On 17 September 1595, Clement VIII accepted the decision of Henry IV of France to convert to the Catholic Church, which Henry had previously made to secure the French monarchy, and presided over a ceremony of papal absolution that removed the excommunication order placed on him by Sixtus V.[1][2] The Spanish faction had previously opposed the pope taking these actions, but the French negotiators had talked about the possibility of a schism; this, along with Henry's victories in the French Wars of Religion, overcame Spanish opposition.

[3] Clement also formed a commission that annulled Henry's marriage to Marguerite of Valois following the death of his mistress Gabrielle d'Estrées.

Henry IV likewise demanded that three French cardinals go to Rome, and they were present at Clement's death on 3 March 1605.

[5] In addition to the secular politics that impacted them, papal elections during this period were marked by a strategy by elite families who wanted to acquire prestige and power.

These strategies often played out over several generations through patronage and the accumulation of wealth, and the bestowing of favours on family members once an individual was elected to the papacy was expected.

[6] When Clement died, there was an unresolved dispute between the Society of Jesus and the Dominican Order about the nature of divine grace and free will.

[16] He was also the first-choice candidate of Pietro Aldobrandini, the nephew of Clement VIII, who sought to elect a cardinal who was created by his uncle, as was Baronius.

[5] Aldobrondini had reached an agreement with the French government through François de Joyeuse to withdraw support from Antonio Maria Gallo [it].

[19] Baronius's exclusion by Avila led to a clash with Aldobrandini; the cardinals began raising their voices at each other, each stating that he would be willing to make the conclave last over a year to elect his preferred candidate.

Avila and Aldobrandini fought a second time, which led to shouting and pushing; the crowds outside mistakenly took this as a sign of election by acclamation and opened the doors of the conclave while it was still in session.

The only additional cardinal elector to arrive was Franz von Dietrichstein; the anti-Spanish party attempted to win his support for Baronius by reminding him of favours he had received from Clement VIII, ultimately, however, Giovanni Andrea Doria, Carlo Gaudenzio Madruzzo, and Odoardo Farnese—all of whom were loyal to Spain—persuaded him to oppose Baronius.

[22] The French cardinal François de Joyeuse had been seeking Medici's election throughout the conclave and had secured the support of Montalto for his candidate.