The Prague Nuncios and Their Relationship to Non-Catholics at the Turn of the 16th and 17th Centuries

Abstract

In the second half of the sixteenth century, Emperor Rudolf II moved the imperial court to Prague, thus transforming the city into a centre of international diplomacy and the seat of representatives of various powers. Among these were permanent papal nuncios appointed to the imperial court to act on behalf of the Pope as the head of the Catholic Church and the sovereign ruler of the Papal States. During their long and continuous presence in the capital of the Kingdom of Bohemia, nuncios were constantly reminded of the predominantly non-Catholic character of the city, where, moreover, one of the confessions even enjoyed full legal protection of the state. Based on correspondence of the nunciature and other related sources within the context of the development of the Czech lands, the study analyses the ways in which these papal diplomats reflected their immediate surroundings with respect to confessional differences. Primarily, however, it examines whether or not there were certain acceptable attitudes towards non-Catholics and to what degree it was possible to maintain contacts with them. Contrarily, it also identifies areas of their diplomatic activities in which, on principle, confessional boundaries could not be crossed. The study thus shows that, on the one hand, it was not realistically possible to eliminate contacts with non-Catholics altogether, and in some cases negotiations with them were even considered necessary, important or at least acceptable. On the other hand, we have witnessed efforts to clearly define and separate oneself from different confessional trends and their adherents, especially if the surrounding society could possibly interpret the contacts in an incorrect or inappropriate way, thus jeopardizing the credibility of the papal nuncio’s position as the pope’s diplomatic representative.