1856
After the Crimean War, the Congress of Paris required of Turkey certain reforms within the Ottoman Empire, particularly to the treatment of Christian minorities.

Sultan Abd Al-Hamid II signed the Decree whereby all subjects of the Empire, without distinction of race or religion, were put on a level in the matter of taxation and public offices.

1857
Know-Nothingism originates in the United States. The movement’s object was to seize political power to carry out its program of marked hostility to foreigners and Catholics.

The most important document in the Biblical literature was added to the Vatican Library by Cardinal Mai, the Virgil of the fourth or fifth century, with fifty miniatures, including a portrait of Virgil, well known by the engravings of Santo Bartoli; and others.

Death of St. Dominic Savio. He died of pneumonia. He was one of St. John Bosco’s boys. He started an order of boys within St. John Bosco’s Salesian Order; he called the Immaculate Conception. All but one of the boys were ordained priests. The one who was not ordained, was St. Dominic Savio, he died at the age of fifteen.

1858
Joseph Sarto is ordained a priest. He will be the future Pope St. Pius X.

Pope Pius IX publishes his Papal Encyclical, Amantissimi, about the Mass and its Fruit.

Marian Apparition at Lourdes. The Blessed Virgin Mary appears 18 times at Lourdes, France to St. Bernardette Soubirous, from February 11 to July 16. Our Lady introduced told St. Bernardette: “I am the Immaculate Conception.” Four years earlier, Pope Pius IX declared the Blessed Virgin to Be the Immaculate Conception.

1859
North American College is founded at Rome.

Pope Pius IX publishes his Papal Encyclical, Qui Nuper, on the necessity of temporal power of the Church.

Pope Pius IX modernized the cirriculum of his seminary and promoted a revival of Thomism and founded the Academy of St. Thomas Aquinas.

St. John Bosco forms the Salesian Congregation.

1860
Blessed Emmanuel Ruiz, Blessed Francis Masabki, and their companions were Martyred by the Mohammedans as a direct result of the Decree of 1856. On July 9, a mob of Muslims broke into Blessed Emmanuel’s house. He ran to the Church and consumed the Blessed Sacrament, then he knelt at the Altar and awaited his end. He was seized, amid shouts of “Affirm! Affirm! There is no god but Allah and Mohammed is his prophet!” Blessed Emmanuel responded, “I am a Christian and I will die a Christian!” He laid his head on the Altar, where it was split open with an axes. Blessed Emanuel and his companions were Spanish Franciscans except for Blessed Englebert Kolland, who was Austrian.

Pope Pius IX publishes his Papal Encyclical, Nullis Certe Veris, on Amplification from Above.

Cardinal Joachim Vincent Pecci, the future Pope Leo XIII, protested against the annexation of Perugia by Sardina and the secularizing that followed.

The Seventh Day Adventist church formed by Mrs. Ellen Gould White. This group is absorbed with the Second Coming of Christ, in person. They were originally followers of a Baptist minister, William Miller. They hold their Sabbath on Saturday.

1861
On March 18, Pope Pius IX published his Papal Encyclical, Jamdudum Cernimus, on Italian Revolutionaries.

Ontologism is condemned by the Holy Office. This is an ideological system which maintains that God and Divine ideas are the first object of our intelligence and the institution of God the first act of our intellectual knowledge.

The Kingdom of Sardina became the Kingdom of Italy, formed by Victor Emmanuel II, who was proclaimed King.

Sister Catherine Aurelia Founds the Sisters Adorers of the Most Precious Blood, Daughters of Mary Immaculate; on September 14, on the Feast of the Holy Cross.

Abraham Lincoln becomes the sixteenth President of the United States. President Lincoln sent Ambassador, Archbishop Hughes to Rome for a Papal audience.

1862
On April 7, Pope Pius IX publishes his Papal Encyclical, Amantissimus, on Italian Revolutionaries.

1863
Pope Pius IX publishes two Papal Encyclicals, Quanto Conficiamur, on Clerical Liberties; and Incredibili, about the Chiliean attack on the Church.

