UPDATE: |What Pope Francis did that some people saw as an ‘attempt to secure his legacy’ News

Pope Francis passed away on Easter Monday, the Vatican announced this morning

Pope Francis has died aged 88, a senior official from the Vatican announced on Monday morning.

The Argentinian pontiff, who was the first Latin American to hold the role, made his last public appearance on Sunday (April 20) as he waved to crowds in St Peter’s Square from a balcony. He was unable to issue his traditional Easter address following a five-week hopsitalisation for pneumonia in February and March.

As the world mourns a Catholic leader known for a humble style and outspoken views on issues such as homosexuality and climate change, work is already underway to select his successor.

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Following a nine-day mourning period, known as Novendiale, world and religious leaders will gather in Rome for his funeral. The pope is traditionally buried in the Vatican Grottoes beneath St. Peter’s Basilica, but Pope Francis requested to be buried at the Santa Maria Maggiore basilica in Rome, marking the first time in a century that a pope will be laid to rest outside the Vatican.

Around two to three weeks after his burial, the College of Cardinals will gather in the Sistine Chapel for a conclave to elect a new pope. Voting is done in secret, with each cardinal being locked in the chapel and taking an oath of secrecy, only being guided by their faith in God.

Although any baptized male Catholic could technically be chosen, for the past 700 years, only cardinals have been selected. Cardinals are bishops and Vatican officials from all over the world, personally chosen by the pope and recognisable by their distinctive red vestments.

Only cardinals under the age of 80 are eligible to vote in a conclave – they are known as the cardinal electors, and their number is limited to 120.

It has been reported that Pope Francis made ‘attempts to secure his legacy’ as a socially liberal pontiff as he consecrated 21 new cardinals before his death, increasing the likelihood that the next conclave would elect a successor who would continue his reforms.

A ballot then commences, with four rounds of balloting every day until a candidate receives two-thirds of the vote. The result of each ballot is counted aloud and recorded by three cardinals.

If no-one receives the necessary two-thirds of the vote, the ballots are burned in a stove near the chapel with a mixture of chemicals to produce black smoke.

The process can go to multiple rounds with the same people theoretically getting the same number of votes each time as cardinals wait to see who loses support first.

But slowly, cardinals who voted for someone who only received a very small number of votes are likely to add their vote to one of the stronger candidates in the next round.

When a cardinal receives the necessary two-thirds vote, the dean of the College of Cardinals asks him if he accepts his election.

If he accepts, he chooses a papal name and is dressed in papal vestments before processing out to the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica. The ballots of the final round are burned with chemicals producing white smoke to signal to the world the election of a new pope.

The senior cardinal deacon announces from the balcony of St Peter’s “Habemus Papam” (“We have a pope”) before the new pope proceeds out and imparts his blessing on the city of Rome and the world.