Useful Notes / Notable Popes

A detailed list of notable historical popes in reverse chronological order.

See The Pope for the general description of the Papacy.

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21st Century

Francis

• Francis (2013- ): The current guy, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio. He was born and raised in Argentina to Italian-born parents; he therefore represents both something of a return to old traditions (having the Pope be Italian, or close enough) and a radical departure (having the Pope being a Spanish-speaker born not only in the New World but in the Southern Hemisphere). Before his election he was Archbishop of Buenos Aires. A member of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), he graduated as a chemical technician before joining the priesthood and taught literature and psychology in a Jesuit-run high school early in his career. His election in 2013 marked a number of Papal firsts:
  • First pope from The Americas.
  • First Pope from the Southern hemisphere.
  • First Jesuit pope (up until then, it was widely believed that a Jesuit would never be Pope due to their controversial role in the Church itself).
  • First pope since the 15th century to succeed a living pontiff.
  • First (excluding John Paul I, who may or may not count) since the 10th century (when Pope Lando reigned briefly in 914) to choose an original name ^note Certainly, he is the first since Lando to avert King Bob the Nth, as John Paul I did indeed call himself Ioannes Paulus Primus^note Patti Smith, waiting in the crowd in St. Peter's Square, actually prayed that he would call himself Francis and stood chanting "Francis, Francis" softly before it was announced.
  • First pope not to be born in Europe since the 8th century (Gregory III, a Syrian, died in 741).
  • First pope (probably) to speak Spanish (in the sense of Castilian) as his native tongue (the previous popes from Spain all spoke some variety of Catalan).^note The only "accepted" Popes from Spain were the Borgia popes Callixtus III and Alexander VI, who were from Valencia and would've spoken Valencian, which everyone except Valencians and the Spanish Constitution considers a variant of Catalan. There's also two antipopes from Spain, both of whom were Aragonese and therefore probably spoke Catalan as well.
  • The first pope to cheer for a team in the FIFA World Cup finals while a retired pope was cheering for the other team.
  • The first Pope in modern times to preside at the funeral of a previous Pope as Pope when Benedict's funeral was held on January 5, 2023.^note Other Popes had presided at the funerals of their predecessors, like Benedict did for John Paul II in 2005, but this was prior to their being elected Pope.

He's known for his personal humility, austerity (he famously refused a limousine as cardinal and instead commuted in Buenos Aires by bus and subway, lived in a small apartment instead of Church-owned residences—a practice he replicates as Pope, preferring to stay in a room in the Vatican guesthouse rather than the Apostolic Palace—and urged his parishioners to donate to the poor instead of making pilgrimages to Rome), commitment to social justice, and his adherence to doctrine, and is also known for his ability to bridge gaps between his own community (the Jesuits) and others like the Communion and Liberation movement. His papal namesake, St. Francis of Assisi, was assumed in homage to that saint's austere lifestyle, emphasis on ministering to the poor and downtrodden, and efforts to reform the medieval Catholic Church from the state of worldliness and decadence it found itself in at the time. He is also a staunch opponent of same-sex marriage and adoption by same-sex couples (though he privately supported an Argentine bill to allow same-sex domestic partnerships), abortion and euthanasia, largely of the same mind as his predecessors. However, he has gone on record to say that the Church has focused too much on opposing same-sex marriage, abortion, and birth control, and that homosexuals should not be discriminated against; it would appear that his position is, "these teachings matter, but if they don't proceed from a genuine love of God and neighbour, they're empty." Recently, he went on record in conversation with a gay Catholic who had suffered from sexual abuse by members of the clergy that, [of the man's sexuality] "God has made you this way and God loves you this way."

He has also officially declared all members of organized crime, specifically the Mafiosi, to officially be considered excommunicated from the church. Currently massively popular (outside Europe, that is), that his recent visit to the Philippines actually broke the previous record for largest papal Mass set by then Pope John Paul II's visit in 1995 to the same country — estimated to six million compared to five on the previous papal visit. He acted as eparch (bishop) of the Eastern Catholics in Argentina as well. ^{nota bene}His name is "Francis", not "Francis the First" — unlike the John Pauls, he won't be Francis I until there's a Francis II.

As well, he is openly known for being vocal about his disapproval of neoliberal capitalism (including the corruptive nature of private money in politics) and his support to migrants, and being in very much in favor of wealth redistribution and human action on mitigating climate change and restoring and preserving the environment, which is quite the opposite of some evangelicals, especially in the USA. He allowed any priest to absolve people who committed a procured abortion, and made confessions to priests from the Society of St. Pius X to be both licit and valid; first during the Year of Mercy, but then he extended both concessions undefinedly. He also called for massive vaccination against COVID-19, calling vaccination "an act of love".
Did we mention that he has an official prog-rock album credited to his name?

Benedict XVI

• Benedict XVI (2005-2013): Real name Joseph Alois Ratzinger. He hailed from Bavaria, Germany. He was conscripted in the Hitler Youth as a kid during World War II (it was mandatory back then) and was Archbishop of Munich and Freising. Was very well-known as a scholar and intellectual before his ascension. Conservative and not very good with getting the media to accurately express his views. He affirmed the taboo of condoms, and reconciled (de-excommunicated) four traditionalist bishops who were illicitly ordained. Among them was Bishop Richard Williamson, a Holocaust denier, for lack of a Google search. Looked suspiciously like Emperor Palpatine according to some, this being the source of one too many Memetic Mutations, and the accusation is not helped by the fact that his previous job was the the head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith^noteNot quite as sinister as it sounds. In a way, the organization acts as a kind of ecclesiastical internal affairs division, backchecking priests and their teachings to make sure their teachings reflect proper Catholic doctrine and not any heretical or schismatic ideas. They also investigate the more purely religious crimes committed by clergy that might not fall under legal crimes; i.e., defiling the Eucharist, violations of priestly orders, breaking of the confessional seal, etc. (previously known as the Holy Office, or more importantly, the Roman Inquisition^note This is definitively NOT the same as the more well-known Spanish Inquisition, but at points it would have been arguably worse); his infamous nicknames "God's Rottweiler", "German Shepherd", and "Panzerkardinal"^NoteCounts as Harsher in Hindsight on his part as he was drafted into the Wehrmacht as a member of the Hitler Youth. It's also important to note that his membership in the Hitler Youth was mandatory, and that he and his brother did the bare minimum with the group necessary to keep their parents, ardent anti-Nazis, out of trouble. also don't help. He relaxed the rules on when the Tridentine Mass (traditional Latin ritual) can be performed, to the glee of some Catholics and the dismay of others, and the new English translation of the Roman Missal was implemented under his watch. Again, some Catholics rejoiced, some despaired, most (churchgoing ones at least) simply resolved to read the new responses until they were memorized.
  • He resigned the papacy on February 28, 2013, making him the first pope to leave office during his lifetime since Gregory XII abdicated in 1415 in order to end the Western Schism and the first to do so voluntarily since Pope Celestine V in 1294. More than one meme has been born from the fact that he left the Vatican in a helicopter, among other things.
  • Benedict was noted as the longest-lived pope in the Catholic Church's history (though not the oldest reigning, as he took the mantle of Pope Emeritus in 2013; that title remained with Leo XIII), at 95 years and 212 days up until his passing on December 31, 2022 at 9:34am local time (3:34am US Eastern Time).

