King Charles before trip to Italy in April: Monarch wants to meet seriously ill Pope

King Charles III. (76) and Queen Camilla (77) will visit Italy and the Vatican for four days from April 7th to 10th. The planned meeting with Pope Francis (88) should take place despite his illness. A private occasion for the royal couple also falls during the week: the 20th wedding anniversary on April 9th.

The Pope has been in the hospital since February 14, where he is treated for double -sided pneumonia. Finally, the Vatican reported a stable state of health. The improved prospects for the Pope apparently mean that the meeting with the Royals in April should take place as planned to celebrate the Holy Year 2025 and the relationships between the Catholic Church and the Church of England. From the palace it was said that “our hopes and prayers were shared that Pope Francis’ Health will enable the visit”, as.

Before the meeting scheduled for April 8, the king is said to have already written a private letter to Pope Francis. In it he wished the Pontifex good recovery. The two men already met twice – in 2017 and 2019. For Charles, it would now be the first time that he would meet the Pope as king, which is why British media speak of a “historical meeting”.

In addition to the audience with the Pope, the king will also take part in an ecumenical service in the Sistine chapel. There are also two milestones for Charles during the trip: he will be the first British monarch to visit the papal basilica of Sankt Paul in front of the walls, the resting place of St. Paul since the Reformation. And he will be the first British king to speak in front of both houses of the Italian parliament. In addition to a state banquet, a tour of a joint flight of the Italian Air Force and the British Red Arrows via Rome is also on the program.

The royal couple in Ravenna is also expected. There Charles and Camilla will visit the grave of the Italian writer Dante. A visit to a festival is also planned that celebrates the kitchen of the Emilia-Romagna.

Meanwhile, positive news from the Vatican. As the Vatican Press Office announced on Monday evening, Francis’ health is still stable, while slight improvements in connection with breathing and movement therapy can be seen. At times, the 88-year-old no longer needs support in the oxygen supply during the day.

At the weekend, the Vatican published a first picture of Francis in the hospital, which shows him in a wheelchair at a trade fair in the clinic chapel. The swelling of the right hand, which can be seen on it, is due to the impaired mobility of the Pope, it said. However, it “decreased significantly” in the course of Monday.