States of Confusion

Consolation Prize

We explore the long and complicated relationship between the United States and the Papal States, the political-religious home of the Roman Catholic Church. The Papal States were ruled by the Pope from his seat in the Vatican until the city fell in 1870 and became the capital of a new nation called "Italy." In this episode, we follow the careers of consuls William Stillman and Edwin Cushman who served in the 1860s. Stillman and Cushman had the hard task of representing the United States during an era of intense conflict for both their home nation and the location of their consulate. For as the war in Italy between the Pope and the Italians escalated, so did the fight across the Atlantic ocean that became the American Civil War. As we focus in on Stillman and Cushman's experiences, we see how supposedly internal conflicts involve people and governments around the world.