The Anti-Sacrilege Act (1825–1830) was a French law against blasphemy and sacrilege passed in April 1825 under King Charles X . The death penalty provision of the law was never applied, but a man named François Bourquin was sentenced to perpetual forced labour for the sacrilegious burglary of Eucharistic objects; the law was later revoked at the beginning of the July Monarchy under King Louis-Philippe .
110-577: In April 1824, King Louis XVIII 's government, headed by the Ultra-royalist Jean-Baptiste, Comte de Villèle , introduced a first draft of the law into Parliament. The elections of December 1823, conducted under restricted census suffrage , had produced a heavy ultraroyalist majority in the Chamber of Deputies , which was therefore dubbed Chambre retrouvée (in reference to the ultra-royalist Chambre introuvable elected after
220-455: A Protestant , argued that his religion itself prohibited him from voting for the law, as the real presence of the Christ in the host could be considered as such only by Catholics. Either the person said to be guilty believes in the dogma and is therefore "insane", argued Constant, or he does not, in which case sacrilege cannot be said to be constituted and he must therefore be punished only as
330-739: A "heckler" ( perturbateur ). Some reactionary politicians argued in the same manner: the Comte de Lanjuinais argued that the word of deicide was in itself a blasphemy, and that the law could not "constitute itself judge of the offenses against God". Thus Justice Minister Peyronnet finally decided to limit the law to sacrileges "voluntarily and publicly" committed, as not to interfere with inner conscience and confession . Peyronnet even made an analogy with "indecent assaults" ( attentats à la pudeur ): one shocks public morality only by committing such acts in public, not in private. The same goes, argued Peyronnet, in concerns with sacrilege. Peyronnet's argumentation
440-629: A Belgian Liberal Catholic movement centered in Malines and led by Archbishop de Méan 's vicar-general, Engelbert Sterckx . Largely Catholic Belgium seceded from the Netherlands in 1830 and established a constitutional monarchy. Sterckx, who became archbishop in 1832 found a way not merely to tolerate the new liberal constitution, but to expand the Church under the new liberties guaranteed. Lamennais founded L'Ami de l'ordre (precursor of L'Avenir )
550-402: A Believer (1834), a collection of aphorisms that denounced the established social order—what he called the conspiracy of kings and priests against the people—and declared his rupture with the Church. In the encyclical Singulari nos of 25 June 1834, Pope Gregory XVI condemned the book as "small in size, [but] enormous in wickedness" and censured Lamennais' philosophical system. Paroles
660-403: A Bourbon Restoration. The opinions expressed in the declaration were largely those of Antoine de Bésiade, Count of Avaray , Louis's closest advisor in exile. Louis XVIII was forced once again to leave Jelgava when Tsar Alexander informed him that his safety could not be guaranteed in continental Europe. In July 1807, Louis boarded a Swedish frigate bound for Stockholm , bringing with him only
770-527: A Knight of the Order of the Holy Spirit . The name of Louis was bestowed because it was typical of a prince of France; Stanislas was chosen to honour his great-grandfather King Stanislaus I of Poland who was still alive at the time; and Xavier was chosen for Saint Francis Xavier , whom his mother's family held as one of their patron saints. At the time of his birth, Louis Stanislas was fourth in line to
880-739: A brief interruption during the Hundred Days in 1815. Before his reign, he spent 23 years in exile from France beginning in 1791, during the French Revolution and the First French Empire . Until his accession to the throne of France, he held the title of Count of Provence as brother of King Louis XVI , the last king of the Ancien Régime . On 21 September 1792, the National Convention abolished
990-559: A contemporary living there at the time, the Prussian local authorities, wishing to honour the arrivals, had music played, but trying to give this a national and patriotic character, unwittingly chose La Marseillaise , the hymn of the French Republic with unflattering allusions to both Louis XVI and Louis XVIII. They later apologised for their mistake. It was very soon after their arrival that Louis and Marie-Thérèse learned of
1100-492: A correspondence with Napoleon Bonaparte (by then First Consul of France ), urging him to restore the Bourbons to their throne, but the future emperor was impervious to this idea and continued to consolidate his own position as ruler of France. Louis XVIII encouraged his niece to write her memoirs, as he wished them to be used as Bourbon propaganda. In 1796 and 1803, Louis also used the diaries of Louis XVI's final attendants in
1210-400: A generous pension, though later discontinued payment. Marie-Thérèse finally joined Louis XVIII at Jelgava in 1799. In the winter of 1798–1799, Louis XVIII wrote a biography of Marie Antoinette titled Réflexions historiques sur Marie Antoinette . Moreover, being surrounded at Jelgava with many old courtiers, he attempted to recreate the court life of Versailles, re-establishing various of
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#17327657939331320-426: A harmonious relationship and often quarrelled, as did their wives. Louis Stanislas did impregnate his wife in 1774, having conquered his aversion. However, the pregnancy ended in a miscarriage. A second pregnancy in 1781 also miscarried, and the marriage remained childless. On 27 April 1774, Louis XV fell ill after contracting smallpox and died a few days later on 10 May, aged 64. Louis Stanislas' elder brother,
1430-510: A hostile stance against this rejection, and Louis XVI had to implement a "bed of justice" ( Lit de justice ), which automatically registered an edict in the Parlement of Paris, to ratify the desired reforms. On 8 May, two of the leading members of the Parlement of Paris were arrested. There was rioting in Brittany , Provence, Burgundy and Béarn in reaction to their arrest. This unrest
