Pope Francis dies latest: Funeral date and time confirmed by Vatican with pontiff’s body to lie in state

Good morning and welcome to our live coveraege of the death of Pope Francis.

This morning, the Vatican has released video and photographs of Francis in an open coffin as cardinals gather to discuss his funeral arrangements.

Senior Catholic officials have confirmed the funeral will take place on Saturday at 10am local time (9am UK time)

It comes as world leaders declare they will attend the service with Donald Trump, Emmanuel Macron and Volodymyr Zelensky all confirming they will be in Rome.

Here are the latest pictures we can show you from St Peter’s Square as large crowds gather inside the Vatican once again to mourn Pope Francis.

Tomorrow, people will get the chance to see Francis lie in state as his body goes on public display before the funeral is held on Saturday.

Francis will become the first Pope in more than a century to be buried outside the Vatican when he is laid to rest on Saturday.

Traditionally, the final resting place for the head of the Catholic Church is in St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Grottoes where more than 90 popes are buried including Saint Peter, the first one.

But Francis will instead be laid to rest in the basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome’s Esquilino neighbourhood.

In his last testament, which was revealed last night, Pope Francis wrote:

Throughout my life, and during my ministry as a priest and bishop, I have always entrusted myself to the Mother of Our Lord, the Blessed Virgin Mary. For this reason, I ask that my mortal remains rest – awaiting the day of the Resurrection – in the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major.

A basilica is a church which has special significance or privileges granted by the Pope – and the Santa Maria Maggiore is one of the four major ones in Rome.

Pope Francis died of a stroke on Monday at the Vatican aged 88.

His funeral is to be held Saturday in the presence of worshippers and dignitaries before a conclave of cardinals is convened to elect a successor.

Here’s what we know about the circumstances surrounding the pope’s death and what is to follow:

Pope Francis was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli hospital on February 14 with bronchitis, which later turned into double pneumonia that almost killed him twice.

He left hospital on March 23 and was due to undergo a strict two-month convalescence period.

But the Argentine made a series of impromptu public appearances, looking increasingly weak. The Vatican announced his death early Monday morning.

Francis died of ‘cerebral stroke, coma, irreversible cardiocirculatory collapse’, according to a death certificate released by the Vatican.

His body was displayed on Monday evening in an open coffin – which he previously ordered should be of wood and zinc – in the chapel of Casa Santa Marta, the Vatican residence where he lived.

In photos published by the Vatican, Francis was seen wearing his red papal vestments, a mitre on his head and had a rosary between his fingers.

His body is to be transferred to St. Peter’s Basilica Wednesday at 9am (8am UK time) to lie in state.

Francis’s funeral will take place at 10am (9am UK time) on Saturday in the square in front of St Peter’s Basilica.

The coffin will then be taken inside the church and from there to the Rome basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore for burial.

World leaders and faithful from across the globe are expected to flock to Rome to attend the ceremony and pay their respects to the leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.

US President Donald Trump, Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky and France’s Emmanuel Macron are among those who said they would attend.

The starting date of the conclave, during which 135 so-called ‘cardinal electors’ will choose Francis’s successor, is not yet known.

But it should begin no less than 15 and no more than 20 days after the death of the pope, thus between May 5 and May 10.

The cardinals will meet in the Sistine Chapel, a Renaissance jewel adorned with Michelangelo’s celebrated frescoes, and hold four ballots a day – two in the morning and two in the afternoon – until one candidate wins two-thirds of the votes.

At the end of each session, the ballots are burned in a stove by the chapel, releasing smoke above the Apostolic Palace as the world watches.

If black smoke billows from a chimney overlooking St Peter’s Square, the vote has been unsuccessful.

White smoke signals a new pope has been elected.

Heads of state and royalty are expected for his funeral, with US President Donald Trump the first to announce they would attend even before a date was confirmed.

Here’s who we believe is coming so far

• Donald Trump – US President
• Emmanuel Macron – French President
• Volodymyr Zelensky – Ukrainian Presidnet
• Javier Milei – Argentine President
• Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva – Brazilian President

In the UK, sources say a member of the Royal Family could attend the funeral although it was too early to confirm who would travel to Rome for the service

The King has worn a black tie as a mark of respect to the Pope as he met the prime minister of New Zealand at Windsor Castle.

Charles, who is head of the Church of England, carried out his first official engagement since the death of the pontiff, the head of the Roman Catholic Church, on Easter Monday.