1864
Pope Pius IX publishes his Papal Encyclical, Ubi Urbaniano, on Russian persecution of Catholics in Poland.

The Confederate States sent an Ambassador, Bishop Patrick N. Lynch, nicknamed the Rebel Bishop, to the Vatican.

Pope Pius IV issues the Syllabus of Errors, condemning 80 errors.

On December 8, Pope Pius IX published his Papal Encyclical, Quanta Cura, accompanying the Syllabus of Errors.

On May 21, Joseph De Veuster was Ordained a priest and is now known to the world as Father Damien.

1865
The Salvation Army was organized by William Booth. He had been a Methodist minister. He organized this quasi-military society to promote a revival of religion among the masses. The Salvation Army is evangelical in doctrine and aims to harmonize with all churches.

1866
Venetia became part of Italy.

Pope Pius IX sent the incarcerated Confederate President, Jefferson Davis, a gift; a crown of thorns to console him for his sorrows due his frequent time spent in jail.

1867
Blessed Mary Frances of Naples was Canonized a Saint.

The Ku-Klux-Klan, KKK, is organized in Nashville, Tennessee.

The Anglican church was disestablished in Ireland.

Sister Mariam of Jesus Crucified, a Christian Arab of Lebanese origin, became a Carmelite and was accepted at Pau, France.

Pope Pius IX published his Papal Encyclical, Venerabilis, on the Church of Russia.

The dual monarchy in Austria-Hungary is established by Francis Joseph I.

St. Paul of the Cross, founder of the Passionists, is Canonized by Pope Pius IX.

1868
Pope Pius IX on February 29, decreed that all Catholics were forbidden to take part in political life in the usurping the Kingdom of Italy.

1869
Pope Pius IX publishes his Papal Encyclical, Aeterni Patris, on the Convocation of the Vatican Council.

1869-1870
Vatican Council I. Pope Pius IX formally opened the Council on December 8, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, in 1869. The Ecumenical Council pronounced Decrees on the Catholic Faith and on the Church; condemned the Rationalists and Semirationalists, and defined the charism of Infallibility. Three hundred years had passed since the last Ecumenical Council had met in Trent. The Council received five presidents; the chief presiding officer was to be Cardinal Reisach, but he died on December 22, 1869. The Good Cardinal was replaced on January 3, 1870 by Cardinal Filippo De Angelis. The other four presiding officers were, Cardinals Antonio De Luca, Andrea Bizarri, Aloisio Bilio, and Annibale Capalti. The first matter brought up for debate was the Dogmatic draft of Catholic Doctrine against the manifold errors due to Rationalism.

1870
French Emperor, Louis Napoleon III declares war on Prussia, starting the Franco Prussian War.

Birth of Hilaire Belloc at La Celle, St. Cloud, France.

Sister Mariam of Jesus Crucified left for Mangalore, India.

Death of Saint Anthony Mary Claret.

The Piedmontese government of northern Italy made preparations to enter Rome and declare it the capitol city of Italy. It was this Mason backed government that took possession of the Papal States and made them part of the independent Kingdom of Italy. This violent occupation reduced the Papal Land to the Vatican and Lateran palaces and the Papal Villa at Castel Gandolfo. Pope Pius IX refused to recognize the right of the Italian government led by Victor Emmanuel II and his successors. Pope Leo XIII and St. Pius X constantly held the same attitude.

1871
Pope Pius IX names St. Alphonsus Ligouri, Doctor of the Church.

The Old Catholic sect organized in German speaking countries to combat the Dogma of Papal Infallibility. Its rise may be traced from the excommunication of Ignatz von Dollinger, historian, priest, and theologian, on April 18, of this year, for refusing to accept the Dogma on Infallibility. Old Catholics, like Lutherans, are schismatics.

Pope Pius IX publishes three Papal Encyclicals, Ubi Nos Arcano Dei, on Church-State relations in Italy; Beneficia Dei, on the twenty-fifth anniversary of his Pontificate; and Saepe, Venerabiles, also on the twenty-fifth anniversary of his Pontificate. Prussia conquered France in the Franco-Prussian War and established the German Empire.

1872
Pope Pius IX publishes his Papal Encyclical, Quae In Patriarchatu, on the local problems in Chaldea and Babylonia.

The beginning of Kulturkampf in Germany. Catholics were persecuted and the Jesuits were expelled in Germany.

