View source for Antipope

{{short description|Person who claims to be the legitimate pope}}
{{For|the book by Robert Rankin|The Antipope}}
{{Distinguish|Anti-Papalism}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2023}}
{{Catholic Church sidebar|controversies}}

An '''antipope''' ({{langx|la|antipapa}}) is a person who claims to be [[Diocese of Rome|Bishop of Rome]] and leader of the [[Roman Catholic Church]] in opposition to the officially elected [[pope]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia| title=Antipope| url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/28501/antipope| date=30 May 2023| encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]| access-date=26 June 2023}}</ref> Between the 3rd and mid-15th centuries, antipopes were supported by factions within the Church itself and [[secular]] rulers.  While modern claimants to the papacy still take place, they are rarely given serious consideration by either the public or the Church.

Sometimes it was difficult to distinguish which of two claimants should be called pope and which antipope, as in the case of [[Pope Leo VIII]] and [[Pope Benedict V]].<ref>Of Pope Leo VIII, the ''[[Annuario Pontificio]]'', the [[Holy See]]'s yearbook, says: "At this point, as again in the mid-eleventh century, we come across elections in which problems of harmonizing historical criteria and those of theology and canon law make it impossible to decide clearly which side possessed the legitimacy whose factual existence guarantees the unbroken lawful succession of the Successors of Saint Peter. The uncertainty that in some cases results has made it advisable to abandon the assignation of successive numbers in the list of the Popes" (note 19 to the list of popes in the ''Annuario Pontificio''). Of Pope Benedict V it says: "If Pope Leo VIII was lawful Pope, [...] Benedict V is an antipope" (note 20 to the list of popes).</ref>

==History==
[[Hippolytus of Rome]] (d.&nbsp;235) is commonly considered to be the earliest antipope, as he headed a separate group within the Church in Rome against [[Pope Callixtus I]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia| title=Saint Hippolytus of Rome| url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Hippolytus-of-Rome |date=3 January 2020 |access-date=2021-12-06| encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]| language=en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021181732/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Hippolytus-of-Rome | archive-date=21 October 2023}}</ref> Hippolytus was reconciled to Callixtus's second successor, [[Pope Pontian]], and both he and Pontian are honoured as [[saint]]s by the Catholic Church with a shared [[feast day]] on 13 August. Whether two or more persons have been confused in this account of Hippolytus<ref>{{cite journal| url=https://www.vatican.va/jubilee_2000/magazine/documents/ju_mag_01091997_p-70_en.html| title=The catacombs the destination of the great jubilee| first=Enrico| last=Dal Covolo| date=September 1997| journal=Tertium Millennium| access-date=26 June 2023| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070910175629/https://www.vatican.va/jubilee_2000/magazine/documents/ju_mag_01091997_p-70_en.html| archive-date=10 September 2007| url-status=live}}</ref> and whether Hippolytus actually declared himself to be the Bishop of Rome remains unclear, since no such claim by Hippolytus has been cited in the writings attributed to him.

[[Eusebius]] quotes<ref>''[[Church History (Eusebius)|Historia Ecclesiastica]]'', V, 28</ref> from an unnamed earlier writer the story of [[Antipope Natalius|Natalius]], a [[Christianity in the 3rd century|3rd-century]] [[priest]] who accepted the bishopric of the [[Adoptionism|Adoptionists]],<ref name=Dix>{{cite book| last1=Dix| first1=Gregory| last2=Chadwick|first2=Henry| title=The Treatise on the Apostolic Tradition of St Hippolytus of Rome, Bishop and Martyr| year=2013| publisher=Routledge| isbn=978-1-1361-0146-5| page=xvii| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=l8syjXASpNwC&pg=PR27| access-date=7 June 2017}}</ref> a heretical group in Rome. Natalius soon repented and tearfully begged [[Pope Zephyrinus]] to receive him into communion.<ref>[[s:Dictionary of Christian Biography and Literature to the End of the Sixth Century/Dictionary/Z/Zephyrinus|Dictionary of Christian Biography and Literature: Zephyrinus]]</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia| url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10448a.htm |last1=Chapman |first1=John |author1-link=John Chapman (priest) |title=Monarchians |encyclopedia=[[Catholic Encyclopedia]]| location=New York| publisher=Robert Appleton| year=1911| access-date=3 September 2007| via=[[New Advent]]| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930012741/http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10448a.htm| archive-date= 30 September 2007| url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Novatian]] (d. 258), another third-century figure, certainly claimed the [[Holy See|See of Rome]] in opposition to [[Pope Cornelius]], and if Natalius and Hippolytus were excluded because of the uncertainties concerning them, Novatian could then be said to be the first antipope.

The period in which antipopes were most numerous was during the struggles between the popes and the [[Holy Roman Emperor]]s of the 11th and 12th centuries. The emperors frequently imposed their own nominees to further their own causes. The popes, likewise, sometimes sponsored rival imperial claimants ([[anti-king]]s) in Germany to overcome a particular emperor.

The [[Western Schism]]&nbsp;– which began in [[1378]], when the French cardinals, claiming that the election of [[Pope Urban VI]] was invalid, elected antipope [[Antipope Clement VII|Clement VII]] as a rival to the Roman Pope&nbsp;– led eventually to two competing lines of antipopes: the [[Avignon Papacy|Avignon line]] as Clement VII moved back to [[Avignon]], and the [[Council of Pisa|Pisan]] line. The Pisan line, which began in [[1409]], was named after the town of Pisa, Italy, where the (Pisan) council had elected antipope [[Antipope Alexander V|Alexander V]] as a third claimant. To end the schism, in May [[1415]], the [[Council of Constance]] deposed antipope [[Antipope John XXIII|John XXIII]] of the Pisan line. [[Pope Gregory XII]] of the Roman line resigned in July 1415. In [[1417]], the council also formally deposed antipope [[Antipope Benedict XIII|Benedict XIII]] of Avignon, but he adamantly refused to resign. Afterwards, [[Pope Martin V]] was elected and was accepted everywhere except in the small and rapidly diminishing area of influence of Benedict XIII.

== List of historical antipopes ==

The following table gives the names of the antipopes included in the list of popes and antipopes in the ''[[Annuario Pontificio]]'', with the addition of the names of Natalius (in spite of doubts about his historicity) and [[Antipope Clement VIII]] (whose following was insignificant).<ref>{{cite encyclopedia| url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/09725a.htm| title=Pope Martin V| encyclopedia=Catholic Encyclopedia| via=New Advent}}</ref>
 
An asterisk marks those who were included in the conventional numbering of later popes who took the same name. More commonly, the antipope is ignored in later papal regnal numbers; for example, there was an [[Antipope John XXIII]], but the new Pope John elected in 1958 was also called [[Pope John XXIII|John XXIII]]. For the additional confusion regarding popes named John, see [[Pope John numbering]].

The list of popes and antipopes in the ''Annuario Pontificio'' attaches the following note to the name of [[Pope Leo VIII]] (963–965):

<blockquote>At this point, as again in the mid-11th century, we come across [[Papal conclave|elections]] in which problems of harmonising historical criteria and those of [[theology]] and [[canon law]] make it impossible to decide clearly which side possessed the legitimacy whose factual existence guarantees the unbroken lawful succession of the successors of [[Saint Peter]]. The uncertainty that in some cases results has made it advisable to abandon the assignation of successive numbers in the list of the popes.<ref>{{cite book| title=Annuario Pontificio| year=2012| publisher=Libreria Editrice Vaticana| isbn=978-88-209-8722-0| page=12}}</ref></blockquote>

Thus, because of the obscurities about mid-11th-century canon law and the historical facts, the ''Annuario Pontificio'' lists [[Pope Sylvester III|Sylvester III]] as a pope, without thereby expressing a judgement on his legitimacy. The ''[[Catholic Encyclopedia]]'' places him in its ''List of Popes'',<ref>{{cite encyclopedia| url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/12272b.htm| title=List of Popes| encyclopedia=Catholic Encyclopedia| via=New Advent| access-date=20 August 2015}}</ref> but with the annotation: "Considered by some to be an antipope". Other sources classify him as an antipope.<ref>{{cite book| authorlink=Charles William Previté-Orton| first=Charles William |last=Previté-Orton| title=The Shorter Cambridge Medieval History| publisher=Cambridge University Press| edition=1975 |year=1952| isbn=978-0-5212-0962-5| volume=1| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mcI8AAAAIAAJ&q=sylvester+iii| page=477}}</ref>

As Celestine II resigned before being consecrated and enthroned in order to avoid a schism, Oxford's ''A Dictionary of Popes'' (2010) considers he "...is classified, unfairly, as an antipope",<ref name=Kelly>{{cite encyclopedia| url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803095557402| title=Celestine (d. 1124) |encyclopedia=A Dictionary of Popes| edition=2| editor1-first=J. N. D.| editor1-last=Kelly| editor2-first=Michael J.| editor2-last=Walsh |editor1-link=John Norman Davidson Kelly |date=2010 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]| isbn=978-0-1992-9581-4}}</ref> an opinion historian [[Salvador Miranda (historian)|Salvador Miranda]] also shares.<ref>{{cite web| url=https://cardinals.fiu.edu/bios1122.htm#| last=Boccapecora Miranda| first=Salvatore| title=Boccapecora, Teobaldo| work=The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church| publisher=Florida International University| year=2018| access-date=26 June 2023}}</ref>

Those with asterisks (*) were counted in subsequent papal numbering.

