Milan was definitely a marginal player in the network of economic and political interests and relations that was the foundation on which the Atlantic system started developing in the fifteenth century. An exception has to be made for an influential section of Milan and Lombardy’s religious establishment. From 1648 Capuchins friars from the Lombard provinces of the order operated in the Catholic Kingdom of Congo and neighbouring polities in the context of an ambitious missionary effort (1645-1835) requested by the Congo monarchy and directed by Propaganda Fide. The article focuses on the political role played by some of these friars, in particular fr. Francesco da Pavia, who was the Prefect of the Mission from 1694 to 1701. In 1700 he mediated an agreement among the warring factions within the protracted civil war that devastated the Kingdom of Congo. Fr. Francesco’s diplomatic effort was officially praised by the parts in the conflict and the Congolese and Portuguese Courts, but it was met with ambiguous reactions within the Capuchin order itself and Propaganda. The Capuchins played an important role in making wide sections of the society in Milan and Lombardy familiar with events and developments that characterized the building of the early-modern World system.
Lombardi in Africa fra Sei e Settecento. Una nota sui cappuccini milanesi nel regno del Congo
VALSECCHI, PIERLUIGI
2015-01-01
Abstract
Milan was definitely a marginal player in the network of economic and political interests and relations that was the foundation on which the Atlantic system started developing in the fifteenth century. An exception has to be made for an influential section of Milan and Lombardy’s religious establishment. From 1648 Capuchins friars from the Lombard provinces of the order operated in the Catholic Kingdom of Congo and neighbouring polities in the context of an ambitious missionary effort (1645-1835) requested by the Congo monarchy and directed by Propaganda Fide. The article focuses on the political role played by some of these friars, in particular fr. Francesco da Pavia, who was the Prefect of the Mission from 1694 to 1701. In 1700 he mediated an agreement among the warring factions within the protracted civil war that devastated the Kingdom of Congo. Fr. Francesco’s diplomatic effort was officially praised by the parts in the conflict and the Congolese and Portuguese Courts, but it was met with ambiguous reactions within the Capuchin order itself and Propaganda. The Capuchins played an important role in making wide sections of the society in Milan and Lombardy familiar with events and developments that characterized the building of the early-modern World system.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
