'This is my place' Why pope opted for burial away from St Peter's

As a priest, and then a cardinal, Jorge Mario Bergoglio would always call into Santa Maria Maggiore (Saint Mary Major), one of the four papal basilicas in Rome, during his regular visits to the Italian capital.

- Angela Giuffrida

The fourth-century basilica with its distinctive bell tower is perched on one of Rome's seven ancient hills in Esquilino, a neighbourhood between the Colosseum and Termini railway station, which during the Roman empire served as a burial ground for slaves.

On one visit, Bergoglio had a close shave with a suspected pickpocket. But that did not sully his experience. Years later, in March 2013, the morning after he became Pope Francis – a name chosen in honour of Francis of Assisi, the Italian saint who renounced a life of luxury to help the poor – he sneaked out of the Vatican to pray at Santa Maria Maggiore.

Francis frequented the basilica, which is about 2.5 miles from Vatican City, more than 100 times during his 12-year papacy, mostly to pray before and after trips overseas. On 23 March, the day he was discharged from hospital after a near fatal bout of pneumonia, he stopped by to deliver flowers on his way back to the Vatican. His most recent visit was on 12 April.