Each papal election attracts global attention, but few people really know the underside of this process. The conclaves, opaque ritual of the designation of the sovereign pontiff, crystallize issues far beyond spirituality. For several days, dozens of cardinals find themselves cut off from the world in the Sistine Chapel in Rome, to designate the head of the Catholic Church. Officially guided by prayer, they must reach a majority of two thirds to elect the successor of Saint Peter.
A tradition born in chaos
The conclave as we know it today takes root in a major political and ecclesial crisis of the 13th century. In 1268, on the death of Clément IV, eighteen cardinals met in Viterbe to designate him a successor. The internal divisions are such that no agreement is emerging for months. This institutional paralysis finally lasts almost three years. Exasperated, the inhabitants of the city enclose the cardinals in the episcopal palace, the doors swear and reduce their diet to bread and water. Faced with these extreme conditions, the prelates end up electing Teobaldo Visconti, a non-cardinal then on a mission in the Holy Land.
This exceptional conclave marks a turning point. In 1274, which became Pope under the name of Grégoire X, Visconti formally established the conclave procedure in the bubble Ubi Périci. The text imposes the strict confinement of voters, a rate of daily votes, and degraded living conditions if the vote is dragged. The objective is to break external influences and personal interests. Consequently, the conclaves become an instrument of internal discipline to guarantee the rapid and autonomous election of the Sovereign Pontiff.
If the intention is to supervise the process by specific rules, history will quickly show that isolation prevents neither internal tensions nor the individual strategies of voters.
Conclaves, intrigue and violence scenes
Indeed, tensions within the conclaves have not been limited to doctrinal quarrels, recalls the Guardian. Several elections have degenerated into physical confrontations. In 1605, violence broke out at the heart of the vote: cardinals came to hands, tearing their liturgical clothes in an argument on the results. In 1458, when Cardinal Guillaume d'Estouteville saw his chances moving away, he tried to intimidate a colleague during the final election. A pugilat follows, revealing the pressure level inside the conclave.
The fear of a return to the French papacy caused another brutal scene in 1378. A Roman crowd invades the surroundings of the conclave to demand an Italian pope, threatening the death cardinals. Under this constraint, they elect Bartolomeo Prignano, which has become urban VI. His authoritarian behavior causes an immediate split: cardinals flee Rome to organize a background in Fondi. Two popes are then proclaimed, launching the great West schism, which will last almost 40 years.
When the conclaves change in the absurd or the tragic
Some conclaves have crossed the limits of the rational, sinking into the absurd or the grotesque. In 1655, after weeks of blocking, young and idle cardinals had fun terrorizing their elders. One of them disguises himself as a spirit to scare an old prelate overnight. The man falls, stays on the cold ground and dies soon after pneumonia. The case, although officially kills, pushes the curia to tighten disciplinary control.
In 1334, the cardinals of Avignon elected in spite of themselves a pope whom they considered ineligible. To get around power games, everyone votes for Jacques Fournier, an austere monk perceived as marginal. To their surprise, the cumulation of the votes is elected. Having become Benoît XII, he does not question their comfort, even building a sumptuous palace in Avignon. The intention to bypass the system therefore produces the opposite: a strengthening of pontifical luxury.
More recently, in 2013, an impostor attempted to break into a preparatory meeting with the conclave. Disguised as a bishop, he was photographed with several cardinals before being spotted by his incoherent outfit. Although without consequences on the vote, the episode underlines the persistent porosity of the security devices.
The weight of money and foreign powers
For centuries, the conclaves were influenced by the great European powers. The most emblematic example remains that of 1492, where Rodrigo Borgia, future Alexandre VI, obtained the tiara after a campaign based on bribes. Supported by the powerful Spannocchi bank, he promises charges and land to his colleagues. His maneuvers are so effective that the bank threatens to collapse as the transfer of funds are massive.
Other conclaves were directly unadvantaged from abroad. In 1549, the death of Paul III launched a distance struggle between Charles V and Henri II. The imperial emissaries spy on the bulletins, weld the servants of the cardinals. Rumors of poisoning paralyze the vote. Finally, the election of Jules III occurs after 72 days, the result of a compromise under high tension.
The right of veto, long exercised by the Catholic monarchies, allowed certain crowns to exclude a candidate by a simple official declaration. This power was abolished only in 1904 by Pius X, tired of this institutional interference.
The personal wealth of the cardinals also played a decisive role. Many access their function through powerful family networks or economic alliances. The 1559 conclave is a good example: the final choice rests as much on the alliances as on the spiritual reputation of the candidates.
The most decisive conclaves in the history of the Church
Some conclaves have deeply redefined the face of the Catholic Church. That of 1846 led to the election of Pius IX, initially perceived as a reformer. But after the establishment of the Roman Republic in 1849, he became fiercely conservative. His reign, 31 years long, marks the end of pontifical states, the proclamation of pontifical infallibility. There is also a hardening of the Vatican attitude towards the political upheavals of the 19th century.
In 1978, two successive conclaves redraw the geopolitics of the papacy. The first elects Jean-Paul Ier, who died after 33 days. The second designates Karol Wojtyła, future Jean-Paul II, first non-Italian pope since 1522. His pontificate, very active on the international scene, influence the fall of the Soviet bloc. It also becomes a symbol of Catholicism turned towards youth and human rights. Without questioning doctrinal orthodoxy.
© © Archives Bettmann
Cardinals entering the Sistine Chapel to choose a successor to Jean-Paul I in 1978. © Archives Bettmann
Another key moment: 2013. The resignation of Benoît XVI, extremely rare gesture in pontifical history, opens the way to the election of Argentinian Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio. First Jesuit and South American pope, François imposed a pastoral style, critic of clericalism. He will refocus ecclesial discourse on social peripheries. His pontificate created a visible fracture within the hierarchy between supporters of change and defenders of the traditional model.
Reforms and continuity in secret
Over the centuries, the functioning of the conclave has been supervised by a succession of rules aimed at guaranteeing the regularity of the vote and limiting external influences. From 1059, the bubble In Nomine Domini From Nicolas II reserves the election of the pope at the college of the cardinals, excluding the interference of the Roman nobility. In 1179, Alexandre III imposed the majority of two thirds, a threshold still in force.
The most structuring reform remains that of 1274, resulting from the Chaotic conclave of Viterbe. Grégoire X establishes the total confinement of voters, the limitation of meals in the event of delay, and the removal of contacts with the outside. In the 18th century, Grégoire XV introduced secret voting by written bulletin. In 1904, PIE X formally prohibited any state interference.
Since 1978, the conclaves have been systematically taking place in the Sistine Chapel. The cardinals are staying at the Domus Sanctae Marthae, a protected and isolated space, equipped with waves. The procedure provides for four elections per day until the majority required is obtained. The secret remains absolute: any disclosure leads to excommunication LATAE SENTENTIAE.
Despite the technical means deployed, the internal dynamics remain marked by logics of ideological or geographic affinities. Informal groups called Minores Circuli often weigh heavier than neutrality speeches. The conclave structure offers a stable framework, but does not erase discreet and persistent influence games between voters.
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