20th Century

John Paul II

His Holiness, The Bishop of Roam

• St. John Paul II (1978-2005, canonized April 27, 2014): Real name Karol Józef Wojtyła. The first East European Pope ^note was the Archbishop of Krakow, Poland, before being chosen, when elected he asked if he could call himself Stanislaus after the Polish saint, but was told that wasn't Roman enough, and the first non-Italian in the job in centuries. ^note 455 years, to be exact. Adrian VI, a sixteenth-century Dutchman, was the last before him. Also known, especially after his death, as Pope John Paul the Great. Unusually young for recent history when chosen (he was fifty-eight years old), partly out of a desire not to have to hold another conclave for a decade (they managed almost three). Had the third-longest papal reign in history — a little over 26 years. Staunchly conservative, he had great publicity and charisma as well as a very large presence, not to mention he traveled through the whole world (hence his nickname "The Pilgrim Pope" and one reporter making a pun on the title "Bishop of Rome"). He created the World Youth Day, an international event for young pilgrims. One such trip to the Philippines, in 1995, saw the largest crowd in history gathered to see him (such record even stood for nearly two decades, until Pope Francis' visit to the same country). Said to have been important in the fall of the various Communist governments; Mikhail Gorbachev once told the Pope that the Iron Curtain never would have fallen without his efforts. Famously was almost assassinated then forgave and visited his assassin in prison. Humor-minded history teachers have likened him to James Bond (without the sex, of course, although black comedy is optional). Also re-invented as a super-hero, The Incredible Popeman (or the Superpope). Available as several action figures including a talking one.^note It has an audio chip with 22 brief recordings of Karol's own voice.
  • Because of the unusual longevity of his papacy (more than a quarter of a century from the late 1970s to the early 2000s) to many people he became simply the pope. He effectively defined the institution. When he died, there were people up to thirty years old who couldn't remember another person being Pope.
  • In one example of his publicity, he had a music video on MTV as one way to reach out to youth, one of the things he was known for.
    • It's not every Holy Father who gets a song about him written by Frank Zappa.
  • In an interesting bit of trivia, one of the people beatified in his final years was the man he was named after: Karl Josef von Habsburg, the last Emperor of Austria-Hungary. "Karol Jozef" happened to be the Polish version of that name, given by his patriotic father (Wadowice, where he was born, had been in Austrian Silesia until a few months before he was born). It's been said that he did so as a sign of gratitude to his namesake. In fairness, it's not like Karl was not deserving: he was the Only Sane Man among state leaders during World War I—advocating that everyone just give up and go home to rebuild— and Anatole France called him "a saint" decades ago.
  • His canonization in 2014, makes him the latest pope to be declared a saint, along with John XXIII (canonized at the same time). At his funeral, young people chanted "Santo subito!" (saint immediately) and Benedict XVI put his predecessor on the fast track by waiving the traditional 5-year waiting time before official sainthood inquiries begin. On the flip side of the coin, JPII consecrated and beatified more people than every pope in the last 5 centuries combined. (The Onion had their own theory as to why.)
    • His record has been supplanted by Pope Francis in 2013, who made 802 saints in one day.
    • Several of his beatifications/canonizations, however, have been very controversial. For example, he beatified the Croatian cardinal Aloysius Stepinac (accused of having collaborated with the brutal Nazi-inspired regime that ruled Croatia in World War II, which led to quite the impasse with the Serbian Orthodox Church) and the Spanish priest Jose Maria Escriva de Balaguer (founder of the very infamous Opus Dei and alleged supporter of right-wing dictators like Hitler, Franco and Pinochet).
    • Additionally, John Paul's own canonization has been called into question due to his enthusiastic public support to Father Marcial Maciel (later exposed as a drug addict and serial pedophile who molested hundreds of boys, teens and young men — and a few young women — in his Legion of Christ and Regnum Christi organizations) and Cardinal Theodore McCarrick (whose similar sexual proclivities had also been widely known for decades). John Paul had chosen to dismiss the warnings as rumors and put both men as examples of holiness, perhaps not coincidentally with the fact that both Maciel and McCarrick were extraordinary fundraisers for the Church.
  • He was also good friends with the Dalai Lama.
  • In 1996, he made a statement (in a very complicated wording) along the lines of "Evolution is not just a theory, but more. A reality."
  • In an audience with a monsignor who was devoted to St. Francis and allowed people to bring their pets to Mass, John Paul stated his belief that "the animals possess a soul, and are as near to God as men are." Cue the frantic spinning by Vatican officials, "Errr, what His Holiness really meant to say was..."
  • In the days before he died, tens of thousands of people gathered in St. Peter's Square to pray for his health. When he was told of this, Pope John Paul II said "I have searched for you, and now you have come to me, and I thank you."
  • John Paul II has also been credited for helping to end the Cold War. On the other hand, he has also been accused of strengthening the hold of the Catholic Church on Polish society to almost asphyxiating degrees (not for nothing do we say that Poland's politics are "a few ticks to the right" of the rest of Europe).
  • He was also known to be a very, very avid technophile.
  • At the beginning of his reign he was a relatively young 58 years old, and in great physical condition at the time. He regularly exercised, much to the consternation of his staff who said tourists could see him exercising. John Paul had a swimming pool installed at his summer residence and when asked about the cost said it was cheaper than another conclave.
    • The May 1981 assassination attempt had been far more damaging to his health than was publically known. John Paul suffered a cardiac arrest after the shooting and it damaged his intestines. He recovered from the shooting and remained in good shape throughout the 1980s, and continued to exercise as well.
    • However the long-term effects of the shooting began to catch up with him in the mid 1990s, along with other longstanding medical conditions. In 2001 a surgeon confirmed John Paul had Parkinson's disease. By then he had osteoarthrosis and hearing problems. Even with all those health problems he continued traveling the world, with his last international trip about eight months before his death.
    • During the last few years of his life some people who met him said that despite his physical problems he was fully mentally alert. However others such as Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams disputed that, saying John Paul seemed to have memory problems during the last months of his life.^note  After John Paul's death, Williams said he met John Paul in early 2003 and the Pope had no memory of his own earlier writings, and British author John Cornwell claimed that the Pope had no idea who Williams was after the meeting.

John Paul I

• Bl. John Paul I (1978) : Real name Albino Luciani^note literally meaning "White" and "of the Light", former Patriarch of Venice. The first Pope who chose a composite name (to honor his two immediate predecessors), and the first one with an original name (well, quasi-original, given that it's composite) that actually affixed "the First" to it.^note He was thinking about calling himself Pius XIII, which would have been really ironic given what happened to him. Threw out tradition right and left: refused to wear jewel-encrusted tiara or be carried around in a chair, insisted on an installation instead of a coronation, wouldn't use Royal "We", taught against private property and that God was both Mother and Father. As an archbishop, used to direct his priests to sell gold and jewel church decor donated by parishioners and give the money to the poor. Wanted to give comparatively scandalous donations to the Third World and threatened to expose (actual) Church corruption related to Vatican Bank (you don't get to be Patriarch of Venice by being stupid.)^note He seems to have been something of a Beware The Nice Ones under that sparkling exterior. Lasted just 34 days. Reports about his death, earlier health and even personal life were very confusing, so assassination conspiracy theories abound. Nicknamed "The Smiling Pope" for his sweet and cheerful personality. After a lot of bureaucratic slowness, his cause for sainthood was finally turned in on his 100th birthday, October 19, 2012. Pope Francis recognized his Heroic Virtues Nov. 7, 2017. Two possible miracles credited to him are being investigated.^note To verify that they're in heaven and listening to your prayers, saints must intercede (ask God) for four miracles making it plain that the said saints were responsible. This presumes that they want to be acknowledged as saints in the first place, which Luciani, a notably humble man, may not. If you want to help him to be recognized as a saint, go here.
  • He was a fan of The Adventures of Pinocchio, to the point that he wrote a letter to its protagonist. This was one of a series of sermons in the form of whimsical letters to fictional and historical figures including Charles Dickens, G.K. Chesterton and Mark Twain, later published as a book, Illustrissimi (The Illustrious Ones).

Paul VI

• St. Paul VI (1963-78): Real name Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, Archbishop of Milan, who had already been this close to be The Pope due to having been a close collaborator of Pius XII. An intellectual type, he oversaw the Second Vatican Council (Vatican II for short), which introduced numerous sweeping reforms to Church practices, and he also was an advocate for social justice. Also famous for being the first Pope in centuries to travel outside the Vatican more or less regularly, starting with a trip to the Holy Land in 1964. Paul also was the first office holder to visit the United States as Pope. ^note He and Pius XII visited the United States prior to being elected Pope. He's also famous for releasing the encyclical Humanae Vitae, which reiterated the Church's opposition to artificial birth control (birth control that's not NFP or total abstinence). Was beatified in October 2014 and subsequently canonized in October 2018.

