For a decade, Queen Elizabeth II lived without knowing that her own art advisor, Anthony Blunt, a trusted man in charge of overseeing the invaluable Royal Collection, was living a double life as a Soviet agent.

Documents newly declassified by MI5, Britain's internal intelligence agency, show the late Queen Elizabeth II was not informed for almost 10 years that a member of her staff had spied for the then-Soviet Union.

Anthony Blunt, a royal art historial, confessed in 1964 to spying for the Soviets, but the late queen was not officially told about his past until 1973. View on euronews

Sir Anthony Blunt, the surveyor of the Queen's pictures, confessed in 1964 that he had been a Russian agent since the 1930s, when he was recruited into the Cambridge spy ring

Queen Elizabeth II wasn’t told details of her long-time art adviser's double life as a Soviet spy because palace officials didn’t want to add to her worries, newly declassified documents reveal.

Declassified documents confirm that the late Queen Elizabeth II of England was not informed until many years later that she had a KGB spy amongst her members of staff. She didn't like him anyway.