Along with Prince William, Queen Mary of Denmark will be one of the famous public figures heading to Vatican City for Pope Francis’ funeral on Saturday. The Holy Father died on April 21 after a stroke following a lengthy health battle.
The Danish royal palace confirmed the Queen’s solo attendance on their official website. King Frederik will not be in attendance as he is currently away on a three-day visit to Japan, with a further trip to Greenland planned for Monday.
The decision to send the Prince of Wales to represent King Charles at the former Pope’s funeral follows precedent which was previously set by Queen Elizabeth II.
The monarch is following a tradition set by his late mother as when Queen Elizabeth was head of state, she never attended the funeral of a pontiff, the head of the Roman Catholic Church.
This was the case in 2005 at Pope John Paul II’s funeral, which Charles – who was The Prince of Wales at the time – attended on Queen Elizabeth II’s behalf.
It was a particularly notable move as the King had originally been set to marry Queen Camilla on the day the funeral fell on (8 April) so the wedding was pushed back by one day and took place in Windsor on 9 April, 2005.
King Charles last saw the pope just weeks ago on a state visit to Italy with Queen Camilla.
Their meeting was held in private, with a senior palace official describing it as a “very significant and special moment.” The King had also met Pope Francis on other occasions previously.
It is expected that Prince William will be the only member of the British Royal Family attending the funeral.