Princess Beatrice marries Edoardo Mozzi in quiet royal affair

Princess Beatrice has secretly married­ Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi at a low-key royal wedding at Windsor.

Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mozzi announcing their engagement in March.

Princess Beatrice has secretly married­ Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi at a low-key royal wedding at Windsor.

Friday’s behind-closed-doors event — with just 20 guests, including the Queen, Prince Philip and Beat­rice’s parents, Prince ­Andrew and Sarah Ferguson — ­reflected the coronavirus government advice. In England, up to 30 ­people can attend a wedding, but only six can attend a ­reception, with bans on singing, dancing and talking loudly.

Beatrice’s nuptials were in stark contrast to the extravagance of her younger sister, Princess ­Eugenie, who married Jack Brooksbank at Windsor Castle in October 2018.

In that COVID-free time, Eugenie­ and Jack had a horse-drawn carriage procession around the town watched by thousands, and three separate wedding receptions over two days.

Windsor also hosted the lavish nuptials of Prince Harry and ­Meghan Markle two years ago.

Princess Beatrice, 31, and Mr Mozzi, 37, were originally due to hold a wedding for 150 guests in May, at the Chapel Royal at St James’s Palace in London, with a reception at Buckingham Palace.

But the newlyweds decided to tie the knot at All Saints Chapel, Windsor Great Park, so that the Queen, who is due to depart for her summer residence in Bal­moral later this month, and Prince Philip could easily attend.

The Queen, 94, wearing a vib­rant aqua outfit, was driven to the private chapel from Windsor Castle­, where she and Prince ­Philip, 99, have been isolating with a pared-down staff since March.

Friday’s ceremony had not been announced and images of the ceremony were not immediately released.

A friend of Beatrice’s told The Sun: “A massive wedding was out of the question because of coronaviru­s.

“They were obviously very keen for the Queen to come, so the wedding had to happen before­ she goes up to Balmoral … this was a great opportunity.

“So many guests were disappointed not to make the big day but understood the reason for it.

“They needed to make the wedding COVID-secure and safe for the Queen, so what better way than the All Saints Chapel with reception on site at the Royal Lodge.

“They are just like a normal family and had to make sacrifices like many others have up and down the country and looking forward to having a wonderful celebration when the time is right.”

Mr Mozzi is a property developer and father of four-year-old Wolfie, making Princess Beatrice a stepmother.

The wedding is one of the few occasions Prince Andrew has been able to see the Queen since the scandal erupted last year about his friendship with pedophile Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.