Susanna Maiolo (born 8 November 1984) is a Swiss-Italian woman who twice attempted to attack

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the soverei ...

. The first attack, in December 2008, was intercepted successfully by members of the

Pontifical Swiss Guard The Pontifical Swiss Guard (also Papal Swiss Guard or simply Swiss Guard; la, Pontificia Cohors Helvetica; it, Guardia Svizzera Pontificia; german: Päpstliche Schweizergarde; french: Garde suisse pontificale; rm, Guardia svizra papala) is ...

. The second attack, on 24 December 2009, happened during the procession to the Christmas Eve

Midnight Mass In many Western Christian traditions Midnight Mass is the first liturgy of Christmastide that is celebrated on the night of Christmas Eve, traditionally beginning at midnight when Christmas Eve gives way to Christmas Day. This popular Christmas ...

inside

St. Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican ( it, Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano), or simply Saint Peter's Basilica ( la, Basilica Sancti Petri), is a church built in the Renaissance style located in Vatican City, the papal e ...

, where she knocked the Pope and French cardinal

Roger Etchegaray Roger Marie Élie Etchegaray (; 25 September 1922 – 4 September 2019) was a French cardinal of the Catholic Church. Etchegaray served as the Archbishop of Marseille from 1970 to 1985 before entering the Roman Curia, where he served as Presid ...

to the floor, breaking the cardinal's leg and hip, and leaving the Pope uninjured.

Early life

Maiolo was born in

Frauenfeld Frauenfeld ( Alemannic: ''Frauefäld'') is the capital of the canton of Thurgau in Switzerland. The official language of Frauenfeld is (the Swiss variety of Standard) German, but the main spoken language is the local variant of the Alemannic ...

, Switzerland. She has both

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

and Swiss citizenship.

Attacks

The first attack in December 2008 was intercepted successfully by the Pope's bodyguards. Then, on Christmas Eve, 24 December 2009, during the Entrance Procession to the

, inside

, she knocked the Pope and French cardinal

to the floor, breaking the cardinal's leg and hip, and leaving the Pope uninjured. Authorities said that Maiolo is mentally unwell and she was held for a week's evaluation at a psychiatric hostel in Subiaco near Rome. It was reported that she did not want to injure the Pope, and the Pope has forgiven her.Útočnice prý chtěla papeže jen prosit o pomoc pro nejchudší
December 28, 2009, České noviny, ČTK

Reactions

The Pope's personal secretary, Monsignor Georg Gaenswein, visited her at the clinic on 1 January 2010. He expressed the Pope's concern for her and said the Pope believed in her good intentions and had pardoned her. The Vatican public prosecutor Nicola Picardi and spokesman

Federico Lombardi Federico Lombardi, S.J. (born 29 August 1942) is an Italian Catholic priest and the former director of the Holy See Press Office. He succeeded Joaquín Navarro-Valls and was succeeded by Greg Burke. Lombardi also serves as the postulator for t ...

said that she would probably be released. Maiolo and two of her family members had a brief private audience with Pope Benedict after the morning general audience on 13 January 2010 in a room adjoining the

Paul VI Audience Hall The Paul VI Audience Hall ( it, Aula Paolo VI) also known as the Hall of the Pontifical Audiences is a building in Rome named for Pope with a seating capacity of 6,300, designed in reinforced concrete by the Italian architect Pier Luigi N ...

. Maiolo told the Pope she regretted the incident. He forgave her and expressed his best wishes for her and her health.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maiolo, Susanna 1984 births 20th-century Swiss women 20th-century Italian women 21st-century Swiss women 21st-century Italian women Living people People from Frauenfeld Pope Benedict XVI