'Congratulations on your new angel!' Proud aunt Eugenie shares her joy on birth of Princess Beatrice and Edo's baby girl - as 'over the moon' Fergie flies from Balmoral to meet her granddaughter
Princess Eugenie has led the royal family in congratulating her sister Princess Beatrice after she welcomed her first child with husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi.
Beatrice, 33, the oldest daughter of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, gave birth to a baby girl weighing 6lbs 2oz at 11.42pm on Saturday at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, in London, Buckingham Palace announced today.
Posting on Instagram this afternoon, Eugenie wrote: 'Beabea and Edo, congratulations on your new angel. I can't wait to meet her and I'm so proud of you. We're going to have so much fun watching our children grow up. Love Euge.'
She went on to pen a meaningful note to her newborn niece, writing: 'To my new niece, I love you already and think you're just awesome from the photos.. we're going to have so much fun together. Love your Auntie Euge.'
A friend of the family said the Duchess of York returned from Balmoral on Friday and met her new grandchild over the weekend, adding: ‘She is absolutely over the moon.'
Chelsea and Westminster is an NHS hospital but houses the private Kensington maternity wing, which charges a starting price of £7,450 for a 'platinum vaginal delivery package' and £9,050 for a 'platinum elective or emergency section package'. The price includes meals and accommodation for the partner and a private room for the first night post delivery.
Buckingham Palace refused to comment on whether Beatrice was admitted to the Kensington Wing. It is understood she has since been discharged and returned to the St James's Palace apartment she shares with Edo, 38.
The baby, whose name has not yet been revealed, is the Queen’s 12th great-grandchild and 11th in line to the throne. Her Majesty is 'delighted with the news', the palace announced in a statement.
Although her mother is a princess, she will not have a royal title. Only grandchildren of the monarch through the male line are automatically entitled to the styling of HRH. This means she will be plain Miss Mapelli Mozzi. The Queen could bestow a title on her great-grandchild if desired, but it is unlikely to be asked for.
While Beatrice tends to keep a low profile, she has been seen several times out and about in London over the summer, including attending Wimbledon with Edo in July.
It was reported yesterday Andrew had left Balmoral to fly to London to see his daughter in hospital. He was at the Queen's Aberdeenshire estate to hold crisis talks with his family and advisers over Virginia Roberts's bombshell sex abuse lawsuit after a 'disastrous' week trying to fight the damning allegations.
Princess Eugenie has led the royal family in congratulating her sister Princess Beatrice after she welcomed her first child with husband Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi
Posting on Instagram this afternoon, Eugenie wrote a gushing message to her sister, brother-in-law and their new daughter, calling the newborn 'an angel'
Beatrice, 33, the oldest daughter of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, gave birth to a baby girl weighing 6lbs 2oz at 11.42pm on Saturday at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, in London, Buckingham Palace announced today. Pictured, the couple at Wimbledon in July
The baby, whose name has not yet been revealed, is the Queen’s 12th great-grandchild and 11th in line to the throne. Her Majesty is 'delighted with the news', the palace announced in a statement (pictured)
Princess Eugenie's baby will be the second grandchild for Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson and is 11th in line to the throne (pictured, the order of succession). The baby is the fourth great-grandchild of the Queen to be born this year, following the arrival of Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank's son August in February, Zara and Mike Tindall's son Lucas in March and Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's daughter Lilibet in June
It was reported yesterday Prince Andrew could be leaving Balmoral to see Beatrice after she was apparently admitted to a London hospital on Friday
Roberts, now known as Virginia Giuffre, accuses him of sexually abusing her when she was a minor under US law after she was trafficked by billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. The duke denies the allegations.
Andrew's legal team have contested whether he has been officially notified about Ms Giuffre's claim for damages.
In a tweet from her official Twitter account, Beatrice said she was delighted' to 'share the news of the safe arrival' of the couple's daughter, adding: 'Thank you to the midwife team and everyone at the hospital for their wonderful care.'Buckingham Palace said in a statement: 'Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrice and Mr Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi are delighted to announce the safe arrival of their daughter on Saturday 18th September 2021, at 23.42, at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London.
'The baby weighs six pounds and two ounces. The new baby's grandparents and great-grandparents have all been informed and are delighted with the news.
'The family would like to thank all the staff at the hospital for their wonderful care. Her Royal Highness and her child are both doing well, and the couple are looking forward to introducing their daughter to her big brother Christopher Woolf.'
Princess Beatrice enjoys a close relationship with the Queen and wore her grandmother's dress on her wedding to Edoardo in July last year. Pictured, the newlyweds with the Queen and Prince Philip at their Windsor Castle nuptials
In a tweet from her official Twitter account, Beatrice said she was delighted' to 'share the news of the safe arrival' of the couple's daughter, adding: 'Thank you to the midwife team and everyone at the hospital for their wonderful care'
The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall congratulated Beatrice and Edo on Twitter. The tweet said: 'Congratulations to Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi on the happy news of the birth of their daughter.'
The baby is the fourth great-grandchild of the Queen to be born this year, following the arrival of Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank's son August in February, Zara and Mike Tindall's son Lucas in March and Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's daughter Lilibet in June.
Princess Beatrice has been seen several times in London throughout the summer as she enjoyed the lifting of restrictions ahead of the birth of her first child.
Just last week she was spotted out and about in Mayfair as she dined out with friends in the city.
Bookies have revealed that Sarah is a likely contender for the name of Princess Beatrice and her husband Edoardo's newborn baby daughter - in tribute to the Duchess of York.
Days ago, her mother Fergie fawned over her children, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, in a letter praising their 'courage, strength and integrity' and said she finds it 'extraordinary' that they're both mothers.
