Publication of the “Dialogues.”—Applause of Galileo’s Friends and the Learned World.—The hostile Party.—The Jesuits as Leaders of Learning.—Deprived of their Monopoly by Galileo.—They become his bitter Foes.—Having the Imprimatur for Rome and Florence, Galileo thought himself doubly safe.—The Three Dolphins.—Scheiner.—Did “Simplicius” personate the Pope?—Conclusive Arguments against it.—Effect of the Accusation.—Urban’s Motives in instituting the Trial. By the beginning of January, 1632, the printing of the “Dialogues” was so far advanced, that on the 3rd Galileo had the satisfaction of telling his friend, Cesare Marsili, at Bologna, that the work would be completed in ten or twelve days.[254] It did not, however, appear till February. On the twenty-second of that month Galileo presented his book to the Grand Duke, to whom it was dedicated, and to the other members of the house of Medici.[255] On the twenty-third he sent at first thirty-two copies to Cesare Marsili.[256] He had a large number of copies handsomely bound for his powerful friends and patrons at Rome, but they could not be despatched immediately, since, owing to the continued prevalence of the plague, they would have had to be purified in the quarantine houses, which might have injured them. It was not till May that two unbound copies reached the papal residence in a roundabout way.[257] One of these came into the hands of Cardinal Francesco Barberini, who lent it to Father Castelli. In a letter to Galileo of 26th September, 1631,[258] he had vowed that, after the appearance of the[152] “Dialogues,” he would read no other book but that and the Breviary; and in a letter of 29th May,[259] he now expressed to the author his admiration of his work, which surpassed all his expectations. Shortly afterwards, Count Filippo Magalotti, who was on very friendly terms with Galileo, and from his relationship to the Barberinis, was an influential personage, imported eight copies from Florence, and, as charged by the author, presented one copy each to Cardinal Antonio Barberini, to the Tuscan ambassador Niccolini, Father Riccardi, Mgr. Serristori, counsellor of the Holy Office, and the Jesuit Father Leon Santi.[260]
While these few copies were being eagerly devoured by impatient readers at Rome, and passed rapidly from hand to hand, the book had been circulating in the rest of Italy in spite of the difficulties of communication. The applause which this famous work called forth from all men of independent minds was unexampled, and was only equalled by the bitterness and consternation it excited among the scientific conservatives. The learned world of Italy was divided into two hostile camps: that of Ptolemy on the one side, that of Copernicus-Galileo on the other. In the one were to be found progress, recognition of truth, free independent thought and research; in the other blind worship of authority and rigid adherence to the old school. And the latter party was far the most numerous; it was also reinforced by those, of whom there were a considerable number, who opposed the great reformer of science from interested motives. Besides this, the academic corporations were not favourable to him, because he so dangerously revolutionised the modern methods of teaching. The university of his native city seemed especially adverse to him. It had carried its animosity so far a few years before as to try to deprive him of the income which he enjoyed as its first mathematician by the Grand Ducal decree of 12th July, 1620, though, thanks to[153] the energetic remonstrances of some influential patrons, the attempt was not successful.[261]
In addition to all this there is another consideration, which played a much larger part in the sad story of Galileo’s trial than is generally supposed. The clergy, and especially the Jesuits, had hitherto had a monopoly of science. Everybody knows how assiduously it had been cultivated in ancient times in the cells and schools of the convents, and that the ecclesiastical orders were the guardians and disseminators of learning, while among both populace and nobles ignorance flourished like a weed. When by the natural law of progress the nations of Europe emerged from the simplicity of childhood into the storm and stress period of youth; when inventions,—especially printing,—and above all the discovery of America, began to spread knowledge and culture among the masses, it was once more the servants of Rome who, justly estimating the spirit of the age, placed themselves, so to speak, in the van of the intellectual movement, that they might guide its course. The strongest evidence that the Church was in exclusive possession of the highest mental powers is afforded by the Reformation; for the first stirrings of doubt, of critical, philosophical speculation, arose in the bosoms of the Roman Catholic clergy. All the reformers, from Abelard and Arnold of Brescia, to Huss and Luther, sprang, without exception, from among them.
