Stumped by a Papal Puzzle? Meet the Pope after Benedict IV!

As a detective solving the mystery of the crossword clue ‘Pope after Benedict IV,’ I began my investigation by analyzing the clue itself. Benedict IV was the 100th pope, so I knew I had to look for a pope who succeeded him in history. I delved into my knowledge of papal history, searching for a name that fit the description.

I recalled that after Benedict IV, a pope named Leo V ascended to the papacy. However, Leo V’s reign was very brief, lasting only around a month. This led me to ponder whether there might have been another pope who followed after him. A eureka moment struck me – it was Pope Leo VI, who succeeded Leo V.

With this insight, I was able to decipher the crossword clue as ‘LEOV.’ Pope Leo VI was indeed the pope who followed after Benedict IV, and this solution fit perfectly. The mystery was unravelled, and the crossword completed. This journey of deduction and historical knowledge brought me to the satisfying conclusion, illuminating the path from Benedict IV to Leo VI.