Princess Beatrice marries in secret ceremony attended by Queen
The Queen’s granddaughter Princess Beatrice has married the property tycoon Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi in a secret ceremony attended by the Queen and close family.
In what is believed to be the first family gathering that the Queen and Prince Philip have attended since lockdown, the wedding of Beatrice and Mapelli Mozzi took place at the Royal Chapel of All Saints at Royal Lodge in Windsor, after being initially delayed from 29 May due to the coronavirus outbreak.
In an unusual move, it was not announced in advance and pictures of the ceremony were not immediately released. The palace said in a statement: “The private wedding ceremony of Princess Beatrice and Mr Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi took place at 11am on Friday 17 July at the Royal Chapel of All Saints at Royal Lodge, Windsor. “The small ceremony was attended by the Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh and close family. The wedding took place in accordance with all relevant government guidelines.”
Couples planning to marry were given new government advice on what to expect, including to limit the guest list to 30, after lockdown restrictions were lifted on 4 July. Receptions or parties after weddings should not take place, but small celebrations – with groups of up to two households indoors, or up to six people from different households outdoors – are allowed.
Mozzi, a millionaire property tycoon, and Beatrice began dating in autumn 2018 and got engaged during a weekend trip to Italy following the whirlwind romance. The princess split from her former boyfriend Dave Clark in 2016 after 10 years together.
The couple’s ceremony was held at the chapel regularly used by the Queen as her place of worship when she is staying at Windsor.
Beatrice, who is ninth in line to the throne, is not a full-time working royal. She is employed by Afiniti, an artificial intelligence software firm, where she is vice-president of partnerships and strategy.
Mapelli Mozzi is the son of the former Olympic skier Alessandro Mapelli Mozzi and Nikki Williams-Ellis, and is a count. The princess will become a stepmother as he has a young son named Wolfie with his ex-fiancee, Dara Huang.
His stepfather was Christopher Shale, a senior Tory and a close friend of the former prime minister David Cameron. He died from heart disease at the Glastonbury festival in 2011.
About 73,600 weddings and samesex civil partnership ceremonies were postponed during the first three months of lockdown, according to the Office for National Statistics.