King Charles and Queen Camilla to visit the Holy See

King Charles and Queen Camilla will pay a State Visit to the Holy See at the end of October in celebration of the 2025 Jubilee Year.

Buckingham Palace has announced that the royal couple will meet with Pope Leo XIV during the State Visit as part of the Papal Jubilee that takes places once every 25 years.

This Jubilee’s theme is ‘Pilgrims of Hope’ and the State Visit will include celebrations for the “ecumenical work of the Church of England” according to Buckingham Palace, which will adhere to the theme of mankind walking together in faith.

King Charles and Queen Camilla had been due to visit the Holy See earlier this year during their State Visit to Italy in April, but due to the ill health of then-Pope Francis, their visit was postponed and they instead paid a private visit to the ailing pope before his death later in the month.

King Charles has yet to meet Pope Leo XIV, though the Pontiff sent a special message to the King following the death of the Duchess of Kent, who had converted to Catholicism in the 1990s. Pope Leo XIV said: “I was saddened to learn of the death of Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Kent, and I send heartfelt condolences, together with the assurance of my prayerful closeness, to Your Majesty, the Members of the Royal Family, and especially to her husband, The Duke of Kent, and their children and grandchildren at this time of sorrow.”

King Charles has paid five visits to the Holy See, as Prince of Wales, in 1985, 2005, 2009, 2017, and 2019; while Queen Camilla has paid two visits, joining her husband in 2009 and 2017. Their 2005 wedding was famously delayed by a day to allow King Charles to attend the funeral of Pope John Paul II.

Buckingham Palace will announce the details of the State Visit to the Holy See at a later date.