The oldest documents in the Vatican
Secret Archive are evidences of donations, lists of
Churches and of Charity actions.
From the IV century on, after the Church of Rome was
officially recognised, the collection could be regarded
as a real archive. The erection of Saint Peter's Cathedral (or Basilica), was started in this period of theological
and artistic excitement . Since the Middle Age, the
archive kept growing and remained in the Lateran Palace
until the XIII century.
During the of papacy of Gregory the Great, the archive
was kept partly inside Saint Peter's Cathedral, next
to Saint Peter's tomb, partly in the Chartularia Tower,
near Titus' Arch, and partly in the vestiary of the
Church of Rome (Vestiarium Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae)
at the Lateran Palace.Unfortuntely, due to the vulnerability
of the material and to the adventurous and frequent
displacement as well as to wars and sacks (among them
the Sack of Rome in 1084), a large part of the archive
was lost.
Under Pope Innocent III (1198-1216), at the time of
Saint Francis and Saint Dominic de Guzman, the fervour
in economy, culture, politics and religion produced
a big number of documents that were to be preserved
in the Vatican Archive.
The Archive was then transferred to Vatican City and
the registers became more regular. Unfortunately, in
the following years they followed the various Popes
to many different places: to Lyon, to Viterbo, with
Pope Boniface VIII to Anagni, with Pope Benedict XI
to Perugia. The Vatican Archive remained there for some
years and then part of it was sent to Assisi, part to
Avignon. The Archive was badly damaged as a consequence
of the many conflicts, documented by many precious evidences
preserved in the Archive itself.
With Popes Urban VI, Boniface IX, Innocent VII and
Gregory XII a new nucleus of the Archive was developed
in Rome.
The books and documents of the Vatican Archive were
then dispersed in the various pontifical offices. Pope
Martin V (1417 - 1431) started to re-collect the material.
Sixtus IV (1471-1484) founded the Vatican Library ,
which contained a bibliotheca secreta that was to become
a part of the Archive. Some documents were taken to
Castel Sant'Angelo and thus they were miraculously saved
during the Sack of Rome in 1527.
Pope Pius IV felt that the Holy See needed a Secret
Archive of its own (the term 'secret' means 'private',
which means it was not open to the public) and founded
a central Vatican Archive in the Apostolic Palace, in
Vatican City.
This was a grand project and was continued by his successors
(Pius V, Gregory XIII, Sixtus V, Clement VIII. During
the latter's papacy the Vatican Archive of Castel Sant'Angelo
(Archivum Arcis Sancti Angeli )was finally established.
Paul V gave order that all the writings belonging to
the Holy See and the Apostolic Chamber should be delivered
to the Guards of the Vatican Library or to the Archive at Castel Sant'Angelo.
The fisrt nuclues of the Vatican Secret Archive was
then set up in three halls, adjacent to the Vatican
Library and decorated with frescoes by many artists,
between 1612 and 1614.
In 1615 the first inventory of the Archive of the Vatican
Library was made, and the Vatican Archive gradually
became independent from the Apostolic Library. In 1630
more halls were given to the Archive to preserve the
diplomatic correspondence of the Holy See. In 1783 the
papal archive that had been left in Avignon was taken
back to Rome.
In 1810 Napoleon I wanted to transfer the Archive and
many works of art to Paris. They returned to Vatican City between 1815 and 1817, but with significant damage
and losses.
Under Pius IX (1846-1878) the Italian Government confiscated
part of the Archive.
Pope Leo XIII (1878 - 1903) decided to open the Vatican
Archive to scholars and historians for their researches.
The liberalisation of the access to the Archive qualified
the Holy See for its important service to culture and
research. Many cultural organisations were founded after
Leo XIII farsighted decision. Among them the French
School, The Germanic Historical Insitute, The Belgian
Academy, The Austrian Institute for Culture, etc.
In 1884 Leo XIII founded the School of Palaeography
and Diplomacy to promote studies and researches on the
History of the Church.
After World War I the international relationships of
the Holy See with the religious non-Christian world
increased, and the production of documents increased.
The Vatican Archive acquired the hall in the Torre dei
Venti (Tower of the Wind), frescoed in 1580-1582 by
Niccolò Circignani (alsa known as Pomarancio)
and by the Flemish artists Matthew and Paul Bril.
After World War II the Archive was given the rooms
above the Gallery of Geographic maps at the Vatican
Museums.
The most important improvement was the erection of
a dedicated building that was inaugurated by Pope
John Paul II on October 18, 1980.
The Vatican Secret Archive is an infinite source
of information for the scholars. The access to the
Archive is governed by pontifical rules and today
it includes all periods until the age of Pope Benedict
V (1914-22). The latest documents are still "secret".
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Diploma of Emperor
Ottone I, written in 962 d.C.
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Letter from english lords
to the Pope to ask for wedding cancellation
on behalf of Henry VIII, King of England
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one of the rooms of the
"noble" floor
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