Lateran Treaty
The Lateran Treaty (; ) was one of the Lateran Pacts of 1929 or Lateran Accords, agreements made in 1929 between the Kingdom of Italy and the Holy See, settling the "Roman Question". They are named after the Lateran Palace, where they were signed on 11 February 1929. The Italian parliament ratified them on 7 June 1929. It recognized Vatican City as an independent state, with the Italian government, at the time led by Benito Mussolini as prime minister, agreeing to give the Roman Catholic Church financial compensation for the loss of the Papal States. In 1947, the Lateran Treaty was recognized in the Constitution of Italy as regulating the relations between the state and the Catholic Church.
Fifth Council of the Lateran
France's victory over the Papal States and the Spanish Empire at the Battle of Ravenna (1512) hindered the opening of the council called by Julius II; it finally met on 3 May at the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran. The scholar Egidio da Viterbo gave an inspiring opening address. Participants included fifteen cardinals, the Latin patriarchs of Alexandria and Antioch, ten archbishops, fifty-six bishops, some abbots and generals of religious orders, the ambassadors of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor and those of Venice and of Florence. After Julius II died, his successor, Pope Leo X, continued the council, and the last session was held on 16 March 1517. During the council, the ambassador of the Holy Roman Emperor announced that Maximilian had rejected the decisions made by the " at Pisa, and a similar announcement was made by Louis XII's ambassador.