Pope Francis, the humble pontiff whose acts of inclusiveness, modesty and mercy rippled through his 12-year papacy, is being laid to rest Saturday in a service he deliberately simplified.
Thousands of mourners packed St. Peter's Square overnight into Saturday at the Vatican and spots along the Tiber River for the funeral, which is set to start at 10 a.m. local time (4 a.m. ET), and is being held mostly outdoors. Officials had estimated 200,000 people would attend, including dozens of world leaders and dignitaries.
Some mourners had camped out to secure a spot. "We have been waiting all night," Maria Fierro of Spain said. "Accompanying (Francis) in his last moments is very emotional."
James Mary, a Franciscan nun, said she had been "up the whole night. We want to say goodbye because he (was a) living saint, very humble and simple."
Francis, the leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics, died Easter Monday at 88 from a stroke, weeks after battling back from respiratory ailments. On Easter Sunday, the frail but resolute pope − who championed the poor and marginalized and was often called "the people's pope" − thrilled crowds with an impromptu popemobile outing into St. Peter's Square.
The Argentine pope, who contended with Catholic Church traditionalists opposed to his reforms, was known for his warm demeanor and for spurning any kind of grandeur: Living at a guesthouse in the Vatican, taking public transportation, wearing plain white cassocks. On his U.S. trip in 2015, he zipped around the nation's capital in a small black Fiat.
Francis, who scaled back rules for papal funeral rites a year ago, made sure his own service and burial reflected that same message of simplicity − breaking from tradition even in death.
Pope Francis' funeral service is expected to take 90 minutes, compared to John Paul's service in 2005 that last lasted three hours.
In his final testament, Francis asked to be buried inside the burial niche between Chapel of the Salus Populi Romani and Sforza Chapel, which are located within the Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome instead of in the Grotto at St. Peter's Basilica. He is the first pope being laid to rest outside the Vatican in almost a century.
The pope, who was born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Buenos Aires, Argentina, also requested a "simple" burial: "The tomb should be in the ground; simple, without particular ornamentation, and bearing only the inscription: Franciscus," he instructed.
St. Mary Major was special to Francis because of his devotion to Mary, Mother of God. He prayed there before and after many overseas trips.
Pope Francis' coffin also breaks with papal tradition. Instead of being buried in three coffins − each made of cypress, lead and elm and placed inside the other − his coffin will be wooden and lined with zinc.
The coffin is shaped like a tapered hexagonal box. It it wider at the top and narrower at the bottom, resembling a human body.
− George Petras, Janet Loehrke
The security operation in and around Vatican City is in full swing.
The funeral has brought together dozens of world leaders and thousands of people from around the world who traveled to Rome to pay their respects.
About 2,000 local police officers are on duty at Pope' Francis' funeral. They are joined by thousands more officers from the national security forces. Security measures include patrols on the Tiber, drones and snipers.
Streets were closed to traffic around the Vatican on Saturday. Authorities also announced a no-fly zone over Rome for the week.
Dozens of world leaders and heads of state are now in Rome. Some of them have clashed with both the pope and each other.
Pope Francis once said that President Donald Trump's plans to impose mass deportations of immigrants were a "disgrace."
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has not had any easy time navigating Trump's attempts to secure a peace deal for the Ukraine-Russia war. The two leaders clashed in an Oval Office meeting in late February. Former President Joe Biden and wife Jill are also in Rome.
One notable absence is Russia's Vladimir Putin, who portrays himself as a main of serious faith. Putin is subject to an international criminal court arrest warrant over his invasion of Ukraine. The Kremlin said he wouldn't be attending.
Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, 91, dean of the College of Cardinals, will preside over the funeral Mass, which will be celebrated by patriarchs, cardinals, archbishops, bishops and priests from around the world, the Vatican said.
The College of Cardinals decides who will be the next pope in a highly secretive ritual called a papal conclave. As dean, Re is one of the most senior figures in the church. He has spent five decades serving in the Roman curia, the church's various administrative institutions.
In a biography on the College of Cardinals website, Re is described as having an "affable manner and efficient approach to issues and conflicts."
The weather has been spectacular all week in Vatican City, and conditions for the funeral also look terrific, forecasters said.
"It should a nice and calm day," AccuWeather meteorologist Jacob Hinson told USA TODAY. He said sunny to partly cloudy skies are expected, with highs in the 70s.
Wind should not be an issue either, he added, with gusts of only 6-10 mph in the forecast.
Dozens of global leaders and dignitaries were scheduled to attend Pope Francis' funeral.
Britain's Prince William, son of King Charles III, will attend the funeral on his father's behalf, Kensington Palace said. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer also will attend.
U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres was scheduled to attend, his office said. Javier Milei, president of Francis' native Argentina, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy were among others who said they would attend.
About 250,000 people bid farewell to Francis through this week as the pope was lying in state at St. Peter's. Lines stretched more than half a mile north of the Vatican, and some people reported waits of about three hours to get inside the basilica.
"He was a wonderful pope," Alessandra Caccamo of Rome said as she waited outside the Vatican. "I'm going to miss him so much, because it's like I've lost a piece of me."
Rachel Mckay, from Britain, said Francis was "somebody who made the church very accessible to everybody and inclusive to everybody. He's like a member of the family, somebody very close to our hearts."
A conclave to choose a new pope normally takes place 15 to 20 days after the death of a pontiff, meaning it should not start before May 6. As of this week, there were 252 cardinals, of whom 135 are electors, according to the Vatican. Cardinals over the age of 80 are excluded from voting.
In medieval times, cardinals could take years to elect a new pope. Conclaves are much shorter now. Pope Francis was elected the day after the conclave began in 2013.
Voting takes place in a series of rounds until a clear winner emerges.
The world is waiting with bated breadth to find out who the next pontiff will be. Several names have emerged as possible front-runners, including bishops from Canada and the Philippines. Pope Francis was the first non-European pope elected in 1,300 years.