John XXIII

• St. John XXIII (1958-63): Real name Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, originally a Country Mouse and Impoverished Patrician. Also was the Patriarch of Venice by the time he was elected. Considered more liberal and progressive in his time, compared to his immediate predecessors. He was aware that he was considered papailable (a candidate for the job) but as he was 76 years old, he expected his age to work against his candidacy. Even after being elected John was expected to rule for only a short, uneventful term, but revolutionized the office by his warm down-to-earth approach to the job. He called the Second Vatican Council, which would end up renewing Catholicism as a whole, and was finished by his successor Paul VI. Generally known as "The Good Pope" for his easy smile and gentleness. In what they described as a 'very specific' case ^*though this has more to do with the importance of his spearheading of Vatican II, the Vatican waived the requirement for a second miracle and canonized him in April 2014, alongside his successor, John Paul II.

Pius XII

• Pius XII (1939-1958): Real name Eugenio Maria Pacelli, member of a very high-class Roman family. In 1920s, he was the Papal representative to Germany, and as such, inadvertently helped thwart the Beer Hall Putsch, as the sole minister in Bavarian state government who was not taken hostage by the Nazis was away from the Beer Hall having dinner with the future pope. Elected pope in 1939, he reigned during World War II. In 1936 the future Pius XII became the first Pope to visit the United States in his lifetime. A competent, well-read, stoic, and popular pope, but accusations, made by some historians, that he did not not do enough to save the Jews during the Holocaust have made him a controversial figure after his death. However, several sources, including Israeli scholars, estimate that as many as 860,000 European Jews were saved from death through concealment in Church facilities, issuance of fake Baptismal certificates, public appeals, secret exfiltration networks and other methods he ordered: this means, he didn't speak up in public a lot but did work like crazy behind the scenes. Still, the guy used to be anti-Judaic, and he once referred to the Munich chapter of the German Communist Party as "chaotic, filthy and full of Jews.", though he later changed his mind and was in good terms with the Roman Jewish community. Known as "the Pope of Fatima" for his devotion to the message of Our Lady of Fatima. Made plans for the Vatican II Council, but died before he could call it. While he was dying, he repeatedly attempted to get up and say Mass, bless pilgrims (in their original languages), and feed his favorite bird that lived near the estate.

Pius XI

• Pius XI (1922-1939) Real name Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti (try saying that three times fast). A brilliant scholar and diplomat. Fired off some beautiful tirades against Hitler and Nazism, including the first papal encyclical not in Latin, which was secretly printed and then read from every Catholic pulpit in Germany on Palm Sunday. Before that as Papal Nuncio to Poland, he became the first representative of the Church in centuries to face down Catholicism's enemies on the battlefield, when he blessed Polish troops in the trenches outside Warsaw during the Polish-Soviet War. Spoke out in favor of fair wages, social justice and even civil rights in America (he'd read Uncle Tom's Cabin) - President Franklin D. Roosevelt spoke very favorably of him and often quoted his encyclicals. Brought radio to the Vatican in 1931 with the installation of shortwave, callsign HVJ, which now broadcasts around the world in dozens of languages. Signed the Lateran Treaty with Mussolini's government, which established the Vatican as a sovereign nation and ended the "Prisoner in the Vatican" era.

Benedict XV

• Benedict XV (1914-1922) Real name Giacomo della Chiesa, pretty much the Only Sane Man in Europe during World War I, repeatedly calling for peace and doing all he could to help the conditions of the prisoners of war and other refugees. He issued the first ever Code of Canon Law of the Roman Catholic Church in 1917. His last concern was the emerging persecution of the Church in Soviet Russia and the famine there after the revolution. Benedict XV was an ardent mariologist, devoted to Marian veneration and open to new perspectives of Roman Catholic Mariology. He also supported the mediatrix theology and added the phrase "Queen of Peace" to the litany of Mary. Devotees of Our Lady of Fatima point out a famous letter in which he practically begged her to do something. The apparitions — in which she specifically discussed Russia and the horrors of war — began eight days after this letter was published, although the kids who saw her had had visitations of Portugal's guardian angel the year before.

Pius X

• St. Pius X (1903-1914): Real name, Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto. Chosen pope when the Austrian Emperor exercised his right of veto (as Holy Roman Emperor) against the winner of the previous conclave. Upon becoming pope he immediately banned that practice and declared that any monarch claiming to veto a candidate for pope would be excommunicated.^note Initially, Sarto considered refusing his election, as he resented the Austrian Emperor's interference and also had doubts of his worthiness. The latest pope to have been canonized so far until John XXIII and John Paul II. Extremely conservative, he condemned the Modernist heresy, and like Pius IX he could be a blunt jerk at his worst; on the other hand, he also was known for his almost unlimited charity, as when he let the refugees from the Messina earthquake stay around the Vatican until they got official government help. He was also a reform-machine, issuing a new Catechism, giving new guidelines on liturgy and encouraging frequent reception of the Eucharist. Was actually a Country Mouse, coming from a small village where his dad was the local post office worker; his legend says that, as a kid, he'd rather walk barefoot to school than have his parents buying him new shoes needlessly. Said to have succumbed to Death by Despair after not having been able to prevent World War I. His name was later adopted by a controversial (and, at some points in its history, schismatic) traditionalist group, the Society of St. Pius X.

19th Century

Leo XIII

• Leo XIII (1878-1903), real name Count Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci. The former oldest pope (since beaten by Benedict XVI, though he remains the oldest reigning), he died at age 93 and had the third longest pontificate. A big devotee of the Virgin Mary, his nickname was "the Rosary Pope". Very concerned for social welfare and justice, his best-known encyclical is Rerum Novarum, in which he strongly defends the rights of workers. Also, the first Pope whose voice was recorded, the first Pope ever caught on film, and probably the earliest-born person caught on film EVER (being born during the The Napoleonic Wars in 1810). A rather nice and funny guy, too.

Pius IX

• Bl. (Blessed) Pius IX (1846-78): Born Giovanni Mastai-Feretti. Having reigned for 32 years, his papacy was the longest verifiable one in the history of the Roman Catholic Church^note Peter's reign is estimated to have been even longer, at anywhere from 34 to 38 years, but historians have never been able to pin down the exact number. He was the first Pope to visit the Americas during his lifetime, having been part of a diplomatic mission to Chile as a young priest. Pius IX was also the last pope to be secular ruler over Rome and its surroundings. In his early reign he seemed to have somewhat liberal and Italian nationalist leanings, to the point where he briefly became a symbol of Italian unity and some Italians dreamed of an Italy ruled as a constitutional monarchy with the Pope as its head of state. However, events during the Revolutions of 1848 affected his position, and he ended up something of a bitter enemy of both the liberal and nationalist strains of Risorgimento.
  
  Pius IX's reign, during which the Italian government conquered Rome and ended the Church's temporal authority, marked the beginning of a nearly 60-year period in which the popes, referring to themselves as "Prisoners in the Vatican", refused to leave the Apostolic Palace in order to avoid being treated as subjects of the Italian crown. Often known as "Pio Nono", even by non-Italian speakers^note ironically, Italians nowadays tend not to refer to popes by their regnal names - they'll typically talk about "Papa Wojtyla" rather than "Papa Giovanni Paolo" (and allegedly giving name to a Spanish sweet and a Chilean street). Called the First Vatican council, which confirmed the Pope's supremacy over the Church and Papal infallibility. He officially declared the Virgin Mary's Immaculate Conception^note  Which simply means she was born without Original Sin. It is not the same as the birth of Christ to her while a Virgin; that is called the Virgin Birth, based on the Lourdes apparitions. Often accused of being quite the Hot-Blooded jerk in person. He is also a Blessed and the first pope to have been photographed. His reign was also noted for the controversial kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara- a Jewish child secretly baptized by his Christian nanny. After the child was torn from the arms of his family, Pius infamously refused to return him, heedless of the Mortara family's anguish and international outrage, an event that might have helped precipitate the fall of the Papal States.

