Defence of Catholic Principles in a Letter to a Protestant Clergyman

Demetrius A. Gallitzin (1770-1840) was born a Russian Prince, but converted from a nominal Orthodoxy to the Catholic church, in which he was ordained a priest. Emigrating to America, he became the "Apostle of the Alleghenies" where he spent much of his fortune to spread Catholicism. Aroused by a sermon which he felt misrepresented 'popery,' he wrote a series of letters to the Huntington Gazette, which were published under the title, Defence of Catholic Principles (1816). An enlarged version of this brochure went through repeated editions in the United States and Ireland and was translated for use in Europe. - Summary by Austin Smay