Pope Francis had less than £100 in personal wealth at the time of his death despite £300,000 salary

Despite a yearly salary of roughly £300,000, Pope Francis had a tiny fraction of that in personal wealth at the time of his death.

The 88-year-old died last Monday (21 April), with hundreds of thousands of mourners flocking to Rome to visit his body and attend his funeral at the weekend.

The head of the Catholic Church, whose real name is Jorge Mario Bergolio, died of a cerebral stroke that led to a coma and irreversible heart failure as the Vatican announced he had ‘returned to the house of the Father’.

Pope Francis was well-known for being the ‘humble’ Pope, shunning some of the age-old traditions as he expressed his wishes for a ‘simpler’ send-off.

This desire for less of the typical opulence and pomp and ceremony at his funeral was typical of much of his papacy.

The Pope's net worth is disputed. (Franco Origlia/Getty Images)

The norm would be that being the head of the Catholic Church brings a whole lot of luxury living, but Francis disregarded much of this.

Instead of living at the usual Pope’s residence, he chose to stay at the Casa Santa Mantra which is typically used as a guesthouse. His body lay there before it was taken to Saint Peter’s Basilica, where he was in state from Wednesday.

Some have suggested that Francis will have had a personal net worth of £16 million, thanks to assets associated with his office such as his home, cars, and clothing.

However, the late Pope turned down the massive yearly salary of roughly £300,000 to stick to his more modest lifestyle. It’s believed that he would donate this money to various funds and trusts.

This was all due to Francis’ branch of Christianity, the Jesuit order. As well as ‘finding God in all things’, they are dedicated to addressing social realities like poverty and oppression as well as making vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience.

The Pope was well-known for his work for those in need. (TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty Images)

Therefore, some sources say that due to his lifestyle, Pope Francis passed away with less than £100 to his name.

While his final net worth has not been wholly confirmed, he certainly had a frugal nature and spent much of his life helping those less fortunate.

In 2019, he donated the building of the Palazzo to Rome’s homeless. This decision was controversial at the time, as there was outrage over him turning such a grand palace into a homeless shelter.

He chose his papal name Francis after Saint Francis of Assisi who is often referred to as the ‘Poor Man of Assisi’. Shortly after he was elected in 2013, he told journalists he was inspired to take this name when immediately after the final vote was counted, as a fellow cardinal next to him said: “Don’t forget the poor.”