Holy See

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The Holy See (Latin: Sancta Sedes, "holy seat") is the the governing body of the Roman Catholic Church and Vatican City State, with the Pope as its head. It consists of the Pope and the Roman Curia. It is metonymically called as "the Vatican".

Every episcopal see is seen as holy and the Eastern Orthodox Church calls all of its sees "holy" or "sacred" (ἱερά). "The Holy See" (definite singular) usually refers to the see of Rome, which is also called "the Apostolic See". While "Apostolic See" can refer to any see founded by any of the Apostles, the term is in this case refers to the see of the bishop seen as successor of Saint Peter, one of the Apostles.

Aside from Rome, the archiepiscopal See of Mainz, which was also of electoral and primatial rank, is the only other Western see that bears the title of "Holy See", although this usage is less common.