List of popes
Pontiff number Pontificate Name : English · Latin Personal name Place of birth Age at start/ end of papacy Notes
232 1 April 1605 - 27 April 1605 ( 26 days ) ( 26 ) Leo XI Papa LEO Undecimus Alessandro Ottaviano de ' Medici 2 June 1535 Florence , Duchy of Florence 69 / 69 Italian . The nephew of Leo X . Called Papa Lampo ( Lightning Pope ) for his brief pontificate
233 16 May 1605 - 28 January 1621 ( 15 years , 257 days ) ( 5736 ) Paul V Papa PAVLVS Quintus Camillo Borghese 17 September 1550 Rome , Lazio , Papal States 52 / 68 Motto : Absit nisi in te gloriari ( May it be absent , except to glory in you ) Italian . Known for various building projects which included the facade of St Peter 's Basilica . Established the Bank of the Holy Spirit ( 1605 ) ; restored the Aqua Traiana
234 9 February 1621 - 8 July 1623 ( 2 years , 149 days ) ( 879 ) Gregory XV Papa GREGORIVS Quintus Decimus Alessandro Ludovisi 9 January 1554 Bologna , Emilia-Romagna , Papal States 67 / 69 Italian . Established the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith ( 1622 ) . Issued the bull Aeterni Patris ( 1621 ) which imposed conclaves to be by secret ballot . Issued the constitution Omnipotentis Dei against magicians and witches ( 1623 )
235 6 August 1623 - 29 July 1644 ( 20 years , 358 days ) ( 7663 ) Urban VIII Papa VRBANVS Octavus Maffeo Barberini 5 April 1568 Florence , Grand Duchy of Tuscany 55 / 76 Italian . Trial against Galileo Galilei . The last pope to expand papal territory by force of arms . Issued a 1624 bull that made the use of tobacco in holy places punishable by excommunication
236 15 September 1644 - 7 January 1655 ( 10 years , 114 days ) ( 3766 ) Innocent X Papa INNOCENTIVS Decimus Giovanni Battista Pamphilj 6 May 1574 Rome , Lazio , Papal States 70 / 80 Motto : Alleviatæ sunt aquæ super terram ( Water on earth ) Italian . The great-great-great-grandson of Alexander VI . Erected the Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi in Piazza Navona . Promulgated the apostolic constitution Cum occasione ( 1653 ) which condemned five doctrines of Jansenism as heresy
237 7 April 1655 - 22 May 1667 ( 12 years , 45 days ) ( 4428 ) Alexander VII Papa ALEXANDER Septimus Fabio Chigi 13 February 1599 Siena , Grand Duchy of Tuscany 56 / 68 Italian . Great-nephew of Paul V . Commissioned St. Peter 's Square . Issued the constitution Sollicitudo Omnium Ecclesiarum that set the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception almost identical to that of Pius IX centuries later
238 20 June 1667 - 9 December 1669 ( 2 years , 172 days ) ( 903 ) Clement IX Papa CLEMENS Nonus Giulio Rospigliosi 28 January 1600 Pistoia , Grand Duchy of Tuscany 67 / 69 Motto : Aliis non sibi Clemens ( Clement to others , not to himself ) Italian . Mediated in the peace of Aachen ( 1668 )
239 29 April 1670 - 22 July 1676 ( 6 years , 84 days ) ( 2276 ) Clement X Papa CLEMENS Decimus Emilio Bonaventura Altieri 13 July 1590 Rome , Lazio , Papal States 79 / 86 Motto : Bonum auget malum minuit ( He increases good and diminishes evil ) Italian . Canonized the first saint from the Americas : St. Rose of Lima ( 1671 ) . Decorated the bridge of Sant ' Angelo with the ten statues of angels and added one of the two fountains that adorn the piazza of St. Peter 's . Established regulations for the removal of relics of saints from cemeteries
240 21 September 1676 - 12 August 1689 ( 12 years , 325 days ) ( 4708 ) Bl . Innocent XI Papa INNOCENTIVS Undecimus Benedetto Odescalchi 16 May 1611 Como , Lombardy , Duchy of Milan 65 / 78 Motto : Avarus non Implebitur ( The covetous man is not satisfied ) Italian . Condemned the doctrine of mental reservation ( 1679 ) and initiated the Holy League . Extended the Holy Name of Mary as a universal feast ( 1684 ) . Admired for positive contributions to catechesis
241 6 October 1689 - 1 February 1691 ( 1 year , 118 days ) ( 483 ) Alexander VIII Papa ALEXANDER Octavus Pietro Vito Ottoboni 22 April 1610 Venice , Republic of Venice 79 / 80 Italian . Condemned the so-called philosophical sin ( 1690 )
242 12 July 1691 - 27 September 1700 ( 9 years , 77 days ) ( 3364 ) Innocent XII Papa INNOCENTIVS Duodecimus Antonio Pignatelli , O.F.S 13 March 1615 Spinazzola , Apulia , Kingdom of Naples 76 / 85 Italian . Issued the bull Romanum decet Pontificem to stop nepotism ( 1692 ) . Erected various charitable and educational institutions
This chronological list of popes corresponds to that given in the Annuario Pontificio under the heading I Sommi Pontefici Romani (The Supreme Pontiffs of Rome), excluding those that are explicitly indicated as antipopes. Published every year by the Roman Curia, the Annuario Pontificio attaches no consecutive numbers to the popes, stating that it is impossible to decide which side represented at various times the legitimate succession, in particular regarding Pope Leo VIII, Pope Benedict V and some mid-11th-century popes. The 2001 edition of the Annuario Pontificio introduced almost 200 corrections to its existing biographies of the popes, from St Peter to John Paul II. The corrections concerned dates, especially in the first two centuries, birthplaces and the family name of one pope. The term pope () is used in several Churches to denote their high spiritual leaders (for example Coptic Pope). This title in English usage usually refers to the head of the Catholic Church. The Catholic pope uses various titles by tradition, including Summus Pontifex, Pontifex Maximus, and Servus servorum Dei. Each title has been added by unique historical events and unlike other papal prerogatives, is not incapable of modification. Hermannus Contractus may have been the first historian to number the popes continuously. His list ends in 1049 with Pope Leo IX as number 154. Several changes were made to the list during the 20th century. Antipope Christopher was considered legitimate for a long time.