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Saints Peter and Paul Association
On 15 September 1970, Pope Paul VI disbanded various groups of pontifical guards, including the Palatine Guard of Honour established by Pope Pius IX in 1850. Pope Paul's intention was to bring together a qualified group of the faithful of Rome who wished to express their unconditional fidelity to the Apostolic See.
Former members of the Palatine Guard were therefore invited to join a new group called the Saints Peter and Paul Association, whose statutes were approved by the Holy Father in 1971. Pope Paul VI intended that the unique and exemplary characteristics of the Palatine Guard should be manifested in the new Association and “preserved, strengthened, adapted and developed” as underscored by Pope John Paul II on the Association’s tenth anniversary.
Recently celebrating its 35th anniversary in 2006, the Sts Peter and Paul Association today is made up of Catholics who are residents in Rome. They include professionals, artisans, students, teachers, etc., who in addition to their own family and professional commitments donate their time for various volunteer services, “eager to offer a special witness of Christian life, apostleship and fidelity to the Apostolic See” (cf. Article 1 of the Statutes).
The Palatine Guard had a long history with roots going back to two militias which eventually united. They were the Urban Militia and the Select Civil Guard. Their history is traced back to the 6th century. From that time they offered different types of service to the Apostolic See and the popes. It is appropriate to note that the Palatine Guard and the Association which succeeded it are in some ways both heirs of two older militias, the Cohortes Urbanae and the Militia Sancti Petri, on whom the popes relied in the late Middle Ages.