Abstract

Francis J. Spellman (1889–1967), archbishop of New York and later cardinal, was a friend of Eugenio Pacelli (later Pope Pius XII), with whom he worked in Rome (1929–33). As auxiliary bishop of Boston (1932–39), he had contacted President Franklin D. Roosevelt regarding possible diplomatic relations between the United States and the Holy See. He had closer relations with Roosevelt after his appointment to New York and as Military Ordinary. His visit to U.S. troops in the European theater in 1943 was extended, at the pope’s request, to include the Vatican. Afterward, he met Winston Churchill and other Allied leaders.

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