The Jesuit Suppression in Global Context

This volume analyses the causes and consequences of the Jesuit Suppression, one of the most dramatic events in eighteenth-century history.

This volume analyses the causes, developments, and consequences of the Jesuit Suppression, one of the most dramatic and puzzling events of the Enlightenment era. With a global focus, essays provide an overview of the latest research that will be essential to scholars of eighteenth-century religious, intellectual, cultural and political history.In 1773, Pope Clement XIV suppressed the Society of Jesus, a dramatic, puzzling act that had a profound impact. This volume traces the causes of the attack on the Jesuits, the national expulsions that preceded universal suppression, and the consequences of these extraordinary developments. The Suppression occurred at a unique historical juncture, at the high-water mark of the Enlightenment and on the cusp of global imperial crises and the Age of Revolution. After more than two centuries, answers to how and why it took place remain unclear. A diverse selection of essays - covering France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, the Netherlands, China, Eastern Europe, and the Americas - reflects the complex international elements of the Jesuit Suppression. The contributors shed new light on its significance by drawing on the latest research. Essential reading on a crucial yet previously neglected topic, this collection will interest scholars of eighteenth-century religious, intellectual, cultural, and political history.