Documents obtained from US government files reveal that the late monarch gave Andrew her “full support,” while at the same time considering his association with Epstein to have been “unwise.”

The email in question, dated March 9 2011, was sent by David Stern, a trusted adviser to the then-Prince Andrew, directly to Epstein.

In the message, seemingly referring to Andrew as “PA,” Mr Stern wrote: “PA has full support of his mum, only dealing with you was ‘unwise.'”

The use of quotation marks indicates that Mr Stern was likely repeating the Queen’s own words about her son’s involvement with the convicted sex offender.

Emails Surface After Years of Silence

Until these documents came to light, the late Queen’s personal opinion regarding Andrew’s conduct had not been publicly known. However, the emails uncovered by ITV now offer a clearer picture of how she viewed the situation.

The correspondence emerged three months after Andrew’s widely criticised Newsnight interview, in which he claimed he had travelled to New York to end his friendship with Epstein face-to-face, describing the visit as the “honourable” thing to do.

In February 2011, two photographs intensified public scrutiny.

One showed Andrew walking alongside Epstein in New York’s Central Park. The other pictured him with his arm around a young Virginia Giuffre in London.

Ms Giuffre later accused the former prince of having sex with her.

Just a day after the second photo was published, Andrew emailed Epstein saying: “we are in this together.”

 

Mounting Pressure and Public Apologies

At the time Mr Stern was corresponding with Epstein, Andrew was under increasing pressure to resign from his position as Britain’s official trade envoy.

Shortly before Stern’s email referencing the Queen’s views, Sarah Ferguson had publicly expressed regret for accepting money from Epstein.

On March 9 2011, she apologised in a newspaper interview for taking £15,000 from Epstein to help settle her personal debts.

Following her public apology, Stern contacted Epstein again, referring to Ferguson as “F” and noting that media focus had largely shifted toward her financial difficulties and “lack of judgement.”

Epstein responded angrily, instructing Stern to reach out to both Andrew and his ex-wife regarding the fallout from her comments.

“Jeffrey will need to defend himself. this is unfair, very unfair,” he wrote.

Stern replied that he would pass the message on to both individuals, but via Messenger instead of email, which he described as “safer (device to device).”

Ongoing Contact Behind the Scenes

Although Andrew stated during his Newsnight interview that he had cut all ties with Epstein, the newly released documents suggest communication may have continued through members of his inner circle.

Mr Stern, who worked in Andrew’s office and served as a director of the now-defunct Pitch@Palace entrepreneurial initiative, remained in regular contact with Epstein.

Among the US Department of Justice documents is a photograph showing Mr Stern celebrating his birthday with Andrew and Sarah Ferguson in January 2014, highlighting his close relationship with the pair.

In another email sent the day after the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee finale in 2012, Stern updated Epstein about the Buckingham Palace balcony appearance, noting that the Queen had chosen to stand only with Charles and his immediate family.

“Changing times as we expect,” Mr Stern wrote.

Andrew has denied all allegations of wrongdoing.