The King and Queen will undertake an historic State Visit to the Holy See from 22nd – 23rd October 2025. Their Majesties will join His Holiness Pope Leo XIV to celebrate the 2025 Jubilee year. Traditionally marked every 25 years, the Jubilee is a special time for the Catholic Church.
The visit will mark Their Majesties’ first meeting with Pope Leo XIV since his election in May 2025. The visit will also mark a significant moment in relations between the Catholic Church and Church of England, of which His Majesty is Supreme Governor, recognising the ecumenical work they have undertaken and reflecting the Jubilee year’s theme of walking together as ‘Pilgrims of Hope’. This will be the first State Visit, since the Reformation, where the Pope and the Monarch will pray together in an ecumenical service in the Sistine Chapel, and the first time the Monarch will have attended a service in St Paul’s Outside the Walls, a church with an historic connection to the English Crown.
Programme Highlights include:
In the Apostolic Palace:
The King and Queen will meet Pope Leo XIV, and His Majesty will then meet Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Holy See’s Secretary of State.
Meanwhile Her Majesty will view the Pauline Chapel, which houses Michaelangelo’s last two frescoes of St Peter and St Paul.
Their Majesties and the Pope will then attend a special ecumenical service in the Sistine Chapel, focused on the theme of ‘Care for Creation’, reflecting Pope Leo’s and His Majesty’s commitment to the protection of Nature and concern for the environment. The Children of the Choir of His Majesty’s Chapel Royal and the Choir of St George’s Chapel, Windsor, will sing during the service, accompanied by the Sistine Chapel Choir. Her Majesty will remain in the Sistine Chapel following the service, to meet the choirs, whilst The King and the Pope join a meeting on sustainability, in the Sala Regia, reflecting His Majesty’s work over many decades on climate and Nature, as well as Pope Leo’s recognition of the importance of the issues. Once The Queen has met the choirs, Her Majesty will rejoin The King and the Pope, to meet the guests in the Sala Regia, before bidding farewell to Pope Leo XIV and departing the Apostolic Palace.
St Pauls Outside the Walls
Following their visit to the Holy See, in an historic step, His Majesty, accompanied by Her Majesty, will also visit the Papal Basilica and Abbey of St. Paul’s Outside the Walls, attending a service.
St Paul’s Outside the Walls is one of the four major Papal Basilicas and is the one most closely associated with the Catholic Church’s ecumenical commitment; it also has historic links with the English Crown. In the period following the arrival in England in 597 of the Roman monk and missionary, Augustine of Canterbury, Saxon rulers, including the Kings Offa and Æthelwulf, began providing for the upkeep of the tombs of the apostles Peter and Paul. With the passage of time, English Royal benevolence focused more on St Paul’s tomb, which remains inside the Basilica. For centuries, the heraldic shield of the Abbey has been surrounded by the insignia of the Order of the Garter. The Basilica’s name derives from the fact that it is part of the Holy See, but situated some distance away, outside the ancient Aurelian Walls of Rome, with extra-territorial status.
This visit celebrates the historic connection between the Sovereign and St Paul’s Outside the Walls and, in recognition of this, His Majesty has agreed the Pope’s suggestion that he become ‘Royal Confrater’ of the Abbey. This gift of ‘confraternity’ is a recognition of spiritual fellowship – of course ‘frater’ means brother in Latin.
In further celebration of this new bond, the Basilica of St Paul’s Outside the Walls has created a special seat for His Majesty, which will remain in the Basilica as a perpetual mark of mutual respect between Pope Leo and The King as Heads of State. The special chair is decorated with His Majesty’s Coat of Arms. The King will use this chair during the service, after which it will remain in the apse of the Basilica for future use by His Majesty and his heirs and successors.
Following the visit to St Paul’s Outside the Walls, The King will attend a reception at The Pontifical Beda College, a seminary which trains priests from across the Commonwealth, meeting students and members of the British and Vatican community. Meanwhile, Her Majesty will meet six Catholic Sisters from The International Union of Superiors General, who are working around the world at grassroots level to support female empowerment, through girls’ education programmes, improved access to healthcare, climate action, peace building, and tackling sexual violence and human trafficking.
The King and Queen will undertake an historic State Visit to the Holy See from 22nd – 23rd October 2025. Their Majesties will join His Holiness Pope Leo XIV to celebrate the 2025 Jubilee Year. Traditionally marked every 25 years, the Jubilee is a special time for the Catholic Church.
