Inquisition at Work

Inquisition at Work

This is the true story of Francesco Borri from Milan, pursued by the Inquisition and eventually nabbed on April 27, 1670, after a 12-year long chase. Borri was a character almost out a novel, chemist, physician, medicinal botanist, pharmacist, alchemist, mineralogist, aromatherapist, miracle healer, philosopher and in his early youth (as many of us have been) a hopeless idealist.

But first some background. The Inquisition was established in 1232 by Pope Gregory IX as a permanent body for the destruction of heresies. The founding followed the successful campaign by Innocent III to eliminate the Cathar heresy. The Cathars held that everything connected with matter was created by an evil God. Life had to be conducted as an utterly spiritual exercise based on solidarity, work and non violence. They lived in the South of France at the foot of the Pyrenees and even had their own language – but the destruction of the Cathars was so thorough that even their language disappeared. No-one survived, even those who escaped abroad to avoid destruction. 300 Cathars were rounded up in Italy (Verona) and roasted in the largest recorded multiple human bonfire (no doubt for the greater glory of Christ).

The Inquisition was the combined equivalent of the FBI and the CIA with an efficient European network of agents and informants, as we will see in our story and as confirmed by others - Luther for example. While in his native Germany he was well aware of being constantly watched by agents of the Inquisition who reported to Rome his every move. He said, "If I make an odor in Wittenberg, in Rome they smell it immediately." It is not commonly known that Luther suffered from chronic constipation – consequently the bathroom was never far from his thoughts or jokes. Once he was heard saying "Oh God, why did you not make me regular!"

Back to Borri, our protagonist. He went to Rome to become a Jesuit but was expelled from the school after a trivial incident of which he was made the scapegoat. He remained in Rome and started a group to cure the poor and to reform morals by propounding views that today would be called communist. His disciples wore white tunics with a placard around the neck saying, "I am a lamb and a slave of the Angelic Shepherd."

It wasn’t long before the authorities found Borri’s ideas heretical, but in the meantime the plague of 1656 broke out. As a physician, Borri was a follower of Paracelsus’ new school of medicine, instead of the traditional Galenic medicine based on the principles established by Galen in the 3^rd century ad. Today both medicines appear deadly, but the Paracelsian did less harm than the Galenic. For example, as a remedy against the plague Paracelsus prescribed sulfur and salt. Galenic doctors prescribed potions and liniments made with dried figs, the fermented blood of male pigs, the feces of pigeons, raw apples ingested with flour, mashed ox meat and hens or pigeons skinned alive.

In this instance, however, Borri chose to follow Galen’s other suggested remedy against the plague, ‘run away as far and as fast as you can and come back as late possible’ – shorter in Latin, ‘cito, longe, tarde’.

He escaped to Milan but, as the plague in Rome ended, the Inquisition was back at work. In Rome Borri was tried in absentia and condemned. A statue of Borri, made for that purpose, was hanged in view of the crowd, lured to attend by the reward of a special indulgence. The mock execution at Campo dei Fiori is better remembered for an incident that caused Cardinal Barberini to engage in a fist fight with Cardinal Borromeo’s Monsignor in waiting. Being pushed by the unruly crowd, each believed the other to be the pusher.

Borri escaped to Innsbruck in Austria while the trial and abjuration of 6 of his disciples was repeated in Milan in front of the Cathedral with great ceremony, fanfare and more indulgences for the attendants.

Borri remained in the ‘most wanted’ list and now the plot thickens. He went to Innsbruck because he had an admirer in the wife of resident Archduke Carl Ferdinand. On Dec 23, 1658 the Archduke writes a letters to his cousin the Emperor (of Austria and Hungary) where he says he has given a safe pass to Borri, "who is with us as an expert in scientific, philosophical, medicinal, chemical matters and in other matters of great profundity". Borri, he adds, has written a letter to the local bishop renouncing any views that may have been deemed inappropriate by His Holiness (the Pope).

This did not satisfy the Inquisition and Monsignor Carafa, papal Nuncio in Vienna applied pressure on the Emperor to have Borri arrested and extradited. The extant record of the correspondence tells the story – these are letters from the Nuncio to the Pope’s secretary of state, Cardinal Rospigliosi.

Vienna, Dec 21, 1658. "Count Svarzenberg, Butler major to His Serenity (the emperor) assured me that a courier has been dispatched to Inssbruck with the extremest measure of speed to resolve the Borri matter as per your instructions"

But on Jan 4, 1659 the Nuncio must inform his superior that "the very serene Archduke in Inssbruck said he could not accede to our requests concerning Borri".

And on Feb 15, 1659 he writes "I put much pressure (vivissime istanze) on His Serenity with new and effective communications to have the serene Archduke of Inssbruck deliver Borri to the forces of the Ecclesiastical Ministers".

But on Feb 22, 1659 the Nuncio must report that "His Serenity is too much involved in Carnival parties to be bothered with anything else"

On March 8, 1659 however, "His Serenity gave me benign and firm intention to write to his cousin (i.e. Archd. of Innsbruch), with his own wrist and fist, and to send a special envoy so as not to delay the delivery of Borri"

But on May 17, 1659 "I approached His Serenity in Medling where he is hunting egrets and reminded him of the promises he has made so many times" (on Borri).

Finally on June 7, 1659 the Nuncio can write that, "Tomorrow Count Rabatta will travel to Inssbruck with the letter written by His Serenity with his own fist".

However, on June 21 he must regrettably report that on the day of the expected departure, "Count Rabatta fell ill with out-of-tunings of the stomach (sconcerti di stomaco) and intestinal disharmonies". In the 1600 this referred to a nobleman’s real or alleged diarrhea.

It took 10 days to silence the out-of-tunings and for the Count’s intestine to fall back into register. But…as the Count’s foot was finally in the horse’s stirrup (sic) news came from the Emperor’s secretary that Borri was no longer in Innsbruck and was now in the castle and under the protection of the Count of Emps, a confidant of the Archduchess.

And on Jul 19, 1659 a disheartened Nuncio writes, "I learned for certain that the Archduke has given Borri 2000 florins and a safe-pass to the (protestant) city of Strasbourg"

Borri was safe and remained so for many years, gaining fame and success in Strasbourg, England, Holland and especially Denmark. Here the king (Frederick III) counted on Borri to deliver the philosopher’s stone that could transmute any metal into gold, with the use of Borri’s exclusive philosophical stove and philosophical oven.

But the end product was never delivered and the next king was fed up with the massive and useless R&D expenses. Borri had to go. He could have chosen Sweden where he had friends and admirers - but the Middle East fascinated him as a land of magic and source of magical cures and medicines. He was stopped at the border between Hungary and the Turkish Empire. Given the tension between the two empires the guards suspected Borri to be a spy. He was then escorted to Vienna for questioning. Here the new Emperor was less liberal than his predecessor. Besides, the Pope was now Clement IX, the very Cardinal Rospigliosi who had unsuccessfully sought Borri’s arrest years before via the Nuncio Carafa. Borri was immediately delivered to the Inquisition and started his last journey back to Rome.

Borri’s life had a final ironic twist. While in Terni on the way to Rome the local bishop was taken ill and declared beyond cure by the doctors. Borri, given his acquired fame as a healer, was called in to cure him - the bishop recovered. Thanks to this, when in Rome and after the ceremonial abjuration Borri, rather than being burned, was sent to prison in Castel Sant’Angelo where he was treated a little more humanely than usual and where he died on Aug 13, 1695.

 

Jimmie Moglia

-Shakespeare's Views on the News-

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