 
arrived there, owing to the war that at that time was going on 
between Francis I. of France, and Charles V., Emperor of 
Germany and King of Spain. Among other adventures, he was 
taken prisoner by the Spaniards on suspicion of being a spy, and 
treated to the scourge. When at length he reached Genoa, he 
there had the good fortune to be provided by the commander of 
the Spanish galleys, a former acquaintance, Rodrige Portundo, 
with a free passage upon a ship, and he arrived safe and sound 
at Barcelona without further mishap. 

Now began a new period in the life of Don Innigo, when he 
entered upon his studies, and, first of all, he sought out a 
teacher of the Latin grammar, of the name of Hieronymus 

2 



18 HISTOR? OF THE JESUITS. 

Ardabale, and presented himself to him as a scholar. The professor 
regarded the boy of thirty-three with some astonishment, but 
took him as a pupil gratis, and Ignatius now sat continually 
during two long years in the Latin school, and one can easily 
imagine the difficult position in which he now found himself; 
while declining and conjugating, how strangely he must have felt 
in saying amo, ama*, amat ; and how much he was teazed by his 
class-fellows, twenty-five years his juniors ; and how hard it was 
for him to contend against his extreme poverty and provide for 
his daily necessities. He often at this time entertained the idea 
of running away, and this would certainly have occurred had it 
not been for two female friends whose acquaintance he had made, 
a young lady of the name of Isabella Roselli, and a dame, Agnes 
Pasquali, who encouraged him to persevere in his efforts, and not 
only so, but also assisted him with money and good advice. 
Consequently, he did persevere, and in order that he should not 
again fall behind the other school-boys, he begged the teacher 
to be sure to give him the rod as much as in their case. In 
short, he studied Latin with most astonishing zeal, but, at ' the 
same time, did not forget to exercise himself in the great aim of 
his existence, i.e. in converting wherever conversion was required; 
and now and then he obtained good results, as he possessed 
extremely fascinating powers of persuasion, and felt no restraint 
in asserting his views in public places, or even in beer-houses. 
On one occasion, when he was trying to make into honest women 
the nuns of a certain convent where improper conduct much 
prevailed, he got such a fearful thrashing from their admirers 
that he lay for dead on the spot, and only recovered from the 
effects after several weeks. Nevertheless, he immediately com- 
menced again to preach as soon as he got well, as he entertained 
the firm conviction that this ill-treatment was only a trial that 
God had laid upon him. 

After two years' study of the Latin grammar, Ignatius con- 
sidered that he was now sufficiently advanced to pass over to the 
study of Philosophy and Theology, and on that account he 
forthwith, in the year 1526, installed himself in the town of 
Alkala, where, shortly before, Cardinal Ximines had established 
a high school. He found these studies much more difficult than 
that of the Latin language, and as he, at the same time, attended 
the lectures on Logic, Metaphysics, and Theology, for three 



THE VICISSITUDES OF THE NEW SAINT. 19 

hours daily in each department, it created such a confusion in 
his head that he learned hardly anything. As regards preaching, 
begging, and converting, which three functions he knew so well 
to combine with the most consummate skill, he succeeded so far 
as to win over three students, and make them do exactly as he 
did. With them he went daily about the streets of Alkala, partly 
begging and partly preaching, and in order to make themselves 
more conspicuous they dressed alike in long grey frieze gowns 
of the coarsest description, which they bound round their loins 
with cords. They also wore neither boots nor shoes, but went 
barefoot, and upon their heads they placed bell-shaped hats, so 
that God and the world were proclaimed wherever they appeared. 
In short, they drew the attention of all Alkala upon them, and 
got the name of " Ensazaladas," that is, the men with the frieze 
coats, and presently there were a sufficient number of old maids 
who took advice from them in matters of conscience. Nor is it- 
astonishing, although there was nothing whatever to justify it, 
that they began to carry on a commerce in the worship of God, 
to act the part of Father Confessors, and to preach repentance to 
those who had no wish for anything of the kind. Whereupon, 
the ecclesiastics and monks of Alkala became jealous of them, 
and complained about Ignatius and his companions to the Holy 
Inquisition. Ignatius, of course, was immediately arrested, and 
most minutely interrogated, as it was thought he might belong 
to the notorious heretical sect which went by the name " Los 
Alumbrados," that is to say, " The Enlightened " (Illuminateri). 
However, the Vicar-General of Toledo, who conducted the in- 
vestigation, shortly found that there was certainly nothing enlight- 
ened about Ignatius, and that although a very good Catholic, he 
was a Christian deeply steeped in ignorance, and in no way fitted to 
assume the functions of counsellor in matters of conscience. He 
therefore forthwith acquitted the accused, who had been falsely 
charged with heresy, and released him out of prison after six 
days' detention. On the other hand, he forbad him, however, 
from preaching any longer, under the penalty of excommuni- 
cation, until he was completely versed in theology. At the 
same time, he strongly recommended that the frieze-coated 
society should at once lay aside their remarkable clothing, so 
different from that of any Order hitherto existing, and conduct 
themselves like other students. This was for our Ignatius a 

2 * 



20 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

rery unpleasant sentence somewhat worse, indeed, than he at 
first expected. 

Through the preaching of Ignatius, inviting to repentance, 
two ladies of distinction belonging to Alkala were brought to the- 
determination of giving up all their possessions to the poor, 
to dress like beggars, and to go about from one place of pil- 
grimage to another, doing nothing else than praying and begging. 
They, indeed, carried out this determination, and suddenly dis- 
appeared by night from Alkala, so that their distressed relations 
were unable to discover where they had gone, though everyone 
was firmly of opinion that no other but Ignatius could have- 
been the person who led them astray. He was in consequence 
at once accused, arrested by the authorities, and thrown into- 
prison, being kept in the criminal department until both of the 
ladies, Donna Maria de Bado and Donna Ludovica Belasquez, 
returned in good health, and pretty well cured of their adven- 
turous flight on a begging pilgrimage. 

Under such circumstances, the pious Ignatius could no longer 
remain in Alkala with any comfort, and therefore he resolved to- 
remove to Salamanca, another celebrated Spanish university, in 
order there further to prosecute his studies. In this determina- 
tion he also persuaded his frieze-coated company to follow him, 
and, alter all had collected the needful money by begging in a 
body, they betook themselves to the town in question, in the 
summer of 1527. Here, too, as far as study was concerned, not 
much was effected. They employed themselves much more in 
administering to the sick in the hospitals, in all public places 
calling upon the people to repentance, using exciting language 
in so doing. 

Their sojourn in Salamanca was used only to reproduce the- 
forbidden scenes of Alkala in a new locality, and it could not be 
otherwise than that the clergy should once more be grievously 
offended. The Bishop caused Ignatius to be immediately 
arrested, and he was kept for twenty-two days in very rigorous 
seclusion,* and only liberated on his giving a most binding 

* Ignatius was attached to one of his companions, of the name of Carlisto, 
by a long heavy iron chain, and this Carlisto must have cut a very extra- 
ordinary figure, as he was a tall thin man, furnished with an enormous 
beard ; he carried a knobbed stick, and rejoiced in having a short old jacket, 
a still shorter tattered pair of trousers, a beggarly pair of half -boots, and an 
enormous hat. The rest of the Ignatians went barefoot, wearing the long 
frieze coat as above described. 



THE VICISSITUDES OF THE NEW SAIHT. 21 

promise never again to exercise the functions of the priestly 
office until he had studied theology during four consecutive 
years. 

This decision naturally made the further sojourn of Ignatius 
in Salamanca as irksome as it had heen in Alkala, and he now 
bethought himself of coming to the bold determination of 
betaking himself to the hitherto most celebrated university in 
the world, viz. Paris. There, in the capital of France, he 
dared to hope he might be able to carry on his business without 
molestation, as in it there was neither Inquisition nor a bigoted 
priesthood. There ruled, indeed, truly academic freedom even 
for the wildest ecclesiastical eccentricities ; and Francis I., the 
most free-thinking of monarchs that existed, protected this 
freedom. He communicated his plan, also, to his companions, 
who requested him to be their leader ; but being tired of per- 
petual arrests, and also fearing the long and difficult journey in 
:a foreign country, they hesitated about it, and even attempted to 
detain him in Salamanca. He was not, however, to be deterred 
from his object, and so setting out on foot in the middle of 
winter, driving before him an ass laden with his books, manu- 
scripts, and other effects, he arrived safely in the French capital 
within the first days of February 1528. 

Don Innigo had now attained the age of thirty- seven, but the 
professor to whom he presented himself found that he had not 
mastered yet even the first elements of the sciences, and it was 
pointed out to him that he must first of all study the Latin 
language. With this view, he attended the lectures of Mon- 
taigne, and during eighteen months sat among small school- 
boys, who often provokingly mocked their older companion. He 
also perceived that learning was just as difficult here as he had 
found it at Barcelona, Alkala, and Salamanca, besides which he 
was obliged to spend a great part of his time in begging ; while, 
owing to his being a foreigner, the French did not prove to be 
very liberal to him. Nevertheless, after the conclusion of his 
year and a half's course of Montaigne's lectures, he passed over 
to the study of philosophy in the college of St. Barbe (to the 
holy Barbara), and made such progress, that in the year 1532 he 
obtained the degree of bachelor, and then in the following year 
that of Master. The first step in knowledge had now been 
reached, but the principles of holy theology he had yet to 



22 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

master; to this his patience had not yet extended, but he pre- 
ferred attending some less important lectures given by the 
Jacobins.* 

As has been previously stated, the study of the sciences was 
never the object of Ignatius. He had no desire to excel through 
his knowledge, and only wished to learn as much as might enable 
him to carry out his business of conversion. That was and 
continued to be his main object. The conversion, especially of 
the heathen, to Christianity, as well as also the calling to 
repentance of baptized Christians, chastising himself and 
despising all worldliness and resemblance to his former self 
these were his aims. 

He never lost sight of these objects, either while with 
Montaigne or at St. Barbe, and in the latter establishment he 
carried out his zeal for conversion so far, that he induced a part 
of his fellow-students, instead of assisting at the prescribed dis- 
putation after public worship, to prosecute with him exercitia 
spirilualia, i.e. to pray with him and to fast and flogt themselves. 
For such conduct, however, he narrowly escaped receiving a 
slight public flogging before all the students, and only the cir- 
cumstance of his having arrived at the age of forty saved him 
from this disgrace. 

Naturally enough, moreover, he was not satisfied only to- 
exercise the work of conversion himself, but, as at Alkala and 
Salamanca, he did his best to obtain coadjutors, that he might 
work with them in common, and share with them his studies and 
devotions, his griefs and joys. In the selection of his com- 
panions he now, however, became much more particular, for 
circumstances had arisen which henceforward exercised a great 
and, indeed, overpowering influence over his whole course of 
action. 

About this time a new spirit came over men's minds, which 
shook the Papacy to its foundation, and threatened to overthrow 
the whole Catholic faith hitherto subsisting. Luther, Zwingle, 

* Most of the biographers friendly to the Jesuits affirm, indeed, that 
Ignatius Loyola also obtained in Paris the degree of Doctor of Theology, but 
the most minute inspection of the University register from 1520 to 1537 
disproves this. 

t These spiritual exercises (exercitia gpiritualia) are more fully detailed 
in the book already mentioned, bearing the title Liber Exercitiorum 
Spirituafium. Ignatius attached great importance thereto, and required, 
them to be thoroughly studied. 



THE VICISSITUDES OF THE NEW SAINT. 23 

and other reformers now raised their powerful voices, and as a 
Catholic author expresses it, " invited peoples and princes to a 
great hunt of the Roman Church." Almost the whole of Germany 
answered the cry, and even England and Switzerland, as well as 
the Scandinavian countries, did the same. Italy, too, lent an 
ear to the seductive voice, and France was not without its many 
thousands who hailed it with loud acclamations. In short, the 
Reformation threatened a great, the greatest part, indeed, of the 
Catholic world, and the downfall of Rome seemed to be inevit- 
able. 

Of all this, so long as Loyola had been in Spain, he had 
heard nothing, and if this spirit was not entirely quiescent south 
of the Pyrenees, it only prevailed in the higher regions, and 
the common people, properly so called, among whom Loyola 
moved, were not infected by it. Moreover, the Inquisition 
exercised special care that it should soon be driven away, and 
that the Reformation should never take firm root under the 
sceptre of the Most Catholic King. Very different, however, was 
its progress in France, only too much infected, and especially so 
in Paris, where even several professors of the university favoured 
the daring views of Luther. The eyes of the out-and-out 
Roman Catholic Ignatius were now thoroughly opened, and an 
unequalled panic seized upon him on account of this terrible 
perversity which had taken possession of mankind. But he 
was not content to rest satisfied with panic and disgust; naturally 
enough, he, the Knight of Mary and of her Son Jesus Christ, 
was compelled to fight for them in every way, and to endeavour 
to the utmost of his power to stem the pestilence fast spreading 
from Germany. He therefore resolved to denounce to the proper 
authorities all heretics, whether public or private, and made him- 
self a spy among all circles in which he moved. He soon, saw, 
however, that, whatever trouble he gave himself, and whatever were 
the results of bis spying, still the effects were comparatively so 
small, that more powerful means must be employed. What, 
then, he asked himself, must these be ? 

This much appeared certain, that the innumerable hordes of 
Benedictines, Dominicans, Franciscans, Minorites, or whatever 
else they might be called, through which Rome had hitherto 
swayed the hearts of men, had now lost their influence, and 
their begging sacks hung about them empty ; the remaining 



24 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

clergy, too, owing to their ignorance, dissoluteness, and shame- 
lessness, were even more thoroughly despised than the bare- 
footed monks, and it was no longer possible to awaken from the 
grave any faith in them. New armour must therefore be found 
if help was to be given armour of quite a different kind, of 
quite a different appearance, of quite a different power, than that 
borne hitherto by the souls' counsellors, and he himself must 
don that armour he himself must act as general-in-chief. 

At first sight the thought did not appear so clear to him, but 
it became more and more so the more he reflected upon this 
infectuous heresy, convincing him that the object in life of 
himself and his chosen associates should not merely be the 
conversion of the heathen, or even less the calling of Christians 
to repentance, but that to these must also be conjoined at the 
same time the waging war on the heretical world. He thought 
himself Jesus Christ (this may be read in the book of Spiritual 
Exercises, and gathered from Peter Juvenez, who was intimate 
with Ignatius), as the generalissimus of heaven, who with angels 
and saints takes the field against the devil, thundering down 
upon the kingdom of hell; and after this model he wished to 
form upon earth an army of spiritual knights, whose supreme 
head should be Jesus Christ in heaven above, in order to over- 
come the devil of this world the heretic. As this was his 
object, it was his desire, as formerly in Alkala and Salamanca, to 
select from his best neighbours, associates who would be pre- 
pared to follow him. Formerly, it was sufficient for such as 
declared themselves ready as sheep of Christ to castigate their 
bodies, as he did, and to invite the rest of the world to a similar 
life ; now, however, it was a question concerning the warriors of 
Christ, and of such warriors, indeed, who would have sufficient 
spirit and strength to overcome the well-armed Reformers with 
their assistants and followers. He had cause, therefore, to be 
particular in the selection of his associates, and, indeed, to be 
most cautious. 

The first whom he won over to his views respecting a spiritual 
knighthood for the conversion of men, and the prosecution of 
war against the heretical world, was Pierre le Fevre, more pro- 
perly Peter Faber, a native of a place in Savoy, in the neigh- 
bourhood of Geneva, a youth possessed of a learned and sagacious 
intellect, and at the same time full of glowing imagination, who 



THE VICISSITUDES OF THE NEW SAINT. 25 

might well allow himself to be but too easily inspired with a 
grand idea. 

Much more difficult was it, however, with Francis Xavier, from 
Spanish Navarre, who not only belonged to a powerful noble 
family, but who, already at that time professor in the college 
of Beauvais, had future claims to the highest ecclesiastical 
honours. On that account he began at first by ridiculing all 
that Loyola preached to him about his proposed spiritual knight- 
hood, and plainly declared to him that he looked upon it as a 
mere extravagance. But the man had two weak sides, namely, 
unlimited ambition, and also a strong inclination to follow a 
loose kind of life, and on these two points Loyola well knew 
how to lay hold of him. In other words, he placed his money 
bag, which, owing to the benevolence of high patrons, was pretty 
well filled at that period, at the disposal of the extravagant pro- 
fessor, and he at the same time pictured to the latter such a 
brilliant future, that he could no longer resist, and at length 
.gave himself up, heart and soul, to the idea.* 

Inasmuch as Peter Faber and Francis Xavier were looked 
upon in the university of Paris with great consideration, other 
: students as well as professors turned their attention to the efforts 
of Ignatius, and of their own accord enlisted themselves as his 
assistants. Among these, however, he only took four into his 
association, and, naturally enough, those he considered to be 
most worthy, or rather the most suitable for his purpose, namely, 
Jacob Laynez from the city of Almazan in Castile, certainly a 
very poor but also a very energetic young man of twenty-one 
years, shrewd and well-grounded in scientific knowledge ; then 
the still younger Alphonso Salmeron from Toledo, only eighteen 
years old, a very able philologian. Further, Nicholas Alphons 
with his nickname of Bobadilla (after his native place, a small 

* Some biographers, certainly very friendly disposed to the Jesuits, 
relate the matter quite differently. According to them, the conversion of 
Xavier arose from a game at billiards. As Ignatius was paying Xavier a 
visit one day, the latter proposed playing a game of billiards with him. 
L/oyola at first declined ; as his friend, however, pressed him further, he 
accepted the proposal on the condition that whichever of them should lose 
was to do during a whole month whatever the other prescribed. Xavier 
ugreed to this, as he was a good player. He, nevertheless, lost ; thereupon 
Loyola made him during the next four weeks go through a most exciting 
course of spiritual exercises. Among other things, Ignatius fasted along with 
the recusant Spaniard during six days, and caused him thereby to see visions, 
effecting such a change in him by this means, that the hitherto proud man 
.became at last as a pliant rod in the hands of Ignatius. 



26 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

town not far from Valencia), who already gave public lecture* 
on philosophy, and who was also as powerful with his pen as with 
his tongue as it were, a worldly knight with his sword and lance ;. 
lastly, Simon Rodriguez from Azevedo in Portugal, a gloomy 
fanatic and enthusiast, who embraced the idea of a spiritual, 
knighthood with exceedingly zealous joy. 

These were the six associates four Spaniards, one Portu- 
guese, and one Savoyard whom Loyola selected for the accom- 
plishment of his designs, as above described and already the 
immediate future proved that his choice could not have been 
more judicious or more excellent. The half-crazed or rather 
quite demented ascetic of Manresa, made wiser by his several, 
experiences in the course of time, and relieved of several of the 
notions to which he was inclined, was now changed in many 
respects. His energy, however, and his iron will he still pos- 
sessed, and also his enthusiastic fiery zeal had not in the least 
diminished. On the contrary, with his forty years, his under- 
standing began to work, and, although with some degree of 
struggling, it broke out in such a grandiose manner as one 
would previously have thought to have been quite impossible. 

To return now to the six chosen associates who formed the 
nucleus of that great society which gives the title to this book, 
and which, in a truly incredible short time, spread over every 
region of the globe, and even down to our own day exercises 
a decided influence upon mankind. They were, in a word, 
together with their master the first seven Jesuits, although this 
denomination was only first applied to them about a couple of years 
later; so it happened that the University of Paris, which after- 
wards became the most deadly enemy of their teaching, was the 
birth-place of this Order the same city and University of Paris 
from which issued forth for centuries the spirit of freedom and 
intellectual light. 

At its commencement the new society appeared of very 
moderate dimensions ; so much so, that very few Parisians had 
any conception of its existence. Ignatius designed, it is true, 
a similar costume for himself and his companions ; but, as burnt 
children dread the fire, nothing so striking as the former frieze 
cloaks. Their attire consisted simply of a narrow black cloak 
which reached down to the ankles, and for head-dress a black 
broad-brimmed hat similar in form to that of the Spanish 



THE VICISSITUDES OF THE NEW SAINT. 27 

sombueros, while on their feet they wore black leather shoes, 
there being no question now of bare soles. Moreover it must not 
be thought that the seven allies formed, as yet, a close society, 
with laws and statutes of association ; for they merely lived 
together as brethren, and reciprocally pledged themselves for the 
future as Spiritual Knights of Christ, that is to say, as mission- 
aries for the promulgation and extension of the Roman Catholic 
religion. For this voluntary pledge, however, Ignatius was not 
satisfied merely with an ordinary promise and a mere shake of 
the hand ; he required much more than this, he demanded that 
his associates should not in future harbour any thought of again 
returning to the world, and, therefore, a formal oath taken in the 
most solemn manner was imperative. They agreed all seven to 
assemble on the festival of the Ascension of Mary (J5th August 
1534) at day-break, in the Faubourg St. Jacques, and thence 
ascended the heights of Montmartre and immediately betook 
themselves to a subterranean chapel situated there, in which, 
some centuries before, Dionysius, the Areopagite, had been 
beheaded. This was a dismal kind of grotto, of coarse, rough 
construction, with bare, dark grey walls dripping with moisture, 
and quite unadorned with flowers, gold, or precious stones. On 
the contrary, all appeared here dull and dreary, bare and silent, 
while hardly a breath of air could penetrate from without ; the 
lighted tapers emitted a sickly, pale yellow light, which rendered 
the chapel even more awful in appearance than it might other- 
wise have seemed. A frightful impression was given by the 
plain rough stone altar, behind which rose an old ruinous statue 
which held the head severed from the trunk in its outstretched 
arms that of the holy Denis. Before this altar the seven men. 
kneeled, on entering, and muttered their low prayers. Then 
one of them rose up it was Le Faber, who, alone of all of them, 
had been already consecrated to the Priesthood and read a 
solemn mass, after which he administered the Holy Communion. 
Scarce had this taken place when Ignatius Loyola placed 
himself before the altar, and swore upon the Bible to lead hence- 
forth a life of poverty, chastity, and obedience. He swore to- 
fight to all eternity only for the things of God, of the Holy 
Mary, and her Son Jesus Christ, as true spiritual knights, as also 
for the protection of the holy Romish Church and its supreme 
head, the Pope ; and for the extension of the true faith, among 



28 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

unbelievers devoting his life thereto. " Ad majorcm dei 
gloriam" (to the exaltation of the glory of God), he exclaimed, 
as he had finished taking this oath, and his wild piercing eyes 
shot like lightning out of his leaden-coloured haggard counten- 
ance. After him the six others took the same oath, and each 
exclaimed at the finish, " Ad majorem dei gloriam." On the 
termination of this ceremony, however, they did not at once 
leave the chapel, but remained shut up in it until late in the 
evening, muttering their prayers, and without a bit of food or a 
drop of water having passed their lips. As they at last rose up 
from their knees, Ignatius Loyola marked upon the altar three 
Jarge capital letters ; these were I. H. S. '* What do these 
signify ? " demanded the others. " They signify," answered 
Ignatius, with solemn utterance, "Jesus Hominum Salvator" 
(Jesus the Saviour of Mankind), " and they shall henceforth be 
the motto of our institution." From that time these words were 
inscribed on the banners of the Society to indicate that the 
members of the same desire to be considered Assistants of the 
Saviour Jesus. 



29 



CHAPTER III. 

LOYOLA IN ROME. 

THE reader has now been made acquainted with the origin of the- 
Society of Jesus. Still, the purpose of Loyola and his com- 
panions, after taking the oath at Montmartre, was not to make 
off at once and commence the conversion of the heathen as well 
as the hitherto disbelievers and heretics ; the rather, in order not 
to have the regular clergy again going against them, they wished 
to remain in Paris until they had completed their theological 
studies and been ordained priests. From this good resolution,, 
however, Ignatius himself, after a short time, was again com- 
pelled to depart ; for, through joy at the successful progress of 
his undertaking, he again chastised his body as cruelly as he had 
formerly done at Manresa, and weakened his constitution so 
much in consequence, that the physicians declared that if he 
wished to be restored to health he must at once resort to a 
warmer climate, and go either to the south of France or to 
Spain. He chose the latter country ; not so much, however, 
from attachment to his own native land, as that in this way he 
might have the opportunity of arranging the family affairs of his 
two associates, Laynez and Salmeron, who would otherwise have 
been obliged to return themselves to Spain on that account. 
This latter contingency he wished to prevent at any price, and 
simply for the reason that there might be danger that their 
exertions for the holy knighthood and missionary zeal might be 
damaged by the influence of their kinsfolk. He quitted Paris, 



30 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

Consequently, in the spring of 1535, after a seven years' residence 
there; not, however, without making proper provision for the 
further prosperity of the Brotherhood ; he especially nominated 
Le Fevre, as next senior to himself, to be interim director. 
Moreover, he arranged that the six should leave Paris at the end 
of 1537, in order to meet him in Venice, as by that time theology 
would be done with, and all studies relinquished ; while, again, 
the latter city would be the best place for the holy knighthood 
to embark to begin the conversion of the unbelievers in 
Palestine. 

Ignatius, travelling by way of Loyola, was received by his 
relations and kinsfolk with much honour, and he was more 
especially esteemed by the common people, whom he knew how 
to attract by his zealous preaching of morality and repentance. 
Moreover, had not his time been spent in the hospitals of 
Aspezia rather than in his paternal castle, where the most costly 
food was always obtainable at the table of his relatives ? had he 
not, too, supported himself by begging his bread from door to 
door, a proceeding which produced a powerful effect upon the 
populace ? He thus soon obtained a great reputation throughout 
the whole neighbourhood, and at the same time visibly improved 
in health. But the remaining year and a half he had to pass in 
Spain soon elapsed, and the period upon which he had fixed for 
the meeting in Venice came upon him before he knew what he 
was about. He consequently now transacted the business he 
had undertaken for Laynez and Salmeron as quickly as possible 
with great skill, and betook himself, in the autumn of 1.036, to 
Valentia, whence he embarked for Genoa, and from there 
proceeded in a pilgrimage on foot towards Venice, where he 
arrived on the 8th January 1537, and joined his associates; not, 
however, without having met with many adventures and dangers 
on the way. All had, as we have already seen, the intention of 
proceeding to Jerusalem, in order to turn the whole of the Turks 
into Christians. They had left Paris a few weeks sooner than 
was intended, as at that time a war was impending between 
France and Spain, which would have made the journey to Italy 
impossible, and one can thus well imagine how immensely 
pleased was Ignatius at their happy meeting. Besides, what 
rejoiced him still more was that they did not come alone, but 
brought along with them three other associates, viz. Claud 



LOYOLA IN ROME. 31 

"Lejay from the diocese of Geneva, John Cordur from the city 
of Embrun, and Pasquier Brouet from the diocese of Amiens, 
all young and very apt theologians, whom Le Fevre had won 
over for the Society. The little band of holy knights. now con- 
sisted of ten or, rather, of thirteen as Ignatius, during his 
sojourn in Venice, had succeeded in picking up three more 
associates. I allude to the brothers Stephen and Jacob Eguia, 
two Navarese of very good birth and education, as also Jacob 
Hosez, a very sagacious man, and at the same time a sworn 
enemy of heresy, who, however, died soon afterwards, to 
the great grief of the Society. While, as it was now in 
the midst of winter, the departure for Palestine was for the 
moment inadmissible, Ignatius divided his associates between 
two hospitals, " The Incurable " and the " St. John and 
Paul," to which they devoted themselves in such a manner 
that their reputation spread all over Venice, and, indeed, far 
and wide, beyond it. They received not only ordinary patients, 
but also especially lepers upon whom attendants would no 
longer wait even for high remuneration. Nor did they 
hesitate, even when there was danger of infection, to wash out 
the most disgusting sores, or to suck them out with their 
mouths when it was necessary so to do. Indeed, they took 
into their own beds some incurably afflicted persons who had 
'been, owing to the hopelessness of their cases, turned out of the 
Lazareth ; and so it happened that the Jesuit baud sacrificed 
themselves for the good of suffering humanity, and it was no 
wonder then that the people became enthusiastic about them. 
In spite of all this, his sojourn in Venice still nearly brought a 
heavy misfortune upon Ignatius. His zeal did not allow him to 
remain satisfied with merely nursing at the sick-bed, but he 
also engaged in preaching, and the people flocked in crowds 
when he appeared in the market-place or other public resort in 
order to summon the passers-by to repentance and holiness. 
This success enraged not a little the ecclesiastics of Venice, who 
spread abroad a report secretly that Ignatius was a runaway 
heretic from France and Spain, who now wished to poison Italy 
with his teaching. But they were not satisfied with themselves 
doing this ; they further drew the attention of the Tribunal of 
the Inquisition upon him so much so that it was to be feared 
that he would again be shut up in prison, as he had formerly 



32 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

been in Alkaln and Salamanca. In this critical moment Ignatius 
by his intelligence completely secured his safety, knowing welF 
by means of flattery how to procure a powerful patron in John 
Peter Caraffa, Archbishop of Theate,* who understood how to 
give this unfortunate affair such an advantageous turn, that the 
Papal Nuncio, Jerome Veralli, decided in favour of the accused. 
In this way Ignatius escaped from harm this time, but it taught 
him the lesson that in order to preach with impunity he must 
get himself consecrated as priest ; and he determined forthwith 
to use the high patronage of Caraft'a and Veralli for the attain- 
ment of this object. He was not fully qualified in theology, it 
is true ; while several of his associates were in the same position. 
He had not the right to demand his ordination from the Pope, 
but, on the other hand, might not the latter accord his per- 
mission thereto through his supreme grace, in order to obtain 
which he immediately despatched three of the most prominent 
among the Society Xavier, Laynez, and Le Fevre to Rome, 
well provided with letters of recommendation from Caraffa and 
Veralli. In fact, the deputation met the most favourable recep- 
tion from the then Pope, Paul III., and having explained to him 
the design of the brotherhood for the conversion of the Turks 
in Palestine, they not only obtained permission for the ordination 
of all those associates who had not taken holy orders, but were 
also favoured with the Papal blessing, and a present of sixty- 
ducats as a contribution towards defraying the expenses of the 
journey to Palestine. This was, indeed, almost more than could 
have been expected, and Ignatius, with redoubled zeal, took upon 
himself the " patronage " of the Institution ; but above every- 
thing he at once availed himself of the accorded permission, 
and had himself and his associates consecrated as priests by the 
Bishop of Arba. 

In the spring of the year Loyola and his friends were now 
prepared to carry out their previous arrangement of proceeding 

* This Archbishop of Theate, afterwards Pope Paul IV., was the same 
who at that time founded the Order of Theatiners, an order of regular 
priests, whose task it was to improve the scandalous lives of the priesthood,, 
and it is affirmed that it was the wish of the illustrious man to get Ignatius 
to join the brotherhood, but that he declined the request. This, however, 
I venture to doubt, as one does not generally give a refusal to a man whose- 
favour one wishes to obtain, and therefore it seems much more probable 
that Peter Caraffa put no such proposal before Ignatius. At that time the 
latter thought but of the conversion of the heathen, a project of which the 
Archbishop heartily approved. 



LOYOLA IN HOME. 33 

by sea to Jerusalem, but the war which had just broken out 
between the Venetian .Republic and the Ottoman Porte inter- 
rupted communication with the Holy Land, and the contemplated 
journey had to be deferred, at least for the present. 

What was now to be done ? was the question. To indulge in 
idleness and depend on begging for a living ? or to continue to 
devote themselves to the service of the hospitals of Venice, as 
they had done for several months past ? No. This would have 
been far too narrow a sphere for men like them ; and had they 
not obtained the long-desired priesthood, which gave them the 
right to devote themselves entirely to the cure of men's souls 
the right to preach, and by preaching to convert ? Yes, truly it 
would be a sin not to make use of that right, and thus Ignatius 
resolved with all his associates to proceed to work immediately. 
Yet not quite immediately, but after a forty days' preparation by 
prayer, fasting, and self-castigation. Ignatius then divided his 
society thus : He himself, along with Le Fevre and Laynez, 
established his domicile at Vicenzia ; whilst Xavier, Cordur, 
Hosez, and the two Eguia, went to Treviso ; Lejay and Eodri- 
guez to Bassano ; Brouet with Bobadilla, however, proceeded 
to Verona ; in which several cities they all began preaching on 
the same day and, indeed, at the same hour. I say " preaching," 
but whoever fancies that this word preaching is to be taken 
in its usual acceptation would fall into a great error. Loyola 
and his companions, for instance, would place themselves in 
some open place, or at the corner of some street where there 
happened to be much thoroughfare, and mounting upon a stone 
or barrel, or something of the kind would swing their hats 
round in the air, gesticulating with hands and feet, and shouting 
out individual words with a loud scream, so that the people 
passing involuntarily stood still. When at length they had 
succeeded in gathering together a gaping crowd, they proceeded 
to harangue the same in a truly stormy manner, exhorting them 
to repentance and contempt of all worldly things, and on the 
other hand describing the advantages of a saintly life, and 
delineating the charms of Paradise for the godly, so that no one 
could dissent from the fiery eloquence and glowing enthusiasm 
of the speaker. On the other hand there was much that was 
comical in their discourses, for there were few who understood 
anything of the Italian language, and they consequently poured 

3 



34 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

forth a strangely variegated mixture of Latin, Spanish, French, 
and Italian fragments. 

Notwithstanding all this, however, their appearance was not 
altogether without effect ; and often the most wicked scoffers, 
after listening for a time, ended by beating their breasts and 
repenting of their ways. But this effect was more to be attri- 
buted to their gestures and gesticulations, and to their fantastical 
appearance, than to the apparent earnestness of the words they 
uttered. 

In this manner Ignatius and his associates conducted them- 
selves for more than a year, and, as I have already mentioned, 
with results of which they might have indeed been proud. 
During the period, however, of this preaching, they had the 
bitter experience of finding that the poison of heresy was more 
deeply rooted in the hearts of men than superficially seemed to 
be the case, and, deeply impressed thereby, Loyola again asked 
himself the question, as he had done once before in Paris, in 
what way this fundamental evil might be checked. " The 
Romish Church, the Papacy, and the Pope himself, are all in 
the greatest danger," he exclaimed, " and the whole religious 
fabric must collapse, owing to its former supports being now 
thoroughly worm-eaten, unless some entirely new foundation 
pillars can be found." Continually did he go on further to 
investigate this theme, and constantly and often did he converse 
upon it with the cleverest, most cultivated, and most clear-sighted 
of his associates, namely with Jacob Laynez, uniil at last he 
came to the fixed determination of placing himself completely 
at the disposal of the Pope for the protection of the Papacy. 
Consequently, in the autumn of 1537, the whole of the brethren 
were summoned to assemble at Vicenza for a great consultation, 
before which assemblage Loyola detailed his new project with 
uncommonly convincing power. 

" The journey to Palestine would indeed be a most meri- 
torious work, and you ought never to lose sight of the aim and 
object for which you have bound yourselves the aim, namely, of 
the conversion of the heathen ; but what would be still more 
profitable would be to save the Papacy (or, as he termed it, 
Christianity) out of the clutches of the dominion of Heresy ; and 
with this end in view it concerns you all, above everything, to 
follow out what you have already sworn at Montmartrp You 



LOYOLA IN ROME. 35 

ought to consider the reason why Providence has just at this 
time allowed war to break out between the Turks and Venetians. 
It is certainly on no other ground than to hinder the journey 
to Palestine, because you are destined for a somewhat greater 
career." And Ignatius closed his animated speech as follows : 
" Let us, therefore, offer our services to the Holy Father, and 
tell him that we are determined to raise a mighty army of holy 
knights, whose sole aim and thought should be directed to over- 
throw all enemies of Rome, under the banner of the Saviour." 

These words told, and they not only all declared themselves 
favourable to the proposal of Ignatius, but they became enthusi- 
astic in the idea of forming a " Phalanx Jesu " (" a society of 
Jesus warriors "), as the knightly-born Ignatius expressed it. 
Accordingly, this resolution was at once concluded, that Loyola 
himself, with Laynez and Le Fevre, should forthwith proceed 
to Rome, and throw themselves at the foot of the Pope ; the 
rest, however, undertook the duty of making tours through Italy, 
with the object of enlisting as many retainers as possible, in 
order that the company to be placed at the disposal of the Pope 
should be a really considerable one. 

From this period the affairs of Ignatius and his associates took 
a completely new turn ; up to the present time it had been merely 
a small missionary band, but it now became a great society 
with a distinct programme and fixed statutes. In other words, 
it was a question of a new Order, which, under the title of 
*' Phalanx Jesu," should flash forth as the light of the world. 

For the present, at any rate, Loyola, on his arrival in Rome, 
in October, in speaking about his undertaking, avoided making 
use of the expression " Order," as it was well known that all 
Orders were just then looked upon with no friendly eye at the 
Vatican, on account of their evident inutility ; on the other hand, 
h-e busied himself all the more with the principles he had laid down 
at Venice, to look about for well-wishers and for friends of all 
descriptions, in order through them to attain his end more surely 
even though it should be by bye-ways. Among these, I must 
mention particularly an old acquaintance, the celebrated Parisian 
Professor and Doctor of Theology, Pater Ortiz, who, by command 
of Charles V., was now in Rome, playing a prominent part at the 
Romish Court. It was, indeed, this Ortiz who presented 
Ignatius to Pope Paul III. The latter, too, receiving with great 

3 * 



36 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

favour the offer made of forming a " Jesus '* company for the- 
purpose of combating heresy, not only permitted Loyola himself 
to preach in all the churches of Rome, hut also accorded to 
Le Fevre and Laynez two theological professorial chairs in the 
College della Sapienza. 

The spell was thus broken, or, at least, the first step thereto 
was secured. Through Ortiz, Ignatius was made acquainted 
with Cardinals Gastpar Contarini and Vincenz Caraffa, two 
extremely sagacious, though not exactly holy, men, and both, 
likewise, highly approved of the notion of a "Jesus " association. 
They were also of opinion that above all things the idea ought 
to be more clearly defined, and a formal statute drawn up for the 
Society about to be founded, for when it is known exactly what 
is wished one is in a much better position to render effectual service 
More especially, they added, the new Society must not in any 
way be a copy of any of the previously existing Orders, but it 
must have its foundation on something that had never before 
been thought of, the advantage of which to the Papacy should be 
palpable, otherwise it would not be worthy of being placed before 
the Pope for confirmation. 

In consequence of this, Loyola immediately called together all 
his associates, as well as those more recently added, to delibe- 
rate on the proposed statute for the Society, and the assembly 
took place in the beginning of the year 1538. However, weeks 
passed, and, indeed, months, before they came to any conclusion 
on the subject, in spite of there being now among the members 
many who need yield to no one in acuteness of understanding. 
Perhaps, indeed, their invention might have met with no success 
at all had it not been for the assistance of men of higher stand- 
ing, such as Dr. Ortiz and the two Cardinals above named, and 
it cannot be affirmed that the principles of Jesuitism emanated 
entirely, or even for the most part, from Ignatius Loyola. The 
idea of the same, the conception to form a " Phalanx Jesu/' 
originated, indeed, from him, and from him alone, but with the 
accomplishment of this idea, the shaping of this conception, and 
its further development, many other heads co-operated, and it is 
a pity that in those days nothing like stenography existed, for 
then, doubtless, we would have been furnished with a report of 
the long and earnest consultation, and we might have then known 
exactly what, and how much, might be ascribed to each of the 



LOYOLA IN BOMB. 37 

contributors and participators therein, as regards the conclusions 
arrived at. But while the above fact is undeniable, as must be 
admitted even by those most ardently favourable to the Jesuits, 
it must not be forgotten, on the other hand, that Loyola always 
remained the very heart and soul of the consultations, and that 
the final conquest over all the hindrances which had to be over- 
come in the foundation of the Order must be attributed alone to 
his fiery zeal, and indomitable untiring force of will. It may 
well be imagined that Loyola and his comrades, by their peculiar 
costume, and still more their extraordinary manner of haranguing 
the public, excited great attention, and obtained, among a large 
portion of the inhabitants, a certain degree of celebrity. Already 
this stirred up the envy of others, and especially among the lower 
classes of ecclesiastics, and those parties complained, with more 
or less justice, that the newly-baptised "Black Cloaks," as they 
were called in Rome, were encroaching on their preserves. Still 
more angrily behaved the monks ; and as it became rumoured 
about that the object of Ignatius was to found a new Order, their 
rage no longer knew any bounds. " What ! " cried they, and 
amongst the foremost of the dissentients were the Augustines 
and Dominicans, who had hitherto been accustomed to appro- 
priate to themselves the fattest morsels among the people ; 
" What ! Our table, through this detestable Reformation, and 
the enlightenment extending among the people, has already 
become much diminished, and now the last remains are to be 
snatched from us by a parcel of wandering vagabonds ! No ! 
this must not be allowed, if life and death depend upon it ! " In 
short, the above-named monks immediately set to work, and used 
every endeavour to ruin Ignatius and his adherents. They 
especially spread about reports that these "Black Cloaks" were 
secret partisans of the new doctrine of Luther and the Reformers, 
and called upon the Inquisition to interfere and to protest 
against these dangerous emissaries, who had already succeeded, 
through lying, in escaping the hands of justice in Spain. In 
consequence of such-like complaints, an investigation was insti- 
tuted, and Ignatius narrowly escaped from being arrested ; 
however, in this respect, that is, in regard to heresy, no one 
could be more innocent, and thus it was no difficult matter for 
him to clear himself entirely from the result of those made-up 
.stories. Not only so, but on the 18th December 1538, he 



38 HI8TOKY OF THE JESUITS. 

succeeded in obtaining formal public satisfaction through a 
judicial judgment upon this untiring persecution, which proved 
to be extremely humiliating for his accusers, but which turned 
out very honourably for himself. From this time forth the 
credit of Ignatius daily increased considerably, and he naturally 
hastened to take advantage energetically of the same, to attract 
and gain over new patrons and retainers. He thus won over, 
among others, Franciscus Strada, a man distinguished for his 
learning ; also Pietro Codaci, a superior officer and relation of 
the Pope, who placed his whole very considerable property at 
the disposal of the Society ; and, lastly, Quirino Garzoni, who 
evacuated one of his own houses, near the Sante Trinita, at the 
foot of the Quirinal Hill, for Ignatius and his associates to live 
therein. And not only among the rich and noble did Loyola 
seek to acquire proselytes ; he speculated also especially upon 
obtaining the friendship of the great mass of the people, and 
with this purpose it was his first principle to give assistance to 
the poor and suffering, by aid of contributions obtained by 
begging from the benevolent rich. He did this especially in the 
winter of 1538-39, when a dearth spread vast misery in Rome, 
and on that account one can well imagine how greatly esteemed 
the " Black Cloaks " were among the common people. When, 
such was the case, when high and low at the same time sang 
the praises of Ignatius, how could it be otherwise than that the 
Pope's attention should more and more be directed towards him 
by whose efforts it was mainly owing that the Order was founded. 
In this locality, too, Loyola succeeded in obtaining no trifling 
results and reputation in the conversion of the Jews, of whom 
there were very many at that time in Rome, some of them being 
very rich. By what means, however, was this accomplished ? 
Among others, by an order obtained from the Pope, that no 
physician could be allowed access to the sick bed of a Jew until 
the latter had been brought to confession with the view of his 
embracing Christianity. Ignatius, therefore, so to speak, brought 
a knife to the Jews' throats in order to convert them, and from- 
this a conclusion may easily be drawn as to the spirit which 
influenced the Society of Jesus. The founder of the new Order 
also now became conscious that, with the view of placing himself 
in the ascendant, he must, above everything, endeavour to gain 
the favour of the Roman ladies, and especially that class o 



LOYOLA IN ROME. #9 

them whose name is not usually mentioned in polite society. 
About the time in which our history runs, there reigned in 
Rome, as was well known, an almost unbounded state of licen- 
tiousness ; indeed, it appeared as if nearly all the profligate women 
in the whole of Italy had assembled there. All who had money 
at their command, whether lay or clerical, married or unmarried, 
young or old, kept their own mistresses ; and there were not a few 
who were scarcely even satisfied with two or three. There was no 
question but that this shamelessness existed concealed behind the 
walls of the houses ; but these ladies, too, were to be seen flouncing 
about the streets by day as well as by night, and in all pro- 
cessions they were present, especially in the churches, where 
they placed themselves in the most conspicuous places in their 
half-naked beauty. Moreover there swarmed about the residence 
of the followers of Christ a still more despicable class of the 
female creation, who went by the name of common women ; and 
as a large number of strangers was wont to resort annually to 
Rome, thousands upon thousands continued to support a 
miserable existence by the barter of their bodily charms. This, 
certainly, was a great scandal ; but, whilst in other large cities 
the state of things in this respect was no better, and as in Rome, 
previous to its becoming the capital of Christendom, there had 
been periods in its history of much greater profligacy, this 
discreditable state of things would have been winked at in high 
places, had it not been that Luther was then preaching the 
regeneration of Christendom, and that all his followers were 
pointing the finger of scorn at the old city of the Csesars. 
Indeed, this latter generally received in Germany the name 
which Luther assigned it, " The Whore of Babylon" Even 
in those countries in which the Romish faith flourished unim- 
peached, this appellation was universally accepted by acclamation. 
Such a scandalous thing must be rectified if the greatest injury 
to the Pope and his dominion was to be averted, and Paul III. 
convoked a commission of cardinals, whose task it was to find a 
remedy for the evil. The commission assembled and held 
weekly meetings during many months. The means desired, 
however, were not to be found, excepting the sensible proposal 
to expel by force the disreputable females out of the city ; this 
plan, however, had to remain in abeyance, for otherwise a 
revolution among the people would have to be faced. Liceu- 



40 HISTOBY OF THE JE80IT8. 

tiousness continued, therefore, to rule the roost, and the Princes 
of the Church found themselves in the most wretched dilemma. 
Ignatius Lbyola now came on the scene, and what the cardinals, 
invested with the fullest powers, failed to accomplish, he alone, 
quite unaided, completely effected. What were, then, these means 
which he proposed to himself to use ? Simple enough ; it was 
through the influence which he knew how to bring to bear upon 
the minds of those poor wretched beings. First of all he collected 
among the Roman ladies of rank sufficient money to found 
a cloister for converted sinners of the female sex, and as he at 
the same time named these ladies patronesses of the said cloister, 
they contributed largely through mere vanity, and collected 
together considerable sums. A suitable building was thus soon 
erected, and very ornamentally and invitingly arranged as to its 
interior economy. It was baptised with the beautiful title " To 
the holy Martha." A regular nunnery, however, it was not the 
intention of Loyola to make it ; but the future inmates were to 
have the right to leave the home again whenever it pleased them 
to do so, and if they found that it did not suit them to remain in 
it. They were, therefore, on that account, not bound by any 
kind of oath, nor were they obliged to live according to any 
certain rules. In short, all restraint was from the first pro- 
hibited, and it was rendered, on the contrary, exceedingly 
attractive by offering the prospect of an easy existence without 
the trouble of work. Having now brought the matter so far, he 
commenced not so much openly as secretly to make interest 
for his new institution, and he soon won over some dozens of the 
poorest and most forsaken of those lost damsels on whom he forth- 
with conferred the pompously sounding title of " Congregation 
of the grace of the Holy Virgin." To enter, in our days, an 
asylum or refuge for fallen damsels, would have awakened a 
feeling of natural timidity ; but by the entrance into the " Con- 
gregation of the Holy Virgin," those miserable beings considered 
themselves raised instead of lowered, and each of the poor 
creatures looked upon herself as a penitent Magdalen. But this 
was the least part of the business. As soon as the Martha 
cloister became in some degree peopled, Loyola began to 
organise processions of his repentant beauties, and displayed in 
them such splendour that all Rome went down upon their 
knees as soon as he appeared in the streets with his remarkable 



LOYOLA IN ROME. 41 

following. Immediately preceding them marched a troop of 
beautiful children, who swung about smoking censers, exhaling 
delicious perfumes, or throwing a shower of flowers on all sides 
over the gaping crowd. Then came three gigantic men, each 
of whom carried a still more gigantic banner. Upon the first 
was delineated, richly ornamented with rubies, the three 
capital letters I. H. S., i.e. Jesus Hominum Salvator ; upon 
the second sparkled the image of the mother of God, with the 
inscription, " Congregation of the grace of the Holy Virgin," 
and lastly, upon the third, shone the representation of a 
wonderfully beautiful penitent, over whom a martyr's crown was 
held by three angels. Behind the banner-bearers followed 
Ignatius, surrounded by his associates, all clad in closely-fitting 
black cloaks reaching down to the ankles, and broad-brimmed 
black hats bent down on all the four sides, similar to what the 
Jesuits wear at the present time. Behind Ignatius marched 
the penitents, that is to say, the inmates of the cloister of Saint 
Martha, not, however, in sombre penitential garments, but gaily 
enveloped in white muslin cloaks finely ornamented, with 
flowers in their hair, and strings of pearls round their necks. 
The younger members of the Society of Jesus, brought up 
the close of the procession, with garlands of roses in their hands, 
and looks cast humbly on the ground, all singing together the 
hymn, " Veni Creator Spiritus," " Come Grod the Holy Ghost," 
or some other suitable song. In this manner did Ignatius 
appear in the streets of Rome, with his " Congregation of the 
grace of the Holy Virgin," and before the palaces of each ot 
the cardinals, and especially before the dwellings of the noble 
patronesses a short halt was made, at which both the former as 
well as the latter were not a little flattered. The result was that 
the inventor of these processions received encouragement from 
-all quarters for his undertaking, which prospered more and more, 
-notwithstanding the ridicule thrown upon it by the enlightened 
Romans themselves. Indeed, certain of the beautiful sinners 
became so enthusiastic on behalf of the new order of things 
that the Cloister of the Holy Martha was soon filled from top 
to bottom, and the name of Ignatius resounded throughout all 
countries, as care was taken to noise it abroad that he had 
succeeded in turning all the abandoned women and mistresses of 
Rome into pious penitents. 



