Why Pregnant Princess Beatrice's New Baby Will Have a Royal Title, but Not from King Charles

Mar. 15, 2025

On Oct. 1, Buckingham Palace announced that Princess Beatriceis pregnant, expecting her second child with husbandEdoardo Mapelli Mozzi. Princess Beatrice, 36, is the elder daughter ofPrince AndrewandSarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, and she and her husband are parents to daughterSienna, 3, andChristopher Woolf, 8, Edo’s son from a previous relationship.

Edo descends from Italian aristocracy, meaning that Beatrice became an Italian “Contessa” and “Nobile Donna,” or noblewoman,after they marriedin July 2020. As the eldest son of Count Alessandro Mapelli Mozzi, he will one day inherit his family’s ancestral seat, the 18th-century Villa Mapelli Mozzi palazzo in northern Italy. According toHello!, the property is located less than an hour away from Milan and has 13 bedrooms and an outdoor swimming pool.

Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi at Vogue World: London 2023 in London on Sept. 14, 2023.Alan Chapman/Dave Benett/Getty

Alan Chapman/Dave Benett/Getty

“Edoardo is the only male descendent taking the family into the next generation,” Alessandro told theDaily Mailin 2020. “He is a count — his wife will be a countess automatically, and any of their children will be counts or nobile donna.”

Alessandro spoke about the sweet bond Edo and Bea share elsewhere in the interview ahead of the wedding, mentioning, “They are very suited to each other and have known each other for a long time. I’ve never seen him so happy.”

The Royal Family/X

Meanwhile, on the other side of the family, Edo and Beatrice’s children don’t have royal titles from her uncle,King Charles, because they are not his grandchildren.

King Charles and Queen Camilla at Royal Ascot on June 20, 2024.Samir Hussein/WireImage

Samir Hussein/WireImage

In other words, the children of Princess Beatrice’s first cousins,Prince WilliamandPrince Harry, were always destined to inherit royal titles because their grandfather is the sovereign. In March 2023, PEOPLE confirmed that Prince Harry and his wife,Meghan Markle, were using the royal titles afforded to their children,Prince Archie, 5, andPrincess Lilibet, 3, in Princess Lilibet’schristening announcement.

“The children’s titles have been a birthright since their grandfather became monarch,” a spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex told PEOPLE at the time. “This matter has been settled for some time in alignment with Buckingham Palace.”

Next year, the royal family will expand when Princess Beatrice and Edo’s second child is born, and the couple put their kids at the heart of the announcement.

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“Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrice and Mr Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi are very pleased to announce that they are expecting their second child together early in the new year; a sibling for Wolfie and Sienna,” said the palace statement, which affectionately used Christopher Woolf’s family nickname.

“His Majesty The King has been informed and both families are delighted with the news,” it said.

Princess Beatrice became the first member of her generation of the British royal family to step into the role of stepparent, and a source previously told PEOPLE that she embraced the role from the get-go.

“Beatrice is awonderful and very hands-on stepmom,” the source said.

source: people.com