Based on a wealth of documents long buried in the Vatican archives, Prisoner of the Vatican tells the story of the Church's secret attempt to block the unification of Italy and seize control - not in ancient times, but in the late nineteenth century. For more than fifty years, the pope was a self-imposed prisoner within the Vatican walls, planning to flee Italy, to return only as the restored ruler of Rome and the Papal States. The scheme to dismantle the newborn Italian nation involved not only the cardinals and the Curia but also attempts to exploit the rivalries among France, Germany, Austria, Spain, and England. Kertzer brings to light an untold drama played out among fascinating characters: Pope Pius IX, the most important pontiff in modern history; King Victor Emmanuel, working behind the backs of his own ministers; the dashing national hero Garibaldi; France's ill-starred Napoleon III, and many more. During this time, Italy was besieged from within and without, and Church history changed forever when the pope was declared infallible for the first time. Prisoner of the Vatican looks deep into the workings of the Church in its final bid to regain the pope's temporal power. Kertzer sweeps readers along with riveting, revelatory panache. No one who reads his new book will ever think of Italy, or the Vatican, in quite the same way again.
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"A wonderful history of the Church in the 19th and early 20th centuries. After reading this book you come to understand that the Church's inability to comprehend contemporary ideas and technology is probably a matter of policy rather than profound ineptitude." — David (5 out of 5 stars)
"A wonderful history of the Church in the 19th and early 20th centuries. After reading this book you come to understand that the Church's inability to comprehend contemporary ideas and technology is probably a matter of policy rather than profound ineptitude."
“Kertzer…offers history writing at its best, and provides insight into a little-known chapter in religious and political history.”
“[A] rousing tale of clerical skullduggery and topsy-turvy politics, laced with plenty of cross-border intrigue.”
" A bit slow, but very detailed. "
" I'm sure this book is good if you care about the history of the Vatican. I'm not sure what I expected but this book was not it. I barely managed to continue reading until the end. "
" A little dry, but interesting information "
" Fascinating historical of politics and intrigue by a noted historian. Fills the gap in Italian history between the Romans and its unification in the 19th century. A rather large gap of which I had read little. "
" An interesting legal and medical history around a time of great change following Italy's unification. I learned way more than I needed to about syphilis, sometimes more than once, though, so that's why it gets only 2 stars. "
" A fascinating story about a 19th century Italian peasant woman who stood up to the power of the government, the church and the aristocracy. "
" Though a little repetitive, this was a good story about a peasant woman's fight against the establishment during a period of rapid social change in Italy. "
David I. Kertzer is the New York Times bestselling author of more than a dozen books books, including The Pope and Mussolini, winner of the Pulitzer Prize, and The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara, a National Book Award finalist. In 2005 he was elected to membership in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He is the Paul Dupee, Jr., University Professor of Social Science and professor of anthropology and Italian studies at Brown University, where he formerly served as provost.
Alan Sklar, a graduate of Dartmouth, has excelled in his career as a freelance voice actor. Named a Best Voice of 2009 by AudioFile magazine, his work has earned him several Earphones Awards, a Booklist Editors’ Choice Award (twice), a Publishers Weekly Listen-Up Award, and Audiobook of the Year by ForeWord magazine. He has also narrated thousands of corporate videos for clients such as NASA, Sikorsky Aircraft, IBM, Dannon, Pfizer, AT&T, and SONY.
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