This articleneeds additional citations forverification.(September 2014) |
Thepapal conclaveheld from 24 February to 31 March 1829 to elect a successor to the recently deceasedLeo XIIresulted in the accession of CardinalFrancesco Castiglioni,whotook the namePius VIII.
| Papal conclave February–March 1829 | |
|---|---|
| Dates and location | |
| 24 February – 31 March 1829 Quirinal Palace,Papal States | |
| Key officials | |
| Dean | Giulio Maria della Somaglia |
| Sub-dean | Bartolomeo Pacca |
| Camerlengo | Pietro Francesco Galleffi |
| Protopriest | Giuseppe Firrao |
| Protodeacon | Giuseppe Albani |
| Election | |
| Candidates | Emmanuele de Gregorio,Bartolomeo Pacca |
| Vetoed | Bartolomeo Pacca |
| Elected pope | |
| Francesco Castiglioni Name taken:Pius VIII | |
 | |
It took a long time for the conclave to elect a new pope due to conflict between secular governments concerning who should be elected. CardinalEmmanuele De Gregoriowas the proposed candidate of the pro-French faction and thezelanti(conservative cardinals), whilst CardinalBartolomeo Paccawas proposed by the more moderate cardinals but was not accepted by the French government of theBourbon Restorationperiod, headed by KingCharles Xand Prime MinisterJean Baptiste Gay, vicomte de Martignac.Pacca was also seen by many in the conclave as being too gentle to be an effective pope.
Description
editThe conclave did not move rapidly. The arrival ofGiuseppe Albanicaused the votes to center on Francesco Saverio Castiglioni. With the supporters of both De Gregorio and of Pacca unable to secure enough votes to elect their candidate to the papacy, Castiglioni came to be seen as a suitable compromise candidate. Castiglioni had been close to election in the1823 conclaveas the representative of thepoliticanti(moderate cardinals) and had all the qualifications to become Pope, though he had the problem of being in very poor health, but was not elected at the last conclave when thezelantiCardinals came to realize that he was quite close to CardinalErcole Consalvi.[1][2]Consalvi however was already dead by the time of the 1829 conclave having died during the pontificate ofPope Leo XII.
On 31 March, Cardinal Castiglioni was elected pope. Given that Castiglioni had been calledPius VIIIbyPope Pius VIIeven before his death in 1823,[1][2]and that in the 1823 conclaveLeo XIIhad said that Castiglioni "some day was to be Pius VIII", it was a foregone conclusion that he would take thatregnal nameupon becoming Pope.
| Duration | 35 days |
|---|---|
| Electors | 50 |
| Veto used | againstBartolomeo Pacca byCharles Xof France. |
| DECEASED POPE | LEO XII (1823–1829) |
| NEW POPE | PIUS VIII (1829–1830) |
