Overview
- The ecumenical service in the Sistine Chapel focused on care for creation and was presided over by Pope Leo XIV with the Church of England’s Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, as Catholic and Anglican choirs performed together.
- Before the service, Charles and Camilla held a private audience with the pontiff, with Vatican officials later citing discussions on environmental protection, poverty, peace and ongoing ecumenical dialogue.
- Later at St Paul Outside the Walls, the king was recognized as a Royal Confrater and a throne-like chair bearing his coat of arms and the motto “Ut Unum Sint” was installed for use by him and future sovereigns.
- The visit formed part of the Catholic Church’s 2025 Jubilee Year and marked the royal couple’s first meeting with Leo XIV since his election in May.
- The trip proceeded as scrutiny of Prince Andrew’s ties to Jeffrey Epstein intensified following Virginia Giuffre’s memoir and his move to stop using his titles, while the 76-year-old king continues cancer treatment.