April 8 – Don Bosco’s Prince; nobility of blood joins nobility of spirit

April 7, 2011

Augusto Czartoryski was born on 2 August 1858 in Paris, France, the firstborn son to Prince Ladislaus of Poland and Princess Maria Amparo, daughter of the Queen of Spain. The noble Czartoryski Family had been living in exile in France for almost 30 years, in the Lambert Palace. Here, with the hope of restoring unity […]

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Louis XIV Sells the Crown Jewels to Feed the Poor

April 4, 2011

  Hunger and suffering were to be seen everywhere in France during the cruel winter of 1709. To alleviate the plight of the poor, Louis XIV commanded the amount of food served at his table to be cut back; his solid silver plate and flatware to be taken to a jeweler, melted down and turned […]

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The Beauty of Life in Social Relationships

April 4, 2011

 by Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira Old magazines are often very charming. This is true even when what comes down to us are only loose undated pages that give us glimpses of the remote past. A Paris journal of the last century, L ‘Illustration, carried an article, “Customs of the Café Valois,” written by A. de […]

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April 4 – Her son helped found the Templars

April 4, 2011

Saint Aleth of Dijon (Montbard)   Mother of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, she belonged to the highest nobility of Burgundy. Her husband, Tescelin, was lord of Fontaines. Saint Bernard of Clairvaux was the third of her seven children.  At the age of nine years, Bernard was sent to a much renowned school at Chatillon-sur-Seine, kept […]

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Do you know a leader?

April 4, 2011

Think of personal acquaintances who have demonstrated leadership qualities, sometimes in difficult circumstances. In this world so bereft of leadership, what more generous almsgiving could there be than to reach out to those we know have leadership qualities and assist them in this time of great need? Please give them Nobility and Analogous Traditional Elites […]

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The mortally wounded knight from Auvergne who dragged himself to the chapel to die

March 31, 2011

When Mustapha finally called off his troops, it was estimated that he had lost nearly 2,000, most of them the cream of the Janissary advance guard. The defenders had lost only ten Knights and seventy soldiers…. It was at the close of this day that a Knight of Auvergne, Abel de Bridiers de la Gardampe, […]

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Nobility of Birth Seems a Fortuitous Fact, but It Results from a Benevolent Design of Heaven

March 31, 2011

From the allocution of Leo XIII to the Roman Patriciate and Nobility on January 21, 1897: Our heart rejoices to see you here again, united by a concord of ideas and affections that honor you. Our charity knows no partiality, nor ought to know any, yet it is not to be blamed if it takes […]

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The Bartlett pear is called “The Good Christian” in France, after St. Francis of Paola introduced it

March 31, 2011

“Said to have originated in Calabria in southern Italy, Bartletts probably were introduced to France by St. Francis of Paola. St. Francis brought a young tree as a gift for King Louis XI of France, who had summoned him in the hope that the saint would miraculously cure the king’s many illnesses. When the king […]

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Baldwin I of Jerusalem receives help from King Sigurd and his 10,000 Vikings

March 28, 2011

After the fall of Jerusalem, a large number of the crusaders returned to Europe, leaving the remainder in a precarious position. On the land they were completely surrounded by hostile Moslems, who viewed the militant Christians as sworn enemies of Islam. To the north and east, the territory of the Seljuk Turks had broken down […]

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Garcia Moreno: Heroic President of Ecuador

March 28, 2011

Written by José Maria dos Santos   Manly Catholic of intransigent principles, slain by the enemies of the Faith because of his consistency and courage in defense of the Church and Papacy Gabriel Garcia Moreno was born in Guayaquil, in southern Ecuador on December 24, 1821. His father, Gabriel Garcia Gómez was Spanish, while his […]

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March 28, grandson of Clovis, but another penitent David

March 28, 2011

St. Gontran, King and Confessor He was son of King Clotaire, and grandson of Clovis I and St. Clotilda. Being the second son, whilst his brothers Charibert reigned at Paris, and Sigebert in Austrasia, residing at Metz, he was crowned King of Orleans and Burgundy in 661, making Challons on the Saone his capital. When […]

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March 25 – The Annunciation: “Of His Kingdom, there shall be no end.”

