Papal see, or What does the phrase «testiculos habet!» mean

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The history of this country begins in 1929. On February 11, the Holy See and the Italian government, led by Mussolini, concluded the Lateran Agreement, under which the Vatican was granted the modern status of a separate state. 

The Vatican got its name due to its location on the Vatican Hill.  Historically, the word “Vatican” meant “the palace of the pope.” In antiquity, the territory of the Vatican was not inhabited, since the ancient Romans considered this place a holy place. However, in 326, the Basilica of Constantine was erected over the supposed tomb of St. Peter, and people have been living in the Vatican ever since. In 1870, when the Papal State covered most of the Apennine Peninsula, it was abolished by the Kingdom of Italy. 

The modern Vatican has a total length of 3.2 kilometers of state border and is the smallest independent state in the world.  Its edge is marked with white stones on the cobbled square in front of St. Peter’s Cathedral. 

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The state is ruled by the Holy See. Absolute legislative, executive and judicial powers are concentrated in his hands. Order in the country is maintained by the Papal guard, consisting of Swiss guards. 

A Swiss regiment in the service of the Vatican was founded by Julius II in 1506. The papal troops are distinguished by an exceptional faith in the person of the Pope: in 1527 the Swiss sacrificed themselves before the Italian army in order to secure the escape of the incumbent Pope along the corridor to the castle of Sant’Angelo. This fortified corridor, which connects the Vatican with the castle, has survived to this day.

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The city-state has about 1000 inhabitants on just 110 hectares and has a multi-million dollar budget and rich history.  However, it has the highest crime rate: 1.5 crimes per person.  This is due to the large number of tourists on the streets and the only judge in the state.

Most of the population of the Vatican is Vatican citizens, employees of the Catholic Church and holding a passport. Citizenship in the Vatican is not inherited and cannot be acquired by virtue of birth in the state. It can only be obtained on the basis of service to the Holy See and will be canceled in the event of termination of employment in the Vatican.

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The Vatican has a planned economy. Sources of income are donations from Catholics around the world and tourism. The labor force is made up of Italian citizens. 

The devil is now considered alive and active in the Vatican. Father Gabriel Amorth, Chief Exorcist of the Church, conducts over 300 exorcisms a year in his office.

Baudelaire once commented on this: “The biggest misconception about the devil that man that man could invent is to convince the world that he does not exist”.

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Here you can forgive sins. Indulgences in the Vatican are only granted on special occasions. One such ocassion is the Jubilee, or Holy Year, every 25 years. At this time, the Pope distributes plenary indulgences to believers, in accordance with accepted traditions.

In the Vatican there is a custom – immediately after the election to sit on a chair with a hole through which the deacon determines the authenticity of the new pontiff and announces: “testiculos habet!”  (“There are eggs”).  It appeared in the ninth century AD after the incident of  Pope John VIII, who turned out to be a woman. During the procession, the pregnant Pope Iona suffered a miscarriage and was pelted with stones. 

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There are no airports in the Vatican, but there is one heliport, the Vatican Heliport.  There is a 700-meter railway line that connects to the Italian rail network and the station.  The Vatican has a radio station broadcasting in 47 languages. The country has its own domain – “.va”.

The Vatican is also very active on social networks: in 1995, the Vatican created its official website: http://www.vatican.va/ , and in 2009 the Vatican opened its official YouTube channel, where the Pope’s addresses and various ceremonies are broadcast.  After that, the Vatican released a multilingual iPhone application with the “Click to Pray” prayer book https://clicktopray.org. Two months before his retirement, Pope Benedict XVI appeared on Twitter: https://twitter.com/pontifex?s=21.