Prince William is listed beside the Prince of Norway in the “order of precedence” for international attendees at Pope Francis’s funeral on Saturday, according to an official listing.
It comes as the Prince of Wales and Prince Haakon of Norway are listed in their own category as crown princes, and are followed in the order of precedence by representatives from the Andorran government.
The British Government delegation includes Sir Keir Starmer, who will be accompanied by his wife Victoria, as well as Foreign Secretary David Lammy, UK ambassador to the Vatican Chris Trott, and Alisa Terry, the Prime Minister’s private secretary for foreign affairs.
The UK Government delegation is listed between groups from Qatar and Serbia led by those countries’ heads of government.
Ireland’s delegation is led by the President Michael D Higgins, and also includes his wife Sabina Higgins, Taoiseach Micheal Martin, Tanaiste Simon Harris, and ambassador to the Vatican Frances Collins.
The Irish delegation falls between groups from Indonesia and Iceland which are also led by those countries’ heads of state. The Irish President was among those to pay his respects on Friday, ahead of his attendance at Saturday’s requiem mass.
A Vatican spokesperson has confirmed Francis’s birth country of Argentina, and then Italy will take precedence. Thereafter, reigning sovereigns will be seated “in alphabetical order, but in French language”, followed by heads of state.
Meanwhile, mourners are paying their respects to Pope Francis for the final time as the late pontiff lies in state at St Peter’s Basilica ahead of his funeral on Saturday at 10am.
With world leaders attending, snipers are stationed on rooftops, drones are grounded, and fighter jets are on standby. Streets surrounding the Vatican are under strict control.
Once the funeral mass has finished, Francis’s coffin will be taken, in procession, to Santa Maria Maggiore. The Vatican announced that people will be able to visit Francis’s tomb in the basilica from Sunday morning.
The Marian shrine, which houses a celebrated icon of the Virgin Mary and a relic of the manger in which baby Jesus was laid, was a favourite spot of Francis’s, and he often prayed there before and after his trips abroad.
“As I’ve always promised the Virgin, the place is already prepared,” he said in an interview with Mexican TV two years ago, as reported in the Guardian. “I want to be buried in Santa Maria Maggiore because it’s my great devotion.”
