That'd be Pope Pius XI, well known for his vicious attack rottweilers.

The photo in the background is one I took myself, showing the view down Via della Conciliazione towards St Peter's Square and St Peter's Basilica. This view is in fact anachronistic in this theme, since Via della Conciliazione did not exist in its present form until 1950.

Until the early 20th century, this street was in fact chock full of magnificent medieval and Renaissance buildings, as well as residences and small streets and alleyways, like much of the rest of this central part of Rome. Standing where the Joneses are, you would not have been able to see the Vatican. But in 1929, Pope Pius XI signed (by proxy) the Lateran Treaty with Benito Mussolini, ending a political dispute begun in 1861 when the newly formed unified Italian government annexed Rome from the Papal States and declared the city to be its capital.

This treaty established the Vatican City as a sovereign state, established Roman Catholicism as the official state religion of Italy, and settled the conflicting claims of territory within Rome, granting the Vatican the land it currently holds - including St Peter's Square and Basilica, the Vatican Museums, and a handful of other buildings and garden areas totalling a bit under half a square kilometre - as well as financial reparations payable by Italy to the Vatican.

Mussolini was so pleased with this outcome that he decided to build a grand avenue, symbolically linking the Vatican to the heart of Rome. This avenue would lead from St Peter's Square to the Tiber River, by Castel Sant'Angelo, from where it would afford a view across the river to the centre of Rome. Unfortunately, there were all those pesky historical buildings in the way.

Demolition began in 1936, and by 1950 the Via della Conciliazione was built, and named in honour of the conciliation between the Vatican and Italy.

When I visited, I was merely stunned by the view. I knew none of this history. I have since discovered that Via della Conciliazione is one of the most hated streets in Rome by the locals. And now, despite having beheld its magnificence, I can understand why.

When you visit somewhere distant and exotic, take time to learn about the history of the places you see. It adds so much meaning to the experience.