Theory:Timeline - Popes

Index → Timey-wimey detector → Timeline - Popes

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This page lists Popes in chronological the order. This timeline is based upon observations of the Doctor Who universe and the events that occur during each of these stories.

Years given are the ones confirmed by DWU stories.

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Timeline

• Saint Peter (1st Pope)

'The pope is the anointed leader of the Holy Catholic Church and derives his authority from those who came before him all the way back to Saint Peter.'

'Ah, yes, Peter. Very interesting man. A powerful speaker.' (PROSE: The Price of Conviction)

• 800: Leo III

'Pope Leo the third?' murmured the Doctor, looking panicked. 'This is the year 800! If that meeting doesn't happen...' His voice trailed off. (PROSE: The Lonely Computer)

• Joan

"Aside from documenting his few recorded appearances within the City of the Saved, any account of Godfather Avatar rapidly becomes as speculative as a biography of Robin Hood or Pope Joan." (PROSE: Of the City of the Saved...)

TOP TEN THINGS WOMEN AREN’T ALLOWED TO DO AND WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT:

3. BECOME POPE

Solution: Become Pope anyway. Oh, all right, you can disguise yourself as a man if you like. Just don’t give it away by giving birth during a procession (I’m looking at you, Joan). (PROSE: Girl Power!)

• 1045: Benedict IX

ANGELO: As you can see, this is the personal recommendation of Pope Benedict IX. In 1045.

DOCTOR: Pope Benedict. Lovely girl. What a night. I knew she was trouble, but she wove a spell with her castanets. (TV: Extremis)

• 1190: Pope

JOANNA: In Rome. His Holiness the Pope will not allow this marriage of mine to that infidel. (TV: The Crusade)

• Honorius

‘Well, well, well! The Grimoire of Pope Honorius!’ The Doctor had seized an ancient leatherbound volume with great excitement. ‘A copy I never knew existed...’ (PROSE: Doctor Who and the Dæmons)

• 1511: Julius II

‘Pope Julius II badgered him into it. But then, Michelangelo chose the subject – the Bible, from Creation to the Last Judgement, a graphic story from beginning to end.’ (PROSE: Managra)

QUOTE? (AUDIO: Fallen Angels)

• 1514: Leo X

NARRATOR: In a small villa several miles away in the town of Marignolle, two of the most powerful men in the land were in conference. One was known as Giovanni de Medici, but was now Pope Leo X. The other was his brother, Guilliano de Medici and captain General of Florence, who had come to meet him. (AUDIO: The Ravelli Conspiracy)

• 15XX: Gregory

"On 14 September, 1752, the country known as England – arguably the most important nation-state on Earth at that point in time – adopted the Gregorian calendar, the system of measuring time that had been championed by Pope Gregory nearly two centuries earlier." (PROSE: Interference - Book One)

• 1589: Pope

Ace thought about it for a second. ‘We drop these two off in 1586? A few days after they disappeared.’

The Doctor grinned. ‘Spot on. Although I think we’ll drop them in France. Wouldn’t want Rudolph catching them again. Not with the Pope baying for their blood.’

• 1609: Pope

The Doctor frowned. "Hmm, I must admit to a slight worry. Being mistaken for an emissary of the Pope in Venice in 1609 is, perhaps, not the safest thing that could have happened." (PROSE: The Empire of Glass)

• 1799: Pius VI

"By all the sodomized choirboys of Pope Pius VI, thought Erskine, things are going from bad to worse around here." (PROSE: Christmas on a Rational Planet)

• 1887: Leo XIII

"I was hit by a sudden crashing realization, and so when Holmes turned his head and said, 'Watson, may I introduce His Holiness, Pope Leo XIII,' I was at least half prepared." (PROSE: All-Consuming Fire)

• Pius XII

"The current Conclave chair, Pius XII, was said to be ‘disappointed’ by his successor’s behaviour." (PROSE: A Hundred Words from a Civil War)