The King and New Zealand’s premier Christopher Luxon, who was also wearing a black tie, were said to have taken the opportunity to “reflect on Pope Francis’s remarkable life and legacy”, a source said.

Charles and the Queen had a moving private meeting with Pope Francis on their state visit to Italy, just 12 days before the 88-year-old died after a cerebral stroke.

The King has expressed his “most heartfelt condolences and profound sympathy” and praised Pope Francis’s compassion and tireless commitment to the common causes of all people of faith.

The monarch, who is also King of New Zealand, welcomed Mr Luxon to his Berkshire castle on Monday.

The funeral of the late Pope Francis will take place on Saturday, with his body going on public display from Wednesday for mourners to pay their respects.

The news came as the first images of the late pontiff were published.

The 88-year-old, who died on Easter Monday, was pictured lying in a wooden coffin dressed in red, with rosary beads draped across his hands.

It has been confirmed that Francis’s body will be on display for the public to pay their respects in St Peter’s Basilica from Wednesday morning.

Details of Francis’s funeral have also been confirmed, with mass to take place at 10am local time (9am UK time) on Saturday, celebrated by the dean of the College of Cardinals.

Italian media are reporting the funeral of Pope Francis is likely to take place on Saturday.

According to the apostolic constitution, rules issued by the Pope for matters of great importance to the Catholic Church,the funeral is expected to take place four to six days after a death.

That would mean the service is expected on Friday, Saturday or Sunday. Multiple Italian news outlets are today reporting Saturday is the most likeliest day.

Cardinals are expected to arrange the funeral date this morning.

Emmanuel Macron and Volodymyr Zelensky pictured in Paris last month

World leaders Emmanuel Macron and Volodymyr Zelensky have become the latest to declare they will attend the funeral of Pope Francis.

Mr Macron, the French premier, told reporters: ‘We will attend the pope’s funeral as we should’, while a source at the Ukrainian presidency said Mr Zelensky is preparing to travel to Rome.

The source told the AFP news agency:

The office of the president is awaiting the date of the Pope’s burial and preparing the president’s visit to Rome to bid farewell to the pontiff.

Cardinals were scheduled to meet at 9am local time (8am UK time) at the Vatican to begin scheduling Pope Francis’ funeral and burial.

They will also plan the conclave to elect his successor and make other decisions about running the Catholic Church as world leaders and the ordinary faithful grieve the pontiff’s death.

Most immediately, they will determine when his body can be moved into St. Peter’s Basilica for public viewing.

Francis died Monday at age 88 after suffering a stroke that put him in a coma and led his heart to fail.

He had been recovering in his apartment after being hospitalised for five weeks with pneumonia.

He made his last public appearance Sunday, delivering an Easter blessing and making what would be his final greeting to followers from his popemobile, looping around St. Peter’s Square.

The Vatican has published photographs of Pope Francis in his open coffin, dressed in a red robe with the papal mitre on his head and a rosary in his hand.

The images were taken in the chapel of the Casa Santa Marta, Francis’s residence at the Vatican where he died Monday, age 88.

The body of Pope Francis has been laid out in open coffin at the Vatican for the Confirmation of the Death of the Pontiff ceremony.

The rite confirming Francis’ death and the placement of his body in the coffin took place last night at the Chapel of Santa Marta, the Vatican has said.

Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Vatican camerlengo, read the official declaration of death aloud in a ceremony lasting just under an hour.

Seals were also placed on the papal apartment in the Apostolic Palace and on the apartment in Chapel of Santa Marta, where Francis had resided.

Cardinals are set to meet today to plan a funeral for Pope Francis, as tributes continue to pour in following his death.

The world will be watching Vatican City after the death of the 88-year-old pontiff on Easter Monday.

Pope Francis died after a cerebral stroke that led to a coma and irreversible heart failure, the Vatican said.

Tributes poured in from around the world on Monday, including from the King and other world leaders, with many praising the Pope for his advocacy for the marginalised.

Read our top story on MailOnline:

Good morning and welcome back to MailOnline’s live coverage of the death of Pope Francis.

This morning, cardinals will gather in the Vatican to make arrangements for the funeral which would usually take place between four and six days following the Pope’s death.

US President Donald Trump said on social media he and his wife Melania plan to attend the funeral.

It comes after tributes to Francis poured in from across the world on Monday after his death was announced in the morning.

We will continue to report the latest news and reaction throughout the day.