The Cursed French King

If you had been to the Vatican, you would have noticed that the Pope's guard was Swiss. The Swiss Guard became the Vatican Pope's security force in the early sixteenth century. In June 1505, the Roman Pope Julius II brought two hundred strong Swiss mercenaries to Rome and decided to have them guard the Vatican.

Switzerland's scenery was picturesque, but transportation was also difficult. The good land had long since been cultivated into fields and towns; only places unfit for human habitation could retain their natural state.

After Switzerland gained independence, its source of revenue was sending men across the country abroad as mercenaries, who would earn money and send it home. In May 1527, Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire led his army into Rome, wreaking extensive destruction and slaughter throughout the city. There was a secret passage in the ancient wall connecting the papal palace to Castel Sant'Angelo—Passetto. Pope Clement VII had the guards hold the palace while ordering the secret passage opened, then fled to Castel Sant'Angelo for refuge. At the time, many guards sacrificed themselves to protect the Pope's life. Of the original 189 guards, only 42 remained in the end. Twenty years after this incident, Pope Paul III not only revived the then-depleted Guard, but also increased its numbers to 225.

Colonel Repond, the new commander of the Guard, reorganized the Swiss Guard. Hot-blooded and loyal by nature, he established strict regulations and expelled every non-Swiss guard from the force, including descendants of Swiss Guards who had married Italian women and settled in Italy.

Everyone knew Swiss banks were the safest banks in the world. Guess how much money the Vatican had deposited in Swiss banks?

The Swiss could bring banking and manufacturing to the very top because they knew that if they failed,