Pope Leo XII

Annibale della Genga was pope from 1823 to 1829. As one of his first measures he ordered the Jews who had moved into the city during the revolutionary period to be confined again to their ghettos; according to the Britannica severe ghetto laws led many Jews to emigrate. According to the Britannica his domestic policy was one of extreme reaction: he condemned the Bible societies, hunted down Carbonari and Freemasons and built a well-nigh ubiquitous system of espionage. The populace received the news of his death in 1829 with unconcealed joy.

Life dates

1760-1829 (about 69 years old)

Country

Italy, Vatican City

Institutions

Holy See
Papal States

Category

Anti-Judaism, Persecution, Censorship

Level of evidence

B two independent scholarly sources · what does this mean?

Background

Course of events

1. Annibale della Genga was born near Spoleto on 22 August 1760, elected pope by the zelanti on 28 September 1823 and died in Rome on 10 February 1829.
   Evidence: Encyclopædia Britannica, 11. Auflage (1911), Artikel

   „near Spoleto, on the 22nd of August 1760“

   Evidence: Encyclopædia Britannica, 11. Auflage (1911), Artikel

   „he was elected pope by the zelanti on the 28th of September“

   Evidence: Encyclopædia Britannica, 11. Auflage (1911), Artikel

   „died at Rome on the 10th of February“

Response of the Church

1. Among his first measures was an ordinance that confined again to their ghettos the Jews who had moved into the city during the revolutionary period; the Catholic Encyclopedia calls these measures typical of his temper. According to the Jewish Encyclopedia the old restrictions were re-enforced with extreme rigour under Leo XII in 1826. According to the Britannica severe ghetto laws led many Jews to emigrate.
   Evidence: The Catholic Encyclopedia, Bd. 9 (1910), Pontifikat

   „the publication of an ordinance that confined again to their Ghettoes the Jews, who had moved into the city during the period of the Revolution“

   Evidence: The Catholic Encyclopedia, Bd. 9 (1910), Pontifikat

   „These measures are typical of the temper and policy of Leo XII.“

   Evidence: Jewish Encyclopedia (1901 bis 1906), Artikel Popes, The, Abschnitt Pius VI.

   „these rules were often reenforced with extreme rigor; such was the case under Leo XII. (1826)“

   Evidence: Encyclopædia Britannica, 11. Auflage (1911), Artikel

   „Severe ghetto laws led many of the Jews to emigrate.“

2. According to the Britannica his domestic policy was one of extreme reaction. He condemned the Bible societies, reorganised the educational system under Jesuit influence, hunted down the Carbonari and the Freemasons and took the strongest measures against political agitation in theatres. A well-nigh ubiquitous system of espionage sapped public confidence. He condemned the Freemasons and other secret societies in 1825.
   Evidence: Encyclopædia Britannica, 11. Auflage (1911), Artikel

   „His domestic policy was one of extreme reaction. He condemned the Bible societies“

   Evidence: Encyclopædia Britannica, 11. Auflage (1911), Artikel

   „He hunted down the Carbonari and the Freemasons“

   Evidence: Encyclopædia Britannica, 11. Auflage (1911), Artikel

   „A well-nigh ubiquitous system of espionage“

   Evidence: The Catholic Encyclopedia, Bd. 9 (1910), Pontifikat

   „the Free-masons and other secret societies were condemned in 1825“

See also

• 1555-1870 · 315 years

  Ghetto of Rome in the Papal States

  • Italy
  • Vatican City
  • Anti-Judaism
  • Persecution
• Person 1717-1799 · about 82 years old

  Pope Pius VI

  • Italy
  • Vatican City
  • Anti-Judaism
  • Censorship
• Person 1765-1846 · about 81 years old

  Pope Gregory XVI

  • Italy
  • Vatican City
  • Persecution
  • Censorship
• Person 1792-1878 · about 86 years old

  Pope Pius IX (Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti)

  • Italy
  • Vatican City
  • Anti-Judaism
  • Torture
  • Censorship

Scholarly literature and reference works

1. Reference work
   Encyclopædia Britannica, 11. Auflage (1911): Leo XII, 1 January 1911. Original (retrieved 31 Oct 2026)
2. Reference work
   The Catholic Encyclopedia, Bd. 9 (1910): Pope Leo XII, 1 January 1910. Original (retrieved 31 Oct 2026)
3. Reference work
   Jewish Encyclopedia (1901 bis 1906): Popes, The (Gotthard Deutsch, Joseph Jacobs). Original (retrieved 15 Oct 2026)

Last changed on 31 October 2026. Is something missing or wrong? Suggest an addition or correction.