“His Majesty cannot behold without indignation, how that authority,
   which was appointed by God to maintain order and obedience on earth,
   employs the most perilous weapons to spread disorder and discord.”

This appeal to the conscience of the Vatican remained of course without effect, and things only grew worse.  At the end of the same year Napoleon published at Berlin his famous decrees for the blockade of England, and the exclusion of all English merchandise.  Whether justly or unjustly, the Court of Rome was suspected by Buonaparte of not keeping up the blockade (the most unpardonable of all political offences in his eyes).  At last, by a decree of the 2nd of April 1808, he removed the Marches from the Papal Government, and annexed them to the Kingdom of Italy.  The legations, by the way, had formed part of that kingdom since the treaty of Tolentino.  This experiment proved unsuccessful.  Napoleon soon discovered, what his successor is also likely to learn, that the real evil of the Papal Government consisted not in its territorial extent, but in the admixture of temporal and spiritual authority; that, in fact, its power of working mischief was, if anything, in inverse proportion to its size.  With that rapidity of resolution which formed half his power, he resolved at once to suppress the temporal power of the Popes, and gave instructions to Count Aldini to draw up the necessary decrees.  The Emperor was then on the eve of departure for the Spanish peninsula; and it was during the harassing reverses of his fortunes in Spain, that the following report of Aldini was perused by him:—­

   “Sire,—­Your Imperial and Royal Majesty has considered that the time
   is come to fix the destinies of Rome.

“You have directed me to examine which, amidst the diverse governments that Rome has had during modern times, is most adapted for her actual circumstances, while retaining the character of a free government.  It appears from history, that Crescenzius governed Rome for many years with the title of Patrician and Consul.

   “Pope John XV. having appealed against him to the Emperor Otho, the
   appeal was dismissed, and Crescenzius was confirmed in his office, and
   caused to swear allegiance to the Emperor.

   “The supreme dominion of the Emperors over Rome was exercised without
   contradiction throughout all the dynasty of the Othos and Conrads, and
   only became assailed under Frederick I.

“Afterwards, amidst the multitude of Italian republics, the Roman republic was restored for a time; and, in the 13th century, had for the head of its government a Matteo of the Orsini family with the title of Senator, in honour of whose memory a medal was struck.

   “For a long period the Kings of Naples, of the Anjou race, were
   Senators of Rome.

   “Pope Nicholas III. retained the senatorial dignity for himself; and,
   by a bull of 1268, forbade the election of any Senator, without the
   sanction of the Pope.