Pope Pius VIII
Pope Pius VIII reigned for twenty months, from March 1829 to November 1830, and had to decide how the Church would respond to a revolution. Born Francesco Saverio Castiglioni at Cingoli in the Papal States in 1761, he was a canon lawyer trained at Bologna, and became Bishop of Montalto. He refused to swear allegiance to Napoleon in 1808 and was deported and imprisoned for four years, which established his standing. He was made a cardinal in 1816 and prefect of the Index, and was Pius VII's own preferred successor; he had been a serious candidate in 1823 when the reactionary Leo XII was chosen instead. He was elected in 1829, already ill and in visible pain from an ailment that prevented him from turning his head. He moderated his predecessor's severity, relaxing the harsher police measures in the Papal States and the restrictions imposed on Jews in Rome, and he was more conciliatory towards Catholic participation in modern political life. His most consequential decision came after the July Revolution of 1830 deposed Charles X of France, the legitimist Bourbon, in favour of Louis-Philippe. Legitimists across Europe expected the papacy to refuse recognition. Pius recognised the new government, on the reasoning that the Church's interest lay in dealing with whatever authority actually governed rather than in tying itself to a fallen dynasty. It kept the French church out of a confrontation it would have lost. He also addressed the question of mixed marriages in the Rhineland, permitting passive assistance by priests under conditions, and welcomed Catholic emancipation in Britain in 1829. He died in 1830.
- Lived: 1761 CE – 1830 CE
- Nationality: Italian
- Roles: pope, cleric
