Editing Pope Leo XIII (section)

====Russia====

{{Main |Pope Leo XIII and Russia|Pope Leo XIII and Poland}}

Pope Leo XIII began his pontificate with a friendly letter to Tsar [[Alexander II of Russia|Alexander II]] in which he reminded the [[Russian Empire|Russian]] monarch of the millions of Catholics living in his empire who would like to be good Russian subjects if their dignity were respected.

After the assassination of Alexander II, the pope sent a high ranking representative to the coronation of his successor, [[Alexander III of Russia|Alexander III]], who was grateful and asked for all religious forces to unify. He asked the pope to ensure that his bishops abstain from political [[Political demonstration|agitation]]. Relations improved further when Pope Leo XIII, because of Italian considerations, distanced the Vatican from the Rome-Vienna-Berlin alliance, and helped to facilitate a rapprochement between Paris and St. Petersburg.