Mortara Affair

The Mortara Affair began in 1857-58, when the Papal State seized a six-year old Italian Jewish boy by the name of Edgardo Mortara after rumors surfaced that he had received a Baptism from a Catholic servant during a period of illness. An international controversy emerged as a result over the boy’s faith and rights, as well as the role of the Papacy in Italian politics. Arguably, the Affair played a role in the Papal States’ demise at the hands of the Kingdom of Italy in 1870.