PIUS XII large colonial plantations, and gave the land to the peasantry. Pinto da Costa consequently enjoyed genuine popular support, and he was reelected president in 1980 and 1985 against token opposition. Unfortunately for Pinto da Costa, São Tomé and Príncipe remained among the poorest nations on Earth. Overpopulated, lacking an industrial base, and almost completely dependent upon cocoa exports for income, he had to be ideologically flexible to secure desperately needed foreign aid. The government therefore maintained close and friendly ties to Portugal and also extended a friendly hand to the United States and other Western nations. Toward the end of his third term, he also moderated some of his strident socialist policies and allowed state-run plantations to be run along capitalist lines. However, the government still came under increasing domestic and international pressure to allow political plurality through creation of new parties. In March 1990 a new constitution was promulgated to accommodate these demands, and new elections were slated for January 1991. After 16 years as a Marxist ruler, Pinto da Costa was badly defeated by the Party of Democratic Convergence led by his former associate Trovoada, whom he had at one point jailed for two years. Pinto da Costa then surrendered power, one of the first African leaders to lose power through democratic means. He continued on as head of the MLSTP and in July 1996 lost to Trovoada a second time. On August 1, 2001, Pinto da Costa tried again to win the presidency, but lost again, to businessman Fradique de Menezes of the Independent Democratic Alliance by 56 percent to 38 percent. This last defeat probably spells the end of Pinto da Costa’s political career, but he made history as the prime mover behind national independence and— by losing gracefully—a contributor to the growth of democracy. Further Reading Carreira, Antonio. The People of the Cape Verde Islands: Exploitation and Emigration. Hamden, Conn.: Archon Books, 1982. Eyzaguirre, Pablo B. “Small Farmers and Estates in São Tomé, West Africa.” Unpublished Ph.D. diss., Yale University, 1996. Gerhard, Seibert, Comrades, Clients, and Cousins: Colonialism, Socialism, and Democratization in São Tomé and Principe. Leiden, Netherlands: Leiden University, 1999.
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Hodges, Tony, and Malyn D. D. Newitt. São Tomé and Príncipe: From Plantation to Microstate. Boulder, Colo.: Westview Press, 1988. Lorenzino, Geraldo. “The Angolar Creole Portuguese of São Tomé: Its Grammar and Sociolinguistic History.” Unpublished Ph.D. diss., City University of New York, 1998. Shaw, Caroline, S. São Tomé and Principe. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio Press, 1994.
Pius XII (Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli) (1876–1958) pope of the Catholic Church Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli was born in Rome, Italy, on March 2, 1876, the son of a lawyer. His family had supplied the Vatican with attorneys since 1816 and, because of poor health, he studied for the priesthood at home. Pacelli was ordained in 1899 and studied canon law while working with the Vatican secretariat of state. In 1912 he was appointed papal nuncio (ambassador) to Bavaria, where he remained the next 15 years. Pacelli came to love Germany’s language and culture and he was perturbed by the rise of fascism and communism there. In 1929 he returned home as a cardinal and served as secretary of state under Pope Pius XI. Pacelli returned to Germany in 1933 and concluded a concordat with German vice chancellor FRANZ VON PAPEN to protect the status of the church and its property. In 1937 he helped draft a papal encyclical condemning Nazism and two years later, following the death of Pius XI, he became pope on March 2, 1939. Assuming the name Pius XII he was also the first Roman-born pope since 1721. No sooner had Pius XII assumed office than World War II erupted when ADOLF HITLER invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. Therefore his first papal encyclical condemned the onset of hostilities and openly denounced totalitarian ideologies such as Nazism and communism as anti-Christian. Pius XII was extremely saddened by his inability to dissuade Italian dictator BENITO MUSSOLINI from entering the fray in 1940 on behalf of the Axis. Because Italy itself was a fascist power and soon to be occupied by German troops, the Catholic Church faced a potentially disastrous dilemma. Pius XII was personally committed to a peaceful resolution of the conflict; therefore it was incumbent upon him to retain diplomatic ties with belligerents on both sides. He opted to pursue a policy of quiet diplomacy