1 of 3 mourners appear in front of Milan Cathedral, where the funeral of Silvio Berlusconi took place on June 14, 2023 Photo: Yara Nardi/Portal Mourners appear in front of Milan Cathedral, where the funeral of Silvio Berlusconi took place on June 14, 2023 Photo : Yara Nardi/Portal
Italy said goodbye to former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi on Wednesday. The political leader’s funeral was marked by the presence of his family, two exwives and thousands of civilians who came to pay their respects.
Crowds waved the flags of AC Milan football club, owned by Berlusconi for more than three decades, and shouted “Silvio, Silvio” as his coffin was carried into Milan’s Gothic cathedral.
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Inside were around 2,300 mourners, including women, politicians and business people who had accompanied the 86yearold man on his way to power and wealth.
The funeral was attended by most of Italy’s party leaders, including Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, whose unprecedented decision to declare a day of national mourning drew criticism from some commentators and politicians.
2 of 3 Eleonora, Barbara and Luigi Berlusconi in front of the Milan Cathedral, where Silvio Berlusconi’s funeral took place on June 14, 2023 Photo: Yara Nardi/Portal Eleonora, Barbara and Luigi Berlusconi in front of the Milan Cathedral, Milan, where Silvio Berlusconi’s funeral took place on June 14. June 2023 took place in 2023 Photo: Yara Nardi/Portal
His current partner, Marta Fascina, 33, was staying with the tycoon’s children. Marina, the eldest Berlusconi daughter and head of the Fininvest family, held Fascina’s hand when they arrived at the funeral.
Fascina had a permanent place in the family. She and Berlusconi were never married, but last year they exchanged rings in a symbolic ceremony and he publicly called her his “wife.”
Two exwives of the tycoon were present. Veronica Lario, married to him at the time of the Bunga Bungas scandal, and Francesca Pascale, married to Berlusconi for 10 years, who divorced in 2020.
3 of 3 officers carry a coffin containing the body of Silvio Berlusconi to the door of Milan Cathedral on June 14, 2023 Photo: Claudia Greco/Portal June 2023 Photo: Claudia Greco/Portal
Berlusconi will be cremated and his ashes placed in a mausoleum he built for himself and his family on the grounds of his villa outside Milan, a source close to the family told Portal.
The coffin was then taken to Berlusconi’s villa, where the former leader will remain until the cremation in a few days.
Over the course of his life, Berlusconi built up a large family of five children, more than a dozen grandchildren and one greatgrandson. He also leaves behind a fortune worth around US$6.8 billion (R$33 billion), according to Forbes.