The Nuns of Sant'Ambrogio: The True Story of a Convent in Scandal (63 page)

47.
At the start of the modern era, Germany led the way in the processing of cotton. During the Industrial Revolution, England took over the lead in cotton processing within Europe. The fact that in the mid-nineteenth-century Roman nuns had no idea where cotton came from was probably a result of less and less cotton being grown in Italy over the course of the eighteenth century. By the end of the American Civil War, it had almost completely disappeared from Italy. Cf. Alwin Oppel,
Die Baumwolle. Nach Geschichte, Anbau, Verarbeitung und Handel, sowie nach ihrer Stellung im Volksleben und in der Staatswirtschaft
(Leipzig, 1902).

48.
Erlebnisse von S. Ambrogio
; StA Sigmaringen, Dep 39 HS 1 Rubr 53 no. 14 UF 9m, p. 7, with note I.

49.
Ibid., p. 1.

50.
Ibid., p. 17. “Clothing” refers to the ceremony when a postulant takes the habit of the order, usually at the start of her novitiate. Cf. Matías Augé Benet et al.,
“Vestizione,” in
DIP
9 (1997), pp. 1951–59; Evelyne Menges, “Einkleidung,” in
LThK
, 3rd ed., vol. 3 (1993), p. 553.

51.
Augsburger Allgemeine Zeitung
, no. 282, October 9, 1958, p. 4560. The author was once again the philologist Albert Dressel in Rome, as the editorial copy in the DLA reveals.

52.
The period in which a person practices the ways of convent life, prior to professing their vows, is known as the novitiate. Even before they have taken their vows, novices are bound by the rules. Cf. Raymond Hostie, “Noviziato,” in
DIP
6 (1980), pp. 442–63.

53.
Cf. the overviews in ACDF SO St. St. B 6 n and B 7 c, and the collection ACS, Collegio di Sant’Ambrogio.

54.
Erlebnisse von S. Ambrogio
; StA Sigmaringen, Dep 39 HS 1 Rubr 53 no. 14 UF 9m, p. 76.

55.
Ibid., p. 75.

56.
Ibid., p. 76.

57.
Cf. Sägmüller,
Kirchenrecht
, p. 743. A Cologne newspaper gave a particularly interesting report of Katharina’s withdrawal from Sant’Ambrogio and the pope’s reaction. The paper emphasizes “how little the Holy Father was saddened by the princess’s decision.”
Kölnische Zeitung
, no. 323, November 21, 1859.

58.
Erlebnisse von S. Ambrogio
; StA Sigmaringen, Dep 39 HS 1 Rubr 53 no. 14 UF 9m, p. 76.

59.
Cf. Hohenlohe to Pappalettere, August 1, 1859, quoted in Wenzel,
Freundeskreis
, pp. 361–62.

60.
See Norbert M. Borengässer, “Wolter,” in
BBKL
14 (1998), pp. 55–62; Hermann Arthur Lier, “Wolter,” in
ADB
44 (1898), pp. 170–72; Suso Mayer, “Zur Einführung. Der Verfasser und sein Werk,” in Maurus Wolter OSB,
Elementa. Die Grundlagen des Benediktinischen Mönchtums
(Beuron, 1955), pp. 5–33; Petzolt,
Wolter
, pp. 335–43. On Maurus Wolter’s work in 1858–1859, up to his stay in Tivoli, see Lapponi,
Diario
, pp. 152–79.

61.
Ernst Wolter was born in 1828 and was ordained in 1851. In 1856, he became a conventual monk in the abbey of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, taking the name Placidus. As the cofounder of Beuron, he became its second archabbot in 1890. He died in 1908. Cf. Virgil Fiala, “Wolter, Placidus,” in
DIP
10 (2003), p. 619.