The Catholic Truth Society is organized in Great Britain.

The Jehovah’s Witnesses formed by Charles Taze Russel. Russel was a former Congregationalist. He was a proven perjurer. He claimed he could speak and read Greek, and interpret the Sacred Scriptures. In a court of law, he was given a Greek Bible and asked to translate a verse. He could not do it and finally admitted he did not know Greek. He was an adulterer. His first wife sued him for divorce on the grounds of infidelity. The Witnesses, referred to by many as JW’s, deny the Doctrine of the Holy Trinity; they are not Christians. They also deny the Divinity of Jesus and the Immortality of the human soul. Like the Bogomils before them, they believe that the devil is the master on earth, where he organized the visible part of his empire by founding churches, the great capitalistic organizations and civil societies. Characteristics practices flow naturally from their doctrines, such as refusing to bear arms, salute the flag of one’s country, and participate in the affairs of the secular government. They believe Jesus Christ to be a creature, Michael the Archangel, in fact; and also believe him to be the younger brother of the devil.

1873
The League of the Cross is founded in Great Britain.

The May Laws were enacted in Prussia, giving State control over Catholic education and appointment and discipline of Clergy.

Pope Pius IX publishes two Papal Encyclicals, Quantus Supra, on;locale problems; and on November 21, Etsi Multa, on the invasion of the Papal States.

Birth of St. Theresa of the Child Jesus, the Little Flower. She is the daughter of St. Louis Martin.

Father Damien arrives at the leper settlement in Molokai, Hawaii, May 10.

Patrick Healy becomes president of Georgetown University,making him the first African American president of a predominantly white university in the United States.

1874
Pope Pius IX published three Papal Encyclicals, Vix Dum a Vobis, to Austrian Catholics; Gravibus Ecclesiae, on the current misfortunes of the Church; and Omnem Solicitudinem, on the care of the Holy See for Oriental Rites.

The Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine is founded in Quebec.

1875
Pope Pius IX celebrates the Holy Year Jubilee.

The Diocese of Milwaukee, Wisconsin becomes an Archbishopric on February 12. Archbishop Henni was named Archbishop; he had been the Bishop of Milwaukee since 1844.

Father Krautbauer is consecrated Bishop of the Green Bay Diocese in Wisconsin.

Sister Mariam of Jesus Crucified returned to Bethlehem where she founded a convent.

Pope Pius IX publishes his last Papal Encyclical, Quod Nunquam, addressed to the Prussian Episcopate, concerning Kulturkampf, (civilization conflict).

Father Joseph Sarto, the future Pope St. Pius X, was elected Chancellor to the Bishopric of Treviso.

Archbishop John McCloskey of New York becomes the first American Cardinal.

The State of Missouri passed Freedom of Worship in its State Constitution.

Birth of Bernard Solanus Casey, November 25 in Wisconsin.

1876
The church of Christ, Scientist, commonly referred to as the Christian Scientists, was founded by Mrs. Mary Baker Glover Patterson Eddy. The great hobby of Christian Scientist's is Mental healing, that is, getting rid of the idea that there is really such a thing as matter, sickness, sin, and the consequences of the same. They deny the Holy Trinity; the Divinity of Christ; the creation of man; the maternity of the Blessed Virgin Mary; the future resurrection of all men as well as the Resurrection of Christ. They brand Original Sin, death, and hell as delusions; and consider angels to be, not spirits, but only Divine messengers. These heretics are not Christians.

On the Centennial anniversary of the United States, declaring their independence from Great Britain, France gave the Statue Liberty Enlightening the World, as a gift to the one hundred year old nation.

1877
Pope Pius IX names St. Francis De Sales, Doctor of the Church.

Pope Pius IX names Cardinal Joachim Vincent Pecci as Chamberlain.

Galileo’s Case is published. Giorgio D. Santillano, professor of history and philosophy of science, at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, announces the document used against Galileo was a fraud! St. Robert Cardinal Bellarmine’s writing was forged by a Lutheran adversary of the Florentine scientist.

