Campo Santo Teutonico

Campo Santo Teutonico, the German cemetery directly south of St Peter's Basilica, is a curious place in international law. Although it lies inside the Vatican walls, under the 1929 Lateran Treaty the ground belongs to the Italian state, yet it can only be entered through the gate beside the Audience Hall, watched by the Swiss Guard. The site traces back to the Carolingian Schola Francorum, which Charlemagne is said to have founded around 800 for German pilgrims. Burials are reserved for members of the German-speaking Catholic community in Rome and for clergy of merit. Among cypresses, oleander-covered walls and the small church of Santa Maria della Pieta, the cemetery feels unexpectedly tranquil in the shadow of St Peter's dome. Adjoining it are the priestly college and the historical institute of the Goerres Society.