Fist fights, ghostly pranks and schism: A brief history of quirky conclaves past

Selecting a new pope has always been an arduous process, but some conclaves seemed to suffer more than others

We look at some of the more noteworthy conclaves from the past.

Modern-day conclaves are steeped in mystery: cardinal electors swear an oath of secrecy – and so do the cooks, drivers, medics and others who support their deliberations. Before the conclave begins, the Sistine Chapel will be swept for electronic bugs, jamming devices will be installed, and special coatings will be placed on windows to stop laser scanners picking up anything audible.

It wasn’t always this way: in the past, letters, diaries and other writings by cardinals and their attendants gave revealing accounts of what happened in the meetings convened in order to choose a pope.