1878
Death of the excommunicated King of Italy, Victor Emmanuel II on January 9.

Death of the Venerable Pope Pius IX on February 7. His last words came during the Sacrament of Extreme Unction, “Si Proficisce;” meaning, Yes, Depart. He was a good and holy man, a prisoner in the Vatican in his last years. I look forward to his Canonization.

Leo XIII becomes Pope. He was Cardinal Joachim Vincent Pecci. He had been the Papal Nuncio to Belgium; and Bishop of Perugia. He was well educated and promoted study everywhere he went. His brother was a Jesuit priest. He lost his mother as a child while he was away studying for the priesthood, even at that early age.

Pope Leo XIII publishes his first Papal Encyclical on April 21, Inscrutabili Dei, on the evils that afflict human society.

Death of Sister Mariam Baouardy, Stigmata.

On December 28, Pope Leo XIII published his second Papal Encyclical, Quod Apostolici Muneris, on socialism.

Otto von Bismarck acknowledged virtual defeat in his conflict with the Church. Most of the anti-Catholic legislation was withdrawn.

1879
Pope Leo XIII publishes his third Papal Encyclical on August 4, Aeterni Patrias, on the philosophy of St. Thomas.

Pope Leo XIII elevates John Henry Newman to the Sacred College of Cardinals.

Marian Apparition. The Blessed Mother appears together with St. Joseph and St. John the Apostle, dressed as a Bishop, on August 21, at Knock, Ireland. No word was spoken by the Blessed Virgin or the two Saints.

Death of St. Bernadette Soubirous.

1880
Pope Leo XIII publishes three Papal Encyclicals, Arcanum, on Christian marriage; Grande Munus, on Saints Cyril and Methodius; and Sancta Dei Civitas, on the propagation of the Faith.

Mother Cabrini founds the Sisters of the Sacred Heart.

1881
Pope Leo XIII publishes two Papal Encyclicals, Diuturnum, on the Origin of civil power; and Licet Multa, on local controversies.

1882
Pope Leo XIII names St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Doctor of the Church.

Pope Leo XIII publishes three Papal Encyclicals, Etsi Nos, to the Italian Episcopate on Italian conditions; Auspicato Concessum, on the Third Order of St. Francis; and Cum Malta, on local controversies.

Father Michael J. McGivney founds the Knights of Columbus in New Haven, Connecticut.

Pope Leo XIII appoints the first Apostolic Delegate in the United States of America.

Archbishop McCabe of Dublin, Ireland is elevated to the Cardinalate.

Pope Leo XIII Decrees, Predecessors Nostri, that the elections of Cardinals could be held in Rome if the Pope were to die while away from the City.

The Abbey of Buckfast was refounded; it had been surpressed since 1539. Since its restoration the Monastery has become famous for its Tonic wine and Stained glass window making.

1883
The Historical Science Commission is established.

Pope Leo XIII institutes the Feast of the Holy Family.

Pope Leo XIII publishes his Papal Encyclical, Supremi Apostolatus Officio, on the Holy Rosary.

Pope Leo XIII summons the Archbishops and Bishops of the United States to Rome in November for Plenary Council of the Church in the States. Archbishop Gibbons of Baltimore was appointed by the Holy father as Apostolic Delegate.

Death of Karl Marx.

1884
Pope Leo XIII publishes three Papal Encyclicals, Nobilissima Gallorum Gens, on the Religious question; Humanum Genaris, condemning Freemasonry and forbidding all Catholics to be members under the pains of excommunication! [I would urge everyone to read this powerful Encyclical]. The third Encyclical, Superiore Anno, was on the Rosary.

The Third Plenary Council meets at Baltimore, Maryland. The Council was presided over by Archbishop Gibbons of Baltimore. The first solemn session was held on November 9 and the last session concluded on December 7.

The National Council of Catholic Bishops (NCCB), approve the Baltimore Catechism.

The Catholic Truth Society was re-organized. Their means is to spread information of the Faith among Catholics and Protestants. Their Title, in the United States is the International Catholic Truth Society.

Father Joseph Sarto, the future Pope Pius X, was made Judge of Ecclesiastical Tribunal and Vicar General. He was also consecrated Bishop of Mantua.

