Monarchie abolite. Lo Stato della Chiesa

Abstract

Abolished Monarchies. The Papal State – The essay examines the “Papal State” as an "abolished monarchy" following its effective dissolution on September 20, 1870, with the capture of Rome by the Kingdom of Italy. The author addresses two methodological issues: the first concerns the traditional canonical view that denies a true abolition of the Church's temporal power, seeing the events of 1870 as a "partial debellatio". The second highlights the imprecision of defining the Church as a monarchy or a state, distinguishing it from the "State of the Church" as a historical political entity. Then the study traces the unicity of the Papal States as an elective, patrimonial, and theocratic monarchy and details the decline of the pontifical monarchy, starting from the French Revolution and culminating in the annexation of Rome in 1870. This event led to parallel consequences: within the Italian legal system, the “Law of Guarantees” (1871) unilaterally recognized the Pope's personal prerogatives and inviolability, while within the Church's legal system, the Pope vehemently protested, declaring himself a "prisoner" and isolating the Holy See internationally. Finally, the essay analyzes the Lateran Pacts of 1929 as the definitive legal resolution of the “questione romana” underlining that the end of the Church's temporal power and the debellatio of its State, leaded to the creation of the “Vatican City State”, a new entity characterized as an elective absolute monarchy, effectively reconstituting a form of temporal power for the Pontiff, with Italy providing substantial financial compensation for the historical loss of the Papal States.

Keywords: Papal State; Pontifical Monarchy; Temporal power; Lateran pacts; Vatican City