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Augustin Theiner, Cong.Orat., (11 April 1804, in Breslau – 8 August 1874, in
Civitavecchia Civitavecchia (; meaning "ancient town") is a city and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Rome in the central Italian region of Lazio. A sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea, it is located west-north-west of Rome. The harbour is formed by two pier ...
) was a German theologian and historian. He was the son of a
shoemaker Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand, often by groups of shoemakers, or cobblers (also known as '' cordwainers''). In the 18th century, dozens or even hundreds of masters, journeymen ...
. As a boy, he was a pupil at the gymnasium of St. Mathias at Breslau,
Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...
, then in the
Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Re ...
, and studied theology in the same city. Together with his brother Anthony he wrote, ''Einfuhrung der erzwungenen Ehelosigkeit bei den Geistlichen'' (1828). At the advice of this brother he abandoned theology and turned his attention to law, which he studied at Breslau and Halle, and in 1829 he obtained a degree in law at the latter university. He then received a scholarship from the Prussian Government, which enabled him to make researches in Belgium, England, and France as to the sources of
Canon law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...
. He finally went to Rome, where he settled permanently. Here, under the influence of Count Reisach, then rector of the Propaganda and later cardinal, the change in his opinions was completed. In 1835, he wrote the ''Geschichte der geistlichen Bildungsanstalten'', and in 1836 the ''Disquisitiones criticae'', on the sources of canon law. Soon after this he became a priest and entered the Oratory of St. Philip Neri. In the succeeding years he wrote the following works: *''Die neuesten Zustände der kath. Kirche in Polen und Russland'' (1841) *''Die Rückkehr der regierenden Hauser Braunschweig und Sachsen zur kath. Kirche'' (1843) *''Zustände der kath. Kirche in Schlesien 1740-58'' (1846) *''Kardinal Frankenberg'' (1850) He was commissioned by
Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...
, who had given him a position in the Vatican Library in 1850, to write the ''Geschichte des Pontifikats Klemens XIV'' (1853; Italian translation, 1855). In this work he showed himself an opponent of the Jesuits, with whom he had been on good terms until 1844, so that the work was forbidden in the States of the Church. In 1855, Pius IX appointed Theiner as Prefect of the
Vatican secret archives , seal = Seal of the Vatican Secret Archives.svg , seal_width = 200 , seal_caption = Former seal of the Vatican Apostolic Archive , logo = , formed = , jurisdiction = , headquarters = Cortile del Belvedere, Vatican City , coordinates ...
. He now published his collections of authorities drawn from these: *''Die Fortsetzung der Annalen des Baronius'' (3 vols., 1856) *''Vetera monumenta Hungariae'' (2 vols., 1859–60) *''Poloniae et Lithuaniae'' (4 vols., 1860–64) *''Slavorum meridionalium'' (2 vols., 1863) *''Hibernorum et Scotorum'' (1864) *''Codex dominii temporalis apostolicae sedis'' (3 vols., 1861–62) *''Monumenta spectantia ad unionem ecclesiarum Graecae et Romanae'' (1872). Both before and during the
First Vatican Council The First Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the First Vatican Council or Vatican I was convoked by Pope Pius IX on 29 June 1868, after a period of planning and preparation that began on 6 December 1864. This, the twentieth ecu ...
he was in close connection with the opponents of
papal infallibility Papal infallibility is a dogma of the Catholic Church which states that, in virtue of the promise of Jesus to Peter, the Pope when he speaks ''ex cathedra'' is preserved from the possibility of error on doctrine "initially given to the aposto ...
. Because he communicated to them the order of business of the Council, that had been kept secret, he was deposed from his dignities and offices. Whether he died at peace with the Church is questionable. His correspondence with the
Old Catholic The terms Old Catholic Church, Old Catholics, Old-Catholic churches or Old Catholic movement designate "any of the groups of Western Christians who believe themselves to maintain in complete loyalty the doctrine and traditions of the undivide ...
scholar, Johann Friedrich, during the years 1870-73 shows that he held the same views as the latter; on the other hand Count Hermann Stainlein asserts that he knew Theiner during this period as a loyal Catholic priest. In any event, he was buried at the
Teutonic Cemetery The Teutonic Cemetery ( it, Cimitero Teutonico, "Camposanto of the Teutons and the Flemish") is a burial site adjacent to St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City. Burial is reserved for members of the Confraternity of Our Lady of the German Cemeter ...
, adjacent to
St. Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican ( it, Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano), or simply Saint Peter's Basilica ( la, Basilica Sancti Petri), is a church built in the Renaissance style located in Vatican City, the papal e ...
, which is reserved for German-speaking residents of the city in service to the institutions of the Catholic Church.Vatican City website "Teutonic Cemetery"
There is no doubt as to his large scholarship and his services to history. After his death appeared the work, ''Acta genuina Concilii Tridentini'' (1874), very imperfectly edited.


Works

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Theiner, Augustin 1804 births 1874 deaths 19th-century German historians Historians of the Catholic Church Clergy from Wrocław 19th-century German Roman Catholic priests Burials at the Teutonic Cemetery Oratorians Prefects of the Vatican Secret Archives Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg alumni People from the Province of Silesia German male non-fiction writers