When was the first Jubilee Year?

The first Christian Jubilee was called by Pope Boniface VIII in 1300.

In the midst of plague, war, and material hardship, it wasn’t easy to travel to Rome on pilgrimage. But the Christian faithful felt that they needed to amend their lives and seek God’s blessing in the midst of the trials they faced. And so they traveled to Rome. Thousands of pilgrims came at Christmas 1299, asking for God’s blessing and the protection of the Apostles. Inspired by their faith, the Holy Father called a year “of forgiveness of all sins” for 1300. Special graces were attached to visiting the tombs of Sts. Peter and Paul.

During this first Jubilee Year, pilgrims included the artists Giotto and Cimabue, the brother of the King of France, Carlo de Valois, and Dante. In fact, Dante’s Divine Comedy is said to take place during this Jubilee Year.

Boniface announced Jubilees would take place every 100 years, but it was shortened to 50 and the second one was held in 1350. (The Romans hoped that this meant the Pope would return to Rome from Avignon, but he did not.) The shortening of the time frame was so that more people could participate in a jubilee year in their lifetime.