With the Pope's Blessing? The Pontifical Commission for Refugees and its Aid for Nazi and Axis War Criminals

What was Pope Pius XII's position toward Nazi and Axis war criminals? One possible answer lies within a study of the Vatican Pontifical Assistance Commission for Refugees, an important charitable organization under the supervision of Undersecretary of State Giovanni Montini (later Paul VI) and sponsored by the American Catholic Church. Evidence in Latin American and Italian archives suggests that some figures in the Vatican used the organization as a tool in the fight against a perceived common enemy: the rise of Soviet influence in Europe. A key player in this process was Alois Hudal, Rector of the College of Santa Maria dell'Anima in Rome (and a fanatic anticommunist and admirer of Hitler). A bishop since 1933 and Assistant to the Papal Throne, Hudal enjoyed close personal ties to Pope Pius XII for many years. Although his influence waned at the Vatican and within the Church hierarchy from 1943 onwards, he was still able to obtain special papal blessings in his efforts to aid Nazis. Hudal in later years became a scapegoat for the Vatican, but his practices while in office were by no means the exception: the Vatican Committees for Refugees of Croats, Slovenes, Ukrainians, and Hungarians acted in similar fashion, aiding former fascists and Nazi collaborators escape those countries. This paper takes a fresh look, via heretofore ignored or underutilized archival sources, at the activities of the Pontifical Commission for Refugees and to what extent the universal leader of the Roman Catholic Church was aware of its efforts on behalf of Nazi and Axis war criminals.