Which pope resigned in 2013, the first to do so in nearly 600 years?

The pope who resigned in 2013 was Pope Benedict XVI. He announced his resignation on 11 February 2013, citing declining strength from old age and the physical and mental demands of the papacy.

His resignation took effect at 8 p.m. on 28 February 2013. Benedict was 85, and his departure made him the first pope to resign since Gregory XII stepped down in 1415 to help end the Western Schism. That is why the event was described as the first papal resignation in nearly 600 years.

After leaving office, Benedict became pope emeritus and lived at the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery inside Vatican City. The conclave that followed elected Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the archbishop of Buenos Aires, who chose the name Pope Francis.

Pope Francis was therefore Benedict’s successor, not the pope who resigned. John Paul II and Pius XII both remained in office until their deaths. Benedict XVI died in December 2022, nearly a decade after his resignation.