Behind the scenes as cardinals prepare for Pope’s funeral

Some of the last words spoken by Pope Francis are revealed as thousands prepared to pay their respects and world leaders announced plans to fly in for his funeral on Saturday.

The faithful gather for Rosary prayers in honour of Pope Francis at St Peter's Square. Picture; AFP.

Some of the last words spoken by Pope Francis were revealed yesterday as thousands prepared to pay their respects in St Peter’s Basilica and world leaders announced plans to fly in for his funeral on Saturday.

Among the last things Francis told his nurse before his fatal stroke on Monday was, “Thank you for bringing me back to the square”, a reference to the assistance that enabled him to greet crowds in St Peter’s Square on Easter Sunday, a day before he died.

Earlier in the day the Pope had asked Massimiliano Strappetti: “Do you think I can manage it?” He was encouraged to ride in the “popemobile” to conserve his energy.

By about 5.30 the following morning “the first signs of illness appeared”, the Vatican reported.

“Over an hour later, after making a gesture of farewell with his hand to Strappetti … the Pope fell into a coma.

“According to those who were with him in his final moments, he did not suffer,” the Vatican said. “It all happened quickly.”

The Pope’s death was recorded at 7.35am on Monday. “It was a discreet death,” the Vatican said.

Nuns and faithful gather in St. Peter's Square to attend the Rosary Prayers in honour of Pope Francis. Picture: Getty Images.

Strappetti was credited by Francis with saving his life in 2021, when he urged the Pope to have colon surgery.

Yesterday the Vatican released images of Francis lying in an open casket at the chapel of the Vatican residence where he lived during his 12-year papacy.

Wearing red vestments and his bishop’s mitre, his hands were clasped around a rosary. Flanked by two Swiss Guards, his body was blessed with holy water by the Irish-born cardinal Kevin Farrell, the camerlengo who is running the Vatican until a new pope is elected.

At 9am on Wednesday (5pm AEST) Francis’s casket will be taken into St Peter’s Square and through the main entrance of the basilica where his body will lie in state for public viewing from 11am to midnight and again tomorrow and Friday.

The Prince of Wales will attend the funeral on behalf of the King, Kensington Palace has said.

The decision is in keeping with modern tradition after Charles, as the Prince of Wales, went to Pope John Paul II’s funeral, representing his mother in 2005. William never met Pope Francis, unlike the King, who developed a strong bond with the pontiff over the years.

The late Queen never attended the funeral of a pontiff, the head of the Roman Catholic Church.

Kensington Palace said the decision on William’s attendance at the Pope’s funeral followed government advice. Sir Keir Starmer will be among the VIPs who will attend the funeral at 10am, which will be celebrated by the Italian dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re.

President Trump will also attend with his wife Melania – despite the Pope’s public criticism of his crackdown on migrants. The American president will be joined by Spain’s King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia, Javier Milei, the president of Francis’s native Argentina, Brazil’s President Lula, President Macron of France, the Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni and the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, among others.

The Vatican will be carefully considering its seating plan as the funeral shapes up to be an impromptu international summit, giving leaders the chance to share views on global crises.

The event brings together Trump and the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen a week after Meloni tried to set up a meeting in Rome between the two to discuss Trump’s tariffs on the European Union.

A European Commission spokesman said there were “no updates on any possible bilateral meetings … the visit on Saturday is for the Pope’s funeral”, adding: “I cannot exclude [it] but there is nothing to announce.”

An uncomfortable encounter between Zelensky and President Putin was avoided after the Russian leader said he would not attend.

Yesterday (Tuesday) Zelensky said he wanted to meet Trump at the funeral despite their clash at the White House in February. “Yes, I would like to, I am ready. We are always ready to meet with our partners from the United States,” he said, answering a journalist’s question during a media briefing.

The funeral will mark the first of nine days of official mourning at the Vatican, ending on May 4. According to Vatican rules, the conclave to elect a new pope can start between 15 and 20 days after the death of a pontiff, meaning from May 6 to May 11.

The date can be brought forward if cardinals agree, although it cannot coincide with the days of mourning, meaning the earliest the conclave could start would be May 5.

As the conclave nears, cardinals among the 135 eligible for election have begun to deny their chances of being elected, as is customary.

Asked if he was in the running, the Swedish cardinal Anders Arborelius, 75, said: “It would be fun to have a Swedish pope but I think it’s pretty unlikely. Highly unlikely.”

The Times