CASTEL GONDOLFO, Italy, Oct. 8--Pius XII, for 19 troubled years the "Pope of Peace," died this morning in the papal summer castle alongside Lake Albano.

A crucifix lay on his chest and a rosary in his hands in the final hours.

Two strokes, developing into a grave condition of the heart and lungs, carried him away under the weight of his 82 years.

The Vatican radio said death occurred at 3:52 a.m. (9:52 p.m. EST) today.

The body will be borne back to Vatican City, 18 miles from Castel Gondolfo, for the funeral rites.

The new pope will be designated by the College of Cardinals in an election expected to be held at the Vatican within the next two or three weeks--after a nine-day period of mourning.

All the popes for the last 400 years have come from Italy. The feeling at the Vatican has been that this likely will be the case again, even though Italians no longer command a majority in the College of Cardinals.

U.S. Halts Convoys

WASHINGTON, Oct. 8--The United States announced today a halt in its Formosa Strait convoy operations and readied an effort to make Red China's cease-fire a permanent one.

The announcement was foreshadowed by a Peiping radio broadcast noting an absence of U.S. warships and aircraft in the Quemoy area.

The State Department said, however, that the convoying "will be resumed forthwith to the extent necessary" if Red China again starts bombarding Quemoy.

The implication was the United States might seek to persuade Nationalist President Chiang Kai-shek to thin out his coastal island forces, possibly even eventually withdrawing them completely.

Complete withdrawal seemed to be in the distant future, however. Reports are that Chiang is taking advantage of the week-long respite to build up defenses on Quemoy and Matsu and stock up on ammunition, food and other supplies.