Cardinal Lamberto left Rome with a large sum of money and several documents. Fearing that their corruption will be exposed, Keinszig, Lucchesi, and Gilday plot to murder the Pope. Gilday poisons the pontiff's tea, killing him in his sleep. The character of Lamberto and the film's depiction of the events which led to his murder are based upon one of the conspiracy theories surrounding the sudden death of the real-life Pope John Paul I, Albino Luciani. Like the Lamberto character, Luciani was discovered dead in his bed in 1978, 33 days after his election to the papacy. Various theories, such as the
Pope John V of Alexandria Abuna Mikael refused to acknowledge the legitimacy of the new Zagwe Dynasty. Pope John denied this request and was subsequently arrested and imprisoned for two weeks during the reign of the Fatimid caliph Al-Zafir. During John's papacy, the expression "Life-giving" was added to the liturgical confession, which became: "This is the Life-giving Flesh that Thine Only-Begotten Son, Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ, took from our Lady ...". Pope John V died on 4 Pashons, 882 A.M. (29 April 1166 AD) after 18 years, 8 months, and 4 days on the Throne of Saint Mark. Pope John V of