The Queen has spoken of her joy after her granddaughter secretly wed property tycoon Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi.

The Queen described as “very nice” the private family occasion attended by the Duke of Edinburgh and the bride’s parents the Duke of York and Sarah, Duchess of York.

Speaking to fundraising hero Captain Sir Tom Moore and his family, after she had knighted him at Windsor Castle for raising millions for the NHS, she said: “My granddaughter got married this morning both Philip and I managed to get there – very nice.”

Buckingham Palace said in a statement: “The private wedding ceremony of Princess Beatrice and Mr Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi took place at 11am on Friday 17th July at The Royal Chapel of All Saints at Royal Lodge, Windsor.

“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.”

In an unusual move, the wedding was not announced in advance and pictures were not immediately released of the ceremony.

Beatrice and Mr Mapelli Mozzi had planned to wed on May 29 in the Chapel Royal at St James’s Palace but the ceremony was postponed due to the Covid-19 outbreak.

Mr Mapelli Mozzi, a millionaire property tycoon, known as Edo, and Beatrice began dating in autumn 2018, and were soon being tipped to walk up the aisle.

The princess, who split from her long-term love Dave Clark in 2016 after 10 years together, got engaged during a weekend trip to Italy following the whirlwind romance.

Their families have known one another for many years and the couple are said to have started a relationship after meeting again at Beatrice’s sister Princess Eugenie’s wedding.

The ceremony is believed to be the first time the Queen and Philip have attended a family gathering since the lockdown, and Eugenie and husband Jack Brooksbank are also thought to have been among the guests.

Couples have been rushing to tie the knot after Covid-19 restrictions were lifted and it was announced weddings of up to 30 people could take place in England again from July 4.

About 73,600 weddings and same-sex civil partnership ceremonies were postponed during the first three months of lockdown, according to the Office for National Statistics.

The ceremony was held at the chapel regularly used by the Queen as her place of worship when she is staying at Windsor.

Beatrice, who is ninth in line to the throne, is not a full-time working royal but works for Afiniti, an artificial intelligence software firm, where she is vice president of partnerships and strategy.

Mr Mapelli Mozzi is the son of former Olympic skier Count Alessandro Mapelli Mozzi and Nikki Williams-Ellis and is a count himself.

The princess will become a stepmother as he has a young son named Wolfie with ex-fiancee Dara Huang.

His stepfather was Christopher Shale, a senior Tory and a close friend of former prime minister David Cameron.

He died from heart disease at the Glastonbury Festival in 2011.