"
This book created many difficulties between the King of Naples and the
occupant of the Papal See, and its author was excommunicated and compelled
to leave Naples, while his work was placed on the index of prohibited
books. Giannone then led a wandering life for some time, and at length
imagined that he had found a safe asylum at Venice. But his powerful
enemies contrived that he should be expelled from the territory of the
Venetian republic. Milan, Padua, Modena afforded him only temporary
resting-places, and at last he betook himself to Geneva. There he began to
write Vol. V. of his history. He was accosted one day by a certain
nobleman, who professed great admiration of his writings, and was much
interested in all that Giannone told him. His new friend invited him to
dinner at a farmstead which was situated not far from Geneva, but just
within the borders of the kingdom of Savoy. Fearing no treachery, Giannone
accepted the invitation of his new friend, but the repast was not
concluded before he was arrested by order of the King of Sardinia,
conveyed to a prison, and then transferred to Rome. The fates of the poor
captives in St. Angelo were very similar. In spite of a useless
retractation of his "errors," he was never released, and died in prison in
1758. His history was translated into French, and published in four
volumes in 1742 at the Hague. Giannone's work has furnished with weapons
many of the adversaries of Papal dominion, and one Vernet collected all
the passages in this book, so fatal to its author, which were hostile to
the Pope, and many of his scathing criticisms and denunciations of abuses,
and published the extracts under the title _Anecdotes ecclesiastiques_
(The Hague, 1738).
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