What Did the Royals Know About Epstein and Andrew?
Andrew Mountbatten Windsor's unofficial biographer Andrew Lownie tells a story of warnings to the Crown about blackmail claims, sex tape fears, and bribes...
Welcome back to The Red Letter.
Andrew Mountbatten Windsors’s arrest marks a dramatic turning point after years of elite protection and alleged corruption. Now Buckingham Palace faces a more unsettling question: who knew what — and how long were they willing to shield him?
His unofficial biographer, the historian Andrew Lownie, told me he was stunned Andrew was even arrested, believing that law enforcement would avoid confront the royal family altogether. But he’s even more surprised stunned there aren’t sex tapes of Andrew already flooding the internet — a chilling reflection of how extensive the alleged honey traps were, and how vulnerable Andrew may have been to pressure or blackmail.
If that vulnerability existed for decades, how did it never surface? And more importantly: who ensured it didn’t?
“It’s inconceivable to me that the Queen didn’t know,” Lownie said.
In his view, Queen Elizabeth II ultimately chose to protect her son even at the expense of the monarchy’s credibility. The question now shifts to King Charles III: how much did he know, and did that protection extend into the present?
“I think the real concern now is, has Charles been protecting Andrew?” Lownie said. “He claims he wants to cooperate with law enforcement, but it’s not going to look good if actually he also was involved in helping Andrew and protecting him.”
For now, authorities appear to be pursuing corruption in public office — not sexual misconduct, which remains under investigation.
In his bestselling book Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York, Lownie documents what he describes as a mutually beneficial relationship between Andrew and Jeffrey Epstein.
While serving as Britain’s trade envoy, Andrew allegedly passed sensitive commercial and government information to Epstein. In return, Epstein helped cover Sarah Ferguson’s debts and funded a lavish lifestyle, including money and access to women.
“You do this for me, I’ll do this for you,” Lownie described the dynamic.
According to Lownie, Andrew shared commercially sensitive intelligence, including information related to the 2008 banking crisis and the nationalization of the Royal Bank of Scotland. He also allegedly arranged meetings abroad, including in China, for Epstein-linked associates.
“This was sensitive material,” Lownie told me. “And the extraordinary thing is that it may well have been known about by lots of people — including ambassadors — and nothing was done about it. He was allowed to behave like this.”
Even more troubling is the national security dimension Lownie says he’s now exploring: intelligence reporting that raises questions about Russian networks, sex trafficking rings, and money laundering operations intersecting with Andrew’s orbit.
“[Andrew] willingly gave up this material because of the contacts he had, the money that was being paid, and the girls that were being provided,” Lownie said.
“There were clearly lots of honey traps… and I’m amazed we haven’t got sex tapes of Andrew appearing all over the internet.”
If Andrew was as compromised as alleged, then the monarchy wasn’t just protecting a reckless prince it may have been containing a national security liability.
Lownie says MI6 officers repeatedly raised alarms about Andrew’s conduct to the Queen’s office, including allegations of bribery, only to be shut down.
Now the Crown faces its most serious credibility test in generations.
Misconduct in public office carries a potential life sentence under UK law, though sex-trafficking investigations are ongoing. Lownie believes additional charges are possible and that more witnesses are coming forward.
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Since the arrest, former protection officers and insiders who once refused to speak are now reaching out.
“I’ve had people almost on a daily basis come to me with stories about Andrew because they feel less afraid,” Lownie said.
Fear is lifting. Silence is breaking.
And none of this would be happening without the courage of survivors especially Virginia Giuffre, who forced public scrutiny onto Andrew’s relationship with Epstein long before authorities acted.
Without her, Lownie believes Andrew would still be living quietly at Royal Lodge.
I spoke with Lownie about the corruption allegations, intelligence warnings, palace protection and whether this moment is the beginning of something much larger.
Watch the full conversation above and of course please consider becoming paid subscribers to support our independent journalism.
I hope Virginia Guiffre somehow knows that her bravery felled a mighty prince. Hopefully more evil men will follow. Thanks to you, also, Tara.
I’ll have to circle back and absorb the podcast a bit later, but I wanted to thank you for everything you have been doing. To the near exclusion of my usual legal work, for the last 2 years+, I have been a more than full-time activist after seeing “Katie Johnson”’s interview describing her brutal rape by Trump. As a child (and adult) SA survivor, I could not stand silent. Long before the Epstein Files Transparency Act was written let alone passed, my activism brought me into contact with other victims of theirs who I maintain contact with still today. The breadth and scope of their crimes against children are staggering to me. Thank you, Tara.