March 24, 2011

The Annunciation, by Father Thomas de Saint-Laurent Out of love for us, the Eternal Word was made flesh in the chaste womb of Mary. His plan was marvelously arranged. From all eternity, He chose a man after His heart who would be the virginal spouse of His divine Mother, His adopted father on earth, and […]

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The Conquest of Jerusalem in the First Crusade

March 24, 2011

In June of 1099 [the First Crusade] arrived before the walls of Jerusalem, which was then held by the Fatimid Arabs of Egypt. With their usual religious zeal and grim determination, the Christians prepared to attack the walls. Their fighting force had been reduced to 1,200 knights and 10,000 foot soldiers, with a similar number […]

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Elitism

March 24, 2011

Folha de São Paulo, December 28, 1977 by Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira In more than one progressivist-inspired publication I have run into the adjective, “elitist,” needless to say employed in a strongly pejorative sense. Indeed, from the psychological standpoint, progressivism is an amalgamation of all kinds of mediocrity, triviality and even vulgarity. As a consequence, […]

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A deer guarded this noble saint from the unwanted advances of men

March 24, 2011

March 24, St. Catherine of Sweden Patroness against abortion and miscarriage. The fourth child of Saint Bridget and her husband, Ulf Gudmarsson, born 1331 or 1332; died 24 March, 1381. At the time of her death Saint Catherine was head of the convent of Wadstena, founded by her mother; hence the name, Catherine Vastanensis, by […]

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Saint Louis, the height of chivalry

March 21, 2011

Unlike [Frederick II of Germany], Louis frequently ignored a practical course of action that would derive a benefit for himself and chose instead one that entailed suffering for the benefit of the Church and Christendom. Of all the problems that beset Christian life, the continual harassment by the Saracens of the Holy Places, the pilgrims […]

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Letter from Archbishop Custódio Alvim Pereira

March 21, 2011

Archbishop Emeritus of Lourenço Marques-Maputo Rome, March 25, 1994 Feast of the Annunciation   Dear Dr. Plinio: I attentively read your work, Nobility and Analogous Traditional Elites in the Allocutions of Pius XII, which Your Excellency sent me through the TFPs’ representative in Rome, Mr. Juan Miguel Montes. I cannot fail to congratulate you on […]

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Sorbonne 1968: A Devastating Cultural Revolution Meets Unexpected Resistance 40 Years Later: Part 2

March 21, 2011

by Luis Dufaur The name Isabella — that of a 5 year-old girl killed by being thrown from a 6th floor flat in São Paulo, Brazil — still resounds in everyone’s minds. Her death has an especially terrifying aspect: the killer’s lack of moral sense. This complete lack of moral sense gives us the shivers. […]

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March 21: St. Nicholas of Flüe–he fought with rosary in one hand and sword in the other

March 21, 2011

St. Nicholas of Flüe, patron of: -Switzerland -difficult marriages -large families -judges  

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Saint Joseph, Martyr of Grandeur

March 17, 2011

by Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira To have an idea of what Saint Joseph—the Patron of the Church—was like, we must consider two prodigious facts: he was the foster father of the Child Jesus and he was the spouse of Our Lady. The husband must be proportional to the wife. Now who is Our Lady? She […]

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What’s in a name?

March 17, 2011

During the Terror phase of the French Revolution, all titles of nobility were proscribed. The viscount of Saint-René was interrogated: “What is your name?” “Viscount of Saint-René.” “There are no more viscounts.” “I’m called de Saint-René.” “No one is de any longer.” “I’m called Saint-René.” “There are no more Saints.” “So then, I’m René.” “There […]

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Sorbonne 1968: A Devastating Cultural Revolution Meets Unexpected Resistance 40 Years Later – Part I

March 17, 2011

by Luis Dufaur When the student riots began at the Sorbonne University in France in 1968, the advocates of this “cultural revolution” did not blush to admit they wanted to bring about the ruin of civilization as we know it. However, their vision of this catastrophe was enigmatic: “Soon we will have charming ruins,” they […]

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Saint Patrick, whose name (Patricius) means “noble”

March 17, 2011

Apostle of Ireland, born at Kilpatrick, near Dumbarton, in Scotland, in the year 387; died at Saul, Downpatrick, Ireland, 17 March, 493. He had for his parents Calphurnius and Conchessa. The former belonged to a Roman family of high rank and held the office of decurio in Gaul or Britain. Conchessa was a near relative […]

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Japan’s emperor in historic speech: ‘Never give up hope’