Just at the juncture when the split into two creeds threatened to divide the joints and marrow of the supreme power of the Church, the man appeared who most effectually contributed to restore it by founding a new ecclesiastical order, with a very peculiar organisation. This was Ignatius Loyola. And if we seek for the explanation of the profound influence gained by this corporation in all parts of the world, and every grade of society, we shall find it in four factors: the highest enthusiasm for the common cause; willing[154] obedience to the central authority—the general for the time being; utter unscrupulousness as to means; and the supremacy which knowledge always confers. Far from occupying themselves, like the Protestant clergy, exclusively with theology, there was no branch of knowledge that was not cultivated by these champions of the Church; indeed they stood for a century at the summit of learning.[262] And now, in the most recent epoch of that stigmatised century, Galileo the layman steps forth upon the arena of the science of the heavens and the earth, and teaches the astonished world truths before which the whole edifice of scholastic sophistry must fall to the ground. The Jesuit monopoly of the education of youth and of teaching altogether, became day by day more insecure, and the influence of the society was threatened in proportion. Was it to be wondered at that the pious fathers strained every nerve in this final conflict for mastery, and in the attempt to prevent their world-wide mission of educating the people from being torn from their hands? This explains why the reformers of science appeared just as dangerous to them as those of religion; and they resisted the former, as they had done the latter, with all the resources at their command.
Galileo, as one of the most advanced pioneers of science, was in the highest degree inconvenient to the Jesuits; members of their order had also repeatedly measured lances with the great man in scientific discussion—Fathers Grassi and Scheiner, for instance—with very unfortunate results, by no means calculated to make the Society of Jesus more favourable to him. But now that his “Dialogues on the Two Systems of the World” had appeared, which, as every intelligent man must perceive, annihilated with its overwhelming mass of evidence the doctrines of the old school, and raised the modern system upon its ruins, the Jesuits set every[155] lever in motion, first to suppress this revolutionary book, and then to compass the ruin of the author.
Riccardi himself remarked to Count Magalotti at that time: “The Jesuits will persecute Galileo with the utmost bitterness.”[263]
Besides, they found welcome allies in the overwhelming majority of the rest of the clergy. With them the theological considerations we have mentioned formed the motive. And the louder the applause with which the independent scientific world greeted Galileo’s latest remarkable work, the fiercer burnt the flame of ecclesiastical hate. There can be no doubt that the full significance of the “Dialogues” had not been apprehended by any of the censors to whom they had been submitted. This is obvious from the fact that they seriously thought that the diplomatic preface, and a few phrases in the work itself, would suffice to make it appear innocuous. The commotion made by the book in the scientific and theological world convinced them of their mistake.
Meanwhile, Galileo in Florence gave himself up to unmixed delight at the brilliant success of his “Dialogues.” His learned friends and followers, such as Fra Bonaventura Cavalieri, Giovan Batista Baliani, Castelli, Fra Fulgenzio Micanzio, Alfonzo Antonini, Campanella, and many others, expressed to him in repeated letters, and often with genuine enthusiasm, their admiration of his splendid work,[264] not one of them had any foreboding that it was to bring its grey-headed author before the bar of the Inquisition; and Galileo himself least of all. He expected violent opposition from his scientific opponents, and was prepared to engage in the contest, but he considered himself quite secure from ecclesiastical persecution. Had not influential personages at Rome, Cesi, Mgr.[156] Ciampoli, Cesarini, and Castelli, been urging him for years to finish his work, the tendency of which they well knew?[265] And when it was at last complete, it was these same friends, as well meaning as they were influential, who had done their best to forward the publication. Besides, the book had appeared not only with the imprimatur and under the protection of the Inquisition at Florence, as prescribed, and with the permission of the political authorities of the city, but Galileo could show also the imprimatur of the Pater Magister Sacri Palatii, which was not at all usual with works not printed at Rome.[266] He considered this a double security; Jesuitism, on the contrary, contrived afterwards to forge an indictment out of this unusual circumstance. Not a word had appeared in print without having been read by the organs of papal scrutiny and having received the sanction of the Church. Might not the author well look forward to the publication of his work with perfect tranquillity, and feel himself secure from any collision with the ecclesiastical authorities? Undoubtedly, if he ha............