Pope John Paul II was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his death in 2005.
John Paul II in 1988
Painting of Saint John Paul II painted by Zbigniew Kotyłło, 2012
The wedding portrait of John Paul II's parents, Emilia and Karol Wojtyła Sr.
Wojtyła (second from right) in a Baudienst forced labour work crew during the occupation of Poland (1939–1945), circa 1941
Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II
On 2 April 2005, Pope John Paul II died at the age of 84. His funeral was held on 8 April, followed by the novendiales devotional in which the Catholic Church observed nine days of mourning.
The body of Pope John Paul II lying in state
The body of Pope John Paul II exposed to the faithful in the Vatican Basilica.
Pope John Paul II's body is laid in St. Peter's Basilica for private visitation by Vatican officials and foreign dignitaries. Among the Americans in the photograph are then US President George W. Bush, his father George H. W. Bush, his wife Laura Bush, and former president Bill Clinton, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and Andrew Card.
By 6 April, a million people had seen John Paul II's remains lying in state in St. Peter's Basilica. An estimated total of four million people, in addition to the over three million residents of Rome, were expected to make the pilgrimage to see the Pope.
