the areas comprising a large district in central Italy ruled as a temporal domain by the popes from A.D. 755 until the greater part of it was annexed in 1860, by Victor Emmanuel II: the remaining part, Rome and its environs, was absorbed into the kingdom of Italy in 1870. Also called States of the Church . Cf. Vatican City .
PAPAL STATES
Meaning of PAPAL STATES in English
Random House Webster's Unabridged English dictionary. Полный английский словарь Вебстер - Random House . 2012