Who Presided Over the Longest Papal Conclave in History?

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Roman Catholic Church has named a new leader: Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost of the United States has been elected as the 267th Pope, taking the name Pope Leo XIV.

He marks a historic milestone as the first Pope from the U.S. and the second from the Americas, following Pope Francis of Argentina.

Cardinal Protodeacon Dominique Mamberti formally announced Pope Leo XIV’s election from the balcony of the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City on Thursday, May 8, 2025.

The latest papal conclave unfolded relatively swiftly, beginning on Tuesday, May 7, 2025. On the first day, black smoke rose twice from the Sistine Chapel chimney, signaling no agreement among the cardinals. But by the second day, white smoke appeared, confirming that a new Pope had been elected.

While this conclave lasted just two days, some in Church history have taken much longer. The longest occurred between November 1268 and September 1271, spanning 1,006 days, and resulted in the election of Pope Gregory X following the death of Pope Clement IV.

According to KGW8, the conclave took place in the city of Viterbo, located north of Rome. Due to the length of the election process and the ongoing disagreements among the cardinals, the city's residents decided to lock the voters inside the conclave room.

This action became the origin of the use of the term conclave, which in Latin means "under lock and key."

The situation became more pressing when the people of Viterbo dismantled the roof of the building where the cardinals gathered.

They urged the cardinals to conclude the election quickly. In addition to locking them in a room, the residents also rationed the cardinals' meals to only once a day. When the deadlock remained, their food was reduced to only bread, water, and wine.

Pope Gregory X was eventually chosen through a compromise conclave involving a small group of cardinals representing the whole college, a method rarely used at the time.

After his election, Gregory X introduced new conclave rules at the Second Council of Lyon in 1274 to avoid future delays. He mandated that after three days, cardinals would receive only one meal daily.

If the conclave lasted more than eight days, their food would be limited to only bread, water, and wine. This rule was later revoked, but the spirit to expedite the election process was maintained in every conclave.

Istiqomatul Hayati contributed to the writing of this article.

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