Yes, the Vatican was very zealous in fighting Protestantism when Protestantism was exposing her false doctrines and her usurpations of Christ's prerogatives.
The Vatican's authority to physically and actively persecute through state powers was removed about 220 years ago, and a freedom of religion unprecedented has been enjoyed.
But the Vatican has not changed her doctrines or her bid for full authority as the "mother church", she still holds that she is the only REAL church. Just check out Pope Benedicts
proclamations on that subject, which he wrote while head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, June 30, 2000. It threw the Protestants into a bit of consternation for a month or two, but it didn't seem to dampen their eagerness to reconnect with Rome in ecumenical unity.
No, the papacy no longer fights them with swords, he doesn't have to, now we see the message from the papacy is one of seducing the protestants to return to "the true fold", have "Christian unity" and stop the rebellion against papal rule, looking to the "father" as their leader. Pope Francis interprets Malachi 4, the Protestants hearts turn back to the "father". Of course this means Protestants give up all that prophecy, that points out Rome's real ambitions. Protestantism is the one that changed and given up her protest --The pope is praying that Protestants give it up completely and once again come under papal authority-- once American Protestants fully do that -- it's the end of religious freedom (the bastion of religious freedom will be conquered by the Vatican) -- and we are getting closer to that event.
The papacy has not changed.
Protestants will realize only when it's too late what the true motives of the papacy are.