The
Reichskonkordat is a treaty between the
Holy See and
Germany negotiated during its transition into
Nazi Germany. It was signed on 20 July 1933 by Secretary of State
Eugenio Pacelli (later Pope Pius XII) on behalf of Pope
Pius XI and Vice Chancellor
Franz von Papen on behalf of President
Paul von Hindenburg and the German government. It was ratified September 10, 1933 and has been in force since this date. The treaty guarantees the rights of the
Roman Catholic Church in Germany. When bishops take office Article 16 states they're required to take an oath of loyalty to the Governor or President of the
German Reich established according to the constitution. The treaty also requires all clergy to abstain from working in and for political parties. Nazi breaches of the agreement began almost as soon as it had been signed and intensified afterwards leading to protest from the Church including in the 1937
Mit brennender Sorge encyclical of Pope
Pius XI. The Nazis planned to eliminate the Church's influence by restricting its organizations to purely religious activities.