Pope Leo XIV moved into the newly renovated papal apartment in the Apostolic Palace on Saturday, taking up residence in the flat that Pope Francis had famously eschewed during his 12-year papacy, according to the Vatican. The Vatican said Leo would be joined by his closest aides in the apartment, located on the third floor and overlooking St. Peter’s Square.
The apartment had been unused during Francis’ time as pope and underwent extensive renovations over the months leading up to Leo’s move-in, the Associated Press reported. The work aimed to update the apartment’s electric, plumbing and other utilities, which the report said were in dire need of an overhaul to meet current standards.
Francis’ decision not to live in the apartment had been tied to his preference for being surrounded by other people, the AP said. Instead, Francis lived at Santa Marta, an institutional-style residence where visiting priests stay and where cardinals are sequestered during conclaves; under Francis, the practical effect included converting much of the second floor into space for the pope, which reduced the capacity for paying guests.
Leo had been living after his election last May in a small flat in the Vatican’s Palazzo del Sant’Uffizio, the headquarters of the Holy See doctrine office that also contains a handful of private apartments. In recent months as Leo’s move-in date neared, a crane was seen working at the Apostolic Palace site, the report said.
The AP said Leo had taken formal possession of the Apostolic Palace residence in the days after his election, walking through reception rooms and a small chapel reserved for his personal use. The residence had been sealed under papal protocol after Francis died April 21, even though Francis had died in his hotel room at Santa Marta, the report said.
In addition to the change of residence, the Vatican said Leo has begun consolidating his immediate team as his pontificate approaches its one-year mark. Earlier this week, the report said Leo named Archbishop Luis Marín de San Martín of Spain, a fellow Augustinian priest, as head of the Vatican’s charity office.
The Vatican did not say who would move into the apartment with Leo, but the AP reported that Leo has put together a team of four close aides. They include Rimaycuna Inga, described as the pope’s secretary and one of the two men who most often flank him in public, and the Rev. Edward Daniang Daleng, described as vice regent of the papal household and an Augustinian priest from Nigeria, according to the report.
The AP also said Leo named Anton Kappler, a former Swiss Guard lieutenant, as a second administrative aide, along with Piergiorgio Zanetti, described in the report as a former gendarme. The report said conservative commentators have praised Leo’s decision to move into the Apostolic Palace as a sign of respect for the papacy, and it said Leo has made clear he is more comfortable using traditional papal garb and accoutrements.