What did Pope Pius XII know about the atrocities committed during the war, and when did he learn about them? Did the Holy See do everything in its power to assist the victims of Nazi barbarism? The previously unpublished files of the Secretariat of State of the Holy See shed light for the first time on the role of Pius XII and the Vatican during World War II: in his correspondence with President Roosevelt aimed at preventing the escalation of the war, in the support he offered to the network of the "Escape Route" in Rome to help the persecuted, in the diplomatic efforts of the Holy See to reverse the policies of the Third Reich, in the rejection of the racial laws of Pétain, in the organized performance of urgent baptisms to enable thousands of Jews to avoid deportation, or even in the denunciation of Nazi priests who ruled Slovakia.

These unique documents reveal the underground influence of the Vatican and the crucial role that the Pope played on the Nazi-occupied European continent. This is the art of "soft" diplomacy at one of its highest moments.

“Good does not make noise”: When Pius XII resisted the Nazis. The opening of the Holy See's archives concerning the papacy of Pius XII is beginning to bear fruit. In his compelling book, Johann Iggers reveals a wealth of significant documents regarding the Holy See's actions in favor of the Jews. Among the revelations is the account of a protest note from the Holy See to the Reich's Foreign Minister (in March 1943), which was read by the Nazi authorities but was subsequently returned. This rejection of an official memorandum effectively amounted to a rupture in their diplomatic relations.

In a publishing event book, based on thousands of unpublished documents, Vatican archivist Johann Iggers reveals the extent of the Holy See's actions in favor of the Jews during World War II.