Pope Benedict XVI is lying in state at the Vatican has begun, with tens of thousands of people expected to pay their respects.
The former Pope died on New Year’s Eve at the age of 95, almost a decade after he stepped down due to ill health.
Pope Francis will preside over Thursday’s funeral, the first time a Pope will be buried by his successor.
Father Alfredo Elnar, a 30-year-old from the Philippines, was at the front of the queue forming outside St. Peter’s Square.
Sister Marianna Patricevic, a nun from Croatia, expressed gratitude for all that the late Pope had done, while Father Richard Kunst, visiting from the US, said he would pray for a miracle for a friend dying of cancer.
Benedict XVI became the first Pope to resign in 600 years in 2013.
His body will be displayed for three days in an open casket at St. Peter’s Basilica, with people able to pay their respects until 7pm each evening.
The funeral will take place in St. Peter’s Square, before the Pope Emeritus is laid to rest in the tombs beneath the Basilica.
The Vatican released pictures of the body on Sunday, dressed in red papal mourning robes and wearing a gold-trimmed mitre.
Tributes have come in from around the world, with the funeral expected to draw thousands of people.
The last papal funeral, that of Pope John Paul II in 2005, was one of the largest Christian gatherings in history, drawing an estimated four million people to Rome.
Pope Benedict requested that the funeral be marked by simplicity, according to Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni. Details of the guest list have not been released, but the Vatican has said that it will include delegations from Italy and Benedict’s native Germany.
US President Joe Biden praised the former Pope’s “lifetime of devotion to the Church”.
Pope Benedict was a controversial figure, with some criticizing him for not addressing allegations of clerical sexual abuse.
