Revealed: The fascinating past of Eleanor Ekserdjian, the new (and little-known) fiancee of Princess Margaret's grandson Sam Chatto - who is 30th in line to the British throne

Published: 15:05, 19 July 2026 | Updated: 15:17, 19 July 2026 Royal observers were delighted when Princess Margaret's grandson Sam Chatto announced his engagement to long-time girlfriend Eleanor Ekserdjian this week. The ceramicist, 29, proposed to the painter and filmmaker, also 29, who is known as Ellie, with a porcelain ring he crafted himself – and soon took to Instagram to tell fans the happy news. 'I'm really delighted to say that Ellie and I are engaged. And we couldn't be happier,' he wrote, with his post flooded with hundreds of supportive comments from his some 80,000 followers. Sam, who is 30th in line to the British throne, is the son of Queen Elizabeth II's niece, Lady Sarah Chatto, and her husband Daniel Chatto. The couple, and Eleanor's parents, Professor David Ekserdjian and Susan Moore, are said to be delighted at the news. The King has also been informed of the engagement and is said to be very happy for the couple, who are planning to wed next spring. But while Sam, as a member of the Royal Family, might have some of the highest-profile relatives in the nation, Eleanor's background is just as fascinating. From connections to the elite art world, to her descent from a World War Two hero, to claims of an Armenian nobility lineage, the Daily Mail can now disclose her extraordinary family history. Royal observers were delighted when Princess Margaret's grandson Sam Chatto (right) announced his engagement to long-time girlfriend Eleanor Ekserdjian (left) this week The ceramicist, 29, proposed to the painter and filmmaker, also 29, who is known as Ellie, with a porcelain ring (pictured) he crafted himself  But while Sam, as a member of the Royal Family, might have some of the highest-profile relatives in the nation, Eleanor (pictured) has a background just as fascinating Eleanor was born in the Westminster area of London in 1996, to a renowned art historian father and celebrated art critic mother. Her father, Professor Ekserdjian, started his career working for luxury auction house Christie's, before serving as editor of respected international art magazine Apollo. He then moved into academia, with tenured roles as Fellow at both Balliol and Corpus Christi colleges at the University of Oxford and as a lecturer at the Courtauld Institute of Art in London. The academic currently serves as Emeritus Professor of History of Art and Film History at the University of Leicester, specialising in the Italian Renaissance. He is also trustee of charity Art UK, as well as the Sir John Soane's Museum in London – the once house of the namesake architect, which now shows his personal collection. Professor Ekserdjian also still serves as a board member at the Courtauld – and was once a trustee of the National Gallery and of the Tate galleries too. He has helped curate several high-profile art exhibitions over the years, including the National Gallery's 2022 Raphael show and a 2012 collection called Bronze at the Royal Academy. Meanwhile, Eleanor's mother, Susan Moore, has served as the Financial Times' art critic and art market correspondent for 40 years, later also becoming Apollo's associate editor too. Having previously also worked for The Spectator, The Standard and Country Life magazine, she now uses her writing skills as a 20th-century art biographer too. Following an in-depth study of Swiss billionaire art collector Baron Thyssen-Bornemisza, she is currently writing a book about American artist, Anne Estelle Rice, set for publication in 2027. Susan also founded non-profit organisation Slow Art Workshop in 2017, which organises classes run by curators and dealers for enthusiasts to see art up close and handle pieces. The couple live in a £2.2million Grade II-listed house, which they bought in 2001 and which dates back to the 14th century, in the quaint Northamptonshire village of Aldwincle. When the Daily Mail visited, Eleanor's parents declined to comment on their daughter's engagement. Her brother, Alexander Ekserdjian, is just as intelligent, achieving straight A* grades in his A-Level exams in 2009, as a student at the £60,000-a-year Oundle School in Northamptonshire. And he has now followed in their father's footsteps by becoming an art historian, specialising in ancient Mediterranean art. He currently works as Assistant Professor of Classics and History of Art at Yale University in the United States, which is part of the country's