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World leaders from Trump to Zelensky to attend Pope's funeral

Alys Davies
BBC News
Getty Images Mourners stand in front of a framed photo of Pope Francis outside St Mary Major basilica in Vatican City.Getty Images

Pope Francis's funeral will take place on Saturday at 10:00 local time (09:00 BST) in front of St Peter's Basilica.

The date was decided after cardinals met in Vatican City on Tuesday morning to discuss the funeral's timing.

Tributes have poured in from around the world after Pope Francis died on Easter Monday aged 88.

Huge crowds are expected to go to the funeral, and several world leaders have announced they will attend.

What happens before the funeral?

EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock The body of Pope Francis lies in an open casket in the Chapel of Santa Marta, Vatican City, flanked by Swiss guards and cardinals in prayer.EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

Ahead of the funeral, Pope Francis's body will lie in an open casket in St Peter's Basilica, where mourners will be able to pay their respects to the late pontiff.

His body will be transferred to St Peter's from where it currently lies - the Santa Marta residence where he lived during his 12-year papacy.

The Vatican has released official images of the Pope's body lying in Santa Marta, showing him in a wooden coffin dressed in a red robe with the papal mitre on his head and a rosary in his hand.

He will be transferred from Santa Marta to St Peter's Basilica in a procession starting at 09:00 local time on Wednesday.

Ahead of the transfer, a moment of prayer will be led by Cardinal Kevin Farrell, who is acting as the camerlengo - the person who runs the Vatican after the death or resignation of a pope.

Cardinal Farrell will then lead the procession to St Peter's, starting from Saint Martha's Square and ending in St Peter's Square before entering the church through the central doors.

After entering the church, Cardinal Farrell will lead the Liturgy of the Word, before the church is opened to visitors to pay their respects.

The general public will be able to visit the church from 11:00 to midnight on Wednesday, 07:00 to midnight on Thursday and 07:00 to 19:00 on Friday.

Bucking tradition, there will be no private viewing for cardinals, at Pope Francis's request. The Pope's coffin will also not be raised on a pedestal.

BBC graphic titled: "Vatican City: The permanent seat of the Pope." It shows the locations of St Peter's Square, St Peter's Basilica, the Sistine Chapel and Casa Santa Marta.

What time is Saturday's funeral service?

The Pope's funeral will take place in the square in front of St Peter's Basilica on Saturday, starting at 10:00 local time (09:00 BST).

The service will be led by the dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re.

Patriarchs, cardinals, archbishops, bishops, and priests from across the globe will take part.

By 08:30, archbishops and bishops will gather in the Constantine Wing, adjacent to the basilica, wearing liturgical clothes including simple white miter.

By the same time, priests will congregate in St Peter's Square wearing red stole.

And by 09:00, patriarchs and cardinals will congregate in Saint Sebastian Chapel, in the basilica, wearing white damask miters.

The service will end with the final commendation and valediction, marking the beginning of nine days of mourning for the Pope, the Catholic news agency reported.

The pontiff's body will then be taken inside the church before being transported to St Mary Major Basilica in Rome for burial.

Who is attending the funeral?

Large crowds are expected at Pope Francis's funeral, with heads of state and royalty from around the world already announcing their attendance.

Among those who have said they will make an appearance are the Prince of Wales, US President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron.

Other political figures who have announced their intention to attend include:

  • Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
  • Polish President Andrzej Duda
  • EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen
  • Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky
  • Javier Milei, the president of Argentina, Francis's home country
  • British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer

Where will Pope Francis be buried?

Pope Francis, who chose to scale back some of the funerary pomp and ceremony of his predecessors, requested that he be buried at St Mary Major rather than in the crypt of St Peter's Basilica - making him the first pope not to be buried in St Peter's for more than a century.

He also requested to be buried in a single wooden casket, unlike his predecessors, who were buried in the traditional three nested coffins.

When is the new Pope elected?

Following the funeral, a conclave of cardinals will convene to elect a successor.

The dean of the College of Cardinals has 15 to 20 days to summon the cardinals to Rome once the Pope is buried.

Several names have already been floated as potential successors, with more likely to emerge in the coming days.

Pope Francis died of a stroke on Monday less than 24 hours after appearing in a wheelchair at St Peter's Square to lead an Easter address in front of thousands of worshippers.

His death followed a period of ill health that saw him spend five weeks in hospital with double pneumonia.

Born in Argentina, he was elected the first ever Latin American pope in 2013.

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