1540-537: A manifesto in response to Louis XVII's death. The manifesto, known as the " Declaration of Verona ", was Louis XVIII's attempt to introduce the French people to his politics. The Declaration of Verona beckoned France back into the arms of the monarchy, "which for fourteen centuries was the glory of France". Louis XVIII negotiated the release of Marie-Thérèse from her Paris prison in 1795. He desperately wanted her to marry her first cousin, Louis Antoine, Duke of Angoulême ,
1650-448: A new property tax, and new elected provincial assemblies which would have a say in local taxation. Calonne's proposition was rejected outright by the notables, and, as a result, Louis XVI dismissed him. The Archbishop of Toulouse, Étienne Charles de Loménie de Brienne , acquired Calonne's ministry. Brienne attempted to salvage Calonne's reforms, but ultimately failed to convince the notables to approve them. A frustrated Louis XVI dissolved
1760-644: A number of his friends. In 1833, he broke with the Church and the following year published Paroles d'un croyant , which Pope Gregory XVI condemned for its philosophical theories. He served as a deputy for Paris to the Constituent Assembly; his draft for a Constitution was rejected as too radical. He died in Paris in 1854. Félicité Robert de la Mennais was born in Saint-Malo. He belonged to family Robert de la Mennais [ fr ] , which
1870-525: A pamphlet criticizing the 1825 Anti-Sacrilege Law introduced by Villèle's administration. Various other minor works, together with De la religion considérée dans ses rapports avec l'ordre civil et politique (1825–1826) kept his name before the public. Defunct Defunct He retired to La Chênaie and gathered a group of disciples, including Montalembert , Lacordaire and Maurice de Guérin . He espoused ultramontanism and aimed to create an organized body of opinion to campaign against Gallicanism ,
1980-490: A publishing house aimed at spreading this pious literature resulted in his own financial ruin. On his return to France he took a prominent part in political work. Together with Chateaubriand and the Comte de Villèle he was a regular contributor to Le Conservateur littéraire . However, when Villèle became the chief supporter of absolute monarchy, Lamennais withdrew his support and started two rival organs, Le Drapeau blanc and Le Mémorial catholique . He authored
2090-559: A result, the periodical's career was stormy and its circulation opposed by conservative bishops. Although pressured by the French government and the French hierarchy, Pope Gregory XVI would have preferred not to make an official issue of the matter. However, Lamennais, Montalembert, and Lacordaire suspended their work and in November 1831 set out to Rome to obtain the Pope's approval. Archbishop Quélen of Paris had warned Lammenais that he
2200-452: A school of theological thought. The two sisters, Gratienne Lorin and Félicité Lorin (daughters of Pierre Lorin and Bertranne Roce) were married on the same day, September 5, 1775, in Saint-Malo, with the two sons Robert (son of Louis-François Robert): Pierre -Louis Robert de la Mennais and Denis Robert des Saudrais. Félicité was one of the five children of Pierre-Louis Robert, sieur de La Menais and of Gatienne Lorin, who died in 1787 when he
2310-550: The Ancien Régime . Accordingly, in 1805 he reformulated his public policies with a view to reclaiming his throne, issuing a declaration that was far more liberal than his earlier pronouncements. This repudiated his Declaration of Verona, promised to abolish conscription, retain the Napoleonic administrative and judicial system, reduce taxes, eliminate political prisons, and guarantee amnesty to everyone who did not oppose
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#17327657939332420-692: The Austrian Netherlands in conjunction with the royal family's failed Flight to Varennes in June 1791. When the Count of Provence arrived in the Low Countries , he proclaimed himself regent of France. He exploited a document that he and Louis XVI had written before the latter's failed escape to Varennes-en-Argonne . The document gave him the regency in the event of his brother's death or inability to perform his role as king. He would join
2530-443: The Comte de Blacas as his principal political advisor. Queen Marie Joséphine died on 13 November 1810. That same winter, Louis had a particularly severe attack of gout , which was a recurring problem for him at Hartwell, and he had to take to a wheelchair. In 1812, Napoleon I embarked on an invasion of Russia , initiating a war which would prove to be the turning point in his fortunes. The expedition failed miserably, and Napoleon
2640-595: The Duchy of Alençon in December 1774. The duchy was given to enhance Louis Stanislas's prestige. However, the appanage generated only 300,000 livres a year, an amount much lower than it had been at its peak in the fourteenth century. Louis Stanislas travelled about France more than other members of the Royal Family, who rarely left the Île-de-France . In 1774, he accompanied his sister Clotilde to Chambéry on
2750-526: The Duchy of Brunswick after his departure from Verona. He lived in a modest two-bedroom apartment over a shop. Louis XVIII was forced to leave Blankenburg when King Frederick William II of Prussia died. In light of this, Marie-Thérèse decided to wait a while longer before reuniting with her uncle. In 1798, Tsar Paul I of Russia offered Louis the use of Jelgava Palace in Courland (now Latvia). The Tsar also guaranteed Louis' safety and bestowed on him
2860-577: The Encyclopedists into politics, had resulted in practical atheism and spiritual death. He asserted that ecclesiastical authority, founded on the absolute revelation delivered to the Jewish people, but supported by the universal tradition of all nations, was the sole hope of regenerating the European communities. Three more volumes (Paris, 1818–1824) followed and met with a mixed reception from
2970-560: The Restoration ). Despite this majority, the bill failed as it was not accepted by the Chamber of Peers . After the accession of Charles X in September of the same year, Villèle's government decided to seize the opportunity and reintroduced the bill, giving an increase in the stealing of sacred vessels ( chalices and ciboria ) as the reason. The Villèle government initially envisaged graduating sentences. Concerning profanations,