42 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

When, however, this work of Loyola was more closely looked 
into, the nimbus pretty well vanished, and, properly speaking, no- 
real moral worth could be attributed to it. In the first place, 
only a very small number of ladies who had made themselves 
notorious entered into the Congregation of the grace of the Holy 
Virgin, since it appeared that the whole number comprised in 
the Cloister of the Holy Martha did not exceed 300 penitents, 
and the conversion of the Roman world of profligacy, if not 
quite inconsiderable, became reduced to very small proportions. 
Secondly, there was really no question of any true conversion,, 
that is as to a change and amendment of the moral perception 
in any single one of the penitents, whose repentance appeared 
to consist in nothing else than mere pompous show, and in the 
outward confession of past sins, upon which absolution imme- 
diately followed. Nevertheless, Loyola thereby gained two 
uncommon advantages ; first of all he put the holy Father under 
great obligation to him, it being trumpeted forth to the world 
that the whole profligacy of Home had gone over into the 
cloister; while in the next place, in consequence thereof, the- 
severe reproaches of the adherents of the Reformation regarding 
the licentiousness of the high ecclesiastics ol the Papal Court 
were capable of refutation; added to this, hearing the confessions 
of so many profligates and mistresses, put him in possession of 
such a mass of secrets that the information he thus obtained 
was of extraordinary value to him. As for example, it could 
not be easy for a cardinal or any other high personage to dare 
to oppose him in his projects relating to his Order, when such 
persons were conscious that in all probability Loyola was initiated 
into the story of their amours and former misdoings with this 
or that Donna, Olympia, or Julia ! Moreover, what influence 
had not these beautiful sinners over their lovers when the 
former, as not unfrequently happened, at a future time returned 
again to the world from the cloister of Saint Martha ? What 
power did it not put in the hands of a father confessor ? 

Loyola, therefore, was never in his life engaged in such a 
cunning business as in adopting the profligate women of Rome, 
and from that time forward all his scholars and associates have 
taken trouble, above everything, to win for themselves the 
lair sex, whether married or otherwise. In this manner Loyola 
obtained for himself a firm footing in Rome, and us he now 



LOYOLA IN ROME. 43 

thought that he had sufficiently won over to his views such as 
had influence with the Pope, in August 1539, he had the statutes 
of his Order, so far as then prepared, laid before His Holiness at 
the time residing on the Tiber. This was done by Cardinal Con- 
tarini, who was very favourably affected towards Ignatius. The 
Pontiff charged Father Thomas Badia, who at that time held the 
office of High Chamberlain (Magistrum Sacri Palatii), and who 
afterwards became Cardinal, to read through the document ; but 
as the latter extolled it so much, he took it into his own hand, 
and after carefully examining it, full of astonishment and 
admiration, exclaimed, " Digitus Dei est hie ! " " The finger of 
God is here." He forthwith summoned Ignatius before him in 
September 1539, and, after loading him with praise, informed 
him that there was nothing whatever to hinder the ratification 
of the new Society. Who could now be more joyful than 
Ignatius ? Still this delight was soon again disturbed on his 
urging His Holiness to confirm in writing, that is to say, by a 
Bull, his verbal approval. After further consideration the 
ruler of Christendom began to entertain some scruples. The 
Pontifex was of opinion that the matter was far too weighty that 
he should dare to trust entirely to his own opinion and judgment ; 
it must rather, as usual with all vital Church questions, be 
referred first of all to a Commission of Cardinals, and only after 
a favourable opinion being pronounced upon it by them could 
the Pope give his final approval. In short, he at once nominated 
such a Commission, consisting of three of the most distinguished 
Cardinals. It was thought, however, to be a bad omen that one 
of the number was the learned, upright, and sagacious Cardinal 
Bartholomew Guidiccioni, who was well known to be thoroughly 
unfavourable to the ecclesiastical Orders. From this quarter 
Ignatius was seized with great alarm as to the fate of his Order ; 
and that he had good cause for this anxiety the immediate future 
disclosed. Guidiccioni at once declared the proposed Society 
to be completely inadmissible, inasmuch as, according to the 
4th Synod of Lateran of the year 1215 and the 2nd of Lyons 
of the year 1274, it was distinctly decided that no new Order 
could in future be founded. And even were this prohibition of 
the Church to be set aside, the ratification of this proposed 
society of Loyola must be relinquished, as envy and jealousy 
would be aroused thereby among the Orders already existing; 



44 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

while, as so much hatred and disputation already reigned ram- 
pant in the Church, it was most desirable that all occasion fbr 
new conflicts should most carefully be avoided. " Rather abolish 
the Orders entirely," said the Cardinal at the close of his 
judgment, " or reduce their overwhelming number, than create 
an accession of monks who, we all know, bring at present more 
injury than advantage to the Papal throne.'' Thus judged 
Cardinal Guidicoioni, and his two colleagues agreed with him 
xiompletely at least, at first so that the ambitious Loyola was 
almost driven to despair. At last, however, after an opposition 
which had continued for almost half a year, the efforts of Ignatius 
and his friends succeeded in bringing about a change of opinion, 
and finally even Cardinal Guidiccioni came to be, instead of an 
enemy, one of his most zealous supporters. And wherein lay 
the grounds for this change of opinion ? Simply and solely 
because the cardinals now came to the conviction that the new 
Society might be made a lever by which Roman Catholicism, so 
greatly shaken by the Reformation, might be raised up again a 
lever and point of support for the Pope and the Papacy such as 
had never yet existed.* This conviction found favour for itself, 
partly in that the statutes of the Order and its inherent prin- 
ciples and rules had survived a long-continued and very searching 
trial, and partly also on account of several explanatory additions 
proposed to be made, to which Loyola and his friends gave their 
consent. 

It was after this that, as the college charged with the exa- 
mination of the statutes had declared itself favourable thereto, 

* All authors unanimously agree that the Pope ratified the Order of 
Jesuits solely on grounds of utility, that is, because he believed that 
through it the degraded Papal power might again be resuscitated. The 
learned Schrock, for instance, declares his views : " The acceptance 
of, and favour shown to, the Order of the Jesuits by the Pope is not to 
be wondered at from the state of the Catholic Church at that time ; on the 
contrary, it must have been heartily welcome to the Roman Court. The 
latter had already lost an immense deal of ground through the Reformation 
of Luther and Calvin, and stood in danger of being always still more a loser, 
as the former means of the Popes for securing the obedience of Christians 
were no longer sufficient ; the other orders and ecclesiastical societies 
which had hitherto rendered good service had become powerless and 
effete, and enjoyed but little consideration hi their own proper church. 
More powerful institutions and more active defenders than the Roman 
Catholic Church hitherto had, were required against such formidable 
and fortunate opponents. Now a society offered itself which promised 
to devote itself to all the requirements of the Church, and render 
the most implicit obedience to the Popes. Why should it, then, be 
rejected ? " 



LOYOLA IN ROME. 45 

the Pope himself naturally took no further exception to the 
solemn formal ratification of the new Society under the name of 
" Societas Jesu," * and this, in fact, took place on the 27th 
September 1540, through a special Bull commencing with the 
words, " Regimini militantis ecclesice." 

In this manner was the Order of the Jesuits called into 
existence. 

* Most of the remaining orders were named after their founders. Loyola, 
however, did not seek for Loyolites or Ignatianites, but for Jesuits, as not 
himself but Jesus he wished to be considered the head of the Society he 
had founded. On that account he had from the first the intention of giving 
his Society the expressive title of "Phalanx Jesu," and also "Compagnia di 
Giesu," " Societas Jesu " in Latin, and it was not, therefore, Paul III. who 
invented this name, which originated entirely with Ignatius Loyola. The 
designation " Jesuit " came, moreover, into use only after Loyola's death,, 
and according to general belief originated in Paris from the celebrated 
Etienne Pasquier, the advocate of the Parisian University in its transactions 
with the Jesuit Order during the latter half of the 16th century. Previoua 
to this time the Jesuits were called, as has been already related* 
" Companions of Jesus." 



46 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 



CHAPTER IV. 

THE ORGANISATION AND STATUTE BOOK OP THE NEW 

ORDER. 

THE reader will now be curious to become acquainted with 
the statute which Loyola submitted to the Pope, and I therefore 
place it before him in a verbal translation. Thus begins this 
very memorable document : 

" Whoever will, as a member of our Society, upon which we 
have bestowed the name of Jesus, fight under the banner of the 
Cross, and serve God alone and His representative on earth, the 
Pope of Rome, after having in the most solemn manner taken 
the vow of chastity, must always recollect that he now belongs 
to a Society which has been instituted simply and solely in 
order to perfect in the souls of men the teaching and dissemina- 
tion of Christianity, as also to promulgate the true faith by 
means of the public preaching of God's word, by holy exercises 
and macerations, by works of love, and especially by the educa- 
tion of the young, and the instruction of those who have hitherto 
had no correct knowledge of Christianity, and lastly by hearing 
the confessions of believers, and giving them holy consolation. 
He should always have God before his eyes, or, more correctly, 
the aim of our Society and our Order, which is the sole way to 
God, and strive with his best exertions to bring about the 
accomplishment of this aim. On the other hand, each one 
should be satisfied with the measure of grace dispensed to him 
by the Holy Ghost, and not contend in judgment with others 



THE ORGANISATION OF THE NEW ORDER. 47 

who are, perhaps, more discreet. In order to effect this more 
easily, and with the view of upholding that order rightly which 
is necessary in all well-regulated societies, it shall be for the 
General alone, the Chief selected from among us, to have the 
right of deciding how each should be employed, and of 
determining who would be most suitable for this or that office 
or business. 

" Further, this Chief or General shall have the power, with the 
approval of his associates, to frame the fixed rules and constitu- 
tion of the Society, and judge whatever will be most fitted for 
the attainment of the chief aim of the Society, not, however, 
without having previously asked the associates and consulted 
with them. On all important occasions, and where it concerns 
permanent regulations, the General has on that account to con- 
voke the whole members of the Society, or, at least, the greater 
number of them, and then the point will be decided by a simple 
majority. In the case of less important matters, however, 
especially where dispatch is needed, it shall be quite sufficient 
to call together in council such of the associates as may happen 
to be present on the spot where the General resides. The 
carrying out of the laws, moreover, no less than the proper 
right of command, and supreme power, belongs solely to the 
Chief, and to no third person. 

"Be it known to all men further, that it must be engraven, 
not only on the doors of their Profess-houses, but also on 
their hearts in capital letters as long as they live, that the entire 
Society and all and sundry who enter into the same are bound 
to render implicit obedience to our holy lord the Pope, as also 
to all his successors, and in this obedience to fight only for 
God. However learned and thereby orthodox they may have 
become in the Bible, all Christian believers owe obedience and 
allegiance to the Pope of Home as visible head of the Church 
and representative of Jesus Christ ; so, also, do we hold our- 
selves bound by a special vow of general obedience for the 
submission of this Order in general, as also for the formal 
spiritual mortification of each individual among us in particular, 
and for the public renunciation of our own proper will. This 
vow requires that whatever the present Pope or his successors 
may order, provided it redound to the advantage of souls and 
the propagation of the faith, that for whatever mission it is 



48 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

desired we may be employed in, whether it be to the Turks or 
other unbelievers, even if it be as fnr as India, or to heretics,. 
Lutherans, or schismatics, or, lastly, even should it be wished 
to send us among the orthodox, we shall immediately obey 
without any delay, and without offering any excuse whatever. 
On this account it behoves all who are minded to join our 
Society, before they take this burden upon their shoulders, well 
and maturely to consider whether they have the command of 
such spiritual means as would enable them to climb, with God's 
assistance, those steep heights ; that is, whether the Holy Ghost, 
who impels them, has poured upon them such a measure of 
spiritual grace, that they may dare to hope, with His assistance, 
they may not succumb under the burden of their vocation. Are 
you quite prepared to range yourselves for war service under 
the banner of Jesus Christ ? So must you gird up your loins 
day and night, and be ready at any hour of the day or night to 
bear the burden you have undertaken. 

" No one belonging to the Society shall, impelled by ambi- 
tion, carry out, of his own accord, this or that mission or function, 
and still less shall any member have the right to enter inde- 
pendently into communication, directly or indirectly, with the 
Roman chair, or other ecclesiastical authorities ; it is only 
God alone, or rather, that is to say, His representative, the 
Pope, as also the General of the Order, who can do this. All 
such orders must proceed from them ; but when a member has 
a commission given to him to execute, he shall not under any 
circumstances whatever hesitate to undertake the same ; on the 
other hand, he may not engage to concert or come to an 
arrangement with the Pope regarding any great mission work 
without the approval of the Society. All and every one must 
vow to render implicit obedience to the decision of the Chief on 
all points relative to the rules of the Order ; he himself, however, 
on the other hand, must engage to issue only such commands 
as he considers conformable to the attainment of the object 
the Society has in view. Also must he in the administration of 
his office always have before his eyes the example of the good- 
ness, gentleness, and love given by Christ and His Apostles, 
Peter and Paul, and so shall he also instruct all his councillors- 
and higher officials. Especially must he take care that the 
education of the young, and the instruction of ignorant adults in 



THE ORGANISATION OF THE NEW ORDER. 49 

the principles of Christian teaching, in the Ten Commandments 
and the other elements, both as to time and place, as also with 
regard to the person himself, shall never be neglected, and, 
indeed, this is the more necessary, as without a well-founded 
faith no true edifice can be erected. Moreover, it is clear that if 
the General should not take the business strictly in hand, one or 
other of the brethren, erroneously thinking himself more accom- 
plished, and believing this or that land, or this or that district, 
to be much too small and inconsiderable for the extent of his 
knowledge, might abandon the instruction, whilst in fact nothing 
could be more serviceable than this instruction, as well for the 
edification of his neighbour as for exercise in works of humility 
and love, and, lastly, for the attainment of our chief object. 
In a word, the members of the Society shall, according to the 
rules of the Order, implicitly obey the Chief, or General, in every 
particular, and on all occasions, to the infinite benefit of the 
Society, and the continual exercise of humility never to be 
sufficiently commended, considering him with becoming rever- 
ence as the representative of Christ, the commander-in-chief of 
the heavenly hosts. Now, whilst experience teaches that there 
are no men who have a purer, more edifying, or more agreeable 
life as regards their neighbours, than those who are furthest 
removed from the poison of avarice, and stand closest to evan- 
gelical poverty ; and while we further know that the Lord Jesus 
Christ provides all his servants, when engaged in the service of 
the kingdom of heaven, with all necessaries of food, drink, and 
clothing; so shall each and every member of our Order make a 
vow of perpetual poverty, and at the same time declare that 
neither for themselves, that is, for their own proper persons, nor 
also for the maintenance and use of the Order itself in common, 
shall they take or obtain possession of any lands or property, 
wherever situated, or merely the income derived therefrom, but 
rather be satisfied with what they can voluntarily spend in 
administering to the wants and necessities of others. 

"It will be still free to them to establish one or more colleges 
at the universities, for the maintenance of which the acceptance 
of lands and estates, with the income derived therefrom, need 
not be declined, on the understanding that they are to be used 
for the good of the students. The superintendence, however, 
over the before-mentioned colleges, the students attached to them, 

4 



50 HISTOBY OP THE JESUITS. 

as well as the administration of the same, and of the incomes 
appertaining to them, rests entirely with the General and with 
those brethren of the Order entrusted by him with such power, 
as also, indeed, the appointment, dismissal, recall, and expulsion 
of the teachers, superiors, and students, besides whatever con- 
cerns the introduction of statutes, regulations, and laws, the 
instruction of the pupils, their indoctrination, their punishments, 
their clothing, and, above all things, their education, guidance, 
and management. It will, in this way, be best made certain 
that the students can never misuse the said estates and incomes, 
nor can it even be a question of the Society employing the same 
for their own benefit and advantage. On the contrary, the entire 
interest of the college properties shall be appropriated to their 
maintenance, and to defraying the expenses of the education of 
the pupils ; the latter, however, may be admitted into our Society 
as soon as they have obtained sufficient proficiency in science 
and learning, and can even themselves work as teachers. All 
members of the Order who are consecrated to the priesthood, 
though they enjoy neither any church benefices, nor any other 
revenues, still have the duty of discharging all church functions, 
and are also bound to rehearse the office after church usage 
privately, that is, each individually for himself, but not in 
common as monks in cloister. 

" This is the statute of our Order, which we have sketched 
by the suggestion of the Holy Father Paul, and now 
submit for the approval of the Apostolic Chair. It is only a 
summary outline, but it will sufficiently enlighten those who are 
interested in our doings and proceedings, and it will serve as a 
criterion for those who subsequently join this Order. Since we 
now, moreover, know exactly, by long personal experience, with 
how many and great difficulties a life such as ours is surrounded, 
we have likewise found how advantageous it is that no one should 
be allowed to join our Society as a member who has not pre- 
viously undergone an exact and searching examination. First, 
then, he can only be admitted to the war service of Christ if he 
has been found efficiently skilled in the service of Christ, and 
clean and pure in his teaching and mode of life ; may he, how- 
ever, to our small beginning add his grace and favour, to the 
honour of God the Father, to whom be glory and praise in 
eternity, Amen." 



THE ORGANISATION OP THE NEW ORDER. 51 

Thus run the rules of the new Order, which Paul III. con- 
firmed, on the 27th September 1540, under the title of the Society 
of Jesus, but, it must be added, with the addition that the 
number of members should be limited to sixty. 

Still, these rules formed only the first principle, the mere 
beginning of the subsequent organisation of the Order of the 
Jesuits, and we shall be informed, in the next chapter, that 
the more precise and weighty of the laws and constitutions were 
only added afterwards. Still, in this initiatory sketch, or rather, 
by this small commencement, indications are not wanting of 
something entirely different from what at first existed. First 
and foremost, in addition to the three customary vows of chastity, 
poverty, and obedience to superiors, comes a fourth, the vow of 
absolute and unlimited submission to the Pope (obedientia 
illimitatce erga Pontificeni), and from this it follows that the 
members of the Society of Jesus are nothing else than an army 
of spiritual warriors who devote themselves entirely to the service 
of the Romish Chair. The second not less important point is 
that the new Order should not by any means be a monkish order, 
in spite of the obligation of the above-named vows. Up to this 
time the monks went by the name of whatever Order to which 
they belonged ; they lived together in cloisters, and led therein a 
life apparently devoted to God ; the Jesuits, on the contrary, 
were to live in the world, and not in seclusion. They were to 
possess, it is true, profess-houses, that is to say, houses of accom- 
modation for the members who had bound themselves by all the 
four vows (" profess " is equivalent to " vow "), but none of them 
could remain stationary anywhere for any length of time, and each 
must always hold himself in readiness to be sent about here and 
there on any particular duty for which he might be required. 
Their task was not that of following a life of contemplation, but 
that of working among men for the benefit of the Pope, and of 
labouring in far-away missions among the heathen, as well as in 
their native Europe fighting against heretics and schismatics. 
The third cardinal point is that they acknowledge education, 
secular as well as spiritual, to be the chief object of their lives. 
By the former must be understood the education of adults back- 
ward in knowledge, as well as that of the young, in the true, or 
Roman Catholic religion, for only in this way could a lasting and 
effectual stop be put to the extension of heresy. Spiritual 

4 * 



52 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

education, on the other hand, would be prosecuted among th& 
so-called novices, such youths merely as had the desire of pre- 
paring themselves for admittance into the Jesuit Order, as it may 
be supposed that the novices or pupils in question ought to be 
thoroughly perfected for the objects of the Order. With the view, 
moreover, that this essential principle of the Order, education, 
should be effectual, and, indeed, might be looked upon as a 
fourth cardinal point, it was required that the vow of poverty 
should be modified in some degree, or, rather, raised, as it wore, 
by an artificial lever, and so transformed into the reverse. The 
professed brethren themselves should, properly speaking, be poor 
and possess nothing of their own; but the educational institutions 
and colleges, on the other hand, which were entirely under the 
protection and control of the members and General of the Order, 
had the right to take whatever might be given them, and the 
more that was given the better pleased were the rectors and 
directors appointed by the General. As the fifth and last car- 
dinal point, which, indeed, gave to the Order from the commence- 
ment its firm internal cohesion, I have to state that the General 
or Chief was elected for life, and was endowed with completely 
absolute sovereign authority. He might not, indeed, alter or 
remodel the constitution without the advice and approval of his 
associates, but in all other matters implicit and unconditional 
obedience must be rendered to him, without any one having the 
right even of asking questions as to his reasons, and he might 
not only bestow offices and commissions according to his judg- 
ment, but he had to be looked upon as Christ's representative,, 
the embodied Jesus. 

Under such circumstances was it that the Order must neces- 
sarily obtain such a unified power as no society or institution in 
the whole world had ever before acquired, seeing that each 
member of the Society of Jesus, on his admission, gave up his 
own will and became, indeed, henceforth an instrument merely 
for the use of the Order. 

These are the five cardinal points by which the statutes of the 
Jesuit Society were pre-eminently distinguished from any pre- 
ceding Order, and when we contemplate these points the more- 
closely we cannot but be astonished at the extraordinary wisdom 
which they reflect. Not the less are we struck, at first sight, 
with the reason why the Roman Court promised for itself great 



THE ORGANISATION OF THE NEW ORDER. 53 

Advantages from the new Order, especially in opposing the 
increasing progress of the Reformation, and on that account 
we need not wonder that Paul III. solemnly confirmed the 
institution. On the other hand, there is not to be found in 
the statutes the slightest thing that detracts from the prosperity 
and advancement of the human race, and even the object of self- 
perfectibility, which among religious bodies had hitherto been 
the principal one, must give way thoroughly before that of the 
" defence of Papal things." Leaving all this nside, the new 
Order presented but a glaring contradiction, with its laws of 
reason and morality, because it required of its members, as an 
indispensable condition of their admittance, a complete surrender 
of all personal wishes and inclinations, of all personal dealings 
and striving after advancement ; in like manner must all thought 
of domestic life and friendship, all love of parents and sisters, all 
thought of country and home, all desire after or taste for beauty 
and art, be abandoned completely. In a word, all sources of 
the inner life of soul and body must be extinguished, in order to 
obtain the knighthood of Faith, with its concomitants of 
uninterrupted zeal and obedience. 



54 HISTOBY OF THE JESUITS. 



CHAPTER V. 

IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENERAL OF THE ORDER. 

THE first business which the new Order had to take in hand was 
to elect a Chief or General, and the choice fell unanimously on 
Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the Society. It is true, certainly, 
that there happened to be at that time only five members of the 
Order present in Rome, namely Lejay, Pasquet-Brouet, Laynez, 
Cordur, and Salmeron, but the election, nevertheless, may still 
be termed unanimous, because the remaining members trans- 
mitted their votes in writing. Ignatius, in fact, entered on his 
contemplated office on holy Easter Day of the year 1541, and 
it must have been uncommonly flattering to his fiery ambition 
that he had, through immense perseverance, at length brought 
the matter so far. On the other hand, he frequently asked him- 
self whether he would be able to carry out even a small part 
only of what he had with his people promised to perform, 
as the situation in which at that time the Papacy found it- 
self was a superlatively difficult one. Throughout the whole 
Christian world purity of the faith was completely obli- 
terated ; and, instead of Christian fervency and love, complete 
indifference had crept in. The ecclesiastics and priests had 
shown themselves to be unworthy of their office through their 
almost general shameless mode of life, and they possessed so small 
a knowledge of God's Word as to be unable to determine whether 
Melchisedec had been a butler or a dancing-master. As to the 
cloisters I will not at present speak, and still less of the chastity 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENERAL OF THE ORDER. 55 

to be found therein. It could not be denied that even in Rome 
itself more heathenism than Christianity prevailed, and so little 
awe was there for the Almighty among men, that, as a proof 
thereof, in lonely churches a dog even might be seen chained to 
the high altar to protect the deeply venerated property, and 
prevent the Pyx being stolen out of the tabernacle. If this were 
the case in Rome, it seemed even worse throughout the rest of 
the world. Spain and Italy were smothered in ignorance and 
sloth ; Germany through Luther, France through Calvin, 
Switzerland through Zwingle, and England through its own king 
showed a great falling away from the Catholic faith ; every day 
added to the number of heretics as well as heresies. In those 
regions still remaining Catholic the most shameless and wicked 
abominations were perpetrated with laughter and derision ; as, for 
instance, wicked grooms were not ashamed to mix the consecrated 
Host with the oats they gave to their horses, or to solemnise 
their carousals with the holy cup. And who now espoused the 
cause of the miserably down-fallen Romish Church ? Scarcely 
anyone in the whole wide world ; and if any did do so, it was 
without earnest good-will. 

With the initiation of the Order of Jesuits, however, all this 
was changed ; things soon assumed a very different appear- 
ance, and the world saw with astonishment what immeasurably 
great things a small society could accomplish as soon as it was 
conducted by one of iron will, who never lost sight of the aim 
and object he had in view. This same iron will Ignatius now, 
indeed, in his fiftieth year possessed even in a still greater 
degree than when, formerly, he insisted upon his half-healed leg 
being broken again in order that he might not appear in the 
world a mutilated cripple. Had he not day and night before 
his eyes the victory of Christ's Kingdom, as he designated the 
supremacy of the Papacy ? As he now considered himself con- 
secrated to the service of Jesus, he at once severed all bonds 
that still tied him to the world, especially that of blood-relation- 
ship ; as, for instance, he threw into the fire, without reading 
them, letters which after a long interval arrived for him from 
his home, and which had been joyously handed to him by the 
porter of the profess-house. He claimed also from his associates 
the absolute renunciation of all personal relations, and especially 
required of them, as warriors of Christ, the same unconditional 



66 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

blind obedience which a soldier owes to his officer. In this 
respect he was quite inexorable, without the slightest considera- 
tion for the birth, knowledge, understanding, or attainments of 
the individual. It might so happen, for instance, that he would 
suddenly call upon the most learned among the associates to 
perform the duties of cook, merely with the object of exercising 
him in humility ; or he would require another, who from his noble 
birth might consider himself capable of some important service, to 
clean out the kitchen or sweep the street. He was especially 
severe on idleness, and two younger brethren who were standing 
gaping idly about them, at the door of the Roman College, were 
compelled to carry up a heap of stones to the upper storey 
piece by piece, and to bring them down again on the following 
day. But, above all things, he exhibited the greatest severity 
upon those who did not immediately and on the instant attend 
to his orders, or who in the least seemed to allow it to be seen 
that they were inclined to submit those orders to their own 
judgment. Even Laynez himself, who might, so to speak, be 
looked upon as the chief in the Order, was obliged to apologise 
most humbly, as he on one occasion disapproved of an order of 
Ignatius, and permitted himself to raise expostulations against 
it. He, Ignatius, the Master of the Order, he took care to say, 
was ready day and night to comply with the orders of the Pope, 
and exactly, in like manner, must the members of the Society of 
Jesus be ready to comply with his (Ignatius's) orders. A 
brother, even while engaged in listening to a confession or in 
performing mass, dare not delay an instant if wanted by the 
Master, as the summons of the General was to be looked upon 
as equivalent to the call of Christ Himself. In short, Ignatius 
went upon the principle that if something substantial was to be 
effected, it could only be when one mind and one will pervaded 
the whole Society, and that it was only by carrying out this 
principle to the utmost that the end in view could really be 
accomplished. 

As soon as the new General was elected, on the 22nd of April 
1541, he organised a great procession to all the most remarkable 
churches and stations in the city of Rome, and marched along 
with it to the Church of St. Paul, outside the walls, and after 
reading mass he took before the high altar first the third and 
then the fourth vow, and finally demanded the same four vows 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENERAL OF THE ORDER. 57 

from his associates. After the conclusion of this ceremony 
'began the proper work of the Society. Ignatius allotted to each 
of his associates his own particular sphere of action, and urged 
upon every individual the task of being, before everything, most 
active in the extension and augmentation of the Society. 
Araoz and Villanouva, two newly-acquired members, he sent to 
Spain, Rodriguez to Portugal, Xavier to India, Brouet with 
some others to England, Lejay, Bobadilla, and Le Fevre to 
Germany, Cordur with fifteen others to France, Laynez and 
Salmeron as Papal legates to the assembly of the Church at 
Trient. In short, he apportioned off the world among his asso- 
ciates, while he himself remained in Rome in order thence to 
. conduct the whole affair. The results completely answered the 
expectations of Ignatius and of the Pope, and even, indeed, sur- 
passed them, for, after the lapse of some years, there arose in 
the great majority of the university towns Jesuit colleges, in 
which there was no lack of novices. Wherever there was con- 
tention in religious matters, in whatever countries the princes 
and people were at variance on this account, and, in short, 
wherever the old faith strove with the new, there now also 
appeared the ambassadors of Loyola, and the Black Cloaks with 
their sagacity, their eloquence, their zeal and energy, caused the 
side which they defended to triumph almost universally, the result 
being that they obtained for themselves a firm footing.* 

While the Pope now derived so much benefit from the new 
"Society, he naturally enough could not prove himself ungrateful, 
and Ignatius, therefore, easily acquired from him one advantage 
after another. It was thus that the Jesuit General obtained the 
two churches, " De la Strata " and " To the Holy Andrew '' ; as 
also sufficient space at the foot of Engelsburg for the erection of 
a splendid " Profess-house " for the members of the Four Vows. 
He thus succeeded in bringing into existence a number of costly 
institutions, as, for instance, the " Rosenstift," designed for the 
protection of young girls, and as a refuge for fallen women. Also 
schools, where catechising took place, for Jews who had embraced 
Christianity, as well as orphanages for parentless boys and girls 
who were destitute. The chief thing, however, which occasioned 
Ignatius to rejoice, was the amplification of the privileges for his 

* The particulars regarding all this are to be found in detail in the second 
took of this work. 



58 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

Order under Paul III., for without such proofs of favour the 
Society of Jesus could never have been able to raise itself to that 
height of splendour which, as history teaches us, it succeeded in 
attaining. 

Already, in 1543, two years only after the foundation of the 
Order, it became apparent that the number of sixty members, 
which was at first determined on by the Pope, had been found to 
be far too limited, as in such an uncommonly large field of 
labour which the Jesuits occupied, what could be accomplished 
by sixty members only ! On that account Paul III. issued a 
new Bull on the 14th of March 1543, which, by the words with 
which it commences, Injunction nobis, gives to Ignatius the 
power to take as many members as he wishes, a privilege of 
which advantage was, naturally enough, at once taken. What 
was even a still more valuable addition for the Order, contained 
in the same Bull, was an authorisation the effect of which wa 
in fact immeasurable, and such as no order could hitherto boast. 
It was no less than that Loyola, as well as all future Generals of 
the Order, could, with the sanction of the most distinguished 
members in council, alter, expunge, or make additions to the 
laws of the Society, or create entirely new regulations, according 
as it appeared under the circumstances to be most advantageous; 
and it was decreed that these altered and newly-framed statutes, 
even in the case when the Roman Chair had no knowledge of 
them, should have the same validity as if the Pope himself had 
confirmed them. Although it seems almost madness that a 
Pope should impart a privilege of this description to any 
General of any Order, it thus stands verbally written in the Bull 
[njunctum nobis. It, in fact, made the individual in question 
thereby almost independent of the Papal chair, and at the same 
time a despot of such extraordinary power that it was calculated 
to render all States distrustful of him. For instance, does not 
every Government, solicitous for the welfare of its subjects and 
for its own stability, require that the rules and constitution of all 
such societies as that of the Jesuits should be submitted for its 
acceptance and toleration ? Would it not carefully examine 
beforehand the contents of the same to ascertain exactly whether 
they were in accordance with the laws of the country, or whether 
there might be any possibility that the weal of the State might 
be undermined thereby ? Certainly every wise Government 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENEBAL OF THE ORDER. 59' 

would naturnlly thus act, and the Jesuits, therefore, as well as all 
other Orders in the different countries into which they had 
penetrated, had to submit their constitution for approval. 
How would it be, then, if the General, after permission being 
granted, was pleased to alter its constitution, and incorporate 
among its rules some resolution, perhaps, highly dangerous to 
the State ? Truly the above-described authorisation might 
well startle and be a warning to any State in allowing the Order 
of Jesuits to become rooted among them, while this Papal Bull 
made it indeed a chameleon whereby every succeeding General 
might be able to give a new colour to the rules, so that conse- 
quently no trust could be placed at all in them. 

Ignatius then obtained a new privilege, through another 
decree, published on the 5th of June 1545, which also contri- 
buted not a little to the power of the new Order. The Pope 
thereby conferred on the Jesuits the right to ascend any 
pulpit wherever they went, to teach in all places, and to establish 
Professorial chairs everywhere ; to hear confessions, and grant 
absolution for every sin, even for such as the Papal Chair had 
reserved for itself to consider; to exempt from all Church penal- 
ties and curses ; to dispense with vows and pilgrimages, and to 
order, as well, other good works ; to read mass in all places and 
at all hours ; to administer the sacraments without necessarily 
having the acquiescence of the local priesthood, or even the 
bishop of the place. 

This was once more an enormous advantage for the Jesuits 
over rival Orders, none of whom ever possessed such extensive 
privileges ; and, indeed, it caused them to burst with envy. 
What embittered the ordinary priesthood still more against the 
Black Cloaks was that in granting absolution they never imposed 
any very severe punishment, even for grave sins, thereby snatching 
from their rivals many penitents, and consequently depriving 
them of no inconsiderable part of their income and influence. 
But indignation was of no avail to them, and even the com- 
plaints of distinguished bishops had no weight with the Pope, 
who entertained a particular affection for the Jesuits, and, in 
very truth, on good grounds. 

Moreover, about a year afterwards, a further extension of 
the Order occurred. Hitherto there had existed only two 
classes of the same, novices and professed members ; that is to> 



tiO HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

ay, such as had taken upon themselves the four vows, and such 
as had been received into the holy colleges as pupils, in order 
'that they might be properly brought up as regular Jesuits. The 
latter were as yet not members, properly speaking, but only 
aspirants or candidates, who might easily be again dismissed at 
pleasure, on being found unsuitable. It was now, however, 
indispensably requisite, if the Order, as Loyola designed it, was 
to be spread over the whole world, that the number of instru- 
ments should be increased, as with the hundred or hundred 
and twenty which there were in the year 1546 the claims upon 
them could not be by any means fully satisfied. How, then, was 
this evil to be remedied ? In the first place it was requisite, 
some way or other, that a greater number should be made to 
take the four vows, becoming thereby professed members. 
Loyola, indeed, had the power of doing this through the Bull 
Injunctttm nobis, but was it advisable ? The professed 
members formed, so to speak, the privy councillors of the 
General, and without their consent the constitution of the Order 
could not be altered. A large conclave, however, would make 
unanimity difficult, according to the old proverb, " Many heads 
many minds." Some plan for preventing this must be found, 
as it would be unwise to trust a large body of men with the 
innermost thoughts and ideas of the Order, for there must 
always be a greater number of scabbed sheep in a large flock 
than in a small one. Thus prudence, certainly, strongly forbade 
that thousands should be promoted to be professed members, 
and Loyola, as well as his associates, held the opinion that the 
number of Jesuits proper, that is to say, of professed members, 
should be limited as much as practicable.* While, therefore, no 
assistance could well be gained in this direction, more instru- 
ments must, in some way or other, be found at any price. 

It then entered into the mind of Loyola to create a third 
class of members, who might be of as much use to the Order 
as the professed members, without, however, having the rights of 
the same. This class he designated " Coadjutors," and he at once 
divided them into two subdivisions, "the secular and spiritual 

* In the year 1715, when the Order had attained its highest state of 
prosperity, when it possessed over 700 colleges and numbered more than 
:22,000 members, there existed only twenty-four profess-houses, in none of 
which lived more than ten professed members. Proof sufficient that the 
principle above stated remained a fixed rule. 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENEKAL OF THE ORDER. 61 

coadjutors." The Pope, also, at once sanctioned this new arrange- 
ment, in a special Bull, which was signed on the 5th of June 1 546. 
In this way the Order of Jesuits had the following organisa- 
tion. The novices formed the lowest grade, out of which the 
proper stock might be recruited. The most talented and highly 
educated youths were selected and first brought into the "Trial 
House" (domus probationis] , where the novice master (magister 
novitiorum) kept them under observation and watched over them 
with an assistant during a period of twenty days. Should 
they then continue firm in their determination of entering the 
Order, and should this inspection prove favourable to them, i.e. 
should they be found to be fit and suitable subjects, they were 
then promoted to be true noviciates, and came into the Noviciate 
House, where they had to remain during two years. In the first 
year they had to undergo all the degrees of self-denial, they 
had to castigate their flesh, and had to nurse in the hospitals the 
most filthy and disgusting patients; they were also kept at 
the occupation of begging and other low employments, besides 
which they were practised by the master in frequent confessions, 
and compelled to lay open all their most secret thoughts and 
desires daily, with the most blind obedience. In the second 
year, when they had proved their humility and submission to 
authority, they were assigned more intellectual than corporeal 
employments, and were exercised especially in preaching, cate- 
chising, and in other things concerning the welfare of the soul. 
But at the same time, care was taken against fatiguing them too 
much, in order that the next stage should not be rendered dis- 
agreeable to them, and several amusements even were not denied 
them, as, for instance, attending prosecutions of the Inquisition 
and other similar sights. On their having completed the two 
years of noviciate successfully, then the three vows of poverty, , 
chastity, and obedience were administered to them, and they 
were promoted to be spiritual coadjutors. As such, during the 
first two years, they were only so-called scholastics, that is to 
say, proved pupils who might be employed in the colleges, 
or, also, as assistants in missions. When, however, they had : 
acquired sufficient experience to render them more independently 
useful, they were advanced, according to their talents and ability, 
to be professors, rectors, preachers, confessors, &c., and were, 
now designated coadjutor esformati, i.e. true assistants. 



62 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

Besides them, there were secular assistants, or coadjutores 
xactilares, who acted, so to speak, as lay brethren, and without 
having received any higher ordination were charged with the 
house-keeping duties in colleges, missions, and profess-houses. 
They had nothing to do with the priesthood, i.e. with the cure of 
souls, or with education, and, as they had to perform menial 
services, were held in but trifling esteem. 

The superior lay brethren, however, not infrequently received 
ihe title of secular coadjutors, to distinguish them, on account 
of their true services to the Order, and then such under- 
took no definite functions, but continued to remain rather in 
their hitherto worldly position. They were merely confederates, 
or " affiliates " ; they were also called, derisively, short-coated 
Jesuits, or Jesuits in voto ; and the pupils of Loyola boasted 
that even crowned heads belonged to this class of the Order, in 
the persons of the Emperor Ferdinand II. and King Louis XIV. 

Lastly, the professed members formed the highest grade and 
proper "heart and soul of the Society, i.e. those who had taken the 
four vows upon them, and consequently gave implicit obedience 
to the Pope, and such were selected from the class of coadjutors 
distinguished among their brethren for their worldly wisdom, 
knowledge, fidelity, and experience. To these only were entrusted 
by the General the highest offices and most important posts, as 
he could depend upon them in every respect. They seldom, 
therefore, lived at ease in the profess-houses, only, indeed, when 
unwell or temporarily unemployed from some other cause ; one 
would serve as a missionary among the heathen, another as a 
warrior of 'God against the heretics, a third as a ruler of some 
colony in a distant quarter of the globe, a fourth as father con- 
fessor of some prince or lady of distinction, a fifth as Resident 
of the Order in some locality where it had not as yet possessed 
a college, a sixth as legate of the Pope in some special mission, 
a seventh, eighth, or ninth, as assistant to the General in 
Rome, or as supreme leader in some particular province, as 
provincial or as superior of a profess-house, or as rector of a 
college. Under these circumstances, as none can at the same 
time serve two masters, they were for the time quite exempt from 
the obligation as to the instruction of youth, which last duty 
was left entirely to the coadjutors. On the other hand, the 
professed members had from time to time to make their appear 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENERAL OF THE ORDER. 03 

ance in Rome, at general chapters, or meetings, in order to take 
a part in consultations regarding any proposed change in the 
statutes, and it was they also who elected from amongst their 
number the General when that office happened to become vacant. 

From the time Loyola conceived the idea of calling the class 
of coadjutors into existence, the interior economy of the Order 
was in this manner henceforth arranged, and one may perceive 
now that the fixed regulations were much more important than 
at first sight appeared. 

In the same year, 1546, in which the new classification of 
the Order of Jesuits was effected, Loyola gained still another 
important victory. It happened, namely, that King Ferdinand, 
^brother of the Emperor Charles V., came to form so high an 
opinion of Lejay, who, as we have seen above, laboured for the 
Order in Germany, that he wished him to be made Bishop of 
Triest. He wrote on this account to the Pope, who was natu- 
rally quite ready to confer a favour on the great man. The 
Society of Jesus also hoped to consolidate its power through the 
elevation to such rank of a member of their Order, as the 
remaining Orders, such as the Dominicans, Franciscans, Bene- 
dictines, or whatever else they may be designated, always courted 
such dignities, and were in the highest degree proud whenever 
anyone of their body gained an important Church preferment as 
Bishop or Archbishop. One might easily, therefore, suppose 
that this would be the case with Ignatius Loyola, and that he 
would be ready to clutch with both hands the contemplated 
honour for one of his associates, more especially as to the 
Bishopric of Triest a considerable income was attached. To the 
great astonishment, then, of the Pope and King Ferdinand, 
Loyola took quite a different view, and opposed the elevation of 
Lejay, through think and thin, as soon as he received news of the 
same. " We members of the Society of Jesus," said he to 
the Pope, as he afterwards wrote in quite similar terms to 
the King, " are warriors of Christ, and must therefore possess 
all the characteristics of good soldiers. We must be always 
ready to advance against the enemy, and be always prepared to 
harass him or to fall upon him, and on that account we must 
not venture to tie ourselves to any particular place. How could 
we else, at the first hint from your Holiness, which is certainlv 
our duty above everything, fly from one town or city to another, 



64 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

or from one end of the world to another ? Besides, the lowly 
character of our Order forbids that one of us should accept a high 
Church preferment, and we must be most careful not to awaken 
again the jealousy of the other Orders as we have before done." 
It was in this sense that Loyola spoke, and it may be that he 
was in earnest in giving the arguments he advanced as the 
cause of his dissent ; but, at any rate, such were not the only 
reasons, but besides them he had still others in the background, 
and, indeed, much more weighty ones. Why, truly, was it not 
much more probable, as, indee'd, it became in the future the rule, 
that the most ambitious among the Jesuits never would remain 
quiet until they had secured for themselves places of great 
honour ? We know now that the Order was almost deprived of its 
highest glory, and its transcendant powers were taken away, owing 
to this cause. Independent of this, too, how would it be with the 
rigorous monarchy in the Order, with the omnipotence of the 
General, and the subordination of the members, were there a 
possibility of the power of the Grand Master being in any way 
diminished ? Could there be any longer a question that the 
Bishops or Archbishops, and, together with them, the Prince 
of the kingdom in which they lived, would not remain in such 
subjection to the General of the Order as had previously been 
the case ? It would not be possible, even if it were wished, 
because a prince must necessarily fulfil his required obligations, 
against which orders from Rome would be of no avail. 

All this said Loyola to himself; therefore, as the Pope and 
King Ferdinand did not on the instant assent to his representa- 
tions, he, without any more ceremony, finally forbad Lejay to 
accept the proffered appointment. Indeed, this was not enough 
for him ; but he made it from this time an irrefragable law, that 
a member of the Society of Jesus should never on any account 
accept an episcopal chair, and for this reason he himself declined 
the office of Cardinal which was offered to him. 

What did the " I " signify to himself, or what did the " I " 
matter to his associates ? His only pride and pleasure was the 
success and prosperity of the Society he had founded. Along 
with the continuously increasing extension of the Order of Jesus 
their wishes, as may well be imagined, kept pace ; for although 
individual members were obliged, for themselves, to take the vow 
of poverty, as has been above explained, they still retained thfr 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENEEAL OF THE ORDER. 65 

right of accepting all they could get for the use of the colleges 
they had founded, and of this right, indeed, they made the most 
extensive use. They also showed themselves, from the very 
first, not at all scrupulous in regard to the means they took to 
acquire this or that possession, and as a proof of this, I will now 
give the reader an instance. 

In the year 1542, Laynez, who was at that time working for 
the Order in Venice, caused a rich old nobleman, of the name of 
Andreas Lippomani, to make over the house and property which 
he possessed in Padua to the Jesuit Order on hehoof of a 
college to he founded ; and as this present was of considerable 
value, the whole farm being estimated to be worth 40,000 
ducats, Loyola rejoiced exceedingly. He felt it, however, to be 
all the more disagreeable, when on the death of Andreas, the 
rightful heir disputed the will and brought an action before the 
Venetian Senate, within whose jurisdiction the matter rested. At 
the commencement it seemed doubtful which party would gain 
the cause, and the balance of justice for some time oscillated 
considerably backwards and forwards undecidedly ; in the end, 
however, it appeared tolerably clear that the Senate would decide 
in favour of the legitimate heir, as he proved that his deceased 
relative, at the time the deed was drawn up, had become imbecile 
from old age, and had not his clear wits about him. This news 
drove Loyola into despair, and in his agitation he promised to 
the Virgin three thousand masses, and if that was not sufficient, 
two thousand more, provided that she would win over the minds 
of the senators to his side. At the same time, however, as he- 
made this appeal to Mary, which might possibly prove ineffec- 
tual, he did not forget to claim, also, human assistance, and 
forthwith he secured for himself the powerful aid of a Cardinal 
who had great influence with the Venetian Senate. He was 
doubtless very well aware that he had no right to gain the 
cause, and had nothing to expect from justice; he, therefore, 
had recourse to influence from another quarter, quite uncon- 
cerned and indifferent that he was thereby cheating the legiti- 
mate heir out of his property. But Laynez, his principal aider 
in founding the Order and its statutes, went a step further; for 
as soon as he discovered that the Doge, to whose pipe if I 
may be allowed to use a popular expression all the Senate 
danced, possessed a mistress who exercised great influence over 

5 



f)6 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

him, he filled his pockets with gold, and therewith had not 
much difficulty in gaining over the mercenary woman to his side, 
the result being that the final decision of the Senate turned out to 
"be in favour of the Jesus Association, and the rightful heir, in 
spite of his strong claims, was non-suited ; but the conscience of 
Loyola on that account did not in the least appear to trouble him. 
The same diligence that was exercised in the acquisition of 
riches, was, also, employed wherever the question was to win 
over substantial, influential, and powerful men of high standing, 
to be patrons and abettors of the Order, if not, indeed, members 
of the same ; and in this respect, in fact, several of Loyola's 
desciples rendered signal service. Among the foremost who 
distinguished himself in this particular, was Aroz, the delegate 
to Spain, as he was successful in inducing Francis Borgia, Duke 
of Gandia, and a grandee of Spain, as, also, formerly Viceroy of 
Catalonia a very weak man, however, in mental capacity to 
take up the cause of Jesuitism ; so much so, that this nobleman 
was the first person in Europe who founded a Jesuit College for 
the education of youth. He shortly afterwards, too, in the year 
1546, endowed a University, with all privileges. Overjoyed at 
this, Loyola commenced a correspondence with the Duke, and 
the result of these letters was that Borgia became so enamoured 
with the Society of Jesus, that he at length came to the firm 
determination of joining it as a true member; in fact, notwith- 
standing his already being considerably advanced in years, he 
forthwith put off the purple, and began the study of theology. 
His progress therein, however, advanced but slowly, and conse- 
quently Loyola allowed him to take the four vows without being 
previously well versed in theology, or even having gone through 
the course of exercises required of noviciates. Thus the Duke 
of Gandia became Pater Franciscus Borgia, and the newly-made 
member showed great, zeal for the Society. He, however, did 
not at once enter a profess-house, and still less was he employed 
in the service of the Order ; Ignatius, indeed, permitted him to 
live in the world during a period of fully four years, in order that 
the newly-acquired brother might be able to settle his worldly 
affairs, and conveniently make arrangements for the maintenance 
of his children. It was natural enough that such a highly-born 
man as Pater Borgia should not be treated exactly like an 
ordinary member. 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENERAL OF THE ORDER. 67 

I 'have already spoken of the privileges which the Pope 
granted to the Order, even in the first year of its existence ; but 
what did these prerogatives signify compared with those which 
Paul III. conceded to the Society of Jesus on the 18th October 
1549. One would, indeed, be perfectly correct in calling the 
Bull which refers to them the " Magna Charta " of the Jesuits ; 
and they themselves admitted as much when they conceived 
such a designation for this decree as " the great sea of their 
privileges." 

