This is a list of sexually active popes, Catholic priests who were not celibate before they became pope, and those who were legally married before becoming pope. Some candidates were allegedly sexually active before their election as pope, and others were thought to have been sexually active during their papacies. A number of them had children.

There are various classifications for those who were sexually active during their lives. Allegations of sexual activities are of varying levels of reliability, with contemporary political or religious opponents having made several. Some claims are generally accepted by modern historians, while other remain more contested.

Background

For many years of the Church's history, celibacy was considered optional. Based on the customs of the times, it is assumed by many that most of the Twelve Apostles were married and had families. The New Testament (Mark 1:29–31; Matthew 8:14–15; Luke 4:38–39; 1 Timothy 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6) depicts at least Peter as being married, and bishops, priests and deacons of the Early Church were often married as well. In epigraphy, the testimony of the Church Fathers, synodal legislation, and papal decretals in the following centuries, a married clergy, in greater or lesser numbers, was a feature of the life of the Church. Celibacy was not required for those ordained and was accepted in the early Church, particularly by those in the monastic life.

Although various local Church councils had demanded celibacy of the clergy in a particular episcopal jurisdiction, it was not until the Second Lateran Council (1139) that officially made the promise to remain celibate a prerequisite to ordination within the Latin Church (and effectively ended any practice of a married priesthood). Subsequently, sexual relationships were generally undertaken outside the bonds of marriage, and each sexual act thus committed would have been considered a mortal sin — and is still considered as such by the church.

Popes who were legally married

NameReign(s)RelationshipOffspringNotesSaint Peter30/33–64/68Mother-in-law (Greek πενθερά, penthera) is mentioned in the Gospel verses , , , and who was healed by Jesus at her home in Capernaum. asks whether others have the right to be accompanied by Christian wives as does "Cephas" (Peter). Clement of Alexandria wrote: "When the blessed Peter saw his own wife led out to die, he rejoiced because of her summons and her return home, and called to her very encouragingly and comfortingly, addressing her by name, and saying, 'Remember the Lord.' Such was the marriage of the blessed, and their perfect disposition toward those dearest to them".Cited by Eusebius, Church History, III, 30. Full text at Clement of Alexandria, Stromata VII, 11YesClement of Alexandria wrote: "For Peter and Philip begat children" in Later legends, dating from the 6th century onwards, suggested that Peter had a daughter – identified as Saint Petronilla. This connection is likely to be a result of the similarity of their names..Felix III483–492Widowed before his election as popeYesHimself the son of a priest, Felix fathered two children, one of whom was subsequently the mother of Pope Gregory I, making the latter his grandson.R.A. Markus, Gregory the Great and his world (Cambridge: University Press, 1997), p.8Hormisdas514–523Widowed before he took holy ordersYesFather of Pope SilveriusAdrian II867–872Married to Stephania before he took holy orders, she was still living when he was elected pope and resided with him in the Lateran Palace.Yes (a daughter)His wife and daughter both resided with him until they were murdered by Eleutherius, brother of Anastasius Bibliothecarius, the Church's chief librarian.John XVII1003Married before his election as popeYes (three sons)All of his children became priests* Clement IV1265–1268Widowed before taking holy ordersYes (two daughters)Both children entered a conventHonorius IV1285–1287Widowed before entering the clergyYes (at least two sons)

Fathered illegitimate children before holy orders

NameReignRelationshipOffspringNotesPius II1458–1464Not marriedYes (at least two)Two children, both born before he formally entered the clergy. The first child, fathered while in Scotland, died in infancy. A second child fathered while in Strasbourg with a Breton woman named Elizabeth died 14 months later. He delayed becoming a cleric because of the requirement of chastity.Innocent VIII1484–1492Not marriedYes (two)Both born before he entered the clergy. Married elder son Franceschetto Cybo to the daughter of Lorenzo de' Medici, who in return obtained the cardinal's hat for his 13-year-old son Giovanni, who became Pope Leo X. His daughter Teodorina Cybo married Gerardo Usodimare.Clement VII1523–1534Not married. Relationship with a servant or slave girl – possibly Simonetta da CollevecchioYes (one)Identified as Alessandro de' Medici, Duke of FlorenceGeorge L. Williams, Papal Genealogy: The Families And Descendants Of The Popes, page 74: "Clement now made Alessandro de Medici "his illegitimate son by a slave" into the first duke of Florence", McFarland & Company, 1998, Mara Wade, Gender Matters: Discourses of violence in early modern literature and the arts, Editions Rodopi, 2013

