This volume is one of a series of monographs published by the Colombian government to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the birth of Francisco de Paula Santander (1792-1840) and the sesquicentennial of his death. Based largely on documents from Vatican archives, it was prepared over 30 years ago as the author’s doctoral dissertation at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.
Pinilla discusses in detail the mission (1837-42) of Cayetano Baluffi, the first internuncio of the Holy See to New Granada and the other nations of Spanish South America (the latter being accorded one chapter in the text). Although Pope Gregory XVI had defied Spain and recognized the independence of New Granada in 1835, the Vatican and the Granadine government remained at odds over ecclesiastical patronage. In 1824 the Congress of Gran Colombia had enacted legislation asserting rights of patronage similar to those enjoyed by Spain during the colonial period, and the successor government in Bogotá also claimed those rights. Baluffi arrived in Bogotá shortly before the end of the administration of Santander, who pointedly told him that the laws of the nation should be his guide. The author makes it clear that the subsequent administration of José Ignacio de Márquez (1837-41) was equally determined to uphold its regalist prerogatives.
The author also shows that the inevitable conflicts that ensued were aggravated by the choleric and arrogant demeanor of Baluffi, who detected incredulity and immorality everywhere. Even Archbishop Manuel José Mosquera earned his opprobrium for alleged faintheartedness in defending the rights of the church. In the overheated political climate of New Granada, the papal envoy became a willing ally of Catholic militants bent on winning control of the government. According to the author, Baluffi also became the tool of New Granadans who harbored monarchical projects.
Pinilla touches on the monarchists, but fails to adequately discuss them or their relations with Baluffi. The book’s organization, partly chronological and partly topical, leads both to repetition and to insufficient analysis of important topics, though the latter weakness also reflects the nature of the author’s sources. In general, however, this amply documented study will be of great value to scholars of nineteenth-century Colombia and of church-state relations in the immediate postindependence decades. In a brief conclusion, the author credits Baluffi with contributing to the return of the Jesuits to New Granada in 1842, but he also holds the internuncio’s antirepublican activities partly responsible for the rise of anticlericalism.
