Prince Philip named in secret FBI files about Cold War sex scandal
The late Duke of Edinburgh may have been 'involved' with two women at the very heart of the scandal.
Prince Philip has been named in a secret FBI document about the Profumo sex scandal.
The former FBI head J Edgar Hoover said the late Duke of Edinburgh may have been ‘involved’ with two women at the very heart of the scandal.
He sent a cable to the US embassy in London more than 60 years ago claiming he was told Queen Elizabeth II’s husband had links to Christine Keeler and Mandy Rice-Davies.
It has been sat in the US department of Justice archives ever since, but has now been made available following a Freedom of Information request obtained by Mail on Sunday.
Hoover wrote: ‘Corbally also stated there was a rumour Prince Philip may have been involved with these two girls.’
The cable details a claim made my Thomas Corbally, who was an American businessman working in the espionage sector.
He was friends with Stephen Ward, who was the fixer at the heart of the scandal and introduced Keeler, a 19-year-old model, to John Profumo, the secretary of state for war.
What happened in the Profumo scandal?
Keeler and Profumo’s brief affair, which lasted a few weeks, was so controversial because she was involved with a Russian commander at the same time.
During their affair, she was said to have also been romantically involved with Captain Yevgeny Ivanov, a Soviet who was accused of being involved in espionage.
Profumo was forced to resign over their affair, with the scandal threatening Harold MacMillan’s government.
In 1963, Profumo and Keeler’s affair – which had already stopped by this point – was exposed.
Keeler was eventually sentenced to 9 months in prison – but it had little to do with Profumo.
Keeler was sentenced to nine months in prison for obstruction of justice and perjury after being arrested for providing false evidence in court when she had accused another ex-lover of assaulting her.
She was sentenced in December 1963 but only served four and a half months prison time.
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