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

APPENDIX. 413
S. S. quelli avvertimenti per togliere i disordini e vitii dalle
galee deU'Armata Christiana : Se diede e li lesse quasi tutti, ma
per la carestia del tempo dissi piu volte, che S. S. i leggesse
e considerasse poi maturamente.
[Orig. Arm. 50 t. 17 (Audientiae annorum 1566-1579) Papal
Secret Archives.]
68. The Briefs of Pius V. and the Archives of
Briefs.
The briefs of Pius V. in the Papal Secret Archives (Arm
39, t. 64 and 65, Arm. 42, t. 25-27 ; Arm. 44, t. 12-20, 26,
31 ; Arm. 45, t. 41, and in a special Armarium the Epistolae
or Brevia ad principes) are substantially completed by the
collection in the Archives of Briefs. The latter, however,
was for a long time almost inaccessible, and that as a result
of the fate that befel them. During the time of the Papal
dominion they were in the Palazzo della Consulta. After
the end of the temporal power in 1870 they were placed for
safety at the Anima. They were then taken to the Palazzo
Altemps because the Secretariate of Briefs had its private
chancery there ;
later on they were transferred to the ground
floor of the magnificent Palazz > della Cancelleria, where I
was able to avail myself of them during a long period of time.
When, as a result of the constitution Sapienti consilio, of June
29, 1908, the Secretariate of Secret Briefs became part of
the Secretariate of State, Pius X. ordered the incorporation
of the archives at the Cancelleria into the Papal Secret
Archives. The acta were transferred during the summer of
1908, finding their final home in the premises near the Specola
of Gregory XIII., which had at one time served as the ponti-
fical armoury. Very opportunely, the Consistorial Archives,
which had hitherto been housed in altogether inadequate
premises on the ground floor of the Cortile di S. Damaso^
were also placed close to them in a room near the Cortile
di Belvedere. It was only when they were united to the Papal
Secret Archives that these two archives became conveniently
accessible to historical research. Thus, as he had done in
other ways in carrying on the traditions of Leo XIII. in
promoting archival research. Pius X. conferred a lasting
benefit upon historical .science.
» See Vol. II. of this work, p. 20."?.