It will be the first ever same-sex marriage in the extended Royal Family. (Photo: DC File) Lord Ivar Mountbatten, son of the 3rd Marquess of Milford Haven and cousin to the Queen created quite a stir two years back when he confessed to having struggled with his sexuality throughout most of that 16-year marriage. He admitted he was gay after finding love in James Coyle, whom he met in the swish Swiss ski resort of Verbier. According to a story published in MailOnline, the two men are set to marry later this year in a private chapel on Mountbatten’s country estate in Devon. It will be the first ever same-sex marriage in the extended Royal Family. According to them, he, along with his ex-wife Penny and lover James, they want the matter to be handled with dignity for the sake of their daughters, Ella, 22, Alix, 20, and 15-year-old Luli. Notably, not only is Penny (his ex-wife), from whom he was divorced eight years ago, incredibly supportive of the union, but she is actually going to give her former husband away at the ceremony. The marriage has the full blessing of their extended family and those closest to them, including Lord Ivar's lifelong friend Prince Edward, to whose eldest child he is a godparent.<doc-sep>Lord Ivar Mountbatten is cousin to the Queen FREE now and never miss the top Royal stories again. SUBSCRIBE Invalid email Sign up fornow and never miss the top Royal stories again. When you subscribe we will use the information you provide to send you these newsletters. Sometimes they'll include recommendations for other related newsletters or services we offer. Our Privacy Notice explains more about how we use your data, and your rights. You can unsubscribe at any time. Two years ago, Lord Ivar created a stir when the confessed to struggling with his sexuality throughout most of his 16-year marriage to wife Penelope Thompson, whom he married in April 1994. Finally, he admitted he was gay after finding contentment with his new love, whom he met at the Swiss ski resort of Verbier in March 2016. In September of that year, as news of his sexuality broke, Lord Ivar told the Mail on Sunday: “‘Coming out’ is such a funny phrase, but it’s what I suppose I did in a rather roundabout way, emerging to a place I’m happy to be. I have struggled with my sexuality and in some ways I still do; it has been a real journey to reach this point. “I was driven into the closet by not wanting to come to terms with who I was and facing friends and family in the early years. I buried it. I even had girlfriends as I tried to work out what I wanted to be. “It was not an easy time in my teens or twenties. I’m just so pleased now to have found someone who I am happy to call my partner.” Later this summer, Lord Ivar will marry Mr Coyle in the private chapel on his Bridewell Park country estate in Devon. It will be the first ever same-sex marriage in the extended Royal Family. Ms Thompson, who he divorced eight years ago and is fully supportive of the union, will actually give her former husband away at the ceremony. The impending marriage has the full blessing of their extended family and their closest friends, including Prince Edward, to whose eldest child he is a godparent. The Earl and Countess of Wessex are also godparents to his two eldest daughters - Ella (22) and Alexandra (21). Ms Thompson was 27 years old and had only known Lord Ivar for just two months before he confessed to her about his attraction to men. He told her he’d had a brief relationship with a man in Venezuela before returning to Britain in his late-20s to run the family’s Grade 1-listed Elizabethan country house, Moyns Park, in Steeple Bumstead, Essex. Their friendship blossomed over the coming months, with Penny telling the Daily Mail: “We first got together when Ivar invited me up for his 30th birthday party at Moyns. I stayed on afterwards to help him start his event management business and sort of never left after that. “I guess we fell in love while organising Moyns as a business and riding horses daily around the estate — making plans. The Earl and Countess of Wessex are godparents to Lord Ivar Mountbatten's two eldest daughters “Then, one day, Ivar said, 'If I ask you to marry me would you say yes?'" She said she would. Their early years of marriage saw them take glamorous trips around the world, family holidays in Bermuda, and long weekends spent with Joan Collins in the South of France. The Mountbattens appeared to have one of the happiest marriages in the aristocratic circles within which they mixed, but privately, Lord Ivar was secretly exploring his sexuality. He told the Daily Mail: “Penny accepted me for who I was, so perhaps I relaxed and felt I could explore that part of me as our marriage matured. “Maybe what happened is, with me being so open, I'd mention it to Penny and that would make her upset. “Perhaps, on reflection, I shouldn't have said anything but, again, I don't want ever to hide anything from anybody.” Lord Ivar Mountbatten with President and CEO of Levi Strauss & Co, Chip Bergh Ms Thompson interjects: “But I always asked for and demanded complete honesty from Ivar. Perhaps that is a self-destructive part of me, but I wanted to know. I gave him his freedom because I wanted him to be happy.” Lord Ivar responds: “I was never unhappy in our marriage - I adored Penny and really loved her, but I always describe it as trying to get a square peg into a round hole. Fifteen years after their wedding day, Penny left Lord Ivar, adding she gave back “all the chattels, all the Mountbatten jewels and left with nothing”. She says: “There was quite a lot of judgment — ‘Why has she done this?' — because hardly anyone knew about Ivar's sexuality, which was