How long was the longest conclave? Facts about the secret voting to elect a pope

Cardinals walk to the Sistine Chapel at the beginning of the conclave on April 18, 2005 (Osservatore Romano/AP)

Conclave the film may have introduced moviegoers to the spectacular ritual and drama of a modern conclave, but the periodic voting to elect a new pope has been going on for centuries and created a whole genre of historical trivia.

Here are some facts about conclaves past, derived from historical studies including Miles Pattenden’s Electing the Pope in Early Modern Italy, 1450–1700, and interviews with experts including Elena Cangiano, an archeologist at Viterbo’s Palazzo dei Papi (Palace of the Popes).