List of sexually active popes
List of sexually active popes
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This is a list of sexually active popes, Catholic priests who were not celibate before they became pope, and those who were legally married before becoming pope. Some candidates were sexually active before their election as pope, and others were accused of being sexually active during their papacies. A number of them had offspring.
The Second Lateran Council (1139) made the promise to remain celibate a prerequisite to ordination, abolishing the married priesthood in the Latin Church. Subsequently sexual relationships were generally undertaken outside the bond of matrimony and each sexual act thus committed considered a mortal sin.
There are various classifications for those who were sexually active during their lives. Periods in parentheses refer to the years of their papacies.
Background
Main articles: Clerical celibacy (Catholic Church) and Catholic teachings on sexual morality
For many years of the Church's history, celibacy was considered optional. Based on the customs of the times, it is assumed by many that most of the Twelve Apostles were married and had families. The New Testament (Mark 1:29–31; Matthew 8:14–15; Luke 4:38–39; 1 Timothy 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6) depicts at least Peter as being married, and bishops, priests and deacons of the Early Church were often married as well. In epigraphy, the testimony of the Church Fathers, synodal legislation, and papal decretals in the following centuries, a married clergy, in greater or lesser numbers, was a feature of the life of the Church. Celibacy was not required for those ordained and was accepted in the early Church, particularly by those in the monastic life.
Although various local Church councils had demanded celibacy of the clergy in a particular area, at the Second Lateran Council (1139), the whole of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church decided to accept men for ordination only after they had taken a promise of celibacy. This applies to the leadership of the Church.
Popes who were legally married
| Name | Reign(s) | Relationship | Offspring | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saint Peter | 30/33–64/68 | Mother-in-law (Greek πενθερά, penthera) is mentioned in the Gospel verses Matthew 8:14–15, Luke 4:38, Mark 1:29–31, and who was healed by Jesus at her home in Capernaum. 1 Cor. 9:5 asks whether others have the right to be accompanied by Christian wives as does "Cephas" (Peter). Clement of Alexandria wrote: "When the blessed Peter saw his own wife led out to die, he rejoiced because of her summons and her return home, and called to her very encouragingly and comfortingly, addressing her by name, and saying, 'Remember the Lord.' Such was the marriage of the blessed, and their perfect disposition toward those dearest to them." | Yes | Later legends, dating from the 6th century onwards, suggested that Peter had a daughter – identified as Saint Petronilla. This is likely to be a result of the similarity of their names. |
| Felix III | 483–492 | Widowed before his election as pope | Yes | Himself the son of a priest, he fathered two children, one of which was the mother of Pope Gregory the Great. |
| Hormisdas | 514–523 | Widowed before he took holy orders | Yes | Father of Pope Silverius. |
| Adrian II | 867–872 | Married to Stephania before he took holy orders, she was still living when he was elected pope and resided with him in the Lateran Palace | Yes (a daughter) | His wife and daughter both resided with him until they were murdered by Eleutherius, brother of Anastasius Bibliothecarius, the Church's chief librarian. |
| John XVII | 1003 | Married before his election as pope | Yes (three sons) | All of his children became priests. |
| Clement IV | 1265–1268 | Married before taking holy orders | Yes (two daughters) | Both children entered a convent |
| Honorius IV | 1285–1287 | Widowed before entering the clergy | Yes (at least two sons) |
Fathered illegitimate children before holy orders
| Name | Reign | Relationship | Offspring | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pius II | 1458–1464 | Not married | Yes (at least two) | Two children, both born before he formally entered the clergy. The first child, fathered while in Scotland, died in infancy. A second child fathered while in Strasbourg with a Breton woman named Elizabeth died 14 months later. He delayed becoming a cleric because of the requirement of chastity. |
| Innocent VIII | 1484–1492 | Not married | Yes (two) | Both born before he entered the clergy. Married elder son Franceschetto Cybo to the daughter of Lorenzo de' Medici, who in return obtained the cardinal's hat for his 13-year-old son Giovanni, who became Pope Leo X. His daughter Teodorina Cybo married Gerardo Usodimare. |
| Clement VII | 1523–1534 | Not married. Relationship with a slave girl – possibly Simonetta da Collevecchio | Yes (one) | Identified as Alessandro de' Medici, Duke of Florence. |
Known to or suspected of having fathered illegitimate children after receiving holy orders
Relationships with women
| Name | Reign | Relationship | Offspring | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Julius II | 1503–1513 | Not married | Yes (three daughters) | Three illegitimate daughters, one of whom was Felice della Rovere (born in 1483, twenty years before his election as pope, and twelve years after his enthronement as bishop of Lausanne). The schismatic Conciliabulum of Pisa, which sought to depose him in 1511, also accused him of being a sodomite. |
| Paul III | 1534–1549 | Not married. Silvia Ruffini as mistress | Yes (three sons and one daughter) | Held off ordination in order to continue his lifestyle, fathering four illegitimate children (three sons and one daughter) by Silvia Ruffini after his appointment as cardinal-deacon of Santi Cosimo and Damiano. He broke his relations with her ca. 1513. He made his illegitimate son Pier Luigi Farnese the first duke of Parma. |
