King Charles and Pope LeoKing Charles and Pope Leo prayed side by side in the Sistine Chapel on Thursday, marking the first joint act of worship between an English monarch and a Catholic pontiff since Henry VIII severed ties with Rome nearly five centuries ago.
The service, held in the chapel where Leo was elected six months ago as the first American pope, featured Latin chants and English prayers. Charles, as supreme governor of the Church of England, was seated to the pope’s left near the altar, while the liturgy was led jointly by Leo and the Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell. Music was provided by the Sistine Chapel Choir alongside two royal choirs.
Although Charles has previously met Popes John Paul II, Benedict XVI and Francis, and both John Paul and Benedict visited Britain, none of those encounters included shared prayers. Thursday’s service therefore represented a significant symbolic moment in relations between the Anglican and Catholic churches.
Earlier in the day, Charles and Queen Camilla held a private audience with Pope Leo. The royal couple had visited the Vatican earlier this year to meet Pope Francis, who stepped down due to ill health.
The King’s visit comes at a difficult time domestically, with his brother, the Duke of York, facing renewed scrutiny over allegations of abuse and his association with the late financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Later on Thursday, Charles was due to travel to the Basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls, one of Catholicism’s most revered sites. There, Pope Leo authorised the King to be named a “Royal Confrater” of the abbey, a title signifying brotherhood.
In a reciprocal gesture, Buckingham Palace announced that Charles had conferred two British honours on the pontiff: naming him “Papal Confrater” of St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, and awarding him the Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath.
The exchange of honours and the joint act of worship underline a new chapter in relations between the monarchy and the Vatican, centuries after the schism that reshaped Christianity in Europe.
