Queen Sofía of Spain has traveled to Vatican City to attend the funeral of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.
Her Majesty arrived in the Italian capital on Wednesday, 4th January – the eve of the day of the funeral – and immediately visited St Peter’s Basilica, where she attended the wake for the former Pontif.
In St Peter’s, the former Queen of Spain was welcomed by the chief of Protocol of Vatican City, Joseph Murphy, and together with the rest of the community, had a moment of prayer for the deceased Pope.
Queen Sofía then moved to the Spanish Embassy in the Holy See for a meeting with authorities and personnel of the Embassy.
Her Majesty attend the funeral of Pope Benedict XVI on St Peter’s Square in the morning of Thursday, 5th January, together with members of other Royal families from all around the world, including King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of the Belgians.
The former Queen was seated alongside the Belgian monarch at the service which was presided over by Pope Francis.
Queen Sofía is traveling alone, as King Juan Carlos is celebrating his 85th birthday in Abu Dhabi on the day of the funeral. The former Spanish King has taken residence in the UAE in 2020, following some issues at home, and has only gone back to Spain a handful of times, all of which in the last year.
King Felipe and Queen Letizia have not made the trip, as they are expected to attend the traditional ceremony of Pascua Militar on the 6th of January, and King Felipe has just returned from Brazil, where he attended the inauguration ceremony of President Luis Ignacio Lula de Silva and took part in a series of meetings with other authorities from the group of Spanish-speaking countries in the world.
Princess Leonor is already back in Wales, where she is attending her last few months at UWC Atlantic, from where she is expected to graduate in May/June.
