The longest papal election took almost three years.

Among the more important acts of Gregory X’s tenure was establishing a precursor to the papal conclave as we now know it, in large part to ensure that no such delay took place again. He was a little too successful. Because the rules he instituted were so strict — such as sequestering the cardinals for the duration of the conclave — it took only a day for the cardinals to name Gregory X’s successor following his death in January 1276. The new rules were suspended as a result, which naturally led to the opposite problem: a conclave that lasted from April 1292 to July 1294. Old habits die hard, but at least recent conclaves have gone comparatively smoothly now that the rules have landed in a sweet spot: It hasn’t taken more than five days to elect a new pope since 1903.

By the Numbers

Papal elections used to be held where the previous pope died.

There’s a good reason why that three-year election took place in Viterbo: Clement IV died there. The custom at the time was for each papal election to be held in the same town or city where the prior pope had passed away, but this led to some problems: namely, townsfolk growing weary of their visitors, especially in smaller areas that weren’t as well equipped to handle an influx of holy guests with no set checkout date. The first conclave held in the Sistine Chapel took place in 1492, when Pope Innocent VIII was succeeded by Alexander VI, and every conclave since 1878 has convened there. The 1799 to 1800 conclave took place in Venice’s San Giorgio Maggiore, and four conclaves were held at the Pauline Chapel in Rome between 1823 and 1846. 

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