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Death and state funeral of Giorgio Napolitano

On 22 September 2023, former Italian president Giorgio Napolitano died at the Salvator Mundi International Hospital in Rome, aged 98.[1] On the following day, the Italian government announced a state funeral and proclaimed a national day of mourning for 26 September.[2] It was attended by international figures including four incumbent presidents, one former president, and over one hundred ambassadors,[3] and was Italy's first secular funeral for a former president.[4] It was Italy's third state funeral in 2023 after former Prime Ministers Silvio Berlusconi's in June and Arnaldo Forlani's in July.

Death and funeral of Giorgio Napolitano
Napolitano lying in state
Date
  • 22 September 2023 (2023-09-22) (death)
  • 26 September 2023 (2023-09-26) (funeral service)
VenuePalazzo Montecitorio
LocationRome, Italy
TypeState funeral
BurialCimitero Acattolico, Rome

Illness and death

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Napolitano was hospitalized at the Salvator Mundi International Hospital in Rome shortly after his 98th birthday on 29 June 2023.[5] On 19 September, he was reported to be in critical condition with his health deteriorating, and was taken off life support.[6] He died three days later on 22 September.[7]

Lying in state

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The day after his death, Napolitano's body was brought to Palazzo Madama, Rome, where the Italian Senate has its seat, and was laid in state for three days.[8]

Reactions

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Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni offered her "deepest condolences" to Napolitano's family.[9] President Sergio Mattarella said that Napolitano's life "mirrored a large part of (Italy's) history in the second half of the 20th century, with its dramas, its complexity, its goals, its hopes."[10] In a condolence note to Clio Maria Bittoni, Napolitano's widow, Pope Francis said that Napolitano "showed great gifts of intellect and sincere passion for Italian political life as well as strong interest for the fates of nations."[10] Napolitano had been in a friendly relationship with both Francis and his predecessor Pope Benedict XVI.[11]

Funeral

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Italy's Council of Ministers ordered flags to be flown half-mast for five days in his honour until the date of the funeral, which was also proclaimed to be a day of national mourning ;[12] a state funeral was held on 26 September at Palazzo Montecitorio,[13] where the Italian Chamber of Deputies has its seat.[14] Since Napolitano was atheist,[15] it was a secular funeral.[8][16][17] He was buried in Rome's Non-Catholic Cemetery, near other historical figures like Antonio Gramsci, Andrea Camilleri, Emilio Lussu, Lindsay Kemp, Amelia Rosselli, John Keats, and Percy Bysshe Shelley.[18]

Dignitaries who attended the funeral service included French President Emmanuel Macron, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier,[19] Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi and Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh.[20] Pope Francis attended a wake for Napolitano at the Senate a day earlier on 25 September.[21]

References

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  1. ^ Vecchio, Concetto (22 September 2023). "Giorgio Napolitano è morto: se ne va il primo presidente della Repubblica eletto due volte". la Repubblica (in Italian). Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  2. ^ "Per omaggiare Napolitano bandiere a mezz'asta e funerali di stato". Corriere Nazionale (in Italian). 23 September 2023. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  3. ^ "Funerali Napolitano, il figlio Giulio: 'Disse di aver sostenuto buone battaglie e cause sbagliate'. Lacrime della nipote Sofia. Letta: 'Con Berlusconi si chiariranno nella luce'". la Repubblica (in Italian). 26 September 2023. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
  4. ^ Amante, Angelo (26 September 2023). "Napolitano laid to rest in Italy's first secular funeral for president". Reuters. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
  5. ^ "Napolitano's already critical health condition getting worse". ANSA. 19 September 2023. Retrieved 19 September 2023 – via MSN.
  6. ^ "Ore di ansia per Napolitano, situazione critica". ANSA (in Italian). 19 September 2023. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
  7. ^ "Giorgio Napolitano è morto: se ne va il primo presidente della Repubblica eletto due volte". la Repubblica (in Italian). 22 September 2023. Retrieved 22 September 2023.
  8. ^ a b Amato, Riccardo (23 September 2023). "Giorgio Napolitano: annunciate le date di funerali di Stato e camera ardente". Notizie.it (in Italian). Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  9. ^ "Italy and Europe pay tribute to former Italian President, Giorgio Napolitano". Euronews. 24 September 2023. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
  10. ^ a b D'Emilio, Frances (22 September 2023). "Giorgio Napolitano, former Italian president and first ex-Communist in that post, has died at 98". ABC News. Retrieved 23 September 2023.
  11. ^ "Napolitano: due Papi nel mandato, con Ratzinger e Bergoglio amicizia e rispetto". La Nuova Sardegna (in Italian). 22 September 2023.
  12. ^ "Per omaggiare Napolitano bandiere a mezz'asta e funerali di stato". Corriere Nazionale (in Italian). 23 September 2023. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  13. ^ Nicolao, Marco Cremonesi e Lorenzo (26 September 2023). "L'addio laico a Napolitano. Il figlio: 'Scrisse di sé 'Ho combattuto buone battaglie e cause sbagliate'. Letta: 'No divisioni'". Corriere della Sera (in Italian). Retrieved 26 September 2023.
  14. ^ "Per omaggiare Napolitano bandiere a mezz'asta e funerali di stato". Corriere Nazionale (in Italian). 23 September 2023. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
  15. ^ Peloso, Francesco (25 September 2023). "Il comunista e il papa. Le affinità elettive tra Napolitano e Ratzinger". Domani (in Italian). Retrieved 26 September 2023.
  16. ^ Cristiano, Riccardo (25 September 2023). "Il papa claudicante va a salutare Napolitano, ecco il vero atto cristiano". Formiche.net (in Italian). Retrieved 26 September 2023.
  17. ^ "Il funerale laico di Napolitano a Montecitorio, i ricordi della famiglia e dei compagni di una vita". RaiNews (in Italian). 26 September 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
  18. ^ "Cimitero acattolico di Roma, Giorgio Napolitano, sepolto accanto a Gramsci e Camilleri". la Repubblica (in Italian). 26 September 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
  19. ^ "European leaders attend funeral of former Italian president Giorgio Napolitano in Rome". Euronews. 26 September 2023. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
  20. ^ "Giorgio Napolitano: funeral held for communist turned Italian president". The Guardian. 26 September 2023. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
  21. ^ "Pope Francis visits wake of former Italian President". Aleteia. 25 September 2023. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
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