Pope Leo XIV leads the Angelus prayer, the traditional Sunday prayer, from the window of his study overlooking St. Peter’s SquareImage: keystone
Mar 15, 2026, 3:34 p.mMar 15, 2026, 3:34 p.m
Pope Leo Under the previous Pontiff Francis, the rooms had stood empty for twelve years. They underwent months of renovation after Leo was elected as the first pope from the United States.
The rooms needed to be thoroughly renovated for the head of 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide. Various damages were also repaired. According to Italian media reports, the spacious apartment with its own chapel and library was infested with mold. In addition, water and electrical pipes had to be completely replaced. There was also talk of a leaky roof. It was also said that a fitness room had been installed.
The Pope now lives in St. Peter’s Square.Image: sda
Until now, Leo lived a few hundred meters away
After the election last May, Leo stayed in the apartment he had already used as cardinal. It is located a few hundred meters further in the building of the Vatican religious authority, the Palazzo del Santo Uffizio. On Sunday, for the first time, Leo only had to walk a few meters to say the Sunday prayer from the window of his new apartment, for which tens of thousands had gathered in St. Peter’s Square.
Benedict XVI was the last resident of Leo XIV’s new home.Image: keystone
By moving to the Apostolic Palace, he is taking up another tradition of previous popes. The German Pope Benedict The Argentine justified this by saying that he wanted to live modestly and not isolated in a palace.
Two close employees in the apartment
Leo, on the other hand, had made it clear right after the election that he wanted to return to the Apostolic Palace. In general, the Pope from the USA emphasizes the preservation of tradition. Unlike Francis, he also appears in more formal clothing with the traditional insignia of the head of the Catholic Church.
According to the Vatican, Leo will share the papal apartment with some close associates. These include his two personal secretaries, Edgar Rimaycuna from Peru and Marco Billeri from Italy. According to a report in the newspaper “La Repubblica,” religious sisters from Peru, whom the Pope already knows from his time as bishop in the Andean country, will also be added later. They should take care of the household and the kitchen. (sda/dpa)