{| class="wikitable sortable"
! Pontificate
! Common English name
! Regnal (Latin) name
! Personal name
! Place of birth
! Age at election/<br>Death or resigned
! Years as<br>antipope<br>(days)
! Notes
! In opposition to
|-
| {{c.|199|200}} ||[[Antipope Natalius|Natalius]] || Natalius || Natalius || {{circa|159}} [[Rome]], [[Roman Empire]]|| 38 / 48 || {{age in years and days|199|1|1|200|1|1}} ({{age in days|199|1|1|200|1|1}}) || Later reconciled (see above) || [[Pope Zephyrinus|Zephyrinus]]
|-
| rowspan = "3"| 20 Dec 217 – 28 Sep 235 ||rowspan="3"| [[Hippolytus of Rome|Saint Hippolytus]] ||rowspan="3"|  Hippolytus ||rowspan="3"| Hippolytus ||rowspan="3"| 170 [[Rome]], [[Roman Empire]] ||rowspan="3"| 45 / 65 (†66)   ||rowspan="3"| {{age in years and days|217|12|20|235|9|28}} ({{age in days|217|12|20|235|9|28}}) ||rowspan="3"| Later reconciled with [[Pope Pontian]] (see above) || [[Pope Callixtus I|Callixtus I]]
|-
|[[Pope Urban I|Urban I]]
|-
|[[Pope Pontian|Pontian]]
|-
| rowspan = "4"| Mar 251 – Aug 258 ||rowspan="4"|[[Antipope Novatian|Novatian]] ||rowspan="4"| Novatianus ||rowspan="4"| Novatian  ||rowspan="4"| c. 200 [[Rome]], [[Roman Empire]] ||rowspan="4"| 51 / 58 (†93)  ||rowspan="4"| {{age in years and days|251|3|1|258|8|1}} ({{age in days|251|3|1|258|8|1}}) ||rowspan="4"| Founder of [[Novatianism]] || [[Pope Cornelius|Cornelius]]
|-
|[[Pope Lucius I|Lucius I]]
|-
|[[Pope Stephen I|Stephen I]]
|-
|[[Pope Sixtus II|Sixtus II]]
|-
|20 Apr 309 – 16 Aug 310 ||[[Antipope Heraclius|Heraclius]] || Heraclius || Heraclius || c. 265 [[Rome]], [[Roman Empire]] || 45 / 46 ||  {{age in years and days|309|4|20|310|8|16}} ({{age in days|309|4|20|310|8|16}}) ||  || [[Pope Eusebius|Eusebius]]
|-
|355 – 26 Nov 365 ||[[Antipope Felix II|Felix II]]* || Felix secundus || Felix || c. 270 [[Rome]], [[Roman Empire]] || 80 / 90 || {{age in years and days|355|1|1|365|11|26}} ({{age in days|355|1|1|365|11|26}}) ||   Installed by [[Roman emperor]] [[Constantius II]] || [[Pope Liberius|Liberius]]
|-
|1 Oct 366 – 16 Nov 367  ||[[Antipope Ursicinus|Ursicinus]]  || Ursicinus || Ursinus || c. 300 [[Rome]], [[Roman Empire]] || 66 / 67  || {{age in years and days|366|10|1|367|11|16}} ({{age in days|366|10|1|367|11|16}}) ||   || [[Pope Damasus I|Damasus I]]
|-
|27 Dec 418 – 3 Apr 419 ||[[Antipope Eulalius|Eulalius]] || Eulalius || Eulalius  || c. 370 [[Rome]], [[Roman Empire]] || 38 / 39 (†42) || {{age in years and days|366|10|1|367|11|16}} ({{age in days|366|10|1|367|11|16}})  || || [[Pope Boniface I|Boniface I]]
|-
|22 Nov 498 – Aug 506/08 ||[[Antipope Laurentius|Laurentius]] || Laurentius  || Lorenzo Celio || c. 460 [[Rome]], [[Roman Empire]] || 38 / 46 (†48) || {{age in years and days|498|11|22|508|8|31}} ({{age in days|498|11|22|508|8|31}})|| Supported by [[List of Byzantine emperors|Byzantine emperor]] [[Anastasius I (emperor)|Anastasius I]] || [[Pope Symmachus|Symmachus]]
|-
|22 Sep 530 – 14 Oct 530 ||[[Antipope Dioscorus|Dioscorus]] || Dioscurus || Dióskoros || c. 450 [[Alexandria]] || 70 / 70 || {{age in years and days|530|9|22|530|10|14}} ({{age in days|530|9|22|530|10|14}}) ||  || [[Pope Boniface II|Boniface II]]
|-
|16 Jun 687 – 21 Sep 687 ||[[Antipope Theodore|Theodore]] || Theodorus || Theodore || c. 599 [[Rome]], [[Duchy of Rome]]|| 88 / 88 (†92) || {{age in years and days|687|9|21|687|12|27}} ({{age in days|687|9|21|687|12|27}}) ||  ||rowspan="2"| [[Pope Sergius I|Sergius I]]
|-
|21 Sep 687 – 27 Dec 687 ||[[Antipope Paschal (687)|Paschal (I)]] || Paschalis || Pascale || c. 598 [[Rome]], Duchy of Rome || 89 / 89 (†94) || {{age in years and days|687|9|21|687|12|27}} ({{age in days|687|9|21|687|12|27}}) ||
|-
|28 Jun 767 – 6 Aug 768 ||[[Antipope Constantine II|Constantine II]] || Constantinus secundus || Konstantinus || c. 700 [[Rome]], Duchy of Rome || 67 / 68 (†69) || {{age in years and days|767|6|28|768|8|6}} ({{age in days|767|6|28|768|8|6}}) ||  || Between [[Pope Paul I|Paul I]] and [[Pope Stephen III|Stephen III]]
|-
|31 Jul 768 ||[[Antipope Philip|Philip]] || Philippus || Philip || c. 701 [[Rome]], Duchy of Rome || 68 / 68 (†99) || {{age in years and days|768|7|31|768|7|31}} ({{age in days|768|7|31|768|7|31}}) ||  Installed by envoy of [[Lombards|Lombard King]] [[Desiderius]] ||  [[Pope Stephen III|Stephen III]]
|-
|25 Jan – 31 May 844 ||[[Antipope John VIII|John VIII]] || Joannes octavus || Giovanni || c. 800 [[Rome]], [[Papal States]] || 44 / 44 (†91) || {{age in years and days|844|1|1|844|5|31}} ({{age in days|844|1|1|844|5|31}}) ||  Elected by [[acclamation]] || [[Pope Sergius II|Sergius II]]
|-
|Jan 855 – 31 Mar 855 ||[[Anastasius Bibliothecarius|Anastasius III Bibliothecarius]] || Anastasius tertius || Anastasius || c. 810 [[Rome]], [[Papal States]] || 45 / 45 (†68) || {{age in years and days|855|1|1|855|3|31}} ({{age in days|855|1|1|855|3|31}}) ||  || [[Pope Benedict III|Benedict III]]
|-
|3 Oct 903 – 27 Jan 904 ||[[Antipope Christopher|Christopher]] || Christophorus || Christoforo || c. 850 [[Rome]], [[Papal States]] || 53 / 54|| {{age in years and days|903|10|3|904|1|27}} ({{age in days|903|10|3|904|1|27}})  || ||Between [[Pope Leo V|Leo V]] and [[Pope Sergius III|Sergius III]]
|-
|6 December 963 – 26 February 964 ||[[Pope Leo VIII|Leo VIII]]* || Leo octavus || Leone || c. 915 [[Rome]], [[Papal States]] || 48 / 49|| {{age in years and days|963|12|6|964|2|26}} ({{age in days|963|12|6|964|2|26}})  || Installed by [[Holy Roman Emperor|emperor]] [[Otto the Great]], opposed to [[Pope John XII|John XII]], later succeeded [[Pope Benedict V|Benedict V]] as a legitimate Pope || [[Pope John XII|John XII]]
|-
|Jul 974  ||rowspan="2"|[[Antipope Boniface VII|Boniface VII]]* ||rowspan="2"| Bonifacius || rowspan="2"| Franco Ferrucci || rowspan="2"| c. 900 [[Rome]], [[Papal States]] ||rowspan="2"| 73 / 73 and 84 / 85 ||rowspan="2"| {{age in years and days|974|7|1|974|7|31}} ({{age in days|974|7|1|974|7|31}})<br/>{{age in years and days|984|8|20|985|7|20}} ({{age in days|984|8|20|985|7|20}})<br/> total 364 days (364 days) ||rowspan="2"| ||Between [[Pope Benedict VI|Benedict VI]] and [[Pope Benedict VII|Benedict VII]]
|-
|20 Aug 984 – 20 Jul 985 || Between [[Pope John XIV|John XIV]] and [[Pope John XV|John XV]]
|-
|Apr 997 – Feb 998 ||[[Antipope John XVI|John XVI]]* || Joannes || John Filagatto || c. 941 [[Rossano]], [[Calabria]], [[Papal States]] (Italy) || 56 / 56 (†59) || {{age in years and days|997|2|1|998|2|1}} ({{age in days|997|2|1|998|2|1}}) ||  Supported by [[List of Byzantine emperors|Byzantine emperor]] [[Basil II]] || [[Pope Gregory V|Gregory V]]
|-
|Jun 1012 ||[[Antipope Gregory VI|Gregory VI]] || Gregorius Sextus || Gregorio || c. 960 [[Rome]], [[Papal States]] || 52 / 52 (†60)  || {{age in years and days|1012|6|1|1012|6|30}} ({{age in days|1012|6|1|1012|6|30}}) ||  || [[Pope Benedict VIII|Benedict VIII]]
|-
|4 Apr 1058 – 24 Jan 1059 ||[[Antipope Benedict X|Benedict X]]* || Benedictus Decimus || Giovanni Mincio dei [[Count of Tusculum|Conti di Tusculo]] || {{circa|1000}} [[Rome]], [[Papal States]],|| 58 / 59 (†80) || {{age in years and days|1058|4|4|1059|1|24}} ({{age in days|1058|4|4|1059|1|24}}) ||  Supported by the [[Counts of Tusculum]] || [[Pope Nicholas II|Nicholas II]]
|-
|July 1061 – 31 May 1064|| [[Antipope Honorius II|Honorius II]] || Honorius Secundus || Pietro Cadalus || 1010 [[Verona]], [[Papal States]] || 51 / 54 (†62) || {{age in years and days|1061|7|1|1064|5|31}} ({{age in days|1061|7|1|1064|5|31}}) ||  Supported by [[Agnes de Poitou|Agnes]], regent of the Holy Roman Empire || [[Pope Alexander II|Alexander II]]