hard to swallow. Prince Edward is a close friend of Lord Ivar Mountbatten<doc-sep>Lord Ivar Mountbatten (top left) The first member of the royal family to come out as gay will be given away by his ex-wife in landmark royal wedding. Just a few weeks after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle tied the knot, Queen Elizabeth’s cousin announced that he will be tying the knot with his husband-to-be over the weekend. Lord Ivar Mountbatten, who came out in 2016, has announced that his ex-wife will be walking him down the aisle on his big day. Talking to the Daily Mail, Lord Mountbatten’s ex-wife Lady Penny Mountbatten said she was really excited for the wedding and feels quite emotional about walking her ex-husband down the aisle. “It makes me feel quite emotional. I’m really very touched,” she said, before adding that their children were the ones to suggest she walk the lord down the aisle. “It was the girls’ idea.” Lady Mountbatten then went on to say how much she has gotten on with Lord Mountbatten’s new partner, James Coyle. “You and I have got on from the first ten seconds of meeting each other, haven’t we?” she said in a joint interview. Taking a minute to reflect, Lady Mountbatten talked about how Coyle has changed the lord for the better. “What I don’t think Ivar realises is how much he has changed as a man since he ‘came out,’” she said. “James is hugely responsible for that because he’s so much fun.” Lady Mountbatten said that, since coming out, Lord Mountbatten has become much nicer and relaxed. She’s even given him a nickname. “Ivar is so much more relaxed these days. He’s so much kinder. He’s become a great cook. I now call him Fanny Cradock,” she said. “He probably wasn’t even aware that by keeping his sexuality a secret it was really quite tormenting him. Now it’s ‘out’ he’s a completely different person. Everybody says they’ve never seen him happier.” Lord Mountbatten is set to marry Coyle at a private chapel in Devon in front of the couple’s close friends and family. However, the queen and her immediate family won’t be there. “Sadly they can’t come to the wedding. Their diaries are arranged months in advance and they’re not around, but they adore James. Everyone adores him,” Lord Mountbatten said.<doc-sep>
Lord Ivar Mountbatten (top left) The first member of the Royal Family to come out as gay is set to marry. Lord Ivar Mountbatten opened up about his sexuality in 2016 after a decades-long struggle. Later this summer, the Royal – who is cousin to the Queen and the great-nephew of Earl Mountbatten of Burma – will wed his long-term partner James Coyle, who was by his side when he revealed he was gay. The news comes just weeks after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle tied the knot at Windsor Castle, with the couple making their support for LGBT rights clear in the build-up to the wedding by meeting with young LGBT activists from across the Commonwealth. The Lord, who is the great-great-great grandson of Queen Victoria, will wed Coyle at a private chapel in Devon in front of the couple’s close friends and family, including Mountbatten’s three daughters from his previous marriage, Ella, Alix and Luli. Speaking to the MailOnline, Mountbatten said he had encountered no backlash at all over the planned union – including from his extended family. “All my good friends have accepted James,” he revealed. “I basically told everyone: ‘I’ve found somebody — it’s a bloke.’ They just started laughing. “Then they met James and one particular mate said: ‘If I was gay, I’d certainly go for him. '” The 55-year-old Royal said he still wasn’t entirely comfortable with his sexuality. “Being completely truthful, it doesn’t sit comfortably with me that I’m going out with a man,” he said. “I’ve lived my whole life as a heterosexual. So, all of a sudden, having a bloke around is unusual — even now. “It’s brilliant but I suppose in an ideal world I would prefer to have a wife because that has always been the norm.” But, he added, he had accepted that he was born that way. “We were talking with friends in Bermuda about this nature-nurture business not so long ago,” said Mountbatten. “I knew from the age of eight I was more attracted to men. I definitely think it’s in the genes. You’re either gay or you’re not.’ He said that the wedding was his idea, revealing: “I really wanted to do it for James. He hasn’t been married. “For me, what’s interesting is I don’t need to get married because I’ve been there, done that and have my wonderful children; but I’m pushing it because I think it’s important for him. “James hasn’t had the stable life I have,” he continued, before turning to his partner, an airline cabin services director, and telling him: “I want to be able to give you that.” Coyle said: “It’s a very modern marriage. There was no proposal, just an acceptance of this great love. He cares. I care. The girls are very accepting. “Three years ago they were saying: ‘Wow. Are you guys going to get married?’ “We said: ‘Don’t be ridiculous. It’s absolutely not on the radar at all.’ But gradually it has become something that makes sense. “Now we’ve started to get a plan in place, I’m getting a lot more excited. We went to a wedding a couple of weeks ago and said: ‘We’re not doing that. We’re not cutting cakes. We’re not having a first dance.’ ‘We’ll be pronounced partners in marriage, but the ceremony itself will be very small,” he added. “It’s just for the girls and close family and friends.” Mountbatten will be given away by his ex-wife of 16 years, Penny Mountbatten, who said she was delighted by the prospect, revealing: “It was the girls’ idea. “It makes me feel quite emotional. I’m really very touched.”