prestigious Ivy League. Sam (right), who is 30th in line to the British throne, is the son of Queen Elizabeth II's niece, Lady Sarah Chatto (left), and her husband Daniel Chatto (second left). Pictured: The trio, with Eleanor, at The Alchemist's Feast, a National Gallery summer party and fundraiser, in 2022   Eleanor's father, Professor David Ekserdjian (pictured), currently serves as Emeritus Professor of History of Art and Film History at the University of Leicester Her mother, Susan Moore (pictured), meanwhile has served as the Financial Times' art critic and art market correspondent for 40 years Eleanor's brother, Alexander Ekserdjian (pictured), currently works as Assistant Professor of Classics and History of Art at Yale University in the United States Eleanor grew up in the UK but has Armenian heritage – reflected in Sam's engagement announcement post, featuring a photograph (pictured) of the couple which he said was taken in the capital of Yerevan Her grandfather, Colonel Nubar Martin Ekserdjian (pictured), who shared in that ancestry, enjoyed a distinguished career with the British Army – and was rewarded for his efforts in World War Two Alexander started by reading Classical Archaeology and Ancient History at St John's College, Oxford, before a PhD in Art History and Archaeology from Columbia University in New York City. His research, which focuses on ancient Italian sculpture, has also previously been supported by fellowships at Columbia and the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. Eleanor grew up in the UK but has Armenian heritage – reflected in Sam's engagement announcement post, featuring a picture of the couple which he said was taken in the capital of Yerevan. Her grandfather, Colonel Nubar Martin Ekserdjian, who shared in that ancestry, enjoyed a distinguished career with the British Army – and was rewarded for his efforts in World War Two. Then-President Franklin D Roosevelt awarded him the Legion of Merit in 1942 for 'exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services' to the United States. It was to recognise his contribution from July 1943 to November 1944, a period which saw the Allies push back massively against the Axis powers. There have also been claims the Colonel is descended from a branch of Armenian nobility called the Amira, influential under the Ottoman Empire in the 18th and 19th centuries. Eleanor's cultured and erudite family background surely informed her later choice of career as an artist and filmmaker – as well as her romance with her equally creative fiance. She studied Fine Art at the University of Edinburgh, where is thought to have met Sam, who was studying History of Art, in 2021. The pair have been pictured together since 2022. The couple both also later attended the Royal Drawing School in London and now share an artistic studio in West Sussex. According to her website, Eleanor is 'an abstract painter and film artist' whose practice 'involves projecting the moving image onto paper or canvas and drawing from and over it, her physical and emotional responses being made visible through rapid mark-making'. Her debut film, Imagined Landscapes, released in 2024, features still shots of landscapes and medieval monasteries taken on her first ever trip to her homeland of Armenia, in 2022. According to a description of the work, it 'portrays her first sight of Armenia, a landscape that she had always imagined but had never seen, as someone who grew up in the UK with a curiosity about her Armenian family'. The film was shown at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London in December last year, as part of the Armenian Film Festival. It inspired her to create a collection of abstract landscape paintings called We Are Our Mountains featuring both Armenia and the surroundings of her studio in Sussex. They formed her first solo exhibition, along with a film and sound installation, which took place at the prestigious Messums London gallery in May and June this year. Eleanor's cultured and erudite family background surely informed her later choice of career as an artist and filmmaker – as well as her romance with her equally creative fiance. Pictured: The couple, at their West Sussex studio, in a picture Sam shared as part of their engagement announcement  She studied Fine Art at the University of Edinburgh, where is thought to have met Sam, who was studying History of Art, in 2021. Pictured: The couple with a friend  The pair (pictured) both also later attended the Royal Drawing School in London  Eleanor's work (right), which one