Pope Leo moves into a papal residence shunned by Pope Francis

Ten months after taking office, Pope Leo On Saturday the 14th he finally moved into his apartments in the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace, a historic papal residence that his predecessor had avoided.

“This afternoon, Pope Leo XIV will take possession of the apartment of the Apostolic Palace, moving, with his closest collaborators, to the spaces previously used by his predecessors,” the Vatican said in a statement.

Leo, the first American Pope, decided to move into the apartments after his May 8, 2025. choice as head of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.

But after being abandoned under the late Pope Francis, who chose a more modest home elsewhere in the Vatican, they required extensive renovation.

Meanwhile, León, 70, continued to reside in the Palace of the Holy Office, near the Vatican, where he had lived as a cardinal.

The large apartment he has moved into includes bedrooms, a chapel, a hall, a library, an office, a dining room and a room from which the pontiff prays the Angelus every Sunday through a window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.

Francis surprised traditionalists when, after his election in 2013, he decided to live in a simple apartment in the Santa Marta guest house in the Vatican, where he remained until his death.

The gesture was hailed by supporters of a humble Pope, but drew criticism from conservatives, who accused him of stripping the papacy of a sacred element.

The papal apartments are located in the heart of the Apostolic Palace, which houses the Sistine Chapelthe Apostolic Library and the Secretariat of State, the central axis of the administration of the Holy See.

Leo also returned to the papal summer residence at Castel Gandolfo, outside Rome, which Francis refused to use.

He spends most Tuesdays there, playing tennis and swimming in addition to his work.