The Swiss Guard at the time of Pope Francis. René is a theology student in the Canton of Aargau, who has decided to join the pontifical body which was established in the period of Julius II. Other young recruits arrive at the Vatican with him. These include Leo, a down-to-earth lad, a forester, happy to experience the Eternal City; and Michele, a Swiss-Italian with Lucanian origins, the most focused of the group, as the children of immigrants often are. Rene´, on the other hand, is a budding intellectual who questions his own faith and his role. What does it mean to wear a sixteenth-century outfit in this day and age? To be part of a colourful yet anachronistic military body, especially in relation to a “revolutionary” figure like that of the pope from afar? The young soldier tries to find an answer for himself and for his military friends. |
