Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi were acquaintances for a very long time before they started dating. Their families knew each other but it took the Princess of York nearly 10 years to fall in love with her fiancé.
The York royal was actually engaged to a man named Dave Clark for a very long time. Princess Beatrice was in a relationship with him when she attended the funeral of Edo's stepfather sometime in 2011.
Edo's stepfather, Christopher Shale, is friends with Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, Princess Beatrice's parents. Edo's parents said in a statement when the couple got engaged that they have "known Beatrice for most of her life."
But Princess Beatrice and Edo won't in a relationship until 2018. Between 2011 and 2016, the pair would be with other people. While the princess was with Dave, Edo was dating Chinese-American architect Dara Wang and they share a son together.
In 2016, however, Princess Beatrice and Dave ended their long-term relationship. According to People, the ex-couple were sorting out if they have a future together and decided that the time apart will be good for them. Friends and family thought the breakup will be brief, just like Prince William and Kate Middleton, who tried to figure out if being with each other was really what they wanted.
However, Dave started dating Lynn Anderson and was married to her in a few months. Around the same time, Edo's relationship with Dara ended as well. Princess Beatrice and Edo apparently started dating around September 2018 after people from their circle formally got them together.
By November of that same year, Princess Beatrice and Edo went on a holiday together and she introduced him to her parents. Their relationship progressed pretty quickly that friends and family thought they would be engaged in no time.
By December, the couple was publicly seen attending a gala in New York but it wasn't until March 2019 when they made their very first London public appearance at the National Portrait Gallery. Prince William and Kate were also at the same royal event and likely met their cousin's new guy.
Months later, the couple confirmed their engagement with an official announcement from Buckingham Palace. Princess Eugenie said that her sister and Edo are "meant to be."
The couple had their engagement party in December amid the York family's controversy with Prince Andrew. Edo was also part of the annual royal family Christmas celebrations in Sandringham, which meant that he has met Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip previously.
In February, the couple finally confirmed the important details of their upcoming wedding on May 29. They will be married at The Chapel Royal, St James's Place and will have a garden reception at Buckingham Palace courtesy of the Queen. The royal wedding will be scaled down, private and won't be televised live, per the bride's wishes.