| Pius IV | 1559–1565 | Not married | Allegedly three | One was a son born in 1541 or 1542. He also had two daughters. |
| Gregory XIII | 1572–1585 | Not married. Affair with Maddalena Fulchini | Yes | Received the ecclesiastical tonsure in Bologna in June 1539, and subsequently had an affair that resulted in the birth of Giacomo Boncompagni in 1548. Giacomo remained illegitimate, with Gregory later appointing him Gonfalonier of the Church, governor of the Castel Sant'Angelo and Fermo. |
| Leo XII | 1823–1829 | Not married | Allegedly three | As a young prelate, he came under suspicion of having a liaison with the wife of a Swiss Guard soldier and as nuncio in Germany allegedly fathered three illegitimate children. |
Popes alleged to be sexually active during pontificate
Relationships with women
| Name | Reign | Relationship | Offspring | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sergius III | 904–911 | Not married | Yes (at least one) | Accused by opponents of being the illegitimate father of Pope John XI by Marozia. Such accusations lay in Liutprand of Cremona's Antapodosis and the Liber Pontificalis. The accusations have discrepancies with another early source, the annalist Flodoard (c. 894–966): John XI was the brother of Alberic II, the latter being the offspring of Marozia and her husband Alberic I, so John too may have been the son of Marozia and Alberic I. Fauvarque emphasizes that contemporary sources are dubious, Liutprand being "prone to exaggeration" while other mentions of this fatherhood appear in satires written by supporters of Pope Formosus. |
| John X | 914–928 | Not married. Affairs with Theodora and Marozia. | No | Had romantic affairs with both Theodora and her daughter Marozia, according to Liutprand of Cremona in his Antapodosis. (See also Saeculum obscurum) |
| John XII | 955–964 | Not married | No | Accused by adversaries of adultery and incest.Benedict of Soracte noted that he had "a collection of women". According to Liutprand of Cremona, "they testified about his adultery, which they did not see with their own eyes, but nonetheless knew with certainty: he had fornicated with the widow of Rainier, with Stephana his father's concubine, with the widow Anna, and with his own niece, and he made the sacred palace into a whorehouse". According to Chamberlin, John was "a Christian Caligula whose crimes were rendered particularly horrific by the office he held". Some sources report that he died eight days after being stricken by paralysis while in the act of adultery, others that he was killed by the jealous husband while in the act of committing adultery. |
| Alexander VI | 1492–1503 | Not married. Relationships with Vanozza dei Catanei and Giulia Farnese. | Yes | Had a long affair with Vannozza dei Cattanei while still a priest, and before he became pope; and by her had his illegitimate children Cesare Borgia, Giovanni Borgia, Gioffre Borgia, and Lucrezia. A later mistress, Giulia Farnese, was the sister of Alessandro Farnese, giving birth to a daughter Laura while Alexander was in his 60s and reigning as pope. Alexander fathered at least seven and possibly as many as ten illegitimate children, doing much to promote his family's interests – using his offspring to build alliances with a number of important dynasties. He appointed Giovanni Borgia as Captain General of the Church and made Cesare a Cardinal of the Church – also creating independent duchies for each of them out of papal lands. |
Relationships with men
| Name | Reign | Relationship | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paul II | 1464–1471 | Not married. Alleged affair with a page | Thought to have died of indigestion arising from eating melon, though some suggest he died while being sodomized by a page. |
| Sixtus IV | 1471–1484 | Not married | According to Stefano Infessura, Sixtus was a "lover of boys and sodomites" – awarding benefices and bishoprics in return for sexual favours, and nominating a number of young men as cardinals, some of whom were celebrated for their good looks. Infessura had partisan allegiances to the Colonna family and so is not considered to be always reliable or impartial. |
| Leo X | 1513–1521 | Not married | Accused, after his death, of homosexuality (by Francesco Guicciardini and Paolo Giovio). Some suggest he may have had ulterior motives in offering preferment to Marcantonio Flaminio. |
| Julius III | 1550–1555 | Not married. Alleged affair with Innocenzo Ciocchi del Monte | Alleged to have had a long love affair with Innocenzo Ciocchi del Monte which was a cause of public scandal. The Venetian ambassador at that time reported that Innocenzo shared the pope's bed. |
Relationships with women and men
| Name | Reign | Relationship | Offspring | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benedict IX | 1032–1044, 1045, 1047–1048 | Not married | No | Accused by Bishop Benno of Piacenza of "many vile adulteries". Pope Victor III referred in his third book of Dialogues to "his rapes… and other unspeakable acts". His life prompted Peter Damian to write an extended treatise against illicit sex, especially homosexuality. In his Liber Gomorrhianus, Damian accused Benedict IX of routine sodomy and bestiality and sponsoring orgies. In May 1045, Benedict IX resigned his office to get married. |
See also
- Pope Joan
- Antipope John XXIII and Antipope Felix V
- History of clerical celibacy in the Christian Church
- The Bad Popes, Chamberlin, E.R., Sutton History Classics, 1969 / Dorset; New Ed edition 2003.
- The Pope Encyclopedia: An A to Z of the Holy See, Matthew Bunson, Crown Trade Paperbacks, New York, 1995.
- The Papacy, Bernhard Schimmelpfennig, Columbia University Press, New York, 1984.
- Lives of the Popes, Richard P. McBrien, Harper Collins, San Francisco, 1997.
- Papal Genealogy, George L. Williams, McFarland& Co., Jefferson, North Carolina, 1998.
- Sex Lives of the Popes, Nigel Cawthorne, Prion, London, 1996.
- Popes and Anti-Popes, John Wilcock, Xlibris Corporation, 2005.
- La véritable histoire des papes, Jean Mathieu-Rosay, Grancher, Paris, 1991