BBC News Briefing

26 April, 2025

Iain McDowell

Hello. World leaders, royals and hundreds of thousands of mourners have gathered at the Vatican for the funeral of Pope Francis. In this special edition, we'll bring you details from the ceremony and an extraordinary meeting that happened beforehand. You can watch the key moments from the day and we'll also look back at Francis' life and ahead to his legacy.

World bids farewell to Pope Francis

Pope Francis wooden coffin is carried by 12 men in black formal dress while clergy dressed in robes walk behind it.

Francis had chosen a simple wooden casket rather than a more elaborate type typically used for papal burials. Credit: AFP

Pope Francis has been laid to rest at his favourite church in Rome after an open-air funeral service at St Peter's Square. A ceremony rich with choral music was watched by dozens of dignitaries from around the world, including US President Donald Trump and Prince William, as well as homeless people, migrants and prisoners invited at Francis' request. One mourner there, Grazia, spoke of the wonder of sharing the moment with "people who come from every corner of the world". "This is the legacy of the Pope," she told our reporter Laura Gozzi. In contrast to the global scale of the mourning among Catholics since Francis' death on Monday, his burial was held in private, only those closest to him in attendance.

Laura's report from Rome

GET UP TO SPEED

Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky face each other and engage in conversation as they sit on red-and-gold chairs inside St Peter's Basilica.

Trump and Zelensky meet before Francis' funeral

Inside St Peter's Basilica minutes before the ceremony, the presidents of the US and Ukraine had talks that Zelensky later said had the "potential to become historic".

All the details >

The church Francis chose as his final resting place

The Pope would visit the church of Santa Maria Maggiore whenever he returned to Rome after his trips abroad - now it's the site of his burial.

Go inside >

A treated graphic featuring a montage of images of the top of St Peter's Basilica, three cardinals speaking to each other, the Pope's mitre hat and white smoke billowing from the Sistine Chapel.

Secret vote, white smoke: How next Pope is chosen

In the coming days, the process to find a successor to Francis will begin. Some 135 cardinals eligible to select the 267th pontiff will vote until one name prevails.

The conclave explained >

AT THE SCENE

St Peter's Square

Homily full of colour from Pope's life

An estimated 200,000 people packed into St Peter's Square for the funeral ceremony. Credit: Getty Images

With Pope Francis' coffin placed on a platform outside St Peter's Basilica under bright blue skies, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re led the funeral service, remembering the late pontiff as a champion for peace.

Sarah Rainsford, BBC correspondent

The homily - or address - was almost 20 minutes in length and full of colour from the Pope's life. At times it felt quite political, especially given who was here in the crowd. The cardinal talked of the Pope's call to "build bridges, not walls" and his compassion for migrants. It's an issue Francis clashed with Trump over in the past.

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There were ripples of applause all around me on the street as people listened. The first came when the cardinal mentioned the Pope's first ever foreign trip, when he went to the Italian island of Lampedusa and met refugees and migrants in a display of support.

Watch the key moments

Remarkable images: Our photo essay rounds up the most striking shots from the ceremony and the coffin procession through Rome.

Influence far beyond faith: Francis was a vocal critic of the powerful, writes our religion editor Aleem Maqbool in his InDepth analysis.

Who will be the next pope?: The election promises to be a highly unpredictable and open process - here are some of the key candidates.

Pope Francis, wearing white papal robes and a white zucchetto, touches the face of a baby girl who wears a white dress and a pink bow in her hair.

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IN PICTURES

The life of a no-frills Pope

Look back at the defining images of the first Latin American to lead the Church.

See the gallery

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