'I wanted to do it on my own terms.' Amber Heard has quietly welcomed a baby girl.

Amber Heard has quietly welcomed her first child via surrogate.

On Friday, the 35-year-old actress announced the news on Instagram, explaining that she decided she wanted children a few years back. 

Watch: Amber Heard urges survivors of domestic violence to 'speak up'. Post continues below.

"I’m so excited to share this news with you," she wrote. "Four years ago, I decided I wanted to have a child. I wanted to do it on my own terms."

"I now appreciate how radical it is for us as women to think about one of the most fundamental parts of our destinies in this way. I hope we arrive at a point in which it’s normalised to not want a ring in order to have a crib.

"A part of me wants to uphold that my private life is none of anyone’s business. I also get that the nature of my job compels me to take control of this."

Heard also shared the name she chose for her baby girl, that includes a middle name after her late mum, Paige.

"My daughter was born on April 8, 2021. Her name is Oonagh Paige Heard," she wrote.

"She's the beginning of the rest of my life."

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A post shared by Amber Heard (@amberheard)

Oonagh was born via surrogate. As a close friend explained, that was because Heard was told she couldn't carry children.

"Oonagh is absolutely gorgeous, and Amber is besotted," the friend told Page Six. "She always knew that she wanted to be a mum, and this is her greatest wish come true. She’s so grateful to the wonderful woman who helped bring Oonagh into her life."

"The most important thing for Amber is that she’s open about Oonagh’s birth," they continued. "There are so many women who feel they can’t talk about their fertility and are worried and embarrassed; Amber wants them to feel supported and realise that there are a multitude of ways to have a baby even if you have fertility issues."

Heard is currently in a relationship with cinematographer Bianca Butti, whom she's been dating since the beginning of 2020. According to reports, the decision to have a child was solely Heard's, and she is Oonagh's sole legal parent.

In May 2020, Heard lost her mum, Paige. A woman she described as a "beautiful, gentle soul".

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A post shared by Amber Heard (@amberheard)

Her mum's death came weeks before Heard faced her ex-husband Johnny Depp, in a three-week trial in at London's High Court.

Heard gave evidence against the Pirates of the Carribean actor, as he sued the publication, The Sun, for a 2018 article in which they called him a "wife beater". 

Depp claimed his ex-wife assaulted him and was involved in extra-martial affairs, while Heard shared her ex-husband had threatened her life on multiple occasions. 

Three months after the case went to court, Judge Mr Justice Nicol ruled The Sun was correct in reporting that Depp was violent towards Heard.

Speaking after the case ended, Heard said: "After obtaining a restraining order in 2016 and finalising my divorce, I just wanted to move on with my life. I did not file this lawsuit and, despite its significance, I would have preferred not to be here in court.

"It has been incredibly painful to relive the breakup of my relationship, to have my motives and my truth questioned, and the most traumatic and intimate details of my life with Johnny shared in court and broadcast to the entire world. I stand by my testimony, and I now place my faith in British justice."

In November 2020, Depp and his legal team asked to appeal the court ruling, however, Judge Nicol refused.

The pair are set to face a US court in April 2021 as Depp is suing Heard over a 2018 op-ed for The Washington Post titled 'I spoke up against sexual violence — and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change'.

Read more about their complicated relationship and court case here. 

Heard is currently filming the Aquaman sequel, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, which is set for realise in late 2022.

Feature image: Instagram.