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Pope Francis held a private audience with King Charles III and Queen Camilla this week. The meeting took place at the Vatican’s Casa Santa Marta, where the Pope has been convalescing for over two weeks after being released from Rome's Gemelli Hospital. In a statement released on Wednesday evening, the Holy See Press Office said:

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“Pope Francis met privately with Their Majesties, King Charles and Queen Camilla, this afternoon. In the course of the meeting, the Pope expressed his best wishes on the occasion of their wedding anniversary and reciprocated His Majesty’s wishes for a speedy recovery of his health.”

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The Pope’s best wishes were a reference to the King’s condition, following his hospitalisation at the end of March due to the side effects of treatment for cancer, which was diagnosed a year ago.

A post on the Royal Family's X (Twitter) account this morning, noted that:

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“the King and Queen were deeply touched by the Pope’s kind remarks about their 20th wedding anniversary and honoured to be able to share their best wishes to him in person.”

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The King and Queen also met the President of Italy, Sergio Mattarella, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni during their three-day visit to Rome, with King Charles becoming the first British Monarch to address the assembled Houses of Parliament in Montecitorio.

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‍Source: CBCEW