Vatican City, also known as the Papal State, is the world’s smallest sovereign nation—so tiny that it could fit inside the parking lot of the world’s largest building, the New Century Global Centre in China (1.7 sq. km vs. Vatican’s 0.49 sq. km). But don’t let its size fool you—this minuscule state wields power, history, and religious influence like few others. Vatican City, home to the Pope, the Bishop of Rome, who rules as an absolute elective king—which is just a fancy way of saying, “One guy is in charge, but he gets elected in a way that feels straight out of a mediaeval drama,” has a population of roughly 800 (less than your average high school). For all its size, the Vatican runs like a sovereign nation with its own currency (Euro, but with Pope-approved designs), passports, license plates, TV channels, and even a national flag. Oh, and because it is right in the middle of Rome, Italy, Catholicism is the only major religion with a literal headquarters.
Ager Vaticanus, the Latin name for a swampy, unwelcome stretch of ground on the west bank of the Tiber River, gives the name “Vatican”. Indeed, once a wetland nobody desired, the holiest city on Earth was underdeveloped. That changed when Roman emperors started building towns and draining the territory. Then, in 64 AD, Emperor Nero blamed Christians for a massive fire that burned half of Rome, sparking tremendous persecution including the death of St. Peter, one of Jesus’ twelve apostles and the first Bishop of Rome. Later, St. Peter’s Basilica was built on his execution and burial site, therefore ranking among the holiest sites in Christianity. Emperor Constantine approved Christianity by the fourth century and erected the first St. Peter’s Basilica on that identical site. From a persecuted faith’s underground movement to one of the most potent organisations in history, Vatican City’s ascent began here. Along with this recognition came much power and land granted to the Pope, most famously the Lateran Palace, which has been the official Papal residence for over a thousand years. Although Catholicism was a rapidly growing religion, it still didn’t dominate Rome, and many other Pagan shrines coexisted along with the Basilica. With the growth of Rome, the papacy also grew parallel in terms of power, wealth, and influence.
After the decline of Rome, the Papal state found itself in the hands of many new empires like the Byzantines, Ostrogoths and the French. In 756 Pepin the Short, the king of the Franks, donated a vast landmass of central Italy to the Papacy. This donation plays an important part in the history of the Vatican as it extended the rule of the Pope beyond the duchy of Roma. This donation was also like a diplomatic deal between the Pope and the Frankish King, which helped in restructuring many allegiances in Italy and helped both, in taking Italy from the Kingdom of Lombards. In 781, Charlemagne the Great officially established a Royal decree that mentioned the places designated to be ruled by the pope, i.e. the Papal state was officially born. Thus the newly born papal state was massive in comparison to the Vatican we know today and comprised the Duchy of Rome, Ravenna, the Duchy of the Pentapolis, parts of the Duchy of Benevento, Tuscany, Corsica, Lombardy, and several other Italian cities. Although the mentioned regions were under the direct sovereignty of the Pope, they were still ruled by local counts who owed their allegiances to the Pope. In return for this new land, the pope crowned Charlemagne the Great as the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. By this time, the papacy was no longer just a religious institution; it had become political leverage for many royal families. This is because even after the fall of the Roman Empire, Catholicism continued to spread and soon became the dominant religion in Europe. The people recognised the Pope as their religious leader and obeyed everything the church said. This led to the kings and the military rulers seeking the support and recognition of the pope to get the support of the commoners. This support of the Pope was the reason for the existence of the papacy, as its state was accompanied by the power and territory that came along with it.
After the death of Charlemagne, his kingdom was divided between his grandchildren, and thus the mighty Carolingian Empire was divided into three pieces. This was followed by the chaos that ensued in most of central Europe, which is also known as the reason for all the conflicts in Europe. After the division, the relationship between the Vatican and the Holy Roman Empire heavily depended on which emperor and pope ruled. The Holy Roman Empire in its Frankish Form collapsed. This was also the beginning of the era that is referred to as the Saeculum Obscurum i.e. Dark Ages, because with the fall of true imperial power, the papacy’s influence and prestige also fell, leading to the rise of power amongst the Roman nobility.
