King praises Pope Benedict for his 'efforts towards peace and goodwill' after his death at 95

Charles expressed his “deep sadness” at Benedict's death in a message to his successor Pope Francis, as the head of the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, and the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, also paid tribute.

Benedict became the second pontiff in history to visit the UK in 2010 when he met the Queen and made a historic address at Westminster Hall.

He was the first pope in 600 years to resign and was replaced by Francis in 2013.

Francis will celebrate Benedict's funeral Mass in St Peter's Square in Vatican City on Thursday, the Vatican said.

In a statement, Charles paid tribute to Benedict and recalled visiting him at the Vatican in 2009.

He said: “Your Holiness, I received the news of the death of your predecessor, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, with deep sadness.

“I remember with fondness my meeting with His Holiness during my visit to the Vatican in 2009. His visit to the United Kingdom in 2010 was important in strengthening the relations between the Holy See and the United Kingdom.

“I also recall his constant efforts to promote peace and goodwill to all people, and to strengthen the relationship between the global Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church.”

Mr Nichols told PA the news agency: “I think the news this morning came still with an element of surprise, even though we were warned a few days ago that his health had deteriorated very significantly.

“I was consoled by a comment I heard that somebody had made in Rome a couple of days ago, where they put it rather beautifully – they said, 'The angels are gathering, they're coming to take him home'.”

The cardinal also praised Benedict's “landmark” trip in 2010 when he became the second pope in history to visit the UK, reminiscing about the German theologian meeting the Queen in Edinburgh and an address he made at Westminster Hall, for which “every living prime minister was present”.

He added: “I remember when the visit was being arranged, the whole expectation was the pope would come to London but he said, 'No, first of all I want to see the Queen'.

“And the Queen was in Balmoral, but she came to Edinburgh and he arrived in the United Kingdom in Edinburgh in order to make sure that his first visit and his first steps in the United Kingdom were with the Queen.

“Now, it's worth remembering they're the same age, the Queen died at 95, Pope Benedict has died at 95. And there was a great esteem between them, a deep respect.

"I was not far away from that first visit and there was not only respect but there was also a little bit of humour as well that the car that had been provided for the Pope to travel from Edinburgh Airport to Holyrood House Palace she thought was a bit small and it had darkened windows, and she said, 'That won't do, it's got to be something which people can see you (in).

"The Queen and the Pope understood what it was to be in service more or less for a lifetime."

Mr Welby hailed Benedict as "one of the greatest theologians of his age".

In a statement, he said Benedict was "committed to the faith of the Church and stalwart in its defence".

FROM HITLER YOUTH CONSCRIPT TO SCHOLARLY PRODIGY:

The former Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger had planned at age 78 to spend his final years in his native Bavaria, Germany.

Instead, he was chosen to follow the footsteps of St John Paul II, becoming the oldest person to have been elected pope since Clement XII in 1730.

His tenure saw him try to steer the church through the fallout of many Catholic child sex abuse scandals, saying in 2008 that “victims should receive compassion and care, and those responsible for these evils must be brought to justice”.

He was a stern critic of abortion, contraception, and “pseudo-matrimonies by people of the same sex”.

Born April 16, 1927, in Marktl Am Inn, Bavaria, Benedict wrote in his memoirs about being enlisted in the Hitler Youth against his will in 1941, when he was 14 and membership was compulsory.

He was then pressed into the military, and deserted in April 1945 as the Allies drew near.

Benedict was ordained in 1951, appointed bishop of Munich in 1977, and elevated to cardinal three months later by Pope Paul VI.

Along with German, Benedict spoke fluent Italian, French, English, Spanish and Latin, and could read ancient Greek and Biblical Hebrew.

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