LONDON , England ( CNN ) -- Prince Charles visited the Vatican on Monday for his first meeting with a pope since his 1996 divorce from Princess Diana . Pope Benedict XVI is flanked by Prince Charles and his wife Camilla during their meeting at the Vatican . The heir to the UK throne was accompanied by his second wife , Camilla , the Duchess of Cornwall , who wore the mandatory modest black dress and veil which the Vatican requires for wives of dignitaries who meet the pope . The 20-minute meeting was `` cordial , '' the Vatican said in a statement afterwards . Prince Charles 's accession to the throne was likely to be an unspoken subtext of the meeting , an expert on the prince told CNN . `` The biggest thing on Prince Charles 's agenda is the preparation for his coronation , '' said Christopher Wilson , author of `` The Windsor Knot : Charles , Camilla and the Legacy of Diana . '' Charles would like the pope to attend personally , unlikely as that may be , given the religious divide between London and Rome , Wilson said . `` He will expect a high-profile Roman Catholic presence in Westminster Abbey , '' where he will be crowned , Wilson argued . `` The combined heads of state come from everywhere . Every democratically elected head of state will be invited . It bigs up your coronation if you can get the highest Roman Catholic to come . '' The meeting between prince and pope came days after the 500th anniversary of the crowning of Henry VIII , the English king who broke with the Roman Catholic Church and established the Church of England because he wanted to divorce . It was Prince Charles 's first visit to the Vatican since he went to the funeral of Pope John Paul II four years ago , and his first meeting with a head of the Roman Catholic Church since 1985 . There are multiple factors complicating his relationship with the Vatican , Wilson pointed out . Not only is he divorced , which the Roman Catholic Church disapproves of , but so is Camilla -- and her children are being raised as Catholics because their father is one . A centuries-old British law forbids Catholics or their spouses from holding the throne . The Prince of Wales `` is trying to break down the breach between the Vatican and the House of Windsor , '' Wilson said . `` It 's a path-smoothing exercise . '' Additionally , he said : `` Prince Charles likes very much to be photographed with heads of state . He 's not the head of state himself . It adds luster to his royal presence . '' Charles and the pope were expected to discuss issues such as interfaith dialogue and climate change -- subjects to which Prince Charles has devoted himself . The pair exchanged gifts . Benedict gave Charles a gold pontifical medal and an antique engraved copper plate of St. Peter 's Basilica dating from the 16th century . Charles gave Benedict a set of 12 porcelain plates with floral design of the plants and flowers that grow at his country estate in Gloucestershire . Afterwards , Prince Charles met Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarciso Bertone and Vatican foreign affairs minister Archbishop Dominique Mamberti , while Camilla received a private tour of the Sistine Chapel . Charles and Camilla are on a tour of Italy and Germany at the request of Britain 's Foreign Office , Clarence House said . The European Union director of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office , Matthew Rycroft , cited `` the prince 's personal passion and personal engagement over the years on the issue of climate change '' as a major reason for the trip , a Clarence House statement said .
UK 's Prince Charles meets pope for 2nd time since divorce from Prince Charles . Heir to UK throne was accompanied by 2nd wife , Duchess of Cornwall , Duchess of Cornwall . Princess Diana 's first visit to Vatican since he attended funeral of Pope John Paul II .