Pope Benedict XVI farewelled by tens of thousands in Vatican City

Despite his request for a “simple” affair, the retired pontiff, 95, was given a funeral similar to that of a reigning pope.

The Catholic Church has farewelled the late Pope Benedict XVI in one of the single largest heads of state gatherings in modern history.

Despite his request for a “simple” affair, the retired pontiff, 95, was given a funeral similar to that of a reigning pope at St. Peter’s Square, Vatican City — the papal enclave inside Rome.

To sounds of Bavarian drumming, his coffin was carried down the steps of the Vatican as the requiem funeral service of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI opened before more than 60,000 senior clerics, dignitaries, friends and supporters in an unprecedented ceremony presided by the incumbent, Pope Francis.

Pope Francis stands by the coffin of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI during his funeral mass at St. Peter's square in the Vatican, on January 5, 2023. Picture: AFP

“Benedict, faithful friend of the Bridegroom, may your joy be complete as you hear his voice, now and forever,” Pope Francis said in his homily before burning incense and sprinkling holy water over the cypress coffin.

The Roman Catholic liturgy was peppered with prayers in Italian, Latin, French, Arabic and other European languages reflecting the worldwide nature of the church.

Tens of thousands of people gathered for the funeral mass for Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI at St. Peter's Square. Picture: Getty Images

Helicopters hovered overhead and hundreds of uniformed troops manned police barricades to ensure priests, official delegations and those with coveted VIP passes could get to their places amid the throngs of pilgrims.

To rapturous applause from crowds, pallbearers carried the casket back into the Basilica for a private service.

His mortal remains were taken to the Grottos under St. Peter’s Basilica, placed inside a zinc casket before going into a wooden case and descended into a tomb where once St. John Paul II was buried before his beatification, according to his final wishes.

Pallbearers carry the coffin of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI at the start of his funeral mass at St. Peter's Square in Vatican City. Picture: Getty Images

The pope was buried with coins and medals minted during his reign, the palliums he wore as part of his robes and a metal cylinder containing a rogito – a text describing his papacy.

The a requiem mass was to include a three-coffin burial, and follow his three-day lying-in-state which attracted more than 135,000 pilgrims.

A woman writes in a condolence book at a memorial service for the late Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. Picture: Getty

Among those confirmed to pay their respects were King Philippe of Belgium and his wife Queen Mathilde, and Queen Sofia of Spain, the largest Catholic country with a royal family still in place.

Other Catholic Royal Families including Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and Monaco were expected to have representatives in attendance while the President of Portugal Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa confirmed his attendance.

The body of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI lies in state at St. Peter's Basilica. Picture: Getty

Delegations from countries from his native Germany and Ireland also attended, while senior politicians from Italy and Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orbán, his Polish counterpart, Mateusz Morawiecki and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, have already paid their respects when he lay in state dressed in a red chasuble, the liturgical colour of vestments resigning popes are traditionally buried in.

Pope Benedict, who died on New Year’s Eve, left the church’s top role in 2013, citing a steady decline in health. He chose to be called Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI after his abdication, instead of reverting to Joseph Ratzinger, and continued to wear white robes in the corridors of the Vatican.

Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Italian President Sergio Mattarella attend the funeral mass of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI at St. Peter's square in the Vatican. Picture: AFP

Swells of mourners far exceeded numbers the Vatican expected, but were lower than those in 2005 for John Paul II, who attracted 600,000-a-day, perhaps due to his style of papacy viewed as more of a thinker than a pastor, or skilled politician.

Despite being in the shadows of the Vatican for the past decade, Pope Benedict was vocal on a variety of issues, often clashing with the views of the more liberal-minded Pope Francis.

In one of his most controversial essays, published in 2019, Pope Benedict blamed the church’s sexual abuse scandals on the sexual revolution of the 1960s and “homosexual cliques” among priests. His opinion came two months after a Vatican summit on tackling clerical sexual abuse, and sharply differed to that of Pope Francis’, who blamed the scandals on a clerical culture that elevated priests above the laity.

A woman prays as she lights a candle on the eve of the funeral of late Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, at St Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna, Austria. Picture: AFP

The results of a German investigation made public last January found Pope Benedict had failed to act against four priests accused of child sexual abuse during his time as archbishop of Munich.

He described the actions against victims of sexual abuse as a “most grievous fault” and personally responded at the time to the findings.

“All the greater is my pain for the abuses and the errors that occurred in those different places during the time of my mandate,” he wrote.

“As in those meetings, once again I can only express to all the victims of sexual abuse my profound shame, my deep sorrow and my heartfelt request for forgiveness.

“Quite soon, I shall find myself before the final judge of my life.”