List of murdered Popes
Encyclopedia
Several Roman Catholic popes have been murdered. The circumstances have ranged from martyrdom (Pope Stephen I
) to war (Lucius II
), to a beating by a jealous husband (Pope John XII
). A number of other popes have died under circumstances that some believe to be murder, but for which definitive evidence has not been found.
Chronological list of martyr
Pope Stephen I
Pope Saint Stephen I served as Bishop of Rome from 12 May 254 to 2 August 257.Of Roman birth but of Greek ancestry, he became bishop of Rome in 254, having served as archdeacon of Pope Lucius I, who appointed Stephen his successor....
) to war (Lucius II
Pope Lucius II
Pope Lucius II , born Gherardo Caccianemici dal Orso, was pope from March 9, 1144, until his death Feb 15, 1145. His pontificate was notable for the unrest in Rome associated with the Commune of Rome, and its attempts to wrest control of the city from the papacy.-Early life:Gherardo Caccianemici...
), to a beating by a jealous husband (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...
). A number of other popes have died under circumstances that some believe to be murder, but for which definitive evidence has not been found.
Chronological list of martyrMartyrA martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...
popes (assassinated because of defending the faith)
- Saint PeterSaint PeterSaint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
(6464Year 64 was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Bassus and Crassus...
/6767Year 67 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Rufus and Capito...
), by crucifixion. - Saint AnacletusPope AnacletusPope Saint Anacletus , also called Pope Cletus, was the third Roman Pope Pope Saint Anacletus (very rarely written as Anencletus), also called Pope Cletus, was the third Roman Pope Pope Saint Anacletus (very rarely written as Anencletus), also called Pope Cletus, was the third Roman Pope (after St....
(88). - Saint Sixtus IPope Sixtus IPope Saint Sixtus I was bishop of Rome from about 117 or 119 to 126 or 128 C.E., succeeding Pope Alexander I and succeeded by Pope Telesphorus. In the oldest documents, Xystus is the spelling used for the first three popes of that name....
(125), traditionally martyred. - Saint HyginusPope HyginusPope Saint Hyginus was bishop of Rome from about 136 or 138 to about 140 or 142. Tradition holds that during his papacy he determined the various prerogatives of the clergy and defined the grades of the ecclesiastical hierarchy...
(142), traditionally martyred. - Saint Pius IPope Pius IPope Saint Pius I was Bishop of Rome, according to the Annuario Pontificio, from 142 or 146 to 157 or 161, respectively. Others suggest that his pontificate was perhaps from 140 to 154.-Early life:...
(155), by sword. - Saint AnicetusPope AnicetusPope Saint Anicetus was Pope of the Catholic Church from about 150 to about 167 . His name is Greek for unconquered...
(166), traditionally martyred. - Saint SoterPope SoterPope Saint Soter was the Bishop of Rome during the latter half of the 2nd Century with his pontificate, according to the Annuario Pontificio, beginning between 162 and 168 then ending between 170 and 177. Although his name is derived from the Greek word "σωτήρ" , meaning a "saviour" or...
(175), traditionally martyred. - Saint EleuterusPope EleuterusPope Saint Eleuterus, or Eleutherius, was Bishop of Rome from about 174 to 189 . He was born in Nicopolis in Epirus. His name is Greek for free....
(189), traditionally martyred. - Saint Callixtus IPope Callixtus IPope Saint Callixtus I or Callistus I was pope from about 217 to about 222, during the reigns of the Roman Emperors Elagabalus and Alexander Severus...
(223). - Saint FabianPope FabianPope Fabian was Pope from January 10, 236 to January 20, 250, succeeding Pope Anterus.Eusebius of Caesarea relates how the Christians, having assembled in Rome to elect a new bishop, saw a dove alight upon the head of Fabian, a layman and stranger to the city, who was thus marked out for this...
(250). - Saint CorneliusPope CorneliusPope Saint Cornelius was pope from his election on 6 or 13 March 251 to his martyrdom in June 253.- Christian persecution :Emperor Decius, who ruled from 249 to 251 AD, persecuted Christians in the Roman Empire rather sporadically and locally, but starting January in the year 250, he ordered all...
(253). - Saint Stephen IPope Stephen IPope Saint Stephen I served as Bishop of Rome from 12 May 254 to 2 August 257.Of Roman birth but of Greek ancestry, he became bishop of Rome in 254, having served as archdeacon of Pope Lucius I, who appointed Stephen his successor....
(257). - Saint Sixtus IIPope Sixtus IIPope Sixtus II or Pope Saint Sixtus II was Pope from August 30, 257 to August 6, 258. He died as a martyr during the persecution by Emperor Valerian....
(258).
Chronological list of popes murdered
- Stephen VIPope Stephen VIPope Stephen VI was Pope from May 22, 896 to August 897.He had been made bishop of Anagni by Pope Formosus. The circumstances of his election are unclear, but he was sponsored by one of the powerful Roman families, the house of Spoleto, that contested the papacy at the time.Stephen is chiefly...
(896–897): Strangled - Stephen VIIPope Stephen VIIPope Stephen VII . Stephen was a Roman by birth, the son of Theodemundus, and perhaps a member of the Gabrielli family. He was elected—probably handpicked—by Marozia from the Tusculani family, as a stop-gap measure until her own son John was ready to assume the throne of Peter...
