Princess Eugenie has resurfaced at a wedding in Sicily, marking her first appearance at a public event in months.
The younger daughter of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Sarah Ferguson has been taking time away from the public eye after new revelations were made about her parents in the so-called "Epstein files" in January.
This week, however, she was spotted at the hotel Villa Igiea in Palermo for the wedding of hotelier Charles Forte and The Veil handbag designer Georgie Wright, which took place at the Cathedral of Montreale.
Eugenie was seen in the background of photographs shared by socialite Jazzy de Lisser, chatting to guests and wearing an elegant black gown with fringe detailing. It's not known whether she was accompanied by her husband, Jack Brooksbank, or her older sister, Princess Beatrice.
Accompanying her post on Instagram, Jazzy wrote: "That’s Amore ❤️Most beautiful weekend celebrating The Poodles 🐩 💒👰♀️🤵."
A high-profile occasion
Charles is the son of hotelier Sir Rocco Forte, who runs the Villa Igiea, and a string of other guest houses.
Their high-profile wedding on 24 April featured a star-studded guest list of more than 350, with other names including Lady Lola Bute and Tish Weinstock.
Eugenie has been close friends with the Forte family for years, while bride Georgie is also followed by Beatrice's husband, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, on Instagram.
The royal mother-of-two previously attended Irene Forte's wedding to Felix Winckler in Italy in 2021, wearing a stunning gown by Peter Pilotto. Irene, in turn, attended Eugenie's wedding to Jack Brooksbank in 2018.
Taking a step back
© GettyPrincesses Beatrice and Eugenie have only been seen in public a handful of times since their father, Andrew, was arrested in February. They notably didn't attend either the royal family's Easter celebrations at the start of the month – making "alternative" arrangements for the day – or the centenary celebrations for the late Queen's 100th birthday last week.
In March, Eugenie was spotted at a birthday dinner with Jack at the River Cafe. She was last seen with the royal family at the Christmas Day Sandringham service.
In March, royal expert Phil Dampier told HELLO! that the princesses could be "too tarnished" to appear at public events this summer.
© Getty ImagesHe said: "If you remember last Christmas, when they were both invited to Sandringham, they were very much seen as the innocent victims. The King and Queen were metaphorically putting an arm around them.
"I think that has changed following Andrew's arrest and mentions of them in the Epstein files. We sometimes refer to them as 'girls', but they are 37 and 35. Some of the stuff they've been doing recently in the Middle East has not been a good look.
"People will ask: 'Are you trying to cash in on contacts that have been given to you by Andrew or Sarah?'"
