NEED TO KNOW<\/p>\n
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor (formerly Prince Andrew<\/a>) and\u00a0Sarah Ferguson<\/a> were among the guests at the christening of their granddaughter,\u00a0Athena Mapelli Mozzi<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n Princess Beatrice<\/a>‘s second daughter, born in January, was baptized in a private ceremony on Friday, Dec. 12, at Chapel Royal at St James’s Palace in London.\n<\/p>\n Beatrice’s parents, Andrew and Sarah, attended the event, marking one of their first joint family gatherings since\u00a0King Charles<\/a>\u00a0stripped his younger brother of his royal titles<\/a> in late October.\n<\/p>\n Andrew, 65, and Sarah, 66, arrived separately for the service on Friday morning and left around noon, local time, Hello!<\/a> reports.\n<\/p>\n A car believed to be carrying Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor arrives for the christening of Athena Mapelli Mozzi at the Chapel Royal, St. James\u2019s Palace, on Dec. 12, 2025, in London.<\/p>\n Neil Mockford\/GC Images<\/p>\n Other guests included Princess Beatrice’s sister, Princess Eugenie<\/a>, and her husband, Jack Brooksbank<\/a>, singer James Blunt<\/a> and his wife, Sofia Wellesley, who is reportedly one of Athena\u2019s godparents.\n<\/p>\n It\u2019s royal tradition for children to have multiple godparents, and Princess Nina of Greece and Denmark is reportedly also among Athena\u2019s godmothers.\n<\/p>\n James Blunt attends the christening of Princess Beatrice’s daughter, Athena Mapelli Mozzi, at St James’s Palace in London on Dec. 12, 2025.<\/p>\n Lucy North\/PA Images via Getty<\/p>\n The former Duke and Duchess of York made their last appearance with the royals at the Duchess of Kent’s funeral on Sept. 16. The ex-prince\u00a0announced that he was relinquishing use of his royal titles one month later<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n A source told the\u00a0Daily Mail<\/a> ahead of the christening, “It’s going to be a royal occasion, but everyone is dreading the thought of seeing Andrew there.”\n<\/p>\n According to the outlet, Princess Beatrice, 37, remained close to her mother amid the scandal, but her bond with her father is more strained.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n (Left) Princess Beatrice attends The Elephant Family Evening of Art and Conservation at Kew Gardens on May 13, 2025 in London; (Right) Sarah Ferguson and the former Prince Andrew at the Duchess of Kent’s funeral on Sept. 16, 2025 in London.<\/p>\n \u00a0Chris Jackson\/Getty; Karwai Tang\/WireImage<\/p>\n “Beatrice has, of course, invited her father. But things are not warm between them,” an insider told the\u00a0Daily Mail. “However, she’s worried about him. He’s going through a low ebb with his mental health, and she recognizes that he dotes on his grandchildren and it would be cruel to deprive him of the chance to attend the christening.”\n<\/p>\n “Some careful conversations and diplomacy with King Charles will have taken place to get to this stage,” the insider added.\n<\/p>\n PEOPLE has reached out to representatives for Andrew and Ferguson for comment.\n<\/p>\n Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi, Athena and Princess Beatrice on July 29, 2025.<\/p>\n JUSTIN TALLIS\/AFP via Getty<\/p>\n Andrew\u00a0stepped back from his public royal role<\/a>\u00a0in 2019 following his shocking\u00a0BBC interview<\/a>\u00a0in which he discussed his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who died in jail the same year while charged with the sex trafficking of minors. Queen Elizabeth stripped her son of his\u00a0military titles and patronages<\/a>\u00a0in early 2022 after a judge rejected Andrew’s attempt to have Virginia Giuffre\u2019s\u00a0sexual assault lawsuit<\/a>\u00a0against him dismissed. He later settled with Giuffre out of court for an undisclosed sum.\n<\/p>\n Andrew continued to join the royals at family events, but there was renewed scrutiny of the former prince and Sarah, whom he divorced in 1996, in recent weeks. Giuffre, who died by suicide in April, claimed in a memoir published posthumously that Andrew \u201cbelieved having sex with me was his birthright,\u201d describing three occasions Epstein allegedly arranged for her to meet him beginning at age 17.\n<\/p>\n In addition,\u00a0recently leaked emails<\/a>\u00a0showed that Andrew was in touch with Epstein after he had claimed to break off contact, while Sarah called the financier “a steadfast, generous and supreme friend to me and my family” in another recently surfaced email.\n<\/p>\n Andrew has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.\n<\/p>\n Can’t get enough of PEOPLE’s Royals coverage?\u00a0Sign up for our free Royals newsletter<\/a>\u00a0to get the latest updates on Kate Middleton, Meghan Markle and more!\u00a0<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n Athena is Princess Beatrice and\u00a0Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi<\/a>‘s second child together, in addition to their elder daughter,\u00a0Sienna<\/a>, 4, and his son from a previous relationship,\u00a0Christopher Woolf<\/a>, 9. Athena was born prematurely in January, and Beatrice has spoken out about the emotions that come with welcoming a preterm baby.\n<\/p>\n