Roman Catholic cardinals will start their conclave to elect a successor to Pope Benedict XVI on March 12, the Vatican announces.
The Chapel has been closed to the public as it is prepared for the conclave which is carried out according to strict protocols and ancient ritual.
The Cardinals will gather on Tuesday morning for a meeting in voting the next succesor to Pope Benedict XVI.
Benedict announced he was resigning last month, saying he did not have the mental or physical strength to carry on as leader of the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics.
The conclave will take as much time as they need to make the right decision.Cardinals hold two votes in the morning and two in the afternoon until one candidate gets a two-thirds majority – 77 votes.
When that happens white smoke will rise from the Vatican chimney as the votes are burnt signalling a new Pope has been selected.
If there is no majority, black smoke signals the conclave will continue for another day.
Within an hour of the white smoke, the new Pope will appear on the balcony of St Peter’s basilica to the words “Habemus Papem” – “we have a Pope”.
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