relations with the powers which had been broken off under his predecessor.1 Nevertheless, the reign of Paul IV., in spite of its errors and defects, forms an important landmark in the history of the Catholic reformation, to the success of which he prepared the way. Openly and candidly, as Adrian VI. had done on a previous occasion, he proclaimed the principle of a reform in both head and members, and took more trouble than Paul III. or Julius III. to carry it into effect. The break with the past which he effected by his refusal to nominate Cardinals at the will of the princes, the summoning of worthy men to the Senate of the Church, the ruthless fight against simony in every form, the abolition of the holding of benefices in commendam, of the "regressus" and the sale of offices, the reform of the monasteries, the Dataria and the Penitentiary, and finally, to crown all, the enforcement of the duty of residence on the bishops, were all great and permanent services rendered by Paul IV. The energy which he displayed at the fall of his nephews put an end, for a long time, to nepotism on any large scale, and was a reform of the greatest importance.3 Even if the unbounded violence of the character of Paul IV. awakened fear and hatred in wide circles, his otherwise pious and exemplary life called forth the greatest admiration. An aged man, I who like a born ruler, seemed to be quite penetrated with the dignity of his office, who did not allow himself to be affected, either by the weight of his eighty years or by misfortune, who stood up so fearlessly for what he considered to be right against the mightiest princes," must have made a 1 See BIAUDET, 24. Not only the Imperial nunciature, but also those of Venice and Florence, were vacant at the death of Paul IV. Those of France, Naples, Portugal, and Poland were the only ones that were regularly working. 2 See SEGMÜLLER, 29; cf. also HERRE, 18. G. Catalani, in the preface to the 10th Vol. of the Annali d'Italia, Lucca, 1764, xxxvi., has made it clear that Muratori brought out only the darker side of Paul IV., and has not done him justice. 3 See the opinion of Cardinal A. Carafa in his *Apologia (Library at Naples; cf. Appendix Nos. 61, 62) and ANCEL, Disgrâce, 183. HIS SERVICES TO REFORM. 423 deep impression upon his contemporaries.1 No less a person than the historian Panvinio, who was by no means prejudiced in favour of the Carafa Pope, said that Paul IV. was the first to re-establish and strengthen ecclesiastical discipline, and that many of the later salutary decrees of the Council of Trent were to be traced back to him.2 Guglielmo Sirleto entirely agrees with him.3 Well-informed contemporaries, like Giulio Pogiano, can hardly find words to describe the change which the reforming activity of Paul IV. brought about in Rome. The Venetian ambassador was of opinion that the city had been turned into a well-ordered monastery. What the noble Dutch Pope, Adrian VI., had in vain attempted, to break with the evil tendencies of the Renaissance, the fiery Neapolitan had succeeded in doing. 4 One must realize the abandoned conditions of the time of Alexander VI. and Leo. X. in order to be able fully to appreciate the merits of Paul IV. The tearing out of such old and deeply rooted abuses, which were only too firmly entwined in the circumstances of the times, was in truth only possible by means of a masterful procedure in which was contained all the severity of an inexorable repression. Paul IV. was the right man for this. His fiery soul, which flamed out in open rage, 1 See MÜLLER, Konklave Pius' IV., 9. 2 Concerning PANVINIUS, Vita, cf. Appendix No. 61-62. BROMATO (II., 504 n.) has already drawn attention to the passage in question. RANKE (16., 199), REUMONT (III., 2, 529), BeauFORT (Hist. des Papes, IV., Tournai, 1841, 201), and MATHIEU (Pouvoir temp. des Papes, Paris, 1863, 504) are of the same opinion as Panvinius. BENRATH (Jahrb. fur protest, Theol., 1878, 123, 143) also describes Paul IV. as "a powerful intellect, and an admirably gifted Pope," who made himself master of the forces for a complete reaction in ecclesiastical affairs, and then disciplined them. 3 See SILOS, I., 393; cf. 232. 4 See MOCENIGO-ALBÈRI, 48 and CANTU, II., 27; cf. supra p. 238. The change also showed itself in the medals, on which mythological representations were entirely replaced by those of a Christian character; see MÜNTZ, III., 119. when an abuse of what was holy came before his eyes, could not do enough to cauterize, with red-hot iron, the wounds which a vicious age had inflicted upon the Church. The reform, built up on the authority of strictly ecclesiastical principles, which had been initiated by Paul III., the Carafa Pope continued so energetically and carried out with so much strength, that the later Popes of the time of restoration were able to go on and build successfully on his firm foundations. |