In a gesture that has symbolically demonstrated the bridging of a 500-year-old rift between churches, King Charles III and Pope Leo XIV led a historic joint prayer service at the Vatican last week.
Charles and Camilla were on a brief State Visit to the Holy See, having had to reschedule the official visit earlier this year due to Pope Francis’ declining health.
King Charles meets Pope Leo
The King and Queen had arrived in Rome on Wednesday evening and were formally received at the Apostolic Palace on Thursday morning – just 33 years after diplomatic relations were officially restored between the two nations.
After inspecting a Guard of Honour from the iconic Swiss Guard (the Pope’s bodyguard), Charles held a private audience with Pope Leo XIV in the palace library with The Queen.
It was the pair’s first official meeting: The King sent his brother, The Duke of Edinburgh, for the inaugural mass for the new Pope after his election in May, while Prince William attended Pope Francis’ funeral.
Upon meeting, the American Pope said: ‘Good morning, welcome!’.
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The King responded: ‘Your Holiness, it’s such a pleasure to meet you, if I may say so. You are so kind to see us.’
Historic note: Queen Camilla wore black, as per protocol with the raspberry pip brooch. She also opted for the more traditional mantilla or veil.
Privilege du blanc – wearing white for an audience with the Pope – is conferred by the Pontiff to specific female Catholic Royals, such as the Queen of Belgium, and the Queen of Spain. Queen Maxima of the Netherlands, despite being Catholic herself, must wear black as her husband is Protestant.
The meeting included a formal exchange of gifts and, significantly, of state honours. The King gave a photo of himself and The Queen in a silver frame (a typical diplomatic gift) and an icon of Edward the Confessor, a Catholic Saint. Leo handed over a photo of himself, and a scale version of a mosaic of Christ Pantocrator from the ancient Cathedral of Cefalu in Sicily.
Charles , who wore a black tie, also conferred the Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath on the American religious leader, while the Pope made the Monarch a Knight Grand Cross with Collar of the Vatican Order of Pope Pius IX.
The Vatican’s press office said the ‘cordial talks’ that discussed ‘matters of common interest’ including ‘environmental protection and the fight against poverty’. The statement also mentioned promotion of peace, global challenges, and a shared belief in further interfaith cooperation.
Unusually, the Pope escorted his guests outside after their meeting finished, when the royal couple met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Holy See’s Cardinal Secretary of State, who attended the Caroline coronation two and a half years ago – the first Cardinal at coronation in England for five centuries.
Historic prayers
The joint act of worship, held beneath the majestic ceiling of Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel on Thursday 23rd October, marked the first time a reigning British Monarch has publicly prayed with a Pope since the Reformation under Henry VIII in the 1530s – a landmark moment of interfaith cooperation.
It is reported that the late Queen prohibited her son from joining a Papal Mass on his visit to Rome in 1985, despite the Prince of Wales being keen to do so.
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The service – under the theme of ‘Care for Creation’- was led by Pope Leo XIV and the Archbishop of York, the Most Rev. Stephen Cottrell, mixing traditions from both churches.
The pair sat at the front with The King and Queen off to one side, facing the congregation.
There was a reading from the Letter to the Romans by the British Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper, as well as joint performances between the choirs of the Sistine Chapel, the Chapel Royal, and St George’s Chapel, Windsor – another nod to unity and friendship between the Christian denominations – including two Psalms.
‘Let us pray,’ the Pope said, marking a momentous occasion for both faiths.
Pope Leo’s prayer finished the service: ‘God our father, you have created the heavens and Earth. You made us in your own image. Teach us to see your hand in all your works and your likeness in all your children.’
A Buckingham Palace spokesperson described the visit as ‘an opportunity to reaffirm shared values of compassion, moral leadership, and care for creation’, and appears to have meant a great deal to The King personally and spiritually.
Shared diplomatic and charitable goals
After this, Queen Camilla stayed to talk to the choirs, before Charles and Leo went into the adjoining room, the Sala Regia, for a discussion on sustainability.
The King and The Pope joined a meeting with business leaders and climate organisations, including representatives from The King’s Sustainable Markets Initiative, to discuss environmental sustainability.
A lasting legacy and gift – the royal chair
Later, at the Basilica of St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, the 76-year-old Royal was formally installed as a ‘Royal Confrater’ of the adjoining Benedictine abbey.
The basilica holds a connection with the English Crown that stretches back to the Saxons (pre-1066), and this honour is a symbol of spiritual fellowship.
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This was a gift His Majesty returned, creating Leo the Papal Confrater of St George’s Chapel at Windsor, home of the historic Order of the Garter and resting place of Elizabeth II – and Henry VIII.
The ecumenical celebration was presided over by Abbot Donato Ogliari, in the presence of Cardinal Archpriest of the Papal Basilica James Michael Harvey; the Archbishop of York; and the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, Rosie Frew.
Ogliari described the award as a sign of ‘hope’ and a gesture of welcome not only to a Monarch but to a ‘brother’.
The King was also presented with a specially-commissioned chair bearing his coat of arms and the ecumenical motto ‘Ut Unum Sint’ (that they may be one), which will remain in the basilica for his use and that of his successors. This implies future royal visits that could be further cooperative diplomatic demonstrations…
Camilla had changed into a cream ensemble for this part of the visit, and the couple conducted an impromptu walkabout after leaving to the crowd’s delight.
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Nuns with purpose
Queen Camilla then conducted a separate engagement the Pontifical Beda College, meeting with a group of nuns to learn about their charitable work.
The Catholic Sisters from The International Union of Superiors General (IUSG) works at grassroots level – in schools, hospitals, refugee camps, rural missions, and communities that are often on the margins of society – to support female empowerment globally.
This picture gives me such hope.
Queen Camilla ‘humbled‘ by work of UISG Sisters – Vatican News pic.twitter.com/LMDYnqzjQm— Sr Miriam McNulty (@BirgitteUna) October 24, 2025
The Queen listened to the sisters’ stories of their work, who they have met and helped – and thanked the Sisters for their work. It ties in to her own work raising awareness of sexual violence and domestic abuse.
‘It’s incredibly moving to hear what you do,’ Camilla said to the group. ‘I am humbled by your work and by the strength and courage of those you serve.’
She also described their work as bringing ‘light in dark places’.
The sisters, repots the Vatican News, said that ‘The Queen was very moved by the stories and we, in turn, were touched by her attention and her desire to understand our mission.’
A farewell
Charles also attended a reception in the Pontificial Beda College gardens, with trainee priests, Brits working in the Vatican and Commonwealth Ambassadors to the Holy See.
Here, he watered an orange tree planted in the gardens to commemorate the State Visit.
The King joined trainee priests, British nationals working in the Vatican and Commonwealth Ambassadors to the Holy See for a special reception in the Pontificial Beda College gardens, following yesterday’s ecumenical services.
🍊His Majesty also watered an orange tree planted… pic.twitter.com/0phG2OVRRW
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) October 24, 2025
The trip was seen as signalling a new chapter of cooperation between the Catholic and Anglican churches and a positive step forward for Charles’ own interfaith work.
