Demetrius Augustine Gallitzin - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Prince Demetrius Augustine Gallitzin (December 22, 1770 – May 6, 1840) was an emigre Russian aristocrat

Russian nobility

The Russian nobility arose in the 14th century and essentially governed Russia until the October Revolution of 1917.The Russian word for nobility, Dvoryanstvo , derives from the Russian word dvor , meaning the Court of a prince or duke and later, of the tsar. A nobleman is called dvoryanin...

and Catholic

Catholic

The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...

priest

Priest

A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...

known as The Apostle of the Alleghenies. Since 2005, he has been under investigation for possible canonization

Canonization

Canonization is the act by which a Christian church declares a deceased person to be a saint, upon which declaration the person is included in the canon, or list, of recognized saints. Originally, individuals were recognized as saints without any formal process...

by the Catholic Church. His current title is Servant of God

Servant of God

Servant of God is a title given to individuals by various religions, but in general the phrase is used to describe a person believed to be pious in his or her faith tradition. In the Catholic Church, it designates someone who is being investigated by the Church for possibly being recognized as a...

Early life

Prince

Knyaz

Kniaz, knyaz or knez is a Slavic title found in most Slavic languages, denoting a royal nobility rank. It is usually translated into English as either Prince or less commonly as Duke....

Dimitri Dmitrievich Gallitzin
Galitzine
For Orthodox clergyman and theologian, see Alexander Golitzin.The Galitzines are one of the largest and noblest princely houses of Russia. Since the extinction of the Korecki family in the 17th century, the Golitsyns have claimed dynastic seniority in the House of Gediminas...

was born into a world of inherited privilege at The Hague

The Hague

The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...

. His father, Prince Dimitri Alexeievich

Demetrius Alekseyevich Gallitzin

Prince Demetrius Alexeievich Gallitzin FRS was a Russian diplomat.He was Russian ambassador to the Kingdom of the Netherlands.-Family:...

(1735-1803), the Russian ambassador to the Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

, was an intimate friend of Voltaire

Voltaire

François-Marie Arouet , better known by the pen name Voltaire , was a French Enlightenment writer, historian and philosopher famous for his wit and for his advocacy of civil liberties, including freedom of religion, free trade and separation of church and state...

and a follower of Diderot. So was his mother, the former German Countess

German nobility

The German nobility was the elite hereditary ruling class or aristocratic class from ca. 500 B.C. to the Holy Roman Empire and what is now Germany.-Principles of German nobility:...

Adelheid Amalie von Schmettau

Adelheid Amalie Gallitzin

Princess Adelheid Amalie Gallitzin was the daughter of the Prussian Field Marshal Samuel von Schmettau and the mother of Prince Demetrius Augustine Gallitzin.-Life:She was born in Berlin and educated in the Roman Catholic faith, although she soon became...

, until a severe illness in 1786 led her back to the Catholic Church, in which she had been nominally reared.

As a young child, Prince Dmitri was cradled in the arms of Catherine the Great, as a sign of special favor to his father. He was raised as a nominal member of the Russian Orthodox Church

Russian Orthodox Church

The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...

, although his father, like many Russian aristocrats of his age, had little connection to or fondness for religion. As was fashionable at the time, the language of the household was French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

, which would always be Prince Dmitri's native tongue.

After his mother's conversion, he was greatly influenced by her circle of Catholic intellectuals, priests, and aristocrats. At the age of 17, Prince Dimitri was formally received into the Catholic Church.

His father, who had been planning a military career for him, was quite unhappy with the change and was barely dissuaded from sending his son to St. Petersburg, where he hoped a stint in a Russian Guards Regiment would force his son back into Orthodoxy. In 1792 his son was appointed aide-de-camp to the commander of the Austria

Austrian Empire

The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...

n troops in the Duchy of Brabant

Duchy of Brabant

The Duchy of Brabant was a historical region in the Low Countries. Its territory consisted essentially of the three modern-day Belgian provinces of Flemish Brabant, Walloon Brabant and Antwerp, the Brussels-Capital Region and most of the present-day Dutch province of North Brabant.The Flag of...

; but, after the death of Leopold II of Austria

Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor

Leopold II , born Peter Leopold Joseph Anton Joachim Pius Gotthard, was Holy Roman Emperor and King of Hungary and Bohemia from 1790 to 1792, Archduke of Austria and Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1765 to 1790. He was a son of Emperor Francis I and his wife, Empress Maria Theresa...

and the murder of King Gustav III of Sweden

Gustav III of Sweden

Gustav III was King of Sweden from 1771 until his death. He was the eldest son of King Adolph Frederick and Queen Louise Ulrica of Sweden, she a sister of Frederick the Great of Prussia....