description says portrays her 'diasporic perspective', has also previously been shown at London's Redfern Gallery (pictured), alongside Sam's (centre) In 2021, Eleanor (pictured with friends) confirmed her relationship with Sam to the Daily Mail's Diary Editor, Richard Eden, simply stating, 'We are a couple' Eleanor previously also told Mr Eden that Sam has become her artistic muse, featuring in several of her works, including a sketch (pictured) entitled 'SAM' It followed another collection of similar paintings shown at the New York branch of Messums last year, as part of the wider exhibition Land & Source: Memories of Place. Her work, which one description says portrays her 'diasporic perspective', has also previously been shown at London's Redfern Gallery, alongside Sam's, and the Artopia gallery in Milan. She has also completed residencies with international gallery chain Hauser & Wirth in Braemar, Aberdeenshire, and at the Sokyo Gallery in Kyoto, Japan. Eleanor has been warmly welcomed into the Royal Family, joining Sam at the wedding of Peter Phillips and Harriet Sperling in June and at Sandringham for Christmas in 2024. Her appearance at the Firm's festive celebrations sparked rumours Sam had already proposed to her because partners traditionally do not attend unless they are married or engaged. Harriet attended with Peter after their engagement in December and Meghan Markle had joined Prince Harry in 2017 while the pair were engaged. Eleanor and Sam, however, never commented on the rumours. She also joined him at the Mey Highland Games in Caithness, Scotland, in August last year, alongside his mother and her cousin King Charles. In 2021, Eleanor confirmed her relationship with Sam to the Daily Mail's Diary Editor, Richard Eden, simply stating, 'We are a couple.' She also revealed Sam had become her artistic muse, featured in several of her works, including a sketch entitled 'SAM'. The couple have also appeared at a series of high-society events together, including Tatler's Little Black Book party in November 2022. The same year, they also posed for photos together at 'The Alchemist's Feast', the inaugural summer party and fundraiser for the National Gallery's Bicentenary campaign. The pair were also seen together again in February last year at London Fashion Week, where Eleanor worked on the show of Banshee of Savile Row. The women's tailoring brand was later featured in the Financial Times, where Eleanor's mother works. Eleanor decorated a coat with brushstrokes live on the runway as the models walked – and Sam later took to Instagram to pay tribute to her, posting a video of her in action on the catwalk. They were seen together again at the inaugural LVMH Great Room Soiree at London's Courtauld Institute of Art in October last year. Eleanor has been warmly welcomed into the Royal Family, joining Sam at the wedding of Peter Phillips and Harriet Sperling in June (pictured) The couple were also seen together at Sandringham for Christmas in 2024 (pictured) She also joined him (pictured) at the Mey Highland Games in Caithness, Scotland, in August last year, alongside his mother and her cousin King Charles The pair were also seen together again in February last year at London Fashion Week, where Eleanor worked on the show of Banshee of Savile Row, decorating a coat with brushstrokes live on the runway  The couple (pictured) were seen together again at the inaugural LVMH Great Room Soiree at London's Courtauld Institute of Art in October last year, where they posed with art historian and philanthropist, Flora Vesterberg (right) The pair were most recently seen together (pictured) last weekend at the opening of the Jewellery Market Summer Exhibition in London. Eleanor could be seen conspicuously hiding her left hand behind her now fiance's shoulder The couple posed with art historian and philanthropist, Flora Vesterberg, who hosted the event. She is the daughter of James Ogilvy, a member of the extended Royal Family, as the son of Queen Elizabeth II's cousin, Princess Alexandra of Kent, and businessman Sir Angus Ogilvy. Flora, who is married to Swedish financier Timothy Vesterberg, congratulated Eleanor and Sam on their engagement, commenting on his post: 'Congratulations! Very happy for all of you xx.' The couple were most recently pictured together last weekend at the opening of the Jewellery Market Summer Exhibition in Mayfair, London, which shows works by emerging jewellery artists. Eleanor could be seen hiding her left hand behind her now fiance's shoulder – in what appears now to be a conspicuous and