First published 2022
David Kertzer examines Pope Pius XII's actions during World War II using newly opened Vatican archives from 2020. The author analyzes thousands of documents from Vatican, Italian, German, French, British, and American sources to reconstruct the pope's decisions between 1939 and 1945. Kertzer argues that Pius XII prioritized preserving Church power over moral leadership, repeatedly accommodating Hitler and Mussolini's demands. The book traces how the pope responded to Nazi persecution and systematic murder of European Jews. Kertzer dismantles existing narratives about Pius XII's wartime conduct, showing the political calculations behind papal decisions. The research reveals the pope's significant behind-the-scenes influence on World War II's trajectory. Readers gain access to previously sealed evidence about one of the Catholic Church's most controversial figures, whose canonization remains under Vatican consideration.
Genres: biography, history, 20th-century, 21st-century, church-history, academic, catholic, american-history
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: unreliable-narrator
Setting: Vatican, Italy, Germany, France, Britain, America
Period: 1939-1945
623 pages · Hardcover · Random House