Welcome to my webpage on the smallest country in the world - Vatican City State or the Vatican for short. Keep reading and you will find out why the Vatican is special, where the Vatican is and it's history.

The Vatican is so special because it is the centre of the Catholic church and it is where the pope - Pope John Paul II - resides. Other members of the church also live in the Vatican and the total population is about 1000 making the Vatican the smallest country in the world.

The Vatican is situated in the center of Rome, Italy's capital city. Although the Vatican is in Rome it is not part of Italy. This is because the Catholic church would have wanted a neutral, worldwide headquarters.

The Vatican's history begins in the 4th century when the Vatican was set up for the Catholic Church. In 1871 Victor Emmanuel captured Rome and declared it the capital of Italy. The Pope at the time - Pope Pius - disagreed with the legitimacy of what Victor Emmanuel had done and thought of himself as a prisoner in the Vatican. Later on, in 1929 the Italian Covernment signed a few treatys to put to end the dispute. In the treatys, Vatican City State was recognized as independant, recieved compensation and the relations between the Vatican and Italy were stated.