The Queen reveals joy at attending Princess Beatrice’s ‘nice’ wedding at secret Windsor ceremony in front of 20 guests
THE QUEEN has revealed her joy at attending Princess Beatrice's secret wedding today in front of 20 guests.
Princess Beatrice married Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi at a secret Royal Wedding in Windsor, The Sun exclusively revealed.
The Queen, 94, and Duke of Edinburgh, 99, joined Prince Andrew, 60, at the scaled-down Covid-secure wedding with around 20 guests this morning.
The Queen discussed the wedding with Captain Sir Tom Moore while knighting him at Windsor Castle just hours afterwards.
"My granddaughter got married this morning both Philip and I managed to get there - very nice," she told Sir Tom and his family.
Beatrice, 31, and Edo, 37, said 'I do' surrounded by close family and friends in All Saints Chapel, Windsor Great Park after Covid-19 scuppered their original plans.
The Queen's granddaughter and millionaire property developer Edo were due to get hitched at the Chapel Royal, at St James's Palace, in London, with 150 guests, in May.
Instead, a select group gathered for a more intimate ceremony this morning, with strict social distancing measures in place, Buckingham Palace confirmed today.
The Palace said in a statement: "The private wedding ceremony of Princess Beatrice and Mr Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi took place at 11am on Friday 17th 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."
INTIMATE CEREMONY
The Queen was driven with Prince Philip from Windsor Castle, where they had been isolating since March, three miles up the Long Walk and through Windsor Great Park to the private church.
A small wedding reception and sit-down meal is believed to have been held shortly afterwards inside Andrew and the Duchess of York's home next door at the Royal Lodge.
Her Majesty was one of the first to leave the party at 11.45am in order to present a knighthood to 100-year-old NHS fundraising hero Captain Tom.
She was pictured knighting him just hours after the ceremony in Windsor Castle.
It is the first time Andrew, who gave Beatrice away, has been with the Queen since before lockdown and arrest of Ghislaine Maxwell.
A friend of Beatrice and Edoardo said the nuptials were arranged today to make sure the Queen could attend before she leaves Windsor for Balmoral at the end of the month.
The friend said: "A massive wedding was out of the question because of coronavirus.
"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."
Friend of Princess Beatrice
"They were obviously very keen for the Queen to come so the wedding had to happen before she goes up to Balmoral so 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."
It is understood Beatrice spent the night before the wedding at the 30-room Royal Lodge with mum Sarah Ferguson and dad Andrew, before making the walk to the church in the grounds.
A large delivery of beer was seen outside Windsor Castle this afternoon, although it is not known whether it was used for the wedding.
Today's ceremony was held in All Saints private Chapel in Windsor, where the Queen regularly attends Sunday service when she is in the area.
Also called The Royal Chapel of All Saints or Queen Victoria's Chapel, the 190-year-old Grade II listed church is in the grounds of the Royal Lodge on Windsor Great Park.
The area is shielded by trees, bushes, walls and a gate house, offering plenty of privacy for the happy couple.
LOW KEY AFFAIR
Beatrice's wedding comes after a tumultuous time for the family as her father Prince Andrew was forced to step back from royal duties over his links to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Even before the coronavirus pandemic, there were no plans for the wedding to be televised and it was largely expected to be held in private after the fall out from Prince Andrew's bombshell interview with BBC Newsnight on the Epstein scandal.
Although Prince Andrew vehemently denies accusations of his involvement, it was unclear whether he would walk his eldest daughter down the aisle, as he did for Eugenie.
She has been engaged to Edo, the son of Count Alessandro Mapelli-Mozzi a former British Olympian and Italian nobleman, since September 2019.
The dad-of-one, founder and chief executive of Banda property development and interior design company, proposed with a platinum and diamond engagement ring handcrafted by British jewellery designer Shaun Leane.
He shares a son named Christopher or 'Wolfie', born in 2016, with ex fiancee Dara Huang - making Beatrice the first Princess to become a step-mum.
PLANS ON HOLD
The couple were forced to scrap plans for hundreds of guests at a reception in the grounds of Buckingham Palace on May 29.
At the time, a Buckingham Palace spokesman confirmed: "Princess Beatrice and Mr Mapelli Mozzi are very much looking forward to getting married but are equally aware of the need to avoid undertaking any unnecessary risks in the current circumstances.
"In line with government advice for the UK and beyond, the couple are reviewing their arrangements for 29th May.
"They are particularly conscious of government advice in relation to both the wellbeing of older family members and large gatherings of people. Therefore, the planned reception in the Buckingham Palace Gardens will not take place.
But since July 4 weddings have been allowed for up to 30 people in England.
It is understood Beatrice and Edo had always wanted a relatively small and private wedding.
There were no plans for BBC and ITV to film the event, unlike sister Eugenie, 30, and Jack Brooksbank, 34, in October 2018, and of course cousins William and Harry.
The couple were also keen to prevent taxpayers being lumped with a massive security bill, friends said.
It is estimated 73,600 besides have had to cancel or postpone their weddings including Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom.
The Royal Wedding - thought to be the most low-key royal married for decades - followed strict safety measures.
Government Covid-19 guidelines say wedding ceremonies must be kept as short as possible with no food or drink and singing and playing of instruments to be avoided.
As well as the Queen and Prince Andrew, Beatrice's mum Fergie, her sister Princess Eugenie and her brother in law Jack Brooksbank are believed to have attended.
It was the first time Andrew has seen the Queen since US prosecutors filed a legal request to speak to the Duke about links to dead paedo pal Jeffrey Epstein and charging on child sex crimes of Ghislaine Maxwell.
Most read in News
Edo's father Alex Mapelli Mozzi, 69, Nikki Williams-Ellis, 64, and sister Natalia Yeomans, 38, were also expected to be on the exclusive guest list.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Beatrice and Edo reportedly met in September, 2018, about a month before Princess Eugenie got married.
And the Queen has long shown her support for the couple, allowing Edo to stay at Sandringham last Christmas with the royal family, even though he and Beatrice were not married.