telling attempt to hide her engagement ring. Sam also comes from an artistic family, with his mother, Lady Sarah Chatto (nee Armstrong-Jones) often submitting her artworks for the Royal Academy's summer exhibition. His father, meanwhile, is the actor-turned-artist Daniel Chatto, whose grandfather was renowned photographer Lord Snowdon. The couple met in the eighties in India, where Lady Sarah was visiting with her father and where Daniel was filming the 1983 historical romance movie Dust and Heat. They later returned to the country for their honeymoon. The pair live in a £3million Georgian terraced house in the affluent South Kensington area of west London, where Sam grew up mostly away from the royal spotlight. He also has a younger brother, Arthur Chatto, who serves with the Royal Marines, after an education at Westminster Cathedral Choir School and Edinburgh University. Both boys were also educated at Eton College, like many other members of the royal family, including Princes William and Harry. The siblings appear close, with Sam previously posting a picture of the pair on the day of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's 2018 wedding, expressing his affection for his brother. The caption read: 'I love you bro (and I'm not just saying that cos you're so big you could squish me.' After graduating in 2018, he started working in the commercial art market – but it left him feeling 'uninspired' and he left after three months to focus on his love for making pottery instead. He undertook a six-week apprenticeship at North Shore Pottery in the Scottish Highlands before setting up the home studio from which he now creates and sells ceramics. Just last year, he completed an apprenticeship in Japan under professional potter Yagi Akira, following a residency at the Centre for Ceramic Art in Ringebu, Norway, in 2024. After graduating in 2018, Sam (pictured) started working in the commercial art market – but it left him feeling 'uninspired' and he left after three months to focus on his love for making pottery instead  Sam (left) is also a qualified yoga instructor, after training for six weeks in 2019 in India with then-girlfriend Sophie Pipe (right). Pictured: The pair with Sam's brother, Arthur Chatto  During his relationship with Sophie, Sam would often share motivational Instagram posts – including a snap (pictured) of him posing with a member of the iconic Jordanian Desert Police His work was exhibited at the RAM gallery in Oslo in 2025 and at heritage craft show Slow Ways: Our Common Grounds at the five-star art'otel London Hoxton earlier this year. Speaking to the Daily Mail in 2019, he said: 'I'm working in clay to create functional and sculptural wood-fired ceramics from my home and studio in West Sussex. 'I've always had a strong affinity with creating objects, having spent much of my childhood crafting imagined landscapes and sculptural models, which naturally led me to clay during my later years at school. 'My creative practice took a back seat while I studied History of Art at Edinburgh, but was revived, in the summer of 2017, by a visit to North Shore Pottery. 'Inspired by what I had seen in Scotland, and completely uninspired by my three-month job in the commercial art market, I spent my weekends setting up a small home studio to rediscover my creativity and built a wood-fired kiln at the bottom of my garden. 'The decision to start selling my work comes from a strong belief in the power of beautiful, well-made objects to enrich and enhance our lives.' Sam is also a qualified yoga instructor, after training for six weeks in 2019 in India with then-girlfriend Sophie Pipe, who also studied at Edinburgh University. He wrote on Instagram at the time: 'It was an incredibly eye-opening experience which I am so deeply grateful for.' The pair were said to have dated for more than four years, before splitting during lockdown. During their relationship, he devoted himself to 'feeding his soul', choosing to follow in his girlfriend's footsteps by eating vegan and often sharing motivational posts on Instagram. One such post, shared on Valentine's Day, read: 'Today I've been reminded that it's you and this world that make my heart beat fast and make my blood run warm with love and peace and joy.' In another spiritual Instagram post, he was pictured in the foothills of the Himalayas and at the ancient city of Petra in Jordan, wearing a traditional Arabic keffiyeh. One snap showed him posing with a member of the iconic Jordanian Desert Police, a camel-mounted force, with the caption: 'My life is complete.'