The visit will mark Their Majesties’ first meeting with Pope Leo XIV since his election in May 2025. It will mark a significant moment in relations between the Catholic Church and Church of England, of which His Majesty is Supreme Governor, recognising the ecumenical work they have undertaken and reflecting the Jubilee year’s theme of walking together as ‘Pilgrims of Hope’. In the first such occasions in many centuries, the Pope and The King will pray together in a unique ecumenical service at the Sistine Chapel, and His Majesty, accompanied by The Queen, will attend a further ecumenical service in the Basilica of St Paul’s Outside the Walls.
Their Majesties’ Programme in detail:
The King and Queen will meet Pope Leo XIV in the Apostolic Palace, following which, His Majesty will meet Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Holy See’s Secretary of State. Meanwhile Her Majesty will view the Pauline Chapel, which houses Michaelangelo’s last two frescoes of St Peter and St Paul.
Their Majesties and the Pope will then attend a special ecumenical service in the Sistine Chapel, focused on the theme of ‘Care for Creation’, reflecting Pope Leo’s and His Majesty’s commitment to the protection of Nature and concern for the environment. The Children of the Choir of His Majesty’s Chapel Royal and the Choir of St. George’s Chapel, Windsor, will sing during the service, accompanied by the Sistine Chapel Choir. Her Majesty will remain in the Sistine Chapel following the service, to meet the choirs, whilst The King and the Pope join a meeting on sustainability, in the Sala Regia, reflecting His Majesty’s work over many decades on climate and Nature, as well as Pope Leo’s recognition of the importance of the issues. Once The Queen has met the choirs, Her Majesty will rejoin The King and the Pope, to meet the guests in the Sala Regia, before bidding farewell to the Pope and departing the Apostolic Palace.
Following the visit to the Holy See, in an historic step, His Majesty, accompanied by Her Majesty, will also visit the Papal Basilica and Abbey of St. Paul’s Outside the Walls. His Majesty has agreed to The Pope’s suggestion that he become ‘Royal Confrater’ of the Abbey. This gift of ‘confraternity’ is a recognition of spiritual fellowship. In further celebration of this new bond, the Basilica of St Paul’s Outside the Walls has created a special seat for His Majesty, which will remain in the Basilica as a perpetual mark of mutual respect between Pope Leo and His Majesty as Heads of State. The special chair is decorated with The King’s Coat of Arms. The King will use this chair during the service, after which it will remain in the apse of the Basilica for future use by His Majesty and his heirs and successors.
Following the St Paul’s Outside the Walls visit, The King will attend a reception at The Pontifical Beda College, a seminary which trains priests from across the Commonwealth, meeting students and members of the British and Vatican community. Meanwhile, Her Majesty will meet six Catholic Sisters from The International Union of Superiors General, who are working around the world at grassroots level to support female empowerment, through girls’ education programmes, improved access to healthcare, climate action, peace building and tackling sexual violence and human trafficking.
Previous Royal visits to the Holy See:
Their Majesties last visited the Holy See earlier this year, where they had a private meeting with Pope Francis, shortly before he died. This meeting took place during The King and Queen’s State Visit to the Republic of Italy, and following the postponement of the State Visit to the Holy See, which had been due to take place in April. His Majesty The King, as Prince of Wales, visited the Holy See on five occasions: April 1985, April 2005 for the funeral of Pope John Paul II, April 2009, April 2017 and October 2019 for the Canonisation of Cardinal John Henry Newman.
Her Majesty The Queen, as Duchess of Cornwall, joined His Majesty for the visits in April 2009 and April 2017. As Prince of Wales, His Majesty met Pope Benedict XVI during the 2009 visit and Pope Francis during his visits in 2017 and 2019. His Majesty also met Pope John Paul II in Canterbury in 1982 – the first ever visit to the U.K. by a reigning Pope.
Queen Elizabeth II was the first British monarch since the Reformation to make an official visit to the Holy See, when she did so in 1961.
St Paul’s Outside the Walls
St Paul’s Outside the Walls is one of the four major Papal Basilicas and is the one most closely associated with the Catholic Church’s ecumenical commitment; it also has historic links with the English Crown. In the period following the arrival in England in 597 of the Roman monk and missionary, Augustine of Canterbury, Saxon rulers, including the Kings Offa and Æthelwulf, began providing for the upkeep of the tombs of the apostles Peter and Paul. With the passage of time, English Royal benevolence focused more on St Paul’s tomb, which remains inside the Basilica. For centuries, the heraldic shield of the Abbey has been surrounded by the insignia of the Order of the Garter. While the precise origin of this usage is unclear, it is most likely that it indicates recognition of the historic Royal link. The Basilica’s name derives from the fact that it is part of the Holy See, but situated some distance away, outside the ancient Aurelian Walls of Rome, with extra-territorial status.