Charles and Camilla to visit Vatican for 2025 Jubilee Year

Buckingham Palace announced on Thursday that King Charles III and Queen Camilla will undertake a State Visit to the Holy See in late October, traveling to Vatican City to meet Pope Leo XIV and to mark the Catholic Church’s 2025 Jubilee Year.

The 2025 Jubilee Year, observed every 25 years, carries the theme Pilgrims of Hope. Officials describe it as a year intended to symbolize renewed hope for a world coping with the consequences of war, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the climate crisis. The visit to the Vatican is also framed as an occasion to celebrate ecumenical work between the Church of England and the Catholic Church, reflecting the Jubilee year’s call for walking together as pilgrims of hope.

The trip was initially scheduled for April but was postponed because of Pope Francis’s ill health, according to the palace. The Pontiff died on April 21 of this year, and his successor was elected on the second day of the conclave, taking the name Leo XIV. In the interim, Charles and Camilla met Pope Francis privately on April 9, their 20th wedding anniversary, weeks before his death. The encounter was described as a moment of mutual goodwill despite the health crises that had affected both leaders in recent months.

Traditionally, monarchs do not attend the funerals of heads of state, and it is often the heir to the throne who represents the royal family at such events. The royal couple’s past engagements with the papacy reflect a pattern in which senior royals represent the crown at significant Catholic ceremonies when appropriate. For example, Prince Philip represented the Queen at the 2005 inauguration of Pope Benedict XVI, and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester attended Pope Francis’s inauguration in 2013. In another notable precedent, Charles, then the Prince of Wales, represented the Queen at the funeral of Pope John Paul II decades earlier. The palace has not released a full itinerary for the forthcoming Vatican visit, but officials say it will align with the Jubilee program and broader conversations about interfaith dialogue and shared humanitarian concerns.

Pope Leo XIV, who succeeded Francis after his death, convened the Holy See’s leadership in a period of transition at the Vatican. His elevation comes as the Catholic Church seeks to emphasize unity and reconciliation across Christian communities, a message echoed in the Jubilee Year’s theme and in ecumenical outreach plans that are likely to frame the Charles-Camilla audience with the Pontiff.

The timing of the visit underscores a continued emphasis on diplomacy and soft power in royal foreign engagements. While the palace has kept the precise schedule and agenda under wraps, observers expect discussions to touch on themes of international peace, interfaith cooperation, and humanitarian relief—areas in which the United Kingdom has signaled ongoing interest as it navigates tensions around global security, climate policy, and post-pandemic recovery.

As the October visit draws closer, Kensington Palace and Buckingham Palace staffs are expected to coordinate with Vatican officials to finalize security, protocol, and ceremonial elements. The relationship between the British monarchy and the Catholic Church remains a symbolically important facet of diplomacy and historical continuity in the United Kingdom’s international profile, particularly in light of the Jubilee Year’s emphasis on shared values and mutual respect among faith communities.