The choice popes, or antipopes
Between 1378-1417, referred to by historians because the Western Schism, there have been rival claimants to the title of pope. The schism produced a number of papal contenders, the so-called antipopes, splitting the Catholic Church for almost 40 years. Probably the most outstanding antipopes in the course of the Western Schism had been Clement VII, Benedict XIII, Alexander V, and John XXIII. The schism was in the end resolved by the Council of Constance in 1417, which led to the election of Martin V, a universally accepted pontiff.
A problem to private hygiene
The cloistered nature of the conclave posed one other problem for cardinals: staying wholesome. Earlier than the Domus Santa Marta visitor home was inbuilt 1996, cardinal electors slept on cots in rooms linked to the Sistine Chapel. Conclaves within the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries had been described as “disgusting” and “badly smelling,” with concern about illness outbreaks, notably in summer time, based on historian Miles Pattenden. “The cardinals simply had to have a more regular and comfortable way of living because they were old men, many of them with quite advanced disease,” Pattenden wrote. The enclosed area and lack of air flow additional aggravated these points. A few of the electors left the conclave sick, typically critically.
Vow of secrecy
Initially, papal elections weren’t as secretive, however considerations about political interference soared in the course of the longest conclave in Viterbo. Gregory X decreed that cardinal electors must be locked in seclusion, “cum clave” (with a key), till a brand new pope was chosen. The aim was to create a very secluded setting the place the cardinals may give attention to their process, guided by God’s will, with none political interference or distractions. Over the centuries, varied popes have modified and bolstered the foundations surrounding the conclave, emphasizing the significance of secrecy.
Youngest pope, oldest pope
Pope John XII was simply 18 when he was elected in 955. The oldest popes had been Pope Celestine III (elected in 1191) and Celestine V (elected in 1294) who had been each almost 85. Benedict XVI was 78 when he was elected in 2005.
