The Faith of the Carbonari: Negotiating the Sacred between Revolution and Counterrevolution in Naples (1820-1822)

Abstract

The article examines how the visibility gained by the Carboneria in the new public sphere transformed a clandestine association into a leading actor of the Neapolitan revolution, prompting it to redefine itself through practices made public for the first time. It analyses the strategies through which the Carbonari sought to legitimise their presence within the constitutional framework, drawing on religious symbols and language to present themselves as compatible with the Christian canon. The study also shows how counterrevolutionary criticism, grounded in an organic vision of society and in the primacy of order, aimed to sever any link between the Carboneria and the Catholic tradition by recasting its use of the sacred as an abuse. The papal condemnation ultimately reinforced this interpretation, denying the Carbonari any form of religious legitimacy.