Gregory XVI

• Gregory XVI (1831-46): Born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari. Elected during a time of violent political upheaval in southern Europe, much of the early months of Gregory XVI's reign was spent dodging bombings, shootings and other assassination attempts. A deeply conservative and traditionalist pope, Gregory XVI fought tooth and claw to oppose reform movements to the church across Europe, both within the church and in the governments of Catholic nations seeking democracy. He was also noteworthy for opposing technological innovation such as gas lamps and the railroad system. That said, in 1839, he did write a scathing condemnation of the Atlantic slave trade, declaring that opposition to slavery was an inherently Christian value and denying the aid of the Church to anyone involved in the slave trade. To date, Gregory was the last man elected Pope to not already be a Bishop upon election, requiring him to be consecrated as a Bishop before he could take office, which he did four days after his election.

Pius VIII

• Pius VIII (1829-30): Born Francesco Saverio Castiglioni, Pius VIII reigned for just over a year and a half. During his reign, Pius VIII held suspicious views over the perceived perversion of Catholic teachings, especially in common language, fearing that differing from the church's Latin may result in information being Lost in Translation or, worse, allow for subversive teachings. He also cast a critical eye towards the marriage of Catholics and Protestants, only permitting priests to perform ceremonies when the children of the unions would be raised Catholic. A conspiracy theory holds that the Pope's death was brought on by poison.

Leo XII

• Leo XII (1823-29): Born Annibale Francesco Clemente Melchiore Girolamo Nicola Sermattei della Genga. Said to be elected due to his poor health, even supposedly warning other cardinals that they "would be electing a dead man," Leo XII made a full recovery and was able to lead an unpopular Papacy. Those around him remembered him as being a notably frugal man who lived a simple life, though was noted for allegedly killing a man in an argument over sports and leaving the treasury a confused wreck. Papal bulls issued by Leo XII included the limiting of traditionally Jesuit studies, requiring them to be under the direct supervision of the church and performed in Latin, as well as severely limiting the property rights of the Jewish population, leading to their emigration from Rome and rekindling the medieval attitude towards Judaism in the church for some time.

Pius VII

• Pius VII (1800-1823): Born Barnaba Niccolò Maria Luigi Chiaramonti. Perhaps most famous for presiding over Napoleon's self-coronation, and subsequently being imprisoned by the Emperor of the French. His dignity of bearing during his imprisonment convinced the Congress of Vienna to restore the papal estates which had been seized by Napoleon. Remarkably tolerant of the idea of democracy, and once remarked that the United States "had done more for the cause of Christianity than the most powerful nations of Christendom have done for ages." He said this after the American Navy defeated Muslim pirates along the Barbary Coast almost single-handedly, after the major powers of Europe had sat back and let the pirates control the seas for over a century.

18th Century

Benedict XIV

• Benedict XIV: (1740-1758): Real name Prospero Lambertini. One of the greatest intellectuals among all the Popes, promoted all sorts of scientific, artistic and literary advances, which didn't impede him from being famously foul-mouthed and a compulsive gambler. Built solid ties with Naples, reprimanded the Portuguese Empire for allowing the slavery of Brazilian natives, and reduced the power of the Company of Jesus, which people around the world were starting to consider excessive. Overall, he was popular enough that even Protestants highly esteemed him.

Clement XII

• Clement XII: (1730-1740) Real name Lorenzo Corsini. Was elected at the shockingly advanced age of 78, the oldest cardinal to reach papacy since, and was already almost blind and bedridden when he started. Thanks to his experience in all possible offices in the Church, though, he achieved an economical resurgence of the Church, which he invested in erecting buildings and making needed reforms. He was also politically ambitious, at one point disputing the throne of Naples with its recent re-conqueror Charles of Bourbon, but was eventually forced to accept him when Charles threatened to invade the Papal States too. Was also the first Pope to condemn Freemasonry.

Clement XI

• Clement XI: (1700-1721) Real name Giovanni Francesco Albani. Was a benefactor of the Vatican Library, and patron of arts and science. and the rescue of much of Rome's antiquity is due to his personal interest in archaeology. Clement is perhaps best notable for the Rites Controversy in China, forbidding Jesuit missionaries to take part in honoring Chinese philosophers such as Confucius or ancestor worship, seeing them as religious, rather than secular actions. This attitude of "pure Catholic teachings" was then enforced to all missionary work, which completely defanged Jesuit efforts across the globe and remained an active policy for centuries to come to completely trample over local beliefs from now on - with predictable results on the conversion rates.

17th Century

Innocent XII

• Innocent XII (1691-1700) Real name, Antonio Pignatelli. Took a hardline stance against nepotism, issuing a papal bull outlawing it, continuing the policies of his predecessor to the name, Innocent XI. Also, he was the last pope to have facial hair.

Innocent XI

• Innocent XI (1676-1689) Real name, Benedetto Odescalchi. Despite coming to power in the Baroque period, was a Affluent Ascetic who doubled-down on both Curia excesses and nepotism that's been hollowing the Papal State inside-out. He got things in order in just few years, often getting personally involved to judge various embezzlers and familials of bishops and cardinals. On less sympathetic note, he was a monumental sourpuss that considered fun the worst evil of the world (banning theaters and fledgling opera as sinful), and, much worse, his policies eventually lead to Louis XIV being roped into a crackdown against Huguenots and bunch of religiously-themed skirmishes, which had disastrous consequence for just about everyone in the end. Ironically, Innocent's direct successor, Alexander VIII, did his very best to demolish all the positive reforms of the Curia within his short, two-years reign.

Urban VIII

• Urban VIII (1623-44): Real name, Maffeo Barberini. Pope during the height of the Baroque period in art and patron of famous architects Bernini and Borromini. His name and crest can be seen on numerous monuments in Rome today, including the decorations on St. Peter's Basilica. Member of the powerful Barberini family, whose house is now the Italian National Gallery of Art. Personal friend of Galileo, until there was a falling out over the astronomer's Dialogo sopra i due massimi sistemi del mondo, which featured a character that seemed to be an insulting parody of the Pope. An ambitious Pope, he expanded the military power of the Vatican States, if only at the cost of utterly massive debts that his successors would have to suffer.

16th Century

Clement VIII

• Clement VIII (1592-1605): Real name, Ippolito Aldobrandini. The Coffee Pope. When the coffee craze hit Europe, Clement, a scholarly type who must have pulled plenty of all-nighters, became a fan. He was urged to condemn coffee because it came from the Islamic world (the first European to taste it, Spanish Jesuit Pedro Páez, had been forced to do so disguised as a Turk in Africa), but he blessed it instead. Today, you can get mugs with his picture on them. Elected by cardinals tired of Spanish interference, he was an impartial pontiff and tried hard for the umpteenth time to unify Europe against the Ottomans, for which he accepted Henry IV of France's return to the Catholic Church, mediated between Henry and Philip II of Spain, and put peace among some other quarreling countries and religious orders. His resultant Holy League managed to stop Ottoman advance in Europe, although they failed to reconquer lost ground. Less sympathetically, he was harsher than usual on Jews.

Innocent IX

• Innocent IX (1591): Real name, Giovanni Antonio Facchinetti. Chosen to replace Gregory XIV, he was another pro-Spanish Pope, who'd been a major figure in Gregory XIV's administration. Spain hoped that he would keep up their anti-French program, and he did—but only for a month before dying.

Gregory XIV

• Gregory XIV (1590-1): Real name, Niccolò Sfondrato. Sickly and old, he was chosen from a list of seven candidates favored by the local Spanish ambassador the Count of Olivares, who wanted to maintain the Church's support. Gregory didn't want the job, as he was fairly certain he wouldn't be up to it, and in fact cried in despair when he was elected. His prediction proved to be right, as he lacked political experience and had to leave much of the running of the Church to his subordinates, but he surely supported Spain with ardor as they wanted, excommunicating Henry IV of France during the French Wars of Religion and trying to get King Philip II of Spain as their new king (he did rule against abuse of natives in the Spanish Philippines, though). Overall, being given the Papacy did not do wonders for his mental health, and he subsequently suffered fits of nervous laughter, even Corpsing while he was crowned. Died within a year.