|-
| rowspan = "4"| 25 Jun 1080, 21 Mar 1084 – 8 Sep 1100|| rowspan="4"|[[Antipope Clement III|Clement III]] ||rowspan="4"| Clemens Tertius ||rowspan="4"| Guibert of Ravenna  ||rowspan="4"| {{circa|1029}} [[Parma]], [[Papal States]] ||rowspan="4"| 51 / 51, 54 / 71 || rowspan="4" |{{age in years and days|1080|6|25|1100|8|8}} ({{age in days|1080|6|25|1100|8|8}}) ||rowspan="4"|Supported by [[Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor]] || [[Pope Gregory VII|Gregory VII]]
|-
|[[Pope Victor III|Victor III]]
|-
|[[Pope Urban II|Urban II]]
|-
|[[Pope Paschal II|Paschal II]]
|-
|8 Sep 1100 – Jan 1101 ||[[Antipope Theodoric|Theodoric]] || Theodoricus || Theodoro || {{circa|1030}} [[Rome]], [[Papal States]], || 70 / 71 (†72) || {{age in years and days|1100|9|2|1101|1|1}} ({{age in days|1100|9|2|1101|1|1}}) ||  Successor to [[Antipope Clement III|Clement III]] || rowspan="3"|[[Pope Paschal II|Paschal II]]
|-
|Jan 1101 – Feb 1102 ||[[Antipope Adalbert|Adalbert or Albert]] || Adalbertus || Albert || {{circa|1046}} [[Atella]], Campania, [[Papal States]], || 55 / 56 (†85) || {{age in years and days|1101|1|1|1101|2|1}} ({{age in days|1101|1|1|1101|2|1}}) ||  Successor to [[Antipope Theodoric|Theodoric]]
|-
|8 Nov 1105 – 11 Apr 1111 ||[[Antipope Sylvester IV|Sylvester IV]] || Sylvester Quartus || Maginulf || c. 1050 [[Rome]], [[Papal States]] || 49 / 55 (†56)  || {{age in years and days|1105|11|8|1111|9|28}} ({{age in days|1101|1|1|1101|2|1}}) ||   rowspan="3"| Supported by [[Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor]]
|-
| rowspan = "2"|10 Mar 1118 – 22 Apr 1121 ||rowspan="2"|[[Antipope Gregory VIII|Gregory VIII]] || rowspan="2"| Gregorius Octavus || rowspan="2"|Maurice Burdain  || rowspan="2"|c. 1057 [[Limousin]], [[Occitania]], France || rowspan="2"| 61 / 65 (†72) || rowspan="2"|{{age in years and days|1118|3|10|1121|4|22}} ({{age in days|1118|3|10|1121|4|22}}) || [[Pope Gelasius II|Gelasius II]]
|-
|[[Pope Callixtus II|Callixtus II]]
|-
|16 Dec 1124 ||[[Antipope Celestine II|Celestine II]]  || Cœlestinus Secundus  || Teobaldo Boccapecci || c. 1050 [[Rome]], [[Papal States]] || 74 / 74 (†86) || {{age in years and days|1124|12|16|1124|12|16}} ({{age in days|1124|12|16|1124|12|16}}) || || [[Pope Honorius II|Honorius II]]
|-
|14 Feb 1130 – 25 Jan 1138 ||[[Antipope Anacletus II|Anacletus II]]  || Anacletus Secundus ||Pietro Pierleoni  || c. 1090 [[Rome]], [[Papal States]] || 48 / 48 || {{age in years and days|1130|2|14|1138|1|25}} ({{age in days|1130|2|14|1138|1|25}}) ||   || rowspan="2"| [[Pope Innocent II|Innocent II]]
|-
|25 Jan 1138 – 28 Mar 1138 ||[[Antipope Victor IV (1138)|Victor IV]]  || Victor Quartus ||Gregorio Conti  || c. 1057 [[Ceccano]], [[Papal States]] || 81 / 81 (†90) || {{age in years and days|1138|3|23|1138|5|25}} ({{age in days|1138|3|23|1138|5|25}}) ||   Successor to [[Antipope Anacletus II|Anacletus II]]
|-
|7 Sep 1159 – 20 Apr 1164 || [[Antipope Victor IV (1159–1164)|Victor IV]]  || Victor Quartus ||Ottavio di Montecelio  || c. 1095 [[Tivoli, Lazio|Tivoli]], [[Papal States]] || 64 / 69 || {{age in years and days|1159|9|7|1164|4|20}} ({{age in days|1159|9|7|1164|4|20}}) || rowspan="4"| Supported by [[Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor]] || rowspan="4"| [[Pope Alexander III|Alexander III]]
|-
|22 Apr 1164 – 28 Sep 1168 || [[Antipope Paschal III|Paschal III]]|| Paschalis Tertius  || Guido di Crema || c. 1110 [[Crema, Lombardy]], [[Papal States]] || 54 / 58 || {{age in years and days|1164|4|22|1168|9|28}} ({{age in days|1164|4|22|1168|9|28}} days)
|-
|Sep 1168 – 29 Aug 1178  || [[Antipope Callixtus III|Callixtus III]]|| Callixtus Tertius  || Giovanni of Struma || c. 1090 [[Arezzo]], [[Papal States]]|| 78 / 88 (†90) || {{age in years and days|1168|9|1|1178|8|29}} ({{age in days|1168|9|1|1178|8|29}} days)
|-
|29 Sep 1179 – Jan 1180 || [[Antipope Innocent III|Innocent III]]  || Innocentius Tertius || Lanzo of Sezza || c. 1120 [[Sezze]], [[Papal States]] || 59 / 60 (†63) || {{age in years and days|1179|9|28|1180|1|1}} ({{age in days|1179|9|28|1180|1|1}} days)
|-
|12 May 1328 – 12 Aug 1330 ||[[Antipope Nicholas V|Nicholas V]]|| Nicolaus Quintus  || Pietro Rainalducci || c. 1258 [[Corvaro]], [[Papal States]] ||70 / 74 || {{age in years and days|1328|5|12|1330|8|12}} ({{age in days|1328|5|12|1330|8|12}} days)  || Supported by [[Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor]] || [[Pope John XXII|John XXII]]
|-
|rowspan="2" | 20 Sep 1378 – 16 Sep 1394
|rowspan="2" | [[Antipope Clement VII|Clement VII]]
|rowspan="2" | Clemens 
|rowspan="2" | Robert of Geneva 
|rowspan="2" |1342 [[Annecy]], [[Kingdom of Franks|France]]
|rowspan="2" | 36/52
|rowspan="2" | {{age in years and days|1378|9|20|1394|9|16}} ({{age in days|1378|9|20|1394|9|16}} days)
|rowspan="2" | ''[[Avignon Papacy|Avignon]]'' 
|[[Pope Urban VI|Urban VI]]
|-
| rowspan = "2" | [[Pope Boniface IX|Boniface IX]]
|-
|rowspan="4" | 28 Sep 1394 – 23 May 1423
|rowspan="4" | [[Antipope Benedict XIII|Benedict XIII]]
|rowspan="4" | Benedictus
|rowspan="4" | Pedro de Luna
|rowspan="4" | 25 November 1328 [[Illueca]], [[Crown of Aragon|Aragon]]
|rowspan="4" | 65/94
|rowspan="4" | {{age in years and days|1394|9|28|1423|5|23}} ({{age in days|1394|9|28|1423|5|23}} days)
|rowspan="4" | ''[[Avignon Papacy|Avignon]]''
|-
|[[Pope Innocent VII|Innocent VII]]
|-
|[[Pope Gregory XII|Gregory XII]]
|-
|[[Pope Martin V|Martin V]]
|-
|25 Jun 1409 – 3 May 1410 ||[[Antipope Alexander V|Alexander V]]* || Alexander || Pietro Philarghi || c. 1339 [[Crete]], [[Republic of Venice]] || 70 / 71 || {{age in years and days|1409|6|25|1410|5|3}} ({{age in days|1409|6|25|1410|5|3}} days) || ''[[Council of Pisa|Pisa]]'' || rowspan="2"|[[Pope Gregory XII|Gregory XII]]
|-
 |25 May 1410 – 29 May 1415   || [[Antipope John XXIII|John XXIII]] || Ioannes Vicecimus Tertius || Baldassare Cossa || c. 1365 || 45 / 50 (†54) || {{age in years and days|1410|5|25|1415|5|31}} ({{age in days|1410|5|25|1415|5|31}} days)|| ''[[Council of Pisa|Pisa]]''
|-
|10 Jun 1423 – 26 Jul 1429 || [[Antipope Clement VIII|Clement VIII]] || Clemens Octavus|| Gil Sánchez Muñoz y Carbón || 1370 [[Teruel]], [[Crown of Aragon|Aragon]] || 52 / 59 (†77) || {{age in years and days|1423|6|10|1429|7|29}} ({{age in days|1423|6|10|1429|7|29}} days) || [[Avignon Papacy|Avignon]] || rowspan="3"| [[Pope Martin V|Martin V]]
|-
|1424–1430 || [[Antipope Benedict XIV#1st Benedict XIV|Benedict XIV]]|| Benedictus Quartus Decimus || Bernard Garnier || 1370 [[France]] || 54 / 59 (†89) || {{age in years and days|1424|1|1|1430|7|31}} ({{age in days|1424|1|1|1430|7|31}} days) || Claimed successor to [[Antipope Benedict XIII|Benedict XIII]] –&nbsp;aka "The hidden pope" &nbsp;
|-
|1430–1437 || [[Antipope Benedict XIV#2nd Benedict XIV|Benedict XIV]]|| Benedictus Quartus Decimus|| Jean Carrier || c. 1370 [[France]]  || 59 / 66 ||{{age in years and days|1430|1|1|1437|8|31}} ({{age in days|1430|1|1|1437|8|31}} days) || 
|-
|rowspan="2" | 5 Nov 1439 – 7 Apr 1449
|rowspan="2" | [[Antipope Felix V|Felix V]]
|rowspan="2" | Fœlix 
|rowspan="2" | Duke Amadeus VIII of Savoy 
|rowspan="2" | 4 September 1383 [[Chambéry]], [[Savoy]]
|rowspan="2" | 56/65 (†67)
|rowspan="2" | {{age in years and days|1439|11|5|1449|4|7}} ({{age in days|1439|11|5|1449|4|7}})
|rowspan="2" | Elected by the [[Council of Florence|Council of Basel]] 
|[[Pope Eugene IV|Eugene IV]]
|-
| [[Pope Nicholas V|Nicholas V]]
|-
|}

