GIUSEPPE CAPECELATRO,ARCIVESCOVO DI TARANTO (1744-1836),
RITRATTO DAI VIAGGIATORI INGLESI E AMERICANI CHE LO CONOBBERO
Jonathan Esposito
La fama di Giuseppe Capecelatro tra gli scrittori e i viaggiatori del suo tempo, non solo inglesi e americani, fu davvero straordinaria. I critici e gli storici moderni, al contrario, hanno mostrato scarso interesse per la sua figura; inoltre, coloro che in qualche modo se ne sono occupati, hanno ignorato quasi del tutto gli scritti dei viaggiatori che, a mio parere, sono documenti preziosi per capire la sua personalità.
Se escludiamo le principali fonti contemporanee, ossia gli scritti dei canonici Angelo Sgura e Niccolò Candia rispettivamente del 1826 e del 1837, la bibliografia su Capecelatro si riduce a pochi e brevi articoli religiosi e storici. Esistono, tuttavia, due opere di respiro più ampio, vere e proprie monografie, una di Croce, del 1927, l’altra del sacerdote Gennaro Auletta, del 1940. Le venticinque pagine della monografia di Croce costituiscono la fonte principale per chiunque volesse saperne di più su Capecelatro. Nonostante la misura ridotta, Croce diligentemente e con evidente simpatia, ci mostra l’importanza di Capecelatro come riformatore politico. Il libro di Auletta è ben diverso, scritto da una posizione che sarebbe suonata come reazionaria già ai tempi dell’Arcivescovo, è animato dall’unico scopo di rivelare i suoi presunti errori e così ridimensionare “un uomo dai contemporanei troppo ammirato e lodato e dai posteri troppo sopravvalutato”.1
Ricordiamo inoltre due opere che trattano solo episodi specifici, una di Piero Pieri del 1924 e la più recente di Nicola Vacca del 1966, e infine la ristampa anastatica di Spiegazioni delle conchiglie che si trovano nel piccolo mare di Taranto opera di Capecelatro del 1780, a cura di Luigi Sada, 1983.
Croce inizia la sua monografia dell’Arcivescovo2 elencando i vari “sovrani, principi e principesse, scienziati e poeti e artisti di due generazioni, da quella degli ultimi decenni dell’ancien régime a quella del primo romanticismo” che “gli resero visita, frequentarono la sua conversazione, legarono con lui carteggio”. L’elenco suona così: “Caterina II, Leopoldo di Toscana, Gustavo III di Svezia, Amalia di Weimar, e Goethe e Herder e Munter e Swinburne e Kotzebue, fino alla Staël, a Lady Morgan, a Sismondi, Ballanche, Alessandro di Humboldt, Casimir de la Vigne, Walter Scott, Lamartine, re Luigi di Baviera”.
Dalle varie citazioni e descrizioni che seguono emerge che Croce ha preferito riportare autori per lo più francesi e tedeschi, con l’eccezione di alcuni passi del libro di Lady Morgan tratti, comunque, dalla traduzione francese e non dall’originale in inglese. La scarsa familiarità con la lingua inglese, comune agli intellettuali
1 Auletta, 1940, p. 3.
formatisi nel periodo di Croce, è probabilmente il motivo per cui non vengono citati quelle autrici e quegli autori inglesi e americani che non solo hanno lasciato descrizioni e aneddoti che ci aiutano a meglio intendere la vera natura di quest’uomo eccezionale, ma addirittura lo hanno elevato a personaggio letterario – il poeta romantico Samuel Rogers mostra la sua stima per il venerabile Arcivescovo inserendolo come personaggio nella sua opera più fortunata, Italy.3
Vorrei ampliare la nostra conoscenza dell’Arcivescovo attraverso varie considerazioni tratte dai diari e dai libri di viaggio di alcuni Inglesi e Americani che lo conobbero e ne lasciarono le loro vivaci impressioni.
Ma prima di esaminare gli scritti coevi, vorrei introdurre il personaggio con le parole di Harold Acton:4
On an eminence far from lonely sat Giuseppe Capecelatro, the Archbishop of Taranto […]. Born in 1744, he had been consecrated archbishop at the age of thirty-four but the political whirlwind had swept him back to Naples at the turn of the century, where he remained a brilliant lodestar for all the itinerant celebrities until his death at the age of ninety-two in 1836. As Prince Henry of Prussia remarked on meeting him: “When you come to Naples you must see Pompeii, Vesuvius and the Archbishop of Taranto”.
