Former Pope Benedict XVI, first pontiff to resign in 600 years, dies aged 95

Benedict, the first German pope in 1,000 years, had good relations with his successor, Pope Francis, but his continued presence inside the Vatican after he stepped down in 2013 further polarised the Church ideologically.

Vatican city, Dec 31: Former Pope Benedict, who resigned as leader of the Catholic Church in 2013 in a highly unusual move died on Saturday aged 95, the Vatican announced.

"With sorrow, I inform you that the Pope Emeritus, Benedict XVI, passed away today at 9:34 in the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery in the Vatican. Further information will be provided as soon as possible," the spokesman said in a written statement.

Benedict, the first German pope in 1,000 years, stepped down in 2013, citing old age. His resignation came as a surprise to many as he became the first pontiff to resign since Gregory XII in 1415.

He had good relations with his successor, Pope Francis, but his continued presence inside the Vatican despite his resignation further polarised the Church ideologically.

Benedict repeatedly apologised for the Church's failure to root out sexual abuse of children by clergy, and although he was the first pope to take serious action against abuse, the efforts failed to halt a rapid decline in church attendance in the West, especially in Europe.

In 2022, an independent report in his native Germany alleged that Benedict had failed to take action in four abuse cases when he was Archbishop of Munich between 1977-1982.

Shaken by the report, he acknowledged in an emotional personal letter that errors had occurred and asked for forgiveness. His lawyers argued in a detailed rebuttal that he was not directly to blame.

Victims groups said the couched response squandered an opportunity from a scandal that rattled the Church worldwide.

Benedict will be best remembered for his unexpected announcement on Feb. 11, 2013, when he announced in Latin that he was resigning, telling cardinals he was too old and frail to lead an institution with more than 1.3 billion members.

In addition to his native German language, Benedict had some level of proficiency in French, Italian, English, and Spanish. He also knew Portuguese, Latin, Biblical Hebrew and Biblical Greek.