3080-668: The Storming of the Bastille two days later. On 16 July, the King's brother, Charles, Comte d'Artois , left France with his wife and children, along with many other courtiers. Artois and his family took up residence in Turin , the capital city of his father-in-law's ( Carlo Emanuele Ferdinando Maria IV ) Kingdom of Sardinia , with the family of Louis Joseph, Prince de Condé . The Count of Provence decided to remain at Versailles. When
3190-724: The Tuileries Palace . In March 1791, the National Assembly created a law outlining the regency of Louis Charles in case his father died while he was still too young to reign. This law awarded the regency to Louis Charles' nearest male relative in France (at that time the Count of Provence), and after him, the Duke of Orleans , thus bypassing the Count of Artois. If Orleans were unavailable, the regency would be submitted to election. The Count of Provence and his wife fled to
3300-513: The "dual representation" proposal. Louis Stanislas was the only notable to vote to increase the size of the Third Estate. Necker disregarded the notables' judgment, and convinced Louis XVI to grant the extra representation. The king duly obliged on 27 December. The Estates-General were convened in May 1789 to ratify financial reforms. The Count of Provence favoured a stalwart position against
3410-544: The Bourbons were forced to assume pseudonyms. With Louis XVIII using the title Comte d'Isle , named after his estate in Languedoc and at times spelt as Comte de Lille. After an arduous journey from Jelgava, he and his family took up residence in the years 1801–1804 at the Łazienki Palace in Warsaw , which after the partitions of Poland became part of the province of South Prussia . According to Wirydianna Fiszerowa ,
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3520-563: The Catholic royalist cause in France by forcing him to divert his troops to suppress the uprising in Poland. While staying in Munich, Lamennais received the 1832 encyclical Mirari vos , which condemned religious pluralism in general and certain of Lamennais's ideas advanced in L'Avenir without mentioning his name. After this, Lamennais and his two lieutenants declared that out of deference to
3630-486: The Children of France , as he was her favourite among his siblings. Louis Stanislas was taken away from his governess when he turned seven, the age at which the education of boys of royal blood and of the nobility was turned over to men. Antoine de Quélen de Stuer de Caussade, Duke of La Vauguyon [ fr ] , a friend of his father, was named as his governor. Louis Stanislas was an intelligent boy, excelling in
3740-762: The Dauphin Louis Joseph . Louis Stanislas and his brother, the Count of Artois , served as godfathers by proxy for Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor , the Queen's brother. When Marie Antoinette gave birth to her second son, Louis Charles , in March 1785, Louis Stanislas slid further down the line of succession. In 1780, Anne Nompar de Caumont , Countess of Balbi, entered the service of Marie Joséphine. Louis Stanislas soon fell in love with his wife's new lady-in-waiting and installed her as his mistress, which resulted in
3850-500: The Dauphin Louis Auguste, succeeded their grandfather as King Louis XVI. As eldest brother of the King, Louis Stanislas received the title Monsieur . Louis Stanislas longed for political influence. He attempted to gain admittance to the King's council in 1774, but failed. Louis Stanislas was left in a political limbo that he called "a gap of 12 years in my political life". Louis XVI granted Louis Stanislas revenues from
3960-975: The Duke of Angoulême. This stay in Sweden was short-lived since in November 1807 he disembarked at Great Yarmouth , on the Eastern coast of England. He then took up residence in Gosfield Hall in Essex, leased to him by the Marquess of Buckingham . In 1808, Louis brought his wife and queen, Marie Joséphine, to join him in England. His stay at Gosfield Hall did not last long; he soon moved to Hartwell House in Buckinghamshire, where over one hundred courtiers were housed. The King paid £500 in rent each year to
4070-708: The French . In July, Louis XVIII and his nephew departed for Sweden for a Bourbon family conference, where Louis XVIII, the Count of Artois, and the Duke of Angoulême issued a statement condemning Napoleon's move. When the King of Prussia decreed that Louis XVIII would have to leave Prussian territory, and hence Warsaw, Tsar Alexander I invited Louis XVIII to resume residence in Jelgava, which he did. However, having to live under less generous conditions than those enjoyed under Paul I, Louis XVIII decided to embark for England as soon as possible. As time went on, Louis XVIII realised that France would never accept an attempt to return to
4180-518: The Gallican bishops and monarchists, but with the enthusiastic support from the younger clergy. Three Roman theologians examined his work and Pope Leo XII gave it his formal approval. Leo XII held Lamennais in high personal regard having a portrait of him hung in his private chambers. When the later visited Rome in 1824 Leo offered him a Vatican apartment and in 1828 a cardinalate, which Lamennais declined. According to Cardinal Nicholas Wiseman before
4290-530: The Gospels with added notes and reflections. In 1846 Lamennais published Une voix de prison , written during his imprisonment. Lamennais sympathized with the Revolution of 1848 and was elected a deputy for Paris to the Constituent Assembly. He drew up a plan for a Constitution, which was rejected as too radical. After this, he confined himself to silent participation in the sessions. He also started
4400-642: The Holy See, while admitting the justice of their intentions, would like the matter left open for the present. Lacordaire and Montalembert departed immediately, but Lamennais stayed on until Gregory's letter to the Polish bishops, which denounced the Polish revolution against the Tsar , dashed his last hopes. Gregory thought the Polish revolutionaries were seeking to undermine Russian Tsar Nicholas I's efforts to support
4510-820: The Kingdom until his brother's arrival in Paris on 3 May. Upon his return, the King displayed himself to his subjects by staging a procession through the city. He took up residence in the Tuileries Palace the same day. His niece, the Duchess of Angoulême, fainted at the sight of the Tuileries, where she had been imprisoned during the time of the French Revolution. Hugues Felicit%C3%A9 Robert de Lamennais Félicité Robert de La Mennais (or Lamennais ; 19 June 1782 – 27 February 1854)