He wrote to prove that the celibacy of the clergy was a crime against nature and good morals. He also wrote against the Jesuits, the persecution of authors, and the claustration of nuns in convents; and he framed a new set of rules for the seminary of Taranto (in 1789) to discourage abstract speculation on pre-destination and original sin and encourage the teaching of agricultural methods so that country priests might enlighten their peasant parishioners. He even thought seminarists should be instructed in surgery and obstetrics to assist poor women in labour. His hobbies range from numismatics to Polish literature: in fact he was an amiably broadminded dilettante and probably no more of a sceptic than Cardinal de Bernis and other contemporary prelates who cultivated the society of clever people.
Tutti gli autori qui riportati conservano nei suoi riguardi una stima sincera e, come lo stesso Acton, apprezzano molto la sua personalità poco ortodossa.
La Contessa Marguerite Blessington nel suo The Idler in Italy ci ha lasciato il ritratto più completo dell’anziano Arcivescovo.5 Lei ha avuto la possibilità di coltivare una vera amicizia poiché è rimasta a Napoli quasi tre anni, dal mese di luglio 1823 al mese di febbraio 1826. Descrive il suo primo incontro così:
We went to see the Archbishop of Tarantem yesterday. Fame has not exaggerated the attractions of his manner, or the charms of his countenance,
3 La versione definitiva dell’opera di Rogers, Italy, 1822-28, uscì nel 1834.
4 Acton, 1979, pp. 7-8. Le opere a cui fa riferimento sono: Delle feste de’ cristiani, 1771; Lettera pastorale o sia
istruzione canonica sul battesimo cristiano scritta per uso de’ parrochi di sua arcidiocesi, ecc. 1785; Nuovo piano pel buon regolamento del Seminario arcivescovile della Regia Chiesa di Taranto, 1789; Della clausura delle religiose, 1801. Per l’interesse per la numismatica e la letteratura polacca, vedi Croce, 1956.
in both of which the most winning suavity and benevolence are visible. The refined politeness that characterizes his manner is mingled with a warmth that renders them very fascinating […].
The Archbishop presents the most perfect personification of the beau-idéal of a venerable father of the church, that I have ever beheld. His face, peculiarly handsome, is sicklied o’er with pale hue of thought; his eyes are the darkest brown, but soft, and full of sensibility, like those of a woman. His hair is white as snow, and contrasts well with the small black silk calotte that crowns the top of his head. His figure is attenuated, and bowed by age, and his limbs are small and delicate. His dress is neat even to elegance, and his whole appearance must strike every beholder as being one of the most prepossessing imaginable. He has given us a pressing invitation to come often to visit him; a privilege of which I intend to avail myself.
Nel suo soggiorno a Napoli Lady Blessington conobbe vari personaggi importanti, molti dei quali, come lo stesso Arcivescovo, in quel tempo non godevano la fiducia del re a causa del loro sostegno dato a Murat e Joseph Bonaparte, fra essi Filangieri, Florestano Pepe, e il Principe d’Ischitella.6 Il suo libro rivela con freschezza e precisione la società di Napoli in quel periodo ma nessuno la colpì quanto l’Arcivescovo. Scrive di lui riconoscendogli il ruolo di protettore dei giovani artisti:
Few days elapse without our spending some hours with the excellent and amiable Archbishop of Tarantem, who attracts around him a circle composed of the most enlightened and pleasant people of his own and every other nation. I never saw a man so universally esteemed, and certainly one who more merited to be so. His love of the fine arts, and encouragement to artists, draw to his house the best specimens of both; and many a one has found patrons through his recommendation, who might otherwise have pined away their existence in obscurity.
Lady Blessington, il cui salotto era tra i più famosi a Londra, nel considerarlo l’ospite perfetto, gli fa forse il più grande complimento:
Dined yesterday with the dear good Archbishop of Tarantem, and met some very agreeable people. In the evening several persons, of both sexes, were added to the party. No one ever did the honours of a house so admirably as this excellent and venerable man. He has the happy art of making every guest feel perfectly at ease, and of drawing out the information of each, with a tact peculiarly his own.
