Thousands of people have turned out to pay their final respects to Pope Shenouda III, the leader of Egypt’s Coptic Christians for the last 40 years.

The funeral was held today at the Cathedral of St Mark in the Abbasiya suburb of Cairo. A day of national mourning has been declared and Copts were given time off workto pay their respects.

Throngs of people have lined up to see Pope Shenouda’s body, which has been on display in the cathedral since his death on Saturday, at the age of 88.

His death comes at a time of heightened tensions with Muslims and there were concerns that the turnout of large numbers of Christians onto the streets of Cairo would trigger unrest.

Pope Shenouda’s four decades at the helm of the Church were marked by increasing restrictions on Christians and hostility from more radical Islamist elements.

The violence has continued since the fall of Hosni Mubarak last year and the Christian minority, which makes up around 10 per cent of Egypt’s population, faces an uncertain future in a country where the Muslim Brotherhood dominates.

The UK’s Copt community will remember Pope Shenouda at a memorial service being held at the headquarters of the Coptic Orthodox Church in the UK in Stevenage on Saturday.

Head of the UK Coptic Church, Bishop Angaelos, said: “We have been inundated with messages of condolence from many friends across the United Kingdom. It is only fitting to hold this memorial service in order to allow people to join in giving thanks for the life and ministry of His Holiness.

“It is undoubtedly very sad to farewell a father, yet as a Church, we are confident in the knowledge that our Lord, through the power of His resurrection that we will celebrate in only a few weeks’ time, promises us life after death, and we join together to pray for His Holiness as he is welcomed into that heavenly promise.”

Pope Shenouda will be buried later in the day at Emba Bishoy monastery in Wadi Natroun, northwest of Egypt's capital.