 However, when Orlando attempted to open negotiations with the Vatican in 1919, he was blocked by the king who was furious at the way in which Catholic Church had maintained a pro-Austrian neutrality during World War I.Aside from championing the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin, which belonged to the House of Savoy, the king had little interest in religion.In private Victor Emmanuel regarded the Catholic Church with a jaundiced eye, making remarks about senior clerics as being greedy, cynical and oversexed hypocrites who took advantage of the devout faith of ordinary Italians.