/(IX) (939–942): Mutilated - John XIIPope John XIIPope 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...
(955–964): Murdered by cuckoldCuckoldCuckold is a historically derogatory term for a man who has an unfaithful wife. The word, which has been in recorded use since the 13th century, derives from the cuckoo bird, some varieties of which lay their eggs in other birds' nests...
ed husband - Benedict VIPope Benedict VIPope Benedict VI was pope from January 19, 973 to June 974.He was born in Rome as the son of Hildebrand and was chosen with great ceremony and installed as pope under the protection of the Emperor Otto I on January 19, 973. During his pontificate, Benedict VI confirmed the privileges of some of...
(973–974): Strangled - John XIVPope John XIVPope John XIV was Pope from December, 983 to August 20, 984, successor to Pope Benedict VII He was born at Pavia, and before his elevation to the papal chair was imperial chancellor of Emperor Otto II , and was the latter's second choice.His original name was Pietro Canepanova, but he took the...
(983–984): Either by starvation, ill-treatment or direct murder - Gregory VPope Gregory VPope Gregory V, né Bruno of Carinthia , Pope from May 3, 996 to February 18, 999, son of the Salian Otto I, Duke of Carinthia, who was a grandson of the Emperor Otto I the Great . Gregory V succeeded Pope John XV , when only twenty-four years of age...
(996–999): Poisoned - Boniface VIIIPope Boniface VIIIPope Boniface VIII , born Benedetto Gaetani, was Pope of the Catholic Church from 1294 to 1303. Today, Boniface VIII is probably best remembered for his feuds with Dante, who placed him in the Eighth circle of Hell in his Divina Commedia, among the Simonists.- Biography :Gaetani was born in 1235 in...
(1294–1303): Death possibly (though unlikely) from the effects of ill-treatment one month before
Chronological list of popes who are alleged to have been murdered
- John VIIIPope John VIIIPope John VIII was pope from December 13, 872 to December 16, 882. He is often considered one of the ablest pontiffs of the ninth century and the last bright spot on the papacy until Leo IX two centuries later....
(872–882): Allegedly poisoned and then clubbed to death - Adrian IIIPope Adrian IIIPope Saint Adrian III was Pope from May 17, 884 to September 885. He was born at Rome. He died in September 885, at San Cesario sul Panaro , on a journey to Worms, in modern Germany....
(884–885): Allegedly poisoned - Leo VPope Leo VPope Leo V, a native of Ardea, was Pope for some thirty days in 903 after the death of Pope Benedict IV . He was dethroned by antipope Christopher , who is sometimes considered a legitimate pope. Elected while a priest, Leo V's pontificate occurred in the darkest period of papal history...
(903): Allegedly strangled - John XPope John XPope John X, Pope from March 914 to May 928, was deacon at Bologna when he attracted the attention of Theodora, the wife of Theophylact, Count of Tusculum, the most powerful noble in Rome, through whose influence he was elevated first to the see of Bologna and then to the archbishopric of...
(914–928): Allegedly smothered with pillow - Stephen VIIPope Stephen VIIPope Stephen VII . Stephen was a Roman by birth, the son of Theodemundus, and perhaps a member of the Gabrielli family. He was elected—probably handpicked—by Marozia from the Tusculani family, as a stop-gap measure until her own son John was ready to assume the throne of Peter...
/(VIII) (928–931): Allegedly murdered - Sergius IVPope Sergius IVPope Sergius IV , born Pietro Martino Buccaporci, was Pope from July 31, 1009, until his death. The date of his birth is unknown. His birth name is believed to have been Pietro Martino Buccaporci...
(1009–1012): Allegedly murdered - Clement IIPope Clement IIPope Clement II , was Pope from December 25, 1046 to his death. He was the first in a series of reform-minded popes from Germany.Born in Hornburg, Lower Saxony, Germany, he was the son of Count Konrad of Morsleben and Hornburg and his wife Amulrad.In 1040, he became Bishop of Bamberg...
(1046–1047): Allegedly poisoned - Damasus IIPope Damasus IIPope Damasus II , born Poppo, Pope from July 17, 1048 to August 9, 1048, was the second of the German pontiffs nominated by Emperor Henry III . A native of Bavaria, he was the third German to become Pope and had one of the shortest papal reigns...
(1048): Allegedly murdered - Benedict XIPope Benedict XIBlessed Pope Benedict XI , born Nicola Boccasini, was Pope from 1303 to 1304.Born in Treviso, he succeeded Pope Boniface VIII , but was unable to carry out his policies...
(1304–1305): Allegedly poisoned; no evidence provided - John Paul IPope John Paul IJohn Paul I , born Albino Luciani, , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and as Sovereign of Vatican City from 26 August 1978 until his death 33 days later. His reign is among the shortest in papal history, resulting in the most recent Year of Three Popes...
(1978): death just 33 days after Papal election led to conspiracies theoriesPope John Paul I conspiracy theoriesPope John Paul I died alone in September 1978 only a month after his election to the Papacy. The suddenness of the death, and the Vatican's difficulties with the ceremonial and legal death procedures have resulted in several conspiracy theories.-Rationale:Discrepancies in the Vatican's account of...
.