When Papal Conclaves Meant a Free-for-all

When a pope dies, the cardinals of the Catholic Church meet at the Vatican to elect a new pope, a meeting called the papal conclave. In the 16th and 17th centuries, this process was critical for most of Europe, because the pope was a political as well as a religious figure. The cardinals were locked in, windows were covered, servants were dismissed, and all food delivered was thoroughly inspected to prevent anyone from sending messages. The food was meager anyway, and the bunks were hard, in order to hurry the process along.

Wh such a hurry? Because when there was no pope and the cardinals were absent, order broke down in the streets of Rome. Courts were canceled, the jails were opened, and citizens let loose with their anger toward the deceased pope. Bankers ceased working and laid bets on who the new pope would be. The city's Jewish population bore the brunt of the lawlessness. The mayhem was a great argument for the separation of church and state, but that was still a long time coming. Read about the wild papal conclaves of the past at Jstor Daily. -via Strange Company