Popemobile

[1] It is considered a successor to the sedia gestatoria and was designed to allow the Pope to be more visible when greeting large crowds.

The variety of popemobiles allows the Roman Curia to select an appropriate one for each usage depending upon the level of security needed, distance, speed of travel, and the Pope's preferences.

[6] For public appearances, before the invention of the popemobile concept, the Pope used the sedia gestatoria, a chair carried on the shoulders of papal attendants.

[9] An inventory from the papal stables in 1841 shows the carriages were pulled by horses with names such as Bandito (Bandit), Pomposino (Pompous), Bufalino (Buffalo) and Capitano (Captain).

[10] However, the Nurburg 460 Pullman which was given to Pope Pius XI in 1930 by German car manufacturer Mercedes-Benz is considered to have been to first "official" popemobile.

[15] The Pope entered the Camp Nou football stadium in Barcelona,[16] driving through the assembled crowds celebrating Mass for a congregation of over 121,000 on 17 November 1982.During the Pope's visit to Canada in 1984, a modified GMC Sierra was used as a base, rebuilt by the Thibault Fire Engines Company in Pierreville, Quebec.

In 2002, John Paul II requested that the media stop referring to the car as the "popemobile", saying that the term was "undignified".

He then sits in a chair made from white leather with gold trim which is then elevated into the glass room by a hydraulic lift, allowing the Pope to be more easily seen.

The glass-enclosed rear of the vehicle also has room for two papal aides who can sit in the area in front of the Pope's elevated chair.

The vehicle includes bulletproof glass windows and skylights and is made from reinforced armour plating, security features designed to withstand explosives under or around it.

[20] On June 6, 2007, a German man tried to jump into Benedict XVI's uncovered popemobile as the pontiff began his general audience.

The Pope was not hurt and did not even appear to notice that the man had jumped over the protective barrier in the square and had grabbed onto the white Fiat popemobile as it passed.