Palazzo dei Papi

Viterbo's Papal Palace is a thirteenth-century residence where popes governed and the Church held its first conclave.

Why it matters

The palace preserves the political history of the period when the papal court moved to Viterbo. Its Aula del Conclave hosted the election that ended a thirty-three-month deadlock and helped establish the conclave as the method for choosing popes.

What to notice

The Loggia delle Benedizioni, built in 1267, has seven pointed trilobed arches supported by slender columns. The Aula del Conclave preserves the hall associated with the prolonged papal election. The Sala Gualterio retains frescoes and the arms of Pope Clement VIII, reflecting later alterations to the palace.

Context and history

The palace developed from the bishop's residence on the Colle del Duomo after the papal court transferred to Viterbo in the 1250s. The conclave following the death of Clement IV lasted from 1267 to 1271. After the papal court left, the palace passed to diocesan use. Bishop Sebastiano Gualterio commissioned further works in the sixteenth century.