Queen Elizabeth II's attendance was in high demand on Friday, July 17. That morning, Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli left royal watchers stunned as they tied the knot in a private and unannounced ceremony at the Royal Chapel of All Saints.
So far, Buckingham Palace has released a statement confirming the wedding. "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," the statement read, in addition to specifying the time and location.
Queen returned to Windsor Castle to knight Captain Tom Moore
After Beatrice and Edoardo's wedding, the Queen headed back to Windsor Castle for the knighthood ceremony of Captain Tom Moore. The investiture had been confirmed for July 17 earlier this week.
Her Majesty reportedly spoke to Captain Tom and his family after she knighted the 100-year-old veteran, sharing a first few remarks about the secretive royal wedding. "My granddaughter got married this morning, both Philip and I managed to get there - very nice," she said, according to Hello!.
The Queen was "the guest of honor," report says
A royal source also told People that the date and time of the wedding was set in accordance with Her Majesty's schedule. "The Queen was the guest of honor, and it was very important that she was there," the source told the outlet. The wedding's close proximity to the Queen's lockdown residence—Windsor Castle—may have factored into the logistics of Beatrice and Edoardo's big day as well.
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As of now, other guests who are confirmed to have attended the wedding are Beatrice's immediate family—Prince Andrew, Sarah Ferguson, and Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank—as well as Edoardo's parents and his 3-year-old son Christopher.
Social distancing guidelines are said to have been followed at the royal wedding, as they additionally were at Captain Sir Tom Moore's investiture. Otherwise, the day marked a return to normalcy (of sorts) for the Queen, as the knighthood ceremony was her first in-person event since lockdown, while the royals also celebrated a first wedding since Eugenie and Jack's October 2018 ceremony. Moreover, it was also Duchess Camilla's 73rd birthday.
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