Secrets of The Conclaves

Secrets of the Conclaves—Revealed by Atto Melani

A 1700 insider's guide to the art of fixing a papal election: adulation, deception, corruption and espionage.

About the Ebook

Written in the year 1700, when the demise of Pope Innocent XII was imminent, and dedicated to his friend and employer Louis XIV, The Secrets of the Conclaves is a mine of information concerning popes, conclaves and cardinals. A little masterpiece of cynicism and irony, illuminated by Abbot Atto Melani's historical memory and his unscrupulous defence of raison d'état , this remarkable document is an insider's guide to the machinations of the papal election. As told by Melani, the pitfalls in the conclave are largely invisible: personal hatreds, ambushes, vendettas, colossal errors and tragic misunderstandings follow at every turn. In a fractious world in which gangs like the Flying Squad or the Zealots are at each other's throats, everything and everyone is to be mistrusted.

It goes without saying that the ways and means employed to triumph in a conclave involve the darker arts; but they are the selfsame techniques that set Melani on his way to success: adulation, deception, corruption and, above all, espionage. The original document was discovered in the archive of the Library of the Senate in Paris by authors Rita Monaldi and Francesco Sorti. Monaldi and Sorti have celebrated the adventures of Atto Melani in a series of bestselling historical novels including Imprimatur, Secretum and Veritas.

Why You'll Love This Ebook

• A genuine 18th-century document discovered by the authors of Imprimatur
• An insider's account of conclave machinations, written the year Pope Innocent XII lay dying
• A little masterpiece of cynicism and irony from the most unscrupulous of papal observers
• Read another celebrated title from Polygon - an imprint of Birlinn Ltd

About the Author

Rita Monaldi was born in 1966 and is an expert in the history of religions. Her husband Francesco Sorti was born in 1964 and has a background in musicology. Both Rita and Francesco have worked as journalists, but in recent years they have collaborated on several historical novels including Imprimatur and its sequels Secretum and Veritas. They live with their two young children in Vienna and Rome.

Publication Details

Publisher: Polygon (an imprint of Birlinn Ltd)

Publication Date: 04 April 2013

Print Length: 40 pages (Ebook edition)

ISBN (Ebook): 9780857906663

Format: Ebook

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