Father Damien contracts leprosy in the settlement of Molokai.

1885
Pope Leo XIII publishes three Papal Encyclicals, Immortale Dei, on the Christian Constitution of States; Spectata Fides, on the maintenance of denominational schools; and Quod Auctoritate, on Jubilee.

1886
Pope Leo XIII elevates Archbishop James Gibbons to the Sacred College of Cardinals. He is the second Cardinal of the United States.

The Chapel of Antonement Shrines was founded in Quebec.

The first pilgrimage to Our Lady of Lourdes Shrine took place.

Pope Leo XIII publishes three Papal Encyclicals, Jampridem, on anti-Catholic laws in Germany; Quod Multum, on Liberty of the Church; and Pergrata, on the local needs of the Church.

In a survey taken at the request of Bishop Herbert Vaughan, it was found that there were over one thousand Catholic children in the fourteen workhouses of Manchester and the neighborhood and that, on the average, 103 Catholic children left the workhouse schools every year. The Bishop’s report showed that 80% of these children became apostates and subsequently lost to the Catholic Church.

1887
Pope Leo XIII publishes two Papal Encyclicals, Vie Ben Noto, on the Rosary; and Officio Sanctissimo, on the Conditions of the Church in Baveria.

Birth of Francesco Forgione, on May 25 at Pietralcino. He would soon be known to the entire world as Padre Pio.

Queen Victoria of Great Britain celebrates her Golden Jubilee as the Monarch of Great Britain.

1888
St. Teresa Martin of Lisieux enters the Carmelite Order of Nuns.

Pope Leo XIII was very busy with the pen this year, he published eight Papal Encyclicals. They are: Quod anniversarius, on Sacerdotal Jubilee; In Plurimus, on the slavery of Africans; Libertas, on human liberty; Sape Nos, to the Irish Episcopate on the disapproval of boycotting; Paterna Caritas, recalling dissidents to unity; Quam Aerumnosa, on Italo-Americans; Etsi Cunctas, on the Holy See’s program for Ireland; and Exeunte Jam Anno, on right ordering of Christian life.

Death of Bishop Louis-Victor-Emile Bougaud. Besides his powerful sermons, Bishop Bougaud wrote numerous works. In his apologetics he envinces thorough sympathy with his own time and an unwavering hope for the Triumph of the Church.

Death of St. John “Don” Bosco, founder of the Salesian Order.

1889
The Dominicans found the Biblical Institute of Jerusalem.

Catholic University of America was founded at Washington D. C.. Pope Leo XIII sent a delegate, Monsignor Satolli, to be on hand for the festivities representing him.

Mother Katherine Drexel founded the Blessed Sacrament Sisters to teach Indians and Negroes.

Pope Leo XIII publishes two Papal Encyclicals, Magni Nobis, on Catholic University of America; and Quanquam Pluries, on the Patronage of St. Joseph.

Death of Father Damien on April 15 in the leper settlement of Molokai.

1890
Pope Leo XIII names St. John Damascene, Doctor of the Church.

Pope Leo XIII publishes three Papal Encyclicals, Sapientiae Christanae; on the duties of Christian citizens; Dall’ Alto Dell’ Apostolico Seggio, on sects in Italy; and Catholicae Ecclesiae, on African slavery.

The early Perfectionist churches begin forming in the United States, the fundamentalists.

Death of Cardinal John Henry Newman.

1891
Pope Leo XIII, who could possibly be called the “writing Pope,” publishes five more Papal Encyclicals, In Ipso, on Episcopal reunions; his most famous manifesto on May 15, Rerum Novarum, on the condition of the working class (labor); Pastoralis, on religious union; Pastoralis Officii, on dueling; and on September 22, Octobri Mense, on October, the Month of the Holy Rosary.

Sigmund Freud publishes his first work, On Aphasia, a study on neurological disorder.

The Right Reverend John Brady was consecrated Titular Bishop of Alabanda and Auxiliary Bishop of Boston.

In Baltimore, Maryland, Charles Randolph Uncles is ordained the first African American Catholic priest in the United States.

1892
Pope Leo XIII orders the remains of Pope Innocent III to be buried in the Church of the Lateran, the Bishop of Rome’s Cathedral.