If one should inquire what could have been the reasons which 
actuated the Pope in bestowing such conspicuous favours on the 
the new Order, they are to be found in the preamble of the Bull, 
which terms the Society a fruitful acre, which, effecting much for 
the increase of the kingdom of God and the faith that is to say, 
the exaltation of the Papacy and the suppression of heresy 
through instruction and example, therefore well deserves to be 
rewarded with special favours ; and, in fact, favours of quite a 
peculiar description were given them, as the reader will suffi- 
ciently understand from the following extracts : 

1. " The General of the Order, as soon as he is nominated, 
shall have complete power as to the government of the Society, 
and especially also over the whole members of the same, where- 
soever these latter may reside, and with whatsoever office or 
dignity they may be endowed. His power shall indeed be so 
unlimited, that should he deem it necessary for the honour of 
God, he shall even be able to send back, or in other directions, 
those who have come direct from the Popes."* 

Thus, from this paragraph, his own power is placed over that 
of the Pope. How does it fare, then, with the four vows ? 

2. " No General, without the consent of the General Con- 
vention, and no member of the Society, without the express 
oonsent of the General, shall accept a bishopric, archbishopric, 
or any similar dignity; and whoever may have attempted in any 
way to obtain any such place, shall be considered so unworthy of 

* In this first paragraph there is also a question regarding the deposition 
of the General, which could be pronounced by a general chapter of professed 
members, whenever he could be proved guilty of heresy or of leading a life 
of vice, or was useless on account of mental derangement, &c., but as long 
as the Society existed there never was an instance of a General being 
charged before a general chapter, and still less deposed. He might, in fact, 
do whatever he chose. I should like to see the person who would dare to 
bring an accusation against such a complete despot as was the General. 

5 * 



68 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

the Society of Jesus, that he shall never more he employed in-, 
any important commission, office, or business."* 

3. " In order that discipline may be quite strictly maintained, 
there shall be no appeal against the rules of the Order to any 
judge or other official whatever ; much less can any member be 
released from his vows by any person." Even the keys of Peter, 
therefore, can have no power over a Jesuit, and it was the Pope 
himself who pronounced this ! 

4. " Neither the General nor the high officials of the Society 
shall be bound to hand over any member of the Order for the 
service of the Church to any prelate of the Church, be he 
patriarch, archbishop, or merely bishop, even when the said 
prelate shall have given strict orders regarding the matter ; 
should, however, such cession be voluntarily desired, then those 
whose services are lent are still to be considered under the power 
of their superiors, and can be recalled by the General at any 
moment." Thus the power of even the highest dignitary of the 
Church is inferior to that of the General of the Jesuits ! 

5. "The General, or those who may be ordered by him, shall 
have the power to grant absolution for all and every kind of sin, 
whether committed before or after entrance into the Order, and 
from all ecclesiastical and secular censures and penalties (those 
few cases excepted which are set forth in the Bull of Pope 
Sixtus IV. as appertaining solely to the Roman Chair), to all 
members of the Order, as well as to all such as may express a 
wish to enter the Order as novices, or to serve as lay brethren ; 
should, however, anyone not hitherto a member, who in this 
manner obtains absolution and dispensation, not immediately 
thereafter join the Order, the indulgence and dispensation shall 
become of no effect.'' That is an unheard-of privilege, as even 

* The reader will, no doubt, see that this paragraph has the above- 
mentioned " Affaire Lejay " to thank for its origin. It was also soon seen 
that the same rule was quite in its place, and by its strict maintenance 
protected the Society from much iniury. The Emperor Charles V. saw 
with displeasure that the Duke of Gandia had laid down his title and 
entered the Jesuit Order as a simple professed member, as he considered 
such a position much too low and humiliating for a prince. He had on this 
account wished the Pope to raise Pater Borgia to the dignity of cardinal, 
and his Holiness declared himself prepared to do so. But what a loss 
would this have been for the Order ! This proceeding of Borgia's might 
serve as an example to the most noble and most distinguished ; and, more- 
over, his opulence would be such an excellent thing for the Society ! No, it 
would never do to allow him to be snatched away : and it was simply in 
allusion to the above paragraph that the former Prince Loyola was induced; 
to refuse at once a cardinal's hat. 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENEEAL OP THE ORDER. 69 

the worst criminals may, in this way, escape with impunity as 
soon as they enter the Jesuit Order ; that great advantage should 
have been taken of this privilege can well be imagined ! 

6. " No member of the Order shall confess his sins to any 
other than the General, or to those whom the General may have 
nominated, especially to any priest or monk of any other Order. 
Much less can anyone who has once joined the Order, be he 
called novice, coadjutor, or profess, quit the Order again except 
with the express consent of the General ; nor can he go over 
into any other Order, that of the Carthusians alone excepted. 
Should anyone infringe this command, the General has the 
power to prosecute such fugitives, either in person or through 
authorised agents, to excommunicate them, to seize them, and to 
put them in prison, and with this object the assistance of the 
secular authorities may be invoked." By this command the 
secrets of the Society of Jesus are prevented from ever being 
betrayed, and the means adopted have proved themselves indeed 
to be very efficacious. I may here remark, with respect to the 
permission to enter the Carthusian Order, that, as far as is 
known, no Jesuit ever took advantage thereof, owing to the 
extreme strictness of that sect. Who can be ignorant of the 
command of perpetual silence ? This has been generally re- 
ported to be one of the rules, and no doubt Loyola allowed 
the exception, as regards the Carthusians, on this ground 
alone. 

7. " The whole members of the Society, as well as the goods, 
incomes, and possessions of the Order, are exempt from the 
jurisdiction, supervision, and control of the bishops and arch- 
bishops, and shall be taken under the special protection of the 
Papal Chair." The Jesuits might, so to speak, do anything they 
chose, and no Church prelate could dare, on any account, to say 
even an unpleasant word to them. 

8. " Those members of the Order consecrated to the priest- 
hood, consequently all the professed, may, wherever they reside, 
have their own houses of prayer, or erect an altar in any 
other suitable locality, and may, even at the time of a 
Papal interdict, say mass there with closed doors, and administer 
the sacrament, after having excluded all excommunicants and 
heretics. Also, in all places bound by interdict or excom- 
munication, the young men and servants in the employment of 



70 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

the Jesuits, as, also, all the laity belonging to them, as procurators, 
labourers, and officers, are exempt from excommunication and 
interdict." 

9. " No bishop or prelate shall have the power of imposing 
upon any member of the Order, or any layman friendly to the 
Society, an excommunication or other Church penalty, and if 
any presume to do so it shall be null and void." 

10. " It shall be quite free to all Christian believers to attend 
the worship and preaching of the members of the Society of 
Jesus, as well as to receive the sacrament and absolution, after 
confession, from them, without being in any way liable to inter- 
ference by the ordinary clergy." 

11. "Every bishop or archbishop is bound to consecrate- 
members of the Society of Jesus presented to him who are not 
already priests, without any payment whatever, or promise of any 
such." 

12. " The members of the Society of Jesus, with the permission 
of their General, have the right to settle in the countries and 
cities of the excommunicated and schismastics, as well as of 
heretics and unbelievers, and to hold intercourse with the same." 

13. " They shall not be bound to allow themselves to be em- 
ployed in the visitation of cloisters, or in inquisitions and other 
church functions, as, also, when they desire it, they are to be 
exempt from the supervision or conscience-keeping of nuns." 

14. " They shall not be required to pay tithes on their estates 
or possessions, by whatever names they may be called, not even. 
excepting Papal holdings ; in short, they are not to pay any taxes- 
er dues whatever." 

15. " The donation of houses, churches, and colleges built, 
founded, or bequeathed by princes, counts, &c., shall be con- 
sidered from the moment of delivery as confirmed by the Pope, 
without any special deed of ratification being required to be* 
drawn up." 

16. " All their churches and places of interment are to be 
forthwith consecrated by the bishop of the diocese without any 
hesitation; should such bishop, however, delay doing so for 
more than four months, the ceremony may be performed by the 
fittest prelate at hand. Also, all archbishops, bishops, prelates, 
and ordinaries, as well especially as all ecclesiastical and secular 
authorities, are strictly prohibited from hindering the erection: 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENERAL OF THE OKDEll. 71 

and occupation of such buildings and possessions by the Society 
of Jesus." 

1 7. " The General, and, with his approval, the provincials and 
their vicars, have the right to receive into the Order all and 
sundry, even should they be the offspring of adultery or incest, 
as also all burdened with any description of sin (with the excep- 
tion of murder and bigamy), and the mutilated, to consecrate 
them as priests, and to employ them in all duties and offices 
appertaining to the Society." 

18. " Whoever during the year has for once visited any par- 
ticular church or other holy place, fixed on by the General, for 
purposes of devotion, on any individual day, also determined by 
the General, obtains for himself dispensation from all his sins, 
exactly as at the time of the Jubilee in Home ; but whoever 
does so on any other day obtains remission for seven years, 
or seven quadrayenen, that is to say, seven times forty fast 
days." 

19. " The General is empowered to send to any favourite 
University such as he deems fit, in order to deliver lectures on 
Theology and other sciences, without having previously obtained 
the permission of anyone whomsoever." This was a more than 
unheard-of infringement of the rights of the Universities, as well 
as of the secular governments, and consequently entangled the 
Jesuits in the most bitter of strifes. 

20. "Those who sojourn in countries belonging to un- 
believers have the right, as missionaries, to grant absolution for 
such sins and crimes as the Papal Chair has reserved for itself, 
according to the Bull In coena Domini, so called from the words- 
with which it commences ; and, moreover, it rests with them to- 
perform all episcopal duties till such time as the Pope shall have- 
installed there a true bishop." 

21. "The General is empowered to admit into the Order as. 
many coadjutors as may seem to him to be desirable. He can, 
also grant permission that the taking of the fourth vow that is, 
the admission of professed members may bo made outside 
Home." 

22. " Lastly, all clerical and secular powers, by whatever 
name they may be called, are admonished to take great care not 
to hinder, harass, or disturb the Society of Jesus in the exercise 
of the above privileges and liberties, under the penalty, indeed,. 



72 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

of excommunication, as also by the aid of secular power being 
invoked in case of necessity." 

Such is the great charter of the Jesuits, their " Magna Charta," 
as 1 have above termed it ; and, so armed, was it to be wondered 
that the Society soon attained to enormous power? The whole 
world lay open before them and all their proceedings ; and even 
upon the most violent and unjust of them, by order of the 
Supreme Ruler of the Church, could no restraint whatever be 
put. Pope Paul III., the great patron of the Society of Jesus, 
died in the self- same year in which he proclaimed the Magna 
Charta Bull, but his successor, Julius III., formerly Cardinal 
John Maria del Monte, who acted as Papal legate at the Council 
of Trent, and who had there become well acquainted with the 
utility of the Jesuits, followed exactly in his footsteps, and 
forthwith confirmed all the prerogatives hitherto accorded to 
them. He, too, approved of the establishment of a large new 
college in Rome, as also of a new profess-house, to both of which 
the former Duke of Gandia, now Pater Borgia, gave 1 0,000 ducats. 
His Holiness, too, on the 22nd October 1552, promulgated, 
although after a considerable amount of pressure exercised 
by Loyola, a Bull, in which the rights of the Jesuits were still 
further enlarged. In what, however, did this enlargement con- 
sist ? In nothing else than the extensive decree that the 
students of the Jesuit colleges, if the rectors of the universities 
in which the colleges were situated hesitated to promote them to 
be doctors of philosophy and theology, might be promoted by 
the General himself, or by any provincial or rector of a college 
under his authority, with the assistance of three doctors, and 
that such graduates should have the same honours, rights, 
advantages, and privileges as those promoted by the universities 
themselves. In addition to this, so proceeds the Bull, the same 
privileges were held to belong to those colleges situated in 
places where no universities exist ; and in order to obtain the 
highest degree of distinction in philosophical and theological 
science, it was decreed unnecessary to enter an university, but 
all this might be equally well attained in a Jesuit college. In 
this way these institutions were almost completely put on an 
equal footing with the universities, and the rectors of the 
former made to rank with those of the latter. While, too, only 
universally accomplished teachers taught in the high schools, 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENERAL OP THE OPDER. 73 

those who did so in the Jesuit colleges, as may be easily under- 
stood, were only such as had received their education and 
spiritual bias entirely in the Jesuit colleges themselves ! It was 
impossible, therefore, for the latter to accomplish, even approxi- 
mately, what the former offered to do, and Julius III. must 
naturally have been well aware of this ; but was it to be expected 
that Popes should consider themselves bound to know anything 
about science? The chief thing was that the Jesuits should 
attain their great object to get, as much as possible, the sole 
education of the young into their own hands in all Catholic 
states, and the surest way of doing this was, no doubt, by means 
of a Bull. Thus the whole educational institutions of the 
Jesuits, namely the colleges in which philosophy and theology 
{studio, superiora), as well as the seminaries and schools in 
which Latin, grammar, and rhetoric as preparatory knowledge 
were taught, now began to increase in numbers in an enormously 
rapid manner, while all zealous Catholics hastened to gain 
heaven by giving a small contribution towards their establish- 
ment, and there was soon no country, or rather no province, 
throughout the Catholic world, where several members of the 
Society of Jesus were not established more or less as teachers. 
What the tendency of those institutions was became most clearly 
apparent from the Collegium Germanicum, a German college 
which Loyola himself founded in the city of Rome immediately 
ou the accession of Julius III. to the government a very 
peculiar name will the reader say, a German college in the 
capital of Italy ! What can that signify ? We shall soon see. 
Already, before the foundation of the Order of Jesuits, there 
was no want of educational institutions, for their number was 
simply legion. This did not prevent, however, the Society of 
Jesus, as we have already stated, from establishing a college 
also, and in truth a very magnificent one, as well in regard to 
its internal arrangements as to its external appearance. It was 
called Collegium Romanum, and the best educational instructors 
which Loyola could find were engaged for it ; but so many rooms 
were available in it, that it could satisfy every claim. And in 
spite of all, a new college ? Certainly ; and, forsooth, for very 
^cogent reasons. The Collegium Romanum was in the first 
place established for Romans, in a wider sense for Italians, 
and as the Italian language was alone employed in it, none 



74 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

consequently could join it who were not acquainted with that* 
tongue. Now, however, in Germany heresy acquired the upper 
hand more and more, and the Romish Church was daily losing 
ground. Envoys must therefore be despatched there who could, 
combat with this heresy, and such, be it understood, as could 
discourse in the German language with the Germans. Whence,, 
however, could Loyola take these ? By far the greater part of 
his scholars belonged to the Spanish, Italian, and French- 
speaking nationalities, and only a very small portion understood 
German merely one or two here and there. Thus the country 
in which, above all others, the presence of Jesuits was most 
needed, in which lay the widest sphere of duty, and where 
action must be taken with as little delay as possible, seeing 
that the complete loss of the Romish position must otherwise 
take place, was beyond the reach of Loyola when the necessary 
forces were wanting. Here, then, help must be obtained at 
any price, and that help was to come through the Collegium- 
Germanicum. Loyola gave the order, therefore, to those mem- 
bers who were operating in Germany to send to Rome from 
among those youths who were desirous of joining the Jesuit 
Order a couple of dozen of the aptest and most zealous, and at 
the same time he induced two rich cardinals, Morano and San 
Cruce, to place at his disposal a large roomy dwelling in which 
to lodge the youths. He then placed teachers there, who were 
required to bring them on in the Italian language. As soon, 
however, as the students were sufficiently advanced in it, they 
now had to turn their attention to theology, as may be well, 
understood, and, above all, to the Theologia Polemica, along, 
with the art of disputation. The object, then, which he now 
placed before himself became clearly apparent. The Collegium 
Germanicum was to become a nursery for such as in future 
should be placed at the head of the combatants for the Romish 
faith in Germany. In other words, the pupils of the college, as- 
soon as they were sufficiently accomplished, should be sent back 
again to their own country, in order there to conduct, as speaking 
German, the great controversy on religion, and to re-establish 
there the unlimited authority of the Pope and his officers. This 
was Loyola's object he completely attained it. 

Pope Julius III., as soon as he had assured himself of 
Loyola's ultimate design, assigned a large income to the new 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENERAL OF THE ORDER. 75 

college, and the latter thereby progressed so quickly that it was- 
enabled to take in twenty-four German pupils during the first 
year. On the accession to the Papal throne of John Peter Carafa, 
Cardinal of Theate, who, as Pope, took the name of Paul IV., 
Loyola was inclined to augur not much good for his Order, as- 
he felt convinced that the same would favour above all the 
others the Order of Theate ; but this apprehension soon proved 
to be groundless, at least, as long as Ignatius lived,* for 
Paul IV. was much too sagacious to injure an institution which 
had proved so useful to the Eomish Chair. Besides, the Order 
was now already so firmly rooted that it would have been difficult 
to have overturned it, and if the Pope had ventured to attempt 
doing so, the Society of Jesus would have been able to have 
offered such a strenuous resistance that he would soon have beea 
compelled to desist. 

The General, from his seat in Rome, now ruled with almost 
unlimited power the whole body of his subjects, who were 
trained to honour him as the visible Saviour, while all placed 
their entire services at his disposal, and allowed themselves 
to be guided by him as willing puppets. Thus writes a 
far- travelled and distinguished author of a history of the 
Jesuits not by any means inimical to the same : " He ap- 
pointed and discharged all the higher officials ; he disposed 
of the rank and efficiency of all belonging to the Order, 
who must act exactly according to his will. He regulated 
everything as appeared to him most necessary and useful 
for the well-being, discipline, and improvement of the Society ; 
he manipulated the privileges, prerogatives, fundamental 
principles, and constitution obtained from the Holy Chair,, 
which he took upon himself to accentuate, abate, or disavow 
without scruple ; he frequented and regulated the general con- 
vents ; he decided, in short, all the principal affairs of the 
community." This latter, however, possessed, on the other 
hand, four assessors or assistants, to check any abuse of the 

* Shortlj after his death, in the year 1558, an attack was certainly made 
by Paul IV., which affected the Jesuits rather closely, in that he required 
they should perform equally all religious exercises, chorus singing, &c., 
which duty had hitherto fallen upon the other ecclesiastics and priesthood, 
and from which, owing to their many other employments, they had up to 
this time been exempt ; but he soon withdrew again this request, and the 
sons of Loyola continued as before, and were not in any way obliged to lose 
their time in lazy stupor, praying and singing. Such a monk's life would, 
have ill accorded truly with their aim and object. 



76 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

patriarchal supreme power.* These were elected by the great 
electoral college, a description of deputies or ministers, whose 
duty it was to support the General in all matters of difficulty 
with their advice and assistance, and to call his attention to this 
or that error. Indeed, they might even go so far as re- 
monstrance and warning, but this last proceeded from the mouth 
of the admonitor, or spiritual adviser, who was chosen by every 
General. The provincials, or heads of circles, as they might 
be called, acted as leading officials of the Order, while the 
Catholic world was divided by the General into smaller or 
larger circles provinces over each of which he placed a vice- 
gerent. Again, to each provincial were assigned four assistants 
and an admonitor, who ruled in a small way as the General did in 
Rome in a larger way, only in all weighty matters such person was 
required to make previous reference, and was himself responsible 
in even the very smallest transactions. He had the right of 
proposal of the so-called Praponiti studiorum, that is, the super- 
vision of the stewards of the colleges, and it lay with him to 
inspect carefully, at least once a year, the condition of the whole 
circle as regards houses, persons, incomes, &c. He supervised 
in the colleges and other educational institutions the diligence of 
teachers as well as pupils, and also the course of instruction and 
discipline, and he remained the whole year at his post, unless 
sent elsewhere by the General. Immediately below him came 
the superiors, that is, the heads of the prufess-houses, in which 
resided the brethren sworn to observe all the four vows, and their 
duties were to supervise discipline, devotions, and other affairs. 
The rectors coming next under them that is to say, the heads of 
colleges had equally to supervise the individual teachers as well 
as scholars, and to hold once a week a principal examination. In 
short, all was well ordered, down to even the lowest menial, and 
there was no State in the world which could exhibit a more regular 
or more uniform government. The thing, however, which first put 
the seal upon it, was the constant correspondence which united all 
circles and provinces, all lower and higher officials, partly among 
each other and partly with the General. The rectors, for 
instance, as well as the superiors, sent in a weekly report to the 
provincial, and the latter replied thereto every month. To the 

* The four first Jesuits, on whom devolved the duty of assistant, were 
Jerom Natalis, Johii of Polanco, Gonzalez de Caniara, and Christofal of 
Madrid. 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENERAL OF THE ORDER. IT 

General himself the whole of the provincials wrote once a month, 
and the rectors and superiors once in three months. This, how- 
ever, was still insufficient, for the rectors and superiors had to 
send in a report every fourteen days to the provincial, as well as 
every month to the General. Likewise it was incumbent on the 
assistants of the provincials to transmit sealed letters twice a 
year respecting their provincials for the time being. In short, 
it was a regular system of reciprocal supervision, or, rather, it 
might be regarded as a legal espionage entering into the smallest 
details, as well from above downwards as from below upwards, 
and in this way it was made impossible for any member to over- 
step the prescribed boundary lines of obedience. The General, 
by this means, knew from each individual what he thought 
and did, and while all the wires of the entire machinery ran. 
together into his cabinet in Home, he could guide to a nicety by 
leading strings, in the blindest subjection, individuals as well as 
the whole fabric ! 

Ignatius Loyola had now brought his matters so far, steeped, 
forsooth, in nothing else than worldly pleasure and vanity ; but 
the future warrior, having accomplished this much, found that the- 
time had now arrived when he must pay to nature its usual tribute. 
The former extravagant punishments he had inflicted on his body,, 
the many cares and vexations he had to encounter in the forma- 
tion of his Order, and, lastly, the frightful anxiety inseparable- 
from the duties of so gigantic an office as that of a Jesuit General,, 
gradually weakened his naturally very strong constitution, and 
he found himself at the commencement of the year 1556 obliged 
to hand over the greater part of the business to Pater Jeromi 
Natalis, who had been elected to be his vicar by those professed 
members present at that time in Home. He himself withdrew 
to a country house near Rome, which had been presented to 
him by a rich patron of the name of Louis Mendoza,* in 
order to attend to the state of his health, but the weakness 
increased so much during the summer that he caused himself to 
be brought back again to Rome, as he had a desire to die in 
the profess-house among his own people. Towards the end of 
July he there dictated his will, took leave of the world and his, 

* The same was situated close to the picturesque ruins of the Villa of 
Mercena, and was not only beautifully constructed, but also surrounded by 
a charming park. In this way the good Ignatius, at the end of his life, did. 
not seem to observe very closely the vow of poverty. 



78 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

companions, and departed this life on Friday, 31st July, an hour 
before sunset, in his sixty-fifth year, consequently, thirty-five 
years after the date of his being wounded, and of his conversion ; 
his death happened, notwithstanding the declaration of his 
surgeon, the celebrated Dr. Alexander Petronius, that there was 
nothing particularly dangerous in his condition. 

Only four of his first colleagues were present at the time, 
Rodriguez, Salmeron, Laynez, and Bobadilla ; the remainder were 
prosecuting their calling in far distant lands, or had already been 
overtaken by death, as in the case of Lejay and Le Fevre. But 
from the nine original associates thousands had already sprung 
up, and the Order had established itself in no less than twelve 
countries Italy, Portugal, Sicily, Germany, the Netherlands, 
France, Arragon, Castile, Andalusia, India, Ethiopia, and Brazil.* 
Incredible things had been accomplished by Loyola in a com- 
paratively short space of time, but not so much, assuredly, 
through his wisdom and understanding. In this respect he had 
not particularly distinguished himself, at all events not remark- 
ably. Laynez, however, had made up for his deficiencies more 
than three or four-fold, and the genius of a Salmeron and a 
Le Fevre was not to be despised. But his success was due 
rather to his energy, his perseverance, his ambition, his iron 
will, his glowing zeal, and, lastly, through his heroic soldierly bold- 
ness, which infused quite a peculiar spirit into the Order he had 
founded. Still, whether on that account he was really a great 
man ; whether, as the Jesuits contend, he deserved to be placed in 
line with the most distinguished persons which the world has pro- 
duced, I leave the reader himself to form a judgment.f I myself, 

The details respecting this will be found in the next book, to which I 
must refer those curious on the matter. 

t How extremely high the Jesuits placed their founder is proved by the 
inscription on the monument which the Dutch members erected to his 
memory in the year 1640. 

Cujus animus 
Vastissimo coerceri non potuit unius orbis ambitu, 

Ejus Corpus 

Humili hoc angustoque tumulo contiuetur. 
Qui magnum aut Pomptjum, aut Caesarem, aut Alexandrwn oogitas, 

Aperi oculos veritati, 
Majorem his omnibus leges 

IGNATIUM. 
Non coerceri maximo, contineri tamen a minimo, divinum est. 

IGNATIO 

Virtute maximo, submissione minimo 
Totius orbis locus angustus est. 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENEEAL OF THE ORDER. 79 

for my own part, am contented with referring to what happened 
respecting Ignatiiis alter his death, as I presume the reader 

Hinc auimum gerens mundo majorem 
Plus ultra unius orbis et aevi terminos saepe quaesivit, 

Quo opera suae pietatis exteuderet: 

Inde de se cogitationem habens minimo minorem, 

Minus citra communis sepulcri latebras semper optavit, 

Quo inhumati corporis pondus abjiceret. 

Coelum animo, Boma corpori 
Illi ad majorem Dei gloriam summa spectanti 

Aliquid summo majus attribuit : 
Huic ad majorem sui objectionem ima spectanti, 

Modum posuit mediumque virtutis. 
Anno M.CD.XCI. in arce LOJOLAE loco apud Cantabros illustri 

Mortalium plane bona et juvantis hominibus vere natus, 

Suae primum gloriae cupidus, in aula et campo Catholici regis, 

Naturae dedit, quod dein divinae tantum gloriae studiosus, 

Sanctioribus in castris, saluti et gratiae consecraret. 

Cum hostes adversus innumeros unus prope Pompejopolim tueretur, 

Idem Sauli instar et Pauli, vi, non virtute, victus 

Ita cecidit, ut optandus fuisse casus, non fugiendus, 

Etiam IGNAT1O, videretur : arcem perdidit ; servavit ecclesiam. 

Ex eo non jam suus, 
Sed ejus, qui stantem tormento perculit, 

Ut prodigio fulciret abjectum 
Sacramentum, quod mundo dixerat, Christo dedit. 

Per militiae sanctions asperrima rudimenta, 
Per insidias daemonum, per oppugnationes hominum, 

Per conjurata in unum omnia 
Factus Dux e milite, ex tirone veteranus, 

Jesu nomine, non suo, 

Legionem in ecclesiam Dei fortissimum conscripsit, 

Quae vitam pro divini cultus incremento paciscens 

In Romani Poutificis verba juraret. 

Hie ille est, in quo ostendit Deus, 

Quantum ei curae sit ecclesiae securitas, 

In quo miserantis, Dei bonitatem atque potentiam 

Ecclesia catholica veneratur. 

Quern prostratum tamquam Paulum erexit Deus, 
Ut nomen suum coram gentibus populisque portaret: 

Quern praelegit Dominus, ut eorum Dux foret, 

Qui sui in terris Vicarii authoritatem defenderent, 

Et Rebelles haereticos ad unitatem fidei revocareut. 

Quern suo Jeau commendavit Pater aeternus ; 

Cui ipse Jesus se propitium fore promisit, 

Quern spiritus sanctus omnium virtutum genere decoravit : 

Quern praesens toties et propitia virgo Mater dilexit ut filium, 

Erudivit ut alumnum, defendit ut clientem. 

Qui Dei amans, non coeli, osor mundi, non hominum, 

Paratus pro his excludi gloria, pro illo damnari poena ; 

Mortalis apud homines vitae non prodigus, sed contemtor 

Vitalis apud inferos mortis non metueiis, sed securus, 

Profuit vivus mortuis, quos revocavit ad vitam ; 

Mortuus vivis, quos servavit a morte ; 

Utrisque se partem exhibens ; 

Dignus haberi potuit Jesu nomine, 

Qui praeter Dei gloriam et salutem hominum nil quaesivit. 

Anno M.D.LVI. prid. Kalendas Augustas 

Nutu summi Imperatoris jussus a statione decedere, 

Curam mortalium, quam vivus habuerat, 

Etiam mortuus nou amisit. 



80 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

would have no small interest therein ; and it may be truly said 
that there are not too many men who have a history after 
death. 

Ignatius had frequently expressed a strong wish that on his 
decease his corpse might be thrown into a flaying place, in order 
that it might be torn and picked to pieces by birds of prey and 
wild animals, as the same was no longer anything else than a 
lump of clay, a mere heap of refuse. In this respect, however, 
his associates did not obey him. They buried him, on the con- 
trary, with great pomp, on Saturday, the 1st of August, in the 
church of Maria da Strada, which belonged to them, and there 
the coffin remained until the year 1587, when, by order of the 
General Aquaviva, it was conveyed with still greater pomp into 
the splendid Jesuit church then newly built by the Cardinal 
Alexander Farnese. As on the occasion of this latter re- 
moval of the coffin several wonders took place, and as after 
it a number of sick men who called upon his name were restored 
to health, Paul V., in the year 1609, pronounced the deceased to 
be holy; and in the year 1622, thirteen years afterwards, he was 
translated among the saints by Gregory XV. Since that time a 
number of altars have been dedicated to him, on the whole, more 
than 2,000 ; and, besides, not less than half a hundred churches, 
of which some, especially that erected, in the year 1626, by the 
Cardinal Ludovico in Rome, close to the Collegium Romanum, 

Coelo transscriptus, Bed propensus in terras; 

Aniinarum avidus, etiam cum Deo plenus : 

Ecclesiae triumphantis socius, pro militante solicitus, 

Quod unum potuit 
Corpus Buum pignus auimi fideique deposition hie reliquit; 

Cui ne quid decesset ad gloriam, 
Non semel angelicoa inter cantus submissa de Coelo lumina micuerunt. 

Age, quisquis baec leges, 

Beatos immortalis viri et patria communis omnium cineres veuerare, 

Hos tu, cum videris, religiose cole, 

Cum habueris, pie complectere; 

Et latere sub his, etiam nunc, suam ignem, 

Hoc est, servientem humanae vitae et saluti 

IGNATIUM deprehendes. 
Vivit annis quinque et sexaginta inter mortalea, 

Octoginta quatuor inter immortales, 

A Gregorio XV, Catholicis aris solenniter additus anno hujus Saec. XXII. 

A Deo perinni gloria coelitum ultra omne saeculum feliciter cumulaudus_ 

Hoc sui animi et venerationis perpetuae monumeutum 

Non structum auro vel marmore ; 

Bed tenaci grataque memoria consecratum 

Optimo Maximoque, post Deum, Patri 

Minima Jesu Societas 
X.D.C.XL. Anno suo Saeculari primo posuit, dedicavit. 



IGNATIUS LOYOLA AS GENERAL OF THE ORDEU. 81 

are truly elegant buildings. An object of particularly great 
veneration, too, was the altar in the church of Aspeitia before 
which he was baptized ; and still more esteemed was the ancient 
castle of Loyola, upon which, after they had received it as a 
present from the Queen of Spain, who purchased it with this 
object in the year 1695, the Jesuits bestowed the name of Santa 
Casa, or holy house. The Jesuits, however, were still not satis- 
fied, but, in addition to their more than foolish religious worship, 
they declared afresh that their holy Ignatius was equal to the 
Apostles in worth, and that in heaven he would hold intercourse 
with no one except with Popes, as the holy Peter, with em- 
presses, as the Virgin Mary, and with sovereign monarchs, as 
God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ. Such great honour 
fell to the lot of Ignatius Loyola after his death, an honour 
which was truly regarded by many as the offspring of madness 1 



BOOK II, 



THE SHEEWDNESS OF THE JESUITS; 



AND 



THE GIGANTIC PEOGEESS OF THEIE GEOWTH. 



6 * 



FIOLIA son d* an Boldato, odio la place: 

Naqui fra 1' armi, ho la pieta abaudita. 

Mi fu Madre crudel una fcrita. 

Onde la Morte ed il aangue d' altrui mi piaca. 

Son barbara, son cruda, e son rapace, 

E nell* armi avezzai 1' alma in fierita. 

E se in mezzo alle stragi ebbi la Vita 

Porto vo unque men vado, e ferro e foce. 

Non conosco altro Dio, ch' il proprio orgoglio. 

L' issesse Monarcbie per me son dome, 

E nel hipocrisia ho quel che voglio. 

Delude il Monat ognor; Me si sa come 

Compagnia di Giesu, chiamarmi foglio 

non ho di Giesu, ch' il nudo nome. 



85 



CHAPTER I. 

THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN DISTANT REGIONS OF THE WORLD. 

I. THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 

ACCORDING to tradition, it was the Apostle Thomas who first 
spread Christianity in India ; others, however, ascrihe this 
honour to a rich merchant of the name of Max Thomas, who, in 
the 6th century, lived in the time of the great Emperor, Ceram 
Perumal, the founder of Calicut ; and, through his great mer- 
cantile transactions, which extended even as far as Constanti- 
nople, became acquainted with the teaching of Jesus Christ. 
Let this be as it may, this much is certain, that the Portuguese, 
as they became possessed of the whole of Malabar, along with 
Goa, Ceylon, Malacca, and the Sunda Islands, under the cele- 
brated Alfonso Albuquerque, their great naval hero, and, for a 
long period, Viceroy of India, had already found their way to 
Asia round the Cape of Good Hope, under the guidance of Vasco 
de Gama, about the same time as the discovery of America, and 
had met with persons of the Christian faith, although not 
Christians " according to the Roman Catholic views of the 15th 
century." On the contrary, much of what is heathen, both as 
regards their customs and faith, was so mixed up with it, that 
the good Catholic ruler of Portugal at that time, being much 
shocked with such a kind of Christianity, sent Franciscan monks 
to Goa this latter city being at that time the central point, 
and the capital of their East Indian possessions in order that 
;the true, that is to say, the Roman Catholic faith, might be 



6 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

promulgated in these regions. The Franciscans proved them- 
selves to be but very ill adapted for this kind of work, and 
showed that " conversion," or, as it was more correctly expressed, 
" the mission to the heathen," was not their forte, although the 
Governor and Viceroy placed the bayonets of his military force 
entirely at their disposal. The progress they made was, there- 
fore, quite insignificant, and, with the exception of Goa itself, 
where the Bishopric was founded, the Catholic faith took no 
root to any great extent. The Indians continued to be just the 
same as before, and to worship their gods according to the 
fashion of their fathers and ancestors ; and although some few, 
through military compulsion, nominally became Papists, the 
great mass of the worshippers of Bramah and Vishnu still 
showed themselves to be as stiff-necked as ever. This state 
of things did not at all give satisfaction to the Kings of 
Portugal, and John III., who reigned from 1521 to 1557, was 
particularly shocked at it, as he was not only an extra- 
ordinarily pious adorer of Rome and the Papacy, but believed 
that the inhabitants of his newly- acquired possessions, could not 
become good Portuguese subjects until they had prostrated 
themselves at the same cross before which the Portuguese knelt. 
It was now that the said John heard of the new Order, instituted 
by the conception of Ignatius Loyola at Rome an order whose 
great aim and object was said to be " the conversion of un- 
believers " and he, therefore, soon proffered a request to Loyola 
to send out to India a sufficient number of missionaries. Indeed, 
he would gladly have seen the founder of the Society of Jesus 
proceed thither himself, propria persona, as he entertained the 
firm belief that " the warriors of Christ could have no other 
design than the Christianising of all the idol-worshippers in 
the world." Loyola, however, was not at all of this opinion, and 
not only remained in Rome himself, but explained to the King 
that he was only in a position to send forth two of his associates, 
Rodriguez and Francis Xavier, and that "he required the 
remainder for other purposes." 

This took place in the summer of 1540, and the two above- 
named men made their way to Lisbon, where the monarch 
received them most kindly. They could not, however, proceed 
at once to India, as the fleet, destined to proceed there annually, 
had already weighed anchor; but they would have been very. 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 87 

wrong not to have blessed most heartily this adverse incident, as 
they won the favour of John III. to such a high degree, that the 
bitter was quite unwilling again to part with them. He, in truth, 
carried this out to a certain extent, inasmuch as, with the 
permission naturally of Loyola, he retained one of them, Rod- 
riguez, who took up his permanent abode in Lisbon. 

Francis Xavier, however, in whom the zeal for conversion 
overcame every other consideration, was not to be diverted from 
the journey to India. The monarch provided him in the best 
way with Papal briefs which he obtained from Paul III., as 
also with letters of full powers made out by himself. By 
one of these letters Francis Xavier acquired the position of 
" Nuntius Apostolicus " ; that is to say, representative of the 
Pope for the whole of India ; in a second, in virtue of the right 
assigned to him for the conversion of the heathen, he had 
authority to claim all secular influence of the Portuguese officials 
in the Asiatic colonies ; lastly, in a third writing, King John 
himself recommended him most earnestly to all the chiefs, 
princes, and governments, from the Cape of Good Hope to the 
Ganges. Thus, well provided, Francis Xavier proceeded to 
India on the 7th of April 1541, with the royal fleet destined 
thither from Lisbon, and his heart swelled wiih gladdening hopes 
at the prospect of victory which he wished to gain for the banner 
of Chrict over the unbelievers. He had forgotten one thing, 
however, and that, in my opinion, the chief one indeed ; he had 
not thought it worth the trouble to make himself acquainted in 
the least degree with the language of the populations which he 
had set out to convert. " God gives his own in sleep," thought 
he. And might not, then, the Holy Ghost be so favourable to 
him as to work a miracle ? 

The voyage to India was a very slow one, and, while they were 
compelled to make an involuntary halt of six months in Mozam- 
bique, they only arrived in the harbour of Goa after a lapse of 
thirteen months, on the 6th of May 1 542. This made Francis 
Xavier all the more zealous in respect to the task he had to fulfil ; 
and although a royal equipage and princely residence were placed 
at his disposal by the governor of the city, his first care was to 
betake himself at once to the hospital, in order there to nurse 
the sick himself, and to get his own means of support from the 
public alms. Little or nothing, however, was in this way done 



88 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

for his proper object, the conversion of the heathen, and conse- 
quently, after a little time, he presented himself to the Bishop of 
Goa, in order to produce before that prelate the full powers 
which he hud brought along with him, and humbly at once to 
crave permission to set about the conversion of the heathen. 
For him this authority was, indeed, certainly not requisite, since 
as Pope's nuncio, he superseded the bishop ; but it was of 
consequence to him to make sure of the favour of the latter, 
named Don Juan d' Albuquerque, descended from one of the 
very highest families, and possessing great influence as well in 
Goa as in Portugal itself. He, in fact, completely succeeded in 
winning over Don Juan to his views, and consequently the work 
of conversion might now commence without further delay. 
But, Lord, what a misfortune The stupid natives did not 
understand one single word of what Xavier chattered to them, 
and the Holy Ghost did not render him any assistance " with 
the gift of tongues." He arrived at the conviction, at last, that 
nothing could be done as long as he had no knowledge of 
the language of the country, and he consequently at once set 
about the study of Hindustani with the greatest zeal. Along 
with this task, however, he by no means forgot to exercise 
further activity in his calling as a Jesuit, and proved it by the 
clever way in which he at once set about establishing a college, 
the first in the heathen world. 

The pair of Franciscan monks, who were already established 
in Goa, had a seminary in which they instructed a few of the 
native youths in the Roman Catholic religion, and it at once struck 
Xavier that their building, which appeared quite well adapted 
for the purpose, might be made available for his future plans. 
He addressed himself, therefore, to the superior of the institution, 
Brother James Borbona, produced before him his Papal briefs, 
and urged him so much that he not only gave over the house, 
with everything appertaining to it, to the Society of Jesus, but 
also, in his own person, became a member of the same. It is 
true that he did not act thus from entirely disinterested motives, 
as he made the condition that he should continue to be the 
rector of the institution for life. But what did that matter to 
Xavier? He had now, in this way, got rid of competition, and, 
at the same time, had the glory of converting the seminary 
hitherto denominated " Santa Fe," into the college of Holy 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 89 

Paul. He, moreover, took care to turn the school, hitherto 
-small and poor, into an educational institution of the richest and 
most brilliant description, not so much, however, by means of 
voluntary gifts obtained by begging, but rather in this way, that 
i>y the aid of the vice-regal troops he pulled down the heathen 
temples in the neighbourhood of Goa, and appropriated their 
very considerable property for the use and benefit of the new 
college. 

As soon, now, as Xavier had made sufficient progress in the 
Hindustani and Malay languages to enable him to make him- 
self in some degree understood, he left Goa in order to preach 
'the gospel in the so-called " pearl coast " of Malabar, the whole 
of which country had been brought into subjection by the Por- 

tuguese, and as, besides, they possessed many valuable settlements 

there, the inhabitants of which were sunk in the grossest kind 
of heathenism, it would be possible, for that reason, to bring 
about some considerable result, if the thing were but skilfully 
managed. In what way, then, did Xavier proceed ? In a 
truly most remarkable manner, which the missionaries of the 
present day might be inclined not a little to despise. He took 
along with him a bell, armed with which he ran about the streets 
ringing it in broad mid-day, until he succeeded in drawing after 
him a troop of boys and others, attracted by curiosity, who 
greeted him with jeers and laughter. When he had thus got 
together a considerable auditory, placing himself on some large 
stone, he forthwith began his sermon, which was delivered in 
the language of the country interlarded with fragments of Latin, 
Spanish, Italian, and French, to which he added much gesticu- 
lation with both hands and feet. He then finally produced a 
large cross, which he piously kissed, and required the crowd to 

do likewise, presenting each one who complied with a beautiful 
rosary, thousands of which he had brought with him from 
Portugal. This, however, was only the first part of his method 
of conversion. The second was much more effectual, and con- 
sisted in pulling down, with the assistance of the Portuguese 
troops, which he called into requisition, the native temples, and 
breaking in pieces the idols found therein, not, however, with- 
out replacing them by Christian chapels, with the image of the 
crucified Jesus, and erecting in the neighbourhood a handsome 
building constructed of bamboo canes, for the instruction of the 



90 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

yoimg. He already knew, from experience, what an impression- 
a solemn service, with the sacrifice of the mass, made upon the 
fanciful imaginations of Orientals, and he also knew that in 
order to render the work of conversion lasting, it was neces- 
sary to win over to the new faith the growing youth, the^ 
foundation of the population. For this reason, he threw him- 
self, with great zeal, into the matter of education, and, partly by 
means of friendly presents, and partly hy fear of the Portuguese- 
soldiery, who had destroyed the heathen temples, succeeded in 
inducing many of the native boys and girls to attend his schools. 
It was but an easy matter, however, from a missionary point of 
view, as, far from making them acquainted with the principles 
of Christianity, he merely contented himself in teaching them to 
say the Lord's Prayer, along with the Creed, and causing them 
to understand the same, as also to cross the arms with humility 
over the breast. After getting them on as far as this, Xavier 
now accepted them as Christians through the performance of & 
solemn baptismal service, and he soon managed in this way to 
acquire a pretty considerable number of souls for the kingdom! 
of Heaven. In spite of all this, the business of conversion went 
on much too slowly to please him, and, on that account, even iu> 
the first year of his residence in India, he wrote to his General,, 
requesting him to send out a number of assistants. Loyola* 
complied most willingly with this demand, and sent him more 
than twenty of them, almost all being Portuguese whom Rodri- 
guez had recently gained over for the Order ; amongst them 
were the Paters Anton Criminal, Anton Gomez, Casper Bergaus,, 
Paulus Camerti, Alonzo Cyprius, Melchior Gonzales, and Fran- 
ciscus Peren, who all, more or less, subsequently distinguished, 
themselves. He was now able to carry on the work of conversion* 
in a wholesale manner, and, during the next six years, in almost 
every place where the Portuguese flag waved, and especially inj 
Ceylon, Cochin, Negapatam, Meliapur, Malacca, and Ternate,. 
he succeeded in establishing schools, small and large. The prin- 
cipal seminary, however, which served as a nursery for the educa- 
tion of native missionaries, was the college in Goa, into which,, 
immediately on the arrival of the assistants from Europe, Xavier 
at once drove before him 120 sons of the Hindu gentry, by 
means of a military force, in order that they might be brought 
up in future for the purpose of converting their fellow-country- 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 91 

men ; and there could be no question that the power of the Por- 
tuguese bayonets, and still more, the fear engendered by the 
same, contributed in no small degree to the great results which 
Francis Xavier and his associates obtained,* and this circum- 
stance diminished not a little the glory of the great apostolic- 
hero, who was often so thoroughly tired at night from the exer- 
tion of baptising, that he was hardly able to move his arms- 
Still more injury, however, was done to this glory by the circum- 
stance that the baptised, or converted, were, as a matter of fact,, 
not real Christians, but remained heathens just as much as before. 
It is certainly true that they could repeat the Creed, and that 
the water of Christian baptism had been thrown over them, as,, 
also, that they were taught to have some sort of understanding 
of the matter, that they took part in processions, and could 
sing some hymns, and join in other external observances. 
In truth, however, they still retained all their old manners, 
customs, usages, and notions, and when the Padri, as the 
Christian missionaries were denominated, with drew from one con- 
verted neighbourhood, being of the opinion that it had been 
completely won over to Christianity, and proceeded elsewhere in* 
order to prosecute the work of conversion, it so happened that 
the native priests, the Brahmins, had not the least difficulty in 
bringing the people back again to the religion in which they had 
been born and bred. This was now, indeed, an embarrassing di- 
lemma, and one of Xavier's companions, Anton Criminal, who had 
gained proselytes at Cape Comorin, became so furious on that ac- 
count against the Brahmins that he persecuted them with the most 
inhuman cruelties. They, however, in their despair, at once appealed 
for aid against this Criminal and his handful of soldiers obtained 
from the Governor of Goa, which he had brought along with him, 
to a tribe of people which had not as yet come under subjection 
to the Portuguese, the latter being, in fact, in point of numbers,, 
in a very small minority. A battle thereupon ensued, in which all 
the Portuguese, Criminal himself not excepted, were massacred.f 

* It was thus, for example, that the King of Condi, in Ceylon, was com- 
pelled by force of arms to receive the Cross, also was constrained by- 
order of Xavier to be baptised, by whose directions also his lieutenants and 
governors of provinces who offered any resistance to the baptismal ceremony 
were threatened with confiscation of their property. It was easy in this 
way to gain over thousands daily to Christianity. 

t There were no less than four lance-wounds through the heart of 
Criminal, and, when dead, he was so hated by the Brahmins that they cut 



92 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

Some time now elapsed before any other missionary attempted 
to show himself. The Brahmins, however, did not by any means 
improve their position by their strenuous resistance, but, on the 
contrary, rather made it worse, for Francis Xavier took occasion 
on this account to institute in Goa a religious tribunal, after 
the pattern of the Spanish Inquisition, over which he ruled 
without opposition,* and, being aided by the Portuguese arms, 
he proceeded, with the most frightful severity, against all those 
who offered any hindrance to the spread of Christianity, or who 
also dared to beguile the baptised natives back again to their 
old idol-worship. In this way, then, innumerable Brahmins, 
and more particularly the richest among them, lost their lives 
by the executioner's hands, or, at least, were exiled from their 
country in order that their property might be seized for the 
benefit of the Society, and thus, by degrees, all opposition to 
the reception of the Christian religion presently ceased through- 
out the whole of the countries under subjection to the Portu- 
guese. As a matter of course, the effeminate Hindus now pressed 
forward to have themselves baptised, rather than make acquaint- 
ance with the prisons of the Inquisition, or run the risk of 
being roasted alive over a slow fire ! After this fashion did 
Francis Xavier and his associates conduct themselves in India, 
and the consequence was that Jesuit colleges sprang up in all 
suitable places, being enriched by the property of the slaughtered 
and banished heretics. And still more numerous were the 
churches which were erected, as they no longer hesitated to 
destroy, with fire and sword, all the heathen temples which they 
were able to get at, and, indeed, it almost seemed as if the Jesuits 
bad taken for their example the cruel conduct of Charles the 
Great against the Saxons. Xavier now, after he had carried 
things to this height, thought it was time to extend still further 
his Christian conquests, and this he did by an acquaintance 
he had made, in 1549, with an inhabitant of Japan. The 

his head off. The Jesuits, on the other hand, made him out to be the first 
martyr of the Order, and there was but little wanting that he should have 
been placed in the category of saints. 