By this time, the Vatican had seen the fall of 2 great empires of history, the Roman Empire and the Carolingian Empire, this was soon followed by the invasion of Northern Italy by the Germanic conqueror Otto, who is credited with unifying the majority of the Germanic tribes in the 10th Century CE. However, instead of overthrowing the Pope and conquering the Papal states, he utilised the power of the Papacy. He sought the approval of Pope John XII as the new Holy Roman Emperor. Later both Otto and Pope John XII ratified the treaty known as the Diploma Ottonianum which made the Holy Roman Emperor the de facto Protector and Guarantee of the Papal States. But even the Diploma Ottonianum couldn’t answer who effectively ruled the Papal States, was it the Holy Roman Emperor or the Pope? The answer to this question was provided in the 1177 Treaty of Venice, where the Papacy and its allies (the Lombard League and the Norman Kingdom of Sicily) and Frederick Barbarossa: the Holy Roman Emperor after the battle of Legnano, the Lombard League led by Pope Alexander III defeated the Holy Roman Emperor and reestablished their sovereignty in the region. This timeframe also saw many Antipopes (Someone who claimed to be the Bishop of Rome and challenged the elected Pope’s position).
Until now, the papacy has been based entirely in Rome or Italy. However, with the rise of France as a regional superpower and the Vatican losing the protection of the Holy Roman Empire, the French Crown arrested Pope Boniface VIII during the reign of King Philip IV. This arrest occurred primarily due to the Pope and Philip IV’s disagreements about whether the Clergy should be taxed. The arrest was followed by Philip IV pressuring the conclave to elect a French Cardinal, the Archbishop of Bordeaux, as the next Pope. From 1309 to 1376, 7 successive Popes did their duties from the confines of the French commune of Avignon. The absence of the Pope from the papal state in Italy for quite some time led to the decline of the Papal Power in the Italian Papal states as the local Counts and nobility started grabbing more power and influence in the region. This conflict with the French resurfaced during the reign of Napoleon, when the French Empire 1808 invaded and took over the entirety of Italy, followed by the restoration of the Papal state in its pre-Napoleonic form after the defeat of Napoleon.
Another powerful factor that the papacy had with itself was the concept of anointed Kings, i.e. the kings that are recognised by the church as the legitimate owners of the crown. For example, Portugal was only seen as an independent when Pope Alexander III recognised its existence. The pope could also excommunicate not only the clergy or peasants but also kings, i.e. forbid people from interacting with the excommunicated person, a famous example of this is King Henry VIII of England in 1533 who, after being excommunicated by the pope, started a new sect of Christianity known as Protestantism.
After the Congress of Vienna, where the Vatican got international recognition as an independent state, the papal states found their new enemy, which eventually became the cause of its territorial demise: The Italian Unification. The French invasion of Italy sparked patriotism and unity amongst the divided Italian duchies and states. In 1849, a Republic of Rome was declared, leading to Pope Pius IX’s escape. After some time, with the help of the French, the papal states recovered. But this did not stop the Italian fight for unification and the final formation of the Republic of Italy. Rome was declared its capital, but the unification forces could not take over the city because the French garrison protected it. The city was finally sacked in 1870, marking the end of the sovereignty of the papal states, when the French had to recall their forces after they entered a war with the Prussians. In 1929, the Lateran treaty recognised the sovereignty of the Vatican City, under the governance of the Holy See and separate from Italy, this treaty also compensated the Roman Church for the loss of land in return for the Pope’s recognition.
To understand the workings of the papacy and the Holy See, we need to know how a pope is elected. The Vatican is one of the only cases of a non-hereditary Monarchy, where the 2/3s of the cardinals vote and elect a new pope in case of the death or resignation of the former pope. The Pope is also the head of the Holy See, the worldwide administrative and representative body of the Christian church. Although the Vatican has no delegation in the UN, the Holy See is granted the permanent status of Observer in the United Nations General Assembly. Just like any other nation, in terms of administration, the power is divided into three categories i.e. Executive (Overseen by the Secretariat of State, a position similar to the prime minister, who is a cardinal selected by the Pope himself), Legislative( Pontifical commission, a group of 5 Cardinals appointed by the Pope who change every 5 years. Any law passed by this commission must be approved by the Pope via the Secretariat of State) and the Judiciary (Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura). According to the Lateran Treaty, as per the request from the Holy See, the Italian government can punish individuals for crimes committed within the Vatican as they don’t have any prison system. The Vatican lacks any Military forces, but it still has 2 internal forces, i.e. the Swiss Guard (Protection Unit of the Pope) and the gendarmerie (similar to the police force of the Vatican).
Vatican City may be small, but its history, influence, and political manoeuvring have shaped the world for over 2,000 years. It’s a country, a religious hub, and a historical treasure trove all in one. From Popes excommunicating kings to Swiss Guards protecting the Pope in medieval armour, the Vatican is living proof that size doesn’t always matter—power does. And if you ever visit, remember: don’t mess with the Swiss Guard, don’t try to enter the conclave, and don’t ask if you can buy a Pope hat as a souvenir.