Donald Trump is expected to sit in the third row at Pope Francis‘s funeral on Saturday. Although official details have not yet been released, Vatican protocol suggests world leaders, including the US president, will not be in the front rows at St Peter’s Basilica. Trump was among the first to confirm that he would attend the pope’s funeral after his death on Easter Monday, but he could be relegated to a seat behind Catholic dignitaries and royals, including the Prince of Wales, who is attending on behalf of King Charles III. While there won’t be a shortage of world leaders and major figures in Rome this weekend, with 130 delegations set to pay their respects to the late pontiff, a hierarchical seating plan could cause trouble behind the scenes.
An official seating plan has not been publicly released, but the funeral of Pope John Paul II involved clear positioning of heads of state in the basilica’s third row, something that could come as a blow to Trump’s ego. Archbishops, bishops and cardinals, alongside Catholic royalty, took pride of place at the 2005 ceremony, with non-Catholic royals sat behind them, and heads of state yet another place removed.
The US leader will be sat among his counterparts, who are expected to be seated in alphabetical order, including UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Also attending the service will be Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, with whom Trump has had a fractuous relationship and a public spat in the White House earlier this year. He also accused the Eastern European leader of being an obstacle to peace in Ukraine‘s long-running war against Russia just this week.
The eyes of the world will be on Rome during the two-hour service on Saturday morning, which comes five days after Francis died from a sudden stroke after a battle with pneumonia.
Trump was one of the first world leaders to make a statement on social media after the death was announced. In a brief, two-sentence post on Truth Social, he said: “Rest in Peace Pope Francis! May God Bless him and all who loved him!”
US Vice President JD Vance, who met with the pontiff in one of his final engagements, said his “heart went out to the millions of Christians all over the world who loved him”. “I was very happy to see him [on Sunday], though he was obviously very ill,” he added.
The King and Queen were also among the last high-profile figures to meet with the pope before his death, and said they were “deeply saddened” by the news, praising his “tireless commitment to the common causes of all people of faith”.
Meanwhile, Starmer described the Argentinian as “a Pope for the poor, the downtrodden and the forgotten” in a statement also released on Monday, echoing the label of “people’s pope” Francis attracted for his humility and compassionate approach towards the poor.