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4620-603: The Legislative Assembly declared that all of the émigrés were traitors to France. Their property and titles were confiscated. The monarchy of France was abolished by the National Convention on 21 September 1792. Louis XVI was executed in January 1793 . This left his young son, Louis Charles, as the titular King. The princes-in-exile proclaimed Louis Charles "King Louis XVII ". The Count of Provence now unilaterally declared himself regent for his nephew, who
4730-441: The Queen gave birth to a daughter, who was named Marie-Thérèse Charlotte de France and given the honorific title Madame Royale . That the baby was a girl came as a relief to the Count of Provence, who kept his position as heir to Louis XVI, since Salic Law excluded women from acceding to the throne of France. However, Louis Stanislas did not remain heir to the throne much longer. On 22 October 1781, Marie Antoinette gave birth to
4840-602: The Revolution) would be compensated for their losses. Allied troops entered Paris on 31 March 1814. Louis, unable to walk, had sent the Count of Artois to France in January 1814 and issued letters patent appointing Artois Lieutenant-General of the Kingdom in the event of his being restored as king. On 11 April, five days after the French Senate had invited Louis to resume the throne of France, Napoleon I abdicated. The Count of Artois ruled as Lieutenant-General of
4950-529: The Royal Family plotted to abscond from Versailles to Metz , Provence advised the King not to leave, a suggestion he accepted. The Royal Family was forced to leave the palace at Versailles on the day after the Women's March on Versailles , 5 October 1789. They were taken to Paris. There, the Count of Provence and his wife lodged in the Luxembourg Palace , while the rest of the Royal Family stayed in
5060-580: The Swiss magnate Jacques Necker . In November 1788, a second Assembly of Notables was convened by Jacques Necker, to consider the makeup of the next Estates-General. The Parlement of Paris recommended that the Estates should be the same as they were at the last assembly, in 1614 (this would mean that the clergy and nobility would have more representation than the Third Estate ). The notables rejected
5170-408: The Third Estate and its demands for tax reform. On 17 June, the Third Estate declared itself a National Assembly , an Assembly not of the Estates, but of the people. The Count of Provence urged the King to act strongly against the declaration, while the King's popular minister Jacques Necker aimed at reaching a compromise with the new assembly. Louis XVI was characteristically indecisive. On 9 July,
5280-617: The Ultra-Royalists' position of Enlightenment ideas by referring to the idea of non-intervention of the state in religious matters presented by the "Sacrilege" article in Diderot 's and d'Alembert 's Encyclopédie . Louis XVIII of France Louis XVIII (Louis Stanislas Xavier; 17 November 1755 – 16 September 1824), known as the Desired (French: le Désiré ), was King of France from 1814 to 1824, except for
5390-409: The actual writing was done almost exclusively by Félicité. It recommended religious revival and active clerical organization and the awakening of an ultramontane spirit. Napoleon 's police deemed the book dangerously ideological and tried to suppress it. Lamennais devoted most of the following year to translating Louis de Blois 's Speculum Monachorum into French, which he published in 1809 under
5500-582: The anarchy and tyranny unleashed by revolution. He derided Napoleon, in part because of the Organic Articles , in which France acting unilaterally amended the Concordat of 1801 between France and the papacy. Lamennais vocally assailed both Gallicanism and Caesaropapism , views that demanded a completely subservient relationship by the Church to the State, and he was for a time a staunch defender of
5610-538: The assembly declared itself a National Constituent Assembly that would give France a Constitution. On 11 July, Louis XVI dismissed Necker, which led to widespread rioting across Paris. On 12 July, the sabre charge of the Régiment Royal–Allemand Cavalerie (Royal German Cavalry Regiment) of Charles-Eugène de Lorraine, Prince de Lambesc , against a crowd gathered at the Tuileries gardens , sparked
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#17327657939335720-558: The assembly. Brienne's reforms were then submitted to the Parlement of Paris in the hopes that they would be approved. (A parlement was responsible for ratifying the King's edicts; each province had its own parlement , but the Parlement of Paris was the most significant of all.) The Parlement of Paris refused to accept Brienne's proposals and declared that any new taxation would have to be approved by an Estates-General (the nominal parliament of France). Louis XVI and Brienne took
5830-462: The authority once enjoyed by Bossuet ". His experience of Napoleon persuaded him that the state had no right to interfere in religion. Lamennais denounced religious indifference by the state and toleration while advocating for a restoration of the pre-Revolutionary authority of the Catholic Church. He contended that private judgment, introduced by Martin Luther into religion, by Descartes and Leibniz into philosophy and science, and by Rousseau and
5940-419: The children of poor immigrants. After the final overthrow of Napoleon in 1815, he returned to Paris. Lamennais sought in religion a remedy for the anarchy and tyranny unleashed by the revolution. He undertook the study of theology and was ordained a subdeacon on 21 December. At this time he considered joining the Jesuits , however the prospect of a novitiate year led him to decide to become a secular priest. It
6050-486: The classics. His education was of the same quality and consistency as that of his older brother, Louis Auguste, despite the fact that Louis Auguste was heir and Louis Stanislas was not. Louis Stanislas's education was quite religious in nature; several of his teachers were priests, such as Jean-Gilles du Coëtlosquet , Bishop of Limoges; the Abbé Jean-Antoine Nollet ; and the Jesuit Guillaume-François Berthier . La Vauguyon drilled into young Louis Stanislas and his brothers
