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8h ago

Pope Leo XIV’s Family Tree Connects Him to Madonna and Other Celebrities

Research tracing his ancestry to a 17th-century Quebec forebear has revealed ties to pop icons, highlighting diverse Creole heritage interwoven with African-American lineage

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Overview

  • The New York Times investigation led by Henry Louis Gates Jr. traced the pope’s family tree to Louis Boucher de Grandpre, a Canadian ancestor born in Trois-Rivières in the 1590s.
  • Genealogical analysis established Pope Leo XIV and Madonna as ninth cousins, various times removed, alongside links to Justin Bieber, Angelina Jolie, Hillary Clinton and Justin Trudeau.
  • Madonna acknowledged the connection on June 16 by sharing an Instagram Story of her father with the caption “Silvio! We’re related to the Pope! Strike a pose!”.
  • The revelation underscores a dramatic turn given Madonna’s longstanding clashes with the Vatican over her 1989 “Like a Prayer” music video and its religious imagery.
  • Researchers documented the pope’s complex heritage, identifying at least 17 ancestors described as Creoles or free people of color and noting eight forebears who were slaveholders.