| Ultramontane | a. [ LL. ultramontanus; L. ultra beyond + montanus belonging to a mountain, from mons, montis, mountain: cf. F. ultramontain, It. ultramontano. See Ultra-, and Mountain. ] Being beyond the mountains; specifically, being beyond the Alps, in respect to the one who speaks. [ 1913 Webster ] ☞ This term was first applied, somewhat contemptuously, by the Italians, to the nations north of the Alps, especially the Germans and French, their painters, jurists, etc. At a later period, the French and Germans applied it to the Italians. It is now more particularly used in respect to religious matters; and ultramontane doctrines, when spoken of north of the Alps, denote the extreme views of the pope's rights and supremacy maintained by Bellarmin and other Italian writers. [ 1913 Webster ] |
