Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 13.djvu/563

 SAXONY

501

SAXONY

sided with Austria in the struggle between Prussia and Austria as to the supremacy in Germany. Con- sequently in the War of 18(36, when Prussia was suc- cessful, the independence of Saxony was once more in danger; only the intervention of the Austrian Emperor saved Saxony from being entirely absorbed by Prussia. The kingdom, however, was obliged to join the North German Confederation of which Prussia was the head. In 1871 Saxony became one of the states of the newly-founded German Empire. King John was followed by his son King Albert (1873- 1902) ; Albert was succeeded by his brother George (1902-04); the son of George is King Frederick Augustus III (b. 1865). Prince Maximilian (b. 1870), a brother of the present king, became a priest in 1896, was engaged in parish work in London and Nurem- berg, and since 1900 has been a professor of canon law and liturgy in the University of Freiburg in Switzer- land.

The Kingdom of Saxony is the fifth state of the German Empire in area and third in population; in 1905 the average population per square mile was 778.8. Saxony is the most densely peopled state of the empire, and indeed of all Europe; the rea.son is the very large immigration on account of the de\-elop- ment of manufactures. In 1910 the population amounted to 5,302,485; of whom 218,033 wen; Cath- olics; 4,250,398 Evangelican Lutherans; 14,697 Jews; and a small proportion of other denominations. The Cathohc population of Saxony owes its present num- bers largely to immigration during the nineteenth century. Catholicism that can Ix' traced back to the period before the Reformation is found only in one section, the governmental department of IJautzen. Even here there is no continuous Catholic district, but there are a nvnnber of \illag('s where the popula- tion is almost entirely Catholic, and two cities (Ostritz and Schirgiswalde) where Catholics are in the major- ity. It should also be mentioned that about 1.5 per cent of the inhabitants of Saxony consists of the re- mains of a Slavonic tribe called by the Germans Wends, and in their own language "Serbjo". These Wends, who number about 120,000 persons and live in Saxon and Prussian Lusatia, are entirely surrounded by a German poj)ulation; consequently owing to German influence the Wendic language, manners, and customs are gradually disappearing. About 50,000 Wends live in the Kingdom of Saxony; of the.se about 12,000 belong to the Catholic Church; some fifty Wendic villages are entirely Catholic. There is also a large Wendic poijulatioii in the city of Bautzen, where among 30,000 inhabitants 7,000 are Wends.

The Vicariate Apostolic of Saxony, and the Prefect- ure Apostolic of Saxon Upper Lusatia. — As regards the Cathohc Church the Kingdom of Saxony is dividerl into two administrative districts: the Vicariate Apostolic of Saxony, and the Prefecture Apostolic of Saxon Upper Lusatia. The vicariate Apostolic includes the hered- itary lands, that is, those portions of Saxony which before 1635 belonged to the Electorate of Saxony and which the Treaty of Vienna of 1815 did not take from the country; the vicariate also includes the Duchy of Saxe-Altenburg, and the two principalities of Reuss. The Prefecture Apostolic of Lusatia includes the for- mer Margravate of Lusatia, which in 1635 was sepa- rated from Bohemia and given to Saxony; since the Treaty of Vienna of 1815, however, this ecclesiastical district comprises only that part of Upper Lusatia that has remained Saxon, the present fifth Saxon administrative Department of Bautzen. Since the adjustment of the parishes in 1904 the Vicariate Apos- tolic of Saxony comprises (including the small princi- palities of Reuss and Saxe-Altenburg), 26 parishes and 7 expositorships, with, in 1909, 55 priests; Upper Lusatia comprises 16 parishes, of which 7 are Wen- dic, and 2 expositorships, with altogether 30 priests. The clergy are educated at the Wendic seminary at

Prague, the capital of Bohemia; this seminary, which was founded in 1740 by two Wends, was oViginally intended only for Lusatia but now is used for the whole of Saxony. Its pupils first attend the gymnasium of Prague and then the university there.

