Below is a list of all of the popes who reigned during the seventeenth century. The first number is which pope they were. This is followed by their chosen name, the starting and ending dates of their reigns, and finally the number of years they were pope. Follow the links to read short biographies of each pope and learn about what they did, what they believed, and what impact they had on the course of the Roman Catholic Church.
232. Clement VIII: January 30, 1592 - March 5, 1605 (13 years)
The most important political event during Clement VIII's papacy was his reconciliation with Henry IV of France when Clement recognized the latter as King of France in 1595 - despite the Edict of Nantes
233. Leo XI: April 1, 1605 - April 27, 1605 (27 days)
Alessandro Ottaviano de' Medici was already seventy years old and rather frail when he was elected, so he didn't last very long.
234. Paul V: May 16, 1605 - January 28, 1621 (15 years, 8 months)
Paul V was considered an ideal candidate for the papacy because he was not attached to any particular political faction within the Church or Roman society. Politically, however, he made few friends.
235. Gregory XV: February 9, 1621 - July 8, 1623 (2 years)
Gregory XV, the first pope to be educated by Jesuits, hoped to support Catholic forces who were fighting Protestants in Germany, but was able to achieve little aside from reinstating the dominance of Catholicism in Bohemia.
236. Urban VIII: August 6, 1623 - July 29, 1644 (20 years, 11 months)
Pope Urban VIII is known for a number of things, not least of which was his nepotism. Historians have even gone so far as to label his actions "reckless nepotism" because he went so much further than other popes.
237. Innocent X: September 15, 1644 - January 1, 1655 (10 years)
Pope Innocent X switched the papal favor from France to Spain, leading to widespread political repercussions. Not all papal actions, however, were taken quite so seriously.
238. Alexander VII: April 7, 1655 - May 22, 1667 (12 years)
The reign of Pope Alexander VII was defined most of all by his conflicts with France. Most of these conflicts he lost and more than once he had to submit in one way or another to the Franch king, Louis XIV. Louis, in turn, actively supported the pope's rivals in Rome and refused to help with a crusade against the Turks.
239. Clement IX: June 20, 1667 - December 9, 1669 (2 years)
Clement IX's reign as pope was relatively unremarkable, but he did have the unusual characteristic of being a librettist of several operas.
240. Clement X: April 29, 1670 - July 22, 1676 (6 years)
Clement X was elected as a compromise candidate after a very difficult conclave lasting 5 months. He was already 80 years old when chosen and would be a very weak pope.
241. Innocent XI: September 21, 1676 - August 12, 1689 (12 years)
Taking the name Innocent XI in memory of Innocent X, from whom he received his appointment as Cardinal - Deacon in 1645, his earliest actions were attempts to reform the administration of the Vatican. He sought to reduce expenses, eliminate nepotism, and streamline decision - making.
242. Alexander VIII: October 6, 1689 - February 1, 1691 (1 year)
Alexander VIII had extensive experience with church administration, having served not only in the Curia but also as head of the Roman Inquisition in Malta. The latter position in particular allowed him to take firm control of the Church and work to enforce orthodoxy.
243. Innocent XII: July 12, 1691 - September 27, 1700 (9 years)
Innocent XII was a compromise candidate, elected only after the conclave had lasted 5 months. There were fierce divisions at the time among the cardinals that prevented an easy choice from being made.
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