Pope Francis funeral latest: Watch as tens of thousands of mourners view Pontiff’s open casket at St Peter’s Basilica

Thousands of people filed through St Peter’s Basilica on Wednesday to pay their final respects to Pope Francis at the start of three days of public viewing ahead of his funeral.

Throngs of the faithful made their way to the 16th-century basilica’s main altar, where Francis’ open wooden casket was perched, as Swiss Guards stood at attention.

Over the coming days, tens of thousands of people are expected to pass through, and the Vatican said it may make the viewing hours even longer due to high turnout. In the first 8.5 hours, 19,430 people paid their respects to the pope.

Francis was laid out in red robes, clasping a rosary and wearing a bishop’s mitre, the traditional pointed headdress. Mourners waited hours to reach the casket, which was behind a cordon. Some held their phones aloft as they neared to snap photos in what has become a modern ritual.”It gave me chills,” said Ivenes Bianco, as she left.

She was in Rome from the southern city of Brindisi for medical care, and came to pay her respects. “He was important to me because he encouraged co-existence. He brought many people together.

“Francis’ casket wasn’t put on an elevated bier – as was the case with past popes – but placed on a ramp, facing the pews.

It was in keeping with his wishes for the rituals surrounding a papal funeral to be simplified to reflect his belief that the pope’s role is that of simple pastor, not world leader.

Pope Francis chose St Mary Major as his resting place, about 4 km from the Vatican.

It marks a break from tradition as most popes were buried in Vatican grounds – the last pope not to be was in 1903.

The basilica was important to the Pope because it was his favourite place to pray. He prayed there before and after every international trip.

“I’ve always had a great devotion to St Mary Major, even before I became pope,” he wrote in his 2024 book El Sucesor.