George Pell: the most powerful and controversial Catholic in Australia

A deeply divisive figure during his life, the cardinal is no less polarising in death.

Andrew ClarkSenior writer

Jan 11, 2023 – 6.10pm

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The death of Cardinal George Pell, the most prominent Catholic Church figure in Australian history, has, if anything, sharpened divisions about his legacy.

A former Catholic archbishop of Melbourne and Sydney, and at one time No.3 in the Vatican, Pell died on Tuesday night in Rome after he suffered a heart attack following a hip operation, according to official church sources. He was 81.

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Andrew ClarkSenior writerAndrew Clark is a former editor of The Sun-Herald and Australian Business. He was a correspondent in Europe and North America, a political correspondent in Canberra and has been a journalist for more than 55 years.