Vatican City

Partners situated in Vatican City

None.

Vatican City in a nutshell

Vatican City - in full Vatican City State - was inaugurated on 11 February 1929. Its motto is "A small territory with a great mission".

The rationale for the state was summed up by the Pope of the time:

At least that piece of territory which is sufficient to sustain sovereignty; that piece of territory without which sovereignty could not exist, because it would have no place to rest …The Supreme Pontiff possesses no more than that piece of material territory indispensable for the exercise of a spiritual power assigned to men for the benefit of mankind. (Pius XI).

The official web site (English version) is at http://www.vaticanstate.va/EN/

Details

(sourced from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vatican_City)

Vatican City, officially the State of the Vatican City (Italian: Stato della Città del Vaticano), is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, the capital city of Italy.

At approximately 44 hectares (110 acres) (0.44 km2), and with a population of around 900, it is the smallest country in the world by both area and population. (This does not include micronations.)

Vatican City is a city-state that came into existence in 1929 and is thus distinct from the central authority of the Roman Catholic Church, the Holy See, which existed long before 1929.

Ordinances of Vatican City are published in Italian; official documents of the Holy See are issued mainly in Latin.

The two entities even have distinct passports: the Holy See, not being a country, only issues diplomatic and service passports; the state of Vatican City issues normal passports. In both cases the passports issued are very few.

The Lateran Treaty in 1929, which brought the city-state into existence, spoke of it as a new creation (Preamble and Article III), not as a vestige of the much larger Papal States (756-1870) that had previously encompassed central Italy. Most of this territory was absorbed into the Kingdom of Italy in 1860, and the final portion, namely the city of Rome with a small area close to it, ten years later, in 1870.

Vatican City is called by experts an "ecclesiastical" or "sacerdotal-monarchical" state, ruled by the bishop of Rome - the Pope. The highest state functionaries are all clergymen of the Roman Catholic Church. It is the sovereign territory of the Holy See (Sancta Sedes) and the location of the Pope's residence, referred to as the Apostolic Palace.

The Popes have resided in the area that in 1929 became Vatican City since the return from Avignon in 1377. Previously, they resided in the Lateran Palace on the Caelian Hill on the opposite side of Rome, which was out of repair in 1377. The signing of the agreements that established the new state took place in the latter building, giving rise to the name of Lateran Pacts, by which they are known.

Vatican City is situated on the Vatican Hill in the west-central part of Rome, several hundred metres west of the Tiber river. Its borders (3.2 kilometres (2.0 mi) in total, all within 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 St. Peter's Basilica, where the correct border is just outside the ellipse formed by Bernini's colonnade, but where police jurisdiction has been entrusted to Italy. Within the territory of Vatican City are the Vatican Gardens (Italian: ‘Giardini Vaticani’), which account for more than half of this territory. The gardens, established during the Renaissance and Baroque era, are decorated by fountains and sculptures.

The Pope is ex officio head of state and head of government of Vatican City, functions dependent on his primordial function as bishop of the diocese of Rome. The term Holy See refers not to the Vatican state but to the Pope's spiritual and pastoral governance, largely exercised through the Roman Curia.

His official title with regard to Vatican City is Sovereign of the State of the Vatican City. His principal subordinate government official for Vatican City is the President of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State, who since 1952 exercises the functions previously belonging to the Governor of Vatican City. Since 2001, the President of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State also has the title of President of the Governorate of the State of Vatican City.

The Pope resides in the Papal Apartments of the Papal Palace just off St. Peter's Square. It is here he carries out his business and meets foreign representatives.

Vatican City State is a recognized national territory under international law, but it is the Holy See that conducts diplomatic relations on its behalf, in addition to the Holy See's own diplomacy, entering into international agreements in its regard. The Vatican City State thus has no diplomatic service of its own.

Because of space limitations, Vatican City is with Liechtenstein the only countries in the world not — being able — to host any embassy. Foreign embassies to the Holy See are located in the city of Rome - this has caused some issues during time of war.

Extra-territorial locations

According to the Lateran Treaty, certain properties of the Holy See that are located in Italian territory, most notably Castel Gandolfo and the major basilicas, enjoy extraterritorial status similar to that of foreign embassies. These properties, scattered all over Rome and Italy, house essential offices and institutions necessary to the character and mission of the Holy See.

Castel Gandolfo and the named basilicas are patrolled internally by police agents of Vatican City State and not by Italian police.

Vatican City education policy

Since citizenship is not a birthright; citizens are primarily members of the clergy and can receive their citizenship for short but renewable periods of time as selected by the members of the Holy See. There is no annual birthrate, thus no need for primary schools, but it does consistently have a 100 percent literacy rate!

Vatican City education system

There are no schools - but see below.