* The Portuguese governors and lieutenants rendered every assistance on 
that account to the great converter of the heathen, because they knew very 
well that they would otherwise be denounced to King John 111., and that 
whoever was in this way singled out might rest assured that he would be 
certain to lose his appointment and be recalled to Lisbon to render an 
Account of his actions. 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 93- 

latter, a rather cunning fellow, but springing from a good 
family, called Anger, who had at least one murder on his 
conscience, directed the attention of Xavier to the infinite 
resources of Japan, so much so, indeed, that he at once deter- 
mined to convert the great Empire, with its millions of in- 
habitants, and to claim possession of its enormous riches for 
the benefit of the Order of Jesus. He first began, then, by 
baptising Anger, the same thereby receiving the name of" Paul de 
Saint Foi," and at once proceeded to Goa to make sure that things 
there might not get into disorder during his absence. After 
he had accomplished this, and had nominated Paul Camerti as 
his representative, under the title of General Superior, and Anton 
Gomez as Hector of the now very important college of the 
" Holy Paul," he embarked in the summer of 1549, and, in 
company with Anger and the very zealous Pater Come de 
Torrez, proceeded to Japan, where he landed, on the 15th of 
August, in the harbour of Canxawa, or Gang Xuma, the capital 1 
of the kingdom of Sazuma, or Hsuma ; this happened in the 
fifteenth year, to the very day, from the taking of the vows at 
Montmartre. 

In those days Japan formed, as it does now, nominally one 
single monarchy, or, indeed, an empire, with its capital, Miako,. 
in which the Emperor, under the name of a Dairi, or Mikado,, 
sat on the throne. At the same time the whole was divided! 
into several provinces or kingdoms, the rulers of which reigned 
quite independently; amongst the number was the kingdom 
of Hsuma. It now so happened that the above-mentioned 
Anger had formerly been on fairly friendly terms with f the 
ruler of Hsuma, in consequence of which Francis Xavier,. 
was not only hospitably received at Court, but at once ob- 
tained permission, from the very tolerant king, to preach the 
Christian religion. Xavier, as we may well imagine, immediately 
took advantage of this privilege, but unfortunately not with the 
result he had promised himself, as his preaching was almost un- 
intelligible to his hearers, while the little Japanese that he had; 
picked up from his intercourse with Anger, was mixed up with a 
variegated jargon of Spanish, Italian, and Latin, to say nothing 
of his peculiar manners. Bell in hand he collected the people 
together as he had done before in Goa and its neighbourhood, 
a proceeding which, to the Japanese of a rather higher degree of 



94 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

cultivation, conveyed the impression of charlatanism and absurdity. 
This Xavier himself, after the lapse of some little time, felt but 
too plainly ; and, seeing that it was impossible for him to gain his 
end in this way, he shortly resolved to alter his mode of opera- 
tion, and from a Jesuit to become a Bonze. A Bonze ? asks 
the astonished reader ; but he will cease to be astonished when 
he calls to remembrance that the Bonzes are nothing more than 
the higher priests of Buddhism, which is by far the most widely 
diffused religion of Japan, and that this Buddhism itself has 
many points of resemblance to the Roman Catholic faith. In 
one, as in the other, there are, cloisters with nuns and monks, and 
even hermits are not wanting. The Buddhists, like the Roman 
Catholics, have connected with their worship pictures and relics, 
as well as processions, pilgrimages, and holy proclamations. 
Both make use of rosaries in saying their prayers, and chastise 
their bodies with fasting and other similar privations. The 
Bonzes or Lamas, as they are called in Tibet, shave their 
heads exactly as the Roman priests do, and both are dedicated 
to celibacy. Further, both are regarded by the people with 
much reverence, and exercise a decided influence over them. 
Such is the state of matters which obtains in Japan, and it 
cannot therefore be wondered at that Xavier determined, under 
these circumstances, to become a Bonze so far as clothing, 
habits, manner of life, and customs went. As plain Jesuit 
he had as yet only rendered himself offensive. As Bonze, 
however, he hoped to gain influence as much as his heathen 
colleagues, and then might be able to insinuate Christian 
doctrine underhand in place of Buddhist polytheism. It was 
perceived that his design was good, and therefore there was 
not the least difficulty raised as to the dishonesty of the means 
adopted, as the Jesuits were never scrupulous in this respect ; 
but still this artifice did not lead him to the attainment of his 
aim. The legitimate Bonzes, to wit, began to move heaven 
and earth in order that the obtrusive new comer should be 
sent about his business, and represented to the king that the 
greatest danger would threaten the kingdom were he to allow a 
miserable stranger to throw ridicule on the old tutelary gods 
of Japan, and introduce in their stead a new and hitherto quite 
unknown God, whom no neighbouring deity might endure. 
They also added a warning to this representation, threatening 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 95 

to call upon the other kings of Japan for assistance, if Xavier 
were not expelled from the kingdom ; and, indeed, little was 
wanting for the breaking out of a great revolution at their 
instigation. Under such circumstances the king now resolved 
to abandon the principle of toleration, which he had hitherto 
followed, and issued a decree in which he forbad the acceptance 
of Christianity to all his subjects, under the penalty of death, 
and advised Francis Xavier that, if he put any value upon 
his life, he must leave his dominions in the shortest space of 
time. 

There was, of course, now nothing else for the great heathen- 
converter to do but to obey instantly this order, and he quitted 
the city of Canxawa, after a residence in it of nearly one year, 
without having accomplished anything whatever. But where 
was he now to bend his steps ? Was he to return again to 
Goa ? or, at the risk of meeting with the same kind of treatment 
as he had experienced at Hsuma, to try some other Japanese 
kingdom ? He did not require to remain long undecided, as 
there happened to be at that time, as he immediately ascer- 
tained, several Portuguese ships in the harbour of Ferando, the 
capital of a neighbouring province of the same name, and, as 
he naturally thought it possible that he might meet with a 
more friendly reception, under the protection of these ships, 
from the King of Ferando than he had done from the ruler of 
Hsuma, he therefore at once made his way to the above- 
mentioned sea-port. Nor did he deceive himself in this respect, 
the less so that there happened to subsist a deadly feud at that 
time between the Kings of Ferando and Hsuma, and conse- 
quently permission was at once granted to him to make as many 
proselytes as he was able to find. He therefore turned this 
permission to such good use that he effected more baptisms 
within a period of twenty days in Ferando than during the 
whole year that he had been in Hsuma. So, at least, it is 
reported by his biographer, and we leave it to be determined 
whether this be the case or not. The fact, however, was that 
he still despaired of effecting anything of much consequence 
until he had converted the Dairi himself, in his capital of Miako, 
or had at least got from the latter permission to proselytise ; 
so on that account he himself cleared the way, after a residence 
of some weeks, for the further operations of Come de Torrez, 



96 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

whom he left behind. He did not, however, proceed alone, 
but took along with him two newly-converted Japanese, called 
Matthias and Bernhard, as also an interpreter of the name of 
Fernandez. After meeting with many dangers in trying to- 
make proselytes on the way, he was more than once nearly 
stoned. It seems to be clear, from the report of his most 
intimate followers, that he was only allowed to escape owing 
to his being looked upon as a description of fool, which, in 
the east, is a better protection than any other weapon. 

He at last arrived in the great capital of Japan in February 
1551, and at once betook himself to the largest public place 
with the object of proclaiming the Gospel to the people. But 
what kind of a sermon was it that he preached ? O Lord ! 
one can hardly believe it possible that any man of the least 
common sense could think that he could, in such a way, convert 
anyone to his opinion. He certainly, indeed, did not allow 
himself to repeat the hocus focus of Goa, but he preached by 
means of his interpreter, as he still was so badly acquainted with 
the Japanese language that he was unable to put two consecutive 
sentences together.* It can be readily surmised, then, how laugh- 
able was the situation ! as one may further easily imagine that Fer- 
nandez understood Spanish badly, and consequently that all that 
Xavier said was expounded in complete confusion. It was truly, 
then, no wonder that the religion which Xavier preached was re- 
ceived with general misunderstanding, and that he could nowhere 
make his appearance in public without being followed by the 
street boys, who looked upon him as a sort of half-witted fool. 

In spite of all this, he had the audacity to request an audience 
with the Emperor, which, however, was refused with disdain 
and derision by the imperial employes ; consequently nothing 
else remained for the zealous missionary to do, but to seek for 
good fortune elsewhere, and he betook himself to Amanguchi, 
the capital of the kingdom or province of Mangate. Un- 
fortunately, however, he met there with no better success, 
although he was careful enough to make his appearance attired 

* Xavier thus wrote verbatim to Ignatius Loyola : " If I but understood 
their language (Japanese) I have no doubt that many unbelievers would 
accept the Christian religion. Would to God that I had sooner acquired 
knowledge of it! for I might then have hoped to render some service to the 
Church. At present we are only like statues which cannot talk. They 
speak much to us, but we cannot reply, as we do not know what they say- 
to us." 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 07 

in rich Bonze vestments, and took the precaution of sending 
beforehand certain presents to the King, as, for instance, a 
beautiful repeating watch, a musical instrument of good tone, 
and other such trifles. 

The Japanese, however, still continued to look upon the 
foreign Bonze as a fool, and considered their own established 
religion to be much more sensible than that preached by such a 
ninny. As Xavier now, however, learned that this said religion 
originated, properly speaking, in China, and as he was of opinion 
that it would be an easy matter to Christianise the Japanese Em- 
pire after he had first of all converted the mother country, he forth- 
with determined to make a descent upon the Celestial Empire. 

The way thither brought him to the sea-port of Bungo, the 
residence of another Japanese king, and at that time there 
happened to lie several Portuguese ships at anchor, commanded 
by Edward de Gama, a descendant of the renowned Vasca de 
Gama. This was for him a fortunate circumstance, as Edward 
de Gama was aware of the favour in which the missionary stood 
with John III., and he was not the less conscious that political 
wisdom demanded the encouragement of missionary enterprise, 
as the only way by which it was possible to open up to European 
trade this carefully- closed kingdom. On that account it appeared 
to him necessary that Xavier should be received with marks of the 
greatest honour, amid the thunder of cannon; the consequence 
being that the ruler of Bungo wished to know what was the 
reason of all these salutes. He was duly informed that all this 
parade was in honour of a holy European Bonze, who had come 
on board the Admiral's ship ; and, in reply to the Prince's 
question, whether he might not be afforded an opportunity of 
seeing and becoming acquainted with this distinguished indi- 
vidual, he was told that the latter had the intention of paying 
his respects to His Majesty very shortly. 

This interview, in fact, took place ; not, however, in any ordi- 
nary manner, but with every degree of pomp that it was pos- 
sible to observe. The entire line of ships hoisted their pennants, 
and salutes were fired, the whole of the crews participating on 
the occasion, and all the officers being decked out in the greatest 
gala.* In a word, everything was done to impress upon the 

* The whole train proceeded to the land in three boats, decorated as for 
a fete, an ornamental awning being spread, and the benches being covered 

7 



98 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

inhabitants, as well as the King, that Francis Xavier was a man 
worthy of the highest consideration, and he was consequently 
not only received by the whole standing army as the great Bonze 
of Europe, but welcomed with much distinction by the Regent 
himself. He, moreover, at once obtained leave to proceed 
with his work of conversion to Christianity, wherever he chose, 
and he, naturally enough, took the fullest advantage of this 
permission. 

Matters, however, soon took a different turn, as the native 
Bonzes, fearing to lose their influence, sought to stir up the 
people against the " Bonze of Chemachicogin," as they called 
Portugal, and, moreover, represented to the King, before heaven 
and hell, how dangerous the new teaching was to the State. 
Now, as the King did not at once yield to their solicitations, 
being desirous of not giving offence to the Chinese, he called 
together a sort of Bonze council in the city of Bungo ; at this 
appeared about three thousand heathen priests, who called upon 
the stranger to defend his doctrines before the assembled council. 

This religious conference, in fact, which took place, led, as 
may be easily imagined, to no result. In other words, each 
party ascribed the victory to itself, and each had reason for 
so doing, as neither of them in any way understood each other. 
The people, however, sided entirely with the native priests, and 
such a commotion ensued that the Portuguese themselves com- 
pelled Xavier to withdraw, fearing that a revolution might be 
the consequence. 

The upshot of the matter was, that the missionary quitted the 
ity of Bungo, after a residence in it of forty-seven days, on 

with the most beautiful Persian carpets, each boat also having its own 
particular band of music, which played the most beautiful airs, while the 
cannon thundered away and the whole of the sailors shouted out hurrahs ! 
On arriving on shore Edward de Gama, with uncovered brow and his 
marshal's staff in his hand, placed himself at their head, and then followed 
after him five of the Portuguese of the greatest distinction, who, also 
uncovered, bore the presents destined for the King of Bungo, to wit, an 
ornamented sceptre of chisled gold, a richly-bound Bible, a pair of black 
slippers embroidered with pearls, a picture of the Virgin Mary painted in 
oil colours, and a beautiful umbrella. Then came Francis Xavier himself, 
attired in a choir shirt of Indian muslin studded with precious stones, as 
also a stole of gold brocade ornamented with diamonds, and surrounded by 
thirty richly-clothed naval officers, all of them of noble birth and adorned 
with gold chains and precious stones. The procession was closed by the 
sailors and marines, all, of course, decked out in their Sunday clothes, march- 
ing along with hat in hand, as in order to show sufficient respect to Francis 
Xavier it was necessary for their heads to be uncovered. 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 99 

November 20th, 1551, not, however, without leaving behind 
him a shepherd for the small flock which he had collected 
together, and sailed away in a ship placed at his disposal by the 
Admiral, for the city of Canton, which was the nearest place in 
the Chinese Empire. 

A storm, however, compelled him to land on a small island 
on the way, and here he was informed by certain Portuguese 
merchants that it was not permitted for any stranger to cross 
the frontier of China unless he came in the capacity of an am- 
bassador. He, therefore, caused the ship, thus detained by the 
storm, to direct its course back again to Goa instead of to 
Canton, and, on his arriving there, urgently solicited the Viceroy 
now Don Alphonso de Norogna to despatch an embassy to 
Peking, under whose auspices he might be able to penetrate into 
this empire, so closed against the outer world. 

At first the Viceroy was unwilling to entertain this project, 
but in the end he allowed himself to be persuaded into it by a 
rich merchant of the name of Jaques Pereira, who was anxious 
to speculate in Chinese wares ; on him he conferred the patent of 
an ambassador, and Francis Xavier, along with some other 
members of the Society of Jesus whom he selected from the 
College, accompanied him, leaving on the 14th of April 1552. 

The route lay vid Malacca, where a landing was first made, 
but it would have been better for them had they passed on with- 
'out stopping. It appeared to the Portuguese governor here, a 
proud noble, called Don Alvarez d'Atayde, that it was a per- 
fectly preposterous thing that a common bourgeois merchant 
should be sent as an ambassador to one of the greatest monarchs 
of Asia, and he, therefore, declared that the Embassy could not 
be allowed to proceed until he had received further intelligence 
ifrom the Viceroy of Goa. Francis Xavier protested against this 
detention, and excommunicated Don Alvarez, as the latter 
would not in any way acquiesce in his wishes. This, however, did 
'not improve matters in the slightest, but, on the contrary, the 
proud man felt so provoked, that he forthwith put the whole 
ambassadorial fleet into arrest until something further was 
heard about the affair. This circumstance drove Francis 
Xavier almost frantic, and he made his escape in a small barque, 
leaving behind him most of his companions in Malacca, his 
destination being the island of Sancian. 

7 * 



100 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

The said island being situated on the southern coast of China 
not far from Canton, he hoped to be able to smuggle himself 
from it with ease into the Celestial Empire ; and with the assist- 
ance of a Chinese merchant whom he had bribed, would no- 
doubt have succeeded, had not the providence of God ordained 
it otherwise for him. He had hardly landed, after a stormy 
passage of nearly one month's duration, when he was laid up 
with a violent fever, and, being treated by an unskilful doctor, he 
succumbed to the disease twelve days afterwards, on the 2nd of 
December 1552, at the comparatively early age of forty-six years.* 

Such was the end of a man who underwent the greatest 
dangers in order to spread in distant lands what he called the 
Christian religion of a man whose courage and constancy could 
not he daunted or overcome, even by the greatest of misfortunes, 
and who, on that account, had the right to range himself side 
by side with the most valorous of soldiers ; but also of a man 
who was never in the service of mankind, but merely in that ot 
the Papacy, and who, from his more than unwise zeal, never 
hesitated in the least to render the teaching of Christianity, in. 
truth, really laughable, and to bring down upon it the ridicule 
of unbelievers. His Order, however, had much for which to 
thank him, as he laid the foundation of many establishments in. 
India, China, and Japan, in which only a few decades afterwards 
it might well rejoice; and, without his animating example, his- 
followers in missionary undertaking could, certainly, never have 
accomplished what they eventually notoriously brought about to> 
the astonishment of the world. On that account he was most 
highly honoured and revered by his fellow Jesuits, who, after 
the lapse of two years, conveyed his corpse, which at the time of 
his death had been buried with quite sufficient ceremony at 
Sancian, to Goa, in order that it should be deposited with great 
pomp and solemnity in the College of the Holy Paul. There, 
later on, also, they erected a splendid mausoleum for him in the 
Jesuits' church, and a similar monument was also raised to his 
memory in the Jesuits' Church in Rome, where, by the command 
of the General of the Order, Claudius Aquaviva, an arm of 
Xavier was brought. The principal thing, however, was that 
the Pope, Paul V., pronounced the apostle of India, as Francis 

* He was born in the year 1506, at the Castle of Xaviero, in Navarre, at 
the foot of the Pyrenees. 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 101 

Xavier was designated after his death, to be holy, and Gregory 
XV., on the 12th of March J622, translated him into the 
category of saints, an act which, however, was only announced 
to Christendom on the 6th of August of the year following by 
Pope Urban VIII. Still later, in the year 1747, Pope Benedict 
XIV. bestowed upon him the honourable title of " Protector of 
India," and kings as well as queens hastened to erect churches 
to his honour, which were, of course, named after him. 

I have dilated, I admit, very considerably on the work of 
Francis Xavier in Asia, as he was in fact a much too interest- 
ing personage to be passed over in a short description. In 
regard, however, to his successors in office I allude to the 
associates and soldiers of Christ, who after him carried on the 
missionary work in Japan, China, and the East Indies, and 
the different fates they met with I will content myself with a 
much shorter description, and rather look to the results upon 
which they ultimately had to congratulate themselves. 

In East India, Xavier had completely paved the way for them, 
as in all places of any consequence which had become subject to 
the Portuguese, Jesuit establishments by whatever name they 
were called, be it colleges, residences, or missions were founded, 
and it only remained to increase their number, as also to enlarge 
those already existing. For the sons of Loyola it was always 
everywhere an easy matter to succeed in doing so, as, in the 
first place, the Portuguese governors (Don Alvarez d'Altayde being 
almost a solitary exception), by order of the king, played into 
their hands ; and as, secondly, they could get the better of any 
opposition to their projects very easily with the assistance of the 
tribunals of the Inquisition, established by themselves. To 
increase, too, the number of missions was by no means difficult, 
as in every place, wherever the Portuguese or other Euro- 
pean despoilers had penetrated, the Jesuit missionaries pressed 
forward, and, by very simple means, contrived to plant their 
feet firmly, as well as to form Christian communities. In what, 
then, did these simple means consist ? The mode was nothing 
else than this : these missionaries attired themselves as Indian 
priests or Brahmins (throughout all India the Brahminical 
religion prevailed), in order that, before the Indians, who enter- 
tained a strong inborn repugnance to foreigners, they might pass 
.themselves off as natives, while they, at the same time, actually 



102 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

amalgamated the Christianity which they taught with the already- 
subsisting heathenish views and customs of the inhabitants. 
The good Hindus (or native Indians) might thus still continue 
to be Hindus as long as they merely submitted to be baptised 
and to bear the name of " Christians ! " It was, indeed, not 
even necessary to adopt a Christian name in baptism, as the 
people might retain their own heathenish ones, as St. Paul him- 
self said, "one should be all things to all men! " It would, of 
course, be very easy for me to form a complete list of all the 
Jesuits who, as Brahmins, travelled about the country, and who, 
if they did not exactly trample on the Cross of Christ, at nil 
events denied the same. But I will content myself in noting 
merely two of them, hoping from these examples to give to the 
reader a clear notion as to the nature of Jesuit work and pro- 
ceedings in India. One of them, namely, Pater Constantino 
Beschi, who had most carefully studied the Hindi language, ns 
well as Sanscrit, imitated the customs and manners, no less than 
the mode of life of the Brahmins so correctly that the people 
of the Dekkan, where he for a long time resided, actually began 
to honour him as a saint as a saint, however, be it well under- 
stood, in the heathen heaven ; and, as he published, besides, 
popular poems in the native language, he thus became celebrated 
throughout all lands. What was, then, the consequence of this ? 
The ruler of the Dekkan, in the belief that he was a true 
Brahmin, raised him to be his first court official and minister, 
and Constantino Beschi did not trouble himself in the least to 
explain the mistake. On the contrary, the worthy Pater, hence- 
forth completely renouncing all European customs and origin, 
attired in a fine oriental costume, appeared in public riding upon 
a richly-caparisoned horse, or carried in a palankeen by slaves, 
and always accompanied by a numerous escort on horseback, 
who cleared the way for the great man, proclaiming his going 
and coming at the same time with a flourish of trumpets. No 
one could have supposed that he was in reality a European, 
and much less a baptised Christian. A Jesuit, however, he still 
remained to the end of his days, and his companions of the 
Order were not a little proud of him. 

A perfectly different character was presented in the very 
worthy Pater Barthelemi Acosta, the second example which I 
now bring to notice, as he did not frequent the society of the 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 103 

great ones of the land, but rather contented himself with 
mixing among the very lowest dregs of the people ; influenced, 
of course, by the same aim and object as that of Constantino 
Beschi, the Prime Minister and Grand Vizier. He sought out,, 
namely, the ill -famed dwellings of the public dancing girls and 
courtesans, and the huts of those called " Bayaders," being well 
aware that, always ready, at any day and hour, to sacrifice to 
the god of love, they thereby possessed great influence over the 
male sex, and he thus soon found himself on the most intimate 
terms with them. He was in the habit of playing with them,, 
as well as dancing and drinking with them, by which means 
he become their dearest friend and confidant. The poor creatures 
were quite delighted with him, and desired nothing better 
than to become translated into heaven at the hands of him. 
who made the matter so easy for them. One thing only stood 
in the way of their embracing the Christian religion, which was 
that they had been told that Christian priests condemned, as a 
sinful vice, the trade by which they lived, and, consequently, 
they delayed from hour to hour to receive the sacrament of 
baptism. What, then, did the worthy father do ? He taught 
them that they might become Christians and still, without com- 
mitting sin, might continue to devote themselves to the god 
of love, provided they dedicated a portion of their gains to the 
Christian church, and, at all events, did their best endeavour to 
convert those persons to whom they were in the habit of yielding 
their charms. By these, and other similar ways, the Jesuits 
contrived to insinuate themselves everywhere throughout the 
whole extent of India, and, as long as the dominion of the 
Portuguese lasted, they made themselves absolute masters of 
the soil ; that is to say, they found themselves all alone at 
liberty to despoil the whole of the enormous territory, without 
being interfered with by other Orders, making proselytes, or 
founding colleges and residences, as they were beloved almost 
beyond all measure by the King of Portugal, as we shall here- 
after see. But how was it after the lapse of a century ? When 
other sea-faring nations also came forward, especially the French, 
Dutch, and English, to participate in the great hunt after the 
riches of India, and, as by degrees the power of the first 
despoiler collapsed on all sides, then came also the downfall of 
the Jesuit dominion. As I shall hereafter, in the fourth, fifth, 



104 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

and seventh books of this work, come to speak of the way in 
which the Jesuits conducted themselves during the height of 
their glory in India it is sufficient for us to know at present 
that, during the period of a hundred years, the Society of Jesus 
was the sole ruler in India in matters connected with religion 
and the Church. 

They were also quite as fortunate in Japan, although with 
much greater trouble than in India, and so far back as the year 
1573, only twenty years after the death of Xavier, they were 
able to congratulate themselves on the possession of large 
establishments in about half of the hundred small kingdoms 
into which the great Empire was divided. Moreover it was a 
fact, that already at that time more than two hundred thousand 
Japanese, exclusive of women and children, had come under 
their banner, and it may be considered no exaggeration at all to 
say that the Popes of Rome exulted over this circumstance, 
declaring that they would never rest satisfied until they had 
brought the whole of Japan under the dominion of Christen- 
dom. But what had the Jesuits to thank for this result ? 
Simply and solely their own cunning, and the circumstance 
that Japan formed no single and entire sovereignty ruled over by 
one single monarch. It had from the first, become obvious to 
Xavier that, in order to gain over the Japanese to his opinions, 
it would be necessary for him to mix himself up with theirs also, 
and on that account, as we have already seen, he commenced 
his operations as a Bonze. The associates he had left behind 
him in Japan, namely Come de Torrez, Juan Fernandez, 
Cosmos, or whatever might be their names, adopted the same 
convenient system of morality, and each took good care of 
himself, as it is said, to get into the house by the door. The 
place, thought they, cannot be carried by storm, but by quite 
gently creeping on all fours; and protected by trenches, the holy 
fathers made their advances, and placed before the garrison such 
easy and agreeable conditions that they could hardly fail to 
yield. After conversion the Jesuit fathers still allowed their 
followers, although they had received the sacrament of baptism, to 
frequent the heathen pagodas, and to pray on their knees before 
their gods Jebischu, Daitotu, Fatziman, Fottei, or by whatever 
other names they might be called, if they in thought only 
transferred their worship and adoration to Christ! Still their 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 105 

conquest would not have been so easy, nor would it have 
certainly been extended within so wide a circle, had it not 
been assisted in a large measure by the breaking up of the great 
empire. Each of their different smaller kings merely sought, 
indeed, his own aggrandizement, and not that of the common 
fatherland; a continual jealousy consequently reigned amongst 
Jill, and an ever-enduring envy and hatred prevailed among the 
.rivals. To none of them was anything else at heart than the 
depreciation and disparagement of their neighbour, and every 
oneans that tended thereto was hailed with hearty welcome. 
Especially several of these petty despots believed that great 
advantages would accrue to them, if they entered into commercial 
relationship with a seafaring nation such as the Portuguese, or 
if they succeeded in forming an alliance with those brave men 
who had, just at that time, despoiled India. By what means 
could they attain this object more easily than through inter- 
course with the Jesuits ? I have already apprised the reader of 
the reception given to Francis Xavier by Edward de Gama in the 
seaport of Bungo ; and, as the Jesuits were universally met by 
the Portuguese sailors with servile submission, wherever a Portu- 
.guese ship lay at anchor in a Japanese harbour, the sons of Loyola 
might indeed be certain that their captain would be sure to 
.place the men at their disposal, as, at the same time, their Order 
was all powerful at the Court of Lisbon. Not a few, accordingly, 
of those minor kings made haste to make themselves as friendly 
as possible with the Loy elites, and, on the principle that " one 
hand washes the other," gave them as much assistance as they 
possibly could. Some of them, indeed, even allowed themselves 
to be baptised, by which example their subjects were naturally 
Jed to do the like, and then, conjoined to the act of baptism, for 
the most part a liberal donation of lands was at the same time 
given to the Jesuits, upon which, after becoming settled, they 
might erect their respective colleges and residences. We 
learn, for instance, respecting the King of Omura, that, in the 
year 1562, he assigned to the Jesuits, for their own particular 
use, the town of Vocoziura, with all the villages within a radius 
of five miles ; and if other princes did not go quite so far as this, 
they, at least, presented the missionaries with all the cloisters 
for which they had occasion. The Jesuits then, in short, after a 
few decades, acquired a most extraordinary influence in Japan, 



106 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

and even in Miako, the seat of the Dairi, they succeeded in- 
establishing a college along with a noviciate ; and, as they wera 
once before known to do, even made use of their power to 
threaten therewith the rulers inimical to them. What do I say 
to threaten ! That is by far too mild an expression, as, from 
threatening they often came to action ; that is to say, the Black 
Cloaks beguiled the converted princes into making an attack on 
the unconverted, and exerted their whole power and influence, in 
this way, to obtain a victory for the former. 

Many volumes might be written concerning these everlast- 
ing machinations, excitations, and houndings on of the Japanese 
one against the other, the consequence being that the history of 
Japan at that time consisted in nothing else than a constant 
catalogue of insurrections, rebellions, conspiracies, wars, and 
massacres ; each of these fraternal feuds, however, and each of 
these rebellions, &c., ever aided the Jesuits to a new triumph, 
and at last to such a pitch did matters come that, in the year 
1585, three of the converted kings, namely, those of Bungo, 
Arima, and Omura, organised under their guidance a brilliant 
embassy to the then reigning Pope, Gregory XIII., in order to 
render homage to the head of Christendom. 

This was glory, indeed ! Truly such splendid results could 
hardly have been brought about by all the other Orders put 
together; but the Pope himself, also, showed himself grateful, 
and forthwith, through a Special Bull, forbade for the future 
all monks or other ecclesiastics from going to Japan, with the 
object of exercising any ecclesiastical function whatever, without 
his express permission, under the penalty of being subjected to- 
the greater excommunication. 

In this manner was Japan given over to the unrestrained 
spoliation of the Jesuits, and one may easily imagine that they 
well knew how to make full use of their opportunity. In what 
respect, however, did Christianity gain by this ? Certainly 
in none whatever, but, on the contrary, it was simply hurtful 
to it, as the Christianity which was taught by the Jesuits 
in Japan had nothing whatever of its character but the name, 
not even its tenor, as it soon became evident that the Jesuits, in 
fact, fabricated a life of Christ especially adapted to meet the 
ideas of the Japanese, in which they represented the son of the 
wife of the carpenter as coming into the world arrayed in 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 10T 

purple, governing as King of Judah, and dying on his bed of 
state in all the glory of a monarch. Still less was done for 
the education of the baptised Japanese ; on the contrary, they 
were allowed designedly to retain all their old superstitions- 
along with their depraved habits and vices of sensuality.* 

It was much more difficult, however, for the Jesuits to pene- 
trate into China than into Japan, as at that time the former 
empire was completely closed against all foreigners, and the 
strong door could not be opened either by force or artifice. 
Francis Xavier, as we have already been made aware, died, 
within sight of its inviting coasts ; nor did it fare any better 
with others of his Order, more especially with brethren Michael. 
Ruggieri, and Pazzio, who, coming one from Goa, the other 
from Macao, attempted for thirty years to climb the Chinese 
rocks, as Father Valigno expresses himself. This difficult 
problem was, however, at last solved by one of them, no other 
than the celebrated Mathias Ricci. 

Born in the same year in which Xavier died, to wit, on the 
6th of October 1552, his birth-place was the town of Macerata, 
in the district of Ancona. He, at a very early age, showed great 
capabilities, and, after acquiring to some extent the old lan~ 
guages, he proceeded to Rome in the year 1568, in order there 
to study law. He then became acquainted with the Jesuit 
fathers, and more especially with Laynez and Salmeron, and 
their persevering efforts at length succeeded in winning over the 
highly- gifted young man to their Order. At the age of nine- 
teen, he entered as a novice into the Collegium Romanum, and, 
began to go through the ordinary course in it; but Pater 
Balignano, who at that time was the head of the Novice 
House, soon discovered that young Mathias possessed an extra- 
ordinary talent for mathematics and mechanics. Who could 
have been more rejoiced at this than the Jesuit fathers ? For 
several years had they endeavoured in vain to get hold of some- 
one possessed of this talent. 

* In the years 1633-35 the pious ecclesiastics, Antoninus de St. Maria, . 
Francis Almeda, and Jean Baptist, travelled all over the East by order of 
the Pope, and from their statements it is apparent, as is allowed by the 
Jesuits, that the Japanese continued still to carry on all their old idol 
ceremonies, and only practised that of Christianity secretly. The Jesuits 
themselves do not at all deny this, but on the contrary admit it. The 
Apostles had employed the same means towards the cou verted Jews and, 
heathens. 



108 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

As soon as it had been brought to the knowledge of the 
General, through the reports current in India and Japan, that 
the Chinese of distinction had an especially great leaning to the 
-cultivation of the so-called exact sciences, as, for example, 
mathematics, chemistry, and astronomy, as well also of the 
mechanical arts, and that anyone who distinguished himself 
in those paths would be highly esteemed by them, it was 
determined to send into the " Empire of the Centre," in the 
garb of a Chinese savant, a well-armed Jesuit, deeply instructed 
in such knowledge, and it was not unnatural therefore that 
the Chief of the Order should rejoice in having at last found 
the long-sought- for talent. 

The pursuit of theology was consequently instantly thrown 
aside by Ricci, in order, on the other hand, to prosecute his 
studies in mathematics, chemistry, and astronomy, and with 
this object the most celebrated teachers and professors of those 
sciences available at the period in Rome were had in requisi- 
tion for him. This young man was at the same time instructed 
-in mechanical learning, and more especially in the art of 
making physical instruments, that of watch-making not being 
neglected. Ricci acquired a knowledge of all these branches 
with wonderful acumen, as well in practice as in theory. It 
'nevertheless took him fully eight years before he had entirely 
perfected himself. 

He now embarked for the East, not, however, immediately for 
China, but for Goa, the head and central point of the Asiatic 
mission. It was here, in the College of the Holy Paul, that the 
finishing touches were given to his education, and, more parti- 
cularly, he there acquired a knowledge of the Chinese language 
so perfectly, that he was quite capable of being taken for a native 
of the Celestial Empire. He applied himself to it with untiring 
zeal, and at last, after four years more, he was now considered 
to be perfect in this respect. 

Nothing further was now wanting to hinder him from pro- 
ceeding to his destination, and he therefore embarked in 
September 1583, in the attire of a Lama, or Fo priest, for China, 
where he presently landed in a small sea-port town called 
Tschao-tcheu. Fo is only another term for Buddha, and a 
Lama, or Fo Priest, thus signifies the same in China as Bonze 
does in Japan. He did not dare, at first, indeed, to approach 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 109 

Canton or any of the other large cities, for fear of being recog- 
nised as a European ; he held it to be more prudent to work, 
quietly from below upwards, and on that account had he, 
indeed, dressed himself in the modest attire of a Lama. He 
advanced so far during the first year as to give instruction to 
the young in mathematics and the other sciences, and thus 
soon won confidence for himself in the neighbourhood. He 
also succeeded in interesting in himself several of the superior 
officials, or mandarins, as they are called in China, by executing 
a geographical chart of the Celestial Empire, a thing unheard of 
before in China. For his main object, however, that is the con- 
version of the Chinese to the Christian religion, he dared not at 
first attempt much, at all events in public, but he contented 
himself in this respect rather by insinuating in the intervals of 
his teaching some points of Christian doctrines, but only such 
as did not appear to be in contradiction to the religious views of 
the Chinese. 

There existed at that time in this large Empire, and there 
now, indeed, are to be found, two systems of religion,* which 
maintain themselves side by side without being inimical to each 
other, both possessing an equal right to flourish, both having 
equal support from the Emperor and his officials. Regarding 
the one, the Buddhist religion, or, as it is called in China, the 
religion of Fo, we already know something in Japan, con- 
sequently T have nothing further to say of it here than this, 
that its followers are, for the most part, to be found among 
the lower classes of the people; it is polytheism, with its monks 
and nuns, its cloisters, its miracles, and its superstitions. The 
other religious system was that established by Confucius, or 
more correctly Kung-fu-tse, and which, as I have already 
remarked, and now repeat, consists merely in a pure morality 
having much resemblance to Christianity. The followers of 
this latter system, also, to whom belong all the educated classes, 
along with the whole Court and body of Mandarins from the 
lowest to the highest grade, bestow upon the founder of it 
divine honour, although they admit that he was a mere man ; 

* A third religious system was not also uncommon, the Tao faith, or, 
as it was called the " Keligiou of the right way." This system, however, has 
long been almost completely amalgamated with Buddhism; it is on that, 
account not necessary to make any particular mention of it. 



110 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

they reject all polytheism, along with miracles, and, further, 
heathenish religious pomp and decoration. 

Under such circumstances as these it was easy for Ricci to 
insinuate into his teaching the moral fundamental truths of 
Christianity, without coming into collision with the Chinese, 
and he was thus, indeed, enabled, without showing any antagon- 
ism to them, to proceed so far " as to compose expressly for 
the Chinese a Christian catechism," as everything in this little 
book harmonised with the teaching of Confucius. On the other 
hand, he carefully avoided all mention to any of his scholars 
of the doctrine of the Trinity, of the birth and ascension of 
Christ, of the Redemption, or of any other Christian mystery, and, 
in the said catechism all such matters were omitted. One thus 
sees that he advanced stealthily with double craftiness, in that 
in the first place he merely here and there insinuated some- 
thing of Christianity, and, secondly, he adapted such Christianity 
to Chinese ideas ; in other words, he re-modelled it to suit 
China. After that Ricci had thus carried on his operations for 
some years in the neighbourhood of Tschao-tcheu, and made 
ihimseJf otherwise thoroughly master of Chinese manners and 
customs, he went on into the neighbouring kingdom of Kiang-Sy, 
:and, somewhat later on, into Nanking, where he passed himself 
off as a literary savant of the religion of Confucius, in the rich 
attire worn by such, whilst he, at the same time, practised as a 
physician. In the latter capacity he became acquainted with a 
mandarin of very high rank, who called him in on account of 
the illness of a sick son, who had been badly treated by the 
Chinese medical practitioners, and, as he was successful in 
bringing him round, the mandarin invited him to Peking, the 
capital of the Chinese empire. This was precisely what Ricci 
had for a long time striven to accomplish, and he therefore 
responded to the call in the year 1595 with the most joyful 
feeling of zeal. He soon came also to get acquainted with 
the higher classes of the community among the Fetisches of his 
highly-conditioned patron, and everyone was amazed at the 
wonderful knowledge which he brought to light. He, moreover, 
strove especially to make friends at Court, in order that he 
might obtain an introduction to the Emperor himself, and, that 
he might the more easily attain his object, he approached even 
the lowest Court officials with the most cringing flattery, while 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. Ill 

? he tried others, according to their dispositions, with presents 
and hribes. He finally, in the year 1601, caused himself to be 
so much talked about among those immediately surrounding 
the Emperor Van- Lie, that the latter, hearing of the wonders 
produced by the learned Ricci, especially concerning a self- 
striking clock, became curious to inspect the apparatus, and 
-ordered the possessor of it to be brought hefore him. Eicci 
presented himself before the monarch, and not only brought with 
'him the "self-striking clock," made by himself, which had 
a very fine appearance, but also several other mechanical 

curiosities which had hitherto been unknown in China. Of 
course, he brought these not alone to exhibit them, but to lay 
them, as presents, at the feet of the Emperor, who was so 

delighted with them, and especially with the clock, that, after 
the dismissal of the disguised Jesuit, he spent several hours in 
watching the action of the works, the revolution of the indicator, 
.s well as the means for striking. Not contented with this, His 
Majesty required that his wives, along with the Empress mother, 
should also be brought to inspect this marvellous production. 
But, alas ! what with the constant manipulation, making it per- 
petually strike, and winding it up, it happened that it suddenly 
got out of order and stopped, whereupon Van-Lie became in- 

consolable at this " extinguished life," and with a complaining 
expression exclaimed to Ricci, who had been quickly summoned, 
" She is dead." The Jesuit, however, comforting him with these 
words, " She shall soon live again, if the Son of Heaven [the 
title given to the Emperor] orders it," took the clock home with 
him, and put it all right again in the course of a few hours 
without much trouble. From this time forth Ricci had, as may 
be said, the game in his own hands, as the Emperor could now 
no longer do without him, or, rather, Ricci contrived to 
render himself indispensable to His Majesty. He knew at 
once how so to make use of the monarch's weakness for machin- 
ery, to obtain a commission from him for a whole quantity of 
clocks and watches, and, as they were procured from Goa, they 
were, of course, accompanied by other Fathers, and he naturally 
was himself appointed to be supervisor of clocks, as who, besides 
him, was capable of keeping the numerous works in order ? 
Then, again, this Father Mathias, as it appears, engaged in 
-another of the favourite sciences of the Emperor, namely, in that 



112 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

of astronomy, and, lastly, the wily Jesuit managed to show his 
acquaintance as well with chemistry and mathematics. Such 
uncommon endowments as these certainly deserved recognition,, 
and, consequently, Van-Lie could no longer refrain from bestow- 
ing upon the Father the distinction of Court Mandarin, con- 
sisting in the position of a superior Court official. Moreover, 
he made him the present of a large house in the city, in order 
to establish a college, and endowed it with an enormous in- 
come, as in it astronomers, mathematicians, chemists, opticians, 
and other artists of every description were to be educated. 
It was, thus, no Christian college, nor in any respect an 
educational institution for future priests of any particular 
denomination, but merely a high scientific institution where the 
chief inhabitants of Peking might send their sons, in order 
that they might be instructed and made as skilful as Mathias 
Ricci and his newly-arrived associates. Of course, Christian 
instruction was not altogether excluded from the place, but it 
was only of such a nature as not to rouse against it the opposi- 
tion of the young nobility and their Mandarin parents. On the 
contrary, Ricci and his associates only taught what Confucius 
had taught before, and what had won for that religious founder 
his well-merited place in Heaven. They avoided either attack- 
ing Chinese habits and customs, or even making but slight 
objections to them, but on the other hand, they rather just 
allowed their pupils to live on quietly in the way they had been 
accustomed to do. They might continue, for instance, to pray 
as before to their household gods, if they had any. They might, 
as before, attend their lantern-feasts, and soul-feasts, the fete of 
Phelo, and all similar Chinese religious festivities. They might 
sacrifice at the graves of deceased relatives, and, when sick, 
might provide themselves with the "Luin," that is, with the 
prescribed Passe-par-tout, which the Lama priests require as an 
entrance into the other world ; they might, on arriving at the 
age of puberty, observe the custom of the plurality of wives, 
and take to themselves as many spouses and concubines as they 
desired; they might even take to wife their own sisters, 
should they wish it, and, moreover, relationship of any kind 
formed no impediment to marriage. They might do all this, 
and still more, if they would only allow themselves to be 
baptised, and just declare their wish to become Christians;. 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 113 

so, with the view of avoiding any opposition,* the Jesuit 
Fathers carried out to the fullest extent all such customs and 
ceremonies. It was thus certainly made as easy and convenient 
for them as it reasonably could be ! and as little as possible 
was demanded in return. On the other hand, such immense 
advantages were promised them, that it would have been indeed 
a perfect marvel had they not been entrapped. All the science 
of Europe was freely offered them for the present life, and by 
means of such knowledge they might thus be enabled to surpass 
all their fellow-countrymen, so that, for the future, the Emperor 
would only select from their number his governors, generals, 
and ministers. As regards the life to come, too, they might 
thus secure for themselves such an eternally enduring happiness, 
and a glorious place in Tien, i.e. heaven, that all the rest, and 
even the souls of those who were burning in hell-fire, must on 
that account greatly envy them, and all this might be attained 
for nothing more of a sacrifice than merely a declaration of 
the desire of being henceforth called Christians. No, indeed, 
nothing more, I repeat, than this ; but along with this declara- 
tion, be it well understood, was the obligation conjoined of 
having no other spiritual advisers than the Jesuit Fathers. 
Herein lay the point, for when the Fathers became, first of all, 
the confessors and spiritual advisers of a family, it was as much 
as if all the members of the family had sworn allegiance to 
them. 

In this manner Ricci succeeded in securing an extremely 
influential position at the Court of Pekin, and the consequence 
was that he was not only permitted to build a church adjoining 
the college, but he was enabled also to establish colleges and 
churches in other towns in the great Empire, by means of 
his associates, of whom he constantly obtained an accession in 
numbers from Goa. It must not be believed, however, that he 

* This is reported in a letter from the Jesuit Ignatius Lobo, dated 12th 
September 1635, to the Franciscan Father, Antonio de Saint Marie. I may 
especially mention, once for all, that what is related here concerning the 
Christian teaching of the Jesuits in China is but an extract taken from 
the reports of the Jesuits themselves. As, for instance, from the great 
work ou China by Du Halde, from the memoranda of Fathers Le Coute and 
Martini, from the report of Father Boym, as also from the posthumous 
writings of Kicci himself ; allusion is not made to the false imputations 
emanating from enemies to the Jesuits, but to facts confirmed by the Jesuit 
missionaries themselves. 



114 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

had no difficulties to contend with in this respect. On the 
contrary, the priests of the Fo religion, in particular, did 
everything in their power to throw suspicion on him and his 
associates, and succeeded so far at Canton, in the year 1608, that 
the Governor there ordered Franz Martinez to be bastinadoed, 
to which punishment he succumbed, and yielded up the ghost. 
Father Longobardi, also, nearly shared the same fate, and even 
Ricci himself was within an ace of being overthrown by a cabal 
got up against him by the great Bonze of Peking. He contrived, 
however, to make such good use of the friendship which the 
Emperor entertained towards him, that he came off at last 
triumphant, and the blow intended for him and his associates 
fell back upon his enemies.* On the whole, therefore, his 
mission had been so marvellously successful that, in 1610, when 
death overtook him, it might be correctly boasted concerning 
him that he had effected, during his twenty-seven years' 
operations in China, as much, if not more than Francis Xavier 
had done in India and Japan ; not, however, had he effected 
anything of consequence for Christianity, for what he taught 
certainly had but little more than just the name of Christianity, 
and totally deviated from the religious principles of the Roman 
Oatholic faith. But so far as his Order was concerned, he 
opened up for it the largest empire in the world, in which was to 
*be gained an immensity of power, riches and glory ; in this 
respect things had been properly handled.f 

Not long after the death of Ricci, his great protector and 
patron the Emperor Van-Lie also died, and under his successor, 
Tien-ki, who also did not reign long, the native priests fre- 

* The Court intrigue to which I have alluded above was occasioned by a 
master-stroke of ignominy, in that the Emperor was made to suspect the 
Grand Bonze by means of a libel, circulated through the Court of Peking, a 
document probably having Ricci for its author, being not only spread 
.about but also clearly fabricated. The Governor of Canton, too, who had so 
maltreated Father Martinez, came off badly, as, for his officiousness, he 
was removed from hia government to one of less importance, and must 
have held himself to have been fortunate in escaping with so mild a 
punishment. 

t The best proof of how Kicci troubled himself about Christianity lies 
in the fact of his literary activity. He wrote for the Chinese and the 
support of his mission, among others, the following works: (1) The 
Practical Mathematics of Clavius, (2) the six first books of Euclid, (3) the 
Spheres of Euclid, (4) a Treatise on Physics, (5) a Method of Making Sun 
Dials, (G) the Art of Employing Astrolobiums, (7) on the Use of the Spinet, 
<{8) a Catechism of Moral Philosophy the same in which he develops his 
Chinese Christianity. From these posthumous publications I think we cau 
fcest form a judgment respecting the " Apostle of China." 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 115 

quently renewed their endeavours to obtain a decree prohibiting 
the proceedings of the intruding foreigners. Intrigue followed 
intrigue, calumniation calumniation, complaint complaint, while 
at one time this party, at another that party, appeared likely to 
get the upper hand. 

