Britain's King Charles shakes hands with Pope Leo XIV in the courtyard of San Damaso, following an ecumenical prayer in the Sistine Chapelle led by the Pope and Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell, at the Vatican, October 23, 2025. REUTERS/Yara Nardi
LONDON (Reuters) -The sight of King Charles praying with Pope Leo at the Vatican's Sistine Chapel signalled the latest step in a historic reconciliation between the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion five centuries after they split.
Here are details about the rift and the significance of the first joint worship including an English monarch and a Catholic pontiff in at least five centuries.