62.
Pappalettere was born in 1815, took his vows in 1836, and became a lecturer in philosophy and abbot of Subiaco. In 1853 he became the custodian of the abbey of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, and in 1855 a consultor of the Congregation of the Index. From 1858 until 1863 he was the abbot of Montecassino, though his sympathy for the nation of Italy led Pius IX to remove him from office. In 1875 he became the prior of the Basilica di San Nicola in Bari, and died there in 1883. Cf. Wolf (ed.),
Prosopographie
, pp. 1122–24.

63.
Cf. Wenzel,
Freundeskreis
, pp. 125–357. The abbey of Saint Paul lies on the Via Ostiense, around two kilometers from the Aurelian city walls. The basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls is right next to the monastery. This is one of four Papal Basilicas in Rome, supposedly erected over the grave of the apostle Paul. Today, it is one of the seven pilgrim churches in Rome.

64.
Thurn und Taxis-Hohenlohe,
Jugenderinnerungen
, p. 82.

65.
Letter from Katharina von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen to Angelo Pescetelli, August 14, 1859, quoted in Wenzel,
Freundeskreis
, p. 362.

66.
Letter from Katharina von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen to the German fathers of Saint Paul, September 14, 1859; quoted in Wenzel,
Freundeskreis
, pp. 362–64, here p. 362.

67.
Erlebnisse von S. Ambrogio
; StA Sigmaringen, Dep 39 HS 1 Rubr 53 no. 14 UF 9m, p. 78.

68.
Denunzia della Principessa Hohenzollern, August 23, 1859; ACDF SO St. St. B 6 a, fol. 2r–51r. Subsequent information also taken from this text. Katharina von Hohenzollern didn’t just provide a verbal denunciation. She prepared a set of written allegations, and required several days to compose them, which is why the individual parts have different dates. The section on the secrets of Sant’Ambrogio is dated August 7; the section on the Americano, August 12; Maria Luisa’s false holiness, August 14; and finally the poisoning, September 1, 1859.

69.
In the classic language of the Inquisition, the value-neutral term “denunziante” is used for the plaintiff. See for example the “Relazione informative con Sommario.” At the start of the “Elenco delle persone e testimoni esaminati in questa causa,” Katharina is referred to as “denunziante”; ACDF SO St. St. B 7 c.

70.
Diderot’s novel, initially unpublished, was written in 1760 and only appeared after his death, under the title
La religieuse
(Paris, 1796). See Denis Diderot,
The Nun
(London, 1797). Manzoni’s “La Monaca di Mona” was written in 1823, as part of
Fermo e Lucia
, and was published posthumously in 1954. Cf. Alessandro Manzoni,
The betrothed
(London, 1997). Recommended further reading: Enrichetta Caracciolo,
I misteri del chiostro napoletano. Memorie
(Florence, 1864); Maria Monk,
Awful disclosures of Maria Monk or The hidden secrets of a nun’s life in a convent
(Paisley, 1836). This strongly anti-Catholic book is about the sexual abuse of nuns by priests, and it was later revealed that its story was invented. Another story appears in Vincenzo Petra, “Le lusinghe monacali,” in
Novelle
(Naples, 1862), S. 9–21. There was another manuscript about coercion in religious orders published in 1990, though the text was written in the seventeenth century: Arcangela Tarabotti and Francesca Medioli (eds.),
L’Inferno monacale
(Turin, 1990).

71.
Erlebnisse von S. Ambrogio
; StA Sigmaringen, Dep 39 HS 1 Rubr 53 no. 14 UF 9m, p. 12.

72.
Katharina von Hohenzollern, Relazione riguardante Sr. M. Agnese fondatrice del monastero di S. Ambrogio, August 7, 1859; ACDF SO St. St. B 6 a, fol. 4r–6v. Subsequent quotations also taken from this text, unless otherwise stated.