It would naturally be of but little interest to the reader were 
I to enter more fully into detail regarding these matters, and I 
will, therefore, only remark that the Jesuits were at one time on 
the point of being completely foiled. The Governor of the king- 
dom of Kiang-Nan, for example, who, in the year 1615, resided 
in Nanking, declared himself to be their particular enemy, and 
not only published a circumstantial decree against them, which 
he transmitted to the Court, but also actually commenced to 
expel them, even without waiting for the approval and sanction 
of higher authority. The Governor of the neighbouring pro- 
vince of Quang Tong now followed his example in this respect, 
and in these portions of the enormous empire the Jesuits suffered 
the most cruel persecution. Their colleges were closed and 
their churches pulled down ; they were themselves thrown into 
the closest prison, bastinadoed, and then packed into a ship like 
bales of goods, and transported out of the country to Macao. 
The authorities ought, however, to have waited a little before 
acting thus, lest the Court of Peking might possibly interfere, 
seeing that the Jesuits still remained in the highest repute there, 
as mathematicians, astronomers, chemists, musicians, and mecha- 
nicians. This interference, however, did not take place, and the 
Nanking decree of expulsion was, on the contrary, immediately 
confirmed, probably from the fact of the memorandum of the 
Governor of Kiang obtaining unanswerable support on the 
points of complaint. And it may be remarked that the Jesuits 
themselves observed unbroken silence regarding this circum- 
stance in their hitherto most detailed reports on China. 

Political events now, however, occurred, which had the effect 
of bringing the pious Fathers into higher honour than they 
had ever before enjoyed. The Tartars, a numerous and brave 
race of people, whose home lay in the northern frontier of the 
empire, had for a long time past given rise to frightful trouble 
to the Emperor of China, who had been only able to repel the 
inroads of these nomad hordes by mustering his whole forces 
against them. It was an inroad of this description that took 

ft * 



116 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

place in the year 1618, and the Khan of Tartary, called by the 
Chinese historians the thief " Thien-Min," penetrated almost to 
the very walls of Peking. The Emperor was now in great 
straits, as his cowardly people fought badly, and it was much 
to be feared that even Peking itself might fall into the hands of 
the enemy. Then, again, Mandarin Seu, one of the highest 
officials of the Empire, whom the Jesuits, through his pious 
daughter, Kandide, who had been baptised by them, and 
solemnly proclaimed to be a saint, had got completely into 
their power, counselled the Emperor to solicit the pious Fathers 
to obtain the assistance of Portuguese officers and, in par- 
ticular, artillerists, in order that, from their superior attain- 
ments in the art of war, the enemy might be driven back. The 
Emperor with great joy welcomed this counsel. The Jesuits, of 
course, most readily complied with his wishes, not, however, 
except under certain conditions, among which were included 
naturally the solemn abrogation of the Nanking decree of ex- 
pulsion. The result was that after the successful defeat of the 
Tartars the Emperor fell completely into the hands of the 
Jesuits, who at the same time in this way obtained the keys of 
government. Full power was then again accorded to them to 
erect colleges in all the cities of the Empire, and also churches 
as well in connection with the former ; and it cannot be doubted 
that they made the most unrestrained use of this privilege. 

The incursions of the Tartars did not by any means cease 
with the defeat of Thien-Min, but were still renewed more 
than ever during the reign of the Emperor Hoai-tsong, the 
successor of Tien-ki. Matters, however, became still worse 
when Prince Li-tse-tching raised a rebellion, and with the aid 
of 70,000 Tartar cavalry advanced on Peking. There could not 
be any question of long resistance, and in despair Hoai-tsong 
along with all his wives committed suicide in his Palace, where- 
upon Li-tse-tching took possession of the throne. But if the 
capital paid him homage, it did not thereupon follow, as a neces- 
sary consequence, that the whole province should do so likewise, 
and such infinite confusion ensued throughout the Chinese 
Empire that shortly no one could distinguish between a cook 
and a butler. Deep was the misery that reigned among all the 
friends of the fatherland, and still more dire were the necessities 
of the people. The Jesuits, however, on the other hand, rubbed 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 117 

their hands with joy, well knowing how to fish in troubled waters, 
and to each of the different pretenders who were striving with 
each other for the mastery they promised mountains of gold in 
return for certain advantages. The two Fathers, Cofler and 
Schall, made themselves more particularly conspicuous in this 
respect, and it is really worth while to look a little more closely 
into their conduct, whilst both of them not on their own account, 
it is true, but by the order of their General in Rome, who held 
all the threads of the machinery operated in entirely opposite 
camps. Thus, while Turn-Lie, a grandson of the Emperor 
Van-Lie, allowed himself to be proclaimed Emperor in the 
province of Chan Sy, Father Cofler at once attached himself to 
his side, bringing along with him Doctor Lucca, a good engineer 
officer, and, still better, Jesuit, besides several other Fathers 
among whom was Martin Boym. Moreover, besides those 
mentioned were several lay Portuguese, all of them being 
officers, who were sent to him by the Governor of Macao, to be 
attached to his suite, so that, consequently, he could make an 
appearance with some ostentation. Cofler thus acting, Turn-Lie 
was thereby soon brought to the conviction that it would now 
l)e no difficult matter, while the Christians had ranged them- 
selves on his side, to bring the whole of China under subjection. 
Here was, then, already an influential party, and Cofler promised 
their unanimous support as soon as the Prince had been himself 
baptised, along with his wives and children. The latter con- 
sidered a little, as he did not quite know at this time whether 
he might not, by so acting, give too much offence to the 
great mass of the Chinese people ; but, in the meantime, as news 
came of the defeat of his forces by the enemy, he consented to 
allow his wives and children at least to be publicly baptised, 
though he himself did not " outwardly" recognise Christianity. 
In return for this concession, it was agreed that Peter Cofler 
should create a Christian army, under the command of Lucca. 
Both of these events took place, that is, the baptism and the 
commencement of the assembling together by Lucca of a small 
army. The two spouses of Turn-Lie received the names of 
Helena and Anna ; these, first of all, were immediately required 
to send to the Pope Alexander VII., through Pater Michael 
Boym, autograph letters, dated 4th December 1650, wherein they 
assured the Holy Father, the representative of Christ upon 



118 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

earth, that the whole of China had subjected itself to him with 
the most profound devotion.* The heir to the throne, how- 
ever, Tum-Tym, was christened " Constantine," and Cofler drew 
up his horoscope in the following words: "The child born at 
midnight, like the Son of God, shall be fortunate in everything, 
and resemble a sun which will overspread all China with good 
fortune." Considering all this, then, one would have naturally 
been inclined now to come to the conviction that the Jesuits 
had thoroughly sided with the pretender Turn-Lie, and had col- 
lectively worked to procure for him the victory over all his 
opponents for the throne. It was not so, however, for they played 
quite the same kind of game, besides, with another of the pre- 
tenders ; seeing that, without doubt, one or other of these must 
eventually succeed in carrying off the palm. To wit, then, after 
that Li-tse-tching had seized upon Peking, Osan-Quei, a brother 
of the deceased Emperor, collecting in Mantchuria a large army 
by means of the treasure which he had brought along with hinv 
placed himself at the head thereof, and, entering China, laid 
siege at once to Peking, and compelled Li-tse-tching to abdicate 
the throne. 

He, however, immediately after this, died, and bequeathed 
the inheritance to his only son, Schun-tchin, who forthwith 
armed himself with his whole power in order to subjugate 
also the remaining provinces of China, and put an end thereby 
to all other pretenders to the throne. He was known to be a 
brave commander, and as he could place confidence in his well- 
exercised army, he did not allow himself to doubt for a moment 
that the result of the coming struggle would turn out anything 
else than favourable for him. Nevertheless, while he, like so 
many brave warriors before and after him, was wedded to 
belief in the influence of the stars, before commencing operations 
he determined to consult them and ascertain what was to be his 
fate. He therefore ordered Adam Schall, the Jesuit who at that 
time held the position of astronomer to the Peking College, to 
consult the heavens nightly. Schall, like another Seui, did what 
was demanded of him, and foretold to the valiant Schun-tchin 



This document also, to which the Jesuits attach not a little importance, 
aa it was a proof of the high estimation in which they were held at the- 
Court, can be read in extenso in Du Halde's Description de la Chine, torn. iii. 
p. 301. 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN ASIA. 119 

that he would not only obtain a most glorious victory, but that 
he should also secure for himself and his posterity easy pos- 
session of the whole celestial empire. Schun-tchin now 
advanced with his army, conquering one province after another,, 
and ended by overthrowing Turn-Lie. He took him prisoner, 
indeed, along with his whole family, and caused all the 
members thereof, including his firstborn, Tam-Tym, to whom 
Andreas Xavier Cofler had predicted such a glorious future, 
to be miserably strangled. Nothing, however, happened to 
the Jesuits who had been hitherto working at the Court of 
the conquered one, as they came over in a body, by order of 
Schall, into the camp of the conqueror, he having all this time 
the patent of Vicar- General of the China Mission in his pocket,, 
given to him by the General of the Order. It turned out, then,, 
that the Jesuits had been working at the same time in each of 
the two hostile camps, and, no doubt, had the goddess of fortune 
shown herself favourable to Turn-Lie, they would likewise have 
come over just the same to him. They now, however, extolled, 
immensely the mighty Schun-tchin, and he proved himself to 
be so gracious to them that, at the time of his death, in 1661,. 
although not more than eighty years from the advent of Ricci in. 
the country, they possessed no fewer than thirty-eight colleges 
and residences, along with 151 churches. Moreover, Pater Adam 
Schall carried matters to such an extreme extent that his most 
gracious monarch actually bestowed upon him the dignity of a 
mandarin of the first rank, nominating him also, at the same 
time, supreme head of the European Bonzes and president of the 
Tribunal of Mathematics of the Celestial Empire. This was one 
of the highest and most influential positions in China, and Adam 
Schall was no longer to be seen in public unless attired in the 
richest stuffs, covered all over with precious stones, sitting in a 
palankin borne by twelve slaves, and escorted by a squadron of 
his own body-guard, being protected from the rays of the sun by 
an enormous umbrella, under which he was continually fanned 
by numerous attendants, and regarded with the utmost respect 
by crowds of people, who made way for him obsequiously in order 
to escape being driven aside by blows from bamboo staves. 
Moreover, the great Emperor, besides loading him with riches, 
presented him with a large palace in the immediate neighbour- 
hood of his residence, and on more than twenty occasions visited 



120 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

him personally, whilst it is well known that in China the etiquette 
is for the sovereign never to cross the threshold of a subject. To 
put a crown upon the matter, indeed, he gave him permission to 
address the throne directly on all matters, whereas, in the instance 
of all other Crown and Court officials, it had to be approached 
only through the Tribunal of Petitions ; and, lastly, he entrusted 
to him the education of his firstborn son and successor ! 

Such was the magnificent position accorded to the Jesuit Adam 
Schall at the Court of Peking, and no less splendid was the 
position of the successor to his post, given after his death by the 
General of the Order to the venerable Pater Verbiest, who was 
also a grand mandarin and president of the Tribunal of Mathe- 
matics, and who obtained, moreover, the title of Ma-Fa, stepping 
along, not as an humble preacher of the Christian faith, but as 
a grand dignitary of the great Chinese empire. What was, then, 
in those glorious days, done in respect to the colleges which the 
Jesuits conducted ? Much, as regards mathematical instruments, 
pianos, watches, astronomical tables, and all such studies, but, 
as regards the progress of the Christian religion, nothing at all. 
They turned out, it is true, a number of architects, painters, 
geographers, musicians, astronomers, mathematicians, mechanics, 
physicians, and even diplomatists.* But as for Christian theo- 
logians and preachers, none were produced. Verily, a cannon- 
foundry was erected by the worthy Fathers, under the super- 
vision of the venerable Verbiest, close to the Peking college, and 
the guns made there proved to be much more perfect than those 
manufactured by the Chinese. Nothing was heard or under- 
stood, however, about what the Fathers did . as regarded the 
diffusion of the spirit of God among the Chinese people. 

II. THE JESUIT MISSION IN AFRICA. 

WE have above seen how greatly extended had become the 
Jesuit missions in Asia ; so much so, indeed, that it was hardly 
possible to comprehend all within anything like a narrow 
compass. Entirely different, however, was this the case as to 
the Jesuit mission in Africa, which was limited to a single 
locality and to a comparatively very short space of time. 

* The Jesuits were also employed by the Emperor Eang-hi (tne same as 
had been educated by Schall) especially in the latter capacity, as it was they 
who, in the year 1689, concluded treaties with Russia, regulating the 
boundaries between Siberia and Mantchuria. 



THE JESUIT MISSION IN AFEICA. 121 

When embarking on the Nile in Egypt, with the view of pro- 
ceeding to the frontier, as soon as the latter is passed, one 
reaches Nubia, which has now become a province of Egypt ; 
but on proceeding still further south, there are extensive high- 
lands, which reach out between the great plain of Kordofan and 
the Red Sea, whose waters separate them from the peninsula of 
Arabia. This region figures in geographical works under the 
names of Abyssinia (or Habesch ) and Ethiopia. 

These fertile lands, in which are the sources of the great 
neighbouring river Nile, as well as other fine streams, and in 
which the fruits of the south flourish along with those of more 
temperate regions, formed, at one time, during the 1st century 
of our era, a mighty kingdom, called Azumitia, after its great 
capital Azum, while Byzantine authors inform us, respecting 
the same, that its rulers had extended their conquests as far as 
Yemen and Saba in Arabia, and on its frontiers, more especially, 
had shattered the power of both Romans and Parthians. At the 
time these events took place, the heathen religion was there 
naturally prevalent, and we read, for instance, that the valiant 
King Aizanes, who reigned at the commencement of the 4th 
century, after having gained a glorious victory, erected, in 
the year 333, some statues in honour of Aries and Mars. 
Immediately after this, however, about the year 340, two 
wandering missionaries, named Frumentius and Adesius, after- 
wards designated the Apostles of Ethiopia, coming from the 
direction of Egypt, began to preach the doctrines of Chris- 
tianity, and, as King Aizanes himself was one of the first to be 
baptised, their doctrines found such great favour with high and 
low, that in less than ten years' time two -thirds of all the 
heathen temples were converted into Christian churches. In 
addition to which, numbers of cloisters and hermitages were 
established, as a matter of course, after the pattern of the 
Egyptian ones, as Egypt supplied hundreds of secular priests 
who were required for the performance of divine worship, and, as 
may well be supposed, the entire ritual was no other than that 
customary in the mother country. In order, however, to put a 
seal upon the whole affair, the Patriarch of Alexandria conse- 
crated the missionary Frumentius to be the first bishop of the 
newly-converted country, and, from that time forth, it became 
the privilege of the Patriarch to nominate the " Abuna " as the 



122 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

primate bishop was designated. It was thus that Ethiopia 
became the most remote bulwark of Christianity in Africa, and 
many attempts were then made to gain a footing for this* 
faith even in Arabia; but, the religion of Mahomet starting 
into existence in the 7th century, a completely different com- 
plexion was given to the whole matter. Mahornedanism, which, 
as is well known, made proselytes sword in hand, seized not 
only upon Arabia, along with all the coasts bordering upon 
the Red Sea, comprehending therein the territory of the Kings 
of Azum, but also subjected Egypt up to the frontiers of Nubia, 
thereby rendering Abyssinia, as it were, a Christian oasis in 
the midst of countries now become Mahomedan. Not contented, 
indeed, with this, the Khalifs (Mahomet's successors) sought to 
penetrate into Abyssinia itself, and not merely weakened it much 
by successive aggressive raids, but continued their efforts until 
they had gained over to Islam a portion of the population. What 
was still worse, they gradually excluded the country, both by sea 
and land, from all intercourse with other nations in such a way 
as to draw a cordon round it ; so isolated, indeed, did it 
thus become that for centuries nothing was heard of it in 
Europe. It was not till the Middle Ages that a tradition 
sprang up regarding the lost Christian monarchy, when much was 
talked of respecting a certain " Priester John " who governed 
this kingdom, and who was said to be the lineal descendant of 
King Solomon. Still no one could give any very distinct 
information about the matter, and many thought it to be a 
myth and an idle dream, until the end of the year J483, when an 
Abyssinian made his appearance at the Council of Florence, 
giving himself out to be an ambassador from the ruler of that 
country, Za Yacub by name. He disappeared again, however, 
immediately after it was brought to a close, and then no more 
was again heard of the kingdom than previously. As the 
Portuguese, in one of their expeditions to the east coast of 1 
Africa, in the year 1484, learned, through an embassy to the 
negro State of Benin, that, twenty months' journey beyond the 
latter, a powerful king of the name of Za-Ogano reigned, and as 
they, with reason, thought that this Christian kingdom could be 
no other than that of the mythical "Preste Jono," they fitted 
out an expedition at once, under the supreme command of Pero- 
de Covilha, which should proceed through Egypt and the Red 



THE JESUIT MISSION IN AFKICA. 128 

Sea to the east coast of Africa. Covilha accomplished his 
commission in the most brilliant manner, and after a three 
years' search, found that for which he was instructed to look, 
namely, the Christian State of Habesch, in the midst of a 
surrounding partly heathenish and partly Mahomedan. The 
great problem was at last solved, and the reward of the 
Portuguese was that they obtained permission from the ruler of 
the State mentioned, the Negus Za-Densal (" Negus " is 
in Abyssinia the equivalent of " King ") to trade at their 
pleasure, and to found therein commercial establishments; 
for which privilege they were, however, required to give 
effectual assistance against the Mahomedans, who made their 
incursions even as far as from Aden, as also, later on, against 
the Gallas, a wild tribe of people who had their home south of 
Abyssinia. 

So far, all was right between them, and the two nation- 
alities agreed very well together, especially after becoming 
known to each other, partly through the aid of interpreters, 
and partly by conversing through the medium of their respective 
languages. 

The Pope of Rome now made a discovery which might sud- 
denly have the effect of interrupting at once the continuance of 
a lasting good understanding. And in what did this discovery, 
indeed, consist ? Simply in this, that the Abyssinians proved 
themselves to be no true Roman Catholic Christians, but, on 
the other hand, heretics of the class of so-called Monophysites. 
so they must at once be converted to the only true Catholic 
Church. The Pope was right to a certain extent from his own 
stand-point, that is, that the Abyssinians adhered to the same 
faith as the Christians in Egypt (the so-called Kopts), contend- 
ing that in Christ were united two natures in one person, the 
human and divine without admixture, transmutation, or separa- 
tion. Besides which, they deviated also in some other respects 
from the practice of the Latin or Roman Catholic ritual, as for 
instance in that of baptism, which was always preceded witto 
them by circumcision ; as also in the observance of the Sabbath, 
and in that of fasting, which they extended always to sunset, 
while the Romish Christians abstained from food only up ta 
mid-day. But the principal difficulty did not consist, by any 
means, merely in these two externals, which signified next. 



124 HISTOBY OF THE JESUITS. 

to nothing as regards the Oriental Christian ritual, but in this, 
that the Abyssinian clergy did not look upon the Pope of Rome as 
their supreme Church authority, preferring rather the Patriarch of 
Alexandria, and they could not be prevailed upon to yield on this 
point, in spite of all Roman argument. This was clearly nothing 
but open heresy, and must be opposed with the greatest energy. 
But whom should the Popes nominate as executors of their will 
and pleasure ? No other, of course, than the Order of the 
Jesuits, which had already taken upon itself the task of contend- 
ing with heresy all over the world, and in re-establishing the 
Papal supremacy everywhere. And had not the sons of Loyola 
already given proof of their zeal and energy in Japan and 
China ? What were they not capable of doing, and if they 
could not bring about the Romanising of the Abyssinians, no 
one else, assuredly, would be likely to succeed in so doing. 
What now took place can well be imagined, and I will just 
allude to it in a very few words. 

The Jesuits first of all, as usual, sought to establish them- 
selves in the country by means of founding colleges, in which 
they succeeded with the assistance of their friends the Portu- 
guese, in whose ships they reached Abyssinia. They then 
directed their attention to the great men of the kingdom, in 
order to bring them over to their views, and with this object 
left untried no means, including flattery and even bribery, to 
mould them to their wishes. At length, after ten years of under- 
mining and agitation, it fell to the lot of Father Paez, who gave 
promise of becoming another Ricci, to succeed in bringing over 
to his side, at the end of the 1 6th century, Socinius, successor to 
the throne, and the same made a vow, in his spiritual weakness, 
as soon as he should succeed to power, to do his utmost that the 
*' unity of the Church " might be re-established ; this was the 
bait of which the Jesuits made use. In fact, he kept his 
word; and, in the year 1603, as soon as he became King, he 
immediately, along with his whole family, abjured the previous 
heresy of Monophysism, at the same time making a solemn 
declaration that he would henceforth recognise the Pope alone as 
Spiritual Lord of the Kingdom. As may be easily imagined, his 
example was at once followed by a number of the courtiers ; and, 
as the favour of the ruler must, as a matter of course, have been 
.renounced by all those who adhered to the old faith, most of 



THE JESUIT MISSION IN AFRICA. 125 

the provincial governors also, after a short time, espoused the 
side of the Jesuits. It seemed, in fact, to be a settled affair 
that the latter had gained the victory, and thus it was 
represented to Pope Gregory XV., who was induced thereby 
to nominate one of their number, Alfonso Mendez, under the 
title of Patriarch of Abyssinia, to be supreme bishop of the 
country, with all proper dictatorial power in matters of faith ;. 
while, at the same time, the weak-minded Negus Socinius was 
induced to declare himself ready to carry out, with his wordly 
weapons and despotic power, all that was required by the Latin 
Patriarch. There now commenced, as may be well imagined, a 
cruel time for the hitherto happy land of Abyssinia a period of 
such frightful strife, persecution, and affliction, that the pen 
almost refuses to describe the inhuman cruelties which were 
enforced by the Jesuits against the refractory believers in the 
old faith ; but it was just this very blood-thirsty barbarity and 
torture for conscience' sake, this inexorable passion with which 
the cause of Rome was prosecuted, that snatched the victory 
from the sons of Loyola. Abyssinia, for example, contained a 
very numerous body of clergy, consisting of " kasis," or 
parsons, " debteraten," or deacons, " komosaten," or prelates, 
besides, lastly, an " Abuna," or metropolitan bishop, of whom I 
have already made mention ; there were, moreover, of monks 
and nuns almost more than enough in number; all of these 
priests and cowl-wearers, however, clung with invincible tenacity 
to their rites and customs which they had for centuries 
observed, and would especially have nothing whatever to do 
with the Pope of Rome, who wished to be dominant over all 
bishops and patriarchs in the world. The Jesuits could not 
thus conceal from themselves that the innovations which 
they desired to introduce would raise up against them many 
adversaries, the number of such being all the greater in that the 
Abyssinian priests exercised great influence over the minds 
of the people, and especially held unlimited power over the 
wills of their confessants belonging to the lower orders; they 
could not well help seeing that it could only be by a slow 
process of undermining religious convictions, patiently continued 
for many years, that anything of consequence could be effected ; 
the alternative was that a whole race of people could be coerced 
by force. They determined, then, in their impetuosity and 



126 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

arrogance, to adopt the latter course, and thought that they 
would be able to attain their end with the rabble as readily as 
they had already done with the Indians and Japanese. They, 
therefore, incited the King to issue orders to his governors to 
proceed against the refractory priests with the greatest severity. 
But, behold ! now it soon became apparent that the Abyssinians 
were not going to show themselves so effeminate as tamely 
to submit, with humble submission, to an order from superior 
authority, like mindless slaves and degraded creatures. Such 
was not the case ; on the contrary, led by their priests, they 
declared in thousands, by vigorous petitions to the throne, that 
they would not yield, and that they were, moreover, prepared to 
live or die for their faith. 

What did it now signify, if the King's officials, at the desire 
of the Jesuits, sought to overcome this opposition of the people 
by means of cudgelling and sword-cuts ? What did it matter 
now that some of the governors, and among them one especially, 
called Zela, and bearing the nickname of Christ, distinguished 
.himself by consigning to the gallows all those priests who pre- 
.ferred that alternative to conversion ? The people rose in 
rebellion, the storm broke loose, and the agitation became so 
universal, that, in order that all might not be lost, King Socinius 
was compelled to abdicate in favour of his son Facilidas, who, at 
once turning completely round, reverted to the old religion, and 
drove the Portuguese, along with the Jesuits, entirely out of the 
country. He caused, indeed, some of the Fathers, who endea- 
voured to raise a counter revolution, to be publicly executed, and 
promulgated a decree, by which all the Black Cloaks were pro- 
hibited for the future from crossing the frontiers, under pain of 
death. 

Thus terminated the short domination of the Jesuits in 
Habesch, and by the energetic action of Negus Facilidas these 
-were so completely cured of their rage for conversion in this part 
of the world, that they never again made any further attempt ; 
neither did they even so much as think of trying to settle in any 
other places in Africa, but, on the contrary, at once renounced all 
idea of attempting to form any other permanent settlements, as 
well in Egypt, among the headstrong and obstinate Kopts, as on 
the Congo among the half-savage blacks, probably because in their 
opinion the field did not give promise of any productive harvest 



THE JESUIT MISSION IN AFKICA. 127 

Thus vanished in the African sands every trace of the Jesuits, 
and if, later on, agents of the Society did from time to 
time occasionally make their appearance in the Portuguese 
settlements on the west coast of Africa, they did not come there 
to preach the Christian doctrine, or to make any permanent 
settlement, but merely to purchase cargoes of blacks, and to ship 
them off as slaves to their colonies in America. 

III. THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN AMERICA. 

With the Portuguese the Jesuits came into Asia, with the 
same people they also came into Africa, and still again the 
Jesuits came with them into America. In the last-mentioned 
quarter of the globe that nation already possessed an enormous 
extent of territory, which is now known under the name of 
Brazil, and in the year 1549 King John III. of Portugal sent a 
fleet of ships containing a number of emigrants, who founded 
the city of San Salvador, in the Gulf of Bahia, on the east 
xsoast of Central America. 

As the missionary work of Francis Xavier had been so 
extraordinarily successful among the populations of Asia, who 
had thus been converted into good subjects of the King, he 
.requested Loyola, the Jesuit General in Home, to supply him 
-with some missionaries for America also, in the hope that the 
long-cloaked Fathers might get on as well with the inhabitants 
of the West Indies as they had done with those of the East 
Indies ; and Loyola at first sight recognising the importance of 
this mission, at once consigned to him six members of his Order. 
Those six, among whom was Emanuel Rodrega, who, by his 
untiring energy, as well as by his superior sagacity, was highly 
esteemed by Jesuit historians, and not without reason, at once 
built a house for themselves at San Salvador that is to say, 
& residence and thence commenced their efforts, in order to 
see what could be effected with the natives in the interior of the 
.country. It soon was apparent, however, that the latter manifested 
a very different disposition from the degraded and enervated 
Hindoos, and under the oppressions and tortures inflicted on 
them by the Europeans they, if possible, became still more 
savage and cruel than they had previously been. The Jesuit 
Fathers, therefore, were not received with anything like a good 



128 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

welcome, and could not in consequence do much with them at 
all events at first, as they were not yet at all acquainted with 
the language of the Indians, as the natives of America were 
commonly called. They lived, moreover, in constant fear of 
being murdered by the savages, who, being cannibals, entertained 
an irresistible longing for the taste of human flesh. They had 
so much to endure, besides, from oppression during their 
wanderings, that it was indeed surprising that any of them 
escaped, under the circumstances, in their zealous efforts. 
Nevertheless they soon found their exertions crowned with 
a certain amount of success, as the Indians allowed all the 
unfortunates who were condemned to be eaten, and who were, 
for the most part, prisoners taken during their constant feuds 
with other tribes, to be baptised previous to their being 
slaughtered.* Besides this, they met with some success among 
the Indian females at least, with those tribes who had pitched 
their camp in the neighbourhood of European settlements and 
induced the same to accept of rosaries and Agnus Dei. Through 
the women they obtained some influence, too, over the men, 
and the result was that the conversion always terminated with 
the rite of baptism, although those baptised had not, indeed, the 
slightest conception of Christianity. 

The Jesuits at length brought the matter so far, that most of 
the whites in the Portuguese settlements, as well as the half- 
castes, or progeny of whites and Indian women, accepted them 
as father confessors the great thing, however, being that they 
obtained large tracts of extensive territory in the way of presents, 
in order to build thereon residences and colleges. This took 
place all over the country wherever it was at all possible, and 
there soon flourished in San Salvador, Pernambuco, and Rio 
Janeiro three magnificent and very numerously attended educa- 
tional institutions. 

Not long after this less than twenty years subsequent to their 
first landing the Jesuits had already overstepped the boundaries 
of Brazil and penetrated Peru, where in Lima, La Paz, and 
Cusco they also established colleges. Later on after another 

* Not infrequently, moreover, the Indians recalled the permission for the 
baptism of the human victims, because they entertained the prejudice that 
flesh lost its good flavour by the act in question. They looked upon 
baptism then as a description of ma<,'ic, and the Jesuits were careful to 
avoid removing the superstition which they entertained. 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN AMERICA. 129 

twenty years however, they possessed settlements in every part 
of South and Central America, wherever the banners of Portugal 
or Spain waved, as, for instance, in Chili, Mexico, Tukuman, 
and Maranham, and their agents and missionaries permeated 
throughout the whole of that enormous continent, which 
extend from the Isthmus of Panama to the Straits of Magellan, 
as on the other hand from Panama upwards to the Kio del 
Norde. They, indeed, penetrated even into Canada, and the 
banners of Ignatius proudly waved wherever the white flag with 
the three lilies protected it. When, however, that country came 
to be given over from the French to the English, the Jesuits 
had to take their departure, and fly precipitately to the south, as 
neither the English nor Dutch, and not even the Danes, tolerated 
Jesuit settlements in their American colonies. 

Great, however, as was the power and possessions which the 
Jesuits obtained in the individual countries of America, this 
splendour was almost entirely eclipsed by another grand acqui- 
sition which they encompassed in this same land, where they 
got possession of a complete empire, over which they ruled as 
absolute monarchs a dominion, indeed, even twice as large as 
Italy. This country was called Paraguay, and, since it has 
never before come to pass that a purely ecclesiastical Order 
has elevated itself to the position of a sovereign king, on that 
account it is well worth the trouble of going into the matter a 
little more in detail. 

The Paraguay of the present day, one of the smallest free 
states of South America, is bounded on the west by the river 
Paraguay, on the east and north by Brazil, and on the south by 
the territory of Parana, having an extent of only 4,175 square 
miles. The Paraguay, however, of the 16th and 17th centuries 
was, on the contrary, of infinitely larger proportions, and 
embraced nearly all the land now included in the states of La 
Plata and the Banda-oriental. The same comprehends almost 
uninterruptedly a large continuous plain, with but a few ranges 
of hills of not more than a few thousand feet in height, and 
is watered by a number of delightful streams, especially the 
rivers called Paraguay and Uruguay, which discharge themselves 
entirely into the Parana, which, after its union with the 
Uruguay, assumes the name of Rio de la Plata. Its climate is 
semi-tropical, and on that account its soil surpasses in fertility 

9 



130 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

that of almost any other country in the world ; consequently, 
not only do all the ordinary descriptions of fruit which are 
made use of for food by man thrive and prosper, but also such 
plants as tobacco, cotton, and sugar can be grown there with 
advantage. Of not less importance, but perhaps, indeed, much 
more so, is the condition of the animal creation therein. On 
the one hand, there are to be found enormous troops of all 
descriptions of wild animals, such as swine, stags, and different 
kinds of deer ; while, on the other, domesticated animals, more 
especially horses and other cattle, abound in herds. Nothing, 
however, surpasses the magnificence of the forests, and the 
so-called Barrigudos, of no less than three fathoms in cir- 
cumference, as also palm-trees of 180 feet in height, are 
by no means uncommonly to be met with. In short, it is 
indeed a wonderfully delightful country, being the only region, 
perhaps, which can be made available for such opposite uses, as it 
happens that enormous tracts, during the rainy season, disappear 
under water. The first discoverer of this superb territory was 
the Spaniard, Juan Diaz de Solis, Grand Pilot of Castile, who, in 
the year 1516, entered into the Rio de la Plata, and was killed 
by the natives. He was afterwards eaten by them within sight 
of his ships' crews. Three years after this, Don Martin de Sosa, 
Captain-General of Brazil, sent Alexis Garcia, along with four 
other Portuguese, all brave and powerful men, to the Rio de la 
Plata, in order that they might endeavour to penetrate thence 
into the gold and silver coasts of Peru, which, at that time, 
belonged to the Spaniards, and this adventurous journey was 
indeed effected. On the return journey, Garcia and two of his 
companions were massacred by the savages, and the two remain- 
ing ones alone succeeded in reaching alive the town of Bahia, or 
San Salvador. 

The expedition of George Sedano terminated in a result quite 
as unfortunate. He, with sixty other Portuguese, set out like- 
wise from Bahia for the Parana, and they also, through the 
treacherous cunning of the Indians, all found their graves in the 
same river. At last, the Emperor Charles V., in the year 
1 525, sent his grand pilot, Cabot, with five ships, to the river 
Plate, and this distinguished mariner succeeded in ascending it 
until he arrived at Paraguay, and, consequently, no one but him 
can be thanked for the first correct information concerning that 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN AMEKICA. 131 

country. He took possession, also, of the whole territory of 
Parana, or Paraguay, for the Spanish crown, and erected, at the 
confluence of the Rio Ticero with the Parana, a tower known 
afterwards by the name of Cabot's tower. The first settlement, 
however, properly so called, namely, the city of Buenos Ayres, 
was only founded ten years later by Don Pedro de Mendoza, 
who, in 1530, by order of Charles V., set sail from Seville, also 
for the Rio de la Plata, with fourteen ships and a crew of nearly 
30,000 men ; and two years after this, at the confluence of the 
Pilco Mayo with the Parana, the city of Assumption, which is 
situated equi-distant from the boundaries of Peru and Brazil, 
was established. From this time forth began the actual appro- 
priation of the country, as well as its gradual colonisation, by the 
Spaniards, and thence arose the vice-royalty of La Plata, over 
which, in the name of the King, ruled one of those so-called 
Adelantade, or Captains- General. Still, after the lapse of some 
time, other cities were again founded, as, for instance, in the 
year 1557, Ciudad Real, at the junction of the Piquiry with the 
Parana; and in 1570, Santa Fe, on the Rio de Salado ; thus 
one must not keep out of sight that all these settlements lay on 
the great rivers of the country, while, on the contrary, not a 
single colony was established on the mainland ; consequently, 
they were considerably apart from the several commercial arteries 
which served instead of roads. On the other hand, the said 
mainland continued to be quite uncolonised, completely un- 
conquered, and thus thoroughly unknown to the Spaniards, who, 
in the provinces subdued by them, only troubled themselves 
about the search for gold and silver, and had no desire to know 
anything concerning agriculture and the breeding of cattle, 
or, indeed, industry and trade, proving themselves here, as 
throughout the whole of America, to have but a bad talent for 
colonisation. Everyone of them who embarked for America 
desired only to live like a nobleman, regarding it as derogatory 
to engage himself in labour of the very slightest kind ! Under 
such circumstances, the Captains-General must, very shortly, 
have come to the conclusion that the provinces entrusted to them 
could never attain to any degree of development, or arrive at any 
prosperity or order, unless the natives of the country, the in- 
digenous Indians, could be induced to become efficient citizens. 
These, indeed, formed by far the greater majority of the popu 

9 * 



132 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

lation, and from them could alone be obtained the labour 
which was wanted most imperatively. How, then, was this 
desirable object to be accomplished ? The answer to this 
was simply by making Christians of them, as along with the 
Christian religion they would involuntarily also acquire, at the 
same time, Christian manners, Christian culture, and a Christian 
mode of living. Charles V. had not at the time sufficiently im- 
pressed upon the Captains- General whom he had sent out to La 
Plata, that the ecclesiastics and monks taken with them were 
intended for the conversion of the native Indians ; neither did" 
Philip II. see to this. The Cap tains- General, too, were in 
this respect very remiss in their duty as to the orders they gave. 
They brought out to Paraguay, it is true, several Franciscan 
monks, among whom Francis Solano and Ludwig de Bolanjos 
were notably distinguished. Moreover, to the province of Para- 
guay was given a bishop, in the person of John de Barras, also 
a Franciscan monk, and the city of Assumption was raised to be 
his See, into which he himself made a solemn entry in the year 
1554. He had, however, no great desire to prosecute with vigour 
the introduction of Christianity, for two equally weighty reasons. 
In the first place, on account of the behaviour of the 
Spaniards, which displayed the strongest contrast to the teaching 
of mildness and benevolence indoctrinated by the gospel, as it is 
notorious with what unmerciful severity and cruelty the proud 
and insatiable conquerors treated the poor oppressed natives ; 
and, in the second place, there was no desire on the part of the 
latter to embrace the religion acknowledged by their tormentors, 
as, on the contrary, they disliked this religion as much as the 
Spaniards hated them, and if, here and there, in order to escape 
oppression, they allowed themselves to be baptised, they imme- 
diately, as soon as a favourable opportunity presented itself,, 
reverted to their original faith. Then, again, there was a com- 
plete dearth of priests, and there existed whole districts where 
there was not a single member of the fraternity to be seen, no 
one to baptise and marry, no one to instruct the young, no one 
to tender extreme unction to the dying on their way to eternity; 
should, however, an isolated spot happen to be so fortunate 
as to possess one or, at most, two ecclesiastics, they were prac- 
tically of no avail among this vast extent of territory; and on 
account of this want of power, but much more even from the 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN AMEKICA. 133 

circumstance that few were acquainted with the language of the 
Indians, it became evident that all attempts to convert the un- 
believers must be abandoned. And whence arose this great want ? 
Simply from this, that Paraguay was still completely devoid of 
civilisation, and, lying as it did beyond the sphere of traffic 
in the commercial world, it could offer no powers of attraction 
to the Catholic priesthood, accustomed to enjoyment of every 
description ; and on this account it was that even the begging 
monks of the lowest grade looked upon this distant land as a 
kind of penal exile, having as yet but the attributes of a 
wilderness, with which no one could have any desire to become 
acquainted. 

During seventy years, therefore, the conversion and civilisa- 
tion of the Indians made but little progress in Paraguay, 
that is to say, up to the year 1586. It then occurred to 
Don Franciscus de Victoria, the newly-appointed bishop of 
ihe Province Tukuman, adjoining Chili, in the whole of whose 
extensive diocese there did not exist even a couple of dozen 
priests, whether it would not be well to crave assistance for 
them from the Society of Jesus. The want, indeed, must have 
been very urgent, otherwise Don Franciscus, who belonged 
himself to the Order of the Dominicans, would not certainly 
have entertained any such idea. Be this as it may, it pleased 
the first bishop of Tukuman to call in the aid of the Jesuits, 
for the reason that, by this time, good service had been done 
by them in the neighbouring states of Brazil and Peru, in the 
way of conversion; he at once, then, in the year 1586, wrote 
to the Provincials of both of the above-named states, the 
Fathers Anchieta and Atiensa, who, indeed, at once complied 
with his wishes and immediately sent him, to begin with, 
eight members of the Order ; promising, at the same time, that 
more would follow if they were needed.* This was, indeed, 
hardly required, as they were no ordinary Fathers, skilled 
merely in the dispensing of the sacraments and the singing of 
masses, but persons who likewise understood something of what 

* As a matter of curiosity I will here give the names of these eight 
Jesuits. They were called Franciscus Angulo, Alphonso Barsana, Juan 
Villegas, Emanuel de Ortega, Stephan Grao (properly Grau, who was a 
German), Juan Salouio, Thomas Field (a Scotchman), and Paulo Arminio. 
All of these were Fathers, and, consequently, for this reason were authorised 
to conduct all kinds of divine service. Father Arminio, however, acted as 
-the superior or head of them all. 



134 . HISTOBY OP THE JESUITSv 

monks, intended to act as missionaries, had not hitherto studied,, 
namely, the language of the natives, concerning which much 
zealous attention had been bestowed in all of the Jesuit col- 
leges of Brazil and Peru ; and, consequently, they could come 
to a good understanding with the natives from the commence- 
ment. This was the foundation of the Jesuit settlement in- this 
part of America, a very modest and innocent beginning, as one 
sees ; but after a few years both modesty and innocence were 
lost, and an entirely different condition of affairs came into play. 
From the town of Tukuman and its provinces, the Fathers visited 
the remaining cities of the country one after the other, especially 
Cordua and Assumption, along with the extensive province of 
Guayra, which latter was selected as the sphere of duty for 
Fathers Ortega and Fields, who were more especially versed in 
the Guayraian language, and who the longer they regarded the 
territory the more they were pleased with it. They tried, above 
everything, to make themselves at home in their settlement, . 
"exactly the same as they had done in India, Japan, and China; 
it still required, however, fully three years before they obtained 
their first possession, then, indeed, but a very modest one, so 
much so, that it might almost be called paean, as it consisted 
merely of a small dwelling-house, with an equally small chapel,. 
in the small town of Villarica. From this time forwardprogress, 
as may be said, went on at a galloping pace, and, in accordance 
with the idea originally entertained, a large number of new 
members were sent to their assistance from Peru and Brazil, 
and among them several Fathers of distinction ; as for instance,. 
Romero, Caspar de Monroy, Juan Viana, and Marcel Lorenzana ; 
so that, after the lapse of two years, as may be supposed, they 
were able to found a college. ' This took place in the year 1593, 
tin tke -city of Assumption, the capital of Paraguay; and the 
Spanish inhabitants of it, including the Governor and principal 
nobility, taxed themselves to such a considerable extent, thnt 
they were enabled to erect quite a beautiful building adjoining 
the church. In the year 1599, this building was followed by 
the erection of a mission-house in Cordua, with a magnificent 
cathedral ; and there was every appearance that very shortly 
similar establishments might also be founded in Santa Fe, as- 
well as in other towns. This, however, did not prove to be the 
case, as in the year 1002 the whole tenure of the Jesuits in. 



THE, JESUIT MISSIONS IN AMERICA. 135 

Paraguay assumed a totally new aspect. Up to this time they 
had worked as true missionaries ; and, indeed, as we have seen, 
they had, acquired here and there landed property, and even 
built a college, or a mission-house, whilst they were at the same 
time occupied in travelling about from one district to another, 
and from one tribe to another, in order to proclaim everywhere 
the cross of Christ. This constant journeying backwards and 
forwards, however, owing to the great distances at which the 
settlements lay from one another, gave rise to great difficulties. 
Moreover, they could not reckon that the Indians, as soon as the 
missionaries had turned their backs, would not revert to their 
heathenish practices; consequently, it appeared evident to them 
that, if any permanent impression was to be made among the 
natives, it would be necessary to give up this system of travelling 
about, and take up a permanent abode among them. This was 
one discovery which, up to this date, had been made. A 
second consisted in this, that the Jesuits by this time had 
become aware exactly how the enormous territory that went 
under the name of Paraguay was situated, while this still 
remained a secret to the Spaniards in general, beyond the couple 
of towns and their immediate neighbourhood lying on the great 
rivers. The latter, for instance, had not gone further into the 
country than up to the first waterfall, and they continued to be 
in great ignorance respecting the vast territory which lay between 
the" Uruguay and the Parana, as well as between the latter and 
the Paraguay river ; they had not taken the least trouble to 
become acquainted with the different tribes inhabiting these 
reigons, or to gain their friendship ; but their whole plans had 
consisted in laying the severest possible yok*e upon all such 
nations as they had been able to subjugate, and to keep them on 
their plantations, or " commands," as these were designated in, 
Paraguay, at the most slavish work. All this, and indeed much 
more, was known to the Jesuits operating in Paraguay, only too 
well, and they, of course, made an accurate report of the true 
state of matters to their General in Home. And who was he 
but the same Claudius Aquaviva ? a man endowed with extra- 
ordinary mental capacity, and, at the same time, most actively 
energetic ; who at once devised a mode by which the greatest 
portion of Paraguay should fall completely into the hands of 
the Society of Jesus, beyond all interference from any secular 



136 HISTOBY OF THE JESUITS. 

power. This plan was arranged with the most infinite skill and 
cunning, and the carrying out of it was entrusted to a no less 
skilful individual than the Father Stephan Paez, whom Aqua- 
viva had despatched to Paraguay as visitor of all the houses of 
the Order in the new world. This same Father arrived, in the 
year 1602, in the town of Salta, and at once ordered all the 
professed Jesuits to appear before him. He then took each one 
of them separately to task, and questioned him in regard to all 
details most particularly, in order that everything essential 
appertaining to the future organisation of the Order in Para- 
guay might be extracted ; lastly, assembling all those present, 
he made a long speech to them, communicating to them the 
orders of their General. These were to the effect, as already- 
indicated, that a proper and distinct Christian State must be 
constituted in Paraguay, over which the Jesuit General in 
Rome should rule as absolute monarch, and, in order to carry- 
out this comprehensive idea, the work each one had to do was 
assigned to him. From this time forth each step taken by the 
Jesuits in Paraguay was most carefully considered, and when 
progress was but slow, and often effected by very roundabout 
ways, the great aim and object to be attained was never lost sight 
of. Above everything it was of consequence to conciliate the 
natives, and the Jesuit missionaries began unanimously and 
most zealously by severely censuring the frightful oppression 
under which the Indians groaned. " The commands, upon which 
the poor redskins work as slaves, are an abomination in the sight 
of God," cried they, " and a complete extermination of the popu- 
lation must follow if the present system continue." Such and 
similar expressions aroused the hatred of the Spaniards not 
a little, and the Jesuit Fathers had, in consequence, during 
the next two years, to undergo much injustice. They were, 
indeed, regularly driven out of several of the towns, such 
as Cordova and San lago, but they won over all the more 
retainers among the redskins, and they thus succeeded in con- 
verting and making friends of a not inconsiderable portion of the 
great nation of Guayranas, that is, of the inhabitants of Guayra. 
Previous to the Spanish conquest, the tribe of Tubinambas 
Indians was by far the most powerful in Paraguay, being dis- 
tinguished at the same time for its peculiar ferocity; to them, 
indeed, may be ascribed the cruelties to which the intruding 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN AMERICA. 137 

whites were subjected. They, the Tubinambas, slaughtered their 
prisoners ; they looked upon human flesh as the most delicious 
of food under the sun, and they offered resistance to the death 
against the God of the Christians. As they came to be aware, 
from many years of warfare, that the weapons of the white men 
were too much for them, they arrived at the bold resolution of 
turning their backs on their fatherland, and, at once carrying 
this resolution into effect, withdrew far away into the wilds of 
-the primeval forests, up to the broad valley of the Marranon, or 
Amazon river, to a region so distant that they hoped the pale 
.faces would never venture to penetrate there. 

The vast plains of Paraguay, Parana, and Uruguay, thus 
iremained abandoned to the other tribes, which had hitherto 
been in some measure dependent on the Tubinambas, to 
wit, the Apiatas and Cahivas, the Calchaquis and Lulles, 
the Fron tones and Omacuguakas, as well as, before all of them, 
the Guayranas, who were more numerous than all the others 
put together. The latter fact must have directed the attention 
of the Jesuit missionaries to those in particular, and, further- 
more, they had the least wild character of the various tribes of 
redskins in Paraguay. On the one hand, it was found that 
they were not shut out from some kind of civilisation, as 
they lived in villages ruled over by hereditary Kaziken, or 
heads of clans, and existed almost entirely upon corn and maize, 
which they planted, while the other tribes led a nomadic life, 
and shifted about from place to place, regarding the chase as 
the only employment worthy of man's consideration. On the 
other hand, there lay upon them the reproach of want of warlike 
spirit, as well as deficiency in energy, and they tamely submitted, 
although filled in their inmost soul with the most intense hatred, 
as all over the Spanish commands they were made use of by 
the whites as nothing else than beasts of burden, and treated 
.accordingly. Moreover, the number of the tribe who lived in 
Spanish territories was but small in comparison with the vast 
multitude of those who inhabited the interior, and who, as I 
.have already mentioned, remained quite unknown to the 
Spaniards, and it may be affirmed with certainty that fully 
nine-tenths of the Guayranas had not as yet felt the burden 
of oppression ; but the anxiety caused by the prospect before 
.them of soon being also subjected to this yoke, induced 



138 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

them to be all the more favourable towards the preaching of the 
Jesuits against Spanish tyranny. 

