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Official correspondence from the Portuguese State Secretariat for Foreign Affairs, dated 24 December 1842, transmitting documentation regarding ecclesiastical jurisdictional disputes in Hong Kong following its cession to British control. The document comprises a formal report addressed to the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, António José Maria Campelo, by António Joaquim Gomes d’Oliveira, concerning the transfer of religious authority on the island of Hong Kong from the Diocese of Macau—under the Padroado Real privileges of the Portuguese Crown—to the Congregation for Propaganda Fide. It references a dispatch from the Governor, dated 22 April 1841, confirming Rome’s authorisation of this ecclesiastical shift, interpreted as an act of usurpation by Lisbon. A subsequent report from the Vicar Capitular of Macau, dated 9 March 1842, protests the establishment of a new mission under Propaganda Fide jurisdiction, asserting it violates longstanding royal patronage rights. The correspondence highlights diplomatic and canonical tensions between the Holy See, the Portuguese state, and colonial authorities in Macau and Hong Kong. Damaged sections obscure minor textual details, but the core argument centres on Portugal’s efforts to defend its traditional ecclesiastical prerogatives in the region through intervention at the Papal Court. This document is essential for researchers examining 19th-century colonial ecclesiastical politics, Sino-Portuguese relations, and the decline of the Padroado system in East Asia.
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This 1842 official correspondence, originating from Macau and addressed to the Portuguese Minister and Secretary of State for Naval and Overseas Affairs, documents a dispute concerning ecclesiastical jurisdiction and colonial authority in the context of Portuguese Catholic administration in East Asia. The letter, signed by Father Conceição Franco and countersigned by Pedro de Carvalho, references the presence of Rigua, a Procurator of the Sacred Congregation of Propaganda Fide, who resided in Macau under orders from the Apostolic Prefecture of Hong Kong—dependent on the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith—and allegedly operated beyond his authorised mandate. The text asserts that Rigua’s activities contravened prior reports submitted to the Holy See and conflicted with the papal Bull *Sub Romana Militantis Ecclesia* (interpreted as issued by Pope Gregory XIII in 1586), which defined ecclesiastical boundaries and jurisdictions. In response, the author claims to have expelled the Procurator and his associates from the establishment within three days to protect the rights of the Vice-Prefecture. The document further expresses reluctance to engage the British Governor of Hong Kong, then serving as Plenipotentiary, due to lack of governmental authorisation. It also alludes to an unauthorised decree of 22 April 1851 (anachronistic within the 1842 dating) obtained under false pretences, suggesting later interpolation or transcription error. The communication underscores tensions between local ecclesiastical powers, colonial governance, and Roman centralisation efforts in mid-19th century Portuguese Asia.