Vatican City

The Vatican City is the smallest country in the world with a population of only 882 (2024 estimate) and a size of less than 0.5 square kilometres (50 hectares or 124 acres). In fact, it is a land-locked country, surrounded by the city of Rome in Italy.

In essence, it is home to the Pope, is headquarters to the Roman Catholic Church, and houses 70,000 Roman sculptures as well as Renaissance paintings collected by the Catholic church over the centuries.

When in the Vatican, be sure to visit the Vatican Museums (the second most visited museum in the world after the Louvre), see the famous Sistine Chapel, and the St Peter’s Basilica (the largest church in the world). In order to get a better understanding of the museums and the basilica, I suggest taking one of the tour options available including the ones below*:

For more information on planning a trip to the Vatican City, refer to Italy Travel Guide: An Overview Before You Plan.

Why is the Vatican City an independent country?

Italy was once divided into several separate states with different rulers. One of these states, the Papal States, formed a significantly large part of Italy and was ruled by the Pope. However, after the unification of Italy, the Pope lost a huge amount of power. Especially after Rome was made the capital of unified Italy.

Therefore on 11 February 1929, the Lateran Treaty was signed between then Pope Pius XI and dictator Benito Mussolini. This allowed the Pope and the Vatican the independence, while allowing unified Italy to make its own political decisions.