March 17, 2011

Tokyo (CNN) — Japan’s beloved emperor dramatically took to the national TV airwaves Wednesday and buoyed the spirits of his disaster-stricken citizens in an extraordinary address before a nation grappling with the aftermath of an epic earthquake and a devastating tsunami, and amid growing fears of a nuclear catastrophe. An address by a sitting emperor […]

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Doña Marina

March 14, 2011

Before telling about the great Montezuma and his famous city of Mexico and the Mexicans, I wish to give some account of Doña Marina, who from her childhood had been the mistress and Cacica of towns and vassals. It happened in this way: Her father and mother were chiefs and Caciques of a town called […]

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Our Lord Jesus Christ Willed to Be Born a Noble; He Himself Loved the Aristocracy

March 14, 2011

From the allocution of Pius IX to the Roman Patriciate and Nobility on December 29, 1872: Jesus Christ Himself loved aristocracy; and if I am not mistaken, I expounded upon this idea on another occasion. He too chose to be of noble birth, of the House of David; and His Gospel shows us His family […]

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Condolences and support to Emperor Akihito

March 14, 2011

Following the disasturous earthquake and tsunami which hit the north-eastern coast of Japan on Friday afternoon, local time, many reigning monarchs have sent messages of condolence and support to Emperor Akihito of Japan. http://www.theroyalforums.com/22379-monarchs-send-condolences-to-japanese-emperor/ The members of Nobility.org unite their fervent prayers for the Japanese people in this hour of great distress.

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March for Life, Brussels, March 27, 2011

March 14, 2011

Duke Paul of Oldenburg cordially invites you to march with him in defense of those who cannot defend themselves: Brussels — 27 March 2011 — Koningsplein — 3 pm In 2009, 18.870 abortions were performed in Belgium. Most women felt forced to have an abortion because of “social, economical or cultural considerations. If they would […]

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March 14, St. Matilda, Queen of Saxony – Patroness of Those Falsely Accused

March 14, 2011

  Queen of Germany, wife of King Henry I (The Fowler), b. at the Villa of Engern in Westphalia, about 895; d. at Quedlinburg, 14 March, 968. She was brought up at the monastery of Erfurt. Henry, whose marriage to a young widow, named Hathburg, had been declared invalid, asked for Matilda’s hand, and married […]

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Cromwellian vulgarity receives a noble riposte

March 10, 2011

The youthful Rosenkavanz was ambassador to the ephemeral republican government of Oliver Cromwell and heard this rebuke from the latter: “Your king chooses rather immature representatives. One can barely say you have a beard.” “And yet my beard is older than your republic,” replied the ambassador. Adolfo Padovan, Il libro degli aneddoti (Milan: Bottega di […]

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In Defense of the Catholic Social Order

March 10, 2011

by Nelson Ribeiro Fragelli First published on Dec. 29, 2003 This year [this article was originally published in 2011] we celebrate the tenth anniversary of the launching of the book: Nobility and Analogous Traditional Elites. This last work of Professor Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira outlines a true program to bring the world out of the […]

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March 10, St. John Ogilvie – Noble Scot

March 10, 2011

Ogilvie, the son of a wealthy noble, was born into a Calvinist family near Keith in Banffshire, Scotland and was educated in mainland Europe where he attended a number of Roman Catholic educational establishments, under the Benedictines at Regensburg in Germany and with the Jesuits at Olomouc and Brno in the present day Czech Republic. […]

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Franz Joseph, Emperor of Austria-Hungary, washes the feet of the poor on Holy Thursday

March 7, 2011

In 1850, Franz Joseph participated for the first time as emperor in the second of the traditional Habsburg expressions of dynastic piety: the Holy Thursday foot-washing ceremony, part of the four-day court observance of Easter. The master of the staff and the court prelates chose twelve poor elderly men, transported them to the Hofburg, and […]

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Nobility is a Gift from God

March 7, 2011

From the allocution of Pius IX to the Roman Patriciate and Nobility on June 17, 1871: One day a Cardinal, a Roman prince, presented his nephew to one of my Predecessors, who on that occasion made a very true statement: that thrones should be upheld principally through the nobility and clergy. For there is no […]

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Every Uniform Sends a Message

March 7, 2011

Clothing sends a message, for better or for worse.

