Pope Pius VI

Born

25 December 1717

Died

29 August 1799

Elected in 1775, Pius VI had already spent his pontificate resisting the assertion of state authority over the Church in Germany, the Habsburg lands and Naples. He withheld judgement on the Civil Constitution of the Clergy for months before condemning it in the brief Quod aliquantum of March 1791, and in April declared the clerical oath schismatic, fixing the division between constitutional and refractory priests that ran through the rest of the Revolution. France annexed Avignon and the Comtat Venaissin amid a long-running local and diplomatic conflict that predated Quod aliquantum. He aligned with the coalition, was compelled to cede the Legations and surrender works of art at Tolentino in February 1797, and when French troops entered Rome the following February, he refused to renounce his temporal power. Removed from the city, he was carried across the Alps and died a prisoner at Valence on 29 August 1799.

Related peopleForeign Courts & Powers

Duke of Brunswick

Emperor Francis II

King Frederick William II All in this faction →

Articles about

Pope Pius VI

No articles about this figure yet.

Browse all articles →

In the timeline

1 event

25 Dec 1717Birth of Pope Pius VI See them in the timeline →