The results of the farewell to the late Pope Francis have been summed up

Pope Francis was praised as a "pope of the people, with an open heart for everyone" during a funeral Mass that drew 400,000 mourners in Rome, from pilgrims and refugees to influential world leaders and royalty.

As The Guardian recalls, Francis, 88, died on Monday of a stroke and subsequent heart failure, setting off a series of centuries-old rituals and a massive, carefully planned logistical and security operation not seen in Italy since the funeral of John Paul II in April 2005.

The crowd burst into applause as 14 white-gloved pallbearers carried the late pontiff's wooden coffin from the altar of the 16th-century St Peter's Basilica, where it had lain for three days, to the square for an open-air ceremony.

Applause also broke out when Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, who led the funeral Mass, spoke of Francis's concern for immigrants, his constant calls for peace, the need for negotiations to end wars and the importance of climate change.

Under blue skies, crowds of people lined Via della Conciliazione, the road linking the Italian capital with the Vatican.

Among the pilgrims, The Guardian reports, were Rosa Cirielli and her friend Pina Sanarico, who left their homes in Taranto, southern Italy, and managed to find a comfortable seat in front of a giant TV screen early in the morning. “When Pope Francis was alive, he gave us hope. Now we have a huge hole,” Cirielli says. “He left us at a very difficult time for the world. He was the only one who spoke loudly for peace.”

The pilgrims were joined by leaders from more than 150 countries, including US President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly clashed with Francis over his stance on immigration, and his wife Melania. A White House spokesman said Trump had a “very productive” meeting with Ukrainian visitor Volodymyr Zelensky before the ceremony. The couple were pictured sitting opposite each other on chairs in St Peter’s Basilica. They were also pictured with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron.

Other guests at the memorial included former US President Joe Biden, who last met Francis at the G7 summit in Puglia in June 2024, Argentine President Javier Miley, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and Britain's Crown Prince William.

More than 2,000 journalists from around the world came to Rome to cover the event. According to The Guardian, 220 cardinals, 750 bishops and more than 4,000 priests celebrated the 90-minute mass.

“The outpouring of emotion we have seen in the last days since his departure from this earth into eternity tells us how deeply Pope Francis’s pontificate has touched minds and hearts,” Cardinal Battista Re said at the beginning of his funeral oration.

He recalled that the last image many people had of Francis was him delivering what would be his final blessing on Easter Sunday and saluting from the papal car in the same square where his funeral was celebrated.

Di Battista described Francis's charism as one of "welcoming and listening," adding that the guiding thread of his mission is "the conviction that the Church is a home for everyone."

As the late pontiff made his final journey in a specially adapted popemobile from the Vatican to his tomb in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome's Esquilino district, more applause and cries of "Pope Francesco!" erupted from the crowds lining the streets.

Accompanied by police officers on motorcycles, the car, which had been used during one of Francis's trips abroad, crossed a bridge over the Tiber River in Rome and then slowly made its way along Via Vittorio Emanuele, past Piazza Venezia, the Roman Forum and the Colosseum before arriving at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, Francis's favorite basilica.

A group of people, including prisoners, refugees, transgender people and homeless people, awaited his arrival on the steps of the fourth-century basilica as they bid Francis farewell.

The cardinals then performed the burial rite, which was attended by some of Francis's relatives. Before his burial, his coffin was blessed by Cardinal Kevin Farrell, who leads the Church between the papacies.

Francis is the first pontiff in more than a century not to be buried with great pomp in the grottoes beneath St Peter's Basilica, The Guardian reports. Instead, his coffin was placed in a small niche that had until now been used to store candlesticks.

In accordance with his last will, the grave will be unadorned and will bear only his papal name in Latin. The public will be able to visit the grave from Sunday.

Virginio and his wife Anna Maria traveled to Rome from Naples for the funeral. They are here to remember Francis, but also to think about who will succeed him, The Guarduan writes.

“We hope that the new pope will continue in the same spirit as Francis,” Anne Maria said. As the funeral approaches, speculation about who will succeed Francis will grow.

As The Guardian recalls, Francis, who was born in Argentina, was the first non-European pope in almost 13 centuries. During his 12-year papacy, the late liberal pontiff faced a series of serious challenges from right-wing cardinals. Nine days of mourning began on Saturday, and the conclave – the secret election process to choose the next pope – is not expected to begin until May 5. There is no clear frontrunner, The Guardian notes, although Luis Antonio Tagle, a reformer from the Philippines, and Pietro Parolin from Italy are currently leading the forecasts.