Urban VII

• Urban VII (1590): Real name Giovanni Castagna. A former apostolic nuncio to Spain, he was elected on September 15, 1590, with Spanish support. He might have had great ambitions, but died only 13 days later, making him the shortest-reigning pope in history. Was responsible for the world's first public smoking ban, as he threatened anyone who took tobacco near a church with excommunication.

Sixtus V

• Sixtus V (1585-1590): Real name, Felice Peretti. A Franciscan monk, he was a member of the order's hardliner faction. As in, he was the Inquisitor General of Venice before he became Pope, and was so severe the Venetians threw him out. On becoming Pope, he made his first order of business bringing order to the Papal States, and did so with gusto, with numerous decapitations. His foreign policy was likewise very much "us against them", with the "them" being Protestants and Muslims. Sixtus supported the Spanish Armada and spent a lot of time trying to get a crusade against the Ottomans off the ground, although neither were successful. His other big project was beautifying and improving Rome, which he did, being responsible of public works such as the first modern aqueduct in Rome — albeit frequently by demolishing the houses of the meddlesome poor who were cluttering the place up. He also ruled that abortion, rather than merely being a grave sin, was automatic grounds for excommunication. On his death, mobs tore down his statue, which says enough about his popularity, as it does the fact that he was the last pope to take the name Sixtus. Modern history has been a bit kinder to him, although he is still considered an over-ambitious and unpersonable example of a Pope.

Gregory XIII

• Gregory XIII (1572-85): Real name, Ugo Boncompagni. A promoter of arts of sciences, he is best known for promulgating the calendar used in the western world to this day and ordering calendar reforms that cemented the Leap Day. Had a pet project of uniting Spain, France and the Holy Roman Empire against the Turks in order to follow on the victory of Lepanto, but it failed miserably (as always), so he instead put his energies in the the Counter-Reformation: he worked hard to put into practice the principles of the Council of Trent, fostered multiple conspirations and spywork in the attempt to dethrone Elizabeth I, and supported King Philip II of Spain in his own ventures against the Dutch and British protestants (Gregory even tried to get John of Austria to invade England). He and Philip also received the first Japanese embassy in Europe.

Pius V

• St. Pius V (1566-72): Real name, Antonio Ghislieri. Standardized the Mass for about four centuries in the Council of Trent and excommunicated Queen Elizabeth I. Probably one of the most badass Popes due his part in assembling the Christian coalition against the Turks, he presided over the great naval victory over the Muslims at the Battle of Lepanto, after which he became a fan of the hero of the day, John of Austria, at least until John's playboy ways ruined his image. The battle greatly revived the prestige of the politically faltering Church, as it did Pius' work to reform it, which included getting rid of the most extravagant luxuries previous Popes had maintained. His nickname was the "Hound of God" (actually a play on his order — St. Pius V belonged to the Dominican Order, whose members are nicknamed "Hounds of the Lord" in a play with Domini Canes in Latin).

Pius IV

• Pius IV (1559-1565): Real name Giovanni Angelo Medici. Not a relative of THE Medicis. Started his papacy by trying Paul IV's nephews for their various crimes, then restarted the Council of Trent. A reasonable man, and an effective reformer. Like many popes, made a nephew a cardinal. Unlike most popes, that nephew was genuinely competent AND went on to become a saint. Arguably, an underrated pontiff.

Paul IV

• Paul IV (1555-1559): Real name Gian Pietro Carafa. A former head of the Roman Inquisition, whose creation he promoted while he was a cardinal, Paul IV was chosen in hopes that he would prove an effective reformer. Unfortunately, he proved to be a rather grim killjoy, making him unpopular in Rome, and, more dangerously, hated the Spanish who ruled most of Italy, to the point of openly calling them barbarians and starting a war against them. It didn't go exactly well, with the army of The Duke of Alba paying a visit to Rome, which cemented Paul's historical reputation as a man who didn't know how to choose his battles. Making a bunch of his nephews cardinals likewise damaged his reformer credentials — the fact that most of them proved horribly corrupt sunk them. He also hated Jews harder than usual at his time, and part of his hatred of Spanish was because of the high number of conversos, Spanish Christians of Jewish blood. Oh, and he started the Vatican Index of Forbidden Books. So, not a guy making many papal top ten lists.

Marcellus II

• Marcellus II (1555): Born Marcello Cervini degli Spannochi. Not particularly important in himself, but somewhat significant for three reasons: (1) He is the last Pope so far to use his birth name as his regnal name. (2) He had a very short reign, which was rather unfortunate, as unlike his predecessor, he was noted as a real reformer who could have brought change to the Vatican had he lived. (3) Giovanni Pierluigi de Palestrina dedicated one of the crowning achievements of Renaissance polyphonic music to him.

Julius III

• Julius III (1549-1555): Real name Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del Monte. A compromise candidate, who it was hoped would continue Paul III's reforms. Instead, he largely ignored them and spent his times occupied with Italian politics and a young teenage boy named Innocenzo who he adopted as a nephew (according to rumors, after he saw him fighting on the street with a peddler's monkey pet) and made a cardinal despite him being illiterate. Needless to say, this did not help the stature of the Papacy. It helped it even less when Cardinal Innocenzo killed two men for insulting him, though Julius was thankfully dead by that point. On the whole, not a papal high point.

Paul III

• Paul III (1538-1549): Real name Alessandro Farnese (not to confuse with the Spanish general Alessandro Farnese, who was his grand-grandson). Became a cardinal as a result of the efforts of his famous sister Giulia, Alexander VI's mistress. After trying for the top spot for decades, finally got it as the Catholic Church was in the middle of the trouble of the Reformation. Paul responded by calling the Council of Trent and starting the Counter-Reformation in earnest, which he proved to be quite good at, with his papacy seeing groups like the Jesuits starting up. He also spent his time trying to put peace between Charles V and Francis I, in which he failed, and making sure his own family got filthy rich, in which he succeeded, with his son Pier Luigi winding up the Duke of Parma. On the whole, a complicated but quite interesting guy. He is played by Irish actor Diarmuid Noyes in all three seasons of the Borgia series, though it concludes long before the events of his Papacy.

Clement VII

• Clement VII (1523-38): Real name Giulio di Giuliano de' Medici. He brought to the papal throne a high reputation for political ability and possessed in fact all the accomplishments of a wily diplomat, but in turn was notoriously bad at decision-making. Among other things, he was considered worldly and indifferent to the perceived dangers of the Reformation by the people of the papacy. When Holy Roman Emperor Charles V decided Clement needed a warning for calling for a league against him, he besieged Rome and accidentally caused the 1527 Sack of Rome when his troops (many of which were Protestant mercenaries) mutinied. The glorious sacrifice of the Swiss Guards allowed Clement to take refuge in Castel Sant'Angelo, but the Pope ended still greatly disturbed by the experience and took things more seriously, maybe a bit too much. Clement's subsequent refusal to rule on the validity of Henry VIII of England's marriage to Catherine of Aragon, Charles' aunt, despite years of arguments, set the stage for the English Reformation. Clement went to be considered "the most unfortunate of the Popes" due to all of his mistakes and their consequences.

Adrian VI

• Adrian VI (1522-23): Real name Adriaan Floriszoon Boeyens. Born in Utrecht, he was the tutor of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and even acted as regent of Spain in his name before reaching Papacy. The last non-Italian pope until John Paul II was chosen 475 years later, he didn't enjoy his new position and came to outright hate it: he had been chosen in absentia against his will, and although Charles and him shared a goal of uniting Christendom against Islam, a rift soon opened between master and disciple because they differed in their approach (Charles wanted to lead the Christians, while Adrian believed he should not be partial to him). In turn, he was noted to be too dependant on the cardinals' advice. Launched the Counter-Reformation, although he obtained little success due to their opposition. One of only two popes in the past thousand years (along with Marcellus II 32 years later) to keep their birth name as their papal name.