6160-413: The control and influence of the state in church matters. Les Progrès de la revolution et de la guerre contre l'église , or On the Progress of the Revolution and the War against the Church , (1828) marked his complete renunciation of royalist principles and from that time on he advocated on behalf of a theocratic democracy. J.P.T. Bury suggests that Lamennais and his associates found inspiration in
6270-494: The couple's already limited affection for each other cooling entirely. Louis Stanislas commissioned a pavilion for his mistress on a parcel of land at Versailles which became known as the Parc Balbi . Louis Stanislas lived a quiet and sedentary lifestyle at this point, not having a great deal to do since his self-proclaimed political exclusion in 1774. He kept himself occupied with his vast library of over 11,000 books at Balbi's pavilion, reading for several hours each morning. In
6380-418: The court of Versailles. The marriage remained unconsummated for years. Biographers disagree about the reason. The most common theories propose Louis Stanislas' alleged impotence (according to biographer Antonia Fraser ) or his unwillingness to sleep with his wife due to her poor personal hygiene. She never brushed her teeth, plucked her eyebrows, or used any perfumes. At the time of his marriage, Louis Stanislas
6490-493: The death of Tsar Paul I. Louis hoped that Paul's successor, Alexander I , would repudiate his father's banishment of the Bourbons, which he later did. Louis then intended to set off to the Kingdom of Naples . The Count of Artois asked Louis to send his son, Louis-Antoine, and daughter-in-law, Marie-Thérèse, to him in Edinburgh , but the King did not do so at that time. Artois had an allowance from King George III of Great Britain and he sent some money to Louis, whose court-in-exile
6600-522: The early 1780s, he also incurred huge debts totalling 10 million livres, which his brother Louis XVI paid. An Assembly of Notables (the members consisted of magistrates, mayors, nobles and clergy) was convened in February 1787 to ratify the financial reforms sought by the Controller-General of Finance Charles Alexandre de Calonne . This provided the Count of Provence, who abhorred the radical reforms proposed by Calonne, his long-awaiting opportunity to establish himself in politics. The reforms proposed
6710-431: The first issue of which appeared on 16 October 1830, with the motto "God and Liberty." His social theories became more radical. The paper was aggressively democratic, demanding rights of local administration, an enlarged suffrage, separation of church and state , universal freedom of conscience , instruction, assembly , and the press . Styles of worship were to be criticized, improved or abolished in absolute submission to
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#17327657939336820-414: The former court ceremonies, including the lever and coucher (ceremonies that accompanied waking and bedding, respectively). On 9 June 1799, Marie-Thérèse married her cousin Louis-Antoine at the Jelgava Palace. Desperate to display to the world a united family, Louis XVIII ordered his wife Queen Marie Joséphine , who at the time was living apart from her husband in Schleswig-Holstein , to attend
6930-521: The full consistory he said that Lamennais was " a distinguished writer, whose works had not only rendered eminent services to religion, but rejoiced and astonished Europe." However, some believe that the quote was actually about the historian John Lingard . Lamennais also published works of piety, for example, a widely read French version of The Imitation of Christ with notes and reflections (1824), Guide du premier âge , Journée du Chrétien , and Recueil de piété (1828). The failure of
7040-442: The independence of the Church. Lamennais was ordained a priest in 1817, the same year he published Essai sur l'indifférence en matière de religion . In 1830, he founded L'Ami de l'ordre (precursor of L'Avenir ) with Montalembert and Lacordaire . His social ideas embraced an enlarged suffrage, separation of church and state , universal freedom of conscience, instruction, assembly, and the press. His radicalism distanced him from
7150-399: The influence of his brother Jean-Marie and partly as a result of his philosophical and historical studies, he came to see the power of faith and religion. He voiced his convictions in Réflexions sur l'état de l'église en France pendant le 18ieme siècle et sur sa situation actuelle , published anonymously in Paris in 1808. The idea for this work and the materials were due to Jean-Marie, but
7260-475: The interference of political authority in ecclesiastical affairs. It was provoked by Napoleon's nomination of Jean Siffrein Maury as Archbishop of Paris in accordance with the provisions of the Concordat of 1801 . Lamennais hailed the Bourbon restoration of 1814, which he witnessed in Paris , because he saw Louis XVIII as a force for religious regeneration. During the Hundred Days , he escaped to London , where he worked in Kensington at an institution for
7370-463: The journey to meet her bridegroom Charles Emmanuel, Prince of Piedmont , heir to the throne of Sardinia . In 1775, he visited Lyon and also his spinster aunts Adélaïde and Victoire while they were taking the waters at Vichy . The four provincial tours that Louis Stanislas took before the year 1791 amounted to a total of three months. On 5 May 1778, Dr. Lassonne, Marie Antoinette's private physician, confirmed her pregnancy. On 19 December 1778,
7480-505: The law created an interpenetration between human justice and God's judgment, and that the state was supposed do no more than protect freedom of religion. Royer-Collard argued, "Just like religion which is not of this world, human law is not of the invisible world; both worlds, which touch each others, should never be confused: the tomb is their limit." He declared the law "anti-constitutional" and as "violating freedom of thought ", imposing one specific religion over other ones. Benjamin Constant,
