Some within the secret services had always suspected Blunt as a Communist traitor. Was Philip II the first king of an absolute monarchy? That made his betrayal all the worse. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. According to Daily Mail, Blunts familial ties to the Royal Family came through his mother, Hilda, who was a second cousin of the Queen Mothers father, the Earl of Strathmore. Back in the 1930s, he'd had an affair with a Nazi spy. The Crown turns its attention to the Cold War this season when rumors of a Russian mole in the very high reaches of the British government start flying. However, it then turns out that theres a different mole, this one in Buckingham Palace no less. Are you a fan of The Crown? At the end of The Crown's first episode of season three, Prince Philip tries to castigate Anthony Blunt for betraying his country. He explained that Cambridge was rife with Marxist sympathizers fueled by the ascendance of Adolf Hitler and the Spanish Civil War. That meant access to the greatest secrets, with least suspicion. The long-anticipated third season of Netflixs The Crown opens on the eve of Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilsons election following 13 years of conservative rule in Britain. He was a third cousin of Queen Elizabeth II. Soon, he too was persuadedfirst incorporating Marxist theories into his art historical essays, before eventually deciding to support the Soviet cause. Sir Anthony Blunt was a spy in the Queens household, and, yes, the story is true. Was he really a Soviet spy, and was he real? Blunt flipped the script on. His motivations remain something of an enigmabut here, at least, are the facts. Coffee machine broken? Sir Anthony Blunt (played by Samuel West), who held the position at the palace for 27 years. One of a series of close-ups of Anthony Blunt, when he made his first public appearance since the sensational disclosure last week that he was a Russian spy. But a Channel 4 documentary has now confirmed that Blunt also made copies of Royal correspondence and passed it directly to the KGB. She publicly outed him in the House of Commons in November of that year and a media storm followed. As a distant cousin of the Queen Mother, Blunt was a trusted member of the Household after joining the Palace in 1945. Anthony Blunt, in full Anthony Frederick Blunt, also called (1956-79) Sir Anthony Blunt, (born Sept. 26, 1907, Bournemouth, Hampshire, Eng.died March 26, 1983, London), British art historian who late in his life was revealed to have been a Soviet spy. They were frustrated with the U.K.'s policy of appeasement toward Hitler, and thought that the Communists might be the only ones able to defeat the fascists. They considered they were acting on principle.. In that time he also successfully retrieved from Germany sensitive letters between the Duke of Windsor (the Queens uncle who abdicated the throne) and Hitler, which we saw in The Crown season two. Given its nature, there is lingering secrecy around the Blunt affair, but Robert hopes retelling the story in The Crown might reignite interest and finally reveal the truth. It also suggests that Blunt blackmailed Prince Philip with a portrait of him done by osteopath Stephen Ward, referencing the scandal that rocked the royal marriage in season two. A privileged upbringing. All 10 episodes of The Crown are available to watch on Netflix. Prince Philip has died aged 99, the royal family confirmed. But there's much more to the story than what the episode shows. From Elizabeth's accession on February 6, 1952, until he died in 2021, he served as the British monarch's consort, making him the longest-serving royal consort in history. "I think, absolutely, that Blunt would never have been recruited if he hadn't been so friendly with Burgess," Lownie says. Burgess was a famously larger-than-life character, often painted as a bumbling, amiable drunkard with a large sexual appetite. However, one scene sees Prince Philip (Tobias Menzies) give Blunt a piece of his mind and threatens to see him punished, but Blunt retaliates by threatening Philip with exposure of his links to the Profumo scandal. Philip risked opening himself up to Soviet blackmail. He was also a distant cousin of the Queen's. It was during Blunt . Claudia Joseph For The Mail On Sunday Anthony Blunt was born the youngest son of a vicar, the Reverend Arthur Stanley Vaughan Blunt, in Bournemouth, Hampshire. After Blunt was found out in 1963, not only did Her Majesty keep his deception quiet, she had to watch him continue in his job until his retirement nine years later, aged 64. Kim Philby, the third member outed, was a British intelligence officer who managed to keep his cover until 1963 despite serious suspicion. Be the first to know what's trending, straight from Elite Daily. Not only that, but the show is correct that Blunt got a full pardon, to save the country the embarrassment of admitting he's been operating out of Buckingham Palace for years. Get access to this video and our entire Q&A library, The Royal Family: History, Roles & Powers. Did the Tudors live in Buckingham Palace? Was John, Duke of Burgundy, at Agincourt? Keeler served six months in prison for perjury and obstruction of justice. While a fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge, in the 1930s Blunt became a member of a circle of disaffected young men led by Guy Burgess . But in November 1979, the then newly elected Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher blew his story wide open in the House of Commons. Chloe is a News Writer for Townandcountrymag.com, where she covers royal news, from the latest additions to Meghan Markles staff to Queen Elizabeths monochrome fashions; she also writes about culture, often dissecting TV shows like The Marvelous Mrs Maisel and Killing Eve. In exchange for his full cooperation when his part of the spy ring known as The Cambridge Five was exposed, Blunt was granted full anonymity and immunity from prosecution in 1964. Blunt received far more than immunity from prosecution. This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. The