The relationship between Pope Leo XIII and Poland was marked by the German-led Kulturkampf, which led to the persecution of ethnic Poles in Prussia and German Catholics in Germany.
The relationship between Pope Leo XIII and Poland was marked by the German-led Kulturkampf, which led to the persecution of ethnic Poles in Prussia and German Catholics in Germany.
In Prussia, Polish Catholics were persecuted as Poles and, during the Kulturkampf, together with German Catholics, as Catholics as well: The Kulturkampf, which Otto von Bismarck began in 1871, insinuated a Polish-Catholic-Austrian connection. It was a vehicle for germanisation, as everything Polish including the language were banned from schools and offices. [1]
Polish priests, who taught Catholic religion in Polish were punished and jailed. Like their German counterparts, their sermons were observed and led to jail sentences as well. [2] In 1874, Cardinal Mieczyslaw Ledóchowski was jailed.
Unlike in Russia, they had powerful allies among German Catholic hierarchy and Catholic politicians like Matthias Erzberger, the most prominent Catholic politician during World War I, who often functioned as go-between with the Vatican. (Erzberger 41 ff) Indeed, after Vatican communications, Erzberger promoted a Polish kingdom to be proclaimed in Kraków with loose ties to Austria-Hungary, for which he had support in the Vatican and even Germany (Erzberger, 173) but not from the Hungarian Prime Minister Tisza in Vienna, who was afraid of losing ethnic influence.
According to Erzberger, Germany proposed on one hand a large Poland to be associated with Austria-Hungary and Germany in a central-European economic union. On the other hand, German fiscal policies continued discriminating against Polish interests. Largely due to the British blockage against Germany, Polish populations suffered from hunger during German occupation, with the result, that Prussian popularity reached all time lows during World War I. [3]
During the conclave of 1903, according to its Secretary Rafael Merry del Val, Cardinal Jan Puzyna de Kosielsko of Kraków came to see him, demanding to announce his veto against Cardinal Rampolla in the name of Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria. Merry Del Val protested and refused to even accept the document, which, in the heat of the debate fell on the floor and was picked up by Jan Puzyna de Kosielsko. The College of Cardinals, was outraged. Rampolla, according to Merry del Val, actually gained votes after the veto. Later, he opined to Ludwig von Pastor that Rampolla never had a chance, because the cardinals wanted a new direction after the pontificate of Pope Leo XIII. After his election, the new Pope Pius X decreed automatic excommunication on anyone who should try to influence a conclave with a threat or veto. [4]
Pope Leo XIII was head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 until his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the oldest pope holding office, and had the fourth-longest reign of any pope, behind those of St. Peter, Pius IX and John Paul II.
Pope Pius X was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing modernist interpretations of Catholic doctrine, and for promoting liturgical reforms and scholastic theology. He initiated the preparation of the 1917 Code of Canon Law, the first comprehensive and systemic work of its kind. He is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church. The Society of Saint Pius X, a traditionalist Catholic fraternity, is named after him.
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Prince Jan Duklan Maurycy Paweł Puzyna de Kosielsko was a Polish Roman Catholic Cardinal who was auxiliary bishop of Lwów from 1886 to 1895, and the bishop of Kraków from 1895 until his death in 1911. Named a Cardinal in 1901, he was known for his conservative views and authoritarianism.
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