A king who has always described himself as a peacemaker, as he did during a 2020 speech in Davos, could not remain indifferent to the first words spoken by Pope Leo XIV from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica: “Peace be with all of you!”
On Friday, from Buckingham Palace comes confirmation that King Charles III, Supreme Governor of the Church of England, sent a private message to the new pontiff, elected only Thursday to the Chair of Saint Peter.
“The King has sent a private message to Pope Leo XIV, congratulating him on his election as the 267th Pontiff and Bishop of Rome. His Majesty sent his, and Her Majesty’s, most sincere good wishes for his Pontificate,” reads the official note.
A congratulatory message that also carries with it the signature of Queen Camilla. The royal couple had met with Pope Francis in April, during the last day of his state visit to Italy, before leaving Rome and heading to Ravenna.
It was a private meeting with Francis, while the official visit to the Vatican, which was supposed to include a moment in the Sistine Chapel, now the scene of Leo XIV’s first mass, had been postponed. But not canceled: According to sources close to the Palace, the visit will be rescheduled in the coming months, now with the new pontiff.
He is the first pope to come from the United States. Pope Leo XIV, born Robert Francis Prevost, was born in Chicago in 1955, to a father of French and Italian descent and a Spanish mother. His path was then marked by a long stay in South America, between missions in Chulucanas and Trujillo, Peru. It was an experience that left a profound imprint on his pastoral vision, as was also evident from his first speech, delivered in Italian and Spanish (and without a single word in English).
From Spain, meanwhile, came official congratulations from King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia: “We congratulate Cardinal Prevost on his election as the new pontiff, Pope Leo XIV. His call for peace inspires us, encourages us and reflects the deep desire and feelings of the Spanish people.”
Words that recall once again the common thread of this new election: peace. A theme that seems to run through the first international reactions, such as that of Prince Albert II of Monaco, who expressed in French, the official language of Monegasque protocol, his “fervent prayers for the greatness of the pontificate” of Leo XIV.
And it is precisely at the Vatican, in mid-May, that Pope Leo XIV will return to welcome Spanish Jubilee brethren, including representatives of the Esperanza de Málaga, a community to which he is particularly attached, following his 2007 visit to Colegio Los Olivos.
An American pope, a British king, European sovereigns: the echo of Leo XIV’s election crosses borders and continents, like a shared call to dialogue and reconciliation. “Peace be with you, unarmed and disarming. Help us build bridges to be one people” – Pope Leo’s first words struck a chord.