Many Catholic priests and monastics were persecuted under the Nazi regime, such as the concentration camp victims Maximilian Kolbe and Edith Stein (Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross). Furthermore, many Catholic laypeople and clergy helped in sheltering Jews during the Holocaust, including Pope Pius XII. Various incidents, such as giving aid to downed Allied airmen, nearly caused Nazi Germany to invade the Vatican before the liberation of Rome in 1944.