Visitors to Italy cannot ignore Rome and once they come to Rome, they will definitely visit the Vatican – the smallest and most peaceful country on the planet.
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Despite its modest size, the Vatican is considered one of the most powerful countries today, the official residence of the Pope and other religious dignitaries of the Catholic Church.
Encapsulated and separated from Rome by a wall built in the Middle Ages and Renaissance, this most powerful country in the world contains many interesting things that you may not know.
Nestled in the heart of Italy with a border length of 2 miles (3.2km), Vatican City State, Italian is Stato della Città del Vaticano or commonly called Vatican has an area of 44 hectares (only 1/8 of the central park). center in New York, USA). The Vatican has a political monarchy headed by the pope (Pope), he is the only autocratic king in Europe, holding the supreme legislative, executive and judicial power.
The currency of the Vatican is the Euro, the country has its own stamp, passport, license plate, national flag and anthem. One point that this government does not have is the tax system. Museum ticket sales, stamps and souvenirs, and donations from various organizations are the source of the Vatican’s income.
Vatican with St Peter’s Square seen from above. (Photo: womenofgrace.com)
Once upon a time, the Roman cemetery was located on the Vatican hill. When a great fire razed the city in 64 AD, emperor Nero sought to “borrow bamboo shoots from the wind” and blame all Christians for causing the fire. He had them executed by burning them on poles, tearing them apart by beasts, and nailing them on racks. Among them is Saint Peter, the head of Jesus’ group of apostles and also the first bishop of Rome. His body is believed to be buried at Vatican Hill.
In the 4th century, when Christianity was legally recognized in Rome, the emperor Constantine began construction of the church on the ancient tomb and the resting place of Saint Peter is believed to be located in the center of the structure. Construction on the present church began in the 1500s.
During his reign, the Roman emperor Caligula built a roundabout in his mother’s garden at the foot of Vatican Hill. He used this place to train charioteers and it is believed that Christians were executed here. To decorate the square, Caligula had the army bring back from Egypt a stupa that had been erected at Helioplis.
This tower made of monolithic red granite weighing more than 350 tons was erected under the Pharaohs in Egypt about 3,000 years ago. In 1586, it was brought back to Saint Peter’s Square for decorative purposes and also to form a giant sundial.
The main stupa in the middle of the square was brought back by Emperor Cligula. (Photo wpr.org)
When the Vatican was a state within Italy called the Papal States, the popes refused to acknowledge the Vatican as existing under Italian rule. Pope Pius IX (March 13, 1792 – February 7, 1878, reign: 1846 – 1878) once declared him a “prisoner in the Vatican”. For 60 years the popes refused to leave the Vatican and recognize the power of the Italian government. When the Italian army was present in St Peter’s Square, the popes did not appear on the balcony and refused to pray for them.
The dispute between the Italian government and the Catholic Church in the Vatican ended in 1929 with the Lateran Pacts agreement, leaving the Vatican alive and independent with the payment of $ 93 million to the Papal States (today equivalent to $ 1 billion). ). The Vatican uses this money as the basis for the national treasury. Mussolini, the head of the Italian government at the time, signed the treaty on behalf of King Victor Emmanuel III.
Although St Peter’s Basilica was completed, the popes still lived mainly in Rome’s Lateran palace. They even left the city together for Avignon, France in 1309 when King Philip IV arranged for a French cardinal to be chosen as pope. Seven popes, all French, led the church from Avignon, and they did not return to Rome until 1377, when the Lateran Palace burned down and the Vatican began to be used as a residence by the Popes. Pope.
Much of the repair work has been done because the Vatican’s infrastructure has fallen into disrepair, wolves dig up corpses in the cemetery, and cows roam around the church.
When coming to the Vatican, visitors easily meet “The Swiss Guard” – the Swiss guard team. Dressed in colorful renaissance-style clothes, they began to protect the pope from 1506. That was when Pope Julius II came to power, he followed in the footsteps of so many prominent people in Europe, hiring. a Swiss army for safety.
This army regularly patrols and guards the whole Vatican city state. They are well trained, have strength, discipline and are marksmen. Of course, the team members are all Swiss.
The Swiss Guard has been protecting the Vatican and the pope since 1506. (Image: dogsqueen.pixnet.net)
In 1277, the Passetto di Borgo route was built to connect the Vatican with Castel Sant’Angelo on the banks of the Tiber River. It was used as an escape route for popes.
For example, in 1527, Pope Clement VII was safe after being taken out of the Vatican when all of Rome was threatened by the armies of Charles V. They frantically killed the bishops and nuns in the city, the bodyguards. Switzerland resisted long enough for the pope and some monks to follow the secret passage to Castel Sant’Angelo, but 147 bishops were also killed in the persecution.
In 2011, the Vatican population was 594 and the latest figures for 2013, the Vatican has 839 people. Many citizens have Vatican citizenship, but they live abroad (actually in Rome, Italy). In addition to the Swiss army of more than 100 members, the largest community in the Vatican is parish priests from all over the world who come to live and study here.
As Rome developed into a bustling metropolis, the lights in the city prevented astronomers from the smallest country on the planet from observing the constellations clearly. The Vatican Observatory is located 15 miles from the city center at Castel Gdandolfo.
In 1981, the Vatican set up another research center in Tucson and equipped with a modern telescope on Mount Graham, southeast Arizona state, USA.
The Vatican has much more to offer, with St. Peter’s Basilica filled with authentic works of art, the Vatican library with millions of books, or simply standing in the middle of St. Peter’s Square. Maybe you’ll see Pope Francis waving from the balcony.
As of 2015, the Vatican’s population is estimated at around 1000. And with the number of tourists up to… 5 million visitors per year, the Vatican becomes the country with the largest number of tourists in the world per capita.
The Vatican population includes Cardinals, members of the Swiss Guard, members of the clergy and a nun inside the Vatican. There are also members of the clergy working in foreign diplomatic posts.