The 1676 papal conclave was convened after the death of

Pope Clement X Pope Clement X (; ; 13 July 1590 – 22 July 1676), born Emilio Bonaventura Altieri, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 April 1670 to his death on 22 July 1676. Emilio Bonaventura Altieri, born in Rome in ...

and lasted from 2 August until 21 September 1676. It led to the election of Cardinal Benedetto Odescalchi as

Pope Innocent XI Pope Innocent XI (; ; 16 May 1611 – 12 August 1689), born Benedetto Odescalchi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 21 September 1676 until his death on 12 August 1689. Political and religious tensions with ...

Conclave

After the death of Pope Clement X on 22 July 1676, the

College of Cardinals The College of Cardinals (), also called the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. there are cardinals, of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Appointed by the pope, ...

convened in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

to elect a successor. The college consisted of 67 members: 44 of them took part at the opening of the conclave, and the number rose to 63 when others finally arrived from abroad. Seven of these cardinals had been created by

Urban VIII Pope Urban VIII (; ; baptised 5 April 1568 – 29 July 1644), born Maffeo Vincenzo Barberini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 August 1623 to his death, in July 1644. As pope, he expanded the papal terri ...

, twelve by

Innocent X Pope Innocent X (6 May 1574 – 7 January 1655), born Giovanni Battista Pamphilj (or Pamphili), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 15 September 1644 to his death, in January 1655. Born in Rome of a family fro ...

, eight by

Alexander VII Pope Alexander VII (; 13 February 159922 May 1667), born Fabio Chigi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 April 1655 to his death, in May 1667. He began his career as a vice-papal legate, and he held various di ...

, and nineteen by Clement IX and Clement X. Absent cardinals included Friedrich of Hessen and Pascal of Aragon. A list was already in circulation indicating possible papal candidates. Only Cardinal Benedetto Odescalchi was suitably ''"

papabile ( , , ; plural: ; ) is an unofficial Italian term coined by Vaticanologists and used internationally in many languages to describe a Catholic man—in practice, always a cardinal—who is thought of as a likely or possible candidate to be ...

"'' at the time of the conclave. Odescalchi had emerged as a strong candidate for the papacy after the earlier death of

Pope Clement IX Pope Clement IX (; ; 28 January 1600 – 9 December 1669), born Giulio Rospigliosi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 20 June 1667 to his death in December 1669. Giulio Rospigliosi was born into the noble Ro ...

on 9 December 1669, but the French Government had vetoed his nomination. After the death of Clement X, King

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

of France had again intended to use his royal influence against the election of Odescalchi, whom he viewed as sympathetic to

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. But, seeing that his popularity had grown among the cardinals as well as the Roman people, he reluctantly instructed the cardinals of the French party to acquiesce in his candidacy. On the 1st ballot, held on 3 August 1676, Odescalchi received 14 votes. 13 other candidates remained in the running, with 25 abstentions. The number of candidates sank, but the vote on 20 September gave only 8 votes to Odescalchi. 19 votes were spread among cardinals Barberini, Rospigliosi and Alberizzi, while 30 cardinals abstained.

Election of Innocent XI

Finally on 21 September, Odescalchi was surrounded in the chapel of the conclave and proclaimed pope by acclamation, rather than formal vote, each cardinal kissing his hand. Once pope-elect, Innocent XI made the

College A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary sc ...

swear to the Conclave capitulation that had been drafted by the previous conclave before accepting his election, in an attempt to avoid any limits to the

papal supremacy Papal supremacy is the doctrine of the Catholic Church that the Pope, by reason of his office as Vicar of Christ, the visible source and foundation of the unity both of the bishops and of the whole company of the faithful, and as priest of the ...

. Innocent was then formally enthroned as pope on 4 October 1676. Cardinals Virginio Orsini and

Carlo Bonelli Carlo Bonelli (1612–1676) was an Italian lawyer and diplomat who was appointed a Cardinal (Catholic Church), cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church in 1664. Life Carlo Bonelli dei marchesi di Cassano was born in 1612, the great-great-grand-ne ...

both died during the conclave.

References

{{Subject bar , portal1= Catholicism , portal2= Christianity , portal3= Vatican City , b=y, b-search=Biblical Studies/Christianity/Roman Catholicism/History , commons=y, commons-search=Papal conclave , n=y, n-search=Roman Catholic Church , q=y, q-search=Popes , s=y, s-search=Popes , v=y, v-search=Christian History , wikt=y, wikt-search=Pope , d=y 1676 in the Papal States 17th-century elections in Europe 1676 in politics

1676 Events January–March * January 29 – Feodor III of Russia, Feodor III becomes Tsar of Russia. * January 31 – Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala, the oldest institution of higher education in Central America, is f ...

17th-century Catholicism 1676 in Europe