First plume of black smoke signals end to 1st vote as cardinals consider Pope Francis's successor

Black fume is billowing from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel, signalling the cardinals did so ballot but that a caller pope has not been elected connected the archetypal ballot.

It comes much than 4 hours aft the cardinals entered the Sistine Chapel.

Where bash the cardinals devour and sleep?

While voting is inactive ongoing for the day, it is expected to upwind down soon. During the conclave, the cardinals devour and slumber astatine the Domus Sanctae Marthae, a guesthouse wrong Vatican City.

The dorms are conscionable a fewer minutes' locomotion from the Sistine Chapel. They were built successful 1966 by Pope John Paul II truthful that cardinals could beryllium comfy arsenic they underwent the gruelling process of electing a pope.

The guesthouse, known arsenic Casa Santa Marta, is besides wherever Pope Francis chose to person his backstage apartment, alternatively of the much luxurious papal apartments.

It was besides designed for visiting clergy members and guests of the Holy See. Once the conclave begins, the Domus Sanctae Marthae is sealed disconnected from the extracurricular satellite for the duration of voting. Cardinals can't usage phones oregon the internet.

The cardinals devour unneurotic and the meals are elemental — often Italian food, specified arsenic pasta, vegetables and nutrient oregon fish.

Dusk and nary smoke, but there's inactive clip

The prima is mounting connected St. Peter's Square wherever the assemblage has reportedly grown to astir 30,000 onlookers. Eyes are riveted connected the chimney atop the Sistine Chapel, wherever a archetypal plume of fume could inactive look astatine immoderate moment.

Black fume indicates that a archetypal ballot has been cast. It's possible, but rare, that determination could beryllium achromatic fume close away. That would mean that the radical of cardinals has travel to a beardown statement successful their informal discussions

Today whitethorn beryllium each astir the cardinals, but a mates of seagulls are stealing immoderate of the conclave spotlight arsenic the satellite watches the Sistine Chapel’s chimney.

Viewers of the livestreams person taken enactment of a seagull sitting connected the roof. The vertebrate has been successful unrecorded video shots for hours, arsenic The Associated Press reports, on with a chick that besides entered the video frame.

As I write, the vertebrate is flying successful circles astir the roof. Probably trying to get a amended view.

On the societal media level X, 1 idiosyncratic wrote: “Shoutout to that 1 seagull locked successful connected the conclave proceedings.”

“BREAKING NEWS: Two seagulls AND a babe seagull person taken [a] spot too the chimney,” wrote another.

“Has determination ever been a much intimately watched seagull?” asked different person.

On the societal media level X, respective spoof accounts already beryllium for “Sistine Seagull” and “Conclave Seagull” from the past conclave, erstwhile the birds behaved successful a akin fashion.

Who is Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, 1 of the front-runners?

If there’s a front-runner with existent vigor going into the conclave, it’s Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle of the Philippines. He’s got planetary religion cred, a magnetic property and superior chops arsenic a pastor.

Often called “the Asian Pope Francis,” Tagle is warm, funny, self-deprecating … and erstwhile helium preaches, radical really listen. He is multilingual, media savvy, and known crossed the Catholic satellite for his high-profile roles astatine Caritas — the Vatican’s planetary charitable enactment — and the Vatican’s missionary office.

What floats his balloon adjacent higher is that Tagle comes from a Catholic superpower, with a planetary diaspora of Filipinos keeping parishes live astir the world. He besides moves easy crossed cultures — portion Chinese, grandson of a Buddhist, fluent successful English and Vatican-speak.

Management whitethorn not beryllium his spot — Francis yet removed him from Caritas successful 2022 implicit concerns astir enactment — but his charisma and heavy transportation with Catholics marque him by acold 1 of the astir compelling contenders.

A presumption from wrong the property room

While hundreds person gathered successful St. Peter's Square, wherever they person a presumption of the Vatican chimney, mounted connected the extortion of the Sistine Chapel, determination is different radical of watchers who are cardinal to the process: the media posted wrong the Vatican property room.

The CBC's Rome analogous Megan Williams is determination and sends this representation of what that country looks like.

Watching for fume — and a historical moment

People from each implicit the satellite are present successful Rome. They are filling St. Peter's Square today, anticipating the archetypal smoke.

People told maine they are funny and intrigued. They consciousness it’s important to beryllium present for this historical moment, and that they volition travel backmost time if the fume is black.

Keep your eyes connected the chimney

In the coming days, determination volition beryllium 4 imaginable windows erstwhile the papal conclave could elite Pope Francis's successor, according to the Vatican property office.

And 1 of them is astir 1 p.m. ET daily.

Today, though, arsenic the process gets underway, that’s the lone window. There’s nary warrant that the cardinals volition ballot today, but if they did, we tin expect to spot either achromatic oregon achromatic fume soon.

So far, though, each we've seen connected the chimney cam is the occasional seagull.

The 'strict choreography' of voting

We can’t spot what happens down the closed doors of the Sistine Chapel.

But the voting process follows a “strict choreography,” arsenic The Associated Press explains.

Here’s however it volition go:

• Each cardinal writes his prime connected a paper. The insubstantial is inscribed with the words “Eligo successful summen pontificem,” oregon “I elite arsenic Supreme Pontiff.”
• The cardinals attack the altar 1 by 1 and say: “I telephone arsenic my witness, Christ the Lord, who volition beryllium my judge, that my ballot is fixed to the 1 who, earlier God, I deliberation should beryllium elected.”
• Then, they spot the ballot connected a circular plate, which is slid into a metallic and golden urn.
• The ballots are opened one-by-one by 3 antithetic scrutineers, who work the names aloud. They besides adhd up the results of each circular connected a insubstantial preserved successful the papal archives.
• The scrutineer pierces each ballot with a needle arsenic helium reads them aloud, past binds the ballot with a thread.
• The ballots are burned successful the chapel stove, on with a chemic to nutrient either achromatic oregon achromatic smoke.

You tin ticker our chimney cam here.

The connection nepotism has immoderate intriguing roots successful Vatican history, and 1 of the astir notorious figures tied to it is Olimpia Maidalchini, of the Doria Pamphilj clan.

She was the sister-in-law — and, immoderate whispered, much — of Pope Innocent X, and wielded tremendous power implicit him during his 17th-century papacy.

Olimpia utilized that powerfulness to beforehand her family’s fortunes, particularly her son’s, sparking plentifulness of scandal.

At the time, popes often handed retired apical jobs to their “nephews” — a word that didn’t ever mean what it seemed — which is however the connection nepotism took hold.

The Doria Pamphilj household inactive lives successful Rome and runs a stunning depository successful the historical centre, location to a celebrated Velázquez representation of nary different than Innocent X.