Pope Francis’ Funeral Underway At St. Peter’s Square, Prince William, Trump, Other Leaders Present

The funeral of Pope Francis, the head of the worldwide Catholic Church, has officially begun at 10:00 a.m. Rome time (1:30 p.m. IST) on Saturday, April 26, at St. Peter’s Basilica and Square in Vatican City.

As the global Catholic community prepares to bid farewell to Pope Francis, who passed away after a stoke at the age of 88 on Easter Monday, April 21, many politicians and public figures also convene for the funeral in the Holy City.

Dignitaries present for Pope Francis’ funeral:

From India’s President Droupadi Murmu to US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump, here is a full list of other dignitaries attending Pope Francis’ funeral:

• Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky and First Lady Olena Zelenska
• UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer
• Prince William
• UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres
• France’s Emmanuel Macron
• Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
• Argentina’s President Javier Milei
• Spain's King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia
• Hungary's President Viktor Orbán

The Vatican had confirmed a total of 130 delegations, including 50 Heads of State and 10 reigning sovereigns, for the funeral of Pope Francis.

Schedule for the funeral:

The funeral liturgy will be presided over by His Reverend Eminence Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Dean of the College of Cardinals.

• 9:00 am IST: St Peter’s Square opens
• 1:15 pm IST – 4:30 pm IST: Funeral service for Pope Francis at St. Peter’s Basilica and Square
• 3:30 pm IST: Pope Francis’s casket to be transported for burial at St. Mary Major Basilica
• 5:30 pm IST: Mass at Buenos Aires Cathedral followed by a march around Plaza de Mayo
• 4:30 pm IST: A group of “poor and needy” will welcome the coffin at Santa Maria Maggiore

Chronological order of the funeral service:

• Reading of liturgical texts
• A homily by Cardinal Re
• A universal prayer in several languages
• The consecration of the bread and wine
• Participants exchanging a sign of peace or handshake
• The Eucharist
• A moment of silence
• The sprinkling of holy water on the coffin

Pope Francis' final resting place

The Basilica of St. Mary Major, located in the heart of Rome, will serve as the final resting place of the Argentine pontiff.

Pope Francis will be the first pope in over three and a half centuries to be buried at the fifth-century church, which already holds the tombs of seven previous popes.

The entire event will be streamed live by Vatican Media, international news networks, and Catholic broadcasters around the world.