Polish Cardinal Karol Józef Wojtyła became the first non-Italian pontiff since 1523 as Pope John Paul II.
Karol Józef Wojtyła, the Archbishop of Kraków, won the papal elections that were held after his predecessor Pope John Paul I died after only 33 days in office. As Pope, Wojtyła took on the name of John Paul II. He was the second-longest serving pope in modern history, after Pope Pius IX, who was in office for over 31 years.