Pope Gregory XVI

About Pope Gregory XVI

Pope Gregory XVI, reigning from 1831 to 1846, was a significant religious figure whose historical importance is reflected in his Pantheon HPI Rank of #449. His pontificate occurred during a period of intense political upheaval in Europe, marked by the post-Napoleonic order and burgeoning liberal movements. Key to his tenure was his staunch defense of papal temporal power and his resistance to political modernization, most notably issuing the Mirari vos encyclical which condemned revolutionary movements and new technologies like the railroad.

Despite this historical weight, Pope Gregory XVI appears significantly underattended to in the modern digital sphere, exhibiting an Attention Gap of -2x relative to his importance. In 2025, his Wikipedia page accrued approximately 158K views, which is markedly lower than other contemporary or even earlier religious figures. For instance, Pope Linus, ranked #689 (less historically important), garnered 469K views, showing that modern digital curiosity leans toward different religious personalities.

The figure does show strong signs of re-engagement, however, with his 2025 annualized pageviews increasing by an impressive +134.5% year-over-year. This surge contrasts with a recent drop in engagement, as his 2025 Q1 to Q3 momentum indicates a -34% decline in interest across the latter half of the year.