Crown Season 3 starts with Queen Elizabeth IIs suspicions that Russian spies have infiltrated the highest reaches of British government (Warning: There will be spoilers for The Crown, Season 3, episode 1 in this article.). The Crown only tells part of the story. According to BBC, when he was caught, Blunt wrote in his memoir that he gave MI5 all the information that I had about the Russian activities.. Subscribe to our newsletter now and you will be. Burgess ended up going all the way with him, though; it's not clear whether Blunt knew he wasn't coming back. During his time there, he encouraged the royal family to open up somewhat, and at times exhibit their private treasures publicly, among other projects. Being in the palace means you have the best connections. He was Queen Elizabeth II's spouse. Did Henry VIII promise leniency to Catherine Howard? He had always insisted the information he passed to the Russians was 'almost exclusively about German intelligence services'. Did Peter abdicate the throne to Catherine the Great? Channel 4 is set to air a new documentary, Queen Elizabeth: Love, Honour and Crown, which . Catching up on previous seasons of The Crown before diving into .css-gegin5{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:0.0625rem;text-decoration-color:inherit;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:#9a0500;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;}.css-gegin5:hover{color:#595959;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;}season five? He was addressing a press conference at the Times newspaper offices, outlining his role in the spy scandal. French mass in May 1 show of anger against Macron pension reform. Were nice like that. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. We also may change the frequency you receive our emails from us in order to keep you up to date and give you the best relevant information possible. Blunt served as the Surveyor of the King's (then the Queen's) Pictures from 1945 to 1972. Later, he was discovered as a Russian spy. France's President Emmanuel Macron faces more nationwide protests on Monday as he seeks to steer the country on from a divisive pension law that has sparked anger, pan-bashing and social unrest. The older man recruited the students to the Soviet cause before the Second World War - and they remained devoted to the USSR even after the start of the Cold War. Let us know in the comments below. Especially on the heels of the Profumo Affair, which had reflected poorly on MI5 and MI6's competency in counterintelligence, higher-ups believed that keeping Blunt's crimes under wraps would be best. He was a member of the notorious Thursday Club, which met in Soho every week for boozy lunches, sometimes stretching long into the night. Queen Elizabeth was informed at the timeand this big reveal is what's depicted on The Crown. Is Jahangir and Prince Salim the same person? Robert explains: They would have said: Were traitors to our class but not ashamed because weretribunes of the people and doing this for the good of societyand a more equal, socialistic society. Was Catherine of Aragon promised to Arthur? Did The Queen Fail To Go To The Aberfan Disaster? Britain's spy catchers. This was early in her prime ministership and she wanted to tell the civil service to know who was boss.. Guy Burgess (left) and Donald Maclean (right). In her biography of Blunt, Anthony Blunt: His Lives, Miranda Carter notes that in 1963, the art historian may have stepped out of his semi-retirement to help the royal family out of a bind. "He was a far more effective spy than people realized with far greater access, particularly when he was private secretary to the number two in the foreign office," Lownie tells Town & Country. It was an undignified end for a man who had shown so much promise. Blunt would guide the Courtauld in the transition from fledgling academy to well-respected institution. How did William trick Harold in the Battle of Hastings? Yes, we could have done that but we would not.' They also feared the humiliation of admitting they had let a spy operate from inside the walls of Buckingham Palace. Clive Irving, author of The Last Queen, told the programme: 'Churchill sanctioned this mission, as well as George VI, because they both understood the threat potentially caused by knowledge of how far back this sympathy with the Nazis ran through the Royal Family. In them, Blunt confesses that spying was the biggest mistake of my life. Perhaps well meet him again in season four of The Crown to watch his public fall from grace. Blunt, a British art historian, is believed to have been recruited by Soviet spies while he was studying at Cambridge University in the 1930s. The Crown, however, is doing its part to remedy thatfirst by showing the Affair's fallout at the end of season two, and in season three, having the Queen's art curator, Anthony Blunt, blackmail Prince Philip with some related artworks. Recalling his meetings with Modin, writer and historian Roland Perry tells the programme: 'I said to him, 'Could you have blackmailed the Royals?' He was interviewed by spooks 11 times but only in 1963 did they get definitive proof, from US spy Michael Straight. .css-1fgik18{color:#323232;display:block;font-family:NewParis,NewParis-fallback,Georgia,Times,serif;font-weight:normal;margin-bottom:0.3125rem;margin-top:0;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;-webkit-font-smoothing:auto;}@media (any-hover: hover){.css-1fgik18:hover{color:link-hover;}}@media(max-width: 48rem){.css-1fgik18{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.2;}}@media(min-width: 40.625rem){.css-1fgik18{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.2;}}@media(min-width: 64rem){.css-1fgik18{font-size:1.3125rem;line-height:1.2;}}Mood in the UK Ahead of Coronation, All the Tiaras at Queen Elizabeth's Coronation, 17 Documentaries to Watch About the Royal Family, The Most Memorable Royal Photos of 2023 (So Far). Were there assassination attempts on Queen Victoria? However, was the Blunt story true? 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