Pope Benedict XVI funeral: Queen Sofia and King Philippe confirm attendance

Queen Sofia of Spain and King Philippe of Belgium are among the first foreign royals to announce their attendance at Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s funeral this week. 

The frail 95-year-old died at 9.34am on Saturday in the Vatican monastery – where he had lived since his shock retirement in 2013. He was the first pope to retire from the papacy in 600 years.

Benedict, born Joseph Ratzinger in Marktl, Germany, will lie in state until Wednesday and his funeral will be held on Thursday in St Peter’s Square, presided over by Pope Francis.

A number of members of royal families from across the world have confirmed their attendance at the event thus far.

According to Spanish media, Queen Sofia of Spain will attend the event. It is not known if she will be accompanied by her husband, King Juan Carlos I.

Meanwhile King Philippe of Belgium and his wife Queen Mathilde will also travel to the Vatican for the event, according to local media. 

It is not currently known whether King Charles or Queen Consort Camilla will attend the event this week. 

The British monarch led tributes to ‘God’s Rottweiler’ Pope Benedict XVI after his death, with the monarch expressing his ‘deep sadness’ at the death of the ex-pontiff as he praises his ‘efforts to promote peace and goodwill to all people’.

Meanwhile King Philippe of Belgium and his wife Queen Mathilde will also travel to the Vatican for the event

Within minutes of the announcement of the death on Saturday morning, a wealth of tributes poured in from around the world, while the Vatican revealed that the late pontiff would be given a ‘simple’ funeral, celebrated by Pope Francis, in keeping with his wishes.

King Charles paid his respects to Pope Francis on the death of former Pope Benedict, praising his efforts to ‘promote peace’ between Catholic and Protestant communities.

The king acknowledged the former pontiff’s ‘constant efforts to promote peace’ and to ‘strengthen the relationship between the global Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church’, adding he received the news with ‘deep sadness’.

King Charles expressed his ‘deep sadness’ at Benedict’s death in a message to his successor Pope Francis.

Benedict, born Joseph Ratzinger in Marktl, Germany , will lie in state until Wednesday and his funeral will be held on Thursday in St Peter’s Square, presided over by Pope Francis 

In a statement, Charles paid tribute to Benedict and recalled visiting him at the Vatican in 2009.

He said: ‘Your Holiness, I received the news of the death of your predecessor, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, with deep sadness.

‘I remember with fondness my meeting with His Holiness during my visit to the Vatican in 2009. His visit to the United Kingdom in 2010 was important in strengthening the relations between the Holy See and the United Kingdom.

‘I also recall his constant efforts to promote peace and goodwill to all people, and to strengthen the relationship between the global Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church.’

Within minutes of the announcement of the death on Saturday morning, a wealth of tributes poured in from around the world

The then Prince of Wales being welcomed by Pope Benedict XVI in the library at the Vatican in April 2009

The head of the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, said: ‘I think the news this morning came still with an element of surprise, even though we were warned a few days ago that his health had deteriorated very significantly.

‘I was consoled by a comment I heard that somebody had made in Rome a couple of days ago, where they put it rather beautifully – they said, “The angels are gathering, they’re coming to take him home”.’

The Cardinal also praised Benedict’s ‘landmark’ trip in 2010 when he became the second pope in history to visit the UK, reminiscing about the German theologian meeting the Queen in Edinburgh and an address he made at Westminster Hall, for which ‘every living prime minister was present’.

He added: ‘I remember when the visit was being arranged, the whole expectation was the Pope would come to London but he said, “No, first of all I want to see the Queen”.

King Charles paid his respects to Benedict in a statement recalling the times the pair met shared after the pope’s death 

‘And the Queen was in Balmoral, but she came to Edinburgh and he arrived in the United Kingdom in Edinburgh in order to make sure that his first visit and his first steps in the United Kingdom were with the Queen.

‘Now, it’s worth remembering they’re the same age, the Queen died at 95, Pope Benedict has died at 95. And there was a great esteem between them, a deep respect.

‘I was not far away from that first visit and there was not only respect but there was also a little bit of humour as well that the car that had been provided for the Pope to travel from Edinburgh Airport to Holyrood House Palace she thought was a bit small and it had darkened windows, and she said, ‘That won’t do, it’s got to be something which people can see you (in).

‘The Queen and the Pope understood what it was to be in service more or less for a lifetime.’

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, the first pope in 600 years to resign from the role, died in the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery in the Vatican at 9.34am on Saturday and is now lying in state

Crowds have been gathering outside St Peter’s Basilica to mourn the late pope ahead of his funeral 

The Vatican has said it will be a simple, solemn and sober ceremony in keeping with his wishes.

The ‘simple’ funeral is in keeping with the wishes of the former pope, who for decades as a German cardinal had served as the Church’s guardian of doctrinal orthodoxy before he was elected pope in 2005.

Papal funerals typically draw heads of state from around the world, but the Vatican has said that only official delegations from Italy and from Benedict’s native Germany were formally invited to attend the ceremony.

Representatives from other countries or organisations can attend in a private capacity, diplomats were told.

A few VIPs had a moment at the basilica before the general public to pay their respects, including Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni, the far-Right leader who in the past has professed admiration for the conservative leanings of Benedict.

Italian president Sergio Mattarella and his daughter Laura Mattarella also paid their respects to the former pope and theologian.

Security officials expected at least 25,000 people to pass by the body on the first day of viewing.

Benedict’s time as pope was filled with controversy, including his alleged mishandling of child abuse cases, misleading investigators, rehabilitating a Holocaust survivor and antagonising Muslims by suggesting Islam was inherently violent.

He also said the use of condoms in the fight against Aids only worsened the problem, sparking international outrage. He also claimed in his autobiography, Benedict XVI: A Life, that ‘a century ago, anyone would have thought it absurd to talk about homosexual marriage.’

However Benedict did order an inquiry into abuse in Ireland, resulting in the resignations of several bishops.

But last year, an independent report in his native Germany found that between 1977 and 1982 he had failed to take action in four cases of sexual abuse when he was Archbishop of Munich.

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