The farewell to Silvio Berlusconi with the state funeral in the Milan Cathedral packed with politicians and personalities from the world of TV and football. Comrade Marta Fascina in tears, side by side with her children. In the second row, the ex-wife Veronica Lario.
The head of state, Sergio Mattarella, the premier, Giorgia Meloni, the presidents of the Senate and the Chamber and all the ministers were present. ‘Berlusconi was a man of life, love and joy. He is a man and now he meets God’, said the archbishop of Milan Mario Delpini.
ANSA Agency
Secular memory of Delpini, ‘now only man and God’s judgment’ (ANSA)
At the exit of the coffin, applause and stadium chants from the crowd in the square. The coffin then returned to Villa San Martino. Between Thursday and Friday he will be cremated in Valencia.
Arrivals in the Cathedral
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17.30 – Carla Dall’Oglio, Berlusconi’s first wife and mother of Marina and Pier Silvio, did not attend the funeral. Dall’Oglio was on the admission list but she didn’t come. However, yesterday you had an obituary published to say goodbye to “a great man and an extraordinary father”.
17.05 – The hearse with Berlusconi’s coffin returned to Villa San Martino after the funeral in the Milan Cathedral. Those present greeted him with applause. Between tomorrow and the day after tomorrow he will be cremated in Valencia.
16:48 – Berlusconi’s coffin is returning to Villa San Martino in Arcore. The former prime minister will then be cremated in the Panta Rei crematorium temple in Valenza Po, as was the case for his parents, Rosa and Luigi, and his sister Maria Antonietta whose urns are now kept in the chapel of Villa San Martino.
16:32 – “Thank you Silvio. We will not forget you”. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni writes it on social media, shortly after the state funeral of the founder of Forza Italia. “We will make you proud”, reads a video that accompanies the post, in which some moments in the life of the Knight are retraced, from the speech of his descent into the field, which ends with the image of the large tricolor used in a demonstration of FdI: “We started on this journey many years ago. We have traveled different paths. But the goal was, is and will remain the same. To make Italy proud and able to amaze the world. Thank you Silvio. We will make you proud”.
16:18 – The President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, greeted Silvio Berlusconi’s family at the end of the funeral, outside the Milan cathedral. A greeting and a hug also from Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni who kissed her children and her partner Marta Fascina
16:13 – Choirs and applause as Berlusconi’s coffin comes out in Piazza Duomo at the end of the funeral ceremony in the cathedral. The crowd shouted ‘One president, there is only one president’ and ‘Silvio, Silvio’.
16.09 – About 15,000 people arrived in Piazza Duomo to attend the funeral. In the square it is possible to follow the ceremony from giant screens.
15:30 – “Silvio Berlusconi was certainly a politician, he was certainly a businessman, he was certainly a figure in the limelight of fame. but in this moment of farewell and prayer, what can we say about Silvio Berlusconi? He was a man: a desire for life, a desire for love, a desire for joy. And now we celebrate the mystery of fulfilment. Here’s what I can say about Silvio Berlusconi. He is a man and now he meets God”. The Archbishop of Milan Monsignor Mario Delpini said so in the homily delivered in the Cathedral on the occasion of the state funeral.
The Eucharistic blessing imparted by Monsignor Mario Delpini concluded the funeral Mass. Before the blessing, Delpini conveyed condolences to the family also from the president of the CEI, Cardinal Zuppi. After the blessing, Delpini greeted all the High State Offices and Authorities in the front row and Berlusconi’s family members.
14:59 – Immediately after the arrival of the coffin, the children of Silvio Berlusconi entered Piazza del Duomo: Marina, Pier Silvio, Barbara, Eleonora and Luigi and their partner Marta Fascina who stood next to the coffin as it entered in church.
14:56 – The hearse, carrying the coffin of Silvio Berlusconi, arrived in front of the Cathedral of Milan welcomed by applause. He left the former prime minister’s villa in Arcore and arrived after about half an hour. Along the approximately 30 km route, road traffic was blocked. An inter-force guard of honor pays homage to him in the church square.
14.46 – The President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella has arrived at the Milan Cathedral where he will participate in the funeral of Silvio Berlusconi. The Head of State is greeted at the entrance by applause from those present in the square. He entered the Cathedral with the Lombard governor Attilio Fontana and the mayor of Milan Giuseppe Sala. The Archbishop of Milan Mario Dalpini was waiting for him in the church.
14.41 – Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has arrived at the Milan Cathedral where she will attend the funeral of Silvio Berlusconi
14.17 – The hearse carrying Silvio Berlusconi’s coffin left from Villa San Martino. The car went through the gates of the former prime minister’s residence in Arcore.
13.26 – Francesca Pascale at Berlusconi’s funeral – The former girlfriend of Silvio Berlusconi Francesca Pascale has arrived in the Cathedral for the funeral of Silvio Berlusconi. Very moved and with dark glasses, Francesca Pascale did not want to make statements: “I apologize, this is not the time”.
13.08 – Ex-wife Veronica also at the funeral – There will also be Veronica Lario at the funeral. On the right side of the aisle the family will sit. The companion Marta Fascina and then to follow the five children and the brother of the Knight, Paolo Berlusconi. In the row immediately behind will be Veronica Lario indicated with the surname Bartolini. Next to her Paolo Beretta, Silvio Beretta and Federica Fumagalli. On the left side, the Head of State will sit in first place, followed by the Iraqi president, the Emir of Qatar, and the two captains regent of San Marino, i.e. the heads of state present at the funeral. Followed by the leaders of the Chamber and Senate, Ignazio La Russa, Lorenzo Fontana. Then the premier Giorgia Meloni, the president of the constitutional court Silvana Sciarra, the president of Lombardy Attilio Fontana, the mayor of Milan Giuseppe Sala and the prefect of the city Saccone. In the ranks immediately behind the heads of government Orban and the Albanian one. Then foreign delegations from many other countries including Gentiloni to represent the European Commission.