73.
Erlebnisse von S. Ambrogio
; StA Sigmaringen, Dep 39 HS 1 Rubr 53 no. 14 UF 9m, p. 7.

74.
Cf. Weiß,
Redemptoristen
; Weiß,
Weisungen
, pp. 161–62 and elsewhere.

75.
Erlebnisse von S. Ambrogio
; StA Sigmaringen, Dep 39 HS 1 Rubr 53 no. 14 UF 9m, p. 10.

76.
Ibid., p. 12.

77.
Katharina von Hohenzollern, Relazione sopra l’Indemoniato, August 12, 1859; ACDF SO St. St. B 6 a, fol. 7r–10r. Subsequent quotations also taken from this text.

78.
Katharina von Hohenzollern, Relazione sopra Sr. M[ari]a Luisa di S. Francesco Saverio Madre vicaria in S. Ambrogio, August 14, 1859; ACDF SO St. St. B 6 a, fol. 11r–19v (handwritten original). A printed transcript can be found in Sommario del Ristretto Informativo no. IV, January 1861; ibid., B 7 c. Subsequent quotations also taken from this text.

79.
Walkowitz,
Formen
, p. 443.

80.
The
rota
was a rotating hatch in the wall next to the convent’s gate, through which objects could be passed in and out of the enclosure. Cf.
Pierer’s Universal-Lexikon
, vol. 14 (Altenburg, 1862), p. 385.

81.
Katharina von Hohenzollern, Tutto il seguente sono notizie che precedono la malattia, September 1, 1859; ACDF SO St. St. B 6 a, fol. 36r–39r.

82.
Katharina von Hohenzollern, Esposizione di alcuni fatti della mia vita, August 23, 1859; ACDF SO St. St. B 6 a, fol. 20r–31r. Subsequent quotations also taken from this text.

83.
Cf. Roger Aubert, “Die Römische Frage,” in
Handbuch der Kirchengeschichte
, vol. 6/1, pp. 696–705; Gall,
Europa
, pp. 46–56, here pp. 46–48.

84.
Fogli manoscritti consegnati in atti dalla Principessa Caterina di Hohenzollern il 15. Settembre 1859. Sommario della Relazione informativa no. XXII; ACDF SO St. St. B 7 c. Subsequent quotations also taken from this text.

85.
Stephanie von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen was born in 1837, and was the eldest daughter of Prince Karl Anton von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen. In 1858 she married King Pedro V of Portugal, though she died in 1859 without having provided him with an heir. See the
Deutsche Staats-Wörterbuch
, ed. Johann Caspar Bluntschli and Karl Ludwig Brater, vol. 8 (Stuttgart/Leipzig, 1864), p. 168 (Portugal entry); Platte,
Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen
, p. 23 (picture of Stephanie).

86.
Denunzia della Principessa Hohenzollern, Domande e risposte; ACDF SO St. St. B 6 a, fol. 40r–43v.

87.
Esame di Msgr. Hohenlohe, April 18 and 19, 1860; ACDF SO St. St. B 6 m, fol. 1–10. Subsequent quotations also taken from this text unless otherwise stated.

88.
Costituto di Katharina von Hohenzollern, August 21, 1859; ACDF SO St. St. B 6 a, fol. 76.

89.
Il Gesù is the Jesuit order’s mother church, situated on what is today the Corso Vittorio Emanuele II. The monastery or rather the Jesuits’ professed house is directly connected to it. This was also the seat of the Jesuit general. Today it is known as the Collegio internazionale del Gesù. Cf. Ernst Platner/Carl Ludwig von Ulrichs,
Beschreibung Roms. Ein Auszug aus der Beschreibung der Stadt Rom
(Stuttgart/Tübingen, 1845), pp. 557–58.

