Given the close relationship between the King and Francis, some may have been asking why Charles wasn’t in the Vatican earlier this year.
Instead, he delegated attendance to Prince William for the late pontiff’s funeral in April.
Royal officials did not explicitly give a reason, but experts suggest this may be a combination of historical considerations – being mindful of the split between the Church of England and the Roman Catholic Church (see our 10:15 post) – and deferring to what the late Queen Elizabeth II did.
“This is the country that broke from Rome, there is that historical split,” said George Gross, a royal historian at King’s College London.
“It’s that classic British fusion of historical precedent, which becomes a tradition.”
Elizabeth II did not attend many funerals, including Pope John Paul II’s in 2005, when she sent her son Charles, then Prince of Wales, in her place.
“The Queen didn’t go to funerals abroad as far as I remember,” said Gross.
“That is the background to it. And more recently, they’re obviously balancing [Charles’] diary and health issues as well,” he added, referring to the King’s recovery from cancer.