Pope Leo XIII publishes six Papal Encyclicals, Au Milieu Des Sollicitudes, on Church-State relations; Quarto Abeunte Saeculo, on Christopher Columbus; Magnae Dei Matris, on the Rosary; Inimica Vis; condemning Freemasonry; Custodi Di Quella Fede; also condemning Freemasonry; and Ad Extremas, on Indian Seminaries.

The Josephite Fathers were founded in Baltimore, Maryland to conduct Negro Missions.

Death of St. Antony Pucci. He was a Servite parish priest.

Death of Cardinal Henry Edward Manning. He converted to the Catholic Faith shortly after Cardinal Newman; he too was involved with the Oxford Movement.

1893
The United States obtains its first Papal Nuncio.

Bishop Joseph Sarto, the future Pope St. Pius X, was elevated to the Sacred College of Cardinals and appointed Patriarch of Venice by his predecessor, Pope Leo XIII.

The Apostolic Delegation was appointed for the United States.

Pope Leo XIII publishes four Papal Encyclicals, Constanti Hungarorum, on the conditions of the Hungarian Episcopte; Laetitae Sanctae, on the Rosary; Non Mediocri, on the Spanish College in Rome; and Providentissimus Deus, on the study of Sacred Scripture.

1894
Death of St. Louis Martin, the father of the Little Flower, St. Teresa. After his death, his daughter, Celine, became the fourth Carmelite Sister in Liesieux Carmel.

Pope Leo XIII, the untiring writer, publishes five more Papal Encyclicals, Caritatis, on the conditions in Poland; Inter Greges, on the Catholic Church in Peru; Litteras a Vobis, on the formation of the clergy; Jacunda Semper, on the rosary; and Christi Nomen, on the Society for the Propagation of the Faith.

1895
The Christian Scientists mother church formed.

Hilaire Belloc graduates from Balliol College, Oxford, taking honors in history.

The Most Reverend William Henry O’Connel was appointed Rector of the American College, Rome.

Pope Leo XIII publishes three Papal Encyclicals, Longinqua, on Catholicism in the United States; Permoti Nos, on the social problems in Belgium; and Adjurtricem, on the Rosary.

Henryk Sienkiewicz publishes his famous novel, Quo Vadis.

Birth of Peter (Fulton J.) Sheen in El Paso, Illinois.

1896
St. Joseph’s Oratory founded in Montreal, Quebec.

Pope Leo XIII publishes four more Papal Encyclicals, Insignes, on the millennium in Hungary; Satis Cognitum, on Church Unity; Apostolicae Curae, on Anglican Orders; and Fidentem Piumque Annum, on the Rosary.

1897
On January 14, Barney Casey adopted the name of Solanus, after St. Francis Solano who was a Franciscan missionary to South America in the seventeenth century.

The Los-Von-Rom Movement is founded.

Pope Leo XIII publishes three Papal Encyclicals, Divinum Illud Munus, on the Holy Ghost; Militantis Ecclesias, a tercentenary of St. Peter Canisius; and Affari Vos, on schools in Manitoba. In this Encyclical, the Pope sent Monsignor Merry Del Val to treat in his name with the Government concerning the obnoxious Manitoba School Law.

Death of St. Teresa of the Child Jesus. In June she was sent to the infirmary of the Convent, never to leave it again. From August 16 on, she could no longer receive Holy Communion because of frequent sickness. On September 30, our beloved Saint died with the words of Divine love on her lips. She said: “I have never given the good God aught but love...I will spend my Heaven in doing good upon the Earth.”

St. Theresa was born on January 2, 1873, and baptized Marie-Francoise-Theresa.

She was professed a nun on the Feast of the Birth of Mary, September 8, 1890.

Her famous words were: "I wish to spend my Heaven doing good upon the earth," have been an inspiration to me and many others.

The above prayer, plus 5 Our Father's; 5 Hail Mary's; and 5 Glory Be's, must be said on 5 successive days before 11 AM. On the 5th set of prayers having been completed, offer one more set-5 0ur Father's, 5 Hail Mary's, and 5 Glory Be's. You will receive a rose after this has been done.