David Meskhishvili's blog

„ Fiat Campagnola“ was produced by Fiat from 1953 to 1974. And from 1974 (including 1987), the company offered its modernized version, which was actively used by the Italian Armed Forces.

.However, this car hit the world spotlight because of a completely different story. Pope John Paul II visited the city of Turin, where the company offered to pope a white Fiat 1107. Fiat was designed with a special configuration for the Pope:

•  The pope’s oval seat, which is assembled with an iron construction, rests on one leg. For comfort, the metal construction is wrapped in leather with a soft fabric

•  In order for the pope to be able to stand on his feet at the same time and greet the people, there is a hand-held iron pipe in front of the chair to balance.

•  The pope was climbing the stairs from the back of the car, where a special "hand railing" -like structure is arranged.

•  On both sides of the pope seat there is a narrow transverse seat for security guards

Despite the company's efforts to soften the design as much as possible, it still has the features and contours characteristic of military vehicles.

The car was registered in the Vatican City on May 12, 1980, and it was called "Papimobile" for 1 year and 1 day.

On May 13, 1981, Pope John Paul II visited Turin. He was taken to St. Peter's Square by car (Fiat 1107). He approached the people, took the girl in his arms, then handed her back to her parents, and soon the sound of gunfire was heard with a "Browning" type (9 caliber) pistol. The pope had two bullets in his abdomen and two, in his left hand and right leg, total 4 bullets.

ABC television correspondent Peter Jennings was present at the scene, saying: "Suddenly a shot was fired from a group of people. According to eyewitnesses, the pope was shocked - he freezed for a second and then fell on his car seat. " Even though the pope was shocked, he kept his face calm and seemed to be smiling. The terrorist was stopped by the nun, she could not hide, she was arrested. The pope was taken from one Fiat to another in an ambulance (Fiat-238). He lost 3 liters of blood on the way, he miraculously escaped death.

The attacker was 23-year-old Mehmet Ali Ağca, a 23-year-old member of the ultra-left "gray wolves" group. According to V.Mitrokhin, the former head of the KGB archives who fled to the UK by the Commission of Inquiry, there were suspicions that the Communists were the initiators of the removal of John Paul II, but the motive for the attack remained unclear. . However, the appearance of traces of the communist system was not at all surprising! The names of John Paul II and US President Ronald Reagan are linked to the collapse of the Soviet communist regime, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the liberation of Eastern European states and Georgia.

Two years after the attack in 1983, the Pope met with a terrorist who tried to kill him. It is really exciting to see the footage of the meeting. As soon as Agca met, he kissed the pope on the hand. No one knows the content of a long conversation, the pope has not revealed it for the rest of his life. John Paul II forgives the crime committed by the resurrection. Forgive the man who shot him dead!

Agca was sentenced to 19 years and 11 months in prison in Italy for attempted murder of the pope, and spent 10 years in a Turkish prison.

John Paul II was a distinguished pope. He has been in the spotlight many times around the world as the most tolerant pope in history.

He apologized for the crusades and crimes committed during the Inquisition, rehabilitated Nicolaus Copernicus and Galileo Galilei, and pleaded guilty to the Catholic Church in the night massacre of Bartholomew. Along the wall of mourning, the pope apologized for the persecution of the Jews and also for the inaction of the Catholic Church during World War II and the Holocaust. History does not remember such repentance! Pope John Paul II paid an official visit to Georgia on November 8, 1999. This was the first visit of the head of the Roman Catholic Church to Georgia.

John Paul II died in 2005 at the age of 85. Terrorist Aghaja was acquitted in 2010 after 29 years in prison and released from prison. The car "Fiat 1107" ("Papimobile"), which has been active for only 1 year and 1 day, is still alive today and adorns the Vatican Museum.

The photos were taken at the Vatican Museum. 2019