Rome makes arrangements for pope's funeral.

The Italian government on Tuesday declared five national days of mourning for Pope Francis who died in the Vatican on 21 April, Easter Monday, at the age of 88.

The five-day mourning period begins on Tuesday and leads up to Pope Francis' funeral which is scheduled to take place at St Peter's on Saturday.

Fabio Ciciliano, head of the civil protection department, was appointed commissioner for the organisation and management of the papal funeral which will draw a surge of pilgrims and heads of state from around the world.

The decisions were taken following a meeting by the Council of Ministers, headed by Italy's right-wing prime minister Giorgia Meloni, on Tuesday morning.

What does a national day of mourning entail?

In addition to flags flying at half-mast, national mourning requires a minute of silence to be observed in schools.

Government officials are obliged to cancel all their appointments: during the mourning period, public figures can only participate in charity events.

It remains to be seen how the period of national mourning will affect ceremonies and events to mark the national holiday for the Festa della Liberazione on Friday.

Neither was it immediately clear how the national mourning would affect Italy's Serie A football matches which were postponed following the death of Pope Francis.

A day of national mourning does not equal a day off work, neither does it involve the closure of public offices, companies, schools or businesses, however the latter can close if they wish.

The last time Italy proclaimed one or more days of national mourning for the death of a pope was in 2005 when John Paul II died.

A day of national mourning was also proclaimed in 2009 for the victims of the L'Aquila earthquake, in 2018 for the victims of the Morandi Bridge distaster, and in 2023 for former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi.

Photo credit: Marco Iacobucci Epp / Shutterstock.com.