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Princess Beatrice isolated with the Duke of York, allowing him to walk her down the aisle

Princess Beatrice isolated with the Duke of York, allowing him to walk her down the aisle

The Duke of York was able to walk Princess Beatrice down the aisle because she had been isolating with her parents at Royal Lodge in Windsor, the Telegraph understands.

The Duke may have been conspicuously absent from official photos released to mark his elder daughter’s marriage to Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, a property developer, but he was very much at the heart of the intimate family occasion.

While coronavirus rules currently prohibit the father of the bride from walking his daughter down the aisle, sources confirmed that the Duke had been able to do so as Princess Beatrice had been isolating with her close family “for some time.”

Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi shares three more photographs from his wedding to Princess Beatrice - Benjamin Wheeler
Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi shares three more photographs from his wedding to Princess Beatrice - Benjamin Wheeler

It had previously been widely reported that the couple had been isolating with Mr Mapelli Mozzi’s family in Oxfordshire.

The decision to go ahead with the wedding behind closed doors, enabling the beleaguered Duke to enjoy that rite of passage away from critical eyes, will be seen as a clear show of support from both Princess Beatrice and the Queen.Beatrice’s decision to isolate at Royal Lodge, alongside her fiance, is indicative of the close ties the York sisters share with their parents.

Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi shares three more photographs from his wedding to Princess Beatrice - Benjamin Wheeler
Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi shares three more photographs from his wedding to Princess Beatrice - Benjamin Wheeler

Princess Eugenie has also been living at the property with her husband, Jack Brooksbank, allowing the family to weather the ongoing Epstein scandal together.

The newlyweds had originally intended to marry on May 29, with a service at the Chapel Royal at St James's Palace and a reception in the gardens of Buckingham Palace, before the coronavirus pandemic forced them to cancel their plans.

But when Government restrictions were relaxed, Princess Beatrice and her mother, Sarah, Duchess of York, organised the small event in just two weeks to enable the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh to attend before relocating to Balmoral for the summer.

Current wedding rules “strongly advise” that receptions do not take place, with only small celebrations of six people outside or two households inside allowed.

Palace sources insisted that all relevant government guidelines were followed as Princess Beatrice, 31, and Mr Mapelli Mozzi, 37, exchanged vows at the Chapel of All Saints on the Windsor estate on Friday and said there was no “official” reception.

The service was attended only by the couple’s parents and siblings, the Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh and Mr Mapelli Mozzi's three-year-old son, known as Wolfie, who took the role of best man and page boy.

Around 14 guests are said to have enjoyed canapes and a sit-down lunch with wine and champagne in an open-sided luxury Indian tent within the grounds of Royal Lodge.

Buckingham Palace declined to comment on reports that the £110-a-head wedding menu includes cured sea trout with capers, dill and lemon, chorizo and ricotta salad with toasted quinoa and fillet steak.

A handful of close friends are said to have been invited to an evening celebration that featured a jukebox, cocktails and a bouncy castle.

Many of the 20 guests are said to have stayed overnight, some in glamping pods outdoors.

Three new photographs of the happy couple emerged on Sunday, posted by Mr Mapelli Mozzi on his Instagram page.

The images were accompanied by the E E Cummings poem, I Carry You In My Heart, read during the wedding ceremony by his mother, Nicola Williams-Ellis.

However, amid some apparent confusion behind the scenes, the pictures were swiftly deleted, but not before they had been widely shared.

Several hours later, Buckingham Palace released two of the three images, stating that the couple had been “touched by the warm wishes they have received since their wedding.”

Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi shares three more photographs from his wedding to Princess Beatrice - Benjamin Wheeler
Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi shares three more photographs from his wedding to Princess Beatrice - Benjamin Wheeler

The new photographs depict the bride and groom walking through the sun-drenched grounds of Royal Lodge following the 30-minute ceremony.

In one, Mr Mapelli Mozzi is clasping both of his new wife's hands, gazing at her adoringly.

In another, the couple are almost silhouetted as they gaze into the distance, hand in hand, Princess Beatrice's veil fluttering in the breeze behind her as she fiddles with her hair.

And in the third, the newlyweds are walking down some steps, emerging from the trees to an apparently joyous welcome, beaming from ear to ear.

No members of the wider family, including the Duke and Duchess and Cambridge or the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, have issued public congratulations to the couple.

Even the bride’s mother, who can usually be relied upon to share her profuse joy on social media, has remained silent.

Mr Mapelli Mozzi and Princess Beatrice, who was loaned both her vintage dress by Norman Hartnell and the Queen Mary diamond fringe tiara by the Queen, are expected to throw a huge party to celebrate with friends later in the year.

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