In a new book, Benedict's confidant spills beans on two-popes tension

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s longtime personal secretary Georg Gaenswein (right) has written a tell-all book that his publisher promised would tell the truth about the "blatant calumnies,” "dark maneuvers,” mysteries and scandals that sullied the reputation of a pontiff best known for his historic resignation. Photo: AP

Just one week after the funeral of Benedict XVI, his closest aide released a much-trailed memoir on Thursday, revealing details of tensions between the late pope emeritus and his more liberal successor Pope Francis.

Georg Gaenswein's book reveals private conversations with both popes in charting the German ex-pontiff's rise to power and the decade spent in retirement following his shock resignation in 2013.