Ten months after his election, Pope Leo XIV officially moved into the historic papal apartments in the Vatican's Apostolic Palace-spaces previously abandoned by Pope Francis. The 70-year-old pontiff, the first American to lead the Catholic Church, chose the resplendent residence for its ceremonial and spiritual significance.
The apartment includes a chapel, library, office, dining room, and a windowed room for Sunday Angelus prayers. Francis had lived in a simple guesthouse since 2013, a choice praised by reformists but criticized by conservatives as symbolic of ecclesiastical humility.
Leo has also resumed use of the Castel Gandolfo summer residence, where he plays tennis and swims on Tuesdays.
