More Nast(iness)

Thomas Nast really had it in for the Catholic Church! This cartoon, titled “The Promised Land,” appeared in the October 1, 1870, issue of Harper’s Weekly. Here Pope Pius IX and his minions look toward America in the hopes of subjugating it to Catholic rule. For Nast Roman Catholicism and American democracy were incompatible, a common theme in nineteenth century anti-Catholicism.