Papal conclave, 1370

Coat of arms during the vacancy of the Holy See
Dates and location
Palais des Papes, Avignon
Key officials
Dean	Guy de Boulogne
Camerlengo	Arnaud Aubert
Protodeacon	Pierre Roger de Beaufort
Elected Pope
Pierre Roger de Beaufort Name taken: Gregory XI
← 1362 1378 →

The Papal conclave of 1370 (December 29–30, 1370), held after the death of Pope Urban V, elected as his successor cardinal Pierre Roger de Beaufort, who under the name Gregory XI became seventh and the last Pope of the period of Avignon Papacy.

Pope Urban V died on December 20, 1370, at Avignon. He was the first Pope who resided in Rome since 1304, although only for a short time (1367 until the beginning of 1370, when he returned to Avignon). At the time of his death, there were 20 living Cardinals. 18 of them participated in the conclave:

(elected Pope Gregory XI)

Nine electors were created by Pope Urban V, five by Clement VI and four by Innocent VI.

Post of the Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, the most important during sede vacante, was occupied by Arnaud Aubert,archbishop of Auch and nephew of Pope Innocent VI (but not a Cardinal).

Two Cardinals, both created by Urban V, did not participate in this conclave, because they were in Italy:

Eighteen cardinals present in Avignon entered the conclave on December 29. In the first ballot on the next day in the morning Cardinal Pierre Roger de Beaufort, nephew of Clement VI, protodeacon of the Sacred College, was unanimously elected Pope. He initially opposed his election but eventually accepted and took the name of Gregory XI. On January 2, 1371 he was ordained to the priesthood, and on January 3 he was consecrated bishop of Rome by the dean of the College of Cardinals Guy de Boulogne, and crowned by the new protodeacon Rinaldo Orsini in the cathedral Notre Dame des Doms in Avignon.