Discover why Vatican City, the heart of the Catholic Church, remains an independent city-state entirely surrounded by Rome. This video explores the historical conflicts between the Papacy and Italy, ...

The first Vatican postage stamp was issued in 1852, but the Holy See only began to produce regular stamps after the Lateran Treaty of 1929 established the Vatican as a sovereign state.

Vatican City covers just 0.17 square miles (0.44 square kilometers) and has a population of a few hundred people. It became an independent state in 1929 under a treaty between Italy and the Holy See.

Pope Leo XIV will take possession of the Basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano or St John Lateran, the official seat of the bishop of Rome, on Sunday 25 May. 25.7 C. Rome (IT) Fri, 27 June 2025.

But Italian officials have informed the Russians that, under the 1929 Lateran Treaty that established the state of Vatican City, their government must grant safe passage to diplomatic missions to ...

Pope Leo XIV will preside over his inaugural mass today in front of St Peter’s Basilica, which marks the formal start of his papacy. JD Vance, Marco Rubio and Volodymyr Zelenskyy are attending.

Finally, the construction of a railway station and its linkage to Italian rail lines were guaranteed by the Lateran Treaty in February 1929, which recognised Vatican City as an independent state ...

For a day, the Vatican will temporarily be the world’s premier diplomatic stage. ... the Lateran Treaty of 1929 also endowed him with full sovereignty over the territory of Vatican City.

Vatican history traces back to the martyrdom of St. Peter and the establishment of St. Peter’s Basilica by Emperor Constantine in the 4th century. The Pope’s temporal influence grew with the Papal ...

The Vatican is the world's smallest country, ruled by the Pope, with its own laws, bank, and army. Formed in 1929, it holds billions in assets and global influence far beyond its tiny size.