King Charles met Pope Francis twice as Prince of Wales, and together with Queen Camilla shared a “very significant and special” secret meeting with the Holy Father less than a fortnight before he died
In a touching tribute to Pope Francis, the King spoke of his “care for both people and planet”, issues in which the two men from different worlds were profoundly connected.
The King met Pope Francis twice as Prince of Wales, and together with Queen Camilla shared a “very significant and special” secret meeting with the Holy Father less than a fortnight before he died. The King and Queen were invited to meet His Holiness at The Vatican during their four day state visit to Italy, after a planned audience and official engagements at the Holy Sea were cancelled due to the Pope’s recent hospitalisation for pneumonia.
The hastily arranged visit to the ailing pontiff was Charles’ first as monarch and head of the Church of England.
At the time, while I was in Italy with the royals, palace aides described to me the monarch’s “deep affection and respect” for the man now mourned by more than a billion Catholics around the world.
Charles and Camilla were both delighted to have been offered the opportunity to meet with the holy man for just 20 minutes on April 9, during which they exchanged gifts and the Pope congratulated the couple on their 20th wedding anniversary that day.
The Vatican later released a heartwarming image of Charles and Camilla smiling and shaking hands with the Pope, where it is understood both the King – still receiving weekly treatment for cancer – and the pontiff gave each other their best wishes for a speedy recovery.
Royal sources said both the King and Queen were “extremely grateful and humbled” for the audience, which the monarch echoed in his statement yesterday saying how they “were greatly moved” to have been able to visit him.
The Pope’s epitaph of helping people, while promoting the values of fairness and love for our planet, aligns with the King’s ambitions for his own legacy.
