• Newly declassified MI5 documents reveal Queen Elizabeth II was unaware of her art adviser Anthony Blunt's role as a Soviet spy.
• Palace officials decided to keep the Queen uninformed to prevent adding to her worries, according to documents released by the National Archives.
• Blunt, who confessed to espionage in 1964, retained his status and job despite passing secrets to the KGB.
• The Queen was finally informed of Blunt’s spy activities in 1973 during his illness.
• The release also sheds light on other notable spies connected to Cambridge University, including Kim Philby.

The release of newly declassified files from MI5 has revealed that Queen Elizabeth II was kept in the dark about her art adviser, Anthony Blunt’s activities as a Soviet spy. The information, released by Britain’s National Archives, highlights the lengths officials went to in order to shield the monarch from distress regarding her close aide, who, unbeknownst to her, had been passing classified information to the Soviet Union during his tenure at Buckingham Palace. Blunt, who served as the Surveyor of the Queen’s Pictures, confessed in 1964 to leaking vital information to the KGB during World War II.

Documents indicate that when MI5 officials eventually decided to inform the Queen in 1973 due to Blunt's declining health, her private secretary, Martin Charteris, maintained that there was no advantage in disclosing the information earlier since it would only "add to her worries." Notes from the files indicate that Blunt felt "profound relief" after confessing to his transgressions and was allowed to keep his job, his knighthood, and social standing, even as his espionage activities were being investigated. The Queen reportedly took the news with calmness, recalling earlier suspicions she had regarding Blunt's loyalty, as shared in documents (India Times, AP News).

The intelligence files also detail another Cambridge spy, Kim Philby, who faced his own reckoning. In correspondence with fellow MI6 officer Nicholas Elliott, Philby admitted to betraying a KGB officer, Konstantin Volkov, who was killed after attempting to defect. The repercussions of these revelations have echoed through British history, inspiring numerous literary and cinematic adaptations, notably reflected in recent portrayals in TV series and films focused on espionage narratives.

In light of these disclosures, historians like Christopher Andrew have elaborated on how protocols within MI5 and palace security operated to keep certain information from the royal family, adding to the ongoing discussions about transparency and accountability within British intelligence. Some of the documents from the MI5 releases will be featured in an upcoming exhibition titled “MI5: Official Secrets,” set to open later this year (CBS News).

This series of revelations underscores the complex interaction between monarchy, state security, and espionage that has shaped not just royal dynamics, but also the broader historical context of British intelligence operations.