Vatican City History

History
The independent Vatican City-state, came into existence in 11 February 1929 by the Lateran Treaty between the Holy See and Italy, which spoke of it as a new creation and not as a vestige of the much larger Papal States, which had previously encompassed much of central Italy.

Within the Vatican City are religious and cultural sites such as St. Peter's Basilica, the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican Museums. They feature some of the world's most famous paintings and sculptures. The unique economy of Vatican City is supported financially by the sale of postage stamps and souvenirs, fees for admission to museums, and sales of publications. 

Timeline
1929 - The Lateran Treaty between the Holy See and the Kingdom of Italy was signed. The treaty, established the independent state of Vatican City and reaffirmed the special status of Catholicism in Italy 1943 - German troops occupied the city of Rome and the Allies from 1944 but they respected Vatican City as neutral territory 1984 - A new concordat between the Holy See and Italy modified certain provisions of the earlier treaty, including the position of Catholicism as the Italian state religion, a position given to it by a statute of the Kingdom of Sardinia of 1848

Links
"Vatican City in the past"