European Borders are Never Permanent--The Papal States

3 Centissimi

 Some thoughts today on how postage stamps can tell the story of how modern nation states were built.

The stamps in this blog are a set from the Roman or Papal States, issued in 1867. I’ve always enjoyed them for their simplicity and their age. Each one shows a different design with the same theme, the papal crown and the keys of St. Peter. This set is part of my parents’ collection.

 

2 Centissimi

5 Centissimi

20 Centissimi

10 Centissimi

80 Centissimi

40 Centissimi

 

From the early Middle Ages the Papacy ruled the central region of Italy around Rome. This became solidified in the later Middle Ages (see the map--the Papal States are in purple). During the Middle Ages and the Renaissance the Papacy not only governed the church but ruled this section of the Italian peninsula. The Pope had an army, and on a number of occasions engaged in war against another of the Italian city states. Italy was almost in a constant state of war with one city state fighting with another or territory or resources. This subsided once the Renaissance came to an end.

 

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Giuseppe Garibaldi (1807-1882)

The medieval division of Italy began to end during the Napoleonic era. Napoleon ended the Venetian Empire and consolidated some of the fractured territories. By the 1840's the Young Italy movement arose with the goal of unifying the whole peninsula in a modern state. The leader of this effort was the military leader Giuseppe Garibaldi (1807-1882) who fought tirelessly to achieve this goal. The unified Kingdom of Italy was established in 1861. The Papal States were the holdout. Although significantly reduced in territory the papacy held on to its remaining territory until 1870. The Vatican formally renounced its claim to the Papal States in 1920 and the modern Vatican City, embedded in the heart of Rome around St. Peter's Basilica, was created.

As we look at the map of the world right now it easy to think that the borders of present nations have always been the same and won't change. In many cases that is probably true although not certain. With the current war in Ukraine we may see a change in borders. All wars end when an end is negotiated. Will Ukraine formally cede the Crimea to Russia? Will it recognize the two eastern breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk, which if recognized would quickly be absorbed into Russia?

We don't know. In Europe, at least, the rule about borders is that they are never permanent. The last great redrawing of borders was in the late 1980's-early 90's when the Soviet Union broke up and all the former republics became independent. The breakup of Yugoslavia followed with the creation of new states.

The stamps above came from a time when the Papal States could see the handwriting on the wall. Their end was near. They ceased to exist only three years later, and Italy and the papacy were changed forever. At least for now.