Il vescovo e il generale.

The essay is dealing with Haushofer’s public diplomacy towards the Vatican between 1934 and 1938. The German specialist in Geopolitics took part to two unofficial “missions” in Rome on behalf of Rudolf Hess, meeting both Pius XI and the Cardinal-Secretary of State Eugenio Pacelli (later Pius XII). Furthermore, he came in contact with the Austrian bishop Alois Hudal, in order to improve the relationship between Holy See and Third Reich. The author takes into account several sources, published contributions, and archive groups (i. a. the personal archive of Karl Haushofer, the Vatican archives, and the archive of German Foreign Ministry), focusing on the reconstruction of aims and outcomes of Haushofer’s activities in Vatican, and considering his unofficial diplomatic role as well as the theoretical background of his geopolitics. A major theme of the article is the relationship between Haushofer and Hudal, and hence the question if the German “geopolitician” should be considered part of the conservative wing of National Socialism that sought to reach a religious peace with the Vatican.