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How did Vatican City replace the Papal States as an independent papal territory?

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Side-by-side maps of central Italy showing the changing boundaries of the Papal States. The left map highlights the Papal States after the Treaty of Vienna in 1815 in green, showing their greatest extent. The right map shows the Papal States' reduced territory just before absorption into Italy, with orange marking areas annexed in 1860 and yellow showing the final area annexed in 1870, centered ar — Papal States The Papal States in 1815 (left) and at their annexation by Italy in 1870.

The Papal States, which spanned central Italy from 756 to 1870, were dissolved during the Risorgimento as the region was annexed by the newly unified Italian nation. Following the seizure of Rome in 1870, the papacy refused to recognize the loss of its temporal power, leading to a long-standing dispute known as the Roman question.123

This conflict was finally resolved in 1929 through the Lateran Treaty, an agreement between the Italian government and the papacy. Under this treaty, Italy recognized the full sovereignty and independence of Vatican City, a minute territory of 44 hectares. In exchange, the papacy formally recognized the state of Italy with Rome as its capital, effectively replacing the former, much larger Papal States with a small, independent ecclesiastical state.342