Such was the state of matters at this time in regard to the 
Guayranas in Paraguay, when the Jesuits came to the determina- 
tion of creating a government of their own, and it will con- 
sequently not astonish anyone as to how they succeeded in 
procuring an entrance for Christianity. Having thus so far 
proceeded, they adopted the following plan of operation ; in the 
districts into which, up to this time, the Spaniards had not 
penetrated, they induced those who were scattered about in 
small villages to unite into large communities, which were called 
Bourgaden or Reductions, that is to say, communities that had 
been reduced into the Christian faith, and to each of these 
Reductions were assigned two spiritual shepherds, of whom 
one, a professed member of long standing in the Order, bore the 
title of pastor, or spiritual guide ; the other, in most instances 
a younger associate who had just arrived from Europe, being 
designated vicar. 

This was the arrangement, as we shall soon see, as to the 
foundation of their Christian Republic, or, if one would rather 
term it, of their theocratic State ; and this had such an innocent 
appearance that, at the commencement at least, it did not meet 
with any great opposition, either from the side of the Spaniards 
or that of the Guayranas. The sons of Loyola represented to the 
Indians that the several small communities which lay scattered 
about, many miles apart, were but ill-suited for protecting them- 
selves against the attacks of the Spaniards ; while if, on the 
other hand, they were collected together into Bourgaden, or 
townships, of 8,000 or 10,000 souls, they might readily keep off 
with ease the marauding white adventurers, and this naturally 
became clear to the understandings of the redskins. They had, 
further, no reason to object to the " spiritual shepherds," as they 
were in this way relieved from the supervision of the Kaziken and 
superiors under the title of Corregidors, or Alcaldes, and handed 
over to that of the spiritual guides. In other words, the Indians 
were enabled to select for themselves their own secular magistracy, 
as previously, and the Jesuits merely affixed the stipulation that 
in all the punishments awarded by them, or in all weighty and 
important decisions, they must first of all obtain the sanction of 
the said spiritual shepherds. And was this too much to require 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN AMERICA. 139 

Ah! truly the good Padres treated them in such a fatherly 
and remarkably kind manner, that they therefore ought to be 
allowed the right of a father over his children. In addition to 
this, the Jesuits with perfect honesty represented the state of affairs 
to their great patron and friend Philip III., the King of Spain, 
that is to say, they explained to him and his high council for 
India, in several communications, that the chief obstacle to the 
speedy and permanent extension of Christianity in Paraguay 
and La Plata, arose entirely from the recently-arrived Spaniards 
being, without hardly a single exception, a set of haughty, arro- 
gant, cruel, avaricious, blasphemous, and thoroughly dissolute 
men, whence it happened that the natives could not do otherwise 
than entertain a disgust to Christianity itself, on account of the 
conduct of these bad Christians. Moreover, the Indians were 
maltreated in such a shameful manner by the royal governors 
and officials that, on that account, a thorough hatred had sprung 
up among them against everything of Spanish origin. For this 
reason, if it was desired that these poor creatures should be 
received into the bosom of the Church, they should be equally 
protected from the tyranny of the Governor and the bad example 
of the Spaniards, and these two desiderata could only be accom- 
plished by the Jesuits being permitted to carry out the long- 
considered plan for the creation in Paraguay of a Christian 
Republic. 

" In this said Christian Republic, no secular Governor may- 
be allowed to have any control; but, on the other hand, the 
Indians belonging thereto should, among themselves in com- 
munity, be allowed to lead a quiet harmonious life, under the 
Jesuits, after the manner of the early Christians, so that a verit- 
able paradisiacal state of innocency might be established ; but, 
in order that no injury might thereby be occasioned to the 
King's power, all members of the Christian Republic were bound 
to recognise him as their supreme lord and master, and every 
adult must pay to him the tribute of one dollar." 

Such was the upright scheme that the Jesuits suggested to the 
King, Philip III., and as they were at that time almost all-powerful 
at the Court of Spain, not only was this proposition accepted by 
that King in the year 1609, but it was also confirmed in all its 
particulars later on, from the year 1649 to 1663, under the reign 
of Philip IV., notwithstanding that any sagacious statesman-. 



140 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

might well see how the Spanish Ring's authority was by this 
Christian Republic in Paraguay reduced to a mere sham. 

But at that time the Councillors and Minister of the most 
Catholic court of the world were as if smitten with blindness, 
*nd it was only after the lapse of a century that the scales 
fell from their eyes. The first Reduction, which received the 
holy name of Loretto, and was situated at the confluence of 
the Pirape and the Parana, was founded in 1609, through the 
exertions of Padres Maceta and Cataldino, who united into one 
small community somewhere about sixty small Guayrana vil- 
lages which were in existence thereabouts. Next after Loretto 
came the Bourgade of St. Ignatius, and subsequently a third 
and fourth, until at length, after the lapse of a couple of decades, 
their number amounted to about thirty, with a population of 
'between nine and ten thousand inhabitants. The internal 
organisation of them all was the same that is, they were 
governed each by a Jesuit Father, who was also supported by a 
vicar as his assistant, and for the purpose of espionage ; this 
Father, again, was under the orders of a superior, who was 
placed over a diocese of from five to six parishes; the super- 
vision and management of these latter, however, rested with 
the Provincial, residing in Assumption, who again received his 
orders direct from the General in Rome. 

One sees, then, that the Jesuits did not in any way proceed 
to work without a plan, but that they were in possession of a 
Christian Republic as well if not better regulated than the 
government of any secular monarch. The Indians, too, were not 
badly off with this system of administration, as they were care- 
fully educated as good citizens, and, moreover, were all accus- 
tomed to take up some regular employment. " Idleness is the 
root of all vices," thought the Jesuit Fathers, and upon this 
principle they ruled the whole of their subjects, be their age or 
sex what it might, and they looked to their bodily constitution 
almost as much as to their aptitude and talent. Agriculture and 
cattle-breeding naturally came first and foremost as a pursuit, 
and most of the adult men were thus employed in the fields; 
into their hands also the elder boys were confided ; to the women 
and girls, on the other hand, a certain quantity of flax and 
cotton was given out, which they had to spin within a certain 
prescribed time. Moreover, the different trades and arts were 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN AMERICA. 141 

not neglected, and a Jesuit chronicle upon the state of affairs- 
reports in the following words : 

" In regard to trades, we daily make further progress, and our- 
population becomes always more and more useful. After teach- 
ing them the arts of making bricks and burning lime, we build 
the most beautiful churches and houses, and our carpenters and 
glaziers know very well how to ornament them internally. Others 
spin the finest yarns, and weave therefrom the most beautiful 
cloths and quilts. Some, again, manufacture hats, and employ 
themselves in shoe-making, or any other like occupation. Even 
in the weaving of lace they are expert, and when we require in 
particular fine and broad priestly albs, the women manufacture 
them after a certain pattern with such skill that no difference 
could be detected between the copy and the original. One man 
made an organ after an European pattern, and finished it off in 
so perfect a manner that I was truly amazed. Another has 
indited a missal so accurately, after the beautiful Antovfer edition, 
that the manuscript might pass for a printed copy. They manu- 
facture trumpets, also, and all descriptions of musical instru- 
ments. They make the most perfect clocks, and watches for the 
pocket, and they paint them in a way that leaves nothing to be 
desired. In a word, they can copy anything that we desire 
them to do, and show themselves, also, to be equally as teach- 
able as they are diligent as soon as ~we set them to any par- 
ticular kind of work."* 

There can, therefore, seeing all this, be no question that 
the Indians, under the rule of the Jesuits, were moulded into 
thoroughly capable and useful men; and, in regard to this, 
one certainly cannot withhold one's admiration from the 
Society of Jesus. But now comes the dark side, which, to- 
a great extent, counterbalanced the bright side of the matter. 
The Indians, so far as concerns spiritual affairs, were kept in a 
degree of the profoundest ignorance, and their religion simply 
consisted in the grossest superstition, whereby the Jesuits 
represented themselves to be the oracles of God this same 
Deity, however, being for the white Padres alone, who formed a 
superior class of beings ; and, on that account, the Guayranas 

* All this is to be found, word for word, in the History of Paraguay, 
by Franz Xaver de Charlevoix, part ii. (preface), p. 3, 4. 



142 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

were obliged, under a severe penalty, to regard the so-called 
" superior beings," namely, the Jesuits, with the most profound 
respect with such respect, indeed, that they were compelled 
to receive orders from them in a kneeling posture, and it was 
held to be a high honour to he allowed to kiss the sleeves or 
hem of the holy Fathers' garments. From such spiritual child- 
hood, however, the Guayranas were never to be emancipated, and 
'the chief means of accomplishing their thraldom was by fear 
and intimidation. For this reason all the churches were orna- 
mented with holy pictures of the most extraordinary description, 
and with statues of truly gigantic proportions, of frightful 
aspect and threatening gesture. These figures, also, were fur- 
nished with movable limbs and rolling eyes, all of which filled 
the poor Indians with mortal terror ; and such crazy nonsense as 
this was called by the Jesuits Christianity ! As in this manner 
spiritual liberty was suppressed, even so also was political and 
social freedom kept under subjection. Not any one of the 
Jesuit subjects might for a moment think of raising himself, by 
his talent, energy, or industry, to a higher place in the social 
grade than that of his fellows, but he continued to be a mere 
machine in the hands of the Fathers, who assigned this or that 
employment to each according to their will and pleasure. Like- 
wise, also, there existed in the Guayranian Republic no rights of 
property whatever, not even of the smallest description; no true 
communism was, therefore, by any means actually created. On 
the contrary, every day all the produce of agriculture and other 
industries was delivered into the hands of the Jesuits, to be 
deposited in their store-houses, and in return for this the Indians 
were merely provided with what was absolutely necessary for 
their daily sustenance. One might well say, then, that the poor 
subjects of the Jesuits were nothing better than slaves and 
slaves, truly, in the fullest acceptation of the term ; but this 
bondage was so uncommonly enveloped in sugar, and exercised 
with such a degree of fatherly benevolence, that the Guayranas, 
in their simplicity, desired nothing better. Almost every 
evening there was a lively dance to the music of a well-instructed 
band, played by the natives, and the severest labour in the 
field was at once lightened by the sound of trumpets and fifes 
taken along with them, whilst, on Sundays and festivals, as well 
in the churches as out of them, the most lively dances and plays 



THE JESUIT MISSIONS IN AMERICA. 143 

were the order of the day.* There was thus no lack of enjoy- 
ment, but only such kind of amusement was permitted as was 
calculated to leave the Indians in a state of childhood and sim- 
plicity, and none was ever allowed by which they might develop 
into thinking human beings. On these very grounds great care 
was taken never to allow any European to set his foot in any 
of these Jesuit Reductions, as what could more be feared than 
the pestilential expose which might be made by any such 
stranger ? And more especially the Spaniards were denied 
an entrance into these Jesuit territories, and on this account 
the Indians were encouraged to resist by force any attempted 
intrusion of such visitors, that is to say, all such were turned 
out of the domain by strength of arms. The Guayranas, with 
all alacrity, rendered implicit obedience to such appeals as were 
made to them of this nature, as the Jesuits had instilled the 
belief into their minds that the Spaniards only came there to take 
possession of their territories, and to exact the same statute 
labour from them by which so many thousands of their brethren 
had been destroyed, owing to over- work. To prevent effectually, 
however, the approach of any stranger amongst the Guayranas, the 

* The Jesuit Father Charlevoix verbally states as follows in his report on 
this subject: "It is an old custom in Spain that on fete days dances should 
be conducted by children. The missionaries adopted this laudable custom, 
and by means of it introduced a system of inducing the heathen to come 
into their churches. With this object I therefore selected four and twenty 
of those best suited to carry it out, and in this manner devoted such days 
to great enjoyment and general edification. At one time they performed 
such dances in the most approved way, at another they joined in plays of a 
knight-errant description, partly on horseback and partly on foot. At one 
time they danced upon stilts six ells in height, at another upon ropes ; or 
they would run at a small ring with lances. On another occasion I caused 
them to perform small comedies, all of which, although after great trouble 
to myself, were driven into their thick heads and elegantly represented." 
Another report upon the operations of one of the Reductions runs as 
follows : " After this (namely, after the inspection of the school) I go 
among the musicians and listen to their melodies ; first to the baritones, of 
whom I have eight ; the altos, next in order, of whom there are six ; tenors, 
too, without number ; but of basses, however, only six. After these, four 
trumpeters, eight horns, and four cornets perform their exercises. I then 
instruct the harpists, of whom there are six, and the organists, of whom 
four ; and, lastly, the flautiets, of whom only one. I now took in hand the 
dancers, and taught them all such dances as occur in comedies. It is of the 
greatest consequence to attract unbelievers in this way with things of this 
nature, and by the splendid ceremonies of the Church to create an internal 
inclination in favour of the Christian religion, on which account small 
booths are beautifully decorated on all festival days after vespers, and, 
before high mass, dances are conducted in the church where all are 
assembled. We also find great advantage from the official processions, just 
as it happened in olden days before the Venerabile, in the times when 
David danced before the Ark of the Covenant." (See Charlevoix, vol. ii., 
p. 7, 8, 21, preface.) 



144 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

only language which was taught in their schools was the Guay- 
rana, and by this means the comprehension of all other tongues 
was nipped in the bud. Indeed, the Jesuits even went so far 
as to form, in every Reduction orBourgade (borough), an armed 
force, consisting of cavalry as well as infantry; and by means of 
these troops, well armed and drilled as they were, besides being 
also provided with artillery, they could easily get the better 
of any foreign attempt at intrusion, even when made by force, 
without the boundaries of the Christian Republic in Paraguay. 
They soon, indeed, succeeded in extending even their own original 
domains far across the borders of the province of Guayra, so that 
in a short time their possessions comprehended all the countries 
to the right and left of Paraguay, even as far as Brazil; but no 
information, or, at least, very uncertain news, respecting their 
enormous possessions was allowed to reach Europe, as the country 
was, so to speak, hermetically sealed, and even the Court of 
Madrid, although the King was recognised by them as nominal 1 
Lord Paramount of Paraguay, was kept in ignorance of all' 
details concerning the proceedings of the Jesuits. I say, em- 
phatically, nominal ; as never, from the year 1609 up to the 
middle of the 18th century, had the King exercised any kind 
of authority whatsoever in that Republic ; and even the head- 
money, that the Jesuits had contracted to pay annually to the 
kings of Spain, came in so sparingly that it might be well 
supposed to have been derived from only some thirty or forty 
thousand subjects, instead of from at least ten times that number. 
Still, notwithstanding the excessive power to which the Order 
of Jesus attained in Southern America, and even the unbounded 
dominion that placed the General of the Jesuits in Rome on a 
par with the mightiest monarchs in the world, the reader will 
learn in the fourth, fifth, and sixth books of this work the prin- 
cipal causes which led to the downfall of this much-dreaded 
Society in these parts of the globe. 

Thus much for the Jesuit missions in the distant regions of 
the world, or, rather, concerning the gigantic growth of the 
Society of Jesus in Asia, Africa, and America. 



145 



CHAPTER II. 

THE POWEEFUL INFLUENCE OP THE JESUITS IN EUROPE. 

IN the preceding chapter I have described in what way, by what 
means, and with what results the sons of Loyola contrived to 
spread themselves throughout Asia, Africa, and America. It 
was otherwise, however, in regard to their extension in Europe, 
as in this instance they had to deal with professing Christians, 
and had not to trouble themselves so much with the conversion 
of unbelievers. They were, at least, unable to establish their 
power under that insignia. On this account they at once blotted 
out this motto on their banner, and in its place wrote in large 
capital letters, Extension and Re-establishment of the True 
Faith, that is, of the Roman Catholic religion, with the Papacy 
at its head. Was not this faith, as I have shown in the first 
book, in so many places most profoundly shaken, and was there 
not immediate danger of the great Pontiff himself being soon 
bodily hurled from the almighty throne upon which he had 
previously sat, and ousted from his hitherto most faithful pro- 
vinces ? In what manner, then, and by what means, did the 
Jesuits now succeed in their object under the motto that they 
displayed intended for Europe ? It was everywhere, indeed, by the 
same means and in the same way, namely, by the establishment 
of educational institutions, by seizure of the confessional stools 
of kings, by fighting with heresy, by the incorporation of the 
most powerful forces into their Order, as also by their fanatical 
influence on the great mass of the people. As regards the 

10 



140 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

founding of educational institutions, their method of procedure 
was as follows : They entered into a town by twos and threes, 
not, indeed, on horseback, or in a carriage, richly and ex- 
pensively attired, but, on the contrary, on foot, and without 
shoes and stockings, in mean clothing, and with such a miser- 
able appearance that it was impossible to refuse to give them 
alms. It was thus that their exnmpler Ignatius had first 
made his appearance, and it was thus also that they pre- 
sented themselves in public. They did not alight at inns, or at 
the houses of the rich, even when pressingly invited. No ; on 
the contrary, they made their way to the hospital or the poor- 
house, considering these, the most miserable quarters, to be but 
too good, indeed, for them ; they tended the sick, especially 
those whom no one else would approach on account of the con- 
tagious character of their diseases, and discharged offices of 
the most menial kind, as if the humility of servants became 
them. They, at the same time, did not delay in at once attach- 
ing to themselves some children of the poor, teaching them to 
read and write, as well as instructing them in the first principles 
of the Roman Catholic religion. For this instruction they 
demanded no return, not even the very slightest, knowing full 
well that gratuitous teaching formed the great power of attrac- 
tion for the poor people to induce them to entrust their children 
to their care. Soon everyone throughout the whole town began 
to speak of them, and to sing their praises, and the number of 
their young pupils increased to such an extent that the room 
where they afforded this instruction became much too small 
for the purpose. " We would willingly, now," said the good 
Fathers, "receive more children, had we only more room," and 
this equally pious as modest wish stirred up the hearts of the 
people who were rich, to such a pitch that they purchased a 
small house for the devout instructors, in order to carry on their 
school therein. Naturally enough, the number of the scholars 
now went on continually increasing, and thus it became neces- 
sary for more Jesuit Fathers to come forward in order to satisfy 
the demands made upon them. They could not well refuse 
to receive the children of the richer classes of the community, 
and those of higher consideration ; consequently, the subjects 
for instruction still continued to extend beyond those required 
merely for the poor and persons of low degree. But apart 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 147 

from this, even what was taught enticed always more and 
more scholars to come to them, and the small house became 
presently quite insufficient for their purpose. Those inhabitants 
of the town who were in good circumstances continued to render 
assistance to them, and after a year, or, at the most, a couple 
of years, the pious Fathers were enabled to erect a college which, 
in regard to its external appearance, had more resemblance to a 
palace than to an educational institution. 

This was the usual course of things, and when once the college 
was founded the Jesuits naturally had the game all in their own 
hands, as, for the most part, the whole youth of the population 
flocked to them for education. For, to attain their object, they 
usually formed in their college three classes, or grades, of in- 
struction : first of all, the elementary school, then the middle 
school, and, lastly, the higher school. In the elementary school 
was taught merely the primary groundwork, reading, writing, 
and, to a certain extent, accounts, but more especially the Faith, 
that is to say, strict obedience to the teaching and practices of 
the Roman Catholic Church, as well as abhorrence of all here- 
tical innovations. In the middle school were placed those who 
were destined to be instructed ordinarily during a period of nine 
years in the Greek and Latin grammar, and then advanced to a 
two-years' course of rhetoric ; but religious instruction was here, 
again, the principal topic, and each of the pupils was imbued 
with a veneration for the Papacy and Catholic priesthood, as 
-well as with hatred against all recreants and heretics, salient 
characteristics of the Roman Catholic faith. In the high school 
the students received a finishing stroke to their studies, during 
a three-years' course of philosophy, or, more properly speaking, 
of logic and metaphysics, followed by a four-years' course of 
theology, regarded by them as the absolute queen of all sciences. 
As regards medicine and jurisprudence, the sons of Loyola did 
not usually meddle ; but what they regarded as of transcendent 
importance when they were destined to the priesthood, was 
readiness in making use of their tongues, as well as dexterous 
-behaviour on being taken suddenly by surprise. 

The reader must now, then, readily admit, when things were 
so far advanced, that the Jesuits must have obtained an enormous 
influence over the Catholic community in Europe by the esta- 
blishment of their educational institutions. In religious matters 

10 * 



148 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

they taught, indeed, all who were educated by them, whether lay- 
er ecclesiastical, just exactly what suited them, and nothing 
else; and, afterwards, laymen as well as ecclesiastics worked in 
their avocations according to their spirit. Not the less effectual 
for the dominion of the Jesuits in Europe was the acquisition by 
them of the confessional stools of kings, and none of the other 
Orders that ever existed, or all the ordinary priesthood put to- 
gether, effected such great results in this direction as the cele- 
brated Society of Jesus. The institution of confession, concerning 
which Christ himself does not say a single word, was first of all 
established in the 2nd or 3rd century of the Christian era, by the 
public confession of sins being exacted from those who wished to 
be allowed readmittance into the Church, from which they had 
been expelled on account of the more grievous description of 
transgressions ; but it was not till the 5th century, under the 
reign of Pope Leo the Great, that secret confession to priests 
was declared to be indispensable for the forgiveness of sins, 
while private oral confession was legally sanctioned by In- 
nocent III. in the year 1215. The Father Confessor, at 
the commencement, was, as may be readily understood, the 
parson of the community for the time being, and the greatest 
of earthly beings knew no other, but had to confess to him, as 
other Christians did, in the public Church. At the end of the 
6th century, on the other hand, there existed in the palace of 
the Emperor of Constantinople a special chapel with a special 
confessional stool, as it was held by their Majesties not to 
be respectable for them to acknowledge their sins in one and 
the same place as that where their subjects repaired, and this 
invention of the Court of Constantinople was forthwith imitated 
by all the other monarchs of the world. 

When once, then, a Court chapel was instituted, it followed, as 
a matter of course, that a Court chaplain should not be wanting ; 
and we find, therefore, such-like priests as early as the time 
of the French kings Childebert and Clothaire. These said 
priests belonged originally to the secular priesthood ; with 
the introduction, however, of the monkish Orders, many of 
the cowl-wearers were to be found among the spiritual advisers 
of ruling princes and great lords. These offices were more 
especially filled by Benedictine monks. In this way did the 
holy Berlin come to perform the office of Father Confessor to 



THE POWEKFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 149 

<3ount Valbert of Flanders ; thus also did Martin, a monk in 
Gomez, officiate as Court chaplain to Charles Martel ; as also in a 
similar manner did Benedict of Aniane act as soul-councillor of 
Louis the Pious. Later on, the barons and nobles of the times 
proceeded to follow the customs of the Court, and also built for 
themselves their own particular chapels ; while the begging 
monks, especially the Franciscans, came to be very favourite 
Father Confessors among them, probably from the circumstance 
of their being procurable at a cheap rate. In king's courts, 
however, the Dominicans were all the fashion, and certainly not 
to the detriment of their Order. Still there always were, at the 
same time, many of the ordinary priesthood who aspired to be 
the soul-councillors of princes, and it cannot in any way be 
affirmed that the monkish Orders laid claim to a monopoly 
of the business of Father Confessorships to the higher classes 
of the community. It was a very different matter, however, 
when the Order of the Jesuits came into existence, for hardly 
had the sect been fairly established when at once everyone 
about the Court who had anything to do in regard to such posts 
was solicited to use his influence for this Order; and the 
remaining Orders might contend against them as much as they 
were able, the latter were certain to be outflanked and com- 
pletely over-ridden. It would be a very great error to suppose 
that this was effected by individual Jesuits alone, who had 
succeeded in ingratiating themselves at particular Courts. No, 
emphatically no ; it was all regularly planned on a peculiar 
system. Even Loyola himself had vehemently taken to task 
Jacob Miro, who wished to refuse the proposal of John 
.III. of Portugal to be his Father Confessor, on the plea 
.that such places were not at all suited for an Order whose 
calling it was to frequent hospitals and devote itself to the 
.insti'uction of youth sunk in the deepest state of poverty. 

" The atmosphere of Courts,'' wrote the General to his sub- 
ordinate, " might not prove to be so dangerous, and zeal might 
well be shown for the welfare of the souls of men in hospitals 
.and in the galleys and prisons, without on that account there 
being any necessity for shunning the Courts. On the contrary, 
kings required good priests for their guidance all the more from 
the circumstance that they had many more allurements to sin 
.than ordinary mortals, and on that account it was his wish that 



150 HISTOllY OF THE JESUITS. 

it should fall to the lot of a member of the Society of Jesus to- 
be the Father Confessor of a king." 

This order of Loyola was now carried out so effectually that 
henceforth no Jesuit perpetrated the pious folly of Jacob Miro, 
and it did not by any means satisfy his successors in the office 
of General to be contented with a solitary post, but, on the 
other hand, directions were in future formally given to members 
of the Order to seize upon the consciences of kings, and a dis- 
tinct regulation was made, to which those chosen to act us 
Father Confessors had to adhere. 

" The chief aim " thus runs the order " of all our efforts 
ought to be to procure the confidence and favour of princes and 
men hi places of distinction, to the end thai no one might dare 
to offer opposition to us, but, on the contrary, that all should 
be subject to us." 

Is not this, then, expressed sufficiently distinctly ? With 
equal clearness are the ways and means also indicated, by 
following which the favour of rulers was to be obtained : 

" The favourites of princes, high and low, female as well as 
male, must be put under obligation through presents, flattery, 
and favours of all description, so that they may intercede for 
us with their masters, and give us correct information as to the 
characters and inclinations of the latter. On the other hand, 
however, all servants who have shown themselves to be in any 
way adverse to the Order, should by all manner of means be 
removed from the surrounding of the monarchs and their 
councillors, or be gained over to our side by great promises." 

Moreover, as a matter of course, it was clearly for the advan- 
tage of the Jesuits that they should not only gain the ear of the 
princes, but also, in accordance with the above instructions, be 
equally zealous in doing the same in respect to the princesses;. 
the chief aim and object being thus to gain their favour, it was, 
well worth while to bribe the chamber- women, " as through them 
access may be obtained to the most important family secrets." 

The document in question shows not less characteristic- 
ally how, when favour has once been successfully gained, it is 
to be retained. " This may best be effected in this way by 
laying a cushion under the arms of the sinner, according to the 
Prophet Ezekiel (chap. xiii. 18) ;" in other words, not to- 
appear to observe their objectionable proceedings, and, when it 



THE POWEBFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 151 

becomes really necessary to make any remarks about these, not 
to make absolution difficult. 

" The conscience of a ruler must be cleared without any 
ceremony, especially when this has been refused to be done by 
other ecclesiastics ; by this means the princes may abandon 
our rivals, and become wholly dependent on our councils and 
guidance. In short, the Jesuit Order looks upon it as their 
highest aim and object to seize upon the place of Father Con- 
fessor at all the different Courts and among all persons of 
distinction, well knowing that enormous power lies hidden 
therein ; at the same time the making publicly known of this- 
earnest striving after power must be carefully avoided, especially 
as regards those princes who operate somewhat beneficially by 
their worldly might. Assurance must often and earnestly be 
given," proceeds this same above-cited document, " that it is not 
sought in any way to interfere with the affairs of the State, and 
it is recommended to those who might be pleased to see them- 
selves at the rudder not to make it evident that they are mani- 
festly in that position. This ought rather to be effected through 
means of some trusted third party, that then the opinion 
of the ruler's Father Confessor might be asked ; when by 
this means all appearance of direct interference is avoided, 
then will be the reality of the influence all the more effectually 
secured." 

After all this, can there be any further evidence required in 
order to prove that the Jesuits strove by every means in their 
power to obtain the monopoly of the royal confessionals, and 
that shortly after the institution of the Order they did actually 
contrive to acquire possession of them, regarding this as the 
great lever of their influence ? 

A third mode of firmly planting their dominion in Europe, 
was by their perseverance, courage, and skill in combating 
heresy, and more especially that of Luther and Calvin, well 
knowing that they in this manner rendered themselves absolutely 
indispensable for the defence of the Catholic faith. 

Whenever, in Germany or other countries, religious dis- 
putations, during some dozens of years, took place, did not the 
Jesuits sustain the principal part ? Wherever there happened 
to be any kind of Church assemblage, or when an Imperial diet 
was held, was it not that the sons of Loyola were always in 



152 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

requisition as indispensable ? It could not, indeed, well be 
otherwise ; and, in fuct, simply on this account that, as it was 
in those days well known, the rest of the priesthood, when 
Protestantism had sprung into existence, were very far from 
being up to a high standard as regards knowledge, information, 
and culture ! whilst the Jesuits, on the other hand, had been 
brought up in their colleges expressly in the art of disputation, 
so much so as to be able to cope even with the " God be with 
us" ones. Moreover, it signified very little to them by what 
means they slew their enemies ; and by no one else in the world 
was the art of calumniation practised on such a colossal scale, as 
well as artificial perversion, and, indeed, downright falsehood. 
Whenever such arts as these, too, failed them, had they not 
recourse to violence, and, indeed, to the brute force that every- 
where prevailed ? 

Regarding such proceedings, many volumes have been written ; 
but it is here sufficient to give only one example. Concern- 
ing the death of Luther, for instance, the following statement 
is to be read verbatim in a Jesuit report which was given out 
from the pulpit : 

" I may not make mention of this hellish monster by name, 
this traitor to the Catholic religion, this fugitive from the 
cloister, this restorer of all heresy, this hideous wretch before 
God and man. He died in the eighteenth year of his fall, after 
having become fearfully intoxicated in partaking of a banquet, 
when, as was his custom, he had there made a fool of himself ; 
so his vile spirit became a delicious morsel for the devil, who 
might right well sate himself with such-like tit-bits." 

Everyone knows that this account of the death of Luther 
was nothing but a bare-faced untruth, and the Jesuits themselves 
were likewise well aware that it was so ; but against heretics, 
according to their principles, all means were allowable, and it 
was well done to spread abroad the very meanest of calumnies, 
provided it was only possible to obtain credence for them with 
the multitude. I am compelled by truth to add, too, that they 
made use of similar wicked and morally exceptionable artifices, 
not alone among the illiterate mass of the people, but also 
among the higher classes; and especially they contrived 
to persuade and talk over the Catholic monarchs, in such a 
manner as to make them believe that all revolutionary fermenta- 



THE POWEBFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 153 

tions and disturbances among their subjects arose only from 
the spirit of heresy. In this manner, indeed, the Jesuits 
wished to make it appear that they alone were to be regarded 
as the saviours and pillars of the monarchies, and to be treated 
accordingly, as they were also always at warfare with heresy, 
and never gave in so as to render it possible for peace to be 
concluded between the contending parties. 

A fourth means by which the Order of Jesuits knew how to 
raise its power to an important height, lay in the art they pos- 
sessed of gaining over to their side the best heads of the State, 
either in fact, as regular and professed members of the Society, 

or as affiliated and secret members. As regards the first class, 
there existed, as we know, in the colleges, youths of all condi- 
tions, and in their education the best opportunity was afforded 

.for discovering the most conspicuous talents; having thus 
found out those who were best fitted to become useful sub- 
jects for the Order, their object was to entice them over for 
their purposes. Had not everyone, especially when still young, 
some more or less weak point in his character which might be 
fastened upon ? and no Father was assuredly selected as rector 

of a college who had not distinguished himself by a thorough 
knowledge of human nature, as well as the faculty of attracting 
to himself the youths under his tuition. In matter of fact it was 

; so brought about, that those young men whom it might be 
wished to make novices were so trained, by this means or that, 
that they themselves solicited admission into the Order, and 
the only obstacle to this plan was that the parents of the young 
men frequently withheld their consent strenuously to such a step; 
this difficulty was, however, often got over by causing such 
scholars to disappear from the scene, while they were brought 
again into some far distant college. They were there, necessarily, 
received under an entirely different name, in order to oblite- 
rate all trace of their birth; and by this means, and other 
cunning and forcible devices and measures, the opposing parents, 
when they even belonged to the richer and higher classes of 
society, were successfully prevented from snatching their sons 
out of the Jesuit novitiate. Do whatever they would, the Order 

, retained the youth as belonging to itself, even when an appeal 
was made for aid to the highest courts of law, the reigning 
sovereigns, or even, indeed, the Pope himself. It retained them 



151 HISTOKY OP THE JESUITS. 

and brought them up in its own ideas, considering that such 
members would afterwards be of the greatest use to the fraternity. 
The so-called affiliated or secret members were almost of still 
greater importance those, namely, who had bound themselves by 
only a single vow, that is to say, to render to the Society oi 
Jesus with true devotion all services that might be demanded 
of them, and who on that account were allowed to continue to 
live as people of the world, in the same station and sphere as 
had been their wont. Those, for the most part, were men of high 
rank, who would have lost situations as councillors or ministers 
to princes had they formally and openly joined the Jesuit Order; 
and herein is seen a great advantage, as such persons, while 
retaining their former occupations, when they worshipped in the 
profess-houses might, on receiving a formal dispensation from 
the General, deny openly their secret admission into the Society 
of Jesus. Further than this, they might even outwardly make 
themselves appear to be the enemies of the Order, so as to be 
enabled all the more surely to spy into matters with which, 
they wished to become acquainted, and on that account there 
existed affiliated Jesuits even in the Protestant camp itself. 
Still no one, of course, was aware of their existence there, 
except the Provincial of the district for the time being, as also 
the General of the Order in Rome, and the sole private mark by 
which they might be recognised consisted in a scapular which 
they wore next their naked breasts, on which was imprinted the 
letters I. H. S. 

The fifth mode by which the Jesuits gained admission all 
over Europe, was not be sought among the cultivated classes, 
but, on the contrary, among the profanum vulyus, and consisted 
in a sort of fanaticism into which the pious lathers knew how to 
work themselves. Thus it was not at all uncommon for two 
or three of them to be found running through the streets by 
night or day in a half-naked condition, bawling out loudly that 
owing to the sins of mankind the end of all things was at hand, 
on which account they flogged themselves with whips so unmer- 
cifully that streams of blood flowed from their bodies. As a. 
matter of course, when such a spectacle was enacted, it was sure 
to collect a great crowd about them, and while at first some people 
laughed at their proceedings, and many from disgust turned 
away from them disdainfully, this disposition at length gave 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 155 

way to another feeling, namely to that of astonishment, if not,, 
indeed, of admiration. The Padres flogged and chastised their 
bodies to such an extent that even a stone might have pitied 
them ; should they not, then, be looked upon as holy 
saints? They, indeed, transgressed all laws of propriety in 
exhibiting themselves in this half-naked condition, and one often 
felt inclined to give them a kick, in order to make them under- 
stand this ; but on being thus treated, they would at once, in : 
the most humble manner, express themselves thankful for the 
well-deserved punishment, and thereupon present both of their 
cheeks to the chastiser for fresh blows to be given them. 
But enough of these silly and ecstatic follies of the Jesuits, 
which were not, indeed, without effect ; the more so that 
their proceedings became contagious, to an extent that whole 
troops of people ran after them, similarly flogging themselves 
and calling out, "Alas, the sinners! Alas, the great sinful city!" 
Such were the means adopted by the Jesuits for establishing 
themselves as a great power in the Catholic countries of Europe ; 
and having now analysed all appertaining thereto, I proceed to- 
enter upon the subject more in detail. 

I. POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS IN ITALY. 

The Papal Court of Paul III. in Home gave to the founda- 
tion of the Jesuit Order, as we have already seen, its approval 
simply on this account, that Ignatius Loyola promised that all 
his exertions, and those of his associates, should be directed 
towards defending and upholding the rights of His Holiness, 
and re-establishing everywhere the then depressed interests of 
Rome. Ignatius Loyola kept to his word, and on that account 
gained from Paul III. himself, as well as from his successors, 
the greatest privileges and favours. The Popes who followed 
him thought and acted in a similar manner; and how, 
indeed, could they have done differently, as the sons of 
Loyola, for nearly 100 years, fulfilled, or, at any rate, appeared 
to fulfil, the promise of their founder ? But in what respect did 
they carry out this pledge ? Who, for example, was it that 
defended at the Council of Trent, with the greatest zeal, those 
assumptions and abuses of the Papacy which even good Catholic 
historians designate as being " extravagant " ? Was it not the 



ICG HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

,1. 'suits l.iiyiiiv.. Siilmeron, and ( 'ouvilluii '.' Wli.i was it tliaL 
resisted with Huch skill those ideas of reform in Church mm ins 
BO unanimously demanded by everyone, ami of abuses which 
caused the Human Chair to bo looked upon everywhere with 
horror, but they alone, and always they ? Who was it that 
supported before the Congress of Poissy, as well us in all other 
places in which it was in question, the unlimited omnipotence 
of the Pope, and placed it above even all other common councils? 
Who was it that, with similar energy, defended it with such 
eloquence and such success as the members of the Society t 
Jesus? It having thus acted, would not the Popes have exhibited 
iho greatest in: mtitudo had they not done everything that 
possibly lay in their power towards the elevation of the Order, 
and the Imthenmee of the extension of its colleges, seminaries, 

residences. novitiates, and nil Us ether houses'.' Would not 

the Popes, indeed, have been considered to blame had they 
aeted otherwise? as they certainly would not have understood 
what was evidently for their advantage. 

" One hand washes the other," is an old saying, and, not the 
less true, " Live and let live." Both of these proverbs were, as 
a rule, observed by the Popes, and thus it came about that after 
the death of Pius V., in the year 1572, the Order was already 
in possession of five houses or establishments of some kind in 
Rome. Gregory XIII., the successor of the above-mentioned 
Pope, was, again, still more liberal towards them, as he pre- 
sented them with no less than twenty-five tons (?) of gold, in 
order to enable them to erect a still more splendid college than 
that which they already possessed, and, through his example, 
many great and rich people were induced to accord their favour 
to the Order. It came to this, in short, that, within the space 
of a few decades, the Jesuits possessed within their province of 
Rome (including the state of Tuscany), a profess-house (in 
Rome itself), two profess-houscs or novitiates (in Rome and 
Florence), six residences, besides not fewer than thirty-four 
colleges and seminaries ; and their possessions throughout the 
other ports of Italy were in much the same proportion. Thus, 
lor example, in the province of Milan they could boast of the 
possession of two profess-houses (those of Milan and Genoa), 
three novitiates (those of Genoa, Arona, and Chiara), besides 
sixteen colleges and six residences ; then, in the province of 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JE9UIT3. 157 

Naples they had one profess-house (that of Naples), two novi- 
tiates (those of Naples and Atri), one residence and twenty-six 
colleges ; in the province of Sicily they possessed two profess- 
houses and novitiates (each at Palermo and Messina), ten 
seminaries, and twelve colleges ; and, lastly, in the " province of 
Sardinia, or Savoy," they owned two profess-houses (those of 
SafTari and Cagliari), one novitiate (that of Cagliari), besides 
six colleges. Who, then, could now affirm that the Order had 
not come to be a great power in Italy ? The Fathers did 
not, indeed, shrink from knocking at all the doors that they 
thought might be opened to them, and if they failed at first 
they returned again a second and third time. They especially 
desired to operate upon the masses, and succeeded only too well, 
as, in those days, the poorer classes among the Italian people 
were still in a state of great ignorance and superstition, as well 
as being very sensitive and excitable, especially in southern- 
Italy. The Jesuits caused, for instance, an enormous dis- 
turbance amongst the inhabitants of Gaeta and its environs, as, 
accompanied with masks, they ran about the streets in despair, 
the upper parts of their bodies being naked, while, with thorns 
thrust through their flesh, they called out in a lamentable tone 
of voice, " Do penance, do penance ! hell is for sinners and 
Paradise for the elect." It was similarly in Naples that they 
formed bands among the very lowest classes of the people, and 
whole companies of both male and female flagellate rs over- 
ran both town and country ; and I could write a thick volume 
full of the follies and obscenities carried on by these fanatical 
gangs, and especially by those of them consisting of females. 
Here I only content myself with the mere mention that such was- 
the case, as I shall come to speak on this theme more in detail 1 
in the third book. I cannot refrain, however, from saying a 
few words as regards the so-called funeral masquerades, which- 
were carried on in Palermo and Messina, as Death in person was 
there brought upon the scene, and the people were thereby filled 
with such fear and horror that it resulted in not a few being 
driven almost mad. To have a proper idea of these masquerades 
one must imagine a great procession in a broad street, looked 
upon by a body of many thousand spectators. At the head of this- 
procession is to be seen a naked body, covered with blood, wrest- 
ling with Death, and borne upon an open bier by a troop of men* 



158 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

uttired in long talars. On both sides of this bier, as also imme- 
diately behind it, walk beautiful boys dressed in white em 
broidered dalmaticas, and furnished with wings attached to their 
"backs, while each of them carries a cross in his hands. These 
are intended to represent a choir of angels, who, with clear 
voices, perform a concert that might not, indeed, be more beauti- 
ful in heaven itself. But, unfortunately, while listening to it 
one is disturbed by seeing a great swarm of ugly black devils, 
furnished with great claws, flourishing their tails about, wildly 
raging and roaring in order to harass and impede the angels, 
and with this object yelling and cursing in such a way as 
to cause a frightful uproar. The devils also wave about 
lighted torches, made of pitch, the sickening smoke of which 
darkens the atmosphere to such an extent as at times to prevent 
anything from being seen. Now, however, comes the principal 
object, viz. Death himself, mounted upon a carriage entirely 
black, and drawn by six black horses. This representation of 
Death is quite horrible to look at, as it consists of a leaden- 
coloured skeleton of colossal dimensions, so much so, indeed, 
that his head reaches up to the upper windows of the houses. 
In his right hand he carries a colossal scythe, and with the left 
Tie drags after him a chain, to which is attached a whole herd 
of howling ghosts representing every sex, age, and class of 
-society. Those hideous and horrible-looking hobgoblins from 
time to time utter lamentable cries, while exhibiting, by the 
contortions of their limbs, the torments of hell which they are 
suffering. Moreover, despite all this wailing, Death pursues his 
course, as if deaf and dumb, gnashing his teeth and giving evident 
-signs that nothing would deter him from sweeping away every 
living thing on earth, and casting them into the abyss of hell. 
It is, on this account, quite in vain that a choir of mournful 
repentant psalm-singers following in his train groans out the 
most doleful airs, exciting thereby, in the highest degree, the 
anguish and horror of the surrounding bystanders, who can see 
no escape from eternal perdition. But now, behold ! the Jesuits 
come upon the scene; they look, however, earnest and solemn, 
but also, at the same time, friendly and celestial, while glancing 
around them. A magnificent radiant sun, borne by four stalwart 
lay brethren, is carried along above their heads, indicating the 
light of eternal blessedness, so thnt the minds more hesvilv 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 159 

oppressed may breathe lightly again, knowing at length where 
to look for the dispensation of eternal grace. So great was the 
power to which the Jesuits now attained in Italy, and so easily 
were they ordinarily enabled to gain the end and aim which they 
set before them. But it so happened that there was one hindrance 
to their being able to conquer ; and similar difficulties occurred, 
too, in Milan, Venice, Veltlin, and Savoy. In Milan, from 
the year 1566 to 1584, there ruled as Archbishop, Count 
Carlo Borromeo, well-known as one of the most distinguished 
men of his times, whose diocese, as long as he lived and laboured, 
might well have served as a model for all others. This Borromeo, 
in the hope of bringing better order and condition into his 
hitherto rather lax church discipline, invited the Jesuits to 
Milan, selecting one from among their ranks as his Father 
Confessor, and putting a seminary at their disposal in order to 
establish a splendid educational institution, overloading them at 
the same time with favours of every description, to such an 
extent that he even entertained the idea of making over to them 
the possessions belonging to the Order of the wild "Humiliaten," 
which it was his wish to suppress. As he carried out, with 
becoming zeal, the reform of the priesthood, and especially of 
the monkhood, both of which had become dissolute, the refrac- 
tory monks brought an accusation against him before the Pope, 
and at the same time caused him to become an object of 
suspicion to the Spanish Governor of Milan (Lombardy at that 
time belonging to the Crown of Spain), making it appear that he 
entertained the idea of assuming the royal prerogative. In con- 
sequence of this accusation the Pope, as well as the Governor, 
took steps against him, and to all appearance it seemed as if 
he would succumb to his enemies. The Jesuits also, at whose 
head Father Mazarini, the Rector of their college in Milan, par- 
ticularly distinguished himself, were of this way of thinking. 
Not only did they at once go over with flying colours to the 
camp of the Spanish Governor, but they reviled their former 
benefactor, the Archbishop, in the most calumnious manner, 
in every church which had been given to them by him as a 
present. They reckoned, however, without their host, in 
imagining that Count Borromeo must of necessity make room 
for another, as he victoriously met all the accusations and 
calumnies which had been brought against him. It now 



160 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

became the turn of the miserable creatures who up to this time- 
had been open-mouthed against him, to shake in their shoes, 
and the Jesuits, especially, fully expected nothing else than that 
the Archbishop would launch out all his fury against them. He, 
however, a man full of Christian love, contented himself with 
taking their church and college from them, and expelling them 
from the city of Milan, but not, however, altogether out of his 
very extensive diocese. It was, indeed, a very lenient punish- 
ment for such base ingratitude as the Jesuits had shown him, 
and the latter ought to have thanked him with all humility. 
This they did not do, however ; but they thought that they 
might again establish themselves in the favour of Borromeo 
by laying all the blame of what had taken place on the shoulders 
of their Rector, Mazarini. On this account, the then General 
of the Order, Claudio Aquaviva, expressed his disapprobation of 
tbe conduct of Mazarini in a special letter addressed to the 
Archbishop, forbidding the delinquent, at the same time, from 
preaching during two years, and ordering him to throw himself 
humbly at the feet of the offended Borromeo. The Rector, as 
may be understood, rendered obedience to this order ; but the 
Archbishop did not, however, on this account, rescind bis decree 
of banishment ; and his nephew and successor, Count Frederico 
Borromeo, who held possession of the Archiepiscopal chair from 
1595 to 1631, went still further on assuming possession of the 
government, and took away from the Jesuits the conduct of 
all the colleges and seminaries which had been established in 
Lombardy, forbidding all who wished to devote themselves to the 
priesthood from prosecuting their studies in any Jesuit college,, 
under the penalty of loss of consecration. This injunction con- 
tinued as long as he lived, and it was only after the year 1631 
that the Jesuits ventured to establish themselves again in the ter- 
ritory of Milan. It went even worse than this with them in the 
city of Venice, which had always shown itself more free-thinking 
than was agreeable to the Romish priesthood; and it was 
for this reason that the Jesuits had very early established 
themselves there, in order to bring about, through their 
influence, a change in the state of matters. Now. however, 
Jesuit machinations did not at all meet with the approval of the 
Venetian Senate, and on this account it decreed a law in 1608 
by which neither any new churches nor cloisters could be built 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 161 

without the permission of the Government, nor any new Order 
of Monks or societies founded. This was a severe blow to the 
Romish priesthood, and more especially to the Jesuits, who at 
that time had entertained the idea of establishing themselves 
permanently all over the Venetian territories ; but still harder 
was it when, two years after this, the order was publicly pro- 
mulgated " that no subject of the Venetian Republic should 
be allowed, without the previous knowledge and permission of the 
State, to make over or alienate any immovable property, by will 
or sale, or in any other manner, to the priests or monkish 
Orders, under no less a penalty than imprisonment, banishment, 
and confiscation of their property." This constituted an open 
declaration of war against the Society of Jesus, and thereupon 
Claudio Aquaviva, their General, took up the matter. He- 
hastened, with his friend Cardinal Bellarmin, to Pope Paul V., 
and so worked upon the latter that a brief was forthwith addressed 
by him to the Venetian Senate, in which the Pope demanded an 
unqualified revocation of both the laws of 1603 and those of 
1605. The Senate appealed to their rights, but Paul V., in his 
hot displeasure, would listen to no statements based on reason, 
and, in 1606, launched an interdict, without further delay, 
against the Republic of Venice, hoping that, as by it all churches 
had to be closed forthwith, and all preaching of the Word of 
God consequently discontinued, this would give rise to a general 
insurrection among the people against the Senate. With such 
thoughts, at least, had Aquaviva and Bellarmin flattered him ; 
but, as will shortly be seen, they found themselves completely in 
error. The Venetian Senate, forsooth, instantly took up the 
gauntlet which had been thrown down, and not only forbad the 
publication of the Papal interdictory Bull in its dominions, but 
also issued an order to all its clergy to continue divine service as 
hitherto, or immediately to quit Venetian territory. This edict 
was obeyed by the whole of the priesthood and monkish Orders; 
the Jesuits alone hesitated to give respect to it. They were 
under the impression that as their influence had hitherto been 
so great they would conquer in spite of every opposition. The 
Senate, however, remained firm, and intimated to them that they 
must at once quit Venetian territory, if they wished to avoid 
forcible expulsion. There now remained for them no other 
course than to obey, and they, along with the Capuchins, whom 

11 



162 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

they had contrived to bring over to their side, went in great 
processions towards the closing of the gates, carrying before them 
huge crucifixes. Their expectations, however, that such a solemn 
exodus out of Egypt might give rise to fanatacism among the 
lower orders of the people, and create, at least, some disturbance, 
completely failed, even as much as the previous hope enter- 
tained by the Pope ; for when the masses of the people pressed 
forward to witness the spectacle, not a single hand was 
raised in their favour, but, on the contrary, curses were sent 
after them. After their departure, the Senate confiscated all 
their houses, and now some very strange discoveries were made. 
Besides leaving their riches in gold and silver, they fled also, in 
all haste, with the greatest portion of their books and manu- 
scripts, to deposit them with the Spanish Ambassador, as well 
as with some private friends ; but sufficient letters of theirs 
were found from which it was plain that they had devoted 
themselves much more to things temporal than to things 
spiritual, and suspicions arose that they had an understanding 
with the Spanish Court, which had for a long time striven to 
obtain possession of Venice, tt now appeared clear, besides, 
to many of the senators, what was the reason that the Order had 
sent the handsomest members of their Society to Venice, as 
several of the epistles they had left behind were evidently 
written by female hands, and their contents gave but unfavour- 
able testimony respecting the innocence of Venetian house- 
wives. Added to this, it so happened that the exiles, in order 
to ventilate their anger in Bologna, Ferrara, Mantua, Bari, 
Palermo, and other places, preached in the most violent manner 
against the Republic, doing their utmost to incite against it the 
Courts of Madrid and Prague, in order to induce Philip III. and 
the Emperor Rudolph II. to wage war with Venice ; the Jesuits 
also did their best to excite insurrections in that kingdom. 

