Editing Pope Pius XI (section)

=== Elevation to the papacy ===
{{Main|1922 papal conclave}}
[[File:Primera bendicion pio XI.jpg|thumb|Pius XI makes his first public appearance as pope in 1922. The coat of arms on the banner is that of [[Pope Pius IX]].]]
In the [[Papal consistory|consistory]] of 3 June 1921, Benedict XV created three new cardinals, including Ratti, who was appointed [[Archbishop of Milan]] simultaneously. Benedict told them, "Well, today I gave you the red hat, but soon it will be white for one of you."<ref name="Fontenelle 40">Fontenelle, 40.</ref> After the Vatican celebration, Ratti went to the Benedictine monastery at [[Monte Cassino]] for a retreat to prepare spiritually for his new role. He accompanied Milanese pilgrims to [[Our Lady of Lourdes|Lourdes]] in August 1921.<ref name="Fontenelle 40" /> Ratti received a tumultuous welcome on a visit to his home town of [[Desio]], and was enthroned in Milan on 8 September. On 22 January 1922, Benedict XV died unexpectedly of [[pneumonia]].<ref>Fontenelle, 44.</ref>

At the conclave to choose a new pope, the longest of the 20th century, the [[College of Cardinals]] was divided into two factions, one led by [[Rafael Merry del Val]] favoring the policies and style of Pius X and the other favoring those of Benedict XV led by [[Pietro Gasparri]].{{sfn|Kertzer|2014}}

Gasparri approached Ratti before voting began on the third day and told him he would urge his supporters to switch their votes to Ratti, who was shocked to hear this. When it became clear that neither Gasparri nor del Val could win, the cardinals approached Ratti, thinking him a compromise candidate not identified with either faction. Cardinal [[Gaetano de Lai]] approached Ratti and was believed to have said: "We will vote for Your Eminence if Your Eminence will promise that you will not choose Cardinal Gasparri as your secretary of state". Ratti is said to have responded: "I hope and pray that among so highly deserving cardinals the Holy Spirit selects someone else. If I am chosen, it is indeed Cardinal Gasparri whom I will take to be my secretary of state".{{sfn|Kertzer|2014}}

Ratti was elected on the conclave's 14th ballot on 6 February 1922 and took the name Pius XI, explaining that Pius IX was the pope of his youth and Pius X had appointed him head of the Vatican Library. It was rumored that immediately after the election, he decided to appoint Pietro Gasparri as his [[Cardinal Secretary of State]].{{sfn|Kertzer|2014}} When asked if he accepted his election, Ratti was said to have replied: "In spite of my unworthiness, of which I am deeply aware, I accept". He went on to say that his choice in papal name was because "Pius is a name of peace".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.chiesadimilano.it/news/arte-cultura/achille-ratti-cento-anni-fa-la-sua-elezione-a-papa-492751.html|title=Achille Ratti: cento anni fa la sua elezione a Papa|date=3 February 2022|author=Luca Frigerio|publisher=[[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milan]]|accessdate=7 February 2022}}</ref>

After the dean Cardinal [[Vincenzo Vannutelli]] asked if he assented to the election, Ratti paused in silence for two minutes, according to Cardinal [[Désiré-Joseph Mercier]]. The Hungarian cardinal [[János Csernoch]] later commented: "We made Cardinal Ratti pass through the fourteen stations of the Via Crucis and then we left him alone on Calvary".<ref name="Fisherman">{{Cite book |last=John-Peter Pham |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ahTU3koVfLEC&q=PIUS+XI+CONCLAVE+1922&pg=PA360 |title=Heirs of the Fisherman: Behind the Scenes of Papal Death and Succession |date=2004 | publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-534635-0}}</ref>

As Pius XI's first act as pope, he revived the traditional public blessing from the balcony, ''[[Urbi et Orbi]]'' ("to the city and to the world"), abandoned by his predecessors since the [[Capture of Rome|loss of Rome]] to the Italian state in 1870. This suggested his openness to a rapprochement with the government of Italy.<ref>Fontenelle, 44–56.</ref> Less than a month later, considering that all four cardinals from the Western Hemisphere had been unable to participate in his election, he issued ''[[Cum proxime]]'' to allow the College of Cardinals to delay the start of a conclave for as long as 18 days following the death of a pope.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Trythall |first=Marisa Patrulli |title=Pius XI and America: Proceedings of the Brown University Conference |date=2010 |publisher=Lit Verlag |isbn=978-3-643-90146-0 |editor-last=Gallagher |editor-first=Charles R. |page=28 |chapter=Pius XI and American Pragmatism |editor-last2=Kertzer |editor-first2=David I. |editor-last3=Melloni |editor-first3=Alberto |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CNQOWkFVp1EC&pg=PA28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180209090528/https://books.google.com/books?id=CNQOWkFVp1EC&pg=PA28& |archive-date=9 February 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Pope Pius XI |date=1 March 1922 |title=Cum proxime |url=https://www.vatican.va/content/pius-xi/it/motu_proprio/documents/hf_p-xi_motu-proprio_19220301_cum-proxime.html |url-status=live |language=it |publisher=Libreria Editrice Vaticana |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171228155340/http://w2.vatican.va/content/pius-xi/it/motu_proprio/documents/hf_p-xi_motu-proprio_19220301_cum-proxime.html |archive-date=28 December 2017 |access-date=1 November 2017 }}</ref>