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The State of the Vatican City (commonly known also as the Vatican City-State) is the smallest independent
country in the world (both in area and in population), a landlocked enclave
surrounded by the city of Rome in Italy.
"The Vatican" is the home of the Pope, and forms the territory of the
Holy See, the central authority of the Roman Catholic Church. The Vatican City includes the Vatican Hill (mons vaticanus), whose name predates Christianity, and the Vatican Fields north of the
hill, upon which St. Peter's Basilica, the Sistine Chapel, and the
Vatican Museums are built.
History
Main article: History of the Vatican
City
It is supposed that this originally uninhabited part of Rome (the ager
vaticanus) had always been considered sacred, even before the arrival of Christianity. In 326 the first church was built on the supposed site of
the tomb of Saint Peter, and from then on the area started to become more
populated.
Popes in their secular role gradually extended their control over neighbouring regions
and through the Papal States ruled a large portion of the Italian peninsula for more than a thousand years until the mid 19th century, when most of the territory of the Papal States was seized by the newly united Kingdom of Italy.
In 1870, the Pope's holdings were further circumscribed when Rome itself was annexed. Disputes between a series of "prisoner" popes and Italy were resolved on February 11, 1929 by three Lateran treaties, which established the independent state of the Vatican
City and granted Roman Catholicism special status in Italy. In
1984, a new concordat between the Holy See and Italy modified certain of the earlier treaty
provisions, including the primacy of Roman Catholicism as the Italian state religion.
Politics
Main article: Politics of the Vatican
City
The Vatican is technically a rare case of a non-hereditary elective monarchy; the monarch, the Pope, being elected for life by
those Cardinals under the age of 80 during a
Conclave (held in the Sistine
Chapel).
The term "Holy See" refers to the composite of the authority, jurisdiction, and
sovereignty vested in the Pope and his advisers to direct the worldwide Roman Catholic Church. As the "central government" of the Roman Catholic Church, the Holy See has a
legal personality that allows it to enter into treaties as the juridical equal of a state. The Pope delegates the internal
administration of the Vatican City to the Pontifical Commission for the State of the Vatican City. The legal system is based on
canon, or ecclesiastical, law; if canon law is not applicable the laws of the
city of Rome apply.
As an independent state, the Vatican has the right to send and receive diplomatic representatives, including foreign
embassies, which are located in the Italian part of Rome due to the very limited territory of the state. This means that Italy
hosts its own Embassy of Italy.
Geography
Main article: Geography of the Vatican
City
The Vatican City is situated on the Vatican Hill in the northwestern part of Rome,
several hundred metres west of the Tiber river. Its borders (3.2km in total, all with
Italy) closely follow the city wall
constructed to protect the Pope from outside attack. The situation is more complex at the famous St. Peter's Square in front
of the St. Peter's Basilica, where the correct border is
the middle of the round area surrounded by Bernini's
columns. It is the smallest sovereign state in the world (0.44km², 108.7acres). In addition
to Vatican City the State includes certain extra-territorial
properties in Italy belonging to the Holy See (Major Basilicas, Curial and diocesan offices, Castel Gandolfo). The Pope is the Head of State, though he governs through the Pontifical Commission
for the State of Vatican City. The Gubernator manages the day to day affairs of the State.
Its climate is naturally much the same as Rome's; a temperate, mediterranean clime
with mild, rainy winters from September to mid-May and hot, dry summers from May to September.
Economy
Main article: Economy of the Vatican
City
This unique, noncommercial economy is supported financially by contributions (known as Peter's Pence) from Roman Catholics throughout the world, the sale of postage stamps, coins and tourist
mementos, fees for admission to museums, and the sale of publications. The incomes and living standards of lay workers are
comparable to, or somewhat better than, those of counterparts who work in the city of Rome.
Demographics
Main article: Demographics of
the Vatican City
Almost all of Vatican City's 890 citizens live inside the Vatican's walls. The Vatican citizenry consists mostly of clergy, including high dignitaries, priests, nuns, as well as the famous Swiss Guard, a voluntary military force. There are also about 3,000 lay workers who
comprise the majority of the Vatican work force, but who reside outside the Vatican.
The official language is Latin, the otherwise extinct language that
originated in Rome and has remained in use in the Roman
Catholic Church. Italian and, to a lesser extent, other
languages are generally used for most conversations, publications and broadcasts.
Culture
Main article: Culture of the Vatican City
The Vatican City is itself of great cultural significance. Buildings such as St. Peter's Basilica or the Sistine Chapel
are home to some of the most beautiful art in the world, which includes works by artists such as Botticelli, Bernini and Michelangelo. The Vatican Library and the collections of the Vatican Museums are of the highest historical, scientific and cultural importance.
Transportation
Railway: 862 m standard
gauge (1.435 m); connects to Italy's network at Rome's Saint Peter's station.
Highways: none; all city streets
Ports and harbors: none
Airports: none
Heliports: 1 (1999 est.)
Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: NA
Telephones - mobile cellular: NA
Telephone system: automatic exchange
domestic: tied into Italian system
international: uses Italian system
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 3, FM 4, shortwave 2 (1998)
Radios: NA
Television broadcast stations: 1 (1996)
Televisions: NA
Newspaper: L'Osservatore Romano, weekly
Internet Service Providers
(ISPs):NA
Country code (Top level domain): VA
Miscellaneous topics
External Links
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