I know he may have been smeared, and maybe I'm influenced by this. Don't get me wrong, I think Pius XII was a fascinating character, and making the choices he had to face was certainly not easy when you had Communism and Fascism prospering at the same time.
Still, I regret he did not have the same words as his predecessor to condemn more firmly what Hitler did to the Jews AND to Christians, especially to Catholic priests.
Please see post #35 and here's another short article (a little of it I posted below): "Pius XII as Scapegoat" on the subject of Pius XII and the Nazis - it's well worth reading. Pius has been unfairly excoriated by many in the last few years.
"From the beginning of his papacy in 1939 until well after his death in 1958, Pope Pius XII was honored with unfeigned warmth by Jewish leaders around the world. Golda Meir was uncommonly effusive in her praise of him. Trees were planted in Israel in his honor. In 1955, the Israeli Philharmonic Orchestra flew to the Vatican to give a special concert to show the nation’s gratitude. In 1940, Albert Einstein wrote a tribute in Time. At his death, tributes were universal and eloquent, especially by those Jewish groups closest to his efforts.""A later generation, in contrast, has been exceedingly harsh. Why this stunning reversal? Whose interests are served? As it turns out, the spectrum of those who benefit by denigrating Pius XII is very broad."