Previously, Sean was Vox’s weekend editor. The Catholic Church has a new pope, and for the first time, he is an American. Pope Leo XIV was elected on Thursday, succeeding Pope Francis ...

The pomp and ceremony of a papal conclave — the flutter of cardinals gathering in their red robes, the crowds at the Vatican awaiting the white smoke that proceeds the proclamation from a ...

After that marathon conclave, Pope Gregory X was finally elected in September of 1271. There is no way to predict how long a conclave will take, but guidance can perhaps be taken from recent history.

Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich and Cardinal Wilton Gregory, also a South Side native, spoke about their experience in the conclave and electing the first American pope, Leo XIV, who is from this city.

Holy War?: Why the Russian Church Is Backing Putin Against Ukraine. The first American pope — Chicago-born Robert Francis Prevost, Pope Leo XIV — has been elected, a mere 249 years after the ...

The longest conclave on record dragged on for nearly three years. Pope Gregory X was finally elected in September of 1271 after about 1,000 days.

The pope it elected, however — pope Gregory X — obviously came away from this experience thinking it was something more cardinals should go through. In 1274, he issued the papal bull Ubi ...

The last conclave to last more than a week was in 1831, when Pope Gregory XVI was elected after 51 days of voting. Here’s a breakdown of how the length of conclaves has changed in recent years.

Here are some facts about conclaves past, derived from historical studies including Miles Pattenden's “Electing the Pope in Early Modern Italy, 1450–1700,” and interviews with experts ...

Gregory X decreed that cardinal electors should be locked in seclusion, ‘cum clave’ (with a key), until a new pope was chosen. The purpose was to create a totally secluded environment where ...

After that marathon conclave, Pope Gregory X was finally elected in September of 1271. How long is the 2025 papal conclave expected to last? There is no way to predict how long a conclave will ...

The secret vote that elected Pope Gregory X lasted from November 1268 to September 1271. It was the first example of a papal election by “compromise,” after a long struggle between supporters ...