Summary of SOCG 535, 1672-08-02

Summary of SOCG 535, 1672-08-02

Jesuits

Non-Catholic Christians

Petitions for missionary patents

Scotland

Scottish Catholics abroad

PF Summary of SOCG 435. Robert Monro, a missionary in Scotland, writes in a letter that: a) he has not been able to serve the mission as he wanted, because of a persecution in Scotland that started after letters of Jesuits were found. This happened when one captain Hardy (a Catholic), had a fight with his wife who sent the most confidential letters to the dean of Edinburgh (a heritic called Lauria or Lorenzo), and he sent the letters to the privy council. This Hardy had a correspondence with all the missionaries, and especially with Sig' Bianchi [Francis White] and Padre MacDonel [Francis MacDonnell?]. They also found a letter by Monro, and received detailed information about all the missionaries. They see this as a judgement from God, because these people did not want to return to the church, and the Catholics did not live virtuously enough; b) the council issued another decree by which it was forbidden for Catholics to hear mass, or practice their religion in Scotland; c) the count of Sempil and the baron of Petfodels have been thrown in jail, because they sent their children outside Scotland for education; d) the count of MacDonell of Glengary has been told that he should find security, and that many members of his family will need to behave themselves, and the same goes for many of the Montagnoli; e) in the mountains there are not really any problems. But Monro nor the other missionaries can carry out their missionary activities; f) Frasiro [Francis Fraser] and Kimneries will pay the money, as ordered by the procurator; g) Bianchi  [Francis White] is dying; h) the Procurator [William Lesley], when writing to the missionaries, should call himself Giacomo I'nes. He should also send the letters for the prior to his brother Alessandro Lesleo [Alexander Lesley], because all the letters that are written to Catholics are intercepted; i) he asks for Rome to write to the queen of Scotland so that she will protect the Catholics; j) many Catholics have been imprisoned, and that he himself escaped two times. He has many other things to write that he does not dare to say. Barclaro [Robert Barclay], the rector of the Scottish College in Paris, who sent Monro's letter to the procurator, writes also to the procurator himself, asking to give the missionary parents with the viaticum to the brother of the procurator [Alexander Lesley]. Because the College had spent a lot of money on a chapel, they were not able to give him the money themselves. He writes that the things Monro wrote were true, but that not all the mistreatments of the Catholics were for religious reasons; it is noted however, that they have been treated badly for their religion in the past, but now the Catholics do not have to fear persecution. After a decree that issued the freedom of conscience, the criminal laws against the nonconformists have been suspended, the Catholics can organize mass in private places, and all the other religions have been given public places. Information about this edict is also written by Patrizio Coneo [Patrick Con], and he said that he gave this letter to Cardinal Carlo [Carlo Barberini?] and Cardinal Barberino [Francesco Barberini?]. He writes that it is important to be careful, and one should remember that there are spies [in Paris?] that write everything down to send to England. PF decides to write to the queen about the Scottish Catholics.  

Date discussed: 1672-08-02

Additional comments

PF

APF SOCG 435, 127r-128v

1672

See for the corresponding ACTA: ACTA 42.

Original

Italian

Latin

Summary

757

Origin: [Rome]

Destination: [Rome]