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Queen Blanche of France shapes the young Saint Louis IX for the trials of kingship

March 3, 2011

When young Louis inherited the French crown at the age of twelve upon Louis VIII’s premature death, he also inherited a royal domain that was greatly expanded by his grandfather, Philip Augustus…. The virtue of any young man is strengthened by grace achieved through prayer and obedience to his duties, but Saint Louis had the […]

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Tradition, Family, and Property by Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira

March 3, 2011

Once upon a time, there was a young man torn by a critical conflict of affections. He loved his charming spouse with all his soul. Yet at the same time, he had profound affection and respect for his mother. However, relations between mother in-law and daughter in-law were tense. The enchanting but evil young woman, […]

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The often thankless task of quietly preserving one’s heritage

March 3, 2011

In This Hawaiian Scavenger Hunt, A Princess Seeks Palace Treasures King’s Bed Went Missing in 1893 Revolt, But Iowa Returns a Mahogany Chair http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704013604576104611711914484.html

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March 2, Saint Agnes of Prague – another noble saint

March 2, 2011

Born a Princess, the daughter of King Ottokar I and Queen Constance of Bohemia. Relative of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary. Educated by Cistercian nuns at Trebnitz, Germany. Though she early perceived a call to religious life, Agnes was for years promised into a series of arranged marriages for political reasons. At age three she was […]

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Pinon: “I prefer to be the first logger of France, than the last of its barons”

February 28, 2011

In the French region of Auvergne there was a logging family called Pinon who could prove descent from loggers of the time of Charlemagne.* The family was respected highly, and Louis XIV himself would send greetings to the patriarch on his birthday. Wishing to grant the head of the family a nobiliary title, the King […]

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A Monument Raised from a Ruin, an Institution from a Custom

February 28, 2011

by Plinio Correa de Oliveira “Consider the diversity of the Middle Ages: on the one hand, there is the razing of cities, the fall of empires, the struggle between races, the confusion of peoples, violence and lamentations; there is corruption, barbarianism; institutions fall and institutions rise; men disperse and make nations, whole peoples are led […]

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Prince Kaunitz: sacrificing personal feelings for the good of the State

February 24, 2011

Prince Kaunitz, Chancellor of State and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Empress Maria Theresa, encouraged her to appoint a personal enemy of his to the post of Minister of War. The Empress was surprised at the suggestion, so he explained: “He is indeed my personal enemy, but he is a friend of the State.” […]

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Although Equal by Nature, Men Should Not Occupy the Same Position in Social Life

February 24, 2011

From Benedict XV’s encyclical Ad beatissimi Apostolorum, of November 11, 1914: Face to face with those to whom either fortune or their own activity  has brought an abundance of wealth stand the proletaires and the workers, inflamed with hatred and jealousy because, although they share the same nature, they are not in the same condition. […]

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“God wills it!”—Blessed Pope Urban II launches the First Crusade

February 21, 2011

The intellectual and moral leadership of Europe passed into the hands of Blessed Urban II, a Pope who was uniquely qualified to bring the crusading idea into reality. As a Frenchman and former Cluniac prior, he had the gift to awaken the religious fervor of the French, Lorraine, and Norman knights that formed the core […]

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Regionalism, Tradition and Good Taste

February 21, 2011

by Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira In the field of art, two equally erroneous extremes should be avoided. One is cosmopolitanism, which strives to establish only one art form for the whole world without considering the characteristics proper to each people and each region. The other is nationalism, which rejects any outside influence, even when legitimate […]

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Don Pelayo rejects the call to surrender and triumphs at Covadonga

February 17, 2011

The great succession of Spanish warriors like El Cid, Saint Ferdinand, the Duke of Alva, and Don Juan of Austria would not have existed if Don Pelayo, the first nobleman in that heroic tradition, had not had the courage and fortitude to risk all to defy the Mohammedan occupation of his homeland. Pelayo gathered about […]

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Jesus Christ Did Not Teach a Chimerical Equality Nor Disrespect for Authority

February 17, 2011

[From the Apostolic Letter Notre charge apostolique of Pope Saint Pius X, August 25, 1910]: Then, if Jesus was kind to those who went astray and to sinners, He did not respect their erroneous convictions, however sincere they might have appeared. He loved them all to instruct them, to convert them and to save them. […]

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Saint Clotilda’s suffering prayers secure the conversion of Clovis

February 14, 2011

Two great saints, Clovis’s wife Clotilda and Bishop Remigius, worked with energy and tact to bring Clovis into the Church, attesting that few of the great works of Christian civilization are the products of power or genius but rather the result of sanctity. Clotilda, a Catholic Burgundian princess, brought to their marriage an indomitable faith […]

