Complete List of Popes (From Saint Peter to Present)

There have been 266 Popes to date.

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Early Popes (1st – 5th Century)

1. St. Peter (32–64)
2. St. Linus (64–76)
3. St. Anacletus (Cletus) (76–88)
4. St. Clement I (88–97)
5. St. Evaristus (97–105)
   ...
   (early Popes mostly served under Roman persecution; many were martyrs)

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Medieval to Renaissance Popes (6th – 15th Century)

• This period includes powerful political Popes and those who commissioned massive works of art and architecture, like:
  • St. Gregory I (Gregory the Great) (590–604)
  • Leo III (795–816) – crowned Charlemagne
  • Urban II (1088–1099) – initiated the First Crusade
  • Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia) (1492–1503) – controversial figure of the Renaissance

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Renaissance to Modern Popes (16th – 19th Century)

• Julius II (1503–1513) – patron of Michelangelo
• Leo X (1513–1521) – pope during Martin Luther’s reformation
• Pius IX (1846–1878) – longest-serving pope (31 years)

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Popes Since the Vatican Became a Country (1929–Present)

#	Name	Papacy	Nationality
259	Pius XI	1922–1939	Italian 🇮🇹
260	Pius XII	1939–1958	Italian 🇮🇹
261	John XXIII	1958–1963	Italian 🇮🇹
262	Paul VI	1963–1978	Italian 🇮🇹
263	John Paul I	1978 (33 days)	Italian 🇮🇹
264	John Paul II	1978–2005	Polish 🇵🇱
265	Benedict XVI	2005–2013	German 🇩🇪
266	Francis	2013–2025	Argentine 🇦🇷

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Current Status (as of April 2025)

• Pope Francis passed away on April 21, 2025.
• The papacy is currently vacant, awaiting the next Papal Conclave.