With an area of just 0.44 km and a population of 829 people, Vatican City is the smallest independent country in Europe, smaller than other sovereign states like San Marino, Liechtenstein, Andorra and Monaco. The state is on Vatican Hill in the central part of Rome, a few hundred metres from the ri ver Tiber. In 1859 the pepal states covered an area of 44,030 km but now there is only the tiny Vatican. During the period of ltalian unification most of them became part of ltaly, but the Lateran Treaty of 1929, between the Vatican and the kingdom of ltaly, established the autonomy of the 'Holy See' or Vatican City.
The Italian police foecr doesn't operate inside the Vatican, the Pope's private police force - 'The Swiss Guard' - protrcts him and the Vatican. The Vatican has also got its own yello and white flag.