Confessional public diplomacy? Bernardino de Rebolledo’s defence of Catholicism in Denmark, 1655–1656

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article focuses on the possibilities for diplomats in mid-seventeenth-century Europe to engage in confessional public diplomacy beyond their own confessional sphere. It does so by examining two concrete initiatives Bernardino de Rebolledo, Spain’s envoys to Copenhagen, undertook to defend Catholicism: first the support for the controversial conversion of Queen Christina of Sweden to Catholicism, second the reaction to the Danish edict forbidding the practice of non-Lutheran confessions on Danish soil. This analysis demonstrates the Spanish envoys’ understanding of how public opinion worked and how it could be influenced. Moreover, it shows how this occurred in the absence of clear instructions from their superiors in Madrid, demonstrating the autonomy and agency of early modern diplomats in conceiving public diplomacy actions.