Armor like a knight on horseback. A helmet with bright-colored plumes sticking out. Wide blue and gold-striped pants that can seem almost clown-like. The Swiss Guard, the pope’s iconic bodyguards, ...

Black smoke plumed over the Vatican into the night sky in Rome on Wednesday, signaling the papal conclave did not reach consensus on a successor to Pope Francis − and the cardinals will reconvene at ...

Artist Nationality: Italian; Artist Status: attributed; Inscription original text: Clemens 7; Inscription original text language: Lat; Inscription original text type: text; Inscription position: Upper ...

VATICAN CITY, — They’re some of the most recognizable figures in Vatican City, dressed in bright stripes and carrying ancient weapons. But behind the pageantry, the Swiss Guard is a modern security ...

Pope Francis’s successor will be elected in the coming days in a millennium-old ceremony known as the papal conclave. During the conclave, the 135 eligible Cardinal Electors of the Catholic Church ...

VATICAN CITY — “Conclave” the film may have introduced moviegoers to the spectacular ritual and drama of a modern conclave, but the periodic voting to elect a new pope has been going on for centuries ...

Living in harmony with others requires benevolence, honesty, solidarity and mutual respect, Pope Leo XIV said. Welcoming new recruits from different regions of Switzerland to the Pontifical Swiss ...

Editor's Note: This page is a summary of news for the first day of the conclave on Wednesday, May 7. For the latest news and updates from the papal conclave, read USA TODAY's live updates for Thursday ...