Higher education

The following material is taken from http://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/1660/Vatican-City-State.html

There are at least 15 educational institutions that have received Pontifical status from the Pope, but most actually exist on the streets of Rome not within the Vatican. The institutes, colleges, and universities do a wide variety of educational tasks from training young seminarians who are to receive their fundamental instruction before ordination up to training clergy from around the world on advanced studies in subjects like the canon law of the church, theology, and spirituality. The students may then return home or serve a mission elsewhere as a pastor, administrator, and/or instructor. Many of the institutions award graduate degrees, including doctorates.

Some of these major institutions of higher education that are actually within Rome's territory but claimed as part of the Vatican, are:

1. Gregorian University (Pontificia Universita Gregoriana), which is paired, in physical plant and study, with the Biblical Institute (Pontificio Insituto Biblico) and its affiliated school, the Oriental Institute (Pontificio Isitutio Orientale)
2. Lateran University (Pontificia Universita Lateranense)
3. Urban University (Pontificia Universita Urbaniana
4. St. Thomas Aquinas University (Pontificia Universita S. Tommaso d' Aquino
5. University of the Holy Cross (Pontificia Universita della Santa Croce)
6. Salesian University Pontificia Universita Salesiana), founded by St. John Bosco in the mid-1880s, named for a order of priests, brothers, and nuns who had a special devotion to helping young people, especially the poor, through education, activities, and work—often on farms.

Gregorian University

The most famous of the universities may be Gregorian University, also known by the affectionate nickname of "The Greg." Its rector is appointed by the Pope and its teachers are almost all Jesuits (Society of Jesus), though not all of its students over the years have been clergy. Founded by St. Ignatius of Loyola and St. Francis Borgia in 1551, its curriculum includes canon law, theology, philosophy, psychology, social sciences, and church history. It was given its present name years after its founding to honor Pope Gregory XIII (much the way Urban University bares a name popular with popes for centuries), who helped to expand the school. Among its graduates are 16 popes, at least 19 canonized saints, and at least another 24 who have been beatified.

Ethiopian College

The Ethiopian College is the only school still within the grounds of the Holy See/Vatican City.

It started as a seminar to train young African males for the priesthood. It has graduated many of the African bishops and cardinals who are now in office.

Other scholarly and educational institutions within the Vatican

Within the Vatican are several scholarly and educational institutions. Of great interest to scholars is the Vatican Library (Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana), founded by Pope Nicholas V in the mid-1400s. It has been filled with books, manuscripts, and engravings throughout the centuries. It also contains the Vatican School of Librarianship. Next to the Apostolic Library is the Secret Vatican Archives. Obviously, its existence is not a secret, but it does conserve important possessions of the church along with ancient manuscripts and all the correspondence, since 1660, of the Holy See's Secretariat of State.

It also runs the Vatican School of Palaeography, Diplomacy, and Archivistry.

Additionally, there are three academies established for both study and promotion of the church's beliefs. The Pontifical Academy of Sciences is by far the oldest, founded in 1603 when it was called the Academy of the Lynx-Eyed. Its 80 members are appointed by the pope and are chosen from around the globe. Both the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences and the Pontifical Academy for Life were founded in 1994 by Pope John Paul II.

Higher education reform

It is not clear whether this is handled by Italy for the institutions listed above.

Quality assurance

It is not clear whether this is handled by Italy for the institutions listed above.

Vatican City's HEIs in the information society

Telecommunications

(sourced from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vatican_City)

Vatican City is served by an independent, modern telephone system. The Vatican also controls its own Internet domain, which is registered as (.va). Broadband service is widely provided within Vatican City. Vatican City has also been given a radio ITU prefix, HV, and this is sometimes used by amateur radio operators.

Vatican Radio, which was organised by Guglielmo Marconi, broadcasts on short-wave, medium-wave and FM frequencies and on the Internet.[43] Its main transmission antennae are located in Italian territory. Television services are provided through another entity, the Vatican Television Center.

L'Osservatore Romano is the multilingual semi-official newspaper of the Holy See. It is published by a private corporation under the direction of Roman Catholic laymen but reports on official information. However, the official texts of documents are in the Acta Apostolicae Sedis, the official gazette of the Holy See, which has an appendix for documents of the Vatican City State.

Vatican Radio, the Vatican Television Center, and L'Osservatore Romano are organs not of the Vatican State but of the Holy See, and are listed as such in the Annuario Pontificio, which places them in the section "Institutions linked with the Holy See", ahead of the sections on the Holy See's diplomatic service abroad and the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Holy See, after which is placed the section on the State of Vatican City.

Virtual Campuses in HE

There seems little sign of "notable" e-learning activity in any of the institutions above.

Lessons learnt

None.

References

• http://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/1660/Vatican-City-State.html

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