, Prince Dmitri, like all other foreigners, was dismissed from the Austrian Service.

America

As was the custom among young aristocrats at the time, he then set out to complete his education by travel. As the French Revolution

French Revolution

The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...

had made European tours unsafe, it was determined by his parents to send him to the newly founded United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. On October 28, 1792, he arrived in Baltimore, Maryland, bearing a letter of recommendation to Bishop John Carroll and several other prominent figures. To the shock and horror of his father, Prince Dimitri decided to enter the priesthood and voluntarily offered to forego his inheritance. The Ambassador was subsequently got Catherine the Great to award his son a commission in one of the Palace Guards Regiments, and formally summoned him to active duty in St. Petersburg.

Father Demetrius Gallitzin was ordained in March 1795, becoming one of the first Catholic priests ordained in America. Gallitzin then was sent to work in a church mission at Port Tobacco, Maryland, whence he was soon transferred to the Conewago

Conewago

Conewago may refer to:Communities*Conewago Township, Pennsylvania Streams*Conewago Creek in Adams and York Counties, Pennsylvania*Conewago Creek in Lebanon, Dauphin, and Lancaster Counties, Pennsylvania...

district. There, Gallitzin's impulsive objection to some of Bishop John Carroll's instructions was sharply rebuked, and he was recalled to Baltimore. But in 1796 he removed to Taneytown, Maryland

Taneytown, Maryland

Taneytown is a city in Carroll County, Maryland, United States. The population was 5,128 at the 2000 census. was founded in 1754. Of the town George Washington once wrote "Tan-nee town is but a small place with only the Street through wch. the road passes, built on...

, and in both Maryland and Pennsylvania worked with such misdirected zeal and aristocratic manners that he was again reproved by his bishop in 1798.

Missionary

In the Allegheny Mountains

Allegheny Mountains

The Allegheny Mountain Range , also spelled Alleghany, Allegany and, informally, the Alleghenies, is part of the vast Appalachian Mountain Range of the eastern United States and Canada...

, in 1799, Gallitzin founded the settlement of Loretto, Pennsylvania

Loretto, Pennsylvania

Loretto is a borough in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is officially part of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area as recognized by the US Census Bureau, but local sources list it as part of the Altoona, Pennsylvania area due to its proximity to...

in what is now Cambria County, Pennsylvania

Cambria County, Pennsylvania

Cambria County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It comprises the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 143,679....

. Loretto in turn was an expansion upon a small clearing, "the McGuire Settlement", established by Captain Michael McGuire in 1788. McGuire, who died in 1793, bequeathed this clearing and its accompanying 1200 acres (5 km²) in trust to Bishop Carroll for the eventual establishment of a full Catholic community with resident clergy. With Gallitzin in the lead, Loretto became the first English-speaking Roman Catholic settlement in the United States west of the Allegheny Front. (In addition to McGuire's patrimony, Gallitzin is believed to have spent $150,000 (USD) of his own funds later, to purchase some additional 20,000 acres (81 km²), which it is said he gave or sold at low prices to newly arriving Catholic settlers.) Gallitzin dedicated Loretto's parish church to the honor of St. Michael the Archangel, both as a nod to Gallitzin's Russian roots and, indirectly, to Michael McGuire. The church today is known as the Basilca of St. Michael the Archangel. http://basilica-loretto.com.

In 1802, Gallitzin became a naturalized citizen of the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

under the name Augustine Smith. After his father's death, he was disinherited by Czar Alexander I of Russia

Alexander I of Russia

Alexander I of Russia , served as Emperor of Russia from 23 March 1801 to 1 December 1825 and the first Russian King of Poland from 1815 to 1825. He was also the first Russian Grand Duke of Finland and Lithuania....

in 1808 because of his Roman Catholic religion and priestly vocation. Subsequently his sister, Anne zu Salm-Krautheim, repeatedly promised him his half of the valuable estate and sent him money from time to time; after her death, Gallitzin received little or nothing more.

Gallitzin felt free to discard the name Augustine Smith in 1809. Gallitzin also soon found himself deeply in debt. He obtained a loan from Charles Carroll

Charles Carroll

Charles Carroll may refer to:*Charles Carroll , Continental Congressman from Maryland*Charles H. Carroll , U.S...

