Prince Charles and his second wife, Camilla, who flew to Rome on Sunday night, were granted a private audience with the pontiff.
It was Charles's first audience at the Vatican since his divorce from the late Princess Diana.
Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales, met Pope John Paul II in 1985
Prior to the Vatican meeting the prince made a speech on climate change to Italian MPs and business leaders.
The royal couple will spend two days in Italy as part of an official tour before travelling to Germany.
As they arrived at the Chamber of Deputies for the climate change speech on Monday, the couple waved to several hundred onlookers.
QUIET MEETING BELIES LURID TIMES FORECAST
Pope Benedict XVI met briefly on April 27 with Britain's Prince Charles and his second wife, Camilla. After the meeting the Vatican issued a short statement saying that the Holy Father had spoken with the Prince of Wales "on certain questions of mutual interest" including environmental issues and inter-religious dialogue.
In advance of the meeting the London Times had caused some outrage with an inaccurate report that Prince Charles would present the Pontiff with a copy of the 1530 petition by English Catholic peers seeking the annulment of the marriage between King Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon.
Such a gift could have been perceived as a deliberate affront, especially in light of the fact that Prince Charles divorced his own wife, the late Princess Diana, and his current wife is also a divorcee.
Father Federico Lombardi, the director of the Vatican press office, wrote to the Times seeking an "immediate and unambiguous denial" of the sensational story. In fact, the Prince presented the Pope with a set of commemorative plates.
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