Leo X

• Leo X (1513-21): Real name, Giovanni de' Medici. The son of Lorenzo the Magnificent, who got Pope Innocent VIII to make Giovanni a cardinal, but not until he turned 17 and finished school (he was 13 at the time of the promise). He and Cesare Borgia were students at Pisa University at the same time in 1491, the year before Giovanni's father died and Cesare's father was elected pope (see Alexander VI below), although no indication survives regarding how they saw each other. Giovanni became pope at only 37 years old, and was the last man elected Pope to not already be an ordained priest at the time of his election, thus requiring him to be ordained as a priest and then consecrated as a Bishop before he could take the job. He patronized art and literature in Rome to an extraordinary extent and established a papal court that was the envy of Renaissance Italy, even owning a Indian elephant gifted by King Manuel I of Portugal. However, he is mainly remembered for promoting the sale of indulgences for money to such an extent that it sparked The Protestant Reformation in the 16th century, which he supposedly called "some quarrel of monks". He supported Holy Roman Emperor Charles V against Francis I of France during the Four Years' War, although he didn't live to see its end, dying of acute pneumonia, which was claimed to be the result of getting overexcited with a victory over the French.
  • He is traditionally believed to have been an enemy of the Borgias, but like many other aspects of their Historical Villain Upgrade, historians aren't so sure anymore. A few works show them as friends, including Borgia (Giovanni is played by John Bradley), and Cesare - Il Creatore che ha distrutto which focuses on their school life in 1491-92 and has Giovanni as a major character.

Julius II

• Julius II (1503-1513): Real name, Giuliano della Rovere. The Warrior Pope, famous for commanding troops at the front, wearing armor and directing siege works, as well for acquiring syphilis. Called for war against every nation necessary to keep the political balance in Europe (under the Vatican's control, that is) and was planning a crusade against the Muslim Ottomans before dying. Nephew of a previous Pope, Sixtus IV, who gave Giuliano his cardinal's hat. Bitter enemy of Alexander VI. Also famous for overseeing Michelangelo Buonarroti when the artist painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Played by Rex Harrison in The Agony and the Ecstasy, opposite Charlton Heston as Michelangelo; by Colm Feore in The Borgias, and by the Serbian-Danish actor Dejan Čukić in Borgia.

15th Century

Alexander VI

• Alexander VI (1492-1503): Formerly Rodrigo Borgia, or Roderic Borja — he was from Spain, and Italy that did not take kindly to that fact. Bribery and Nepotism were the norm in those days (he and rival Cardinal Rovere both were elevated by papal uncles) but it's even worse when a foreigner does it, right? He let Rome fall into a state of decay. Much of his modern-day infamy comes from the writings of Johann Burchard, the Vatican Ceremoniere for all of his Papacy. Many of Burchard's more scandalous observations were colored by his own views, as he had a known dislike of the Borgia family. Burchard wrote several books on official Vatican events of the day and his own observations, some of which were published in his lifetime and others not until centuries after his death. Burchard is the main source for modern image of Alexander as a corrupt schemer, commonly thought of by popular audiences today, such as the story of a little party called the Banquet of Chestnuts (which, to borrow the words of Stephen Fry, revolved around a night of naked prostitute racing in the Vatican). Of his 10 known children (all illegitimate, of course), his four children with Roman businesswoman Vanozza dei Cattanei are about as (in)famous as Alexander himself — most notably the eldest, Cesare, who cast off the cardinal's hat his father arranged for him and became the clever, ruthless warrior who inspired Niccolò Machiavelli's The Prince; and Lucrezia, who played her part in the intrigues of her father and brother, and even after their downfall, remained powerful and respected as Duchess of Ferrara, ruling alongside her third husband Duke Alfonso over one of the grandest artistic courts in Italy. (Lucrezia likely didn't poison anyone, though everyone from Victor Hugo to Agatha Christie likes to believe the rumors that she did. The rumors about her relationship with Cesare were started by her first husband, Giovanni Sforza, who was forced to declare himself impotent in the divorce).
  • Alexander was not that far from the norm in those days, to be fair. He handed King Ferdinand of Aragon and Queen Isabella of Castile the Inter Caethera documents that let them start colonizing America, but also allowed Jews expelled from Spain and Portugal into the Papal States with all of their legal rights and privileges. After dying, his body was removed off the crypts of St. Peter's because he was thought to be too wicked for such a holy ground. Altogether, Alexander was a man of the times, a Pope better than some but worse than others who plotted to form a family dynasty, but had that same family clouded by rumors and scandal throughout his life and on through the present day. He was subject to a Historical Villain Upgrade for Assassin's Creed II and Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (along with Cesare and Lucrezia). In The Borgias, he's played by Jeremy Irons and in Borgia by John Doman. Cesare - Il Creatore che ha distrutto shows the family in a more positive light, from the point of view of Cesare at 16.
  • Alexander's descendants include most of the noble and royal families of Catholic Europe. One of his descendants was a Jesuit named St. Francis Borgia; another is actress Brooke Shields, whose paternal grandmother was an Italian princess.

Innocent VIII

• Innocent VIII (1484-1492): Real name Giovanni Batista Cibo. The Pope of the Burning Times. Wrote Summis desiderantes which recognized the existence of witchcraft and appointed inquisitors to hunt down and kill all witches. (He did not, however, condemn cats, as popularly reported.) The book Malleus Maleficarum came out of this. First pope to openly acknowledge having a mistress. Had 16 illegitimate kids, marrying them off to nobility to start a dynasty. When he was dying and in a coma, supposedly was made to drink the blood of three young boys to try and heal him (though this could just be an anti-Semitic rumor, as his doctor was Jewish) and was rumored to have demanded a wet nurse to breastfeed him in his deathbed.

Sixtus IV

• Sixtus IV (1471-1484): Real name, Francesco della Rovere. A benefactor of The Spanish Inquisition, though worried about preventing abuses therein. Famed by his nepotism and number of lovers, among them his own sister, he created a special tax on prostitutes and priests who had their own lovers. In a better light, he was famously tolerant towards homosexuals, fueling modern speculations he was a bisexual. Then again, so was Lorenzo "The Magnificent" de'Medici (patron of Donatello), who Sixtus IV tried to have murdered, in church, in the famous "Pazzi Conspiracy".

Paul II

• Paul II: (1464-1471) Real name Pietro Barbo. Nephew of Eugene IV. Rose rapidly through the Church to get the top spot in 1464. Notoriously abused the practice of creating cardinals without publishing their names. In spite of his own opposition to humanist learning, did oversee the introduction of printing in the Papal States.

Pius II

• Pius II: (1458-1464) Real name Enea Silvio Bartolomeo Piccolomini. Wrote The Commentaries, which is notably the only autobiography written by a reigning pope. Condemned slavery of newly-baptized Christians, and attempted to organize a Crusade at the Congress Of Mantua, which never got off the ground, dying of illness shortly thereafter.

Callixtus III

• Callixtus III (1455-1458) Real name Alfonso de Borgia, and uncle to the more notorious Alexander VI, who has his own page. Ordered a retrial of Joan of Arc, in which she was vindicated.

Nicholas V

• Nicholas V (1447-1455): Real name Tommas Parentucelli. Under his pontificate, Constantinople fell to the Ottoman Turks. Nicholas attempted to call a crusade against the Turks in response which never panned out. Also a key figure in the Roman Renaissance, and ordered designs for the future Basilica of St. Peter.

Eugene IV

• Eugene IV (1431-1447): Real name Gabriele Condulmer. Nephew of Gregory XII and uncle to Paul II. A member of the Augustinian Order, he transferred the council of Bassel to Ferrera, and an outbreak of bubonic plague forced another transfer to Florence. Issued a papal bull rescinding recognition of Portuguese right to conquer parts of the Canary Islands still pagan, and excommunicated those who enslaved newly baptized Christians.

Martin V

• Martin V (1417-1431): Born Otto Colonna. Convened the Council of Bassel and kicked off the Hussite Wars.

Gregory XII

• Gregory XII (1406-1415): Real name Angelo Corraro. Had the misfortune to be on the Papal throne during the Western Schism, facing down now fewer than three antipopes: Benedict XIII in Avignon, and the Pisan Alexander V and John XXIII^note By the way, if you're wondering, yes, there are two John XXII Is. Given that the first was declared an antipope, he doesn't count, but is still referred to as such making it mildly confusing. Thankfully, the other John XXIII, now Saint John XXIII, reigned some 550 years after the antipope, making the confusion slight. Was ultimately forced to abdicate to end the Schism, and is the last pope to have resigned prior to Benedict XVI 600 years later.

