DON BOSCO AND COUNT CAVOUR
Count Camillo Benso di Cavour was one of the most
illustrious personages of the Italian Risorgimento,1 and
has been frequently described as the symbol of political
know-how and realism, of boldness tempered with
moderation, of remarkable resource, a lover of liberty, a
dynamic fighter for civil and social progress, and a
strenuous defender of the Italian cause; it seemed that
every practical and theoretical effort for the furthering
of the Risorgimento was to be found in him.
Many saw him also as the darling of the Protestant element
of Europe the hero and standard-bearer of free thought in
regard to the territory claimed by his supposedly great
enemy, the Papacy.
Yet others considered him as full of duplicity and ominous
scheming, the personification of all kinds of deceit and
bad faith, a questionable character in strident contrast
to any genuine 'Hero of Both Worlds'.
We prefer to speak of Count Camillo Benso di Cavour as one
of the most illustrious personages of the Risorgimento, a
man whom Don Bosco knew well, with whom he often discussed
matters of small and great moment, and always in an honest
and utterly frank manner.
The details of these contacts between Cavour and Don
Bosco, between a laymen of fragile religious faith and a
priest most faithful to the Church and the Pope, will
perhaps reveal certain aspects of interest in the
personality of a man so famous and so much in the thoughts
and discussions of both hoi polloi and intelligentsia.
<As Don Bosco remembered Cavour>
Don Bosco actually wrote the following interesting
information to his Salesians: :
<He visited the Oratory a number of times, and willingly
chatted with the pupils. He enjoyed watching them during
their lively recreations; he attended our sacred
functions; more than once he took part in our St Aloysius
procession with candle in one hand and prayer-book in the
other, and singing together with the boys. If I ever
wished to speak with him, he always gave me an audience
while lunching with him.2>
1 The Risorgimento was a kind of extension of the Italian Renaissance with
reference to political and social affairs.
2 ASC, 132,bk.2, p.94.