90.
The original here has the Latin expression “in visceribus Christi.” Praying “in visceribus Christi” means beseeching Christ to the bottom of His heart. Possibly also an allusion to the liturgical song “per viscera misericordiae Dei nostri.” Cf. “in visceribus,” in
Dizionario etimologico
, online:
www.etimo.it
(5/16/2012). For a detailed explanation of the word “viscera,” which originally meant intestines,
but is often used in the sense of the innermost part of a man, standing metaphorically for the heart and for love, cf. Bardo Weiß,
Die deutschen Mystikerinnen und ihr Gottesbild. Das Gottesbild der deutschen Mystikerinnen auf dem Hintergrund der Mönchstheologie
, vol. 3 (Paderborn, 2004), p. 2039.

91.
Cf. the list of furniture and cult objects of the dissolved convent of Sant’Ambrogio, of which thirty-two pieces were marked as “from the dowry of Princess Hohenzollern.” ASV, Archivo Partiolare di Pio IX, Oggetti vari 1733 (S. Ambrogio Monastero Inventario).

CHAPTER TWO
“The ‘Delicatezza’ of the Matter as Such”

1.
Sallua was named titular bishop of Chalzedon in 1877, and died in Rome in 1896. Cf. Wolf (ed.),
Prosopographie
, pp. 1299–1303. Santa Sabina is an early Christian Basilica in Rione Ripa, on the square of the same name, near the Lungotevere Aventino.

2.
Enrico Ferrari entered the Dominican order in Faenza in 1830. After gaining his doctorate in theology in Bologna, he first became a lecturer, then in 1851 the second
socius
of the Holy Office. In 1870 he became first
socius
, and in 1877 a consultor of the Congregation for Bishops and Religious Orders. Ferrari died in 1886 in Rome. Cf. Wolf (ed.),
Prosopographie
, pp. 570–72.

3.
De Ferrari died in Rome in 1874. Cf. ibid., pp. 396–415.

4.
Cf. ibid., pp. 1606–8 (lists of offices).

5.
Monaco La Valletta became a consultor of the dogma commission in preparation for the First Vatican Council in 1866. He was made a cardinal in 1868 and died in 1896. Ibid., pp. 1016–19.

6.
Esame della Principessa Hohenzollern, Septermber 15, 1859, Sallua’s Nota Bene; ACDF SO St. St. B 6 a, fol. 48v.

7.
Sallua’s
Relazione
for the
Congregazione Segreta
on November 16, 1859; ACDF SO St. St. B 6 b, fol. 1r–9r. Subsequent quotations also taken from this text.

8.
Cf. “Congregazioni Cardinalizie attuali,” in Moroni,
Dizionario
14 (1842), pp. 151–299, here p. 235. See also Pianciani,
Rome
, vol. 2, p. 38.

9.
Relazione sommaria degli atti principali nella causa contro le Monache Riformate in S. Ambrogio, no. I: Denunzia della Principessa Hohenzollern. Saggie providenze ordinate da Sua Santità; ACDF SO St. St. B 6 e 1.

10.
Cf. Wilhelm Koch/Josef Krieg, “Häresie,” in
LThK
, 1st ed., vol. 4 (1932), pp. 823–25.

11.
Ristretto informativo con Sommario. Il Santo Padre prende cognizione della denunzia e manifesta il Suo oracolo; ACDF SO St. St. B 7 c.

12.
On the Vicariate of Rome, the cardinal vicar, the vicegerent, and the Tribunal of the Vicariate, cf. Boutry,
Souverain
, pp. 210–13 (with extensive bibliography).

13.
See Wolf (ed.),
Prosopographie
, pp. 1134–37.

14.
Cf. Weber,
Kardinäle
, vol. 1, pp. 299–303 and vol. 2, p. 716.

15.
Erlebnisse von Sant’Ambrogio
, StA Sigmaringen, Dep 39 HS 1 Rubr 53 no.14 UF 9m, p. 1. The relevant regulations for the election to convent offices can be found in the
Regola della Riforma delle Monache del Terz’Ordine di S. Francesco
, January 24, 1806, Cap. XII: “Del Protettore”; ACDF SO St. St. B 6 r1.