Queen Mary’s touching tribute to Pope after solo appearance

Queen Mary of Denmark has paid a solemn tribute to Pope Francis after it was revealed why she attended the funeral mass without King Frederik.

Queen Mary of Denmark has paid a solemn tribute to Pope Francis after her solo appearance at the pontiff’s funeral in Vatican City.

Following the funeral mass, a number of images were posted to the Danish royal family’s official Instagram account.

One image showed the elegant Australian-born royal walking to her seat, while another showed Mary with her hands clasped and head bowed as she stood in front of Monaco’s Prince Albert II.

The post’s caption read: “In front of St Peter’s Church, Her Majesty the Queen, together with representatives from all over the world, participated in the funeral mass for Pope Francis in Vatican State.”

Queen Mary and Prince William, attending on behalf of his father King Charles, were the only two European royals to attend the service without their spouses, with Princess Catherine also absent from the historic event.

Queen Mary, seated next to Abu Dhabi's Sheikh Khaled Bin Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, at the funeral of Pope Francis. Picture: Getty Images

King Frederik, it has emerged, could not attend the funeral as he was visiting Japan, where he met Emperor Naruhito and carried out a series of engagements related to sustainable food production and green energy.Following his visit to Japan, King Frederik will visit Greenland where he will meet Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen.

JULIAN ASSANGE ATTENDS POPE’S FUNERAL

Controversial figure and WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange travelled to Rome to pay his respects to Pope Francis, who supported him during his prolonged detention.

The 52-year-old Australian was spotted near St Peter’s Square looking scruffy, but wearing a black suit and tie and standing near some military personnel.

WikiLeaks also posted another picture of all of the Assange family in Rome.

“Now Julian is free, we have all come to Rome to express our family’s gratitude for the Pope’s support during Julian’s persecution,” his wife Stella said.

“Our children and I had the honour of meeting Pope Francis in June 2023 to discuss how to free Julian from Belmarsh prison. Francis wrote to Julian in prison and even proposed to grant him asylum at the Vatican.”

Julian Assange has travelled to Rome wife Stella and their children to attend Pope Francis’s funeral.

Mr Assange spent seven years holed up in Ecuador’s London embassy, fighting extradition to the US, where he faced espionage charges for publishing classified military and diplomatic cables on his website.

He also spent five years in London’s Belmarsh prison.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange speaks with a member of the military forces in Via della Conciliazione by St Peter’s Square. Picture: AFP

During that time his wife, who he married in prison in 2022, had an audience with the pope in 2023 to discuss her husband’s detention.

She said the Pope sent a letter to her husband in March 2021.

“He has provided great solace and comfort and we are extremely appreciative for his reaching out to our family in this way,” Ms Assange said at the time.

Mr Assange was freed last June when he was allowed to return to Australia.

Originally published as Queen Mary’s touching tribute to Pope after solo appearance