=== Quasi-cardinal-nephews ===
{{Main|List of cardinal-nephews}}
Many antipopes created cardinals, known as ''[[quasi-cardinal]]s'', and a few created [[cardinal-nephew]]s, known as ''quasi-cardinal-nephews''.
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width:100%"
!  width="10%" | Quasi-cardinal
!  width="11%" | Nephew of
!  width="10%" | Elevated
!  width="*" | Notes
|- valign="top"
|Giacomo Alberti
|[[Antipope Nicholas V]]
|15 May 1328
|[[Excommunicated]] by [[Pope John XXII]].<ref name="mxiv">{{cite web| last=Miranda| first=Salvador| year=1998| url=https://cardinals.fiu.edu/consistories-xiv.htm |title=14th Century (1303–1404)| work=The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church| publisher=Florida International University| access-date=26 June 2023}}</ref>
|-
|[[Amedeo Saluzzo]]
|[[Antipope Clement VII]]
|23 Dec 1383
|Abandoned [[Antipope Benedict XIII]] after having been deposed by him on 21 October 1408; participated in the [[Council of Pisa]], the election of [[Pope Alexander V]] (now regarded as an antipope), the [[Council of Constance]], and the conclave of [[Pope Martin V]].<ref name="mxiv"/>
|-
|[[Tommaso Brancaccio]]
|[[Antipope John XXIII]]
|6 Jun 1411
|Attended the [[Council of Constance]], and the conclave of [[Pope Martin V]].<ref>{{cite web| last=Miranda| first=Salvador| year=1998| url=https://cardinals.fiu.edu/bios1411.htm#Lando |work=The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church: Biographical Dictionary| title=Antipope&#93; John XXIII (1410–1415): Consistory of 6 June 1411 (I)| publisher=Florida International University| access-date=26 June 2023}}</ref>
|-
|[[Gil Sánchez Muñoz]]
|[[Antipope Clement VIII]]
|26 Jul 1429
|Submitted to [[Pope Martin V]] after his uncle abdicated.<ref name="mxv">{{cite web| last=Miranda| first=Salvador| year=1998| url=https://cardinals.fiu.edu/consistories-xv.htm| title=15th Century (1404–1503)| work=The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church| publisher=Florida International University}}</ref>
|}

