In his final will, Francis said he wanted to be buried at St. Mary Major Basilica, which is home to the Salus Populi Romani icon of Mary.

In the chapel of the Vatican's Santa Marta residence, where Pope Francis lived and died, a nun prayed Tuesday with tears in her eyes before the pontiff's wooden coffin. Swiss guards in their brightly coloured uniforms stood either side of the casket laid out for Vatican staff,

The bells of St. Peter’s Basilica tolled to mark the end of the funeral Mass in Vatican City, where mourners joined in a final send-off for a pontiff celebrated as a champion of the poor.