Pope Francis dies aged 88: Latest updates as funeral details confirmed

Pope Francis’ body taken in procession to St Peter’s for lying in state

The body of Pope Francis, laid out in an open coffin, was carried in a solemn procession on Wednesday from his residence within the walls of the Vatican City to St Peter’s Basilica.

Red-hatted cardinals, priests, candle-carrying friars and helmeted Swiss Guards walked slowly into the vast, sunlit esplanade as a male choir chanted psalms and prayers in Latin while the great bells of the basilica tolled.

The body of the 88-year-old pope, who died two days ago in his rooms at the Santa Marta guesthouse after suffering a stroke, was held aloft on a wooden platform by 14 white-gloved, black-suited pallbearers.

“Dear brothers and sisters, with deep sorrow we now accompany the mortal remains of our Pope Francis to the Vatican Basilica,” said the Irish-American cardinal Kevin Farrell at the start of the ceremony.

As the coffin crossed St Peter’s Square, a crowd of several thousand broke into repeated applause – a…