The conclave is over, and the white smoke has already cleared from St. Peter’s Basilica. The cardinals have gone home, and the new Pope, Leo XIV, has already begun to fulfill his duties. The Catholic world is returning to a quiet routine – as it always has for the almost two thousand years the papacy has existed.

In fact, over these two millennia, many stories have accumulated, both inspiring and instructive, and even quite shameful, about people who have occupied the Throne of St. Peter at different times. And these people have not always lived up to their high status. So, today, Bored Panda will tell you over two dozen facts and short stories about popes, the papacy, and the Vatican.

• Read More: 20 Shocking Pope Facts That May Leave You Flabbergasted Or Eager To Know More

#1

Pope John Paul II and Pope Francis were both honorary members of the Harlem Globetrotters – the legendary basketball show team.

Image credits: Mondadori Portfolio

#2

Saint Hormisdas and Saint Silverius, popes of the early Middle Ages, were the only two persons officially known as father and son who ever occupied the papal throne. However, Hormisdas married and had a son long before he became pope – so the church rules of the time were not violated.

Image credits: Gemeinfrei

#3

The late Pope Francis was an avid football fan but vowed to stop watching football on television after the Argentina national team, led by Diego Maradona, dramatically lost the 1990 FIFA World Cup final 0-1 to Germans.

Image credits: Dan Kitwood

#4

The last pope to use the traditional sedia gestatoria – a portable throne carried by 12 bearers – was John Paul I in 1978.

Image credits: RiccardoP1983

#5

The Portuguese Pedro Julião, elected Pope in 1276, took the name John XXI, despite the fact that his immediate predecessor was actually John XIX. The thing is that, according to the newly elected Pope’s opinion, historians made a mistake somewhere, and there was another “unaccounted” for Pope with the name John.
Now history knows for sure that it was Pedro Julião who was mistaken, but again, nothing was changed. So John XX is not on the long list of Popes, and after number 19 comes 21.

Image credits: Joseolgon

#6

Pope Benedict XVI had an organ donor card. In 2011, this even caused serious theological and legal debates, which resulted in the Holy See declaring that as pope he would lose the right to donate his organs.

Image credits: Marek.69

#7

In 1513, the Portuguese King Manuel I sent Pope Leo X an elephant named Hanno. The elephant became a real favorite of the pontiff’s – and he wrote the king a letter of gratitude for the gift. Incidentally, the elephant was later buried somewhere in the territory of the Vatican.

Image credits: Wolfgang Hasselmann

#8

During the conclave in 1334, the cardinals simply wanted to find out which of the main contenders for the papal throne was the favorite, so they voted rather randomly. Now imagine their surprise when the future Pope Benedict XII was chosen in the first round!

Image credits: Henri Auguste César Serrur

#9

After Pope Formosus died in 891, his successor and political enemy, Pope Stephen VI, dug up his corpse and put it on trial. The Pope’s corpse was subjected to a show trial and then thrown into the river. However, the organizer of this trial did not long survive his predecessor…

Image credits: Jean-Paul Laurens

#10

Nothing human is alien to popes either – for example, Pope Pius XI was a scholar and avid mountaineer, and even wrote a book on mountain climbing, published in 1923.

Image credits: Josef B. Malina

#11

The longest-reigning documented pope was Pope Pius IX at 31 years and seven months (1846-1878), and the shortest was Pope Urban VII at only 13 days (September 15, 1590- September 27, 1590). The oldest pope elected was Pope Leo XIII at 81 (1878), and the youngest was Pope Benedict IX, who was elected around age 18 (1032).

Image credits: Giovanni Orsi

#12

In addition to several hundred Popes, the history of the papacy also includes so-called antipopes. The thing is that, sometimes, especially in the Early Middle Ages, several conclaves could elect several competing Popes at once – and later, after one of them achieved the final victory, the losers were declared antipopes.
Today, the list of antipopes consists of 41 people, including Saint Hippolytus. The last antipope was Felix V, elected in 1434 by the Council of Basel. Later, however, he recognized his opponent Nicholas V as the true Pope, and even received the title of cardinal from him for doing so.

Image credits: Unidentified painter

#13

During the bubonic plague epidemic of the 14th century (also known as the “Black Death”), Pope Clement VI specifically blessed the waters of the Rhone River in France so that people could throw into it the corpses of those who had passed away over the disease – so that people’s remains could be washed away.

Image credits: Matteo Giovanetti

#14

When a new Pope, the Frenchman Simon Monpitie de Brie, was elected in 1281, he took the name Martin IV. However, it later turned out that the names of Popes Marinus I and Marinus II were mispronounced, so formally, he should have become Martin II (the first Pope with this name was Saint Martin I).
But bureaucracy won – and nothing was changed. Moreover, in 1368, another Pope was elected who took the name Martin – this time Martin V.

Image credits: Unknown author

#15

In 1805, Napoleon Bonaparte forced Pope Pius III to crown himself Emperor of France. The Pope, apparently, was not an ardent supporter of Napoleon, so after some time, the Emperor took exquisite revenge. He presented the pontiff with a precious tiara that was almost impossible to put on his head.
Firstly, due to its precious stones and decorations, it weighed almost three times more than a regular tiara. Secondly, the base of the tiara was too narrow to put on the head properly. And thirdly, the entire tiara was decorated with images glorifying Napoleon – not the Pope.
However, after Napoleon was finally banished, the tiara was “repaired” – and even used for several coronations of Popes in the 19th century.

Image credits: MatthiasKabel

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