Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi: Who is Princess Beatrice's husband? - BBC News

Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi: Who is Princess Beatrice's husband?

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Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi and Princess Beatrice of York attend the Lenny Kravitz & Dom Perignon 'Assemblage' exhibition,Image source, Getty Images
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Princess Beatrice, 31, is ninth in line to the throne

"You will never be alone my love, my heart is your home. Hand in hand, today, tomorrow and forever."

These were the words chosen by Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi in his Instagram post, announcing his engagement to Princess Beatrice in September last year.

The couple have now married at a private ceremony in Windsor - after their wedding plans were disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic.

So who is Beatrice's new husband?

Known as Edo, the 36-year-old millionaire property tycoon is descended from Italian aristocracy, according to AFP news agency.

He has a young son called Wolfie with Dara Huang, his ex-fiancee, meaning Princess Beatrice is now a stepmother.

Edoardo's father - Alessandro Mapelli Mozzi - is a count and former alpine skier who competed for Great Britain in the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo, Japan.

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The couple pictured in May last year

His mother is Nikki Williams-Ellis, who is married to the sculptor David Williams-Ellis.

She was previously married to Christopher Shale, a senior Tory and close friend of former prime minister David Cameron.

Mr Shale died from heart disease at Glastonbury Festival in 2011.

Mrs Williams-Ellis was appointed MBE in 2016, after being put forward by Mr Cameron on his resignation honours list.

Image source, Getty Images
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Beatrice and Edoardo have been spotted together in public several times

Mr Mapelli Mozzi is the director of Banda, a property development firm, according to Companies House.

On its website, Banda says its mission is to create "exceptional homes", and Mr Mapelli Mozzi's Instagram feed is filled with photographs of luxurious houses in London and New York which the company has been involved with.

His former flat - which he was selling in 2017 - is equally as stylish.

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According to his LinkedIn page, Mr Mapelli Mozzi - an alumnus of the University of Edinburgh - had developed more than 400,000 sq ft of London property with an estimated value of £700m by the time he was 30.

He also co-founded the charity Cricket Builds Hope. His stepfather came up with the idea but died before he could take if further.

The organisation coaches people to play cricket in Rwanda "as a tool for positive social change".

Image source, Getty Images
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"We share so many similar interests and values," the couple said in a statement announcing their engagement

Mr Mapelli Mozzi's Twitter account is dominated with discussion about property, but he has previously expressed support for campaigns against plastic pollution in the oceans and whaling in Japan.

Further back, the account has posted messages about gun control in the US, following the Florida school shooting, and also used the hashtag "I'mWithHer" on the night of the 2016 US presidential election.

He also used Twitter to criticise politicians Andrea Leadsom and Jeremy Corbyn.

In 2016, ahead of the London mayoral election, he wrote a piece for Property Week saying there were "simply not enough homes being built" and the future mayor must be more forceful in pushing through redevelopment projects in central London.

Image source, Getty Images
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The couple appeared together at an event in June last year hosted by Prince Andrew

Mr Mapelli Mozzi has been a friend of Beatrice's family for some time.

The couple are said to have started a relationship after meeting again at Beatrice's sister Princess Eugenie's wedding to Jack Brooksbank in October 2018.

They had only been seen together in public a handful of times before their engagement.

Mr Mapelli Mozzi designed the engagement ring himself, with the help of British jeweller Shaun Leane.

The large round brilliant cut central solitaire is set on a band of tapered diamond baguettes.

It is not known how much the ring cost, but the non-bespoke rings listed on Mr Leane's website are priced from £5,200 to £16,700.

Their wedding had been planned for 29 May but was rearranged because of coronavirus restrictions.

The couple eventually married at a private ceremony in Windsor on 17 July.

The new date had not been announced in advance and Buckingham Palace said the ceremony, held at The Royal Chapel of All Saints at Royal Lodge, was "small".

It was attended by Beatrice's grandparents, the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, along with her parents, the Duke of York and Sarah, Duchess of York, and other close relatives.

The ceremony was originally due to take place at the Chapel Royal, St James Palace, in London.

Plans for a reception hosted by the Queen at Buckingham Palace were cancelled in March.