King Charles and Pope Leo Prayer Ends 500 Years of Hurt but Andrew Overshadows Vatican Triumph.

King Charles III and Pope Leo XIV put a 500-year-long argument between their jurisdictions behind them today, as the two men prayed together at a service inside the Sistine Chapel.

England had splitted with the Catholic Church under Henry VIII in 1534, when Henry established the forerunner to the Church of England (to marry Anne Boleyn) and appointed himself Supreme Governor of it. Neither Henry nor any of his predecessors, dating back to 1066, ever met the Pope, and the froideur was faithfully continued until the reign of Queen Elizabeth, who met four popes but drew the line at praying with them.

Yesterday (23rd, October, 2025) however, all that changed, as the two men bowed their heads under the same roof, decorated with Michelangelo’s frescoes, in a symbolic gesture aimed at signalling a ceasefire in the centuries-old rift between Anglicanism and Catholicism. The choreography was immaculate, and the imagery undeniable; yet, the shadow of Prince Andrew hung heavily over the scene.

The King’s public act of humility in Rome collided jarringly with the private reality in Windsor, where his disgraced brother remains ensconced in comfort and protection.

Days before his visit to the Vatican, Andrew dropped his Duke of York title amid renewed scandal over his association with Jeffrey Epstein and growing pressure over his taxpayer-funded lifestyle. Parliament is expected to examine his long-term “peppercorn rent” lease on Royal Lodge, a home he has occupied for decades rent-free.

The King’s gesture came as Virginia Giuffre’s memoir, detailing the sexual abuse and coercion she suffered within Epstein’s circle, including alleged assaults by Andrew, hit shelves.

Charles, as Supreme Governor of the Church of England, may pray for unity and peace, but his critics argue that at home, he has continued to shield and enable a brother accused of some of the gravest sins imaginable. Take, for example, the fact that it was his own office that issued Andrew’s most recent statement, a flat denial of Giuffre’s claims, devoid of remorse or compassion.

Even if one grants Andrew the presumption of innocence, the Palace’s refusal to confront the human cost is striking.

So yes, today the King made history. He prayed with the Pope, bridging the Reformation’s divide, kneeling beneath the most incredible ceiling in Christendom. But back in Britain, as Andrew’s scandal metastasizes and Giuffre’s words echo through the press, the moment feels hollow, a diorama of faith overlaying the rot of complicity.

Team Maverick