Eugenio Pacelli

From Kaiserreich

Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (born in Rome, Italian Federation, March , 2 1876) is an italian cardinal and the current Camerlengo of the Roman Catholic Church and Minister of Finance of the Italian Federation.

Biography

Early Life

Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli was born in Rome on March 2nd 1876 in a devoted Catholic family that was traditionally loyal to the Pope; his grandfather Marcantonio Pacelli was one of the founders of the official Vatican newspaper, the Osservatore Romano (Roman Observer) in 1861.

In 1894 Pacelli entered the seminary and in the following years he studied at the University La Sapienza in Rome. He was ordained priest on April 2 1899 and achieved a degree in theology in 1901 and a degree in civil and canon law in 1902.

Career in the Chuch

In 1908 he represented the Vatican at the International Eucharistic Congress in London and on June 22 1911 he was the Vatican representative at the coronation of King George V at Westminster Abbey. In 1914 he was appointed Secretary of the Department of Extraordinary Ecclesiastic Affairs and on April 23 1917 Pope Benedict XV chose him as papal Nuncio to Bavaria before elevating him to Archbishop on May 13 of the same year.

In 1920 Pacelli was also appointed Nuncio to Germany and there he met Ludwig Kaas, exponent of the Deutsche Zentrumspartei (Centre Party), with whom he developed a lasting friendship. During his years in Germany he was active in diplomatic and social activities and was highly regarded by the German government.

On December 16 1929 Pope Pius XI elevated him to cardinal and on February 7 1930 he appointed him as Cardinal Secretary of State and Camerlengo.