What do we know about Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi? The millionaire property developer is reported to be the new love of Princess Beatrice of York, 30, granddaughter of the Queen and daughter of Prince Andrew.
Count Edoardo Alessandro M Mapelli Mozzi (known as Edo) was born in Westminster, 1st November, 1983, son of Count Alessandro (Alex) Mapelli Mozzi, and his former wife the former Nicola Diana [Nikki] Burrows. He has an elder sister Natalia Alice, born in 1981, wife of Mr Tod Yeomans and also a younger half-brother from his mother’s second marriage named Alby Shale
His father, who was born in 1951, is a British Olympian, an Alpine skier, took part in several events at the 1972 Olympic Games.
Edo’s grandfather was Count Gian Paolo Mapelli Mozzi (1922-80), Italian aristocrat, who married Gigliola Stoppani. Count Gian Paolo was a son of Count Luigi Mapelli Mozzi (1894-1948), who married Nobile Maria Mercedes Baroli.
Count Luigi was a son of Count Paolo Mapelli Mozzi (1854-1921), who married Enrichetta Tarsis dei Conti di Castel d’Agogna (1866-1941). Count Paolo was the son of Count Alessandro Mapelli Mozzi (1815-79) who married Nobile Ippolita Giulino dei Conti di Vialba.
The Mapelli Mozzi name came about from the marriage of Count Alessandro’s father, Nobile Gerolamo Mapelli (1785-1842) with Angela Mozzi.
Edo’s mother married as her second husband Christopher M.H. Shale, a British businessman and Conservative politician, friend of former prime minister David Cameron. Mr Shale died from natural causes at Glastonbury, in June, 2011. Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie and their parents the Duke and Duchess of York attended Mr Shale’s funeral. Mrs Shale married thirdly, the sculptor David Williams-Ellis, a great nephew of Clough Williams-Ellis, the architect.
Mrs Williams-Ellis was awarded the MBE in 2016 (Member of the Order of the British Empire) in David Cameron’s resignation honours.
Edo has a half-brother, Albemarle Christopher M.H. Shale, ten years his junior.
The Mapelli Mozzi family have several connections to the British aristocracy. Edo’s cousin, Edward Ankarcrona, son of Countess Margaretha Mapelli Mozzi, married in 2006, Lady Lucinda Savile, a daughter of the Earl and Countess of Mexborough.
Although he enjoys the title of “Count” he is a British subject and technically cannot use a foreign title in this country. Foreign styles and titles were confined to those who received a Royal Warrant from King George V in 1932.
It is reported that Edo has a two-year-old son, Christopher Woolf “Wolfie”, from a previous relationship with Dara Huang, an American architect and designer with whom he was previously in a relationship.
People reports that Mozzi’s a “multi-millionaire property tycoon,” and according to his Instagram account, he describes himself as a “UK real estate specialist” who “[creates] value through acquisitions, asset management, planning and development.” He’s CEO of Banda Property, a property development company.
According to Private Air magazine, in Mozzi’s business, “one-time nightclubs are transformed into ultra-luxury dwellings,” which sounds like an exceedingly useful skill to have.
In the couple’s engagement announcement, Mozzi’s parents, Nikki Williams-Ellis and Alessandro Mapelli Mozzi, said “Our family has known Beatrice for most of her life. Edo and Beatrice are made for each other, and their happiness and love for each other is there for all to see. They share an incredibly strong and united bond, their marriage will only strengthen what is already a wonderful relationship.”
People reported in November that Beatrice moved in the same circles as Mozzi for years, and because their families are friends, the new couple “didn’t need to go through a formal introduction to each other’s parents.”
Mozzi’s late stepfather, Christopher Shale, was close friends with Prince Andrew and Duchess Sarah, according to the Evening Standard. He was also close friends with former British Prime Minister David Cameron, per The Telegraph, and died of a heart attack while at Glastonbury music festival in 2011.
Edo’s father holds both British and Italian citizenship, but he cannot officially use his reported Italian title in the U.K. (hence why it was not included in the official statement announcing the engagement).
(That’s all we know; the above should provide some interesting information to research more… )