. Later, when Gallitzin was suggested for the see of Philadelphia in 1814, Bishop Carroll objected. Bishop Carroll agreed that Gallitzin's debts had been contracted for excellent and charitable purposes, but it was not clear Gallitzin had the financial acumen to run a diocese as important as Philadelphia, Carroll believed. In 1815, Gallitzin was suggested for the bishopric

Diocese

A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...

of Bardstown, Kentucky

Kentucky

The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...

, and in 1827 for the proposed see of Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...

. Later, Gallitzin is said to have refused the bishopric of Cincinnati.

Death

Gallitzin died at Loretto on May 6, 1840 and was buried near St. Michael's church in Loretto.

Legacy

His parishioners saw Gallitzin as a great power for good. Gallitzin's part in building up the Catholic Church in western Pennsylvania cannot be overestimated; it is said that at his death there were 10,000 Catholics in the district where forty years before he had found a scant dozen. Loretto today is in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown

Roman Catholic Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown is a Roman Catholic diocese in Pennsylvania. It was established in May 1901 as the Diocese of Altoona; on October 9, 1957 the name changed to the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown. It consists of Bedford, Blair, Cambria, Centre, Clinton, Huntingdon and...

.

In 1899-1901, the steel industrialist Charles M. Schwab

Charles M. Schwab

Charles Michael Schwab was an American steel magnate. Under his leadership, Bethlehem Steel became the second largest steel maker in the United States, and one of the most important heavy manufacturers in the world....

funded the construction of a large stone church, which is the current basilica, at Prince Gallitzin's tomb. Schwab also provided funds for a bronze statue of Gallitzin.

The nearby town of Gallitzin, Pennsylvania

Gallitzin, Pennsylvania

Gallitzin is a borough bordered by Gallitzin Township and Tunnelhill in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. Standing northwest of Altoona, it was first incorporated in 1872, and named for Prince Gallitzin, who founded the Catholic town of Loretto, Cambria County. Coal-mining and...

is named for western Pennsylvania's first English-speaking priest. It is in this town that the Pennsylvania Railroad

Pennsylvania Railroad

The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....

would tunnel through the summit of the Allegheny Mountains. Eventually, the railroad would operate three tunnels through the ridge into Gallitzin, PA. The Gallitzin Tunnel was closed as part of Conrail's massive double-stack clearance project in the 1990's. In the mid-1960s, Pennsylvania christened a new nearby state park in honor of Prince Gallitzin, as he is fondly called locally.

Among Gallitzin's pamphlets are: A Defence of Catholic Principles (1816), Letter to a Protestant Friend on the Holy Scriptures (1820), Appeal to the Protestant Public (1834), and Six Letters of Advice (1834), a reply to what Gallitzin saw as attacks on the Catholic Church by a Presbyterian synod.

On June 6, 2005, it was announced that Gallitzin had been named a Servant of God

Servant of God

by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints

Congregation for the Causes of Saints

The Congregation for the Causes of Saints is the congregation of the Roman Curia which oversees the complex process that leads to the canonization of saints, passing through the steps of a declaration of "heroic virtues" and beatification...

, the first step on the path toward possible future sainthood.

Quotes

"The true minister of Christ
Christ
Christ is the English term for the Greek meaning "the anointed one". It is a translation of the Hebrew , usually transliterated into English as Messiah or Mashiach...

, dear sir, speaking in the name of his divine master, must speak with authority, with certainty, without any hesitation, on all the different mysteries of religion on which he is obliged to instruct his flock. Woe to the wretch who shall deliver his private opinions, his own uncertain notions, as the word of God; and thus often give poison for wholesome food; the productions of weak and corrupted reason for divine revelations.... The idea we have of a minister of Christ, you will perceive, is precisely the same which the first Christians must have had. Surely, dear sir, the Church in 1815 must be the same as it was in the beginning: the same kind of pastors, provided with the same powers, administering the same baptism, the same Eucharist
Eucharist
The Eucharist , also called Holy Communion, the Sacrament of the Altar, the Blessed Sacrament, the Lord's Supper, and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance...

or Lord’s supper; in short, all the same sacraments, and preaching the same doctrine" — Fr. Demetrius Gallitzin, Defence of Catholic Principles in A Letter to A Protestant Minister

Publications

Brownson, Life of D. A. Gallitzin, Prince and Priest, (New York, 1873)
Kittell, Souvenir of Loretto Centenary, (Cresson, Pa., 1899)

Fr. Gallitzin's defense of Catholicism

Fr. Gallitzin's life in detail

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.