Carlo Carafa (Nuncio)

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Carlo Carafa (also Caraffa ) (* 1584 in Naples ; † April 7, 1644 in Aversa ) was Bishop of Aversa . He was important between 1621 and 1628 as papal nuncio in Vienna . He played a significant role in the implementation of the Counter Reformation, particularly in the Kingdom of Bohemia . His publications and posthumous writings are significant testimonies to the first years of the Thirty Years' War .

Origin and early years

He came from the Italian noble family of Carafa and was the second son of Frabrizio Carafa, who was made Prince of Roccella by Philip IV . The mother was Giulia Tagliavia d'Aragona. He studied law and received a doctorate in both rights. He then entered the papal administrative service in Rome.

Paul V made him Bishop of Aversa in 1616. He rarely stayed in his diocese. In 1619 he held a diocesan synod there. Gregory XV. appointed him papal nuncio in Vienna.

Viennese nunciature

aims

He was instructed to try to improve relations between Ferdinand II and Venice . He was also supposed to get the emperor to put pressure on the Protestant princes so that they would stop supporting the Huguenots . He was also supposed to help clarify other international disputes in the papal sense in Vienna. Above all, however, it was about the development in the Holy Roman Empire and the hereditary countries after the Catholic successes in the first years of the Thirty Years War. The Pope hoped that Germany and the hereditary countries could be re-Catholicized.

He should try to gain the imperial trust and get the imperial advisers to his side. He should keep in close contact with the ambassadors of the Catholic princes. In addition, he has set up a network of agents in order to be informed about the movement at the various German courts.

With regard to the religious situation, it was on the one hand about the implementation of the church reform in the sense of the Council of Trent and on the other hand about counter-reformation measures. This aimed, for example, at the conversion of Protestant princes and influencing the population. This was connected with the Pope's intention to regain the lost church property. He relied on the military success of the emperor.

Transfer of the Palatinate cure

Carafa directed considerable efforts to the transfer of the Palatinate electoral dignity to the Bavarian Duke Maximilian in order to strengthen the Catholic side in the electoral college. Spanish resistance also had to be overcome. At the Regensburg Princely Congress of 1623, Carafa contributed to the success of these efforts. He succeeded in reducing the resistance of the Catholic princes. In addition, Carafa urged the uncompromising fight against the Protestants. He also had the final decision on the deployment of the papal auxiliaries.

Counter-Reformation in Bohemia

The counter-Reformation measures in Moravia and Bohemia that he implemented with the emperor were of particularly lasting importance. In 1621 the Catholic Church there was in poor condition. A large part of the church property was alienated and the educational institutions were almost entirely in Protestant hands.

As a result, Carafa was able to rely on state power to implement the Counter Reformation. So he pushed through the expulsion of Calvinists and members of other unrecognized religious communities. Eventually all non-Catholic clergy and teachers had to leave the country. Initially, only two Lutheran preachers remained in Prague . On the other hand, he contributed to the renewal of Catholic life by bringing numerous religious priests into the country and improving the formation of the clergy. Catholicism was restored in Pilsen and even in Tábor , the stronghold of the Hussites .

After the cities, at Carafa's insistence, the Counter-Reformation was gradually carried out in the countryside as well. The Lutheran preachers, who were tolerated for reasons of foreign policy, were finally expelled at Carafa's instigation and the Protestant churches were closed. At his instigation, Ernst Adalbert von Harrach, a new Archbishop of the Counter-Reformation , was installed in Prague . Until he could take over his office, Carafa managed religious affairs directly. He traveled around the country and inspected the effectiveness of the measures taken.

The monasteries were restored and new ones founded. The form of the Lord's Supper, which has been common for centuries in both forms, has been abolished, as has the use of the national language in worship. In 1624, at Carafa's insistence, the authorities began to meet not only the Protestant clergy but also the faithful. The transfer of citizenship or even the election to an office of non-Catholics was forbidden. These and other measures led a significant number of residents to emigrate. Finally, in 1626, a demand was made to convert to Catholicism within two months or to emigrate.

Further activity

In a similar way Carafa was also active in Moravia, Hungary and the other Austrian territories. In addition, he did not lose sight of the empire. He encouraged Count Johann von Nassau to convert to Catholicism. He was also involved in restoring the formerly spiritual areas conquered by the Catholic forces in their old form. Catholicism was also restituted in Protestant imperial cities. Before his recall, Carafa was involved in the preparation of the Edict of Restitution of 1629.

The fact that he was one of the few papal diplomats who was not recalled after the beginning of the pontificate of Urban VIII in 1623 speaks for his importance . Significant for the imperial favor was that the emperor raised the father Carafas to the imperial prince in 1622 . However, under Urban VIII, papal policy began to shift in favor of France. Subsidies to the emperor were discontinued and a series of disagreements arose between the two sides, in which even Carafa's mediation did not lead to a solution. Problems worsened with the War of the Mantuan Succession in 1628 . Against this background, Carafa was recalled.

Years in Aversa

After returning to Italy, he appears to have fallen out of favor for reasons unknown. He was not promoted to archbishop or cardinal . Instead, he continued to act as a bishop . Among other things, he made a contribution to the expansion of the cathedral. A Loreto chapel has been built since 1630 . A new choir for the canons was also built, two organs were installed and a new sacristy was built. In Naples he built a large summer residence.

With his work Caroli Caraffae episcopi Aversani commentaria de Germania sacra restaurata he wrote a report on the Counter Reformation in the Holy Roman Empire. The first edition was published in Aversa in 1630, the second was printed in Cologne in 1639, the third in Frankfurt in 1641 and a fourth in Vienna in 1748. In some cases, appendices were added to the main text. A report on his nunciature in Germany has also been preserved.

His successor as bishop was his nephew Carlo Carafa della Spina .

Fonts

  • Commentaria de Germania sacra restaurata, sub summis PP. Gregorio 15th & SDN Vrbano 8th ... Coloniae Agrippinae: apud Cornelium from Egmond, 1639. Digitized
  • Commentaria de Germania sacra restaurata et ad annum 1641 continuata, sub pp. Gregorio 15. et Vrb. 8. regnantibus Ferdinando 2. and 3. imperatoribus decesserunt decreta priuileg. ex cancel. imper. emanentia. Francofurti 1641 digitized

literature

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Carafa, Carlo
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Bishop of Aversa and Nuncio in Vienna
DATE OF BIRTH 1584
PLACE OF BIRTH Naples
DATE OF DEATH April 7, 1644
Place of death Aversa