Latest / The Story of Italy: Rome, Renaissance, and the Birth of Modern Europe — Fexingo History / The Papal Conclave: How Cardinals Chose Popes
Transcript
- Lucas: We’ve spent a lot of time looking at the art, the banks, and the battles of Italy, but rarely have we talked about the machine that kept the Papacy running when the Pope died. I want to take you back to the summer of 1274, in the small town of Viterbo, which was essentially the temporary capital of the Church. Luna: I didn't realize the Pope wasn't always in Rome. Lucas: He wasn't, not consistently. By then, Rome itself was often too dangerous due to factional violence, so the Curia had moved north. But the real issue here isn't geography; it's the process. For months, the cardinals had been trying to elect a new pope after the death of Urban IV, and they couldn't agree on anyone. Lucas: If you've been stepping into history with us episode by episode, you know these stories are only possible because of your support. It keeps the show ad-free and allows us to dig into these administrative details without compromise. If today was actually useful to you, the way these stay ad-free is listener support — buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Luna: Thanks for keeping the history deep. Lucas: So, back to Viterbo. The cardinals were stuck in a deadlock. They were meeting in the episcopal palace, but every vote ended in a tie or a walkout. The local townspeople, frustrated by the lack of leadership and the economic stagnation, decided to take matters into their own hands. Luna: Did they storm the building? Lucas: They literally nailed the doors shut. According to the chronicles, the citizens removed the roof tiles from the main hall, leaving the cardinals exposed to the rain and cold. They took away all the food except for one loaf of bread per day, cut into pieces, and watered-down wine. The goal was simple: make the discomfort so great that they would finally pick someone. Lucas: It sounds brutal, but it worked. After nearly three years of being locked in, the cardinals elected Teobaldo Visconti, who took the name Gregory X. He was actually on his way to the Fifth Crusade when he was dragged out of bed to accept the position. Luna: Three years without a proper meal must have been terrifying. Lucas: It was. And while the people of Viterbo got their result, the experience left a bad taste in the mouths of the Church hierarchy. They realized that relying on angry mobs to enforce discipline was a terrible precedent. So, upon returning to Italy, Pope Gregory X called the Second Council of Lyon to address this chaos formally. Lucas: In 1274, he issued the papal bull Ubi periculum, which translates to 'Where danger.' This document established the first formal rules for papal elections. It mandated that once the Pope dies, the cardinals must assemble within fifteen days in a closed location, known as a conclave, which literally means 'with a key.' Luna: So the word itself comes from locking them in. Lucas: Exactly. The rule stated that if the cardinals didn't elect a new pope within three days, their rations would be reduced to just one dish per day. After five more days, they received only two loaves of bread and nothing else. The idea was to strip away all comfort and luxury until the decision was made. Lucas: This was a massive shift in power. Before this, papal elections could be influenced by outside nobles, Roman factions, or even foreign kings. The conclave centralized the authority entirely within the College of Cardinals, creating a self-contained electoral body. Luna: That sounds like the origin of the modern voting booth. Lucas: It’s the direct ancestor. However, the early conclave rules were strict but not perfect. For instance, they didn't specify a supermajority requirement immediately. Initially, a two-thirds vote was needed, but the specifics evolved over centuries. What mattered most was the isolation. No visitors, no letters, no contact with the outside world. Lucas: The physical space also changed. The Viterbo palace was a makeshift prison. Later, the Vatican built specific chambers for this purpose. The most famous is, of course, the Sistine Chapel, though the actual voting rooms are adjacent to it. The architecture was designed to reinforce the secrecy and gravity of the act. Luna: I never thought about the architecture of the election. Lucas: It’s fascinating because the room dictates the behavior. In the Middle Ages, the fear of death and divine judgment was very present. They believed God would guide the Holy Spirit to the right choice, but human nature kept interfering. The conclave was an attempt to remove the human variable of greed and ambition. Lucas: There’s a famous painting by Ferrando Antelami in the Palazzo dei Papi in Viterbo that depicts this exact scene. You can see the cardinals huddled together, looking miserable, while the roof above them is open to the sky. It’s a stark reminder of how fragile their authority was at the time. Luna: Open to the sky? That seems incredibly harsh. Lucas: It was intended to be. The logic was that if they were exposed to the elements, they would pray harder and think clearer. Of course, in reality, it just made them angry and desperate. But that desperation led to the selection of Gregory X, who managed to unite the East and West churches briefly before his sudden death. Lucas: His death proved that the system worked. The next election happened quickly, under the new rules, without any external interference. It set a template that has survived, with minor modifications, for seven hundred and fifty years. Luna: So the nailing of the doors actually improved things? Lucas: Ironically, yes. It forced the Church to professionalize its succession. Without that crisis in Viterbo, we might have had decades more of political infighting and schisms. The conclave turned a chaotic democratic process into a controlled aristocratic one. Lucas: Today, the rules are different. They don't starve the cardinals anymore, though they do keep them isolated. The white smoke signals a successful vote, and the red smoke indicates failure. But the core principle remains: the decision is internal, sealed, and sacred. Luna: It’s amazing how much bureaucracy goes into choosing a spiritual leader. Lucas: It is. We often view the Renaissance through its paintings and sculptures, but the administrative structures that allowed those works to exist were just as revolutionary. The Medici bank funded the art, but the conclave ensured the stability that allowed the funding to continue. Lucas: One final detail: the office of the Camerlengo. This is the cardinal responsible for managing the Vatican’s assets during the Sede Vacante, the vacancy period. He literally breaks the Pope’s signet ring to prevent forgery of documents. It’s a symbolic end to the old regime. Luna: Breaking the ring feels like a powerful image. Lucas: It is. It marks the total transfer of power. From that nail-baring moment in Viterbo to the sealed ballots of today, the story of the conclave is the story of the Church trying to balance divine inspiration with human management. Lucas: Next time you see a picture of the Sistine Chapel, remember that the ceiling wasn't the only thing being painted in those rooms. The rules of engagement were being rewritten, one locked door at a time.