Pope Francis’s funeral will be more modest than those of his predecessors, in line with his own explicit wishes.
Nonetheless, as a global leader and the spiritual head of over a billion Catholics, the event will maintain remarkable displays of ritual and tradition.
His passing has prompted prominent dignitaries, statesmen, and throngs of faithful to travel to Vatican City to pay tribute.
Archbishops and bishops are assembling at 08:30 local time (07:30 BST) in the Constantine Wing, located next to St Peter’s Basilica.
Simultaneously, Catholic priests will gather in St Peter’s Square.
At 09:00 local time, Orthodox Church patriarchs and cardinals will meet in the Saint Sebastian Chapel within the basilica, where Pope John Paul II is interred.
They will proceed in a ceremonial procession alongside the Pope’s coffin, which has been on public display at the centre of St Peter’s Basilica for four days.
The funeral service commences at 10:00, when the casket is positioned in St Peter’s Square. Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals, will preside.
Read the complete order of service here.
Invitees and VIPs will be seated near the basilica and the coffin, while thousands of clergy and lay people are expected to fill St Peter’s Square, as was the case with Benedict XVI’s funeral.
The liturgy will close with final prayers and a commendation—an invocation that formally entrusts Pope Francis to God.
This ceremony initiates a nine-day period of mourning, known as Novemdiales, including a daily mass in remembrance.
Authorities anticipate at least 250,000 mourners will attend, with around 170 heads of state and government listed among the guests.
Prince William will be present on behalf of King Charles III, echoing the tradition established in 2005 when the Prince of Wales represented Queen Elizabeth II at John Paul II’s funeral.
Other confirmed attendees include several world leaders and royals such as US President Donald Trump, French President Emmanuel Macron, Spain’s King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia, and Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Hundreds of clergy are also expected, each observing distinct dress protocols for the event.
Bishops and archbishops will be vested in liturgical attire that includes the alb, a white robe secured by a cincture cord, an amice for the neck, and a red chasuble symbolizing honor, capped with a plain white mitre.
Cardinals don similar garments, but their mitres are adorned with ornate damask and exhibit a cream color.
Priests will wear more understated vestments, along with a red stole draped over their tunics.
Orthodox patriarchs will be distinguished by their own mitres, a sakkos cape, and an elaborate omophorion in colors specific to each tradition.
After the liturgy, Pope Francis’s remains—clad in a red chasuble and a gold-embroidered damask mitre—will be transported from St Peter’s to Santa Maria Maggiore basilica for interment.
The procession will traverse the river Tiber and pass landmarks such as the Colosseum.
This will make Francis the first pope since Leo XIII in 1903 to be buried outside Vatican grounds.
Previous tradition required the pope’s remains to be placed in three nested coffins of cypress, lead, and oak on the eve of the funeral.
The cypress represented humility; the oak, dignity and strength; and the lead, preservation and protection of the remains.
Pope Francis, however, requested last year to be laid to rest in a simpler wooden coffin with a zinc lining.
This is the casket that will be used during the ceremony.
Monsignor Diego Ravelli, the Vatican’s master of liturgical ceremonies, said the Pope’s request “further highlights that the Roman Pontiff’s funeral is that of a shepherd and disciple of Christ, not a worldly figure of power.”
As a Jesuit, Pope Francis belonged to a Catholic order renowned for its commitment to education and missionary activity.
He was particularly devoted to the Virgin Mary and chose Santa Maria Maggiore, in Rome’s city center, as his burial site.
The basilica houses the Salus Populi Romani, a revered Byzantine icon of the Virgin Mary attributed to St. Luke, widely venerated by the Jesuits worldwide.
In his 2022 testament, Pope Francis wrote: “Throughout my life, and in my priestly and episcopal ministry, I have always entrusted myself to the Mother of Our Lord, the Blessed Virgin Mary.”
He continued, “I wish my final earthly journey to end in this ancient Marian sanctuary, where I paused to pray at the beginning and conclusion of each Apostolic Journey, always entrusting my intentions to the Immaculate Mother and expressing gratitude for her gentle protection.”
On becoming Pope in 2013, Francis’s first act was to visit and pray at Santa Maria Maggiore.
Seven Popes are buried in this basilica in elaborate tombs, but the Argentinian Pope requested a modest burial in the side aisle, between the Pauline Chapel (home of the Salus Populi Romani) and the Sforza Chapel, near the statue Mary Regina Pacis (Mary, Queen of Peace).
“Close to that Queen of Peace, to whom I have always turned for solace and whose embrace I have sought countless times during my papacy,” he detailed in his will.
He also requested his tomb be at ground level, plain, and marked only “Franciscus,” the Latin form of his papal name.
Live coverage of the funeral will be provided on the BBC News website and app, and will also be available on BBC iPlayer.
In the UK, Reeta Chakrabarti will present coverage from 08:30 to 12:30 BST on BBC One; viewers can watch via iPlayer here.
Maryam Moshiri will also present live updates on the BBC News channel, accessible on iPlayer here.
Audio coverage will be streamed on the BBC World Service.
Additional coverage by Laura Gozzi
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