The story
Assumption of Mary at the Vatican in Vatican City
The Assumption of Mary, celebrated August 15, is a solemnity marking the Catholic belief that Mary was taken body and soul into heaven at the end of her earthly life, a dogma formally proclaimed by Pope Pius XII in 1950. Popes traditionally mark the day with Mass and a midday Angelus address, often from the papal residence at Castel Gandolfo outside Rome rather than the Vatican itself.
On August 15, as most of Italy empties toward beaches and mountains for the summer holiday known as Ferragosto, a different kind of pilgrimage plays out on a smaller scale in the hill town of Castel Gandolfo, where popes have long marked the Solemnity of the Assumption away from the crowds of St Peter's Square.