Known to or suspected of having fathered illegitimate children after receiving holy orders NameReignRelationshipOffspringNotesJulius II1503–1513Not marriedYes (three daughters)Three illegitimate daughters, one of whom was Felice della Rovere (born in 1483, twenty years before his election as pope, and twelve years after his enthronement as bishop of Lausanne). The schismatic Conciliabulum of Pisa, which sought to depose him in 1511, also accused him of being a "sodomite".Louis Crompton, Homosexuality and Civilization, page 278 (Harvard University Press, 2006) Paul III1534–1549Not married. Silvia Ruffini as mistressYes (three sons and one daughter)Held off ordination in order to continue his lifestyle, fathering four illegitimate children (three sons and one daughter) by Silvia Ruffini after his appointment as cardinal-deacon of Santi Cosimo and Damiano. He broke his relations with her ca. 1513. He made his illegitimate son Pier Luigi Farnese the first duke of Parma.Jean de Pins, Letters and Letter Fragments, page 292, footnote 5 (Libraire Droze S.A., 2007) Katherine McIver, Women, Art, And Architecture in Northern Italy, 1520–1580: Negotiating Power, page 26 (Ashgate Publishing Ltd, 2006) Pius IV1559–1565Not marriedAllegedly three One was a son born in 1541 or 1542. He also had two daughters.Gregory XIII1572–1585Not married. Affair with Maddalena FulchiniYes Received the ecclesiastical tonsure in Bologna in June 1539, and subsequently had an affair that resulted in the birth of Giacomo Boncompagni in 1548. Giacomo remained illegitimate, with Gregory later appointing him Gonfalonier of the Church, governor of the Castel Sant'Angelo and Fermo.Leo XII1823–1829Not marriedAllegedly threeAs a young prelate, he came under suspicion of having a liaison with the wife of a Swiss Guard soldier and, as nuncio in Germany, allegedly fathered three illegitimate children.Letters from Rome in: The New Monthly Magazine and Literary Journal, Tom 11, pp. 468–471.

Popes alleged to be sexually active during pontificate A majority of the allegations made in this section are disputed by modern historians.

Relationships with women NameReignRelationshipOffspringNotesSergius III904–911Not marriedYes (at least one)Accused of being the illegitimate father of Pope John XI by Marozia, the fifteen-year-old daughter of Theodora and Theophylact I, Count of Tusculum.George Williams, Papal Genealogy: The family and descendants of the Popes, McFarland, 1998 Such accusations lay in Liutprand of Cremona's Antapodosis and the Liber Pontificalis.Liber Pontificalis (first ed., 500s; it has papal biographies up to Pius II, d. 1464)Reverend Horace K. Mann, The Lives of the Popes in the Early Middle Ages, Volumes 1–13 quote: "Was John XI the son of Pope Sergius by the abandoned Marozia? Liutprand says he was, and so does the author of the anonymous catalogue in the Liber Pontificalis in his one-line notice of John XI." (1928)Anura Gurugé, The Next Pope: After Pope Benedict XVI, page 37: "John XI (#126) would also appear to have been born out of wedlock. His mother, Marozia, from the then powerful Theophylacet family, was around sixteen years old at the time. Liber Pontificalis, among others, claim that Sergius III (#120), during his tenure as pope, was the father." (WOWNH LLC, 2010). The accusations have discrepancies with another early source, the annalist Flodoard (c. 894–966): John XI was the brother of Alberic II, the latter being the offspring of Marozia and her husband Alberic I, so John too may have been the son of Marozia and Alberic I. Fauvarque emphasises that contemporary sources are dubious, Liutprand being "prone to exaggeration" while other mentions of this fatherhood appear in satires written by supporters of Pope Formosus.Fauvarque, Bertrand (2003). "De la tutelle de l'aristocratie italienne à celle des empereurs germaniques". In Y.-M. Hilaire (Ed.), Histoire de la papauté, 2000 ans de missions et de tribulations. Paris:Tallandier. , p. 163.John X914–928Not married. Affairs with Theodora and MaroziaNoHad romantic affairs with both Theodora and her daughter Marozia, according to Liutprand of Cremona in his Antapodosis.Joseph McCabe, Crises in The history of The Papacy: A Study of Twenty Famous Popes whose Careers and whose Influence were important in the Development of The Church and in The History of The World, page 130 (New York; London: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1916) However, Monsignor Johann Peter Kirsch (ecclesiastical historian and Catholic priest) wrote, "This statement is, however, generally and rightly rejected as a calumny. Liutprand wrote his history some fifty years later, and constantly slandered the Romans, whom he hated."Kirsch, Johann Peter. "Pope John X." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 8. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 23 September 2017John XII955–964Not marriedNoAccused by adversaries of adultery and incest. p. 105 Benedict of Soracte noted that he had "a collection of women". According to Liutprand of Cremona, "they testified about his adultery, which they did not see with their own eyes, but nonetheless knew with certainty: he had fornicated with the widow of Rainier, with Stephana his father's concubine, with the widow Anna, and with his own niece, and he made the sacred palace into a whorehouse". According to Chamberlin, John was "a Christian Caligula whose crimes were rendered particularly horrific by the office he held".The Bad Popes by E. R. Chamberlin Some sources report that he died eight days after being stricken by paralysis while in the act of adultery, others that he was killed by the jealous husband while in the act of committing adultery.Peter de Rosa, Vicars of Christ: The Dark Side of the Papacy, Poolbeg Press, Dublin 1988/2000, pages 211–215.Hans Kung, The Catholic Church: A Short History (translated by John Bowden), Modern Library, New York. 2001/2003. page 79The Popes' Rights & Wrongs, published by Truber & Co., 1860Dr. Angelo S. Rappaport, The Love Affairs of the Vatican, 1912Alexander VI1492–1503Not married. Relationships with Vanozza dei Catanei and Giulia FarneseYes Had a long affair with Vannozza dei Cattanei while still a priest, and before he became pope; and by her had his illegitimate children Cesare Borgia, Giovanni Borgia, Gioffre Borgia, and Lucrezia. A later mistress, Giulia Farnese, was the sister of Alessandro Farnese, giving birth to a daughter Laura while Alexander was in his 60s and reigning as pope.Eamon Duffy, Saints and Sinners: A history of the popes, Yale University Press, 2006

Relationships with men