== Modern minor claimants ==
The concept of the antipope has continued into the modern day, with most current claimants being adherents to the [[Sedevacantism|Sedevacantist]] movement, a loose collection of [[Traditionalist Catholicism|traditionalist Catholics]] who consider the more liberal decisions made during the 1962–1965 [[Second Vatican Council]] to be heretical, rendering all subsequent popes illegitimate.<ref name="IUP">{{citation |last=Appleby |first=R. Scott |author-link=R. Scott Appleby |title=Being Right: Conservative Catholics in America |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yUqp1_31B-MC&pg=PA257 |publisher=[[Indiana University Press]] |year=1995 |page=257 |isbn=978-0253329226}}</ref> However, the term "antipope" is rarely used in reference to these modern pretenders, likely due to their small followings and lack of influence in the mainstream Roman Catholic Church. Professor [[Magnus Lundberg]] of the [[University of Uppsala]] coined the term "Alternative Popes" to refer to these modern minor Popes.<ref name="AltPope">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2025/04/17/the-alternative-pope-project/ |title=The Alternative Pope Project |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>

Modern Popes include:

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width:100%"
!  width="10%" | Lay name
!  width="11%" | Papal name
!  width="10%" | Time as antipope
!  width="10%" | Associated Church
!  width="*" | Notes
|- valign="top"
|Michel Collin
|Clement XV
|1950-1974
|rowspan="2"|[[Apostles of Infinite Love]]
|In 1950, Collin declared that he had received a vision that God had crowned him Pope, and took the name Clement XV. Despite technically existing in opposition to [[Pius XII]] and [[John XXIII]] he supported their papacies, but believed they were being suppressed by the [[Roman Curia]] and only openly opposed [[Paul VI]].<ref name="AOIL">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2016/05/14/modern-alternative-popes-2-apostles-of-infinite-love-clement-xv/ |title=Modern Alternative Popes 2: Apostles of Infinite Love, France |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|Michel Lavallée, also known as Fr. Mathurin de la Mère de Dieu
|Gregory XVIII
|January 2012 – present
|The chosen successor of Michel Collin after Jean-Gaston Tremblay split from the Apostles of Infinite Love.<ref name="AOIL-ML">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://wrldrels.org/2020/06/07/apostles-of-infinite-love/
|title=Apostles of Infinite Love |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|[[Jean-Gaston Tremblay]]
|Gregory XVII (French: ''Grégoire XVII'') also known as John-Gregory XVII (''Jean-Grégoire XVII'')
|May 1969-31 December 2011
|
*Apostles of Infinite Love (formerly)
*Canadian Apostles of Infinite Love
|Initially a follower of Michel Collin (''Clement XV'') and Collin's designated successor, he split with the Apostles of Infinite Love in 1968 and declared himself pope. According to him, God had not given him the title of "Pope", but rather "Shepard of the Church".<ref name="AOIL"/>
|-
|Giuseppe Zani
|Rabbi or Rabi
|1974–present
|Independent
|The leader of a religious group located in [[Brescia]] which spiritually recognise Michel Collins as Clement XV, but are otherwise not connected to the Apostles of Infinite Love.<ref name="AOIL"/> 
|-
|Timothy Joseph Blasio Atila
|rowspan="4"|n/a{{refn|group=note|The Legio Maria Popes do not assume Papal names but rather place "Pope" at the beginning of their full name,. ie: Raphael Titus Otieno would be Pope Raphael Titus Otieno, however sometimes this is shortened to Pope "last name" for convenience, ie: Pope Otieno.}}
|1964–1998
|rowspan="4"|[[Legio Maria]]
|The first Pope of the Legio Maria following the death of Simeo Ondeto.<ref name="Legio Maria">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2016/05/15/alternative-popes-4-the-legio-maria-of-african-mission-church/
|title=Modern Alternative Popes 4: The Legio Maria |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>{{refn|group=note|Simeon Ondeto is sometimes considered as the first Pope of the Legio Maria, but the group themselves refer to Ondeto as the Messiah, not a Pope.}}
|-
|Maria Pius Lawrence Jairo Chiaji Adera
|1998–2004
|The second Pope of the Legio Maria.<ref name="Legio Maria"/>
|-
|Raphael Titus Otieno 
|2004–present
|The third Pope of the Legio Maria. His Papacy has been disputed by Romanus On’gombe since 2010.<ref name="Legio Maria"/>
|-
|Romanus Alphonsus On’gombe
|2010–present
|A Pope in opposition to Raphael Otieno, whose Papacy he disputes. This has caused the Legio Maria to have two Popes, whose supporters violently clash with each other.<ref name="Legio Maria"/> 
|-
|[[Clemente Domínguez y Gómez]], also known as Fernando María de la Santa Faz
|Gregory XVII
|1978–2005
|rowspan="4"|[[Palmarian Catholic Church]]
|An alleged seer, visionary, and mystic. Following the death of [[Paul VI]], he founded the Palmarian Catholic Church and declared himself the 263rd Pope in opposition to [[John Paul I]] and later [[John Paul II]].<ref name="Palmarian">{{cite web |last=Lundberg |first=Magnus |date=2015 |title=Palmar de Troya: Holy Catholic Apostolic Palmarian Church |location=Richmond, VA |website=Partnership for Understanding World Religions and Spirituality at Virginia Commonwealth University |url=http://wrs.vcu.edu/ARTICLES/PALMARIAN%20CATHOLIC%20CHURCH/Palmarian%20Catholic%20Church..pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160406111805/http://wrs.vcu.edu/ARTICLES/PALMARIAN%20CATHOLIC%20CHURCH/Palmarian%20Catholic%20Church..pdf |archive-date=2016-04-06}}</ref>
|-
|[[Manuel Alonso Corral]], also known as Isidoro María de la Santa Faz
|Peter II
|March 2005-July 2011
|The second Pope of the Palmarian Catholic Church and claimed to be the 264th Pope in opposition to [[John Paul II]] and [[Benedict XVI]].<ref name="Palmarian"/>
|-
|[[Ginés Jesús Hernández|Ginés Jesús Hernández y Martínez]], also known as Sergio María de la Santa Faz
|Gregory XVIII
|July 2011-April 2016
|The third Pope of the Palmarian church and claimed to be the 265th Pope in opposition to [[Benedict XVI]] and [[Pope Francis]]. In April 2016 he abdicated and left the church, then reconciled with the [[Vatican City|Vatican]].<ref name="Palmarian"/>
|-
|[[Joseph Odermatt|Markus Josef Odermatt]], also known as Eliseo María de la Santa Faz
|Peter III
|April 2016 – present
|The fourth Pope of the Palmarian church and claimed to be the 266th Pope in opposition to [[Pope Francis]] and [[Leo XIV]].<ref name="Palmarian"/>
|-
|Gino Frediani
|Immanuel I
|1974-1984
|New Universal Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus
|He claimed to receive a vision from the Prophet [[Habakkuk]] to build a Holy Church to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. He is the only Pope of the church, as his followers believe that he will return from Heaven to save them.<ref name="Gino Frediani">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2016/05/15/modern-alternative-popes-the-new-universal-church-of-the-sacred-heart-of-jesus/
|title=Modern Alternative Popes 6: The New Universal Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>  
|-
|Chester Olszewski
|
*Chriszekiel Elias
*Christen Elias
*Peter II
|31 May 1977-?
|Holy Family Catholic Church
|An [[Episcopalian]] priest from the [[United States of America|United States]], he became obsessed with a bleeding statue owned by a woman called Anne Poore, and believed it was his mission to restore Catholicism, declaring himself Pope and founding the Holy Family Catholic Church alongside some friends.<ref name="Chester Olszewski">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2022/01/17/the-pope-of-eddystone-pennsylvania/
|title=The Pope of Eddystone, Pennsylvania |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref> 
|-
|[[Francis Schuckardt|Francis Konrad Schuckardt]]
|Hadrian VII
|Unclear, post-[[Vatican II|1962]]
|[[Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen]]
|A [[Sedevacantism|sedevacantist]], he was one of the most well-known opponents of [[Vatican II]] and founded the Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen. Although never publicly declaring himself as an antipope, an authorised biography by a member of the church refers to him as "Hadrian VII", and has an illustration of him receiving the [[Papal Tiara]].<ref name="Francis Schuckardt">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2024/08/30/new-research-report-francis-schuckardt-the-papacy-and-the-apocalypse/
|title=New Research Report: Francis Schuckardt, the Papacy, and the Apocalypse |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref> 
|-
|Aimé Baudet
|
*Peter II
*Peter Athanasius II
|c. 1984-?
|[[Palmarian Catholic Church]] (formerly)
|Possibly an [[urban legend]], there are reports that this individual was crowned Pope at [[St. Peter's Tomb]] in 1984.<ref name="Aimé & Dubois">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2016/05/15/modern-alternative-popes-9-two-uncertain-cases/
|title=Modern Alternative Popes 9: Two Uncertain Cases |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref> 
|-
|Pierre-Henri Dubois
|Peter II
|n/a
|
*[[Eastern Orthodox Church]]
**[[Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople]]
|Erroneously reported as an antipope, he was in fact elected as [[Orthodox Archdiocese of Belgium and exarchate of the Netherlands and Luxembourg|Patriarch of Belgium]] under the name Peter IV.<ref name="Aimé & Dubois"/>
|-
|Olinto Vestini, also known as Valeriano Vestini
|Valerian I
|1990-1995
|Missionary Order for the Salvation of Souls
|Previously a member of the [[Capuchin order]], he was informed by seers that he had been elected as Pope by divine intervention. He then created the Missionary Order for the Salvation of Souls and declared himself antipope in opposition to [[John Paul II]], but in 1995 left the mission and rejoined the Capuchins.<ref name="Olinto Vestini">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2016/05/15/modern-alternative-popes-10-the-missionary-order-for-the-salvation-of-souls/
|title=Modern Alternative Popes 10: The Missionary Order for the Salvation of Souls |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|Maurice Archieri
|Peter II (French: ''Pierre II'')
|1995-2016
|Independent
|He received a vision where the [[Holy Ghost]] elected him Pope and called himself Paul II. He didn't oppose the Vatican per se, but believed that the Vatican Pope was the material head of a different religion and thus he was the true Pope.<ref name="Maurice Archieri">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2023/06/12/maurice-archieri-the-french-vicar-of-christ/
|title=Maurice Archieri: The French Vicar of Christ |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|Julius Tischler
|Peter II
|c. 1998
|Independent
|Little is known about Julius, except that he was a German man who declared himself Pope in 1998,<ref name="Tischler, Chung, & Benjamins">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2016/05/15/modern-alternative-popes-13-two-little-known-cases/
|title=Modern Alternative Popes 12: Three Little Known Cases |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref> however Joachim Bouflet asserts that this may be the pseudonym of Franz Engelhardt, or that Julius would be the last Pope to exist, being consecrated in 1998, based off a claim made in 1972.<ref name="Franz Engelhardt"/>
|-
|Thsung Zhong Huai-de, also known as Robert Chung
|Pius XIV
|1999-2002
|Independent ([[Traditional Catholicism|Traditionalist]])
|He claimed to have been elected as Pope in [[Taipei]] in a 1999 Conclave with 75 traditionalist clergy present.<ref name="Tischler, Chung, & Benjamins"/>
|-
|Reinaldus Michael Benjamins, also known as Brother Raymond of the Trinity
|Gregory XIX
|2001-c. 2005
|Independent
|A clergyman from [[Malone, New York]], he declared himself Pope in 2001 and was active till at least 2005.<ref name="Tischler, Chung, & Benjamins"/>
|-
|Mathias Vigan
|Christopher XVIII (French: ''Christophe XVIII'')
|2012–present
|The Most Holy Church of Jesus Christ, Banamè Mission (French: ''La Très Sainte Église de Jésus-Christ, Mission de Banamè'')
|Previously a [[Catholic]] Priest, during an exorcism of a woman called Vicentia Tchranvoukinni she convinced him of a mission to "renew" the Catholic Church. When the pair were declared heretics and apostates in 2011, Vicentia crowned Vigan as Pope.<ref name="Mathias Vigan">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2020/04/07/new-study-on-pope-christophe-xviii-and-la-tres-sainte-eglise-de-jesus-christ-mission-de-baname-in-benin/