• 1968: Paul VI

"La Stampa. 15 March 1968 (trans.): The appearance of the symbol of the Revolution Man on the floor of St Peter’s Cathedral has brought about amazement and consternation in the Vatican. Pope Paul VI is known to be deeply concerned, and it is believed that he considers this the most serious of crimes." (PROSE: Revolution Man)

Then, an American accent spoke out over the radio: 'Pope Paul IV [sic] has expressed his hopes for a peaceful Christmas following the bombings in Milan and Rome earlier this month...' (PROSE: Interesting Times)

• 1981-2005: John Paul II

"Someone tried, in 1981, to take the life of Ronald Reagan. Two months later, someone even took a pop at the Pope in St Peters Square." (PROSE: The Assassin's Story)

"She recognised Prince Charles, Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, Pope John Paul, the Queen …" (PROSE: Nothing O'Clock)

'Well, it's one of the Big Questions, isn't it? Life on other planets. Do you think that Xznaal's a Protestant or a Catholic? The Pope has sought an audience with him, you know.' (PROSE: The Dying Days)

"Then check OB day before, St Peter's, funeral. Again, near the OB unit. Definitely blue box behind one of the stands, too." (PROSE: Have You Seen This Man? ^[+]Loading...["Have You Seen This Man? (short story)"])

NOTE: The date of the funeral happened the day before the Royal Wedding, which AUDIO: One Rule ^[+]Loading...["One Rule (audio story)"] confirms to be in 2005.

• 2005-2008: Benedict XVI

"The new pope hadn’t made a public appearance yet, but the Vatican was insisting he was well and hadn’t been taken when the swarm hit St Peter’s Square." (PROSE: The Gallifrey Chronicles)

NOTE: Benedict XVI is unnamed. Only his image is shown. (TV: The Eleventh Hour ^[+]Loading...["The Eleventh Hour (TV story)"])

• 2097: Pope

‘It’s 2097, Fitz. When in Rome. . . This is a crucial point in Earth’s relations with alien species. The very first papal visit to Mars. The pope is going to consecrate the first cathedral here, and anoint the first native Martian archbishops, and if she’s ext –’ (PROSE: The Gallifrey Chronicles)

• 25XX: Felix VIII

'I once had the pleasure of meeting Pope Felix VIII,' Valeriani was telling me, 'at a presidential reception, when I was last on Earth. He was before your time, of course — a great statesman, though.

It is clear that Valeriani understands people all too well. If he is (as his reference to Pope Felix was obviously intended to suggest) more than a hundred years old (PROSE: Predating the Predators)

• 2621: Cosmas IX

From the personal journal of Monsignora Imogen Tantry, May 2621

"Pope Cosmas IX may be liberal in his relations with extraterrestrial faiths, but he is no fool, and some time ago he assigned me a watching brief to identify any such bodies which might pose a genuine threat to the Church." (PROSE: De Umbris Idearum)

• 2649: Beatrix II, formerly Imogen Tantry (314th Pope)

"...in the Beatrician Crusade against the resurgent Mal’akh, the Pope would proclaim the Church’s duty to bring the Remote under its wing in her 2649 encyclical, De umbris idearum (‘On the Shadows of Ideas’)." (PROSE: De Umbris Idearum)

BEATRIX II, the 314th Pope of the original Roman Catholic Church and a significant figure in resurrected ecclesiastical politics, has been sanctioned by the Conclave of All Popes for her alleged connections with the Sons of Tepes crime cartel. (PROSE: A Hundred Words from a Civil War)

The Old Rome

• Urban IX

'You sound like a schismatic, Doctor. Back on Earth, they refer to the new Rome as Avignon. The new Babylonian captivity. They elected a rival Pope, back in Old Rome. Of course, he called himself Urban IX; and those who have succeeded him as antipope have also taken the name. Swine!' (PROSE: Companion Piece)

• 27XX: Urban XII

'The conclave has begun, and I have heard that Urban XII has left Earth. He feels strong enough to go to Rome and assert his claim in person. The Magellanic Tsar is bound to react. The choice that is made in Rome might cost us our lives.' (PROSE: Companion Piece)