14th Century

Gregory XI

• Gregory XI (1370-1378) Real Name, Pierre Roger de Beaufort. The last universally accepted French-born Pope^note (it is generally accepted that Leo XIII's birth while his Lazio hometown was annexed to Napoleonic France does not count), he was an early opponent of the reformer John Wycliffe but also took action against the most corrupt monasteries. He is far more famous for moving the Papacy from Avignon back to Rome in the winter of 1377-78 in large part due temporal conflicts with Florence and Milan. His death the following March led to a 40 year schism.

Clement VI

• Clement VI (1342-52): Real name, Pierre Roger. Also a French pope. The Black Death reached Europe during his papacy and killed somewhere between one third and half of the continent's population, which reshaped Europe for centuries. Miraculously, he never caught it himself. Oversaw some planning to care for the sick, absolved the sins of all who died of the Plague, and defended the Jews against accusations that they caused it. At one point, because so many people were dying that they couldn't bury them all, he had to bless the Rhône River so people could throw the dead bodies into it. In a less awesome moment, he lived a very lavish lifestyle (calling himself "a sinner among sinners") even while so many poor people around him were dying; he had an undisclosed but probably amazing number of lovers and got infected with gonorrhea at one point.

Benedict XII

• Benedict XII (1334-1342): Real name, Jacques Fourier. The "Accidental" Pope. During Papal Conclaves, it was common for the cardinals to vote for someone who had no chance of actually winning the papacy on the first ballot, solely to gauge the leaning of the other voters. The strategy backfired miserably as 15 of the 16 electors (except Fourier) all independently voted for Fourier on the first ballot ("And the last shall be first" indeed). As pope he did a pretty good job too.

Clement V

• Clement V (1305-14): Real name, Raymond Bertrand de Got. The French pope who had The Knights Templar condemned for heresy, mainly as a favor to the French king, Philip the Fair, and they both died within the year (allegedly, he and the King were cursed by the last Templar Grand Master, Jacques de Molay, while was burning at the stake). Moved the Papal court away from Rome and eventually settled in Avignon, where the Papacy would stay until 1403.

13th Century

Boniface VIII

• Boniface VIII (1294-1303): Real name, Benedetto Caetani. Remembered as the Pope who started the tradition of jubilees, special years of remission of sins and universal pardon, in the year 1300. Perhaps accordingly, he infamously ordered the city of Palestrine to be destroyed and its inhabitants killed due to an aristocratic enmity, supposedly claimed that indulging in pederasty "wasn't any more sinful than rubbing a hand against the other," and was rumored to have an incestuous relationship with his daughter. A strong supporter of the idea that the Pope held supremacy over all Christian monarchs; said monarchs disagreed strongly, and he was dramatically taken captive by the Chief Minister of the French king shortly before the end of his life. A political enemy of Dante Aligheri, who included a few take thats against Boniface, regarding his postmortem destination, in his The Divine Comedy.

Celestine V

• St. Celestine V (1294): Real name, Pietro Angelerio. Born a simple but intelligent farmer, Pietro became a hermetic monk who was famous in Rome for the great lengths to which he went to punish himself for sin. After the College of Cardinals spent two years arguing about who to elect (between the scions of two powerful Roman families), he sent them a letter warning them of divine retribution if they didn't hurry up. Fed up with the fighting, the dean of the College of Cardinals nominated Pietro and the conclave quickly agreed. As three bishops brought him the good news, he promptly tried to run away. Out of his element from the start, he fell under the sway of the King of Naples and was detested by most Italian nobility. On the other hand, he was very much beloved by the Italian people, being the first "spiritual" Pope after centuries of "political" Popes. He famously issued a decree that said the Pope was allowed to resign, and then did just that after only five months as Pope. After he resigned, he attempted to return to a solitary monastic life, but was imprisoned by his successor, Boniface VII, who feared he would be reinstalled as Pope (and had been the one who counseled Celestine to resign). He was imprisoned for the last year of his life and died under suspicious circumstances. Canonized only 18 years after his death, when his supporters outvoted those of the family of Boniface.

Gregory X

• Bl. Gregory X (1271-1276): Real name, Tedaldo Visconti. Most notable for the cardinals taking almost three years to elect him due a combination of political divisions, two compromise candidates deciding they weren't worthy and running away as fast as they could and just plain laziness, until the people of Viterbo (where the election was being held) took things in their own hands and locked them in the Popes' Palace, forced a bread-and-water diet on them, and removed the roof. After being elected, Gregory decided that the people of Viterbo had the right idea and codified their solution (minus the roof removing) in the Papal bull-enforced Conclave, still in force with minor adaptations.

Innocent IV

• Innocent IV (1243-1254): Real name, Sinibaldo dei Fieschi. Was famous for opposing antisemitism in his time and infamous for approving the usage of torture to obtain heresy confessions.

Innocent III

• Innocent III (1198-1216): Real name, Lotario de'Conti. His papacy was the height of the Popes' temporal power. He was the last Pope who could give orders to any king in Europe and expect to be obeyed without question. Only thirty-seven years old when he (reluctantly) accepted the decision of the College of Cardinals, he was a highly intelligent and dynamic man who played Medieval Europe like a chessboard. He convoked the Fourth Lateran Council; confirmed the foundation of the Dominican and Franciscan orders; excommunicated King Philip Augustus and laid France under Interdict for rejecting for Philip's rejection of his wife Ingeborg; received England as a Papal fief from King John; excommunicated the entire crusading army of the Fourth Crusade when it sacked Constantinople. Played by Alec Guinness in Brother Sun, Sister Moon. Available as an Action Figure.

12th Century

Adrian IV

• Adrian IV (1154-1159): Real name, Nicholas Breakspear. To date the only English pope, he may or may not have issued the possible papal bull Laudabiliter which might have given the okay for Henry II to invade Ireland.

Calixtus II

• Calixtus II (1119-1124): Real name, Guy of Burgundy. Outraged by the massacre of Jews during the First Crusade, issued the bull Sicut Judaeis, which sought to protect Jews from violence, forced conversion, or other forms of hatred. This would last several hundred years.

11th Century

Urban II

• Bl. Urban II (1088-99): Started the First Crusade at Clermont in France, inspiring his audience to pronounce the words "Deus vult!" ("God wills it!"). (There is a report, much beloved by Larry Gonick, that the two Orthodox priests the Byzantine Emperor had sent to watch the proceedings fainted on the spot from so much air coming out of the unwashed mouths of the Franks).

Gregory VII

• St. Gregory VII (1073-1085): Real name, Hildebrand of Sovana. A well-known scholar from the famous Order of Cluny, he was involved in the Investiture Controversy with Emperor Henry IV of Germany, dealing him a spectacular Humiliation Conga by excommunicating the whole Empire along with him and forcing Henry to wait for forgiveness barefoot and almost naked by the palace gates at Canossa, where the Pope was staying. Later double-crossed by Henry and died in exile.

Alexander II

• Alexander II (1061-1073): Real name, Anselm of Baggio. Involved in the Pataria reform movement, he also sanctioned the Norman Invasion of England.

Nicholas II

• Nicholas II (1058-1061): Real name Gerald de Bourgogone. Designated the College of Cardinals the sole body of pope electors in the document In nomine Domine.

Leo IX

• St. Leo IX (1049-1054): Real name, Bruno von Egisheim-Dagsburg, from Alsace (then part of the Holy Roman Empire). Selected as successor at a convention, but only accepted the office after the population and Cardinals voted for him. His legate to Constantinople started the Great Schism by excommunicating the Patriarch of Constantinople, which he shouldn't have been able to do since Leo had died a few months earlier.