|title=New Study on Pope Christophe XVIII and La Très Sainte Église de Jésus-Christ, Mission de Banamè in Benin |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|William Kamm, also known as Little Pebble
|Peter II
|The future
|Order of Saint Charbel
|Kamm and his followers do not directly oppose the Vatican, instead they believe that Kamm will eventually succeed the Pope as the prophesised Peter II, and lead the Papacy during the apocalypse.<ref name="William Kamm">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2016/05/15/modern-alternative-popes-14-william-kamm/
|title=Modern Alternative Popes 14: William Kamm |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|[[David Bawden]]
|Michael I
|July 1990-August 2022
|rowspan="2"|The Vatican in Exile
|A leader of the [[conclavism]] movement, Bawden was elected Pope during a conclave in 1990 composed of his friends and family and subsequently established the Vatican in Exile, ordaining bishops and other clergymen.<ref name="VATinEX">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://wrldrels.org/2023/02/04/pope-michael/
|title=Pope Michael |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|[[Rogelio del Rosario Martinez|Rogelio del Rosario Martinez Jr.]]
|Michael II
|August 2023 – present
|The second conclavist antipope after Bawden, Martinez was elected in a conclave held in [[Vienna]].<ref name="VATinEX"/>
|-
|Victor Von Pentz
|Linus II
|June 1994 – 2021
|Independent ([[Sedevacantism|Sedevacantist]])
|An antipope elected at a [[Sedevacantism|sedevacantist]] Papal election in [[Assisi]] who believed that the Popes elected following [[Vatican II]] were heretics.<ref name="Victor Von Pentz">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2023/08/25/the-invisible-pope-linus-ii-and-the-1994-assisi-conclave/
|title=The Invisible Pope: Linus II and the 1994 Assisi Conclave |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|Lucian Pulvermacher
|
*Pius XIII
*Peter II
|October 1998 – 2009
|Catholic Church{{refn|group=note|Strictly speaking, the Catholic Church considers itself to be the same as the [[Catholic Church]], and emphasise that the "the" in "the Catholic Church" should remain uncapitalized.}} ([[Sedevacantism|Sedevacantist]])
|A former [[Capuchin order|Capuchin]] elected in a small layman conclave in [[Montana]], Pulvermacher became the head of the Catholic Church in exile. Following his death, the process of electing a new Pope began, but as of 2025, they haven't elected a new Pope.<ref name="Victor Von Pentz" />
|-
|Joaquín Llorens Grau
|Alexander IX
|2005–present
|Congregación Mercedaria Sagrada Tradición Nuestra Señora de la Merced, Generala de los Ejércitos Celestiales, Corredentora
|A part of the traditionalist missionary Congregación founded by Antonio Velasco, Grau was elected as Pope in the group's first conclave and opposes [[Pope Francis]] and [[Leo XIV]].<ref name="Joaquín Grau">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2016/05/15/modern-alternative-popes-20-the-catholic-and-mercedarian-church/
|title=Modern Alternative Popes 19: The Catholic and Mercedarian Church |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|Oscar Michaelli
|Leo XIV
|2006-2008
|Rowspan="3"|The Catholic Apostolic Remnant Church
|rowspan="3"|Supposedly three Argentinian priests that believed in [[sedevacantism]] and were elected as subsequent Popes, the church is regarded as a hoax since it has never been able to prove its existence beyond a webpage.<ref name="TCARC">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2016/05/15/modern-alternative-popes-20-a-papal-hoax/
|title=Modern Alternative Popes 20: A Papal Hoax |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|Juan Bautista Bonetti
|Innocent XIV
|March–May 2008
|-
|Alejandro Greico
|Alexander IX
|24 May 2008 – present
|-
|Bryan Richard Clayton
|Athanasius I
|2011-? (possibly 2012)
|Hasidean Catholic Church
|A travelling exorcist, he held the belief that all Popes after [[Leo XIII]] were antipopes since [[Pius X]] reformed the [[Roman Breviary]]. He held a conclave to elect himself as Pope Athanasius and founded the Hasidean Catholic Church, however some of his followers believe he excommunicated himself in 2012 when he changed the words he used in his Mass from [[Latin]] ones to [[Hebrew]] ones.<ref name="Bryan Clayton">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2016/05/15/modern-alternative-popes-21-athanasius-i/
|title=Modern Alternative Popes 21: Athanasius I |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|Douglas Kuzell
|[[Prophecy of the Popes|Petrus Romanus]] (Peter II)
|c. 2010-
|Faithful Remnant
|Kuzell and his wife Teresa Jackson believe themselves to be the last two witnesses mentioned in the [[Book of Revelation]], and additionally that Douglas is the last Pope, Petrus Romanus, mentioned in a prophecy about the Bible.<ref name="Douglas Kuzell">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2017/11/10/the-faithful-remnant-and-the-canadian-last-pope/
|title=The Faithful Remnant and the Canadian Last Pope |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref> 
|-
|Antonio José Hurtado
|Peter II (Spanish: ''Pedro II'')
|1939-1955
|Independent
|A Colombian self-trained [[dentist]], Hurtado believed he would be the Pope to succeed [[Pius XI]], however after getting mocked for his belief follow Pius' death and rejected by the Vatican, he declared himself the antipope and established a journal, ''El Emmanuel'', to spread his beliefs, however he never gained much of a following outside his hometown of [[Barbosa, Antioquia|Barbosa]] and was buried as a Roman Catholic.<ref name="Antonio Hurtado">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2017/02/04/modern-alternative-popes-23-colombian-pedro-ii/
|title=Modern Alternative Popes 23: Colombian Pedro II |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|Ubaldo Rolón
|Pedro Segundo (Spanish: ''Peter II'')
|2007-2016
|The Church of Jesus
|A "transcendent [[Peronism|peronist]]" and member of the [[Iron Guard (Argentina)|Iron Guard]], he received visions that he was "Peter, the Prince of the Apostles" and the last Pope. He subsequently declared himself Pedro Segundo and began to spread his teachings in a movement called The Church of Jesus until he died in 2016.<ref name="Ubaldo Rolón">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2017/02/12/modern-alternative-popes-24-argentinean-pedro-segundo/
|title=Modern Alternative Popes 24: Argentinean Pedro Segundo |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|Giuseppe Maria Abbate
|n/a{{refn|group=note|Abbate didn't have a Papal name, but rather used a variety of titles for himself including: Celestial Messenger (Italian: ''Messaggero Celeste''), Celestial Father (Italian: ''Padre Celeste''), Universal Protector, St. Michael the Archangel, the Prince of Peace, God’s Vicar on Earth, and
the Celestial King.}}
|1917-1963
|New Jerusalem Catholic Church
|An Italian-American immigrant who ran a barbershop, Giuseppe believed he was divinely ordained to be the Celestial Messenger when he had a vision of [[Jesus]] walking into his barbershop, ordaining him as a priest, and telling him to found a new Church. Giuseppe did so, and directly opposed the Catholic Church and the Pope.<ref name="Giuseppe Abbate">{{cite book |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |last2=Craig |first2=James W. |date=2018 |title=Giuseppe Maria Abbate: The Italian-American Celestial Messenger |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/uppsala-studies-vol-7-lundberg-craig.pdf |location=[[Uppsala]] |publisher=Department of Theology, Uppsala University |access-date=15 November 2025}}</ref>
|-
|Adam Anthony Oraczewski
|Adam II
|1927-1973
|Independent
|A suspended Roman Catholic priest, in 1927 he published ''All in One True Faith'' which depicted himself wearing Papal robes and declared that he was Pope Adam II, and proposed a radical ecclesiastical reform that he believed would bring greater piety and human unity. He continued calling himself Adam II until his death in 1973.<ref name="Adam Oraczewski">{{cite book |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |date= 2025 |title=A Polish-American Pope: Adam Oraczewsk -Adam II |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/uppsala-studies-19-lundberg.pdf |location=[[Uppsala]] |publisher=Department of Theology, Uppsala University |access-date=15 November 2025}}</ref>
|-
|Franz Engelhardt, also known as Ferenc Egerszégi and possibly as Julius Tischler
|Peter II
|Future
|Independent
|He claimed to be mystically present at [[Fatimah]] during the [[Marian apparition]]s that happened in 1917, and that he was the 'fourth seer' who had received a message about the Apocalypse. He therefore claimed that he was the future Peter II, however when he was arrested by the [[Bundesgrenzschutz]] and sentenced for the sexual abuse of minors, his followers disappeared.<ref name="Franz Engelhardt">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2025/04/13/franz-engelhardt-the-fourth-seer-of-fatima-and-future-pope-peter-ii/
|title=Franz Engelhardt: The Fourth Seer of Fatima and Future Pope Peter II |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|Ján Maria Michał Kowalski
|n/a
|n/a
|[[Catholic Mariavite Church]]
|Although he never made the claim himself, his supporters saw him as the 'Slavic Pope' that Polish nationalist authors wrote about and subsequently viewed Popes [[Benedict XV]] and [[Pius XI]] as illegitimate.<ref name="Ján Kowalski">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2019/07/27/the-slavic-pope-jan-maria-michal-kowalski-and-the-mariavites/
|title=The Slavic Pope? Jan Maria Michał Kowalski and the Mariavites |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|Mario Samuele Morcia
|Supreme Pontiff Samuele
|2015–present
|The Universal Christian Church of the New Jerusalem
|Elected as Supreme Pontiff following the establishment of the Universal Church, Samuele has opposed [[Pope Francis]], seeing him as illegitimate.<ref name="Mario Morcia">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |title=Baby Jesus and the Universal Christian Church of the New Jerusalem in Gallinaro, Italy |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/bambino-gesu-finished3.pdf |website=magnuslundberg.net |access-date=15 December 2025 |date=2020-07-01}}</ref>
|-
|Eduardo Dávila Garza
|Eduardo I
|1933-1985
|Iglesia Católica Apostolica Mexicana
|Born into the Iglesia Católica Apostolica Mexicana, Eduardo rose through the ranks until he succeeded Patriarch José Joquín Pérez Budar, where he subsequently assumed the title of "Pope and Supreme Pontiff of Mexico and the Americas". His church got into conflicts with the Roman Catholic church in Mexico, however after his death in 1985 the support for his movement dwindled and no-one was ever elected as his successor.<ref name="Eduardo Garza">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2021/04/19/eduardo-davila-pope-eduardo-i/ |title=Eduardo Dávila – Pope Eduardo I |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|Tsietsi Daniel Makiti
|n/a
|2017–present
|Gabola Church
|Formerly a priest of the [[Old Apostolic Church]], he left that church after having a spiritual revelation to found a new church where individuals worship through the consumption of [[alcoholic beverage]]s. The Catholic Church has declared Makiti to be a heretic.<ref name="Tsietsi Makiti">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2023/06/21/pope-tsietsi-makiti-and-the-gabola-church/ |title=Pope Tsietsi Makiti and the Gabola Church |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|-
|Philbert London
|Emmanuel
|?-2024
|Beacon Ministries and the House of Majesty
|A [[televangelism|televangelist]], he declared himself to be Pope Emmanuel and the true voice of God.<ref name="Tsietsi Makiti"/>
|-
|Valdir Ros
|Pedro II
|1985-1994
|Instituto Estrela Missionária
|Considered to be mentally ill by Bishop Adriano Hypólito of the Nova Iguaçu diocese, Ros formed his own mission in his own house and began to host ever more charismatic sermons. When he was confronted by Bishop Adriano for preaching whilst not being ordained, he publicly declared that all Popes from [[John XXIII]] to [[John Paul II]] were heretics and renounced [[Vatican II]], declaring himself as Pope Pedro II. He continued to claim the Papacy up until his death in 1994, when his followers mostly dispersed.<ref name="Valdir Ros">{{cite web |last1=Lundberg |first1=Magnus |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2024/09/08/new-research-report-on-valdir-ros-pedro-ii-the-pope-of-nova-iguacu-brazil/ |title=New Research Report on Valdir Ros – Pedro II: The Pope of Nova Iguaçu, Brazil |access-date=15 November 2025 |language=English}}</ref>
|}

