Pope Pius XI
Pope Pius XI reigned from 1922 to 1939 and dealt with Mussolini, Hitler and Stalin in succession. Born Achille Ratti near Milan in 1857, he was a scholar rather than a diplomat for most of his life — a librarian at the Ambrosian in Milan and then prefect of the Vatican Library, and a serious alpinist who made early ascents of Monte Rosa and the Matterhorn. He was sent as nuncio to Poland in 1918 and stayed in Warsaw during the Soviet advance of 1920 when most of the diplomatic corps left, which made his reputation. He was elected in 1922, took the motto the peace of Christ in the reign of Christ, and gave the first blessing from the outer balcony of St Peter's since 1870, signalling an intention to end the papacy's self-imposed confinement. The Lateran Treaty of 1929 with Mussolini did exactly that, resolving the Roman Question by creating the Vatican City State, compensating the papacy for lost territory, and making Catholicism the state religion of Italy. He called Mussolini a man sent by providence and then fought him repeatedly over the suppression of Catholic Action, issuing Non abbiamo bisogno in 1931. He signed a concordat with Germany in 1933, and as its terms were violated issued Mit brennender Sorge in March 1937 — written in German, smuggled in and read from pulpits without warning — condemning Nazi racial doctrine and treaty-breaking. Days later Divini Redemptoris condemned atheistic communism. He established Vatican Radio, the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, and Quadragesimo anno on social justice. He died in February 1939.
- Lived: 1857 CE – 1939 CE
- Nationality: Italian
- Roles: pope, cleric
