On This Day – February 11th

Vatican City, officially Vatican City State or State of Vatican City is a sovereign state located within the city of Rome with an area of 44 hectares / 110 acres, and a population of aronud 1,000, it is the smallest state in the world by both area and population.

It is an ecclesiastical or sacerdotal-monarchical state (a type of theocracy) ruled by the Bishop of Rome – known more commonly as the Pope. The highest state functionaries are all Catholic clergy of various national origins. Since the return of the popes from Avignon in 1377, they have generally resided at the Apostolic Palace within what is now Vatican City, although at times residing instead in the Quirinal Palace in Rome or elsewhere.

Within the city state are numerous religious and cultural sites such as St. Peter's Basilica, the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican Museums.

The city also boasts its own post office which issues its own stamps. a railway station used mainly for freight and a heliport. Residents are issued with a Vatican City passport.

Vatican City is distinct from the Holy See which dates back to early Christianity and is the main episcopal see of 1.2 billion Latin and Eastern Catholic adherents around the globe. The independent city-state, on the other hand, came into existence via the Lateran Treaty between the Holy See and Italy, which spoke of it as a new creation, not as a vestige of the much larger Papal States which had previously encompassed much of central Italy.

The Lateran Treaty was signed on February 11th – our question today is in which year?

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