7590-551: The liberal Doctrinaires . His reign was further marked by the formation of the Quintuple Alliance and a military intervention in Spain . Louis had no children, and upon his death the crown passed to his brother, Charles X . Louis XVIII was the last king or emperor of France to die a reigning monarch: his successor, Charles X ( r. 1824–1830) abdicated; and both Louis Philippe I ( r. 1830–1848) and Napoleon III ( r. 1852–1870) were deposed. Louis Stanislas Xavier , styled Count of Provence from birth,
7700-476: The library where he spent long hours reading Rousseau and Pascal , among others, and acquired a vast and varied learning. Revolution was to have a profound effect on Lammennais. His family sheltered non-juring priests . Father Vielle said Mass on occasion in the dark at La Chênaie. Of a sickly and sensitive nature, and shocked by the events of the French Revolution , Lamennais developed a morbid frame of mind. He first held rationalistic views, but partly through
7810-412: The monarchy and deposed Louis XVI, who was later executed by guillotine . When his young nephew Louis XVII died in prison in June 1795, the Count of Provence claimed the throne as Louis XVIII. Following the French Revolution and during the Napoleonic era , Louis XVIII lived in exile in Prussia , Great Britain , and Russia . When the Sixth Coalition first defeated Napoleon in 1814, Louis XVIII
7920-485: The newspapers Le Peuple constituant and La Révolution démocratique et sociale , espousing radical revolution. Both papers quickly ceased publication. He was also named president of the Société de la solidarité républicaine . He remained a deputy in the legislative assemblies until Napoleon III 's 1851 coup , which depressed and isolated him once more. After 1851, he occupied himself with La Divine Comédie ,
8030-602: The other princes-in-exile at Coblenz soon after his escape. It was there that he, the Count of Artois, and the Condé princes proclaimed that their objective was to invade France. Louis XVI was greatly annoyed by his brothers' behaviour. Provence sent emissaries to various European courts asking for financial aid, soldiers, and munition. Artois secured a castle for the court in exile in the Electorate of Trier (or "Treves"), where their maternal uncle, Clemens Wenceslaus of Saxony ,
8140-665: The owner of the estate, Sir George Lee. The Prince of Wales (the future George IV of the United Kingdom) was very charitable to the exiled Bourbons. As Prince Regent, he granted them permanent right of asylum and extremely generous allowances. The Count of Artois did not join the court-in-exile in Hartwell, preferring to continue his frivolous life in London. Louis's friend the Count of Avaray left Hartwell for Madeira in 1809, and died there in 1811. Louis replaced Avaray with
8250-424: The pamphlets Le Livre du peuple (1837), De l'esclavage moderne (1839), Politique a l'usage du peuple (1839), Discussions critiques (1841), Du passé et de l'avenir du peuple (1841), Amschaspands et Darvands (1843), in which he espoused popular sovereignty and attacked contemporary society and the public authorities. After the publication of Le Pays et le gouvernement (1840), he
8360-645: The pope they would not resume the publication of L'Avenir and dissolved the Agence générale as well. Lamennais retired to La Chênaie, an estate near Saint-Malo , Brittany. He communicated his resentment and political beliefs only through correspondence. The Vatican in turn demanded his frank and full adhesion to the encyclical Mirari vos . Lamennais refused to submit without qualification and in December 1833 renounced his ecclesiastical functions and abandoned all external profession of Christianity. In May 1834, Lamennais penned Paroles d'un croyant , or Words of
8470-448: The right hand followed by decapitation (a sentence in force during the Ancien Régime and repealed during the Revolution , but reestablished in 1810). Following the debates, this last punishment was later replaced by an " honorable amend " made by the criminal before dying. The Comte de Peyronnet , the minister in charge of the law project, described the law as a "necessary expiation after so many years of indifference or impiety". He
8580-562: The same way. In January 1801, Tsar Paul told Louis XVIII that he could no longer live in Russia. The court at Jelgava was so low on funds that it had to auction some of its possessions to afford the journey out of Russia. Marie-Thérèse even sold a diamond necklace that the Emperor Paul had given her as a wedding gift. Marie-Thérèse persuaded Queen Louise of Prussia to give her family refuge on Prussian territory. Though Louise consented,
8690-405: The sentences were to change according to various cases. If the profanation had been done on vessels containing holy objects, the crime was supposed to be punished by perpetual forced labour . If the profanation had been done on vessels containing consecrated hosts , the punishment was death. If it was on the hosts themselves, the death sentence was the same as that given to parricides : cutting off
8800-823: The son of the Count of Artois. Louis XVIII deceived his niece by telling her that her parents' last wishes were for her to marry Louis-Antoine, and she duly agreed to Louis XVIII's wishes. Louis XVIII was forced to abandon Verona when Napoleon Bonaparte invaded the Republic of Venice in 1796. Louis XVIII had been vying for the custody of his niece Marie-Thérèse since her release from the Temple Tower in December 1795. He succeeded when Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor , agreed to relinquish his custody of her in 1796. She had been staying in Vienna with her Habsburg relatives since January 1796. Louis XVIII moved to Blankenburg in
8910-488: The spiritual, not to the temporal authority. His views were opposed by the bishops and supported by the younger clergy, but he lost even their support when he said priests should not be paid by the state. With the help of Montalembert, he founded the Agence générale pour la défense de la liberté religieuse , which became a far-reaching organization with agents throughout France who monitored violations of religious freedom. As
9020-462: The support of the thirteen peers who were also prelates , without whom the death penalty would not have been adopted by the Chambre des pairs . The Anti-Sacrilege Act specified that for the sacrilege to be constituted, the act must take place "voluntarily, publicly and by hatred or contempt for religion". The death penalty provision of the law was never applied, but a man named François Bourquin, who
