Pope Pius XII and the Church in China involves relations of the Holy See with China from 1939 to 1958. The Vatican recognized Chinese rites in 1939, elevated the first Chinese cardinal in 1946, and established a Chinese hierarchy.
As part of its extending domination over Chinese society, in the early 1950s, the government persecuted the Catholic Church and its people, and nearly destroyed it, suppressing the religious freedom of its people. In 1957, it supported the establishment of what it called a patriotic, socialist Chinese Church, which was independent of Rome.