Ages of popes

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Statistics
Date range	Age at election	Age at death	Years served as pope
Average 1700 to 2005	65	78	13
Average 1503 to 1700	63	70	7
Average 1503 to 2005	64	74	10

Youngest popes

The data to determine the age and dates of birth of the youngest popes is frequently unavailable, as popes have generally been elected at older ages in modern times. The youngest pope was probably either Pope Benedict IX

Pope Benedict IX

Pope Benedict IX , born Theophylactus of Tusculum, was Pope on three occasions between 1032 and 1048. One of the youngest popes, he was the only man to have been Pope on more than one occasion and the only man ever to have sold the papacy.-Biography:Benedict was born in Rome as Theophylactus, the...

 (who became pope at an unknown age between 11 and 20) or Pope John XII

Pope John XII

Pope John XII , born Octavianus, was Pope from December 16, 955, to May 14, 964. The son of Alberic II, Patrician of Rome , and his stepsister Alda of Vienne, he was a seventh generation descendant of Charlemagne on his mother's side.Before his death, Alberic administered an oath to the Roman...

 (who was 18 at the beginning of his papacy).

Oldest popes

Ten oldest popes at election 1295–present
Pope	Year elected	Elected at age	Age at death	Years served as pope
Clement X	1670	79 years, 290 days	86	6
Alexander VIII Pope Alexander VIII Pope Alexander VIII , born Pietro Vito Ottoboni, was Pope from 1689 to 1691.-Early life:Pietro Ottoboni was born of a noble Venetian family, and was the son of Marco Ottoboni, chancellor of the Republic of Venice...	1689	79 years, 177 days	80	1
Paul IV Pope Paul IV Pope Paul IV, C.R. , né Giovanni Pietro Carafa, was Pope from 23 May 1555 until his death.-Early life:Giovanni Pietro Carafa was born in Capriglia Irpina, near Avellino, into a prominent noble family of Naples...	1555	78 years, 330 days	83	4
Clement XII	1730	78 years, 100 days	87	9
Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...	2005	78 years, 3 days	Living	6
John XXIII Pope John XXIII -Papal election:Following the death of Pope Pius XII in 1958, Roncalli was elected Pope, to his great surprise. He had even arrived in the Vatican with a return train ticket to Venice. Many had considered Giovanni Battista Montini, Archbishop of Milan, a possible candidate, but, although archbishop...	1958	76 years, 337 days	81	4
Innocent XII	1691	76 years, 124 days	85	9
Callixtus III Pope Callixtus III Pope Callixtus III , né Alfons de Borja, was Pope from April 8, 1455 to his death in 1458.-Biography:...	1455	76 years, 98 days	79	3
Benedict XIII Pope Benedict XIII -Footnotes:...	1724	75 years, 91 days	81	5
Innocent IX	1591	72 years, 104 days	72	0

Ten oldest popes at death 1295–present
Pope	Year elected	Elected at age	Age at death	Years served as pope
Leo XIII	1878	67	93 years, 140 days	25
Clement XII	1730	78	87 years, 305 days	9
Clement X	1670	79	86 years, 9 days	6
Pius IX	1846	54	85 years, 270 days	31
Innocent XII	1691	76	85 years, 107 days	9
John XXII Pope John XXII Pope John XXII , born Jacques Duèze , was pope from 1316 to 1334. He was the second Pope of the Avignon Papacy , elected by a conclave in Lyon assembled by Philip V of France...	1316	66	84 years, 338 days	18
John Paul II	1978	58	84 years, 319 days	26
Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...	2005	78
Gregory XIII	1572	70	83 years, 92 days	12
Paul IV	1555	78	83 years, 51 days	4