Other minor and less public antipopes exist, including controversial spiritual leaders who may face such accusations from their detractors. The Filipino priest Rufino S. Magliba, head of the Crusaders Divine Church of Christ in [[San Fabian, Pangasinan]], [[Philippines]], has frequently been accused of being an antipope, but there are no reliable sources that he himself has ever made such claims.{{Citation needed|date=November 2025}}

== Antipopes of Alexandria ==
The [[Patriarch of Alexandria]], the historical center of Christianity in [[Egypt]] since the Roman Empire, has historically also held the [[Pope (title)|title of pope]], and as a result, a person who claims that title in direct opposition to a generally accepted pope of Alexandria may be considered an antipope. The title is simultaneously claimed by the [[Coptic Orthodox Patriarch of Alexandria|Coptic Orthodox Church]], the [[List of Greek Orthodox patriarchs of Alexandria|Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria]], the [[Coptic Catholic Patriarchate of Alexandria|Coptic Catholic Church]], and the [[Melkite Catholic Patriarchate of Antioch|Melkite Catholic Church]] (the latter two, while being in full communion with Rome, still maintain the position of Patriarch of Alexandria as a significant church leader).

In the modern day, with the rise of [[ecumenism]] and the recognition of Christianity's complicated history, these four men typically do not view one another as antipopes, but rather as successors to different lines of [[apostolic succession]] resulting from theological disputes in the fifth century.  However, there have been certain instances where the official declaration of an antipope has been deemed necessary.  For example, in 2006 former [[lector]] of the Coptic Orthodox Church Max Michel, who had previously formed the independent St. Athanasius Church, declared himself Archbishop of Egypt and the Middle East under the name Maximus I, effectively becoming an antipope of Alexandria. His claims to the Alexandrian papacy were formally dismissed in a joint statement by both the Coptic Orthodox [[Pope Shenouda III of Alexandria|Pope Shenouda III]] and [[Patriarch Theodore II of Alexandria|Pope Theodore II]] of the Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.copticpope.org/downloads/commondec/commondec-2-2006eng.pdf |title=Common Statement Between The Coptic Orthodox Church and the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria and all Africa Regarding Max Michel |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080511170645/http://www.copticpope.org/downloads/commondec/commondec-2-2006eng.pdf |archive-date=2008-05-11 |access-date=3 October 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Similarly, during the schism that happened in the [[Armenian Catholic Church]] during 1873, an election was held which voted [[Jacob Pahtiarian]] into the position of Patriarch of the [[Patriarchate of Cilicia]], which was in opposition to the Pope-appointed Patriarch, [[Andon Bedros IX Hassoun]]. Pahtiarian was referred by some as an "anti-Patriarch".<ref name="TheTabletQuartussupra">{{Cite news |date=22–29 March 1873 |title=Encyclical Letter of His Holiness Pope Pius IX. The Affairs of the Armenian Church. |work=[[The Tablet]] |url=https://archive.org/details/encyclical-quartus-supra-pope-pius-ix/}}</ref>

