44
THE VATICAN AGAINST EUROPE
diplomatic documents, shows how far the Vatican was from considering conciliation: "But let us listen to this tocsin of 2 August 1914. . . . What did it mean for the Habsburgs? That Serbia, an Orthodox people, should be chastised. The prestige of Austria-Hungary, of the Habsburgs— who, with the Bourbons of Spain, were the Jesuits' last prop—and especially that of the heir, their man Francis Ferdinand, would thereby be greatly strengthened. For Rome, the matter was assuming an almost religious importance; the apostolic monarchy's success over tzarism might be considered as Rome's victory over the Eastern schism.... "We have access to a certain number of documents", continues Pierre Dominique, "whose analysis shows beyond doubt that, at least in the beginning, the Vatican looked with satisfaction upon a venture in which the crushing of Serbia would have entailed a decrease in the influence of Russia, whose prestige the Roman Church detested. . . . In these conversations the Secretary of State spoke explicitly in the name of the Pope, who, he informed the Austrian representative, deplored the fact that Austria had not before this inflicted upon the Serbs the punishment they deserved.." Indeed, the despatch of 29 July 1914 from Count Palffy, Austrian Charge d'Affaires at the Vatican, to Count Berchtold, Austrian Minister of Foreign Affairs, leaves no doubt that Pope Pius X and the Curia wanted war. Here is the document:3 "In times of extreme political tension such as those we are now going through, human fantasy runs away with itself, redoubles its intensity and soon goes beyond the limits of common sense. Thus the last few days there has again been a rumour that Pope Pius X had intervened in the Serbian conflict and had been in touch with His Apostolic Imperial Majesty, entreating him to spare the Christian nations the horrors of war. An argument based on such absurd premises is of course bound to lead to the conclusion, as logical as it is erroneous, that there was in fact intervention by the Pope. The real opinion of the Curia is not without interest. When, two days ago, I went to the Cardinal Secretary of State, he did, of course, speak about the serious questions and problems that at present 3
Veroffentlichungen der Kommission fur neuere Geschichte Osterreichs, 26 Wien—Leipzig 1930 pp. 893 and 894.