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In Society There Should be Princes and Vassals, Proprietors and Proletarians, Rich and Poor, Learned and Ignorant, Nobles and Plebeians

February 14, 2011

In the motu proprio Fin dalla prima, of December 18, 1903, Saint Pius X summarizes the doctrine of Leo XIII on social inequalities: 1. Human society, as God established it, is composed of unequal elements, just as the members of the human body are unequal. To make them all equal would be impossible, and would […]

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Marshall Osório gives the corrupt horsetrader a lesson on honor

February 10, 2011

During the Paraguayan War (1864-1870), General Osório was approached by a horse dealer wanting to supply the Army. Most of his horses were worthless, but he wanted the general to give him a letter of recommendation to the Commission responsible for purchasing. The general replied: “Man, you understand the trade and know well the Government’s […]

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The Church Loves All the Classes and the Harmonious Inequality Among Them

February 10, 2011

Leo XIII teaches in his allocution to the Roman Patriciate and Nobility on January 24, 1903: The Roman Pontiffs have always taken care to equally protect and ameliorate the lot of the humble, and to support and augment the honor of the upper classes. For they carry on the mission of Jesus Christ, not only […]

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Saint Thomas More’s great love for his father and authority

February 7, 2011

Whensoever [Sir Thomas More] passed through Westminster Hall to his place in the Chancery by the Court of the King’s Bench, if his father, one of the judges there, had been sat [before] he came, he would go into the same court, and there reverently kneeling down in the sight of them all, duly ask […]

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When Society is Corrupt, Is There a Solution?

February 7, 2011

by Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira A while back, the Italian Parliament voted to overturn prison sentences for politicians convicted of receiving illegal campaign contributions in light of unprecedented scandals. The legislation established that illegal contributions to political campaigns were no longer crimes but simply “civil offenses,” where those convicted would no longer be arrested but […]

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Larochejacquelein is killed by the men whose life he spared

February 3, 2011

While Turreau was thus devastating La Vendée, where were Larochejacquelein, Stofflet, and Charette? Had they forgotten their country and its cause—were they deaf to her cries of distress? Charette still fought in the depths of the Marais; Stofflet in the recesses of the Bocage; but Larochejacquelein, the young, the brave, the chivalrous, the peasants’ idol […]

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Just as the Diverse Members in the Human Body Are Arranged Among Themselves, So Also the Social Classes Should Integrate in Society

February 3, 2011

[In the encyclical Rerum Novarum, of May 15, 1891, Pope Leo XIII affirms]: The great mistake made in regard to the matter now under consideration is to take up with the notion that class is naturally hostile to class, and that the wealthy and the workingmen are intended by nature to live in mutual conflict. […]

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Jean Chouan’s feudal love for the Prince of Talmont

January 31, 2011

Jean Chuoan had been aware of the expected passage of the Loire, although not of the precise point at which it would be effected; and one day he had given a rendezvous to Puisaye, in the forest of Pertre, with a view to concert measures for a coalition of the Breton with the Vendean insurgents, […]

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Two Feminine Ideals

January 31, 2011

By Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira On the right, (above) we have the Servant of God Maria Clotilde of Savoy (1843-1911), outstanding for her birth, her grand personal distinction, as well as for her virtue. She will probably be elevated to the honors of the altars, since the cause of her beatification is already under way. […]

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Jean Chouan rises for the King in Brittany

January 27, 2011

It was the 15th August 1792. An order from the directory of the district had summoned to St. Ouen-des-toits all the young men of the neighboring parishes, to enroll themselves in the national guard by voluntary enlistment. Most of them obeyed the summons; but the very sight of the officers with their registers inspired them […]

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Social Inequality Redounds to the Advantage of All

January 27, 2011

Leo XIII returns to the subject of social inequality in the encyclical Rerum Novarum, of May 15, 1891:   Let it, then, be taken as granted, in the first place, that the condition of things human must be endured, for it is impossible to reduce civil society to one dead level. Socialists may in that […]

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The capture and death of the indomitable Charette

January 24, 2011

On the 21st February his troop, now reduced to less than two hundred men, was attacked by General Travot, one of the ablest officers of Hoche. The Vendeans behaved with the greatest courage, but they were overwhelmed with numbers. The eldest brother of the general, Charette la Colinière, and several officers fell; and he himself […]

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