Who Is Princess Beatrice's Husband, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi?

Princess Beatrice just gave birth to her first child, a daughter, with her husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi. Buckingham Palace announced the happy news this morning.

"Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrice and Mr Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi are delighted to announce the safe arrival of their daughter on Saturday 18^th September 2021, at 23.42, at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London," reads a statement released.

"The family would like to thank all the staff at the hospital for their wonderful care."

Beatrice and Edo first announced they were expecting a child in May of 2021, a little less than a year after their intimate wedding. After postponing their royal wedding plans due to the coronavirus outbreak, the couple wed last summer in a small private ceremony.

The wedding took place at 11 a.m. on July 17, 2020 at the Royal Chapel of All Saints at Royal Lodge, Windsor. Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, Princess Beatrice's grandparents, were there along with "close family." A spokesperson added that the ceremony followed "all relevant Government Guidelines" for safety during the pandemic.

The couple had originally planned to say "I do" in the Chapel Royal at St. James's Palace in London and Queen Elizabeth was set to host a private reception afterwards in the gardens of Buckingham Palace.

But who is Beatrice's how husband, Edoardo—or "Edo," as he's known to his friends? Here's everything we know about him so far.

He proposed to Princess Beatrice in Italy.

"We are extremely happy to be able to share the news of our recent engagement," said the couple in a statement on September 26, 2019. "We are both so excited to be embarking on this life adventure together and can't wait to be married. We share so many similar interests and values and we know this will stand us in great stead for the years ahead, full of love and happiness."

Mozzi has a son named Wolfie.

The 38-year-old has a son, Wolfie, from a previous relationship—which made Beatrice an instant step-mother. The couple made a sweet mention of Wolfie in the birth announcement of their daughter. The statement noted that "the couple are looking forward to introducing their daughter to her big brother Christopher Woolf."

The couple took their relationship into the spotlight in 2019.

Mozzi and Beatrice made their first public appearance at the National Portrait Gallery's 2019 Gala. Not long afterwards, they were spotted holding hands in New York City.

During the Bahrain Grand Prix in March 2019, they took things to the next level, with Mozzi accompanying Beatrice on a family trip. Sarah Ferguson was even seen hanging out with the couple. And they then made a joint appearance (pictured below) at Ella Windsor's wedding in May 2019 to Thomas Kingston at St. George's Chapel in Windsor.

After announcing their engagement last fall, Edo even began joining Princess Beatrice at royal events—like the Windsors' annual walk to Christmas Day services on Sandringham Estate.

Mozzi is a friend of Beatrice's family.

Despite reports in The Sun that Beatrice and Mozzi met in mid-September through mutual friends, People revealed that they've been acquaintances for some time.

Mozzi's stepfather was Christopher Shale, a British political operative and close friend of previous Prime Minister David Cameron, who died at the Glastonbury music festival in 2011. Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson considered Shale a friend as well, and went to his funeral—as did Beatrice.

Princess Beatrice and Mozzi were also both in attendance at a 2014 wedding in Puglia, Italy—where Mozzi may or may not have gotten into a little bit of trouble, per the Daily Mail.

Through his father, he has some blue blood.

Mozzi's father, who was his mother Nikki Shale's first husband, is Count Alessandro Mapelli Mozzi. Not that she traded down when she married Christopher Shale—the house Nikki and Christopher built together had six bedrooms, a gym, and a wine cellar, not to mention the croquet garden and orchard.

Nikki was also nominated for an MBE award—a royal honor—by David Cameron in 2016.

Edo co-founded a charity, which was inspired by his late stepfather's vision.

Mozzi is behind Cricket Builds Hope (CBH), an organization that teaches Rwandans how to play cricket. According to its website, "CBH harnesses the power of sport to promote reconciliation and tackle deep-seated social issues like gender inequality through specially tailored sessions run by CBH’s cricket coaching team."

The charity has its roots in Rwanda Cricket Stadium Foundation, which was founded by Christopher Shale to build the country's first grass cricket ground. Shale dreamed of expanding it into something larger, and after his death in 2011, his friends and family created CBH to do so in his memory.

In lieu of presents, Beatrice and Edo have requested that well-wishers donate to two charities—one of which is Cricket Builds Hope.

He's got plenty of his own wealth.

Mozzi founded real estate firm Banda in 2007, and serves as its CEO to this day. The company specializes in finding and developing homes for wealthy clients. It must be doing well, as Mozzi is reportedly a multi-millionaire.

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