9130-544: The throne of France, behind his father and his two elder brothers: Louis Joseph Xavier, Duke of Burgundy , and Louis Auguste, Duke of Berry . The former died in 1761, leaving Louis Auguste as heir to their father until the Dauphin's own premature death in 1765. The two deaths elevated Louis Stanislas to second in the line of succession, while his brother Louis Auguste acquired the title of Dauphin. Louis Stanislas found comfort in his governess, Madame de Marsan , Governess of
9240-501: The time corresponded to about thirty parishes. He worked under the orders of the Intendant of Brittany. A man of heart, he had a great social sense and worked against the suffering and poverty which were great, especially in the countryside. He advocated, for example, in each parish, the establishment of a charity office. He acquired La Chésnaie in 1781, he built a bourgeois house there, it was in this place that Félicité would later found
9350-566: The title Le Guide spirituel . In 1811 Lamennais received the tonsure and became professor of mathematics in an ecclesiastical college at Saint-Malo founded by his brother, who had been ordained a Catholic priest in 1804. When the school was closed by imperial authority the following year, Félicité withdrew to La Chênaie, while his brother became vicar-general of the diocese of Saint-Brieuc. In 1814 he published, with his brother, De la tradition de l'Église sur l'institution des évêques (1814), in which he strongly condemned Gallicanism and
9460-415: The way he thought princes should "know how to withdraw themselves, to like to work," and "to know how to reason correctly". In April 1771, when he was 15, Louis Stanislas's education was formally concluded, and his own independent household was established, which astounded contemporaries with its extravagance: in 1773, the number of his servants reached 390 In the same month his household was founded, Louis
9570-480: The wedding. Furthermore, she was to come without her long-time friend (and rumoured lover) Marguerite de Gourbillon . The Queen refused to leave her friend behind, creating an unpleasant situation that rivalled the wedding in notoriety. Louis XVIII knew that his nephew Louis-Antoine was not compatible with Marie-Thérèse. Despite this, he still pressed for the marriage, which proved to be quite unhappy and produced no children. In 1800, Louis XVIII attempted to strike up
9680-404: Was censored and imprisoned for a year in 1841. From 1841 to 1846 Lamennais published the four volumes of Esquisse d'une philosophie , a treatise on metaphysics, which detailed his departure from Christianity. The third volume, an exposition of art as a development of the aspirations and needs of worship, formed its core. Lamennais also published Les Evangiles , a French translation of
9790-681: Was a constitutional monarchy , unlike the absolutist Ancien Régime in France before the Revolution. As a constitutional monarch, Louis XVIII's royal prerogative was reduced substantially by the Charter of 1814 , France's new constitution. His return in 1815 led to a second wave of White Terror headed by the Ultra-royalist faction. The following year, Louis dissolved the unpopular parliament (the Chambre introuvable ), giving rise to
9900-485: Was a French Catholic priest, philosopher and political theorist. He was one of the most influential intellectuals of Restoration France . Lamennais is also considered the forerunner of both liberal Catholicism and Modernism . His opinions on matters of religion and government changed dramatically over the course of his life. He initially held rationalistic views, but in part due to the influence of his elder brother, Jean-Marie , came to see religion as an antidote for
10010-533: Was a job that required a certain daring and temerity. Then, when his sons were old enough to take responsibility, he handed over the administration of the company to them. Pierre Lorin (1719–1799), his maternal grandfather, was a lawyer at the Parliament of Paris, and Subdelegate of the Jurisdictions of Saint-Malo, that is to say, representative of the royal power for the district of Saint-Malo, which at
10120-478: Was a weaver from Mossans , was sentenced to perpetual forced labour for the sacrilegious burglary of Eucharistic objects from three separate churches; the law was repealed after the 1830 July Revolution , in the first months of King Louis-Philippe 's reign. Historian Jean-Noël Jeanneney , former president of the Bibliothèque nationale de France (2002–2007), deemed the law "anachronistic" and highlighted
10230-539: Was being unrealistic and was viewed as a demagogue in favor of revolution. As Quelen was a Gallican, Lammenais ignored him. After much opposition, they gained an audience, but only on condition that their political project should not be mentioned. Metternich , whose Austrian troops ensured the stability of the Papal States , pressed for a condemnation. A few days later they received a letter from Cardinal Pacca , advising their departure from Rome and suggesting that
10340-482: Was born on 17 November 1755 in the Palace of Versailles , a younger son of Louis, Dauphin of France , and his wife Maria Josepha of Saxony . He was the grandson of the reigning King Louis XV . As a son of the Dauphin, he was a Fils de France . He was christened Louis Stanislas Xavier six months after his birth, in accordance with Bourbon family tradition, being nameless before his baptism . By this act, he also became
10450-459: Was conducted on 14 May at the Palace of Versailles . Marie Joséphine (as she was known in France) was a daughter of Victor Amadeus , Duke of Savoy (later King Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia), and his wife Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain . A luxurious ball followed the wedding on 20 May. Louis Stanislas found his wife repulsive; she was considered ugly, tedious, and ignorant of the customs of
10560-448: Was engaged in international maritime trade. Louis-François Robert de La Mennais (1717–1804), his paternal grandfather, was the founder of the “Compagnie commerciale et maritime” in Saint-Malo. He was a trader, and he armed boats for the needs of trade, in order to provide all the equipment, provisions, sometimes even a few cannons, to choose a serious captain who knows how to recruit a crew, in order to maintain counters in foreign ports. It
