King Charles and Queen Camilla Meet Pope Francis on 20th Wedding Anniversary

King Charles III and Queen Camilla celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary with a surprise visit with Pope Francis.

The British monarchs, who are currently in Italy on a state visit, marked 20 years since their nuptials on Wednesday, April 9, with a private reception at the Vatican. They received well wishes from the pope, 88, who has recently been recovering from health issues.

“A special moment for Their Majesties as they privately met His Holiness Pope Francis at the Vatican yesterday,” Buckingham Palace shared via X early Thursday, April 10.

“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,” the palace’s post continued.

Charles and Camilla initially planned to visit the Holy See as part of their official itinerary, however, the trip was postponed amid Pope Francis’ health issues. Buckingham Palace said in March the visit had been “postponed by mutual agreement” after “medical advice has now suggested that Pope Francis would benefit from an extended period of rest and recuperation.”

Wednesday’s visit came amid a tight itinerary for the royals, which also included a state banquet hosted by Italy’s President Sergio Mattarella at Quirinale Palace in Rome.

Charles, 76, acknowledged his wedding anniversary in a speech thanking the president and other dignitaries during the dinner. “Today marks, as you say, The Queen’s and my twentieth wedding anniversary. On that score, I must say it really is very good of you, Mr. President, to lay on this small romantic, candle-lit dinner for two…,” Charles quipped.

Charles and Camilla, 77, married on April 9, 2005, in a civil wedding at Windsor Guildhall in Windsor, England. The couple were later joined by Charles’ late parents, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, for a service of prayer at St George’s Chapel and a reception at Windsor Castle. Camilla was given the title of the Duchess of Cornwall after her marriage to Charles. She later became Queen Camilla following Queen Elizabeth’s death and Charles’ ascension to the throne in September 2022.

Before his marriage to Camilla, Charles was married to Princess Diana from 1981 to 1996. The former couple shared two children, Prince William, 42, and Prince Harry, 40.

Camilla, meanwhile, was married to British Army officer Andrew Parker Bowles from 1973 to 1995. They share two children, Tom Parker Bowles, 50, and Laura Lopes, 47.

Charles and Camilla’s romance began long before their first marriages and resumed while Charles was married to Diana.

Rumors of an affair started swirling in 1986, seven years before the release of a transcript of a 1989 phone call between Charles and Camilla that featured several suggestive comments. At one point, Charles allegedly said he wanted to “live inside [Camilla’s] trousers” and joked about reincarnating as a tampon. The incident was henceforth nicknamed Camillagate or Tampongate.

Charles eventually admitted that he had been unfaithful during a televised interview in 1994.

“Yes,” Charles said when asked whether he had committed infidelity. “[Not] until it became clear that the marriage had irretrievably broken down.”

Charles, however, refused to name Camilla at the time despite reports that she was the person with whom he had an affair.

The interview took place amid Charles and Diana’s separation, which was announced in 1992. Diana, for her part, broke her silence in her own bombshell interview.

“There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded,” Diana infamously said in a 1995 interview with BBC’s Panorama when asked whether Camilla contributed to her split from Charles.