The newly declassified documents reveal that Queen Elizabeth II remained unaware for nearly a decade about Anthony Blunt's role as a Soviet spy, learning only in 1973.
Blunt confessed to spying for the Soviets in 1964, working as a senior MI5 officer during WWII, expressing 'profound relief' at revealing his double life.
A memo from 1972 indicated that Martin Charteris, the queen's private secretary, believed informing the queen about Blunt would 'only add to her worries'.
Blunt's admission and the subsequent government decision to inform the queen about his past arose from concerns about potential media exposure upon his death.
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