10670-625: Was engineered by local magistrates and nobles, who enticed the people to revolt against the Lit de Justice , which was quite unfavourable to the nobles and magistrates. The clergy also joined the provincial cause, and condemned Brienne's tax reforms. Brienne conceded defeat in July and agreed to a convocation of the Estates-General to meet in 1789. He resigned from his post in August and was replaced by
10780-502: Was five years old, so that 'he was brought up by one of his uncles. Lamennais was born at Saint-Malo in the ancient Province of Brittany on 19 June 1782, the son of a wealthy merchant who had recently received a coat of arms from the king. He lost his mother at the age of five and as a result, he and his brother, Jean-Marie, were sent for education to an uncle, Robert des Saudrais at La Chênaie, an estate near Saint-Malo. Resistant to any kind of discipline, his uncle would lock him in
10890-729: Was followed by the Comte de Breteuil , who declared: "In order to make our laws respected, let us first make religion be respected." The counterrevolutionary essayist Louis, Vicomte de Bonald adamantly defended capital punishment before the Assembly. Some members of the liberal opposition formed by the Doctrinaires , including the Baron de Barante , the Comte de Languinais, Pierre Paul Royer-Collard and Benjamin Constant , argued that
11000-469: Was forced to retreat with an army in tatters. In 1813, Louis XVIII issued another declaration from Hartwell. The Declaration of Hartwell was even more liberal than his Declaration of 1805, asserting that those who had served Napoleon or the Republic would not suffer repercussions for their acts, and that the original owners of the biens nationaux (lands confiscated from the nobility and clergy during
11110-427: Was granted several titles by his grandfather, Louis XV: Duke of Anjou, Count of Maine, Count of Perche, and Count of Senoches. During this period of his life he was often known by the title Count of Provence. On 17 December 1773, he was inaugurated as a Grand Master of the Order of St. Lazarus . On 16 April 1771, Louis Stanislas was married by proxy to Princess Maria Giuseppina of Savoy . The in-person ceremony
11220-501: Was imprisoned at Ste. Pelagie, a prison for debtors. Lamennais was increasingly abandoned by his friends and in 1837 published Les Affaires de Rome, des maux de l'Église et de la société , in which he provided his perspective on his relations with Gregory XVI. After this, Lamennais penned several articles in the Revue des Deux Mondes , the Revue du Progrès and Le Monde , and published
11330-639: Was in Saint-Brieuc, in February 1816 that Lamennais received the diaconate. He was ordained by the Bishop of Rennes on 9 March 1817. The first volume of his great work, Essai sur l'indifference en matière de religion , or Essay on Indifference in Matters of Religion , appeared in 1817 and established his reputation throughout Europe. He became, according to Lacordaire , "a humble priest with all
11440-465: Was inspired by Adam Mickiewicz 's Księgi narodu polskiego i pielgrzymstwa polskiego ( Books of the Polish Nation and Polish Pilgrimage ). The Paroles marked Lamennais' turn to a Christian socialism that inspired a whole generation of socialists. His radical ideas reflected an overlap of Catholic and socialist discourses that can be traced back to the 1820s. Sometime after 5 April 1836 he
11550-498: Was not only being spied on by Napoleonic agents but was also being forced to make significant economies, financed as it was mainly from interest owed by the Emperor Francis II on valuables his aunt, Marie Antoinette, had removed from France. In 1803, Napoleon tried to force Louis XVIII to renounce his right to the throne of France, but Louis refused. In May the following year, 1804, Napoleon declared himself Emperor of
11660-519: Was obese and waddled instead of walked. He never exercised and continued to eat enormous amounts of food. Despite the fact that Louis Stanislas was not infatuated with his wife, he boasted that the two enjoyed vigorous conjugal relations – but such declarations were held in low esteem by courtiers at Versailles. He also proclaimed his wife to be pregnant merely to spite Louis Auguste and his wife Marie Antoinette , who had not yet consummated their marriage. The Dauphin and Louis Stanislas did not enjoy
11770-533: Was placed in what he, and the French royalists, considered his rightful position. However, Napoleon escaped from his exile in Elba and restored his French Empire. Louis XVIII fled, and a Seventh Coalition declared war on the French Empire, defeated Napoleon again, and again restored Louis XVIII to the French throne. Louis XVIII ruled as king for slightly less than a decade. His Bourbon Restoration government
11880-458: Was seen by the press as adventurous and ill-founded. Hugues Felicité Robert de Lamennais attacked Villèle's government in a pamphlet , asking how a sacrilege can be a crime committed against religion but not against God. Following long and passionate debates, the project was adopted by the Peers' Chamber by 127 votes against 96, then by the deputies by 210 votes against 95. The text benefited from
11990-644: Was the Archbishop-Elector . The activities of the émigrés bore fruit when the rulers of Prussia and the Holy Roman Empire gathered at Dresden . They released the Declaration of Pillnitz in August 1791, which urged Europe to intervene in France if Louis XVI or his family were threatened. Provence's endorsement of the declaration was not well received in France, either by the ordinary citizens or by Louis XVI himself. In January 1792,
12100-496: Was too young to be head of the House of Bourbon. Louis XVII, still a minor, died in prison in June 1795. His only surviving sibling was his sister Marie-Thérèse , who was not considered a candidate for the throne because of France's traditional adherence to Salic law . Thus on 16 June, the princes-in-exile declared the Count of Provence "King Louis XVIII". The new king accepted their declaration soon after and busied himself drafting
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