Year of three popes

Not to be confused with the Western Schism, which from 1409 to 1414 saw three simultaneous claimants to the Papacy.

A year of three popes is a year when the College of Cardinals of the Catholic Church is required to elect two new popes within the same calendar year, in particular the last instance in 1978.^[1][2] Such a year has historically occurred when a newly elected pope dies very early into his papacy. This results in the Catholic Church being led by three different popes during the same calendar year.^[3] In one instance, in 1276, there was a year of four popes.^[4]

Instances

There have been twelve instances in which exactly three popes have held office in a given calendar year.

• 827: Eugene II^[5] — Valentine^[6] — Gregory IV^[7] (Valentine was Pope for just 41 days when he died.)
• 896: Formosus^[8] — Boniface VI^[9] — Stephen VI^[10] (After a pontificate of fifteen days, Boniface is said by some to have died of the gout or forcibly ejected)
• 897: Stephen VI^[10] — Romanus^[11] — Theodore II^[12] (Pontificate of Romanus ended when he was deposed and confined to a monastery.)
• 964: Leo VIII^[13] — Benedict V^[14] — John XIII^[15] (First Leo was overthrown, then Benedict himself was overthrown)
• 1003: Sylvester II^[16] — John XVII^[17] — John XVIII^[18] (John XVII died less than six months after taking office)
• 1045: Sylvester III^[19][a] — Benedict IX (second reign)^[20] — Gregory VI^[21][a] (Benedict resigned in exchange for money)
• 1187: Urban III^[22] — Gregory VIII^[23] — Clement III^[24] (Gregory VIII died after 57 days in office)
• 1503: Alexander VI^[25] — Pius III^[26] — Julius II^[27] (Pius III died after 26 days in office)
• 1555: Julius III^[28] — Marcellus II^[29] — Paul IV^[30] (Marcellus died after 22 days in office)
• 1590: Sixtus V^[31] — Urban VII^[32] — Gregory XIV^[33] (Urban died after 12 days in office, making him the shortest serving pope)
• 1605: Clement VIII^[34] — Leo XI^[35] — Paul V^[36] (Leo died after 27 days in office)
• 1978: Paul VI — John Paul I — John Paul II (John Paul I died after 33 days in office)^[2]

There was also a year in which the Roman Catholic Church was led by four popes, called the Year of Four Popes:^{[according to whom?]}

• 1276: Gregory X^[37] — Innocent V^[38] — Adrian V^[39] — John XXI^[40] (Innocent died after five months in office, then Adrian died after one month)^[4]

See also

• Catholicism portal

• List of popes by length of reign
• Western Schism, which from 1409 to 1414 saw three simultaneous claimants to the Papacy
• Year of the Three Kings
• Year of the Three Emperors
• Year of three prime ministers

Notes

1. Sylvester III and Gregory VI are sometimes considered antipopes.