THE POPE AND SWISS GUARD
Overture: The Pontifical Swiss Guard or the world’s smallest army as often called is one of the most attractive sights one could find while visiting the ancient city of Vatican for the first time. While some posed for a photograph with these men who are on guard at the gates of Vatican, others looked with awe the great and gigantic men whose statures threaten even the devil. Their responsibility goes beyond mounting sentry at the Vatican City’s gate, its environs and the Pontifical Villa of Castel Gandolfo, but also focus on personal security of the Holy Father. In our series this week on “The ARCHIVE” we mount our camera facing the ancient city of Rome, the Vatican City or the Papal State. Where we will take a cursory look into her security service - the Pontifical Swiss Guard. They serve the Holy Father exclusively as personal protectors, and all of Swiss origin. One may be prompted to ask, why all Swiss? The answer is not far-fetched as we journey together around the walls of this city which serves as the headquarters of the worldwide Catholic Church.
The Historical Lane: The uniqueness of the Swiss Mercenaries cannot be over emphasized right from antiquity. That is why Tacitus one of the leading great historians once said, "The Helvetians are a people of warriors, famous for the valour of their soldiers." So are the Swiss guard in all ramifications, to the extent of making a remarkable impact in the history of European politics. Due to their outstanding roles played during this epoch in history, that the evening of January 22, 1506 saw them within the Vatican City on invitation by Pope Julius II, with Captain Kasparvon Silenen, of Canton Uri leading the troop through the Porta del Popolo and entered for the first time the Vatican. They were blessed by Pope Julius II, with the prelate Johann Burchard of Strasbourg, Master of Pontifical Ceremonies at that time, and author of a famous chronicle, noted the event in his diary.
According to record, it was Pope Sixtus IV who made a previous alliance in 1497 with the Confederates, which foresaw the possibility of recruiting mercenaries, and he had barracks built for them near where we have the small Church of St. Pellegrino, in Via Pellegrino in Vatican City. Later, renewing the old pact, Innocent VIII (1484-1492) also desired to make use of them against the Duke of Milan. And Alexander VI also engaged Confederate soldiers during the time of the alliance between the Borgia family and the King of France. While the Borgias were so powerful the so-called Italian Wars began in which the Swiss soldiers were always present in the front line, at times for France, and at others to support the Holy See or the Holy Roman Empire ruled by a German sovereign. When the Swiss mercenaries heard that Charles VIII, King of France, was planning a great expedition against Naples, they flocked to enlist. Towards the end of the year 1494, thousands of them were in Rome, passing through with the French army, which in February of the following year, occupied Naples. Among the participants in that expedition against Naples, was Cardinal Giuliano della Rovere, future Pope Julius II, who under Pope Alexander VI had left Italy and gone to France. He was well acquainted with the Swiss, because some twenty years earlier he had been granted as one of many benefices, the Bishopric of Lausanne.
A few months later, Charles VIII was forced to abandon Naples in all haste and he barely succeeded in forcing a blockade and escaping to France. In fact, Pope Alexander VI had connected Milan, Venice, the Germanic Empire and Ferdinand the Catholic to form a barrier against the French. With the full knowledge of this Guards, that the Holy Father Pope Julius II invited them into the Vatican City, and they arrived that fateful day January 22, 1506. Since then, the Pontifical Swiss Guard as we come to know now has served various Popes across centuries.
The Pontifical Swiss Guard: Is also referred to as Papal Swiss Guard, or just Swiss Guard; Pontificia Cohors Helvetica or Cohors Pedestris Helvetiorum a Sacra Custodia Pontificis in Latin; In Italian they are known as Guardia Svizzera Pontificia; while in German it is Päpstliche Schweizergarde; and Garde suisse pontificale in French. They serve de facto military of Vatican City. These men undergone military training in the Swiss army, and has their barracks close to the papal apartment. The guards, who are independent of the Swiss armed forces, are employed by the Holy Father – the Pope, to whom they swear loyalty in a ceremony at Belvedere Court. As is common with any elite military corps, competition is intense for inclusion in the Swiss Guards. New recruits must be unmarried Roman Catholic males with Swiss citizenship, between 19 and 30 years of age, and at least 5 feet 8 inches (1.74 metres) tall; they must have a professional diploma or high school degree and must complete basic training with the Swiss military. (Historically, new recruits also had to prove they were free of physical deformities, and commanding officers were traditionally of noble lineage.) The guards normally wear blue doublets and blue berets, but on ceremonial occasions they are adorn with the colourful Renaissance-era uniforms for which they are famous. They are among the oldest uniforms in continuous use. The tunics are striped in the colours of the Medici family: red, dark blue, and yellow. White ruffs and high plumed helmets (with ostrich feathers coloured to reflect different ranks) are also worn, as, on occasion, is armour. While in traditional dress, the guards carry pikes and swords, but they are also trained in the use of modern weaponry and counter-terrorism techniques.
