For nearly two millennia, the papacy has shaped world history, standing at the intersection of faith, politics, and power. From its humble beginnings with St. Peter to its modern incarnation as a ...

Renaissance and Reformation Papacy: Art and corruption The Renaissance Popes, including Pope Julius II (1503–1513) and Pope Leo X (1513–1521), were great patrons of the arts, funding masterpie ...

John XII came to the throne in 955, when he was just 18. Shortly thereafter, he turned his residence into a brothel, gambled with church offerings, and was even accused of castrating a cardinal.

From the style and decoration of the chair to his beard, this portrait of Pope Julius II is laden with meaning. The painting depicts Julius towards the end of his life, when he was battling a ...

Although Pope Julius II tempted him to Rome with the prospect of a huge marble mausoleum, in fact, the Pope really needed someone to paint the entire ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Michelangelo ...

Received commission to paint the Battle of Cascina 1505 Summoned to Rome by Pope Julius II; commissioned to create the tomb for the pope. Spent eight months in the quarries of Carrara selecting ...

Thirty-four new Swiss Guard recruits pledged their traditional oath in the Vatican on Monday and swore allegiance to Pope Francis in their distinctive way, raising three fingers to evoke the Holy ...

Sky Original documentary tracing the complex history of Michelangelo's most controversial commission, the Mausoleum of Pope Julius II, which took 40 years to complete ...

Peter's Square in Vatican City, on Feb. 21, 2001, a frail Pope John Paul II created 44 new cardinals by bestowing upon them their rings of office. Among them: Edward Egan of New York. Journal News ...