The Vicariate Apostohc of Saxony was established in 1763 by Pope Clement XIII; before this the con- fes.sors of the electors, who like all the priests in Sax- ony at that era were Jesuits, conducted the affairs of the Church under the title of superior. The most celebrated of these was Father Carlo Maurizio Vol- tor, an Italian, the confessor of the elector and King Frederick Augustus I. Father Voltor was also a noted diplomatist who had much influence at the Court of Vienna, for example, he had some share in obtaining the title of King of Prussia (1701) for the Protes- tant Elector of Brandenburg. The first vicar Apos- tolic was Father Augustin Eggs, S.J.; for some un- known reason he left Saxony after the death of the Elector Frederick Christian (1764). He was followed by Father Franz Herz, S.J., who continued to adminis- ter his oflfice after the suppression of the Jesuits in 1773; after his death (1800) Dr. Johann Alois Schneider (d. 1818) was appointed vicar Apostolic. In 1816 Dr. Schneider was consecrated titular Bishop of Argia, being the first Saxon vicar to be made a bishop. In the troubled times of 1813-14 he was the true friend and trusted adviser of the royal family; he also ac- compani(Hl the king when the latter was imprisoned by Prussia. His succes.sor, Ignatz Beriihanl Mauer- riiann (d. 1845), had the title of titular Bishop of Pel- lia. In 1831 the canons of the (uithedral of Bautzen elected Bi.shop Mauermann as cathedral dean of Bautzen. After Bishop Mauermann's (leath this union of the two highest ecclesiastical oflSces in Sax- ony was dis.solved, but since the death of the cathe- dral dean of Bautzen, Johann Kutschank (1844), the bishop has held both ofhces with the exception of the years 1900-04. Bishop Mauermann was succeeded by his older brother Franz Lorenz Mauermann (d. 1845) with the title of Bishop of Rama. The next bishop was Johann Dittrich (d. 1853), titular Bishop of Korykus, who in 1844 had been elected cathedral dean of Bautzen; he was followed by Ludwig Forwerk (d. 1875), titular Bishop of Leontopohs.

After the Vatican Council (1869-70) Bishop For- werk's skill enabled him to prevent the spread of Old Catholicism in Saxony at the time when the procla- mation of the Dogma of Infallibility led to its devel- opment in Germany. He was followed by Franz Bernert (d. 1890), titular Bishoj) of Azotus, who was succeeded by Dr. Ludwig Wahl (d. 1904), titular Bishop of Cocusus (Cocrun). From 1900 this bi.shop was not able to exercise his office on account of severe illness; during this period the Apostohc See appointed the prothonotary, Monsignor Karl Maas, adminis- trator for the vicariate Apostolic, and the canon of the cathedral at Bautzen, Monsignor Georg Wu- schanski, as administrator for Upper Lusatia. In 1904 Wuschanski was made Vicar Apostolic of Saxony and titular Bishop of Samos. Bishop Wuschanski died, however, by the end of 1905. In 1906 his place was filled by Dr. Alois Schafer. Dr. Schafer was born at Dingelstadt in the Eichfelde (Pru-ssian Province of Saxony) on 2 May, 1853, and in 1863 his parents settled at Chemnitz in the Kingdom of Saxony. In 1878 Dr. Schafer was ordained priest, and was at first active in parish work; in 1881 he was made professor of exegesis at the lyceum at Dillingen in Bavaria; in 1885 he became professor of New Testament exe- gesis at the University of Miinster in Westphalia; in 1894 he was a professor of the same at the University of Breslau, and in 1903 at the University of Stras- burg. His title is: Titular Bishop of Abila, Vicar Apostohc in the Kingdom of Saxony, Administrator Ecclesiasticus in Saxon Upper Lusatia. The vicar Apostohc is appointed by the pope upon the nomina-