L’episodio della partenza di Lady Blessington da Napoli alla fine del suo
6 Carlo Filangieri (1784-1867), figlio di Gaetano; Generale Florestano Pepe di Squillace (1780-1851); F.
soggiorno è particolarmente toccante e rivela la sincerità dell’amicizia tra “the dear and venerable Archbishop” and “the most gorgeous”7 Lady Blessington:
February 1826 – As the time approaches for quitting Naples, my regret increases. A residence of nearly three years has attached me to the country and the people by ties that cannot be rent asunder without pain […] The dear and venerable Archbishop of Tarantem, the good Piazzi!8 Sad thoughts recur to my mind each time I see them, now that the period for our parting is fixed, and their consciousness that our departure will be eternal, increases my despondency.
I have seldom been more affected than the day before my departure from
Naples; when I went to bid farewell to the dear and venerable Archbishop of
Tarantem. I found him in tears, surrounded by three or four friends, who were offering him consolation. No sooner had his major-domo announced us, than this amiable prelate rose from his seat, and advanced to embrace us as rapidly as his trembling limbs would permit; exclaiming, “Ah! You see my dear friends have not left Naples without saying adieu to their old, most attached friend. No, I thought your statement could not be correct; and yet it agitated me more than anything ought to agitate one who must so soon bid an eternal farewell to all that is dear to him.”
It appeared that one of the persons present, had in passing, the Grande Bretagne, seen our carriages drawn out; and the courier busy in arranging them for our journey. The dear Archbishop, mentioning his regret for our approaching departure, and the sadness with which he looked forward to our parting adieu, this person said, that he believed his reverend friend would be spared that pain, for some hours previously he had seen the carriages ready to convey us away. This intelligence so grieved the good Capecelatro, that it occasioned the tears I found still streaming down his pale and venerable face, which furnished such a proof of his affection as greatly moved me. Every word he uttered was listened to as are the words of the dying, for we cannot hope to see him more. There was a solemnity mingled in the tenderness of his parting words, that I can never forget; and which even now, bring the warm drops of affection to my eyes.
Viene spontaneo pensare che lo charme, la grazia e l’intelligenza del “caro e venerabile” arcivescovo splendono ancora di più alla presenza del gentil sesso. Non sorprende, quindi, che Lady Morgan, un altro spirito indipendente e repubblicano, ci ha lasciato un penetrante ritratto sebbene non del tutto preciso.9
The venerable, the excellent Ex-Archbishop of Tarentum is one of the most
7 Durante la vita le fu attribuito l’appellativo “the most gorgeous” da Samuel Parr (1747-1825).
8 Giuseppe Piazzi (1746-1826), famoso astronomo, era stato chiamato dal re Ferdinando IV per
sovrintendere alla costruzione dell’osservatorio astronomico di Capodimonte.
distinguished characters which modern Italy has produced, or the eventful circumstances of the last fifty years called into public observation. While still in early youth, he obtained great celebrity by the boldness and talent displayed in a very ingenious work, written to prove the illegality of the tribute (the famed Haquenèe) which the Neapolitan crown paid to the see of Rome, through the vileness of its foreign conqueror. A work still more extraordinary for an author who had rapidly obtained the first dignities of the Church, was one written with great learning and eloquence, to prove that the celibacy of the clergy was a crime against nature and good morals, unwarranted by the Scriptures; and that much of the odium which had fallen on the Catholic Church, and had urged on the reformation, was due to an institute which had in Italy proved so favourable to every species of profligacy. The upper orders of the hierarchy rose in arms against a doctrine which tended to substitute matrimony for concubinage; but the inferior orders of the church (always the best) read it with avidity, and agreed to it with sincerity.
Although for a time the personal friend of the Queen of Naples (and frequently her unheeded mentor), the archbishop had the courage, on the eve of the Revolution, to declare, that if that event succeeded in Naples, it would be owing to the maladministration of public affairs, the crimes of the ministers, and the misery of the people. He was, during its operation, forced forward by his popularity into public life, and elected to an office of high importance, without his consent or knowledge. On the return of the royal family, Ruffo marked him out from less distinguished victims. He was thrown into a dungeon, without any form or process of law, or even colour of accusation; and was to expiate his crime, of not having (like his King) abandoned his country in the moment of her greatest need, on the scaffold. On the suggestion, however, that the people of all parties would unite and rise to the rescue of the most popular and revered of their prelates, his reprieve or deliverance was announced to him as a grace on the part of his
sovereign. He was on the threshold of his dungeon when this clause in his
pardon was repeated to him- he turned back, and refused to stir until his innocence was fully acknowledged, and that which was offered in mercy was granted in justice. To satisfy the people, or his own conscience, the king pronounced the acquittal of the Archbishop, and generously made his excuses for what he was pleased to call his unjust arrestation.
