Stephen II was elected pope in March of 752.
The Vatican does not consider Stephen II as a pope (and in 1959, deleted his name from its official list of popes), but many historians do. Stephen II was elected on the death of his predecessor Pope Zacharias on or about March 23, 752. Three days later he died of apoplexy, and never was consecrated. Because not all list-makers count him as having been pope, there exists an awkward nomenclature for later popes who chose the name Stephen. Sometimes later Stephens are numbered with parentheses, e.g., his immediate successor is sometimes denoted Stephen (II) III, and is sometimes denoted Stephen II (III).