The new Rome

• Athanasius

'The question of the baptism of non-humanoid species split the Church in two. Did they or did they not have souls? ... There were riots, civil wars, governments became embroiled and secular authority also fragmented. Fearing for his safety, Pope Athanasius finally left Earth for Rome.' (PROSE: Companion Piece)

• Sixtus

'But it was clearly established in the reign of His Holiness Pope Sixtus ... that soul-death occurs five to seven years after brain-stem activity ceases. Until that sad event occurs, the throne is not vacant.' (PROSE: Companion Piece)

• 27XX: John Paul XXIII

"For the moment, all you need to know is that I am Guii del Toro, Grand Inquisitor for all of this sector of Roman Catholic space, working under special dispensation from His Holiness Pope John Paul XXIII, and that you and your ship — your TARDIS — are now in my custody" (PROSE: Companion Piece)

The Magellanic Clouds

• 27XX: Celestine VI

'Doctor, Celestine VI is a highly evolved dolphin from beyond the Rakash Nebula! A dolphin, elevated to the throne of Saint Peter! A wretched fish!'

'They're mammals,' said the Doctor.

'Pope John Paul has made it an article of faith that dolphins are fish,' the Inquisitor spat. (PROSE: Companion Piece)

Catholic Church Apostolic

• 3278: Lucian

‘Europa is an area reconstructed on the site of the original Europe ... And the whole kit and caboodle is ruled by the Inquisition under a renegade branch of the Catholic Church. The official papal seat is, I believe, situated in the Betelgeuse system during this era.’

‘Pope Lucian. Of course! Now it’s coming back to me. It is the year AD 3278, or very close. That means we’re bang in the middle of the High Dogmatic period.’ (PROSE: Managra)

46th century

• 45XX: Saint Peter (clone)

"The clones weren't real clones, of course, and only tended to live an hour or two. It was real cutting edge stuff, banned by the Vatican. Not because the Pope had any real ethical objections (how could he, having himself been grown from one of St Peter's fingernails?) (PROSE: Paydirt)

90th century

• 89XX: Ferox XXIV

"Behind her Mother Vittoria Cellini, envoy from one of the more jihad-prone 90th-century Popes, shrilly takes issue with Vril’s woolly pluralism."

"She wonders whether he is here with Mother Cellini. From what she remembers, Ferox XXIV would be just his kind of Pope."

‘You’re working for the Church, still,’ Krisztina-Judit concludes. ‘But not for that crusading bastard Ferox.’ (PROSE: Unification Theory)

Morestran Orthodox Church

• 39,1XX: Luciani XVII

Presiding: His Holiness, Papal Majesty Luciani XVII.

His Holiness: Don’t blaspheme! I’m the [deleted] Pope! (PROSE: Zeta Major)

• 39,1XX: Czieszko I

"The once Cardinal, now Pope, Czieszko I, found himself flung across the bridge for a second time." (PROSE: Zeta Major)

The City of the Saved

• XX AF: Peter, formerly Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

"Human theologians since Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, now Pope Peter of the Human Catholic Church, have argued that humanity might one day evolve into God, achieving deity at its moment of greatest transcendence." (PROSE: Unification Theory)

Unplaced

• Clement

"The Doctor had been in many libraries - he had lent his reader's ticket for the British Museum to Marx, advised Pope Clement on the contents of the Vatican Library..." (PROSE: Timewyrm: Apocalypse)

• Alien Pope

QUOTE? (AUDIO: The Doomsday Chronometer)

Alternate timelines

• 2017: Shadow World Pope

BILL: Doctor! Here's a tip. When I'm on a date, when that rare and special thing happens in my real life, do not, do not under any circumstances, put the Pope in my bedroom!

ANGELO: Doctor! On behalf of every human soul in this world, of any creed, of any faith, with the utmost respect and in complete secrecy, His Holiness, the Pope, the Bishop of Rome, requests most urgently, a personal audience. (TV: Extremis)