A History of the Popes 1830-1914 (Oxford History of the Christian Church) [Hardcover]

Owen Chadwick (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 16, 1998 | ISBN-10: 0198269226 | ISBN-13: 978-0198269229

Could a Pope ever consent to be the subject of a political power? Chadwick presents an analysis of the causes and consequences of the end of the historic Papal State, and the psychological pressures upon old Rome as it came under attack from the Italian Risorgimento; and not only from Italy, but from liberal movements in Germany, France, Spain, and Portugal, as well as Tsarist Russia as it oppressed its Polish subjects. If a united Italy was to be achieved, the State would have to disappear. These pressures caused Popes to resist "the world" rather than to try to influence it, to make the Vatican more of a sanctuary behind high walls, and to preach the more otherworldly aspects of Catholic faith. At the same time they met new moral demands: the rights of the laborer in industry, divorce, and toleration--which they could confront because the Revolution had destroyed the powers of the Catholic kings over their churches. Thus, Chadwick points out, Catholic authority could be far more centralized in Rome.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...this book will benefit students, scholars and serious readers of ecclesiastical history....This book should remain a standard in the field of papal studies for years to come."--History

About the Author

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 624 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (July 16, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0198269226
• ISBN-13: 978-0198269229
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.9 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,294,476 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Scholarship at its best (and extremely enjoyable to read)., December 7, 2003

By 

César González Rouco (Madrid, Madrid Spain) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A History of the Popes 1830-1914 (Oxford History of the Christian Church) (Paperback)

Chadwick ends his book by stating that "it had not been the expectation of historians that they would be treated as if their work was seen to have something to do with understanding the faith of the Churches". I daresay that Chadwick's work has plenty to do with a better understanding of the Catholic faith in the 19th and 20th Centuries.

Regarding its content, the book's title is somehow humble. It includes far more than the history of Gregory XVI, Pius X, Leo XIII and Pius XI, it is a history of the Catholic Church in continental Europe in that period.

Regarding its form, the book is a pleasure for any reader (I was delightfully surprised, for I knew his "Secularization of the European mind in the 19th Century", excellent too, but not at all engaging). I would point out, for instance, the ability of Chadwick,to vividly draw, with a stroke of his pen, plenty of characters, not only the popes (e.g., his description of Bismarck).

Then, I do recommend this book to anyone (urbi et orbe!).

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A fun narrative, light and very personal, April 26, 2004

By A Customer

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This review is from: A History of the Popes 1830-1914 (Oxford History of the Christian Church) (Paperback)

Professor Chadwick continues his history of Christianity by relating the stories of the 19th century Popes and their largely unhappy coexistence with the forces of science, capitalism, liberalism, nationalism, and the like. Professor Chadwick's dislike of all the above gives him common ground with , for example, Pius IX.

The structure of the book is straightforward and admirable. He begins in 1830 and goes to 1914, and stops. He makes few attempts to directly address any overarching themes. This is not to say that he shies away from generalizations. On the contrary, the book is awash with sweeping statements unsupported by notes. It reads like a very long example of the old Oxbridge weekly essay, and owes a good deal of its polish to the fact that it is not encumbered by the need to see the other side, or to balance one viewpoint with another.

The result is sometimes troublesome. We know that Pius IX was not universally popular, but Chadwick is not one to tell us why: he leads us to believe that all who disagreed with the Pontiff were wicked and stupid. This could be an interesting and refreshing viewpoint if it were supported with facts. It is not. There were a number of factual errors in key places which made me uneasy.

Chadwick, in his work on the Victorian Church, produced the definitive text on the subject. I had hoped that "History of the Popes 1830-1914" would be similarly authoritative. It is not that, not by a long ways. I did enjoy it, but I think it a book to be taken with a grain of salt, both for its failure to draw the larger picture, and for its surprising degree of bias.