In short, there existed incontestable evidence that the Jesuits 
constituted themselves very dangerous enemies to the Venetian 
Republic. The Senate consequently passed a resolution unani- 
mously to banish them for ever from Venetian territories. 
But even this course was not sufficient to satisfy the require- 
ments of the case, but an addition was also unanimously attached 
to the above decree, to the effect that no proposals of their ever 
again being received into Venice should be even listened to, 



THE POWEEFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 163 

unless five-sixths out of the number of 180 senators were 
favourable to the consideration thereof ; and, besides, every person 
in the Venetian State, of any condition or sex whatever, was 
strictly prohibited from holding communication with the sons 
of Loyola, under the heavy penalty of fine, imprisonment, or 
condemnation to the galleys. This decree, too, remained in 
force in spite of the Pope himself making an offer to revoke 
the interdict which he had issued, on condition that the 
Jesuits should be again received a proviso which the Senate 
peremptorily rejected. So, at last, Paul, being left in the lurch, 
saw himself compelled by France, the ally of Venice, and by the 
King of Spain, the friend of the Jesuits, to conclude peace 
with the Senate, being under the necessity thereby of sacrificing 
the sons of Loyola. The latter now set about matters in 
another way, begging the Senate to revoke the decree of banish- 
ment of 1612, and secretly offering for this favour the enormous 
sum of 500,000 ducats, but the nobility of Venice conducted 
itself on this occasion in a truly worthy manner, and refused 
with disdain the attempted bribery. 

Precisely the same fate that they had met with in the Venetian 
State, they had previously experienced in Veltlin, a portion of 
Graubiinden. There, in the year 1560, they brought it about 
that a very wealthy and esteemed old man, but at the same time 
weak-minded and almost childish with the burden of years, of 
the name of Anton Quadrius, who lived at Ponte, the capital 
of the country, bequeathed his whole property to them, in 
order to found a college therewith. His rightful heirs, how- 
ever, made a complaint forthwith to the head-man of the 
country, who issued orders that the Black Cloaks should at once 
not only leave Ponte, but also quit the whole territory. The 
Jesuits now addressed themselves to the Diet of Graubiinden 
(Grisons), which in the year 1561 usually assembled at the 
town of Chur, and brought the matter to such a point that the 
all-powerful Sovereign of Catholic Christendom exerted himself 
in their favour. The Grisonites, as free Republicans, paid, 
however, but little attention to the advice of crowned heads, and 
immediately after a full trial passed a resolution unanimously, 
in a public sitting, that the Jesuits, " as enemies of the Gospel, 
who were more qualified to corrupt youth than to educate them," 
should at once evacuate for ever the territory of the Grisons. 

11 * 



164 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

In precisely the same manner the Wallisers, the neighbours 
of the Grisons, fifty years later, in the year 1610, declared them- 
selves, and consequently defeated the attempts of the Jesuits 
to penetrate into Veltlin through Wallis. The latter became 
all the more enraged against the man through whose eloquence 
these results had been mainly brought about, namely Bartholma 
Alett, who, in the year following, died with evident symptoms 
of poisoning, and the general belief was that the poison had 
been administered to him through the agency of a Loyolite in 
disguise. 

The Jesuits pursued quite another course in Savoy from that 
adopted by them in the other above-mentioned parts of Italy. 
There were here, in the middle of the 16th century, not a 
few Protestants who had come from other countries, where 
they had been persecuted on account of their faith, while they 
hoped that in the depths of these quiet Alpine valleys, quite cut 
off, so to speak, from the rest of the world, they might be able 
to live undisturbed and unmolested. To these attached them- 
selves that remnant of the Waldenses who had their home here 
and in the neighbouring country of Piedmont during the last 
two centuries, and who, almost Protestant already, now entirely 
recognised the Reformed Church. This, however, was of course 
anything but agreeable to the taste of the Catholic priesthood, 
and the Duke at that time, Philibert Emanuel, proceeded to 
oppose by force in the severest manner this remnant of heresy 
in his hitherto thoroughly Catholic country. The Dominican 
monk Thomas Giacomello, more especially, proceeded against 
them in a very brutal way, and did not rest satisfied until a 
frightful example had been made of them, a number of the 
Reformers being burnt alive or sent to work in the galleys. 
The Protestants, however, being in so large a majority, threatened 
to take up arms in their defence against the Duke, who, then 
yielding, addressed himself to Pope Pius IV., asking the ques- 
tion whether all this contention might not best be settled by a 
religious conference. The Pope's answer to this was No ! 
Nothing had been hitherto gained in such matters by religious 
disputations. No ! A religious conference must not by any 
means take place, but he would send some theologians in order 
to instruct the ignorant in the true faith. " Moreover," added 
he, in concluding his written communication, " no instance 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 165 

as known where such a matter has been arranged by clemency ; 
but experience teaches that the best means of conversion lay 
in the hands of justice, and when this failed, from being too 
weak, there remained military coercion." 

Who, then, were those theologians whom Pius IV. directed 
should be sent to Savoy ? Oh ! he himself, indeed, sent 
none ; but he charged the General of the Jesuits, Laynez, 
with the carrying out of the matter, and the latter caused 
Father Anton Possevin, a man who afterwards became so 
notorious, to proceed to the Ducal Court on this mission, 
in order to negotiate with Philibert Emanuel regarding the 
-establishment of some Jesuit colleges. This, however, was 
only one part of his task. The other and much more impor- 
tant duty consisted in this that the ruler of Savoy should 
-be induced to make, once for all, a complete end of the affair by 
the extirpation of the heretics now and for ever. Possevin soon 
found that the Duke, who from his long experience in the field 
as a General of Charles V. and Philip II. had become very 
domineering, being particularly distinguished, also, as a tolerably 
wild prince, did precisely all that the Jesuit desired of him, 
.although not being himself conscious of it. Above everything 
the latter brought it about that Philibert Emanuel, through his 
influence, permitted the erection of two colleges. Possevin 
looked upon this as indispensably necessary, in order thereby to 
be enabled to call into the country a proper number of his 
associates; and to the Duke's objection that the State was too 
poor to admit of the possibility of the establishment of Jesuit 
-institutions, his reply was that the Society would be satisfied 
with whatever could be obtained from the lands confiscated 
irom the heretics. Now, however, when the Jesuit Fathers came 
to be fairly established in Savoy, they commenced setting about 
in earnest the fulfilment of their promise respecting the conver- 
sion of the refractory subjects; and it was indeed a curious 
description of conversion which they employed. Father Possevin 
and his associates travelled about all over the country attired 
in ordinary plain clothes, and penetrated especially into all the 
out-lying mountains and valleys in which all the reformed com- 
munities had taken shelter. On discovering such persons, did 
they now take care to let it be known who they themselves were, 
.and set about an attempt at conversion by preaching the Roman 



166 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

Catholic faith ? No, indeed ; on the contrary, they hastened; 
back to their head-quarters in order to bring to their aid several 
thousand soldiers ; and when they now returned along with them 
into the lonely mountain valleys, then, indeed, was it most 
imperative for God to have mercy upon the poor reformed 
people ! But how was it that they obtained the soldiers ? In 
the simplest way in the world, as has been previously mentioned, 
inasmuch as the Duke had been convinced, by the eloquence of 
Possevin, that a Catholic Prince would tarnish his honour if he 
tolerated any longer a miserable herd of heretics in his country ; 
and as the only really efficacious mode of conversion lay in the 
employment of coercion, it was easily to be understood that a 
large number of troops would be required to give support to the 
exertions of the Jesuits. Philibert Emanuel was also all the 
more disposed to this course, as the Pope made him a grant of a. 
considerable sum of money to meet the expenses attendant on 
the entertainment of this small faithful army; and, moreover, was 
not a prince of his character to consider himself fully justified in. 
punishing as rebels and disturbers of the peace, subjects who did 
not accede to his wishes, that they should openly recognise that 
faith which was held by the ruler of the country ? Suffice it to 
say, then, that the heretics were, as a matter of course, defeated 
by the soldiers under the guidance of the Jesuits, and that there 
now followed a time of misery and woe for Savoy, the details of 
which the pen, indeed, is reluctant to describe. In this manner, 
for instance, Possevin, at the head of two thousand men, fell 
upon the village of St. Germain, and put to the sword all the 
male inhabitants, although these had not taken up arms ; but 
the two reformed clergymen who were found there were burnt 
by means of a slow fire, the wood necessary for which the 
women and girls were constrained to bring at the point of the 
sword. A precisely similar fate befell many dozens of reformed 
communities, and all over the country, even in remote farms, the 
sword prevailed furiously, and the funeral piles glowed. At 
last, when they saw that nothing else than their extermination, 
was intended, the Reformers rose all through the land, and, 
courageously taking up arms, offered a brave resistance to the 
faithful army of soldiers. Here and there occurred sieges in 
a small way, for it was easy for them to entrench themselves 
in their mountain fastnesses, and the Savoyan troops were at. 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 1G7 

times exhausted in storming them. Possevin, being now 
furious at the thought that the victory, of which he had believed 
himself to be certain, should thus be wrested out of his hands, 
had resort to cunning and deceit, offering to the heretics, in the 
Duke's name, the free exercise of their religion on condition 
that they should lay down their arms and pay a sum of 16,000 
gold dollars by way of conciliation. The Reformers accepted 
these terms, and signed the treaty proposed to them ; but as 
soon as the money was paid and the arms laid down, the poor 
deluded people found themselves laughed to scorn in their faces, 
and the Jesuits now began afresh their blood-thirsty mode of 
conversion. Anew did they now penetrate into the mountain 
valleys at the head of a rough band of soldiery, ravagiag 
them with lance and sword, and once again were the heretical 
clergy, as well as the wealthy and respectable among these 
wretched people, consigned to the stake. This despicable con- 
duct, accompanied as it was with the most frightful oppression, 
awakened such fury and rage among the people, that, rushing 
again to arms, they obtained such a decisive victory over the 
Ducal army in May 1561, as to constrain Philibert Emanuel to 
think of making peace. His finances, too, were now exhausted, 
as his army had been on foot for two years, at a great cost of 
money ; and as the Pope had long ceased to send him any con- 
tributions, after the destruction of his army, what means had he 
at his disposal to provide himself with another ? Moreover, had 
it not, for a long time, appeared clear to him that when he made 
war upon the heretics in his country, he was only slaying his 
own subjects, and while he was enriching the Jesuits by bestow- 
ing the confiscated estates upon them, he was impoverishing 
his own states ? Oh, no ; enough blood had now been spilt, and 
sufficient misery had been spread broadcast ; Philibert Emanuel, 
therefore, at once discarded Father Possevin and his asso- 
ciates, and on the 5th of June 1561 concluded an agree- 
ment with his Protestant subjects, wherein he again promised 
them the free exercise of their religion, with the partial restora- 
tion of their confiscated property, whilst they, on the other 
hand, engaged to tolerate the Roman Catholic religion in all their 
communities, under condition that they themselves should never 
again have the acceptance of that religion forced upon them. 
Prom this time forth the country again enjoyed the blessings of 



168 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

peace, and the inhabitants lived in concord with one another ; 
but this state of matters only lasted for a hundred years, until 
the time of Louis XIV., as we shall afterwards see, when the 
Jesuits again obtained the upper hand, and a period of misery 
once more returned. 

II. THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS IN 
PORTUGAL. 

It has been already described in the foregoing books how that 
King John III. applied to Ignatius Loyola for some members 
of the Society of Jesus, with the view of sending them to India 
as missionaries for the conversion of the heathen ; and, further, 
bow that Ignatius despatched to him at Lisbon Francis Xavier 
and Simon Rodriguez, with this object ; and, lastly, how that 
John III., being so favourably inclined towards the latter, retained 
him at his Court, and constituted him his Father Confessor, con- 
fidential friend, and adviser. This said Simon Rodriguez now laid 
the foundation of the truly extraordinary power which the Jesuits 
came to exercise in Portugal and its colonies, during a period 
of nearly 200 years, as he contrived to make such great use of 
the almost imbecile king, who had scarcely any will of his own, 
that, after the space of only ten years, the Order already pos- 
sessed most beautiful colleges in Coimbra, Evova, Lisbon, and 
Braga, as well as several seminaries and educational institu- 
tions in other towns. Not only was this the case, but of these 
latter seminaries several in Coimbra and Evova were raised to 
the dignity of being made High Schools, and, consequently, the 
Jesuits soon completely commanded all the science, faith, and 
customs of Portugal. The Jesuit General in Rome, indeed, as 
soon as he saw that the ground in Portugal was so easily 
workable for his objects, despatched from Italy and France as 
many members of the Society as he could spare, to the assistance 
of Rodriguez ; he then contrived to enrol in its ranks a great 
body of proselytes, and with such rapidity and success that, for 
instance, tbfi college of Coimbra, which we have above mentioned, 
could already number as many as sixty members of the Order. 
In like proportion, also, their affairs prospered in other 
respects, and the richest and most noble of the land vied with 
each other how to bestow their riches among these institutions. 
But how could this well be otherwise, seeing that, following the 



THE POWEHFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS.- 169 

example of the King, all the great men of the country had taken 
Jesuits as their Father Confessors ? Father Michael de Torres 
.acted in this capacity to Queen Catherine, while Father Leon 
Henriquez stood in the same relationship to the Cardinal Infant 
Don Henri; again, to Father Simon Kodriguez, being himself the 
Father Confessor of the Ruler, was entrusted the conscience of the 
Duke of Aveiro, first minister of the kingdom, as well as that of 
Count Castanheira, and several others of the nohility. In short, 
under John III. the Jesuits became almost all-powerful at Court, 
as Rodriguez was so much the right hand and bosom friend of 
^the monarch that the latter transacted hardly any Government 
affairs without first consulting with his Father Confessor. 

" Yes," so Telles writes in his Chronicles of the Jesuits, " as 
Rodriguez was on one occasion lying sick at Almeiren, the King 
in person, accompanied by the Prince and high Court officials, 
.actually proceeded thither in order to pay a visit to the sick 
man, and the monarch, in this, seemed to forget his Royal 
.dignity merely to show his friendship for the Father/' 

The natural consequence of all this was, as it had hitherto 
generally proved to be the case, that the extraordinary consider- 
ation in which the Fathers were now held, as well as the bound- 
less treasures lavished upon them by the King, made them so 
;proud, presumptuous, indolent, and luxurious, that soon a 
.general feeling of discontent sprang up on this account among 
,the people. This, too, was not a silent disgust, for the in- 
habitants of Lisbon caused their complaints to reach the Throne, 
and they loudly accused the Government of wasting the means 
of the State unworthily and on undeserving objects. Still, what 
did that matter ? Simon Rodriguez had the weak monarch too 
much in his power that their complaints should be listened to ; 
;and at last it came to this, that the petitioners were put into 
prison, or banished from the kingdom. Thus did the Father 
Confessor carry on up to the year 1551, and, as one may, 
indeed, easily suppose, with an ever-increasing audacity. It 
now, however, reached the ears of Ignatius in Rome precisely 
how matters stood, and it became sufficiently apparent to him 
that the extraordinary hatred with which the Portuguese people 
regarded the Society must produce the worst results ; he, there- 
fore, came to the firm determination of grappling with the diffi- 
culty, at once, and with a strong hand. The college of Coimbra 



170 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

being, as it was, greatly to his mind, it deeply distressed him to 
find that, according to all reports, the same had become quite 
ruined and degraded, being more like a school for scandal than 
edification, and that instead of being devoted to study and educa- 
tion everything therein tended to foster laziness, debauchery, 
intrigue, and gossiping. Loyola, therefore, on the strength of 
his unlimited power as General of the Order, suddenly despatched 
Father Emanuel Godin to Coimbra, with the object of again 
bringing the college into some degree of order, recalling Father 
Rodriguez to Rome, and replacing him, as newly-nominated 
Rector, by the modest Jacob Miron, the former being, in his 
opinion, unworthy of acting in the capacity of Father Confessor 
to a King. John III. was at first very indignant at this violent 
measure of Loyola's, and, indeed, threatened, in consequence, 
to send all the Jesuits back again to Italy ; but, intellectually 
weak youngster as he was, he soon cooled down again, and after 
the lapse of about a month the new Father Confessor had him 
as much in his power as had previously been the case. Thus it 
was that in Lisbon, or, if one prefers to say, at the Court, all 
things reverted again to their former condition, only with this 
difference, that instead of the overbearing and hated Rodriguez, 
the quiet and mild Miron held sway. In Coimbra, on the con- 
trary, things did not go on so well, notwithstanding that Father 
Godin put down, with much strictness, the external scandalous 
condition of the college. The inhabitants of the town had, 
indeed, far too long observed the dissolute manner of life and 
conduct of the Jesuits, and were too full of contempt at 
their immorality to have any belief in any such sudden change 
in their demeanour. They felt inclined, rather, to look upon all 
this as nothing else than pure dissimulation, and the people, 
for the most part, contented themselves with casting ridicule 
upon the Long Cloaks, by greeting them openly with satirical 
songs. It followed, therefore, that if the old consideration for 
them was to be established, some great and striking effect must 
be produced, by bringing on the scene some kind of heart-stirring 
theatrical thunderbolt; and this coup was actually carried out. 
One fine morning, at some quite unusual hour, all the bells of 
the Jesuit church pealed forth in the most solemn manner, and 
a moment afterwards the chief door of the church was thrown 
open to exhibit the most extraordinary procession that ever was. 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 171 

witnessed. First of all, there advanced a true Goliath, bearing 
a gigantic representation of the crucified Christ; then, after him, 
came Father Godin, not attired, however, in his usual dress, hut 
naked as far as the waist, and armed with a weighty scourge ; 
behind him followed the whole of the novices in a similar attire, 
and then came the lay brethren, also, of course like those pre- 
ceding; the close of the procession was brought up by the teachers 
and coadjutors; and all, as they slowly proceeded onwards with 
downcast looks, sang a penitential psalm in a monotonous tone, 
which sounded extraordinarily mournful and melancholy. At 
every cross road and open place they made a halt, singing in the 
most doleful manner as hitherto, and causing, in addition to 
this, the scourges to hiss through the air, while they punished 
themselves with them in the most unmerciful way. The blood 
then soon began to flow from their naked shoulders, and the 
people, who streamed i n crowds in order to witness this extraordinary 
scene, were naturally much affected. The Jesuits, however, with 
their pupils, cried aloud, while imploringly wringing their hands, 
" Ye men of Coimbra, forgive us, for Christ's sake, the scandal 
which our Society has brought upon us ! " In this manner did 
the procession move further and further, until it reached the 
Church of Charity, when Father Godin ascended the pulpit and 
delivered a discourse of such extraordinary contrition that all the 
audience, which was so numerous that the church was as full as 
it could be, fell upon their knees and, with tears in their eyes, 
shrieked out aloud, " Charity, Charity, Charity ! " What, then,, 
was the effect of all this marvellous play ? Naturally, of course, 
no other than this, that the people of Coimbra again received 
the Jesuits into favour ; but to the educated and enlightened 
among them the whole affair appeared nothing else than a 
theatrical display; still, the mob entertained a different opinion, 
and especially the women, looking upon the penitents as in some 
degree holy. 

When now, in the year 1557, King John died, he left 
behind him a widow, the Queen Catherine, sister of the Emperor 
Charles V.,as well as a grandson of three years of age, Sebastian, 
son of the deceased Infant John, the successor to the throne, 
and a second son, the Cardinal Henri. Queen Catherine became 
guardian of the young Sebastian, and at the same time Regent 
of Portugal. She did not, however, reign alone, being in the 



172 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

hands of the Father Confessor Michael de Torres, and Leon 
Henriquez, Father Confessor of Cardinal Henri. These two 
.gave to the heir to the throne, with his brother, their sagacious 
companion, Louis Gonsalva de Camara, as Court Chamberlain 
and tutor. Now commenced the worst days for Portugal, as 
from this time forth the Jesuits completely ruled the country, 
as uncontrolled as if they had been the rightful possessors 
thereof. The Queen certainly, on one occasion, ventured to 
assert her authority, and in her excitement she actually wrote 
to Borgia, the then General of the Order, bitterly complaining 
of Father Gonsalva and his mode of education : 

" He imparts to his pupil, the future King, wild and volup- 
tuous habits," said she in this epistle, among other things, " and 
teaches him to despise and maltreat his grandmother. Especially 
he does not educate him as a future ruler ought properly to 
be instructed ; but he brings him up to be an instrument in his 
Father Confessor's hands, without any will of his own, and fills 
his head with phantastical images, by which the development 
of his understanding will be totally prevented." 

What, now, was the effect of this letter ? The removal, per- 
haps, of Gonsalva ? Oh, nothing of the kind, but, on the 
contrary, the removal of the Queen Regent. The Jesuits 
and their creatures, among whom was the Minister and other 
high officials about the Court, from this time forth spited 
the poor lady in every way in which they possibly could do 
so, affirming that the government of a woman was not at all 
suitable for such a state as Portugal ; and they carried, indeed, 
this kind of thing so far as to render her existence miserable 
for her. On that account, and in order that she might obtain 
peace and quiet, the poor woman, at length, in the year 1562, 
gave up her guardianship and government, and handed it over, 
before the assembled Parliament, into the bands of the Cardinal 
Infant Don Henri. He, however, being satisfied with the honour 
of being called Regent, just allowed the pious Fathers to do as 
they liked ; and if he at any time felt inclined to take the initiative, 
and to act for himself, he was the very next moment pounced 
upon and brought under the influence and dominion of his Father 
-Confessor. 

The Jesuitical power rose still higher, if it were possible for 
.it to do so, when, in 1568, the young Sebastian, now in his 



THE POWEKFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 173' 

fourteenth year, was declared to be of age (as the understand- 
ings of kings are believed to be in advance of their years, at a 
period when other people's children are still engaged at school). 
The young man, as may easily be imagined, being brought up by 
the Jesuits, was not capable of thinking otherwise than what he 
had been taught to think by the pious Fathers. Day by day 
Gonsalva de Camara instilled into him that the first duty of a 
Christian King was to do everything to further the spread of the- 
Roman Catholic religion, as God had set him on the throne for 
this object alone; and while Sebastian was naturally of a fiery 
and vehement disposition, thirsting after glory, it was an easy 
matter, consequently, to make him take up the idea that he had 
been specially called upon to effect some great and extraordinary, 
as well as unprecedented, undertaking for the Catholic faith. 
Gonsalva, indeed, gave himself no rest until he had aroused 
the piety of his pupil to a high degree of fanaticism, and his 
heroic spirit to the adventuresomeness of a crusader. The Father 
Confessor did not, at the same time, neglect to take the pre- 
caution to keep at a distance from the King everyone who might 
be able to operate upon him in a contrary direction, and, from 
the period of Sebastian's accession to the throne, all important 
places about the Court, and connected with the Government, 
were filled with creatures of the Jesuits. In this way, the young 
ruler was kept in ignorance as regards the riches and power of 
the State which he governed ; he was quite unaware of the fact 
that, since the entrance of the Jesuits into Portugal, all advance- 
ment made by the nation, either in science, commerce, or in- 
dustry, had been backwards, like that of a crab, or, at least, that 
it threatened to fall into a condition of stagnation; he was ignorant 
of the daily increase in the number of malcontents, and of the 
fact that this highly-esteemed people entertained the idea of 
completely depriving him of all honour and consideration ; and 
least of all did he know anything as to the Jesuits being entirely 
to blame for all the misery into which the country, from their 
bad management, had fallen ; and he could not possibly learn 
this, as anyone who might make the most remote attempt ta 
enlighten the King knew well that he must render expiation 
severely, both in soul and body, for so doing. Nor would 
the Jesuits, indeed, allow him to enter into the marriage state, 
although the interests of the nation demanded this of him, seeing 



174 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

that on the decease of his uncle Henri the male line of his honse 
would expire. No, this must not be, by any means ; for a young 
and beautiful Queen might have sufficient influence over him to 
burst the bonds of slavery in which he was held by the Fathers.* 
One sees, then, with what system the Jesuits acted in Portugal, 
in order that the weapon of power should never be wrested out 
of their hands. At last, Gonsalva de Camara, the all-powerful 
Father Confessor of Sebastian, died, and not a few now believed 
that this circumstance might possibly give rise to a change in 
the system of government ; but they were entirely mistaken. The 
Ring at first felt deeply distressed, and, in reply to all repre- 
sentations, met them only with these words, " What would you 
require of me ? I have never known another father, and never 
had another mother, than Father Gonsalva." By degrees, how- 
ever, his distress became blunted by means of the consoling 
administrations of another Jesuit, Father Gaspar Muricio, who 
soon obtained the head and mind of the King fully as much in 
his power as it ever was in that of Gonsalva. Shortly after 
this, in the year 1577, war broke out between Spain and the 
Mohamedan Empire of Morocco opposite to it, in which 
Mulei -Moloch, and his nephew, Mulei-Mehemed, who had both 
a claim to the throne, were opposed to each other. Mulei- 
Mehemed was vanquished, and fled to Lisbon to solicit the pro- 
tection of Sebastian ; but the new Father Confessor now taught 
him that, in this circumstance, lay a manifestation of God's will, 
tending to the transplantation of the gospel into the soil of 
Africa. " The Moors," said the Confessor, once came over from 
Africa and turned the whole of the Spanish peninsula into a 
Mahomedan empire ; the hour of retribution has now arrived, 
and it was he, Don Sebastian, that was the fortunate person 
whom the Lord Jesus had selected to eradicate the Moors 
entirely from the face of the earth." These words inflamed the 
fiery heart of the King, and he at once determined upon waging 

* The whole of the Royal Family, the Privy Council, the great ones 
of the kingdom, and all its subjects, urged that the King should con- 

' tract a marriage, in order that an heir to the throne might be secured ; 
indeed, the Princess Margaret of France, sister of Charles IX., was 
selected. But the Jesuits moved heaven and earth to prevent such a 
thing ; and they succeeded although, indeed, by sly calumniation. In a 
precisely similar manner they contrived to cause a proposed union with an 
Austrian princess to fail, as they wished that the heart of their slave should 

< remain, undivided. 



THE POWEKFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 175 

\var upon Mulei-Moloch. This, indeed, was the moment for the 
Jesuits inwardly to rejoice, as now, when the monarch took his 
departure for a foreign country, they might have the opportunity 
of carrying out their own arrangements and operations all the 
more unimpeded; for while he was taken up with the idea of this 
crusade, he would have no time to think about the melancholy 
condition of his own kingdom. It may be quite certain, too, 
that they had good grounds for encouraging the resolution that 
the monarch had formed, seeing that they allowed their thoughts to 
go further, calling to mind the mortality of human life. Should, 
for instance, during the campaign, an enemy's arrow deprive him 
of existence, the old original royal family of Portugal would 
have died out with him, and the succession would open up to 
Phillip II. of Spain, the great patron and supporter of the 
Society of Jesus ; in this way, another corner-stone would be 
added to the establishment of a universal Spanish monarchy, 
which would bring about all the more surely the gigantic aim of 
the Society the mastery over the whole world. Let that, how- 
ever, be as it may, Sebastian, through the constant instigations 
of the Jesuits, remained firmly resolved to make an end of 
Mahomedanism in North Africa, and, in the spring of ^1578, 
commenced to collect together an army with this object. There 
existed great difficulties connected with his finances, which, 
thanks to the blundering proceedings of the Society of Jesus, 
were at that time completely exhausted, and it could only be 
through the severest extortion, which would have the effect of 
entirely destroying the well-being of his kingdom, that he would 
be enabled to raise the amount necessary for the purpose. In 
regard to this, the greatest men of the country now offered the 
most strenuous representations, in order to divert him from such 
a foolish enterprise, which must of necessity end in failure; 
the King of Spain, also, whom he had begged to share with 
him in the glory of the undertaking, had sent him a decided 
reply in the negative. All this was to no purpose, as he had 
got into his head the idea of becoming a victorious hero of the 
Faith, and consequently a small army of about 15,000 men was 
brought together about June of the above-named year. Fully 
a good third of the same consisted of foreign recruits, among 
whom, most marvellously, were a number of German heretics ; 
of the remaining two-thirds, however, consisting of indigenous 



176 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

inhabitants, the most of them were obtained by compulsion, and 
it was only the nobles who rendered voluntary service ; so, there- 
fore, there could be no question of a regularly well-trained 1 
army fit to enter upon war. Taking this circumstance into con- 
sideration, and the small number of combatants, a disastrous 
result might easily be predicted. On the 24th of June 1578, the 
troops embarked in thousands, for the most part in small craft. 
The departure, however, was no happy one ; all went into the 
ships in silence, and the eyes of the spectators were filled with 
tears. The landing took place at Arzilla, and thence the army 
advanced as far as Alcazar without meeting with the least 
resistance. In the meantime, Mulei-Moloch had brought to- 
gether a large army of a hundred thousand men, and now, on 
the 3rd of August, he was only separated from the Portuguese 
by a river. It was, no doubt, an advantage for him, too, that 
he was posted on the heights, while, moreover, there prevailed 5 
in the camp of Sebastian much want of provisions. Those who 
were most experienced in war counselled the latter to retreat 
to Arzilla, and even Mulei-Mehemed, the Morocco pretender, 
declared himself favourable to this course ; for, in the worst case, 
they would then be able to secure their safety in the fleet. The 
foolishly adventurous Sebastian, however, in spite of everything, 
resolved upon making an attack ; and now, on the 4th of August, 
took plane that most unfortunate battle the disastrous result of 
which brought Portugal to the very brink of ruin. In a short 
space of time the small Christian army became completely 
surrounded by large hordes of Moorish cavalry, and, in con- 
sequence of bad war-organisation, all order among the ranks 
was entirely at an end. Each one fought, as it might be said, 
" on his own hook/' and although some struggled valorously, 
an inglorious death awaited them in the general confusion. The 
right wing, to which Don Sebastian had attached himself, held 
out the longest, and it was really marvellous to behold such 
strength and courage. But at length, here also, the enemy 
obtained the upper hand, and death gained a rich harvest. With 
rash temerity the Christian monarch held out, in the midst of 
a large troop of Moorish cavalry, until at length he succumbed, 
pierced by a hundred lances. How it precisely ended, however,, 
was never exactly known, as there was no witness of his death 
among his own people, and his corpse was not to be found on 



THE POWEEFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 177 

the field of battle. The fact only remained that he had for ever 
disappeared, and, besides himself, as certainly the whole army 
lay on the field of battle, with the exception of a few hundreds 
who were taken prisoners. Thus, in one single battle, was 
annihilated all the bloom of the Portuguese youth, and more 
especially of the Portuguese nobility, and there was scarcely a 
single family in the whole country which was not thrown into 
the deepest mourning. The greatest grief, however, that sprang 
out of this sad disaster was that the crown of Portugal must 
now fall into foreign hands, and the nation incur the danger 
of losing its nationality. The only remaining scion of the old 
royal house was the aged Cardinal Don Henri, who at once 
ascended the throne ; but in his case, even had the Pope given 
him a dispensation to marry, no heirs could be expected, and, 
therefore, after his accession, there arose several pretenders to 
the throne. Among these, there first of all appeared Donna 
Catherina, of Braganza, along with her spouse, John ; then came 
Philibert, Duke of Savoy ; thirdly, there was Rainuzius, Prince 
of Parma ; fourthly, Catherine de Medicis, Queen of France; 
lastly, Philip II., King of Spain, and all of these five proved 
from their genealogical tree that they were more or less related 
to the royal house. But this, too, was not by any mean& 
sufficient, for all of them seemed bent upon gaining their 
object, each one of them assailing the venerable Don Henri 
in order to secure the succession to the throne. The one 
who had manifestly the nearest title was Catherina of Bra- 
ganza, as she was lineally descended from Alfonso I., the 
founder of the House of Braganza, who claimed as his father 
the celebrated King John I., and who was also acknowledged by 
the latter as his son, although not a legitimate one. There 
could not, also, be the slightest doubt that the Portuguese 
people, not the lower classes and country folk alone, but also- 
the nobility and regular clergy as well, had no desire that 
their future ruler should be any foreign pretender. It was, 
moreover, held to be quite clear to everyone that the house of 
Braganza, which belonged to the country, was alone entitled to 
the throne, and Don Henri himself, it was well seen, was also 
inclined to take this view of the matter. The Jesuits, how- 
ever, held an entirely different opinion. They had the con- 
viction that the uncontrollable stream of the Reformation, or 

12 



178 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

heresy, as they termed it, along with its detestahle innovations, 
could have no more lasting and invincible check put upon it 
than when the already powerful Philip II. of Spain, grandson of 
the Hapshurger Philip I., who had obtained the throne of Spain 
by marriage with Johanna of Castile and Aragon, should become 
sole ruler over the whole of Christendom ; they desired, in other 
words, that one universal monarchy should he founded, the chiefs 
of which should be the kings of Spain and their cousins the 
rulers of the Austrian possessions. So, on that account, they left 
no stone unturned in order to create this universal monarchy ; 
always, however, with this proviso, " that those kings and rulers 
should allow themselves to be guided by them (the Jesuits), and 
that, consequently, the supreme direction of this monarchy of 
the world should fall into no other hands than their own." Such 
was the main thought by which they were influenced, and, resting 
upon this idea, they most naturally devoted their whole energies 
to bring it about that Philip II. should be successor to Don 
Henri on the Portuguese throne, seeing that the annexation of 
Portugal was still a step onward toward the realisation of the 
design of this universal Spanish monarchy. 

What a lucky circumstance, then, was it that Don Henri 
happened to be entirely in the hands of his Father Confessor, 
Leon Henriquez, and what a further piece of good fortune was 
it that this Father Confessor happened to he among the most 
cunning and sagacious of his Order ! How easily, then, was 
the reigning monarch, imbecile from old age, persuaded that the 
gates of heaven should be closed against him for ever were he 
to declare any other than the good Catholic Philip II. to be 
successor to the Portuguese crown ! He was also further in- 
fluenced so far as to prohibit John of Braganza, with his spouse 
Catherina, and their cousin Don Anton of Braganza, from 
appearing at Court, hoping by this maans to take away from them, 
in the eyes of the people, all rightful expectancy of succession to 
the throne. Leon Henriquez, as it may he imagined, was not 
the only one connected with this intrigue ; he was, besides, 
excellently supported by his numerous other fellow-brethren, 
ana more especially by the extremely influential Father, George 
Serraon, the Provincial of the Order in Portugal, as well 
AS by the two Fathers, Rodrigo Basquez and Ludovico of 
Molino, two most thoroughly experienced Jesuits, who had 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 179 

been sent expressly to Lisbon by Philip II. to look after his 
interests. 

King Don Henri died on the 31st of January 1580, being the 
last of his House. During the year and a half of his govern- 
ment he was completely under the uncontrolled power of the 
Society of Jesus, and now the question came to be considered 
-who should be the heir to the throne; but scarcely was the 
breath out of Don Henri's body when Philip II. sent the blood- 
thirsty Duke of Alba to Portugal, at the head of a numerous 
army, in order, with weapons in his hand, to prove the legiti- 
macy of his claim to the throne. The nobility, together with 
nearly all the regular clergy, now raised their voices in favour of 
the House of Braganza, and the people cried loudly against 
this forcible usurpation, vehemently cursing all the Jesuits. 
But still, what did that matter ? What did it signify that here 
and there the Spanish arms were also opposed by arms ? The 
only result was that the refractory towns were pillaged, and that 
the whole of the country was handed over to the brutality and 
cruelty of the Spanish soldiery, upwards of two thousand of the 
native priesthood and monkish orders being ruthlessly massacred.* 
This was the way in which Philip II. pacified the country, and 
on the llth of September 1580 he had the satisfaction of being 
able to put himself upon the throne of Portugal without 
experiencing further resistance. Portugal now remained, during 
eighty years, subject to the Spanish crown, and was treated 
precisely like a conquered province, the result being that the 
country fell more and more every year into decay, and one may 
well imagine the despair into which the Portuguese, in their 
misery, were thrown. When, however, the whole of this formerly 

* " One could not," writes the good Catholic, Louis de Menezes, " once 
speak of the new Government and escape unpunished ; but whoever was 
not of assistance to the king (Philip II.) when he usurped the kingdom, had 
to expiate this want of service with his life, and even the priesthood was 
not hy any means excepted." On the other hand, whoever made it appear 
that he viewed tyranny with disfavour, and even when there was a mere 
suspicion attaching to him in this respect, he was secretly and unexpectedly 
seized upon and thrown into the sea. Therefore, the fishermen began to 
catch the dead bodies of those unfortunates in their nets in place of fish ; 
and thus it was that such enormous misdeeds, by the destiny of Providence, 
were not allowed to remain in darkness. Precisely the same things were 
reported also by the Frenchman Mezeray, and the Spaniard Emanuel 
Rodriguez Leitaon, as also by the thoroughly trustworthy Thuan, the latter 
of whom still added that Philip, later on, demanded and obtained dispensa- 
tion from Pope Gregory XIII., inasmuch as during his usurpation of 
Portugal, he had allowed over 2,000 ecclesiastics to be executed. 

12 * 



180 HISTOBY OF THE JESUITS. 

well-to-do population had now been brought to ruin through 
the indolent and incapable government of the Spaniards, as well 
still more by their avarice and cruelty, the ship of the Jesuits 
seemed to swim all the more merrily on that account, and all 
the more did Philip II. (1556-98), as well as his successor 
Philip III. (1598-1 C21), continue to shower down favours upon 
them. It may, indeed, be affirmed that it fared equally and 
powerfully as well under these two rulers and their governors 
as it had under the preceding Portuguese kings ; and how 
immensely great this power must have been may best be seen 
from a memorandum of the Procurator- General Royal, Don 
Seabra da Sylva, who, under Joseph I., had to examine the acts 
of the Jesuits. To wit, on the occasion of a trial which hnd 
been instituted in the year 1617, before the Crown Law Court 
in Lisbon, in which the Jesuits appeared as the party ac- 
cused, the aforesaid Procurator- General entered the following 
remarks concerning them : " It had gone so far as this, that no 
one dare venture to proceed against the Jesuits in an allowable 
way, without being thrown into the sea, assassinated, or, indeed, 
punished as an enemy of the King and the Government, and, 
this being the case, they had indeed usurped the sole lord- 
ship over the whole of Portugal." Such a statement as this 
appears to me to be sufficiently plain, and I have, therefore, 
nothing more to add to it. Somewhat differently did things 
proceed under King Philip IV. (1621-65), as, during the reign 
of this equally weak as extravagant ruler, the power of Spain 
sank so low that the Jesuits became clearly aware how impossible 
it was to found the projected universal monarchy by means of 
this line of rulers ; and the consequence was that the great lead 
which they had hitherto taken in Spain began to cool down 
considerably. And still more despondent did they become when 
they observed, to their great annoyance, according to the words 
of an historian of these times, " that the sun of royal favour 
had not infrequently become obscured to the good Fathers, in 
order that it might be allowed to shed its delightful rays upon 
the holy Dominicus and his children ;" and, as they were not 
wont to put up patiently with the slightest affront or neglect, 
they at once contemplated revenge. This, truly, was not of 
such a nature that the enemy would be met with open mask, 
but, rather, in a secret and disguised manner, the authorship of 



THE POWEBFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 181 

which might be publicly denied, as there was far too much at 
stake to enable them boldly to oppose Philip IV. before all the 
world. In what, then, did this revenge, consist? Simply 
an this, that they attacked the despotism of the Spaniards in 
anonymous publications of the most violent character, and at 
the same time in the confessional, assuring the Portuguese that 
King Philip IV. had no right to the crown of Portugal, but that 
it belonged properly to the House of Braganza. By means of 
such and similar machinations they succeeded in attaining two 
objects at the same time ; for, in the first place, while at the 
*ourt of Madrid they loudly professed that everything was done 
on their part in order that the people in Portugal should be 
brought into submissiveness to Spain, they secretly fanned 
'into constantly increasing flames the smouldering ashes of the 
fire of hatred which the Portuguese entertained towards the 
Spaniards'; and then, secondly, the Portuguese people were led 
to begin to put in play the treachery which had been practised 
toy the fraternity in former times in favour of Philip II. On the 
1st December 1640, the conspiracy, arranged with much adroit- 
ness, and carried out with equal skill by the Portuguese grandees, 
broke out, which was to put on the Portuguese throne John, 
Duke of Braganza, a direct descendant of the frequently above- 
mentioned Donna Catherina of Braganza, under the title of 
John IV. ;* so it happened that the Jesuit Father, Gaspar 
Correa, was the first to greet him as King. John IV. was con- 
sequently bound to remember what a leading part the Jesuits 
had taken in this revolution, and the weak and timid monarch 
bore this in mind but too well, for he at once dismissed the 
regular priest, Barthelemy de Quental, who had up to this time 
been his Father Confessor, and nominated in his place the Jesuit 
Father Anton de Bieira, who had exercised great influence over 
-the inhabitants of Lisbon by his fanatical preaching. As soon, 
rhowever, as Bieira had become Koyal Father Confessor, he 
.discontinued preaching, and made himself indispensable to his 
master as political counsellor. First of all, he busied himself in 
^procuring the removal of the State Minister, Fraz Lucena, an 
enemy of the Order, and had no scruple, by means of the 
blackest calumnies, in committing to the scaffold this honest man. 

* The details of this, as well as of the subsequent war with Spain, may 
ibe read, if desired, in any general history of the world. 



182 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

He next contrived to carry things so far that the monarch 
entrusted to him for supervision all the resolutions of the Privy 
Council, and, consequently, although Bieira had not the title 
of Premier, still the Ministry was in fact subject to his criticism 
and authority. Lastly, the confidence of John IV. increased in 
him to such an extent that he was despatched with ambassadorial 
messages to several of the Courts of Europe, and the cunning 
Jesuit acted at the same time as Royal Plenipotentiary. The 
Society of Jesus was in reality, then, more than ever the actual 
ruler of Portugal, and consequently, in order that this should 
continue to be the case, the education of the royal princes 
was entrusted to the two Fathers, Cossmander and Andre 
Fernandez. These persons naturally, devoted themselves with 
much zeal to their task, and while they rather neglected the 
two younger children, the second and third born sons, viz. Don 
Alfonso and Don Pedro, they succeeded, on the other hand, in 
bringing up the Crown Prince, Tbeodosius, in the right way, 
that is to say, in making him a friend of the Jesuits of the purest 
water. The Jesuit Father Franco thus wrote, in the annals of the 
Order which he published, concerning this matter: " No son can 
cling more closely to his mother than Don Theodosius to his tutor 
Fernandez, and this prince entertained such a predilection for 
our Order that the coat alone was wanting to make him one of 
ourselves." In all other respects, the Crown Prince remained in 
profound ignorance, with the exception of astrology and mystic- 
ism ; and had he ever lived to attain the throne, he would have 
been truly a most peculiar monarch. What was, now, the object 
of all this ? The great aim was that the Society of Jesus might 
retain their rule over Portugal, irrespective, be it well under- 
stood, of the welfare of the country and its inhabitants. 

