New Pope elected, but was this the shortest conclave ever?

White smoke billowed from the chimney at the Sistine Chapel Thursday, signaling the election of a new Pope to lead the Roman Catholic Church.

The smoke emerged after a vote from the College of Cardinals as they chose a new pontiff, and continued a recent string of relatively rapid decisions on who should lead the church’s millions of worldwide followers.

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Was this year’s conclave the shortest in history, however?

The answer to that question is no, but this voting process stuck with a trend that has gone on for several recent conclaves, according to Vatican experts.

According to NBC Chicago’s Chuck Goudie, conclaves in recent decades have been lasting a shorter amount of time, typically taking two to three days to choose a new pontiff.

In fact, five of the last six conclaves have now resulted in the election of a new Pope within three days or less, with this process taking just two days and at least four votes.

In 2005, Pope Benedict was chosen on the fourth ballot, which came on the second day of the conclave. The late Pope Francis was chosen on the fifth ballot in 2013.

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According to the History Channel, no conclave has lasted more than four days since 1831, but prior to that conclaves could take a significantly long time. In 1271, following the death of Pope Clement IV, the voting process took nearly three years, with reforms enacted after that vote.

The shortest conclave ever, according to the Vatican, took place in 1503 after Pope Pius III died. Pope Julius II was elected the new leader after a conclave that lasted for only a few hours, according to officials.

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Of the 200-plus cardinals in the Catholic Church, a total of 133 were part of the voting group in the conclave. The person selected as Pope required a two-thirds vote among those cardinals.

The new Pope will be announced by Cardinal Dominique Mamberti, who will announce his name from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica.