Vatican Archives
The Vatican opened its archives of Pope Pius XII, of the Holocaust Era, to the public 8 years before deadline.
Pope Pius XII
Pope Pius XII was a controversial church leader during the World War II period. He was accused of not speaking out against the holocaust and persecution of Jews during that period. He was born Eugenio Pacelli and became the pope in 1939. Before this, he served as Cardinal Secretary of State for the Church (a post that oversees the foreign policy). He was also the ambassador of Holy See in Germany for 12 years.
Vatican Apostolic Archives
Vatican Apostolic Archives, previously known as the Vatican Secret Archives, is a central repository of all of Holy See’s acts. The pope is the sovereign of the Vatican and hence owns the materials in the archive till his death or resignation. It contains documents dating as far back as the 8th century. The Vatican waits 70 years after a pope’s death before making his archives public. In this case, however, it was opened up 8 years early.
Reichskonkordat
Reichskonkordat is a treaty signed between the Vatican and the Nazi Germany in 1933. Pope Pius XII, who was then the Cardinal Secretary of State, was signatory to the controversial concordat which guaranteed the Church’s rights in Germany and the bishop’s loyalty to the Governor of the ‘German Reich’.
