Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s biographer said MI6 placed the discredited former Duke of York and his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, “under surveillance because of [the] shady people they were associating with”.
Historian Andrew Lownie, who wrote ‘Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York’, says a contact within Britain’s foreign intelligence agency disclosed this information to him. Members of the Royal Family cannot be subjects of MI6 files, though their close connections can be.
“Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Sarah Ferguson were monitored because of their associates. MI6 stumbled across them watching others,” Lownie stated. When they were supposedly under surveillance remains unclear.
Lownie made his assertion whilst calling on the Royal Family to address publicly the connections to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein involving the late Queen’s second son. This follows Surrey Police appealing for anyone with information to step forward regarding allegations of historic human trafficking and sexual assault which emerged in the Epstein files.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor is set to move to five-bedroom Marsh Farm(Image: Getty)
The force confirmed the incidents, drawn from a redacted report published by the US Department of Justice in December, are alleged to have occurred in Virginia Water, Surrey, between 1994 and 1996. Submitted as an anonymous tip, the allegations claim a woman was held down on a table and “tortured with electrical shocks” by Ghislaine Maxwell, whilst the former prince and other men looked on, reports the Express.
The force confirmed it had searched its systems and found no record of the allegations being previously reported to them. The National Crime Agency, commonly known as Britain’s FBI, has also confirmed it will support police in obtaining documents from overseas law enforcement agencies. Earlier this week, Essex Police became the seventh force to examine allegations connected to the latest batch of Epstein files.
Officers are “assessing information” that the late sex offender trafficked sex victims through Stansted Airport up to 90 times between the 1990s and 2018. Ex-prime minister Gordon Brown stated the files revealed in “graphic detail” how Epstein utilised the Essex-based airport to “fly in girls from Latvia, Lithuania and Russia”.
Historian Andrew Lownie alleges Sarah Ferguson may also have been under surveillance(Image: Getty)
Lownie added: “[The Royal Family] need to come clean about what they knew, when they knew it, what they did about it and what they’re going to do now. The public is not going to be satisfied with bland statements about victims when we all feel that [Andrew] has been enabled and protected for the last 15 years.”
Earlier this month, Thames Valley Police bosses confirmed they were reviewing allegations that Andrew passed on sensitive documents to Epstein during his tenure as the UK’s trade envoy. Whilst the King and Queen, the Prince and Princess of Wales and the Duke of Edinburgh have released robust statements in recent weeks to refocus attention on Epstein’s victims, Lownie reckons it falls short given fresh revelations about Andrew, who celebrates his 66th birthday today, and the former Duchess of York.
He added: “This is why it’s all smoke and mirrors. What happens in private and what’s presented to the public are two very different things, and that’s what needs to change.”
Renovations are being completed on Marsh Farm in Norfolk(Image: UK Press via Getty)
Lownie’s fresh allegations will doubtless prove awkward for the Firm as pressure mounts for the ex-prince to undergo a proper criminal probe – something the royal author backs.
“People need to face justice, and Andrew needs to be investigated by the Metropolitan Police on what he knew about sex trafficking and by the National Crime Agency for misconduct in public office,” said the bestselling historian and biographer. Sarah also needs to be investigated. She’s a material witness to what was happening at Epstein’s home, and she should certainly be called to testify before the US Senate.”
Six firms connected to the former Duchess of York are being shut down following fresh disclosures about her association with Epstein, after the US Department of Justice’s latest batch of emails emerged earlier this month. Andrew has previously rejected any allegations of impropriety regarding his connections to Epstein, though he has yet to address the current investigations by Essex and Thames Valley police forces.
As the controversy continues, two individuals who have remained silent are Princesses Beatrice, 37, and Eugenie, 35. The sisters were frequently referenced in the recent release of Epstein emails – though there is no implication of wrongdoing on their behalf.
Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie haven’t addressed the scandal(Image: Getty)
They have maintained a discreet presence in recent weeks, though Eugenie was spotted at Art Basel 2026 in Doha, Qatar, in her role as director of the Savile Row art gallery Hauser and Wirth. Lownie suggested that both women should relinquish their royal titles.
“That’s the first thing they should do because that’s why there is interest,” he stated. “Princess Beatrice is always Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrice when she’s promoting businesses in the Middle East, which is her utilising her royal position. She’s really Mrs Mapelli Mozzi now, but if she were billed as that, no one would give their time. They need to stop using their royal status in order to make money for themselves, which is exactly what their parents did.”
As direct male-line grandchildren of a monarch, the two Princesses have kept their royal status and Princess titles as per the 1917 Letters Patent by King George V. He ruled that the monarch’s children, male-line grandchildren and the eldest son of the Prince of Wales could bear a princely title.
They would need to be officially stripped of their titles or renounce them themselves for any significant change to occur. As for Andrew, Lownie suggests that if charges are brought against him, he “will disappear to the Middle East to avoid a trial”.
The King has already ousted his brother from his long-standing residence, Royal Lodge, in Windsor. Andrew is relocating to Marsh Farm, a five-bedroom farmhouse on the Sandringham Estate, known for being the late Prince Philip’s retreat following his retirement from public duties in 2017.
The property has seen substantial refurbishments in recent weeks, with pest-control contractors recently seen at the site. Andrew is temporarily residing at Wood Farm, also part of the Sandringham Estate. Since his disastrous BBC interview in November 2019, he has consistently declined to express regret or sadness about his connections to Epstein. “It’s a case study in reputation management and how not to do it,” Lownie added.
“He abused the trust of the British people who gave him the job to promote British trade, and he used it to line his pockets.”
Despite the barrage of allegations against him, Andrew is said to be “raging” – incensed that his treatment by King Charles and the Royal Family has been “too harsh”.
Lownie stated: “He’s entitled, he’s narcissistic, stupid, lacks self-awareness and is surrounded by sycophants. So I’m not surprised [he thinks that].”
MI6, Buckingham Palace and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor have been approached for comment.