King Charles and Queen Camilla meet Pope Francis on 20th wedding anniversary before they attend state banquet | Queen Camilla wears Fiona Clare gown, turquoise jewels

King Charles and Queen Camilla have met with Pope Francis at the Vatican in a surprise, private audience that was only confirmed hours before.

The King and Queen spent 20 minutes with the 88-year-old at the Pontiff’s home Casa Santa Marta, at the Vatican, where he has been recuperating after being discharged from hospital.

Buckingham Palace said King Charles and Queen Camilla were “delighted the Pope was well enough to host them – and to have had the opportunity to share their best wishes in person”.

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The meeting took place on Wednesday, on the third day of the state visit to Italy, which was also the King and Queen’s 20th wedding anniversary and four years since the death of Prince Philip.

A press release from the Vatican called the date a “particularly significant day for their family”.

In a statement the Vatican said: “Pope Francis met privately with Their Majesties, King Charles and Queen Camilla, this afternoon.

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“In the course of the meeting, the Pope expressed his best wishes to Their Majesties on the occasion of their wedding anniversary and reciprocated His Majesty’s wishes for a speedy recovery of his health.”

King Charles was briefly admitted to hospital two weeks ago after experiencing side effects from his weekly cancer treatment.

The Pope spent five weeks in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital while he was suffering from double pneumonia.

Since his discharge, the Pope has been recovering and at the weekend he appeared in public at St Peter’s Square.

A picture of the meeting is due to be released on Thursday morning.

The King and Queen had originally been scheduled to meet with Pope Francis at the Vatican during their state visit, to coincide with the Papal Jubilee. But last month it was announced that the meeting had been postponed due to the Pontiff’s health, a decision that was said to have been made by “mutual agreement” based on “medical advice”.

Following the meeting with the Pope on Wednesday afternoon, the King and Queen were guests of honour at a state banquet at the Quirinale Palace, the official residence of the Italian president Sergio Mattarella, attended by 150 people including celebrities and dignitaries.

Queen Camilla wore a green lace gown by Fiona Clare and a turquoise and diamond necklace that belonged to her late mother, Rosalind Shand.

The event was black tie, not white tie, so a tiara was not required.

In his speech, the King made reference to a Monty Python joke about the Romans coming to Britain centuries ago.

“I need hardly say that the United Kingdom and Italy have a relationship that goes back many centuries,” King Charles said.

“After all, this peninsula has had a profound impact on British history and culture.

“There is, of course, the influence of the ancient Romans – who first landed in the south of England in 55 BC – and, I suppose it is fair to say, were not met with exactly the warmest of British welcomes.

“But I, for one, have never asked that question – made famous by Monty Python – ‘what have the Romans ever done for us?’ We see their imprint on what they knew as Britannia every day, from London to Carmarthen, from York to Hadrian’s Wall.

“Italy has succeeded, where Rome failed, in extending its influence to all corners of the United Kingdom, not least thanks to a beloved diaspora whose charm has proved mightier than the sword.”

The King also referenced his wedding anniversary.

“Today marks … the Queen’s and my 20th wedding anniversary,” the King said, adding, “On that score, I must say it really is very good of you, Mr President, to lay on this small romantic, candlelit dinner for two.”

Earlier in the day Queen Camilla wore her re-worked wedding outfit to attend Italy’s parliament where the King became the first British monarch to jointly address the Italian senate and parliament.

The silk ivory Anna Valentine dress was first worn to the couple’s civil ceremony held at the Windsor Guildhall in 2005.

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The outfit had been repurposed by the designer to include embroidery by Beth Somerville, a King’s Foundation artisan.

The King and Queen have a final day in Italy on Thursday local time before they return to the UK.

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