Title: Catholic Church and Nazi Germany during World War II
Content: of conflict. His first encyclical, "Summi Pontificatus", called the invasion of Poland an "hour of darkness". He affirmed the policy of Vatican neutrality, but maintained links to the German Resistance. Despite being the only world leader to publicly and specifically denounce Nazi crimes against Jews in his 1942 Christmas Address, controversy surrounding his apparent reluctance to speak frequently and in even more explicit terms about Nazi crimes continues. He used diplomacy to aid war victims, lobbied for peace, shared intelligence with the Allies, and employed Vatican Radio and other media to speak out against atrocities like race murders. In "Mystici

Title: Vatican City in World War II
Content: had tremendous consequences for post-war Polish-Vatican relations. There was no Apostolic Nuncio to Poland between 1947 and 1989. The Allies liberated Rome on 4–5 June 1944.. During the liberation, many Catholic Allied troops visited the Vatican for Mass and to hear the Pope speak, including some who drove tanks into St. Peter's Square. The Pope was the greatest celebrity on the Italian peninsula during this period, and – given the tarnishment of the King of Italy with fascism – there was even talk of extending the temporal power of the papacy. The Pope granted audiences with Allied soldiers and leaders,

Title: Pope Pius XII
Content: to aid the victims of the war and lobby for peace, and spoke out against race-based murders and other atrocities. The "Reichskonkordat" and his leadership of the Catholic Church during the war remain the subject of controversy—including allegations of public silence and inaction about the fate of the Jews. After the war, he advocated peace and reconciliation, including lenient policies towards former Axis and Axis-satellite nations. He was also a staunch opponent of Communism and of the Italian Communist Party. During his papacy, the Church issued the Decree against Communism, declaring that Catholics who profess Communist doctrine are to be

Title: Catholic Church and Nazi Germany
Content: Sapieha; and French Archbishop Jules-Géraud Saliège. Italian Papal diplomat Angelo Roncalli (later Pope John XXIII) and Polish Archbishop Stefan Wyszyński were among those elevated in 1953. Of the post-war popes, the Italians John XXIII and Pope Paul VI were actively involved in the protection of Jews during the war. Pope Benedict XVI had first hand experience of life in Nazi Germany. As a boy, he was forced to join the Hitler youth, drafted into the anti-aircraft corps and trained as a child soldier. At the end of the war, he deserted, was briefly held as a POW and released. In

Title: World War II by country
Content: Soviet Union. Vatican City, the smallest autonomous country in the world at 0.44 km (0.16 sq mi), remained unoccupied throughout the war and its small military did not engage in combat. Though Pope Pius XII allegedly supported resistance efforts in secret, issued public statements against racism, and attempted to broker peace before the outbreak of total war; as Cardinal Eugenio Pacelli, he signed the very first treaty negotiated by Nazi Germany when it came to power in 1933, the Reichskonkordat, on behalf of Pope Pius XI (a treaty that remains in force today). The Vatican City was also bound by

Question: Who was Pope during World War II?
Answer: Pius XII