In the letter, published in Good Housekeeping, Fergie, 61, said that she 'smiles from her heart' everyday knowing she's a grandmother, and praised her two sons-in-law Edo and Jack.
'Being 61 makes me a young grandma, and I love it,' she wrote. 'I smile from my heart every day, because that is how it feels to be a granny.'
The Duchess of York has previously said she counts Edo's son Wolfie as her grandchild. His mother is Edo's ex, Dara Huang.
American architect Dara remains on good terms with her ex and his new wife and Beatrice is a hands on stepmother.
Beatrice, who is not a full-time working royal, is vice president of partnerships and strategy at Afiniti, an artificial intelligence software firm.
She has a number of royal patronages including the Forget Me Not Children's Hospice, the Teenage Cancer Trust and the Helen Arkell Dyslexia Centre.
Sources previously claimed 'doting stepmother' Princess Beatrice had put up 'loads of pictures' of Edo's son in their home so he 'feels like he has two families'.
Insiders told The Telegraph's Camilla Tominey that the royal has been embracing her new role, saying: 'Beatrice ensured there are loads of pictures of him up in their house, so he feels like he has two families, and they do get on well. She has instigated a lot of that, rather than Dara.'
Edo is said to enjoy an amicable relationship with Dara and prides himself on still being an active part of his son's life. Friends of the royal said she talks about the youngster 'all the time' and has warmly embraced him into her life.
They added that he is 'super little' and 'extremely cute', adding that Beatrice will always make Wolfie's happiness 'her number one priority' even when she and Edo decide to have children themselves.
Previously speaking about her step-son, Beatrice said: 'Homeschooling, that was definitely not my forte! Not going to lie. Sadly, I can't blame that on dyslexia.
'But I've felt very lucky to have had the chance to work with my bonus son (Wolfie) over the course of the school closures. It was a huge learning curve for all of us.'
Edoardo is the son of former Olympic skier Count Alessandro Mapelli Mozzi and Nikki Shale. He is a count himself, and had been a friend of the York children for some time before getting engaged to Beatrice.
Known as Edo to friends, he helped mend Beatrice's broken heart following her split from Dave Clark in 2016 after 10 years together.
He was educated at the prestigious Radley school in Oxfordshire before studying for a Master's in politics at Edinburgh.
Beatrice has long enjoyed a close relationship with her property developer husband's father.
The count is keen for the Italian lineage to continue, it seems. He told MailOnline last year: 'Edoardo is the only male descendant taking the family into the next generation.
'He is a count — his wife will be a countess automatically and any of their children will be counts or nobile donna.'
Edo stands to inherit his father's glamorous palazzo, Villa Mapelli Mozzi, which is a stone's throw from Milan in Northern Italy.
Nikki's second husband, Edo's step-father, was Christopher Shale, a senior Tory and a close friend of former prime minister David Cameron.
He collapsed and died in 2011 at Glasonbury Festival, after going missing for about 18 hours before he was found in a cubicle in the VIP area.
An inquest subsequently found he had been suffering from undiagnosed heart disease resulting from high blood pressure.
So devoted was Edo to his stepfather that he named his son Christopher after him.
Beatrice and the rest of her family attended the funeral, with Nikki eventually becoming engaged for the third time to sculptor David Williams-Ellis.
Beatrice's blended family: How the princess will raise her baby alongside stepson Wolfie
Princess Beatrice will be one of the few royal mothers to raise children in a blended family after welcoming her daughter today.
The Queen's granddaughter, 32, and her property developer husband Edo Mapelli Mozzi, 38, announced today they have welcomed their first child together.
Edo already has a five-year-old son Christopher Woolf, known as Wolfie, with ex-fiancé Dara Huang. American architect Dara remains on good terms with her ex and his new wife and Beatrice is a hands on stepmother.
However if Beatrice does need any advice on navigating the complex family dynamics, she doesn't have far to look for inspiration and guidance.
roud father: Edo already has a five-year-old son Christopher Woolf, known as Wolfie, with ex-fiancé Dara Huang. American architect Dara remains on good terms with her ex and his new wife and Beatrice is a hands on stepmother to Wolfie. Pictured, at Wolfie's 2016 Christening
For her aunt Princess Anne, 70, has successfully raised her children Zara, 40, and Peter, 43, to have close a relationship with their half-sister Stephanie Phillips.
The 23-year-old event rider is the daughter of Princess Anne's first husband Captain Mark Phillips and his Hawaiian-born second wife Sandy Pflueger, who was part of the US dressage team at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.
Stephanie has been pictured at some royal events, serving a flower girl at both Zara's 2011 wedding to Mike Tindall and Peter's 2008 wedding to Autumn Kelly.
She has also shared candid snaps with her half-sister, who is 17 years older.
No doubt Beatrice will be hoping for a similarly close bond between Wolfie and his new brother or sister.
Fortunately Beatrice and Edo have the firm support of their families.
Sarah Ferguson has previously released a statement saying Wolfie is seen as a grandchild and is a 'much-loved member of the family'.
'Wolfie is already a very much-loved member of their family and the duchess is very keen to stress that she sees Wolfie as their grandchild too,' a spokesperson said, after Princess Eugenie announced her pregnancy last year.
Dara is also fully supportive of Beatrice, Edo and the blended family and proudly posts about 'co-parenting' with Edo on Instagram.
Last year, a friend of Dara and Edo insisted the estranged couple remain close, with Dara even cutting Edo's hair and occasionally buying him clothes.
Their amicable relationship meant Dara was on the original guest list for Edo's wedding to Beatrice, 32, before the coronavirus pandemic forced the couple to cancel their May nuptialsBeatrice and Edoardo later secretly tied the knot on July 17 in Windsor, with the Queen and Prince Philip in attendance and Wolfie acting as best man.
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