October 1978 papal conclave October 1978 papal conclave The papal conclave of October 1978 was triggered by the death of Pope John Paul I on 28 September just 33 days after his election on 26 August. The conclave to elect John Paul I's successor began on 14 October and ended two days later on 16 October, after eight ballots. The cardinal electors elected Cardinal Karol Wojtyła, Archbishop of Kraków, as the new pope. Resulting in the most recent Year of Three Popes, he accepted his election and took the pontifical name of "John Paul II". Ten days after the funeral of Pope John Paul
Pope Leo XI to France, and as the cardinal Prefect for the Congregation of the Bishops and Religious. He was elected to the papacy in the March 1605 papal conclave and served as pope for 27 days. Alessandro Ottoviano de' Medici was born in Florence as the son of Francesca Salviati and Ottaviano. He was the great-nephew of Pope Leo X. Alessandro's father died when he was a child and he was home schooled by a Dominican priest, Vincenzo Ercolano. Medici felt the call to the priesthood but his mother opposed his vocation since he was the only male in the family. To