Death of Pope Pius XII - Illness and Last Days - Death

Death

After a long and arduous schedule on October 5, 1958, Pius XII once again felt complications and his hiccups had returned. He was afraid of not being able to meet the multitudes who came all the way to Castel Gandolfo to see him. After the meetings, he sank down in his bed, quietly saying, adesso non posso piu, now I can't do any more. He slept but insisted on taking his walk afterwards. He went to the chapel to pray, worked for another hour, always resting in between. He had little to eat during dinner and went to pray the rosary with his household, then continued to work on his speeches for the next day until midnight. The doctors came early next morning to pump his stomach, which seemed to go well, but then the Pope became unconscious.

He received the last rites without indication of life. At 4:30 P.M, the Pope awoke and asked for his eyeglasses and documents to continue work. But as he was not allowed to get up, he insisted that all the pilgrims receive blessings on his behalf in their native languages. In the evening, the nuns opened the door to the Papal Chapel and prayed the rosary, so he could see and hear them. He insisted on blessing rosaries for pilgrims as he had done every day in his pontificate. The sisters tried to shorten the rosary to facilitate the Pope’s participation, but he opened his eyes and asked for its completion. The next day, the feast of the Holy Rosary, he wanted to say mass but was prohibited by his doctors. He ate the prescribed food, and slowly turned to Madre Pascalina Lehnert, who had taken care of him for 40 years. Questa e la mia giornata! - "This is my day." Two years earlier, on May 15, 1956, the Pope had told the sisters, “ I will die quickly, but I asked the Lord for one day.”

But the doctors were confident. The patient seemed to improve. The day went by with visitors and guests and doctors and the Pope wanted to read his manuscript on the 200th anniversary of the death of Pope Benedict XIV, which the doctors prohibited. His favourite little bird had stopped eating, and he wanted to feed it, but was not allowed to get up. As the evening arrived, the sisters again prayed the rosary, with the door open to his adjoining bedroom. Sister Conrada opened afterwards the window a bit. Pope Pius XII looked out into the darkness and the stars, and said quietly, "look, how beautiful, how great is our Lord.”. For the coming night, doctors stayed in the nearby room and Madre Pascalina stayed well. Next morning, Pius XII felt miserable. Se sento tanto tanto male. He received oxygen, but his temperature was constantly rising. He seemed to suffer, started perspiring and his breathing became increasingly difficult and painful to watch. At once, all breathing stopped, but then continued. The eyes of Pope Pius XII opened a bit, his mouth formed into a smile, his head lowered. One more last deep breath. “He is now with God”, exclaimed Madre Pascalina Lehnert, while Monsignor Domenico Tardini prayed the Magnificat Anima mea dominum, Mary's praise of the Lord, in Latin.

His doctor Gaspanini said afterwards: "The Holy Father did not die because of any specific illness. He was completely exhausted. He was overworked beyond limit. His heart was healthy, his lungs were good. He could have lived another 20 years, had he spared himself."

Pius XII died on October 9, 1958 at 3:52 A.M. in Castel Gandolfo, the Papal Summer Residence. His funeral procession into Rome was the largest congregation of Romans as of that date, Romans mourned "their" Pope, who was born in their city, especially as hero of the Eternal City in time of war. Pope Pius XII's cause of canonization was opened on November 18, 1965 by Pope Paul VI. On September 2, 2000, during the pontificate of Pope John Paul II, Pius XII was given the title of Venerable.