The tailors of the Swiss Guard work inside the Vatican barracks. There the uniform for each guardsman is tailor-made individually. The total set of Renaissance style clothing weighs 8 pounds (3.6 kg), and may be the heaviest and most complicated uniform in use by any standing army today. A single uniform requires 154 pieces
and takes nearly 32 hours and 3 to fittings to complete. (cf. "The Pontifical Swiss Guard – Uniforms". www.vatican.va Retrieved August 19, 2017.)
While both Michelangelo and a painting of the Pontifical Swiss Guard bearing Pope Julius II on a litter (by Raphael) are often cited as inspiration for the Pontifical Swiss Guard uniform, the actual uniforms worn by those soldiers included a flaring skirt; a common feature in male clothing during the Renaissance. A clear expression of the modern Pontifical Swiss Guard uniform can be seen in a 1577 fresco by Jacopo Coppi of the Empress Eudoxia conversing with Pope Sixtus III. It shows the precursor of today's recognizable three-colored uniform with boot covers, white gloves, a high or ruff collar, and either a black beret or a black Comb morion (silver for high occasions). Sergeants wear a black top with crimson leggings, while other officers wear an all-crimson uniform. The colours blue and yellow were in use from the 16th century, said to be chosen to represent the Della Rovere coat of arms of Julius II, with the colour red added to represent the Medici coat of arms of Leo X. (cf. www.vatican.va "The Swiss Guard ". Retrieved August 19, 2017.)
At the moment, the Swiss Guards’ residential quarters is located at the eastern edge of the city, north of St. Peter's Square and beside the Vatican palace. Their chapel is that of Saints Martino and Sebastiano, and the Campo Santo Teutonico, near St. Peter's Basilica, is designated as their cemetery. Swiss mercenaries were long renowned as the best soldiers in the world. Further reorganizations of this Guards were made in 1959 and 1976, and in 1979 their number was fixed at 100 (a commandant, 3 other high officers, a chaplain, 23 lesser officers, 2 drummers, and 70 pikemen). In 1981 Swiss Guards helped protect John Paul II during an assassination attempt in St. Peter's Square.
In fact, the plainclothes guardsman who rushed to the pope's aid became a hero and was named commandant of the Swiss Guards in 1998. Within hours of his promotion, however, he and his wife were shot and killed by a disgruntled lower-ranking guard, who then committed suicide; these were the first murders known to have taken place in Vatican City since the mid-19th century. (cf. "Swiss Guards." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Ultimate Reference Suite. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica, 2014.)
Conclusion: Huldrych Zwingli, a Swiss Catholic who later became a Protestant reformer once said, "The Swiss see the sad situation of the Church of God, Mother of Christianity, and realize how grave and dangerous it is that any tyrant, avid for wealth, can assault with impunity, the common Mother of Christianity." This observation summarizes the pains and gory states the Holy Mother Church went through. And this formed the foundation of their invitation to the Vatican City. With their service and commitment, the Holy Father, Pope Julius II granted them the title “Defenders of the Church’s freedom.” They hold their swearing-in ceremony May 6 each year to mark the day in 1527 when 147 members of their corps gave their lives in a desperate rear-guard action that allowed Pope Clement VII to reach the safety Castel Sant’Angelo while the soldiers of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V sacked the eternal city – Rome. The pontifical Swiss Guards being foot guards with a close protection of the Holy Father as their primary role has a capacity of 100 men. Ss. Ignatius of Antioch, Martin of Tours, Sebastian and Nicholas of Flue are their patron saints. Acriter et Fidelter (Fiercely and Faithfully) remains their motto. So far, they have recorded a total of three major war engagements: War of Urbino in 1517, Sack of Rome in 1527 and Battle of Lepanto in 1571. The Pontifical Swiss Guard at present has Pope Francis I as the Ceremonial Chief, Christoph Graf – as the 35th Commander who was appointed by His Holiness Pope Francis on 7th February, 2015 with Philippe Morard as the Vice Commander.
The ARCHIVE: An Insight into the Church’s Events in History