The talents, experience, activity, and universal popularity of the Archbishop of Tarentum, soon attracted the notice of the French government, and he was made Minister of the Interior; a situation for which his genius, experience, and knowledge, eminently fitted him. Most of the numerous and munificent public works undertaken by Murat, were commenced at the suggestion or during the ministry of the Archbishop. But the best and most wanted of his works, was an establishment for the education of female youth forwarded by the zeal and even personal superintendence of Madam Murat, whose last words to the Neapolitans, whom she saw previous to her
embarkation on board the English frigate, were, – “Watch over the Miracoli! Preserve my school!”.
The palace of this noble ecclesiastic has already been alluded to, in reference to its gallery and collections; but among the chefs-d’oeuvres of its pictures, among its gems and medals, impressed with the portraits of Grecian heroes and Roman emperors, there is no head in the whole collection so well worth seeing as his own. It is one of the finest illustrations of benignity that Nature, in her happiest mood, ever struck off to reconcile man to his species! These are the heads which Greece and Italy only produced, and which made, at far distant epochs, the inspiration of a Phideas and a Raphael!
Since the Restoration another has been appointed to the see of Tarentum; but the title remains, and will remain forever, with one who has rendered it so celebrated in the annals of church history. Since that epoch, the Archbishop has bid a final adieu to all public interests, and is closing his arduous active life in the mild sun-set of domestic retirement. Still attached, with all the enthusiasm of youth, to letters and science, his mornings are given up to his books, his medals. And his engraved gems; his early and hospitable dinner-table is seldom without some polished or literary guest; and his afternoons and evenings are devoted to successive circles of friends (whom habits of long and reverential attachment congregate round him), and to some few well-recommended foreigners, who, in the desire of knowing one of the most celebrated characters in Italy, solicit permission to attend his primasera. To this very pleasant Italian season of reception, which begins and ends early in the Palazzo Capecelatro, succeeds the crocchio ristretto of his intimate friends of both sexes, including the first persons of rank and talent in Naples; when one or two card-tables where the stake is next to nothing, vary the resources of the evening.
It was occasionally our privilege, during our residence in Naples, to be admitted at different hours by the Archbishop of Tarantem, to have enjoyed mornings in his cabinet of medals, to have had our cover at his elegant table, to have seen him the centre of his afternoon circle, and to have found him, at night, making one in his little card-party; but at all hours and seasons, we have observed his beautiful and benign countenance irradiated by that spirit of benevolence which extends itself to all that live, and breathe, and suffer; and his manners, governed by a mild and unvarying cheeriness, the never-failing result of
“That sweet peace which goodness bosoms ever.” MILTON10
Al di là delle serate mondane, e del bel mondo che vengono così vividamente descritte da Lady Morgan, vi è una parte più intima della sua personalità, una piccola eccentricità rivelante e amabile, che molti scrittori notarono. Il suo amore per i gatti ovvero “passione gattesca”, come egli stesso lo definì, si accentuò col passare degli anni. Il seguente aneddoto ci fa intendere la posizione importante che
ebbero i suoi gatti:11
While we were in the midst of a scientific discussion one of the cats came up to him, and made a significant mew, when the old man cried out to his chaplain and secretary, who was in the room:
“____!” calling him by his name, “mon chat veut shier;” upon which with an obedient start, the reverend secretary ran and opened the window, and let puss into the balcony. “Est ce que mon chat fait bien?” demanded the old man. “Oui, Moseigneur, ce chat fait tout ce qui est convenable”; whereupon the old gentleman expressed his satisfaction, and resumed the discussion”.
Croce ricorda che una “disertazioncella” dell’Arcivescovo, Intorno a una pittura
del tempio d’Iside a Pompei, si riduce a uno studio storico sui gatti.12 “Vi si sostiene,” scrive Croce, “che quella pittura rappresentasse Iside sotto sembianza di gatto. A documento del carattere religioso dei gatti, ricordava ‘la geniale idea che sussiste tuttavia nelle popolazioni di quasi tutto il nostro Regno, che l’uccisore di un gatto debba essere punito dal Cielo e che la pena che lo attende sia una vita errante senza