Fiorello Maffei, a 58-year-old who lives in London, returned to Italy for the now postponed canonisation of Carlo, a Londoner himself born to Italian parents who died of leukaemia at the age of 15. Maffei said he had found Francis’s funeral “very touching” and full of simple words and messages of love that still “carried great weight”.

High-level funeral security in Rome included anti-drone guns, NATO surveillance, and military enforcement, as global dignitaries honored Pope Francis’s legacy. The late Pope Francis had requested that his funeral be a low-key affair.

Former President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden will among those attending Saturday's funeral for Pope Francis in Vatican City.