Conclave to elect successor opens on April 18

Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church decided on 6 April 2005 that the conclave to elect the next pope would begin on April 18, 10 days after John Paul II's funeral, which was expected to draw the largest crowds for such a ceremony in Church history. There were 117 cardinals under the age of 80, and therefore eligible to take part in the conclave taking place in the Vatican's Sistine Chapel.