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Friday, 25 April 2025, 09:42
King Felipe and Queen Letizia will head the Spanish representation attending the funeral of Pope Francis at the Vatican tomorrow (Saturday). The prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, will not travel to Rome, although his deputy prime ministers, María Jesús Montero and Yolanda Díaz, and senior minister Félix Bolaños will be there. The leader of the PP main opposition party, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, has also been asked to join the delegation that will say farewell to the deceased pope.
The government has said that, despite Sánchez's absence, Madrid intends to give the greatest possible prominence to the Spanish authorities' presence. The ruling Socialists and their Sumar partners in coalition were "fond" of the pontiff due to his progressive views.
Despite this, Pedro Sánchez is the only government leader of a major European power apart from Vladimir Putin not expected to be at the Vatican tomorrow. The PM has a reputation for missing key public funerals and did not attend that of Britain's Queen Elizabeth in 2022. The PP's Núñez Feijóo said of Sánchez's expected absence in Rome, "It is a discourtesy that is very hard to explain."
The funeral of Pope Francis, who died on Monday at the age of 88, will be held at 10am in St Peter's Square. The mass will be officiated by the dean of the College of Cardinals, Giovanni Battista Re, and the ceremony is expected to be attended by heads of state from around the world, including US President Donald Trump, French President Emmanuel Macron and the presidents of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola.
The King and Queen and the King's mother, Queen Sofía, visited the Vatican embassy in Madrid on Tuesday, the day after the Pope's death was announced, where they signed the book of condolence made available there.
"Our heartfelt remembrance to the unique figure and personality of His Holiness Pope Francis, who transcends his ecclesiastical dimension. And our admiration and respect for his total dedication to the evangelical task. Until the last breath of his life," wrote Felipe VI.
Speaking on Tuesday in front of the Spanish and EU flags draped in black ribbon, Prime Minister Sánchez said that he always counted Pope Francis "as a friend of Spain", and a "moral and spiritual" point of reference.
Although Pope Francis never paid an official visit to Spain in his time leading the Roman Catholic Church, he had a close relationship with the country and had spent nine months living outside Madrid in 1970 as part of his studies for the priesthood, reports said.
The president of the Junta de Andalucía, Juanma Moreno, expressed his sorrow over the death of Pope Francis, recalling that his "work has been courageous, committed, and inspiring". On social media, he said that Pope Francis "rests in peace, embraced by the love and faith of millions of people around the world". In his message, Moreno added, "I was surprised by his detailed knowledge of Andalucía and his admiration for our popular traditions of worship".
Spain's foreign secretary, José María Albares, said, "Pope Francis' life was a testimony of dialogue and search for justice."
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