
In a moment steeped in symbolism and history, King Charles III became the first head of the Church of England to pray publicly with a pope, joining Pope Leo XIV for a service in the Sistine Chapel on Thursday.
The unprecedented event — broadcast live by the Vatican’s official news service — took place during the 76-year-old monarch’s state visit to Rome alongside Queen Camilla. It marked the first time since King Henry VIII’s break with Rome nearly five centuries ago that a reigning English or British monarch has prayed publicly with the leader of the Roman Catholic Church.
The centuries-old rift began when Pope Clement VII refused to annul Henry’s marriage, prompting the English king to form the independent Church of England, with the monarch as its supreme head — a role Charles III now holds.
Earlier in the day, the royal couple met privately with Pope Leo XIV, who assumed the papacy in May following the death of Pope Francis. The two leaders then joined the Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, for the service held beneath Michelangelo’s awe-inspiring frescoes.
Seated at the front of the chapel alongside the pontiff and the archbishop, Charles and Camilla faced an audience that included senior Anglican and Catholic clergy, diplomats, and political figures.
The ecumenical ceremony blended Anglican and Catholic traditions, featuring a joint performance by the Sistine Chapel Choir and the choir of St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle — a symbolic union of voices from both churches.
Fittingly, the service centered on one of King Charles’s lifelong passions: environmental conservation and the stewardship of the planet, themes he has championed for decades.
The monarch arrived in Rome on Wednesday evening for what Buckingham Palace described as a “historic and unifying visit.” The couple were welcomed on Thursday morning at the Apostolic Palace by the Swiss Guard, the pope’s renowned ceremonial bodyguards, before their private audience in the papal library.
However, the trip comes at a sensitive time for the royal family. Back home, Prince Andrew has faced renewed scrutiny over his ties to the late U.S. financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Amid mounting pressure from his brother, the prince recently announced he would relinquish his title as Duke of York, having already stepped away from royal duties in 2019.