On the other hand, some scholars are less willing to refer to such pretenders as "antipopes", as the term has historically been used in reference to those who claim to be the bishop of Rome, the apostolic successors to [[Saint Peter]], while the patriarchate of Alexandria originated with [[Saint Mark]].<ref name="LundbergAntipope"/>

==Papal conspiracy theories==
Some [[Sedevacantism|sedevacantist]] conspiracy theorists consider the incumbent Pope to be the antipope, as, for various reasons, they believe that the incumbent Pope is illegitimate. For supporters of the [[Giuseppe Siri conspiracy theory]], which holds that white smoke seen on the first day of the conclave was announcing the selection of [[Giuseppe Siri]] as Pope Gregory XVII until he was forced to stand down, the Pope that was elected in Siri's place, [[John XXIII]], was an antipope as Siri was still the lawfully elected Pope.<ref name="Giuseppe Siri">{{cite web |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2016/05/15/modern-alternative-popes-14-the-cardinal-siri-thesis/|title=Modern Alternative Popes 15: The Cardinal Siri Thesis |access-date=15 November 2025}}</ref> Similarly, for supports of [[Benevacantism]], (the belief that Pope [[Benedict XVI]] did not validly resign), [[Pope Francis]] would be considered an antipope.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Heschmeyer |first=Joe |title=A Response to Patrick Coffin's "Seven Pieces of Evidence That Francis Is an Antipope" |url=https://www.catholic.com/audio/caf/a-response-to-patrick-coffins-seven-pieces-of-evidence-that-francis-is-an-antipope |access-date=2025-03-16 |website=Catholic Answers}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Heschmeyer |first=Joe |title=Was Benedict XVI the True Pope the Whole Time? |url=https://www.catholic.com/magazine/online-edition/was-benedict-xvi-the-true-pope-the-whole-time |access-date=2025-03-16 |website=Catholic Answers}}</ref> A similar fringe theory, "Catholic survivantism" states that Pope [[Paul VI]] (born 1897) is still alive, and thus all successive Popes are antipopes. Believers of this theory also believe that the "Paul VI" that died in 1978 was an actor, and the real Paul VI is being held in prison.<ref name="LundbergAntipope">{{cite web |url=https://magnuslundberg.net/2016/05/14/modern-alternative-popes-1-introduction/|title=Modern Alternative Popes 1: Introduction |access-date=15 November 2025}}</ref>

For [[Conclavism|conclavist]]s, the argument that the current Pope is illegitimate or an antipope (either wholly or [[sedeprivationism|sedeprivationally]]) is important as it lends their own claims and conclaves legitimacy. The most common conclavist claim is that [[Pius XII]] was the last true Pope, and that all subsequent Popes are antipopes, however some place the date even earlier, with the Papacy ending with John XXIII. All these claims center around the reforms of [[Vatican II]] or the publication of the revised [[Roman Rite]], however.<ref name="LundbergAntipope"/>

== In fiction ==
Antipopes have appeared as fictional characters. These may be either in [[historical fiction]], as fictional portraits of well-known historical antipopes or as purely imaginary antipopes.
* [[Jean Raspail]]'s novel ''[[l'Anneau du pêcheur]]'' ("The Fisherman's Ring").<ref>Jean Raspail, ''L'Anneau du pêcheur'', Paris: Albin Michel, 1994. 403 p. {{ISBN|2-226-07590-9}}</ref>
* Gérard Bavoux's novel ''Le Porteur de lumière'' ("The Light-bringer").<ref>Gérard Bavoux, ''Le Porteur de lumière'', Paris: Pygmalion, 1996. p. 329 {{ISBN|2-85704-488-7}}</ref>
* The fictional synth-pop artist [[Santo Cilauro|Zladko Vladcik]] claims to be "The Anti-Pope" in one of his songs.<ref>{{cite AV media|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYo5SHzIz5s| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211122/NYo5SHzIz5s| archive-date=2021-11-22 | url-status=live|title=Zladko Vladcik – I am the Antipope|date=21 January 2007|via=YouTube|access-date=20 August 2015}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
* [[Dan Simmons]]'s novels ''[[Endymion (Simmons novel)|Endymion]]'' and ''[[The Rise of Endymion]]'' feature the character of Father Paul Duré, who becomes Pope [[Pierre Teilhard de Chardin|Teilhard]] I, but a few years later he is deposed and murdered by a secret group of high-ranking cardinals who disagree with his policies. They install a more tractable successor, and Duré is subsequently referred to by church leadership as the antipope. At the end of the last novel, it is mentioned that another person calling himself the pope of the Technocore loyal Catholics is recognized by very few even among that group, and he is also referred to as an antipope.
* In the ''[[Girl Genius]]'' comics series, set in a [[gaslamp fantasy]] version of Europe thrown into chaos by mad science (among other things), there is a brief reference to the existence of seven popes—all of whom apparently ordered a particular text [[Book burning|burned]].
* [[Ralph McInerny]]'s novel ''The Red Hat'' features a schism between liberals and conservatives following the election of a conservative African Pope; the liberal faction elect an Italian cardinal who calls himself "Pius XIII".
* In the video game ''[[Crusader Kings II]]'' by Swedish developer [[Paradox Interactive]], Catholic rulers may appoint one of their bishops as an antipope. An emperor-tier ruler such as the [[Holy Roman Emperor]] may declare war on the [[Papal States]] to install their antipope as the "true" pope, thereby [[vassal]]izing the papacy.
* In the video game ''[[Age of Empires II]],'' the third scenario in the game's [[Frederick Barbarossa|Barbarossa]] campaign is called "Pope and Antipope" and is based on the [[Siege of Crema]] and the subsequent [[Guelphs and Ghibellines|Wars of the Guelphs and Ghibellines]]. 
* In episode 3 of ''[[The Black Adder]]'' (set in the late 15th century), "[[The Archbishop]]", [[Baldrick]] remarks on selling counterfeit papal pardons, that one for the highest crimes requires the signatures of "both popes" (implying one pope and one antipope). At the end of the episode, the [[Abbess|Mother Superior]] of the local [[convent]] informs [[Edmund Blackadder|Edmund]] that he has been [[Excommunication|excommunicated]] by "all three popes".
*''The Last Fisherman'' by Randy England features an anti-pope John XXIV elected in opposition to Pope Brendan I.
*Bud McFarlane's ''Pierced by a Sword'' includes an anti-pope John XXIV who is elected when the assassination attempt on Pope Patrick (fictional successor to [[John Paul II]]) is believed to have succeeded. He commits suicide at the end of the book.
*''[[Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (TV series)|Chilling Adventures of Sabrina]]'' features an antipope who leads the Churches of Darkness. This antipope reigns in the Vatican Necropolis beneath Rome.
* In the TV series ''[[The New Pope]]'', after the fictional Pius XIII is put in a coma, Pope Francis II is elected as a replacement. Francis II later dies and is replaced by John Paul III, the titular protagonist. Pius XIII later wakes up, creating a situation where both men have a claim on the Papacy.

==See also==
* [[Benevacantism]]
* [[List of papal elections]]
* [[Papal conclave]]
* [[Papal selection before 1059]]
* [[Sedevacantism]]
* [[Pretender]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}
{{reflist|group=note}}

== External links and bibliography ==
{{Wiktionary|antipope}}
* [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01582a.htm ''Catholic Encyclopedia'': "Antipope"]
* [https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/28501/antipope ''Encyclopædia Britannica'': "Antipope"]
* [http://media.isnet.org/kristen/Ensiklopedia/AntiPope.html ''The Pope Encyclopaedia'': "Antipope"]
* Kelly, J.N.D, ''The Oxford Dictionary of Popes'', [[Oxford University Press]], US (1986), {{ISBN|0192139649}}.
* Raspail, Jean, '''L'Anneau du pêcheur'', Paris: Albin Michel, 1994. 403 pp.&nbsp;{{ISBN|2226075909}}.
* Bavoux, Gérard, ''Le Porteur de lumière'', Paris: Pygmalion, 1996. 329 pp. {{ISBN|2857044887}}.

{{Antipopes|state=collapsed}}
{{Navboxes
|list=
{{Catholicism}}
{{History of the Catholic Church}}
}}
{{Portal bar|Biography|Christianity}}
{{authority control}}

[[Category:Antipopes| ]]
[[Category:Ecclesiastical titles]]
[[Category:History of the papacy]]
[[Category:Lists of Catholic popes]]