05/07/2025May 7, 2025
Before voting gets under way — DW looks at the history of conclaves
As stated earlier in our blog, the modern papal conclave began after the nearly three-year negotiation that resulted in the papacy of Gregory X in 1274, but does today’s ritual vote have anything to do with its predecessors?
Gregory was elected after 18 cardinals were literally bricked-up in a palace until they finally made their choice. Sequestration remains a key aspect of the vote even now.
The first conclave to feature regular daily voting was held in Arezzo, Tuscany, resulting in the 1276 election of Pope Innocent V. The secret written ballot was introduced by Gregory XV in 1621, and the oath of secrecy — even after the conclave — was codified by Pius X in 1904.
The conclaves were not always held in Rome, most notably during the so-called Avignon papacy (1309-1376) which arose out of conflict between the pope and the Holy Roman Emperor and then the Catholic Church’s subsequent four-decade schism, which saw two popes on two thrones — Rome and Avignon, France — each claiming to be the rightful heir to St. Peter and excommunicating one another in a tit-for-tat tussle for control of the church.
The tradition of cardinals electing the pope began far earlier, in 1059, under Nicholas II; and the idea of a two-thirds majority vote, still valid today, was introduced by Alexander III in 1179. Pope Paul VI set an age limit of 80 for voting cardinals in 1970.
The role of the papacy and those who have held the position has also changed dramatically over the centuries. Although the head of the modern church holds high moral authority and the church has great wealth, earlier popes had far more worldly wealth, as well as political and military might. This led to the election of men who would be unrecognizable compared to someone like Pope Francis or any of his contemporary predecessors.
The history of ambitious and morally flawed men ascending to the papacy is far more scary and colorful than most can even begin to imagine today, ranging from outright bribery to attain the position (Alexander VI) to the murder of fellow contenders (Sergius III) as a stepping stone to what was unlimited power and a seemingly endless income stream.
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