The history of the popes, from the close of the middle ages : drawn ...

CHAPTER III
Government of the States of the Church. Pius V.
IN Relation to Literature and Art.
A MAN of such strictness, such untiring energy, and such
stainless character as Pius V., was pre-eminently fitted for
the task of introducing into the life of the Church the reform
decrees of the Council of Trent, and thus to set the seal upon
the labours of his predecessor. For this reason his pontificate
is of the highest importance, while only less important were
his unflinching struggle against the new doctrines, and his
energetic revival of the old idea of a Crusade against the Turks
in defence of the Christian faith and European civilization.
In comparison with this threefold activity, which was to
a great extent crowned with success, the work of Pius V. as
the ruler of the Papal States^ falls into the background, aU
the more as in this respect he was upon ground that was
unfamiliar to him, and which to a great extent remained so
to the end. He certainly had the wiU to remove abuses and
to restore good order, though he lacked practical experience
and did not know how to temper his severity.
During the latter days of Pius IV. no branch of the temporal
administration had been in such a bad state as that of justice.
The exhortation which Pius V. addressed to the assembled
judges in the Hall of Constantine on October 30th, 1566,^
1 A *list of the provinces of the Papal States, with particulars
of the officials, revenues and troops in the time of Pius V., is in
Varia Polit. 79 (now 80), p. 253 seq., Papal Secret Archives. Cf.
also the introduction, not printed in Alberi, to the *report of
P. Tiepolo of 1569, which is to be found in many collections of
codices (Libraries at Avignon, Berlin, Gotha, Munich, Venice,
Vienna, Vatican, etc.).
* See *Urb. 1040, p. 313, Vatican Library.
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