His stepmother was Tiggy Legge-Bourke, 59, a nanny to the young Princes William and Harry throughout their most formative years. Prince William is godfather to her younger son, Tom.
The Prince said: “Catherine and I have been shocked and saddened by the tragic death of Ed Pettifer.
“Our thoughts and prayers remain with the Pettifer family and all those innocent people who have been tragically impacted by this horrific attack.”
Pettifer was the eldest son of Charles Pettifer, 59, a former Coldstream Guards officer, and Camilla Wyatt, 58, the daughter of a racehorse breeder. The couple also had a younger son, Harry, 29, before separating in the mid-1990s.
Charles Pettifer went on to marry Legge-Bourke who worked as a nanny to the young princes from 1993 until 1999. They had two sons, Tom, 22, who is Prince William’s godson, and Fred, 23, who is Prince Harry’s godson.
Legge-Bourke and Charles Pettifer had known each other since their teenage years and Legge-Bourke was a godmother to Edward.
She proved a valuable support to the two princes following the death of their mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, and has maintained a close relationship with them both.
Legge-Bourke now runs a bed and breakfast at the family home near Crickhowell, in Wales, where she teaches guests fly fishing just a stone’s throw from Glanusk Park, the 2428ha family estate.
Like his stepmother, Pettifer was a keen fisherman and skier. He is thought to have attended Stowe School in Buckinghamshire.
Known to friends as Ed, he was listed at a property just off the King’s Road in Chelsea, west London, with his mother – who is not believed to have remarried – and brother Harry.
His paternal grandmother, Liz Pettifer, lives around the corner. Her husband, renowned furniture dealer David Pettifer, Edward’s grandfather, died last August.
After leaving the Coldstream Guards, Charles Pettifer travelled the world as a security consultant. He is now the director of a company that repairs and maintains ships and boats.
Prince William and Prince Harry pictured in their youth spending the weekend at Balmoral with nanny Tiggy Legge-Bourke. Photo / Getty Images)
The New Orleans coroner gave Pettifer’s preliminary cause of death as “blunt force injuries”.
David Lammy, the British Foreign Secretary, said in a statement: “Extremely saddened to hear the tragic news that a British man was among those killed during the attack in New Orleans.
“We are supporting their family and are united with the US against terror threats.”
The Foreign Office confirmed that it was supporting the family of a British victim.
Pettifer is understood to have been in the Louisiana city with another Briton, who was not hurt, when the attack happened.
His family said in a statement: “The entire family are devastated at the tragic news of Ed’s death in New Orleans. He was a wonderful son, brother, grandson, nephew and a friend to so many.
In 2018, he was pictured attending Prince Harry and Meghan’s wedding at St George’s Chapel in Windsor, now towering over his mother as a 15-year-old.
All other named victims of the attack were US nationals, although efforts to identify one victim are still ongoing.
The youngest victim was aspiring nurse Nikyra Cheyenne Dedeaux, 18, who was killed when she reportedly ran into the path of the terrorist’s pick-up truck while fleeing the sound of gunshots.
Dedeaux was visiting the Louisiana city from Mississippi with her cousin and friend to celebrate the new year two weeks before starting her nursing course.
Among those confirmed to have been killed by the coroner’s office was Reggie Hunter, 37, a father-of-two and warehouse manager from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, who had gone to Bourbon St on a whim.
Seven victims, including Princeton graduate Martin “Tiger” Bech, were in their 20s.
Bech played American college football at the Ivy League university before graduating in 2021 with a degree in finance. He was working as an investment trader at a New York firm when he was killed.
Memorials for people killed on Bourbon Street, Photo / AFP
Single mother Nicole Perez, 27, described as “beautiful and full of life”, was also among those confirmed to have been killed.
The oldest victim was Terrence Kennedy, 63, who was from New Orleans.
Names of the victims were released as CCTV footage emerged of Jabbar scoping out the streets of New Orleans just over an hour before he drove a pick-up truck into New Year partygoers.
The FBI released surveillance footage of the US Army veteran walking around the city’s French Quarter at around 2am local time on Wednesday, wearing blue jeans and a brown overcoat.
The agency also released an image of the blue and white cooler in which Jabbar, from Texas, hid an improvised explosive device before planting it near the intersection of Bourbon St and Orleans St.
The FBI said on Thursday it believed the 42-year-old had acted alone, after initially stating it did not appear he was solely responsible for the attack.
Chris Raia, the FBI’s deputy assistant director for counterterrorism, said Jabbar had made video recordings hours before the attack, some of which referenced his divorce.
In one, the father-of-three said he had first planned to gather his family for a “celebration” to kill them but changed his mind over concerns the resulting media coverage would not focus on the “war between the believers and disbelievers”.
An undated and unlocated handout image released by the FBI shows a photo of deceased New Orleans attack suspect Shamsud-Din Jabbar. Photo / AFP
He also said he changed his plans and joined Isis, apparently after having several dreams telling him to do so.
After walking the streets and planting explosive devices, Jabbar drove an electric Ford-F50 rental, which bore a homemade Isis flag, into pedestrians on Bourbon St. He was also dressed in body armour and armed with an AR-15-style rifle.
Investigators later found suspected pipe bombs loaded with nails and suspected C4 explosives concealed in two coolers and a purple suitcase placed around the French Quarter.
Two were wired for remote detonation, while a corresponding remote control was discovered in Jabbar’s truck.
He had been renting accommodation in the New Orleans neighbourhood of St Roch, where a small fire was reported. Authorities said it was a failed attempt to destroy bomb-making materials.
At Jabbar’s home in north Houston, a copy of the Koran was left open at a passage reading: “They fight in Allah’s cause, and slay and are slain; a promise binding”, according to the New York Post.