Benedict IX

• Benedict IX (1032-1048): Real name, Theophylactus of Tusculum. Possibly the youngest Pope, he served three terms (the only pope to serve more than once), beginning from the age of about 18. His main qualification was being connected to an extremely powerful family. Once installed as Pope, he used his power to satisfy his reportedly insatiable and depraved carnal desires; contemporary reports accuse him of adultery, rape, pedophilia and bestiality. His first term ended in 1044 when he was forced out of Rome. He returned briefly, only to sell the office of Pope to his godfather. He returned for a third term until finally deposed for good and excommunicated for good measure.

Sylvester II

• Sylvester II (999-1003): Real name, Gerbert d'Aurillac, the first French Pope. He had studied science with Arabic scholars, spoke Arabic and introduced a lot of Arabic knowledge in Europe, including, some say, the Arabic numerals (0-9), which replaced the Roman ones (I, II, III, etc.). This gave him a reputation of being a sorcerer in league with the Devil; rumors that his family had until recently been Jewish didn't help (this might well have been true, not that it really matters). It is said that the rattling of his bones in his grave in St. John Lateran heralds the ruling pope's imminent demise. He developed the first clock. The day 31-st December is named after him. The tradition of playing and firing fireworks that day was initiated after the End of the World had not come in the year 1000 and the pope appeared in his window as usual (the belief that the World would End that year was not propagated officially by church, but most people believed it anyway).

10th Century

John XII

• John XII (955-964): Real name, Octavianus, son of Prince Alberic II of Rome. His dad engineered his "election" at 18, when he also inherited his dad's title. Characterized as a dissolute teenager by historians, he did have it together enough to get actual work done. However, he was more of a prince than a Pope. Contemporaries complained about his hunting, gambling, boozing and possibly incestuous relationships, and at the Roman Synod they threw the book at him. Nonetheless, a lot of people liked him. Deposed in favor of Leo VIII, he returned with an army and retook the papacy. He actually put his girlfriend Rainera in charge of some papal decisions. He died at 27 while having sex with another (married) friend, either as the result of apoplexy or at the hands of the outraged husband. What a way to go!

John XI

• John XI (931-935): Real name, Johannes. Quite probably the illegitimate son of a prior pope to become one himself (his mother Marozia was The Mistress of Pope Sergius III, although some chroniclers preferred to identify his father as her first husband Alberic I of Spoleto). His acclimation at age 20 or 21 was certainly engineered by his mother who at that point controlled Rome and its environs, and according to some he officiated at her third wedding.

Lando

• Lando (913-914): The last Pope prior to John Paul I to use an original name (which was his birth name, not an adopted name), and, before Pope Francis, the most recent pope to not have his regnal name reused by a subsequent pope. Given that the name is now more well-known due to a certain fictional scoundrel, it's highly unlikely that there will ever be a Pope Lando II.

Sergius III

• Sergius III (904-911): As violent and convoluted as the times he lived in, this Pope kept the Church together in a time of warring aristocratic factions by any means. Among other methods, he ordered the murder of his two immediate predecessors, Leo V and Christopher; his pontificate was called "efficient and ruthless." His illegitimate son would later become Pope under the name of John XI.

9th Century

Stephen VI

• Stephen VI (896-97): Real name: also Stephen^note While John II was the first pope to change his name, it was not until John XIV in the late 10th Century that this became a recurring theme of the papacy. Before that, only three people had changed their name upon becoming pope, all to "John".. Largely infamous for the Cadaver Synod, where he put his predecessor Pope Formosus on trial for a number of crimes... despite the fact that Formosus had been dead for about a year. He was later incarcerated and soon found dead by strangulation.

8th Century

Stephen

• Pope-Elect Stephen (March 23, 752 - March 26, 752): As the dates may indicate, the shortest-reigning Pope. Three days after his election, he died of a stroke. Due to the fact that he was never formally installed (and in fact, as a priest, had not even been ordained a Bishop), this causes a bit of a problem over whether he actually was officially Pope or not, and so depending on whose count you use, Pope Francis is either the 266th or 267th Bishop of Rome.
  • If he is included in the list of Popes, he is Pope Stephen II, and all later Popes named Stephen have their regnal numbers increased by one (for instance, the above-mentioned Pope of the Cadaver Synod would be identified as Stephen VII).

7th Century

Honorius I

• Honorius I (625- 638): Honorius was sympathetic to the Monothelites - who believed that Jesus, despite having two natures (human and divine), had only one will (divine) and not two (also human and divine) and expressed these in private letters, though he never stated this ex cathedra. Regardless, his sympathies for the Monothelites was enough to enrage exactly everybody, and Honorius got anathematized after his death for his negligence.

6th Century

Gregory I

• St. Gregory I the Great (590-604): One of the four great Latin Fathers of the Church (along with St. Augustine, St. Ambrose, and St. Jerome). Thoroughly reformed and strengthened the church. Started missions in England to convert the pagan Anglo-Saxons, whom he famously called "non Angli, sed Angeli" ("not Angles, but Angels"). He also reformed Catholic liturgy and the music to be used during Masses. "Gregorian chant" is named after him (although it is a later invention).

John II

• John II (533-535): Worth a mention for being the guy who started the tradition of Popes taking a new name upon getting the job since he thought his birth name (Mercurius, the Roman god Mercury) would be inappropriate for one of the most prominent Christian leaders.

5th Century

Gelasius I

• St. Gelasius I (492-496) Apparently, that was his real name. A prolific writer and strict traditionalist who stressed the importance of a single central Church authority. Legend has it that he was black because he came from Africa. More likely, he was born in the part of the Roman Empire that extended into northern Africa.

Leo I

• St. Leo I (440-461): Most famous for successfully convincing (possibly by citing a serendipitous plague-outbreak) Attila the Hun not to sack Rome.

Zosimus

• St. Zosimus (417-418): Alphabetically the last of the popes.

Innocent I

• St. Innocent I (401-417). Tried to mediate between the Visigoths and the emperor of Rome to avoid the looting of 410 without succeeding. The effort makes him a nice guy.

4th Century

Liberius

• Liberius (352-366). The first pope who isn't a Catholic saint. He is, however, an Orthodox saint.

Sylvester I

• St. Sylvester I (314-335). Died during New Year's Eve, which caused the day to be named after him in some countries. In Brazil, there's a running race held on his homage every New Year's Eve.

3rd Century

Fabian

• St. Fabian (236-250). Elected when a dove flew down on his head. He was initially well-regarded and managed to return the bodies of Pope Pontian and Antipope Hippolytus (both saints) for burial, but he eventually died in prison during the Decian persecution.

2nd Century

Evaristus

• St. Evaristus (99-107). The last Jewish pope (born in Bethlehem, even).

1st Century AD

Clement I

• St. Clement I (88-99). Was credited with writing two letters that were highly regarded by the early church, but which were passed over for inclusion in The Bible. Nowadays, it's dubious as to whether he wrote either of them.

Linus

• St. Linus (c.67-76): The second Pope, and according to some early Christian writings, may have been mentioned in the Bible in Paul's second letter to Timothy.

Peter

• St. Peter (c.30-64/68): An Apostle of Jesus, traditionally the first pope, potentially the longest-serving pope (though historians usually discount him from the ranking because the exact start and end points of his papacy have never been verified), and one of the Patron Saints. Originally named Šimʕōn (Simon), was nicknamed Kêfâ‎ ("rock") by Jesus, translated into Greek as Petros, hence "Peter". Said to have fled Nero's Rome, but saw a vision of Christ going in the opposite direction towards the city and asked, "Domine, quo vadis?"("Lord, where are you going?") to which Jesus answered, "I am going to be crucified again." Peter regained his courage and returned to the city where he was immediately crucified, according to legend upside-down, feeling he was not worthy to be martyred in the same way that Jesus died. Because of this an upside-down cross in Catholic and Christian tradition is called "The Cross of St. Peter" and represents submission and humility before God. ^note While, despite its modern connotations, this isn't inherently a Satanic symbol, an inverted crucifix very much is.
  • According to another legend, he was not executed during persecution but due to him not thinking things through. Simon Magus challenged Peter to a magic contest before Nero, his court, and the Senate, and used demons to make himself fly. Peter then banished the demons, making Simon plummet to his death. This violated the law against using magic to cause harm and carried an automatic death sentence. Nero had him promptly captured and executed.

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