12.54 – Applause and ‘Silvio Silvio’ choirs in Piazza Duomo – There are still just under two and a half hours left before the state funeral of Silvio Berlusconi but citizens who want to follow the funeral of the ex prime minister are already crowding in Piazza Duomo in front of the big screens. For Berlusconi there have already been several applauses and choruses chanting his name ‘Silvio, Silvio’.
12.43 – Waiting for the transfer of the coffin from Arcore – There is expectation outside Villa San Martino di Arcore, where the hearse with Silvio Berlusconi’s coffin will leave shortly. About a hundred people, including onlookers and supporters, are positioned beyond the barriers along the driveway to witness the moment in which the vehicle will leave the residence. The forces of order guard the entire surrounding area, while journalists and operators wait a few tens of meters away in an area delimited by barriers and warning tapes.
12.37 – 700 accredited journalists – More than 700 journalists from abroad were accredited for the state funeral of Silvio Berlusconi.
12.34 – In the Cathedral flowers from Belen, Lapo, La Russa and Rai – Flower wreaths continue to arrive for Silvio Berlusconi in Piazza Duomo, such as the one delivered by TV presenter Belen Rodriguez. Flowers also from the president of the Senate Ignazio La Russa, from Lapo Elkann and his wife Joana Lemos, from the mayor of Naples Gaetano Manfredi, from Milan Club Parigi, from the president of Lega Serie B Mauro Balata, from the Ghedini family, from As Roma, from Rai and by the residents of Milan 2.
12.33 – After the funeral the coffin again in Arcore – Silvio Berlusconi’s body could be brought back to Villa San Martino after the funeral in the Milan Cathedral and before the cremation. This is what we learned this morning. The coffin was transferred last Monday from the San Raffaele hospital in Milan to the Arcore residence.
12.23 – The Duomo was closed until 1.30pm – He closed the Milan Cathedral to the public on the occasion of Silvio Berlusconi’s state funeral. The doors of the cathedral will remain closed until 13:30, at which time the participants in the funeral of the former prime minister will begin to enter. Meanwhile, the square is starting to fill up with citizens who want to watch the funeral from two big screens.
12.05 – Piazza Duomo fills up, many Milan fans – Onlookers and supporters of Silvio Berlusconi waiting for the funeral scheduled for 3pm. The most present at the moment are the Milan fans. There are also many tourists, intrigued by the crowd and the cameras. The square was divided in two. Before the fence for the press, two giant screens have been positioned, to the left and to the right of the Cathedral.
11.20 – The cremated body in the province of Alessandria – Silvio Berlusconi’s body will be cremated in the Panta Rei Valencian Crematorium Temple, in the province of Alessandria. After the state funeral today in the Cathedral, the coffin should be brought back to the family chapel in Arcore, where the funerals of mother Rosa and her sister Maria Antonietta were celebrated and where a first mass was celebrated yesterday. The chapel contains the ashes of Berlusconi’s parents and sister.
10.56 – 15 crowns of flowers in the churchyard of the Cathedral – About fifteen wreaths of flowers were left in the churchyard in front of the Cathedral. In addition to the crown of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, those of the Forza Italia Senate group, one of the Brothers of Italy and one of the Italian Socialist Party made up of red carnations were also deposed. There are also flowers from the Italian Senator Licia Ronzulli, from the Municipality of Rome, from the Abruzzo Region, from the Israeli Embassy and from the Kuwait Consulate General. The square is divided in half by barriers. Behind the corridor for the press, many onlookers are gathering, some wearing Milan and Monza shirts. Three boys displayed a banner that read ‘Italy is the country I love’, a quote from Berlusconi’s 1994 speech.
10.52 – Flags at half-mast at the European Commission – The European Commission joins the Italian mourning for the death of Silvio Berlusconi. This morning the European flags placed at the entrance of Palazzo Berlaymont, the headquarters of the EU executive, were hoisted at half-mast on the occasion of the state funeral for the former prime minister. The European Parliament, as announced yesterday by its presidency, also raised its flags at half-mast in mourning in all three of its seats in Strasbourg, where it is meeting in plenary session this week, Brussels and Luxembourg. Similarly, the two EP headquarters in Italy, in Rome and Milan, have the yellow-blue flag and the Italian one at half-mast.
10.42 – Fans in Arcore for a last farewell – Dozens of supporters are in front of Villa San Martino to bid farewell to Forza Italia leader and former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi. “We too will try to go to the square”, explains a couple who arrived on purpose from Udine: “We left last night after work. One never thinks that even immortals can die”.
10.31 – The hearse has arrived at Villa San Martino – The hearse that will carry Silvio Berlusconi’s coffin from Villa San Martino to the Milan Cathedral for the funeral scheduled for 3pm arrived at the former prime minister’s residence around 10.20am. The body had been transferred to Arcore from the San Raffaele hospital, where the former prime minister died last Monday.
9.44 – The Duomo will close at 12 and will reopen at 1.30pm – The Milan Cathedral will close its doors to the normal flow of faithful and tourists today at noon, to reopen them at 1.30pm. As already announced, the Duomo metro stop closes from 10am. During the day, the routes of several tram and bus lines were also diverted.
Italian and EU flags at half-mast in the European Parliament
Farewell to Silvio Berlusconi, SPECIAL