In the year 1656 John IV. departed this life, and immediately 
thereafter died also the Crown Prince Theodosius, so that the 
neglected Alfonso came now to the throne ; being, however, 
under age, the widowed Queen, Donna Louisa, a born Guzman 
of Medina Sidonia, undertook his guardianship, as well as the 
government, and certainly, under this regency, the Jesuit Fathers 
had also no reason to complain. Female monarchy was, as 
history testifies, always favourable to the priesthood, and the 
rule of Donna Louisa proved to be fully so. She previously had 
lor Father Confessor a Capuchin monk ; as, however, the above- 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 183 

mentioned Anton de Bieira had already, during the lifetime of 
her husband, called the Jesuit Father Johann Nunnez to the 
Court, she would not hear any more of any other ecclesiastic, 
but confided the welfare of her soul to the latter only. Ah ! he 
indeed, was a real saint. He lacerated himself so cruelly, in the 
sight of all the Court ladies, that the blood ran in streams from 
his bare back ; and, besides this, who could pray so earnestly 
with his confessants as Nuunez ? The new Father Confessor 
thus soon became all-powerful, and things were carried so far 
under his rule and governance that hardly any single situation 
in the whole country was to be obtained except through the 
intercession of the Jesuits. They formed, indeed, the Alpha and 
Omega, the beginning and end, to gain all favour, and in order to 
avoid getting into disgrace every one worshipped them without mea- 
sure. In short, all people bowed slavishly in the dust before them, 
" the Apostles," as they were designated ; and the proof of this 
was that when Nunnez came to die, of course under the odour of 
sanctity, he was carried on the shoulders of the first nobility of 
the land into the funereal vault, where he was interred with 
princely splendour. The guardianship and government of Donna 
Louisa was now completely in the hands of the Jesuitical fraternity. 
A severe blow to the Order was, however, threatened as soon a& 
the heir to the throne became of age, and ascended it under the 
title of Alfonso VI. This young prince had felt himself kept 
very much in the background as long as his brother Theodosius 
lived, and on that account was led to take a thorough hatred 
to the Jesuit Fathers. And this dislike became intensified by 
the bigotry and self-torture which were introduced at Court by 
Father Nunnez, there being every reason to entertain the opinion 
that the holy Father must be a complete hypocrite, an opinion 
which the prince held, and which he did not at all attempt 
to conceal. Indeed, he had, moreover, the courage, in his- 
eighteenth year, to take a Benedictine monk as his Father Con- 
fessor instead of a Jesuit, and expressed himself, in fact, quite 
openly, to the effect that his future ministry should be of a very 
different character from the present body. In all this lay great 
danger for the Society of Jesus, and it may be well imagined that 
the holy Fathers looked to the future by no means without 
anxiety. Alfonso, however, fortunately for them, did not by 
any means possess that strength of mind, and still less that 



184 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

energy of will, which were necessary for the carrying out of the 
project he had. in view. Whence then, too, could he take the 
necessary men of enlightened views and free thought for his 
protection,- as throughout the whole of Portugal there were no 
persons of culture among the higher classes of society who had 
not derived their education from the Jesuits? Certainly, then, 
those good Fathers had no occasion to entertain such great 
anxiety, and they themselves, indeed, said as much. In order, 
however, to he prepared for all eventualities, they determined to 
nip in the bud any attempt of the prince to free himself from 
the Society of Jesus, by not allowing the youth, in fact, ever to 
assume the reins of government. With this object in view, 
therefore, they spread about all over the country reports regard- 
ing his manner of life, which they represented as so unbridled 
that he had ruined himself both in body and soul ; in order, 
also, to insult him and make him appear despicable both in 
the eyes of the common people as well as of the nobility, they 
arranged that prayers should be offered up publicly in all the 
churches with a petition for his recovery. Later on, they 
procured, by bribery, a couple of physicians to declare him to 
be half-witted, and so worked upon the Regent-mother that, 
before the whole of the assembled grandees, she treated her son 
as mentally incapable. Their idea was, in short, to make the 
Portuguese believe that Alfonso was unfit to govern, hoping 
that on that account, he would resign in favour of his 
brother Don Pedro, who was entirely devoted to them. This 
idea, however, was only half of what they desired to effect ; 
and in order not to spoil their previous game of intrigue, while 
taking care that the deeply calumniated prince should not, 
on attaining his majority, ascend the throne, they thought it 
prudent to receive with smiling and agreeable mien the proposal 
that he should take unto himself (in the year 1666) a suit* 
able spouse, in the person, namely, of Princess Maria Franciska 
Isabella of Savoy-Nemours. Still, even this last act, which at 
first appeared to them particularly dangerous, turned out in the 
end to be entirely in their favour, and speedily brought them 
unexpectedly to their long-wished-for aim. The young Queeu 
happened to be of a very warm nature, and did not, by any 
means, feel disposed to remain faithful to her liege lord. So she 
cast her eyes upon the handsome and finely-formed, though 



THE POWEKFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 185 

^weakly endowed, younger brother of the King, 'Don Pedro: 
These affections did not, of course, long remain concealed from 
her Father Confessor, Francis de Ville, whom she had brought 
with her, and he communicated these matters to his friend, the 
-Jesuit Father Verjus, who had come to Lisbon as Father Con- 
fessor of the Duke d'Estrees, the companion of the princess. 
These two crafty Fathers put themselves in communication with 
the rest of the Jesuit party at the Court, and such a black plot 
was now soon devised for the removal of King Alfonso as it 
would be difficult to find its match in the world a plan, more- 
over, which could only be carried out with the connivance of 
Donna Maria the Queen, and her brother-in-law Don Pedro. 
They both, indeed, willingly lent their assistance, as the Queen 
-thereby might attain the object for which she so much longed, 
and, as regards Don Pedro, he might readily venture to 
commit a crime in order to gain possession of a crown. 
The comedy exploded on the 21st of November, on the morn- 
ing of which day the Queen, bursting into tears, declared 

openly that, as the King was quite unsuitable as a hus- 
band, she must consequently take refuge in a convent, for 
she could no longer submit to his disgusting society. She, 
indeed, forthwith carried her intention into effect, and took 
flight, accompanied by all her ladies, in order to betake herself 
.into the Franciscan convent. Here she was again seized with 
.a violent fit of sobbing, while at the same time repeating her 
(lamentations ; and the Jesuits, being t quickly summoned, made 
the matter their own business, and promulgated the grand event 
of the day with unparalleled assiduity all over Lisbon. This, of 
course, naturally gave rise to a great commotion, and everyone 
commenced to rush about the streets, either into their neighbours 

or the public-houses, in order to talk over the scandalous story. 
The majority of the people took the Queen's part, for, as I have 

already mentioned, the Jesuits long before had thrown contempt 
upon the King, as may be easily imagined, and now added other 
reproaches to their previous calumnies. Alfonso in vain com- 
manded his spouse to return to the palace, on the affair, so 
shameful to himself, being brought to his notice. She, however, 
hesitated to comply, and he in vain proposed to his Council of 
State, which he had at once assembled, that inquiry should be 
.made into her conduct. Feelings of shame, however, forbade 



186 HISTOBY OF THE JESUITS. 

this being done, but the Queen still protested that the King was 
not a suitable husband for her. Driven to distraction, the 
monarch in vain endeavoured to carry out his wishes by the 
employment of force. Some dozens of the nobility, sword in 
hand, now furiously penetrating into the palace, accompanied by 
thousands who followed them, attracted by the uproar, shut the 
King up in his cabinet, and after bringing forward Don Pedro 
in triumph, compelled the monarch to affix his signature to two 
documents, in one of which he solemnly affirmed that his spouse 
the Queen was in the right, whilst in the other he " from his own 
action, in virtue of his own unlimited royal power, relinquished 
the reins of government in favour of his brother Don Pedro." 
What now followed may be easily imagined. Don Pedro assem- 
bled the Parliament in order that a document, drawn up by the 
Jesuit Father N una de Cunha, should be placed before them, 
detailing the motives why it was impossible to do otherwise than 
proceed against Don Alfonso VI. ; and the assembled Parliament, 
entirely under the influence of the Jesuits, decreed the deposition 
of the unfortunate monarch, on the ground of his being imbecile 
and impotent. 

Don Pedro thereupon ascended the throne, with the title of 
Pedro II., and after Pope Clement IX. had granted the neces- 
sary dispensation, and bestowed his blessing on the new marriage, 
shared the incestuous marriage bed with the woman who had 
hitherto been his sister-in-law ; poor Alfonso, on the other hand, 
who had now taken the place of brother-in-law instead of 
husband, was brought first of all to Terceira, and next to Gintra, 
finally dying in prison on the 12th of September 1683, in great 
misery. What were, then, the privileges which the Jesuits now 
obtained, under a king who had alone to thank them for placing 
him upon the throne ? No one on earth could have the slightest 
doubt ; power and influence especially now became concentrated 
in Father Emanuel Fernandez, who succeeded to the office of 
Father Bieira, the former Father Confessor of Don Pedro pre- 
vious to the accession of the latter to the throne. His exalted- 
patron created him to be a Privy Councillor, and, later on, even 
President of his Council of State, so that all transactions, a*, 
well as all nominations, passed through his hands. The war 
department was even placed under him, although one might have 
thought that such an office was not very compatible with that uf 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 187 

a confessor and preacher ; but it now belonged to the plan of 
the Jesuits gradually to take possession of all the highest 
tribunals, in order that they might be enabled to rule with com- 
pletely unlimited and despotic power. In short, Don Pedro,, 
as long as Emanuel Fernandez lived, was nothing else than a 
complete machine in his hands, and when the all-powerful man 
died, in the year 1693, Father Sebastian von Magellhans took 
his place, with all the privileges attached thereto. Naturally 
enough, however, the burden of the State became too great a load 
for him to bear alone on his shoulders, and he therefore shared 
it along with his associates. Nunha de Cunha more especially,, 
the Provincial of the Society in Portugal, as well as Francis de 
Ville, the Father Confessor of the Queen, reigned supreme, and 
those three, namely, Fernandez, Cunha, and de Ville, were now 
designated the " Triumvirate." Yet it was, indeed, no tri- 
umvirate of love, but, on the contrary, of terror, and it made 
itself feared by all those who did not blindly follow the orders 
which proceeded out of the profess-house of the Society in 
Lisbon. We have had enough now of the sway of the 
Jesuits in Portugal, respecting which I have gone almost too 
much into detail. It was, however, necessary to do so, as in 
no kingdom on the earth did the Society of Jesus succeed so 
admirably in gaining the upper hand over all classes of people 
as here. In no other Court did they understand better how to 
combine the character of Confessor with the power of Minister 
of State. Nowhere else had they so completely the education of 
the people in their hands, and nowhere else did their despotism 
prevail so much over the weakness of rulers as in Portugal, 
which for several centuries was nothing more than a slavishly- 
obedient province of their universal monarchy. 

III. INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS IN SPAIN. 

The first Jesuits who were sent to Spain by their General imme- 
diately after the institution of the Order, during the government 
of the Emperor Charles V., were Father Araoz, who selected 
Barcelona, and Father Villanouva, who chose Saragossa, re- 
spectively, as the field of their operations. The first Jesuit 
college, however, which was established in Loyola's native 
country was founded in Gandia by Duke Francis Borgia, of 



188 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

'Gandia, who afterwards became the third General of the Order. 
A very great increase, moreover, soon took place both in the 
number of their members and of their colleges and other settle- 
ments, for in a nation so much inclined towards superstition and 
fanaticism as that of Spain, the pious Fathers were naturally 
enabled to attain their end all the more easily than in the 
more sensible and sober lands. It must now be shown in what 
manner they conducted themselves, and what means they pursued in 
order to get over the bigoted Spaniards, and to cause themselves to 
be regarded by the latter as quite extraordinary men, if not, indeed, 
as saints. They made their appearance, then, wherever they came, 
always clad in miserable clothing, dirty and torn ; they generally 
took up their abode in hospitals, and went about in company 
begging, in order to obtain a subsistence. They commenced 
teaching among children of the houses of the poor, and, as 
regards preaching, any corner-stone they came across was suffi- 
cient for them. They flogged their bodies with scourges before 
everyone, and carried on this mad career to such an extent that 
the magistracy had frequently to be appealed to, it being feared 
that they might torture themselves to death ; in a word, they 
carried fanaticism to its height, while they sought at the same 
time to bring mankind to the faith they themselves professed. 
Thus, apart from the self-inflicted cruelties, their whole proceed- 
ings were nothing else than a real and exact imitation of 
apostlic manners and customs. 

Notwithstanding, however, that the common people of Spain 
that is, I mean, the great masses, and especially the women ran 
truly in swarms after the Society of Jesus, it did not, however, 
easily meet with such success in this beautiful country as it 
had done in Italy, and more particularly in Portugal, and 
there were many who were much astonished in regard to this 
'being the case. They erred, however, mainly owing to the 
fact that the Emperor Charles V., the then ruler of Spain, 
although not himself otherwise inimical to the Society, was 
never once induced to take a Jesuit as his Father Confessor. 
He, on the contrary, selected the Dominicans as his spiritual 
advisers, an Order doubtless hitherto much esteemed, while the 
influence of his 6rst Father Confessor, the distinguished Ximines 
Eisneros, the great Inquisitor, Cardinal Archbishop of Toledo, 
and Minister of State, regulated the whole course of his life. 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 189 

The more remarkable of these spiritual guides, besides Ximines, 
were as follows : Peter of Soto, a very learned man ; Garcias de 
Loaysa, Bishop of Osma; Caranza, afterwards Bishop of Toledo ; 
Johann de Regla, a Hieronomite ; Juan de Ortega, almost con- 
sidered a saint ; and Constantine Ponce de la Fuente, Bishop of 
Seville. When these non-Jesuits, then, had possession of the 
great monarch's conscience, how could it possibly be expected 
that the Society of Jesus should attain to such great power as 
it had done in Portugal, where its members were able to turn 
the heart of the King in any way that pleased them ? A second 
not lesser hindrance to the rapid development and extension of 
the Order in Spain lay in the resistance given, partly by other 
individual theologians and priests, and partly, more especially, 
by that offered by the whole of the remaining Orders, the 
Dominicans at their head. The latter sect, as must by this time 
be sufficiently apparent to my readers, through the history of 
many decades, was fashionable in Spain ; it had long since 
gained the heart of the people, through the confessional, and by 
means of the Inquisition ruled with a grasp of iron over all 
alike, rich and poor, male and female ; towards it flowed hitherto 
all the riches of the country, and from it and its members were 
supplied, for the most part, all the appointments to bishoprics 
and archbishoprics. Could it, then, be quietly submitted to that 
another Order should be allowed to penetrate into its domains, 
trying to reap where it alone had sown, and was wont to flourish 
the sickle ? Therefore, wherever the Jesuits wished to establish 
themselves, especially in Salamanca, Alcala, and Saragossa, it 
bestirred itself to offer resistance to their encroachments. The 
bishops, by whom by right the education of the young, as well: 
as, above everything else, the wants of the confessional were 
supplied, offered opposition to them, and on that account con- 
tentions and angry encounters arose in those three cities. At 
the commencement, too, at all events, the Jesuits always got the 
worst of it, and not infrequently the people, incited thereto by 
the other Orders, rose against them; as when, for instance, in- 
the year 1555, their college in Saragossa was nearly taken by 
storm, and they were only able to save their lives by the most 
immediate and secret flight. But besides this opposition by open 
force, individual theologians, entering the lists against them, 
injured them in every way by spiritual and scientific weapons ; . 



190 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

and among such may be named especially Melchior Cano, the 
celebrated doctor of theology belonging to the Order of the 
Dominicans. This far-seeing and cultivated priest, on his way 
to Rome, had become acquainted with Ignatius Loyola and his 
followers, certainly not in the most favourable manner, and as 
later on, in the year 1548, the first Jesuits, with Fathers Le 
Fevre and Ortiz at their head, entered into Salamanca, where he 
liimself worked as professor of the University, he particularly 
directed his attention to them, and soon became convinced that 
they were far from being "by God's will the fools and blockheads " 
that they appeared to be, but rather that poverty, humility, and 
^elf-punishment were only to be looked upon as a pretext and 
artifice to insinuate themselves ; so he described them, both from 
the pulpit and in his professorial chair, as false apostles, as well 
as dangerous men who should neither be trusted in the con- 
fessional nor with the education of youth. Thus, from the great 
consideration in which he was held, he would probably have 
succeeded in effecting the expulsion of the Loyolites from Sala- 
manca had it not been for the order of Pope Paul III., whom, 
as is well known, the Society of Jesus did everything in its 
power to favour, when called upon to do so at the Council of 
Trent. By this means the sons of Loyola obtained free scope, 
and also, later on, little injury could be done them, as after the 
termination of the Council the bishopric of the Canary Islands 
was bestowed upon them by the Roman Chair. How greatly, 
moreover, was the Society of Jesus at that time already esteemed 
by His Holiness, appears in a despatch addressed by him to 
John de Regla, Father Confessor of Charles V., where a remark- 
able passage occurs, which may be translated as follows : 
" Would to God that we may not meet with that fate which, as 
history teaches, Cassandra predicted, and which was not believed 
by anyone until after that Troy was sacked and burnt ! If the 
Jesuits carry on as they have begun, a time may yet come may 
God forbid ! in which kings may feel inclined to resist them ; 
but then it will no longer be in their power to offer opposition to 
them." In the year 1555 Charles V. abdicated the throne of Spain, 
and in the year following, as Emperor of Germany, handed over 
the sovereignty, including the Spanish possessions in America, 
as well as the crowns of Naples, Milan, Sardinia, and the Nether- 
lands, to his son Philip II., now eighteen years of age. That, 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 191 

indeed, constituted an immense power, sufficient always to main- 
tain an ascendancy in Europe, more especially as the Austrian 
House of Hapsburg, intimately connected with the ruling House 
of Spain, was friendly disposed, and in no way inclined to 
frustrate its designs. In addition to this, also, the most distin- 
guished armies and the most experienced commanders belonged 
to the side of the young King ; moreover, the gold derived from 
the new world had been taken possession of by the Spaniards, 
and flowed in plentifully. Besides this, what the commercial 
fleets of the Netherlands acomplished might well be considered. 
In a word, Philip II. possessed, as regards power and splendour, 
everything that was necessary to make him, as a monarch, 
governor of the world. 

Now, had this ruler been a wise man, animated with zeal for 
the welfare of mankind, he might, indeed, . have been able 
to accomplish much with such extraordinary means at his dis- 
posal. But Philip II. was not such a ruler. On the contrary, 
his intellectual sphere was confined to very narrow limits, being 
restricted to obstinate bigotry, universal belief, extermination of 
heresy, and suppression of all the rights of the people. Such 
were the great ends after which he strove, and he sought to 
attain them by the roughest, most determined, and most cruel 
despotism that was ever exercised by one of the Lord's anointed. 

This, of course, was but too well known to the Jesuits, and 
this being the case, no one need wonder that they got a hold over 
Philip II. in order that, through him, they might be enabled to 
establish the Roman Jesuitical universal monarchy, which was 
their great desire, and, as I have already detailed in the preceding 
paragraph, to make him the most supreme despot of Europe. 
Between, the Jesuits and Philip II., then, the former having for 
their General at that time Jacob Laynez, a formal contract was 
drawn up, by which the extension of the Order of Jesus made 
truly gigantic progress in Spain. They now acquired a right to 
establish themselves wherever they wished, and a whole legion 
of colleges sprang into existence one after the other, of which 
those of Saragossa, Cordova, Seville, Cadiz, Malaga, Granada, 
Marcia, Valentia, Maloria, St. lago di Compostella, Leon, 
Cuenga, Belmont, Plasencia, Montillia, Trigueros, Toleda, 
Logronno, Ocanna, Onnate, Salamanca, Talavera, Monterez, 
Burgos, Medina del Campo and Madrid, became distinguished 



192 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

with the eclat of universities. The highest pinnacle of power 
for the Order was, however, attained when Francis Borgia 
was called upon to hecome the successor of Laynez, as 
Philip II. never refused any request made by him a veritable 
grandee of Spain, and formerly Viceroy of Catalonia, while 
naturally, the example of the monarch was followed with devo- 
tion, as a matter of course, by all the other grandees of the 
kingdom. 

And now, will it be necessary for me to enumerate all the 
possessions which individually belonged to this Order at this 
time so all-powerful ? It will, I think, be sufficient for me to 
give but a general view only as it stood towards the end of 
the 16th century. Spain was in those days divided into four 
provinces, so far as Jesuitism was concerned, viz. Toledo, 
Aragon, Castile, and Seville ; and each of them vied with one 
another in regard to the number of their establishments, as 
well as the list of members belonging to the Order. Thus the 
province of Toledo could boast of two profess-houses (Toledo 
and Madrid), two novice-houses (Madrid and Villarejo), two- 
and-twenty colleges and seminaries, four residences, and no 
fewer than seven hundred members, belonging to the Order. 
Then, as to the province of Aragon, it had one profess-house 
(Valencia), one novice-house (Terragona), fourteen colleges and 
seminaries, three residences, and somewhere about five hundred 
Jesuits. In the province of Castile, there were a profess-house 
and novitiate, both being in Garcia, nine-and-twenty colleges, 
two residences, and about six hundred Jesuits ; and in the 
province of Seville, one profess-house (Seville), two novice- 
houses, those of Seville and Baeca, seven-and-twenty colleges 
and seminaries, two residences, and seven hundred actual 
members of the Order. Not less strongly did the Jesuits develop 
themselves in the neighbouring territories belonging to Spain, 
which Philip II. inherited from his father ; and in the province 
of Naples alone they numbered one profess-house, one residence, 
two novitiates, six-and-twenty colleges, along with at least six 
hundred Loyolites. In Milan, there existed two profess-houses, 
three novitiates, sixteen colleges, six residences, along with five 
hundred members of the Order. Still more numerous, how- 
ever, were their possessions in Sicily, consisting of two profess- 
houses, two novitiates, two -and- twenty colleges, and seven hun- 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 193 

dred Jesuits. In Sardinia, on the contrary, there were only 
six colleges, one probation-house, and about two hundred 
members of the Order. The most fertile field of all, however, 
was that of Belgium and the Netherlands, as within a very 
short space of time there were established in these countries two 
profess-houses, three novitiates, five-and-twenty colleges, and 
six residences, together with no fewer than seven hundred 
members of the Order, and there would undoubtedly have been 
many more, had not the rebellion of the States- General of 
Holland restricted the lordship of Philip II. over the Belgian 
countries to the so-called Spanish Netherlands. 

It will thus be seen already, from this mere sketch, to what 
an enormous extent the Society of Jesus had expanded its power 
in Spain and its Netherland possessions under Philip II. In 
spite of all this, however, it must not be believed that the rest of 
the Spanish priesthood, and more especially the Dominicans, 
tamely submitted themselves without any resistance to the supe- 
rior power to which the Jesuits had in so short a time attained. 
On the contrary, several bishops and university professors had in 
the meantime directly appealed to Philip II., in order to explain 
to him the mischievous tendency of the Order ; and that cele- 
brated doctor of Theology, Benito Arias, surnamed Montanus, 
dedicated to the monarch, in 1571, a memorial, in order to prove 
to him that the greatest mischief must necessarily ensue if the 
Jesuits were permitted to mix themselves up with the affairs of 
the Government. The Dominicans even went still further than 
this, as they not only dragged several members of the Society of 
Jesus before the terrible tribunal of the Inquisition, the direc- 
tion of which had been entrusted to them, but they also, 
in the year 1590, made a strenuous appeal to the Pope then 
ruling, Sixtus V., begging him to submit the statutes of the 
Jesuits to a more strict investigation than had been hitherto 
done, and requesting that he should put some bounds to the 
unlimited supremacy assumed by the Order. Sixtus did, indeed, 
actually take into consideration the matters advanced by the 
Dominicans, and there was all the appearance that this dangerous 
Society would have to undergo a thorough reform. He first of 
all ordered that the Jesuits should be in future called Ignatians, 
after their founder Ignatius, seeing that the name of Jesuit 
appertained, properly speaking, to the followers of Jesus, an<?' 

13 



194 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

consequently was applicable to all Christians. He further required 
of them that they were not in future to meddle with secular 
affairs, and that they should abstain especially from interfering 
in political questions. Lastly, he expressed the opinion 
that it would be best if the sons of Loyola were to consent to 
become monks, like the members of other Orders, with the sole 
object of singing the praises of the Lord from the quiet retire- 
ment of their cloisters. Such would, indeed, have been a 
terrible consummation, " equivalent to the extermination of 
the Society as it had been hitherto constituted," and the 
General of the Order, Claudius Aquaviva, directed that litanies 
should be offered up in all the Jesuit churches in order that 
God should be implored to offer resistance to the projected 
reforms of Pope Sixtus V., that " old man with the iron head." 
The litanies seemed, in fact, to bring assistance to their cause, 
as the Pope shortly afterwards died, on the 27th of August of 
the year mentioned, without having been able to carry out his 
reforms, which circumstance therefore gave rise to the proverb, 
" When the Order of Jesus gives out a litany the holy stool will 
become vacant." 

The successor of Sixtus, Gregory XIV., who was chosen 
through the influence of Aquaviva, however, at once annulled 
all that his predecessor had ordered inimical to the sons of 
Loyola ; and the Dominicans were unable, for this time at all 
events, to make good their complaints. The same contention 
for supremacy which had been begun under Philip II. continued 
under the reigns of his successors, Philip III. (1598-1621), and 
Philip IV. (1621-1665), and at one time matters went in favour 
of the Dominicans, while at another the Jesuits succeeded in 
gaining over the heart and sceptre of the monarch. It cannot, 
however, be denied that the sons of Loyola, on the whole, lost 
rather than gained ground under the two monarchs above men- 
tioned, and they had, indeed, much difficulty in not being obliged 
to vacate entirely the field at Court.* Quite otherwise was the 

* More especially was this the case in the year 1636. At that time, in 
order to be enabled to carry on the war with France, Philip IV., or, rather, 
his Prime Minister, Count Olivarez, demanded a certain money-tax from 
the whole of the Spanish ecclesiastics, and made a beginning with the 
Jesuits. " We bind ourselves." answered the Provincial, "to supply as much 
money as the whole of the other corporations put together , so commence 
with them, and then, at last, turn to us.'' This, in short, was done, and all 
Orders, as well as ail other secular ecclesiastics, did their best, and often 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 195 

-case, however, when, upon the death of Philip IV., his widow, 
Maria Anna of Austria took over the government as guardian of 
her minor son, the future King Charles II. (1665-1700), as she 
happened to he so completely in the hands of the Jesuits that 
she at once conferred upon her Father Confessor, Everard Ritard, 
the title of a Grand Inquisitor, and never did anything without 
first of all asking his advice. The Dominicans now, of course, 
hurled fire and flames, and to them adhered not only the regular 
olergy, hut also the whole of the nohility. As it also came to he 
fully known that Ritard was a German by hirth, both of his 
parents being Protestant heretics, the discontent still increased 
to a much greater extent, and there was only a spark wanting to 
give rise to the outbreak of a great revolution. Don Juan ot 
Austria, a natural son of Philip IV., his mother being a play- 
actress called Maria Calderma, now came to the front, and 
placing himself at the head of the malcontents, supported by the 
army, which was completely subservient to him, demanded cate- 
gorically, on the 23rd February 1669, the deposition of the Grand 
Inquisitor. He declared to the Regent that if Father Ritard 
did not, within the space of one hour, find himself outside the 
gates of Madrid, he would thrust him out of the same ; and 
both Ritard as well as Maria Anna soon perceived that this 
declaration was in truth meant in earnest. Consequently, Ritard 
at once took French leave and went to Rome, where he was 
.accredited by the Regent as ambassador to Clement X. Father 
Moya, one of the most ill-reputed of the Jesuits who ever made 
an appearance there, took his place at Madrid, and, con- 
sequently, the opposite party gained but very little by this 

beyond their power. Olivarez now renewed his demand, reminding the 
Provincial of his promise. But what did the latter reply ? " The different 
Universities of Spain," he was of opinion, "had endowments amounting to 
at least eight millions of ducats, from the interest of which property the 
salaries of the professors were supplied. Now, the Order of Jesus offered to 
undertake to fill all the university chairs gratis, without payment of any 
description, and, consequently, the King might take possession of these eight 
millions of ducats without any detriment whatever to the State. The King 
woulc! be able then to acquire not less money thereby than if, with the 
Pope's approval, he were to seize upon the whole of the professions of the 
ecclesiastical brotherhood in Spain and India, and this could without fail be 
accomplished, as the Jesuits were sufficiently numerous to undertake to fill 
all the pulpits, as well as all the appointments of father confessors." Such 
was the reply given by the Jesuits, and it was pretty plain how the matter 
would end ; but, in consequence, they brought down upon their heads, at the 
same time, all the ecclesiastics, as well as all the universities of Spain, and 
ior a long time there were great difficulties, therefore, with which to contend. 

13 * 



196 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

revolution. With Charles II. the line of the Spanish branch of 
the house of Hapsburg died out, and, after a war of twelve years' 
duration, a grandson of Louis XIV. of France, second son of 
the Dauphin, ascended the throne of Spain, under the name of 
Philip V. Upon him the Jesuits built their best hopes, as he 
was, indeed, a true grandson of Louis XIV., and, in fnct, these 
expectations were not disappointed. He brought with him from 
France, as Father Confessor, Father William d'Aubenton, one of 
the most crafty members of the Order, and he was so completely 
governed by him, as was also the Queen, Marie Gabrielle, of 
Savoy, the friend of the never-to-be-forgotten Madame de Orsini, 
that for a succession of several years no favours could be obtained 
except through him. After d'Aubenton's death, Father Juan 
Marino was raised to the dignity of Father Confessor of the 
monarch, and this wily Jesuit, who had been indoctrinated by 
Le Tellier, the Father Confessor of Louis XIV., counselled also 
his weak and insane successor, Ferdinand VI. (1746-1759). 
Thus, in a word, it happened under the line of the Spanish 
Bourbons that the power and influence of the Jesuits rose higher 
than ever, and very few Spaniards, writes Llorente, in his 
History of the Spanish Inquisition, had the courage to offer any 
opposition to their party, as in doing so all employment in any 
public office, or any ecclesiastical preferment, had unquestionably 
to be renounced. 

IV. SWAY OF THE JESUITS IN FRANCE. 

It was much more difficult for the Jesuits to form any permanent 
settlements in France, than in the three countries already men- 
tioned, Italy, Portugal, and Spain, although they certainly left 
nothing untried which they had found to succeed elsewhere. 
Loyola had already taken much pains in endeavouring to charm 
the French people with his newly-founded Order, and quite at 
the commencement of his Generalship sent to Paris sixteen of his 
scholars, for the most part Spaniards, under the pretext that they 
might have the advantage of completing their theological studies 
at the famous university in that city ; in truth, however, in order 
that they might there sound the country and gain friends for 
Jesuitism. They were either very unskilful, however, or had 
Tery bad luck, for not a single soul took any notice of them, and 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OP THE JESUITS. 197 

Loyola was obliged to send money to them from Rome in order 
to meet their daily wants. Their affairs, however, seemed to 
take quite a different turn after the celebrated Fathers, Laynez 
.and Salmeron, made the acquaintance, at the Council of Trent, 
of William du Prat, Bishop of Clermont, and were successful 
enough to interest him greatly in their Order, so much so, indeed, 
that this extraordinarily wealthy prelate (he was son of the 
former Chancellor of France), presented them with a special 
residence in Paris, in the Rue St. Jaques, and the chapel 
attached thereto. They had then, at length, a possession from 
which they might be enabled to carry on their operations in 
future, and, as may be easily understood, a number of the Fathers 
at once entered it in order to prosecute these designs. But 
what signified their visits to the hospitals, and their fanatical 
preaching at the corners of the streets ? What mattered their 
self-inflicted floggings and such-like proceedings ? The Parisians 
were neither Spaniards nor Italians, and consequently laughed 
at them in their face when they merely ventured to look up. 
Besides which, they soon began to quarrel with the regular 
clergy, who did not hesitate to call them publicly by the name 
of hypocrites. Indeed, one of the doctors of the Sorbonne (that 
is to say, a professor belonging to the Theological Faculty of 
Paris),* published a pamphlet against them, in which he pointed 
out to the Government that the best thing to be done with them 
would be to hunt them at once out of the country with disgrace 
and ignominy as beggars and vagabonds. 

This was, indeed, but a bad beginning, and a rough snubbing 
into the bargain ; but they were soon to fare better. In the 
year 1549, Cardinal Charles of Loraine, one of the most in- 
fluential men in France at that time, who belonged to the equally 
powerful as wealthy house of Guise, made a journey to the Papal 
Court of Rome ; and here Ignatius Loyola contrived, by flattering 
.his passions, to gain him over to such an extent that the former 

* About the year 1250, Robert, born at Sorbonne, in Champagne, Chan- 
cellor of Louis the Holy, founded in Paris a " Collegium Pauperum Magis- 
trorum Studentium in Theologica Facultate," that is to say, an educational 
institution for poor young secular priests, which institution was designated 
after the founder " the Sorbonne." Whilst, however, the duty of teaching 
in the same devolved upon the professors of the Theological Faculty of the 
University of Paris, the said name was latterly attached to the Theological 
Faculty itself, and from the 14th century it never went by any other than the 
" Sorboime." 



198 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

promised, on his return to France, to take the Society under 
his special protection. This, in fact, he truly and loyally did, 
but, naturally, not so much, out of a feeling of friendship 
towards the holy Ignatius as from purely selfish motives, 
us he was promised for himself, and ventured to expect, 
great assistance from the Jesuits in carrying out his plans 
against the hated heresy of the Huguenots. Suffice it to say, 
however, that he did all in his power in their favour with 
Henry II. of France, and in consequence of this the Order 
obtained through a Patent Brief of January 1050, royal authority 
to establish a college in their abode in Paris, having the same 
privileges and rights as Jesuit colleges established in the other 
countries of Europe. The pious Fathers were now jubilant ; but 
they had begun too soon to rejoice, as there was still something 
wanting to justify this glee, namely, the approval of the Par- 
liament, the supreme tribunal of Paris.* The King of France, 
in fact, was not, as it happened, so absolute a monarch as his 
colleagues of Spain and Portugal, inasmuch as it had been the 
unimpeachable custom, for a century at least, that the royal 
ordinances, dispensations, and edicts cocld only have legal 
sanction accorded to them, and be observed by the French 
nation, after they had been recorded and registered by 
Parliament, and consequently the said tribunal, so to speak, 
stood in the relation of a legislative assembly a legislative 
assembly, moreover, be it well understood, for old France, 
that is to say. for that portion of the French kingdom 
which during ages bad belonged to the Crown territories 
of the French kings. The remaining, and certainly much 
smaller portion of the kingdom, which had been subse- 
quently acquired either by conquest or through confiscation of 
feudal tenure, had, again, its own particular Upper Tribunal 

* Parliament is derived from " parlor," to speak, and originally signified 
an assemblage called together for the public discussion of this or that Act. 
Later on, in the 12th century, the French Senate, consisting of the highest 
nobility, set aside this name, and nominated a committee of the said Senate, 
which had to deal with the acts of the peers. Gradually, however, a per- 
manent legislative commission was formed from this committee, a kind of 
supreme tribunal for which only experienced judicial legislators could be 
elected ; and iii order to secure the independence of this law court, a member 
could only be deprived of his place therein by a judicial sentence. Such was 
the Parliament of Paris as it was constituted in the 16th century, a most 
important tribunal, but, at the same time, a purely judicial one, which had 
no resemblance to what we now understand by Parliament 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 

or Parliament ; * consequently, a royal decree, in order that it 
should be valid throughout the whole of France, must also be 
registered hy all the Parliaments of the country. But still it 
seldom happened that the provincial Parliament differed from 
that of Paris, as the latter enjoyed special consideration, and 
consequently the whole of the law-courts centred in that cor- 
poration, where questions were determined by a majority of votes. 
King Henry II., as a matter of course, at once remitted his 
Patent Brief relating to the Jesuits to the Parliament of Paris, 
demanding its registration. The High Court of Law, however, 
referred the case for the consideration of its procurators, 
Bruslart, Marillac, and Segnier, and they at once declared that 
France stood in need of no new Order, more especially of none 
such as that of the Society of Jesus, which had been favoured 
by Rome with exemptions of so curious a nature. The sup- 
plicants, i.e. the Jesuits, were always at liberty to travel about 
among the Moors and Mahomedanswith the object of converting; 
them, but in France they were not required. This refusal and 
rebuff was taken up by the proud Cardinal of Loraine as an 
insult to himself, and afresh he urged the King to insist on his 
Patent Brief being carried through Parliament ; and he so far 
succeeded as to cause the ruler to come to a firm determination 
on the subject. So Henry II. forthwith issued a command to 
the Supreme Law Court to register the brief. The latter now, 
however, showed its independence of royal caprice by, instead of 
obeying the command, handing over, as well to the Archbishop 
of Paris as to the Sorbonne, in order that they might be more 
carefully examined and well considered, the whole of the Acts, 
that is, the petition of the Jesuits, the Patent Brief of Henry 
II. together with all the Papal Bulls referring to the Society 
of Jesus. Eustach du Bellay, being at that time the Arch- 
bishop, took his time over the matter, in spite of all the 
King's importunity and the pressure put upon him by the latter; 
the Theological Faculty of the Parisian University, which at that 
time was not excelled in learning, stability, and talent by any 
other in the world, also pursued a like course. At the end of 
two years they were at length ready, and, strange to say, the 

* Such parliaments existed from 1302 at Toulouse, from 1451 at Grenoble, 
from 1462 at Bordeaux, from 1476 at Dijon, from 1499 at Eouen, from 1501 
at Aix, from 1553 at Kennes, from 1620 at Pau,from 1633 at Metz, from 165S 
at Douai, and from 1775 at Nancy. 



200 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

decision at which both parties had arrived agreed pretty well 
together, although that of the Archbishop was certainly much 
more moderate than that of the Sorbonne. The first declared 
that the privileges accorded to the Jesuits were not only 
contrary to the common law, but also equally so to the dignity 
and consideration due to the Bishops and Universities ; and he. 
lastly, gave it as his opinion " that it would be more advisable 
to build houses for the supplicants on the frontiers of Turkey, 
in order that thence they might be able to convert the heathen, 
than that they should be allowed to have settlements in the 
midst of Christendom." The Sorbonne, on the other hand, in 
its sitting of 1st December J 554, delivered its decision (which 
it may be remarked was come to unanimously), verbatim in the 
following terms : " This Society which arrogates to itself the 
name of Jesus, without having any right to do so, a name 
adopted by penal, dishonourable, and infamous people without 
distinction, whose members differ in no degree from the secular 
priesthood in customs, divine service, manner of life or clothing, 
although monks this Society which, in regard to preaching 
and teaching, as well as the administration of the Sacrament, 
directly infringes upon the rights of the Bishops and Ordinaries, 
is in opposition to the whole of the hierarchical Orders hitherto 
established, and conduces to the detriment as well of other re- 
maining Orders as. of princes and the great men of the world, 
as also to the prejudice of university freedom and the injury 
of the people, has been accorded many privileges, indulgences, 
and liberties on the part of the Papal Chair this Society casts 
a slur upon all other Orders of monks, weakens the diligent and 
pious exercises of virtue in the lonely cell, causes the members of 
other Orders to desecrate their vows, draws away believers from 
the obedieace and submission which they owe to their ordinary 
spiritual advisers, robs ecclesiastical as well as secular authorities 
of their rights, and gives rise to disturbances in both of these 
classes as well as among the people, causing many hardships, 
controversies, schisms, and a number of other disorders. Indeed, 
in a word, when one takes everything into account, this Society 
appears to be destined to produce an imperilment of the faith, 
disturbance of the Church's peace, and the undermining of 
monachism. It is, in fact, more adapted for pulling down than 
Jor building up." 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 201 

It was thus that the Theological Faculty of Paris expressed 
itself, in its celebrated sentence, and in consequence thereof the 
Parliament hesitated to give effect to the Patent Brief of the 
King. Eustach du Bellay, however, the Archbishop of Paris, 
thereupon went even a step further, and forbade the members of 
the Society of Jesus from henceforth exercising any priestly 
offices whatever within the range of his diocese. 

The pious Fathers were then worse off than ever, as the 
power of the King could not protect them against episcopal 
orders, and consequently everyone expected that they would 
have, from this time forth, to turn their backs upon Paris for 
ever. They did not, however, by any means do so, for they 
contrived to find out a back-way of escape. They certainly, it 
is true, shut up their house in the Rue St. Jacques, leaving 
behind them only a few of their number for its management ; 
they themselves, however, withdrew in corpore, as one is used 
to say, to the neighbourhood of St. Germain des Pres, to one of 
the magnificent abbeys independent of the bishopric of Paris, 
where they were joyfully received, and a chapel was therein 
allotted to them to enable them to hold divine service and 
carry on other priestly offices. At the same time their old 
friend, the above-mentioned William du Prat, Bishop of Cler- 
mont, in proof of his abiding favour, presented them with a 
large property in the little town of Billon, along with no less 
than 40,000 thalers in ready money, so that they might by these 
means be able to erect there a college. 

They consequently, then, still remained in France, and ac- 
quired, moreover, another possession; it must be admitted, 
however, that this was as nothing compared with the property 
they had obtained in the other proper Roman Catholic countries. 
Besides this, did not the publicly expressed sentence of the 
Sorbonne find an echo throughout the whole of civilised Europe, 
and was not the injury arising to them out of this of much 
greater consequence than might have been at the first moment 
expected ? Still, it is said, " Time will discover a plan," and the 
Jesuits relied upon this ancient proverb. Protestantism, or, 
more properly speaking, Calvinism, as is well known, now 
extended itself with rapid progress throughout France, and were 
it only to go on progressing at the same rate as it had already 
done, the Huguenots, as the adherents of the Reformation were 



202 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

designated in France, must soon necessarily gain the upper 
hand. 

Such a great misfortune for the Catholic Church, which 
now impended, the pious Fathers well knew how to turn most 
excellently to their own advantage, for they secretly spread 
themselves about everywhere, and more especially about the 
Court ; and none were more skilful in fighting against the 
detested heresy than the members of the Society of Jesus, and in 
this, beyond all of them, did Father Pontius Gongordan 
especially excel, going about everywhere in ordinary plain, 
clothes. On this account many of the French began now to 
look upon the Order with more friendly feelings, and tha 
injurious impression caused by the Sorbonne decree by degrees- 
disappeared, at all events among good Papists. A favour- 
able circumstance for them now took place in the year 1559, 
when, on the death of Henry II., there came to the throne his 
first-born son Francis II., espoused to Mary Stuart ; at that time 
the Queen's uncle, the Loraine Prince of Guise, was all-powerful 
at Court.* The pious fathers, however, with the Cardinal of Lo- 
raine at their head, urged the weak King to prepare a new Patent 
Brief in favour of the Jesuits, supporting it and exerting their in- 
fluence upon Parliament with all their power, in order that the lattea 
should undertake the registration of the King's commands. Strange- 
to say, however, the Court remained obstinate, notwithstanding 
that it was well disposed, all the same, towards Catholicism, the 
proof of such being the case consisting in the fact that many 
sentences of death were hanging over the Huguenot heretics. It 
was, however, necessary for it to remain obstinate, as it rested, 
with itself to save the rights of the Gallican Church, and the 
independence of the Government of the country in all secular 
affairs, since the sons of Loyola placed the Papal power 
above all church assemblies, as well as above princes, kings, 
and emperors, their whole thoughts and energies being, as 
we know, directed towards forming a universal Romish, 

The House of Guise, an offshoot from the House of Loraine, was 
founded in the year 1527 by Claude, a younger son of Duke Rene of Lo- 
raine, who acquired by marriage the lordship of Guise. Claude left behind 
him six sous, the most distinguished of whom were Francis de Guise, 
Charles Archbishop of Kheims, and a Cardinal (commonly called Cardinal 
of Loraine), as well as five daughters, the eldest of whom, Marie, was 
married to James II. of Scotland, and gave birth to the unfortunate Mary 
Stuart. 



THE POWEEFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 203 

Jesuitical despotism. Francis II. thus compassed the legal 
admission of the Jesuits even as little as Henry II. had done, 
and, as he died shortly afterwards, in the year 1560, his efforts 
were unavailing. It was not otherwise under his successor 
Charles IX., whose guardian, during his minority, was his 
mother, Catherine de Medicis. She certainly, at first, became 
captivated hy the pious Fathers, and some authors even maintain 
that she had secretly selected Father William Petit as her Father 
Confessor. She also truly attacked the Parliament in two acri- 
monious documents, and demanded of the same that it should 
at length relax its opposition towards the Jesuit Fathers. She 
assuredly, too, did not hesitate to declare publicly as follows : 
" One must hasten to receive the Jesuits into the kingdom, as,, 
otherwise, from such delays and stubborn opposition they might 
be driven into an evil disposition, and be constrained to quit 
France again of their own accord, to the great detriment of religion 
and of the common weal." The Parliament, however, remained 
obstinate in its determination, and the only thing that it could 
be induced to do was to make a declaration that the Church 
Congress, which the Regent had the idea of summoning, should 
decide in regard to the reception or otherwise of the Jesuits. 
The said Church Assembly, or, more properly speaking, the said 
Religious Conference between the Huguenots and the Catholics, 
which was indeed at that time a thing determined upon, had for 
its object to make an attempt, if possible, to bring about some 
amicable arrangement and unity between the two parties into 
which France was then divided, with the view of averting a civil 
war, which otherwise appeared to be inevitable. Pope Pius IV. 
tried in every way to prevent this conference taking place, as the 
Chair of Rome was a sworn enemy to all such endeavours to 
bring about any such accommodation, attempts wherein the 
Romish Church always suffered in reputation through the skilful 
attack of the Protestants ; but it was all in vain that he did so. 
By the invitation of the Regent the Catholic prelates, consisting 
of a body of six cardinals and forty bishops, with twenty- six 
doctors of theology, assembled together at Poissy, where the 
Conference took place at the commencement of the year 
1561. At the same time there made their appearance fourteen 
Huguenot ecclesiastics, at whose head was the celebrated 
Theodor Beza, together with Petrus Martyr, while a number 



204 HISTORY OF THE JESUITS. 

of other secular gentlemen, who were desirous of attending 
the convention, were also present. The disputation at once 
commenced under the Presidency of Cardinal de Tournou; and 
the Catholic prelates, and more particularly the Cardinal of 
Loraine, gave themselves all the trouble possible to bring round 
the Huguenot preachers to their views. Still the Pope, in the 
first place, was right; that is to say, the affair turned quite 
contrary to their wishes, and the two distinguished leaders of the 
Huguenots, Beza and Martyr, daily obtained new adherents by 
means of their sharp intellect and stirring eloquence. Further 
help must, then, be obtained, if a deep incurable wound to 
the Roman Catholicism of the Papacy was not to be inflicted, 
and Pius IV., on that account, forthwith despatched to Poissy 
another legate, in the person of Prince Hippolyte d'Este, 
Cardinal of Ferrara, in order to uphold the rights of the Holy 
Chair, and he sent also, as a companion to the legate, Father 
Xiaynez, the then General of the Jesuits, as he, at that time, was 
held to be better fitted than anyone living, as a debater, to parry, 
by his masterly serpentine mode of speaking, the severe blows 
dealt by the Huguenot combatants. The General, indeed, 
completely justified the high opinion the Pope entertained of 
him, and the Catholic party had to thank his keen eloquence 
alone that it not only sustained no defeat, but even when the 
conference was broken up in the autumn, on account of its use- 
lessness, without yielding an iota, it could claim a victory with 
the same right as the Huguenots. Laynez became, then, among 
the Catholics at Poissy, as may be well understood, the extolled 
hero of the day, and a man of such exalted talents had, indeed, a 
high claim upon their gratitude. On this account, therefore, when, 
through the Fathers Brouet and Pontius, he presented a care- 
fully elaborated petition for the legal admission into France of the 
Society of Jesus, it met not only with the support of the whole of 
the prelates well disposed towards Rome, such as the Cardinal 
of Loraine and his friends, but also, indeed, of all the rest of 
the assembly of course, with the exception of the Protestants, 
who by this time, however, had already taken their departure ; 
so the required decree was at once prepared on the loth Sep- 
tember 1561. Nevertheless, this admission, properly speaking, 
did not take place unconditionally, as in Spain, Portugal, and 
Italy, but, on the other hand, the prelates introduced all kinds 



THE POWERFUL INFLUENCE OF THE JESUITS. 205- 

of clauses therein, with reservations, in order to protect the 
rights and privileges of the Gallican Church ; and, moreover, 
the Papal Bulls issued in favour of the Jesuits were subjected^ 
to the most rigid paring. 

" Above everything must the sons of Loyola," thus the excep- 
tional conditions are expressed, " lay aside the name of Jesuit,, 
or Society of Jesus, as they are not more entitled to assume these 
designations than any of the other children of Christ." They 
had further " to renounce calling themselves a religious Order, 
like the Benedictines, Dominicans, Augustines, &c. ; they, in 
fact, merely have the rights of a society or company, whose 
statutes are to he regulated according to the constituted laws. 
They must also, besides, promise to place themselves under the 
jurisdiction of the bishops of the dioceses in which they reside, 
the latter having it in their power to inflict the usual censures- 
upon any of the members deserving of punishment. They should 
especially undertake nothing that would be detrimental to the 
bishops, founders, parsons, universities, or holy orders, and the 
Papal Bulls, which give them a special exemption, are to be of 
no effect or value. Lastly, they have to declare it to be under- 
stood by them, that the present exceptional permission should 
at once cease to have effect should they at any time overstep 
the conditions imposed upon them, or obtain other privileges 
from the Papal Chair which might be in opposition to any of 
the conditions above mentioned, and thus and upon these grounds 
and no other shall this treaty be concluded with them." 

Such were the conditions which the convention of Poissy 
stipulated as regards the admission of the Jesuits into France,, 
and one sees thereby with what extreme distrust even the ultra- 
Catholic French prelates looked upon the Order; but had one 
ventured to make even more stringent injunctions, in regard ta 
the Society of Jesus, they would have been accepted. It only 
remained for them now to plant, therefore, a firm foot in France 
to make themselves powerful ; once, then, that their first object 
was attained, what, eh ! was easier for them than to break the 
stipulated conditions, and pay no further attention to the treaty to 
which they had agreed ? " What does it matter as regards per- 
jury if one does not swear ? " says the Jew. The correctness of 
this conclusion shortly, then, became apparent. Scarcely had 
the pious Fathers secured the desired decree of legal permission. 



206 HISTORY OP THE JESUITS. 

in their pockets than they at once pulled down their house in 
the Rue St. Jacques, in order to build in its place a beautiful 
new palatial college ; and hardly had this magnificent building 
been erected than they placed in front of the same the inscrip- 
tion in black letters, " College of the Society to the Name of 
Jesus." Thus they acted, although during the first two years, as 
far as France was concerned, they had been obliged to submit to 
the renunciation of this name ; still, that was by no means all 
that they did, but in addition they hastened to erect colleges 
in all the cities in that part of the country well affected towards 
Catholicism, as, for instance, in Avignon, Rhodas, Morioc, Bor- 
deaux, Lyons, Rouen, Marseilles, Clermont, De la Fleche, Rennes, 
Moulius, and wherever else such might be the feeling, and 
demanded for all those educational institutions the same rights 
and privileges which were possessed by the universities. Speak- 
ing more plainly, they were desirous of being qualified to 
create masters of philosophy and doctors of theology, similar to 
those of the Sorbonne in Paris, and, as the instruction was 
all given gratis, they hoped to obtain many students, that, in 
this way, they might soon be enabled to provide the whole of 
France with priests of their own stamp and of their own reli- 
gious opinions. The University of Paris, however, opposed this 
arrogance with all its power, and along with it the Archbishop 
of Paris, the Prefects and the Mayor of the city, the Cardinal 
de Chatillon as Curator of the Sorbonne, the whole Orders of 
monks, and all of the regular clergy made common cause. In 
spite of all this, however, the Jesuits, favoured by the Court, 
and more especially