The British Royal Family members are a divisive bunch. To some, they represent the apex of human nobility and aspirations. To others, they represent colonialism and the outdated attitudes that should have died out many years ago.
Regardless of how you feel about the royals, though, everybody loves a good mystery. And this is fortunate because the history of the British royal family is full of unsolved mysteries. Which ones are the wildest of the bunch? Keep reading to find out!
Prince Andrew and Jeffrey Epstein
Most of the mysteries we are focusing on are very old and all of the relevant parties are very much dead. There is one major exception to that, and it involves the association between deceased sex predator Jeffrey Epstein and Prince Andrew.
Epstein died in 2019 from an alleged suicide. Before that, though, he was photographed with Prince Andrew in 2010. As the Independent reports, Virginia Giuffre, claimed that Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell forced her to have sex with Prince Andrew three times when she was still underage.
Thanks to his apparent suicide, Epstein can’t share any other details. And Giuffre isn’t saying anything more after receiving an undisclosed settlement from Andrew. This means we may never know exactly how well Andrew knew Epstein and the full extent of his relationship with (and possible crimes against) Giuffre.
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Did George III have a secret marriage?
George III is a rather infamous figure thanks to the American Revolution. Some credit him with England losing the United States. However, George may have made another mistake that threatens to undo the Royal Family altogether!
As Royal Central reports, George III may have secretly married Hannah Lightfoot. This wouldn’t have been so bad if he didn’t later marry Charlotte Sophia of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. And here’s the kicker: if George did marry Lightfoot, he never divorced her.
If all of this is true, his second marriage and all of his children are effectively illegitimate. The descendants would all be illegitimate as well. It won’t shock you, then, to learn that the Royal Family has never provided the documentation required for investigators to explore this matter.
Richard the III’s legitimacy
Speaking of legitimacy, there is growing uncertainty about whether Richard III was legitimate or not. And this uncertainty stems from the remarkable event in 2012 in which his remains were discovered beneath a parking lot.
As the BBC reports, scientists studying the remains compared Richard’s DNA to that of five living descendants. They discovered that one gene that should have been passed down via the Y chromosome was not present in the descendants. Just like that, there is a break on the Royal Family tree!
Later, Geoffrey, Count of Anjou, requested to compare his own Y chromosome with Richard’s. As a patrilineal descendant of Edward III, Geoffrey was hoping to discover where the break occurred. Unfortunately, all he really discovered was that there was another break lurking somewhere in the family tree.
Relatively speaking, this investigation didn’t embarrass the Royal Family. But that might change if science helps us discover even more shocking truths in the coming years.
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Edward VIII’s secret Nazi plot?
Sometimes, you don’t need fancy DNA evidence to uncover a royal mystery. In fact, all you might need is a captured telegram!
As the Guardian reports, the public learned in 1957 of telegrams that discussed a 1940-era Nazi plot for the Nazis to install Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson as puppet leaders of England after a complete German takeover. The telegrams further claimed these two knew about the plot and told the Nazis they’d consider it.
This was a real shock to the public, especially after Edward VIII abdicated the throne so he could marry Simpson. Apparently, neither Chuchhill nor Eisenhower thought these royals knew about the plot. But considering that Edward had a troubled history of supporting Nazis (including giving the Nazi salute to German troops, personally meeting with Hitler, and defending Germany even after Britain declared war), this mystery seems a bit too plausible.
The mystery of the princes in the tower
The most famous vintage royal unsolved mystery concerns two young princes who perished inside the Tower of London. However, no answer we could get about this mystery will make it seem any less tragic.
It all started when Edward VI seized power and threw Henry VI in prison. Later, Edward VI would team up with his brother Richard to kill both Henry and Henry’s brother George.
Following Edward’s unexpected death in 1483, his 12-year-old son (also named Edward) was slated to become king. However, the younger Edward and his 9-year-old brother Robert were kidnapped by their uncle (also named Richard) and thrown into the Tower of London. While they were in there, the man who would become Richard III had them declared illegitimate so that he could seize the throne.
After that, the children were never seen alive again. However, two children’s skeletons were discovered under a Tower of London staircase in 1674. Those bones are carefully preserved in Westminster Abbey, but the Church of England has forbidden DNA testing that might confirm the identity of these skeletons and whether (as many believe) Richard III had the children killed.
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Mary, Queen of Scots, murderer of husband?
Mary, Queen of Scots, had a tragic history and a tragic end. But she may have caused her share of tragedy as well, including having her husband murdered.
It all starts with Mary’s second husband, Henry Stewart. By all accounts, he was a bit of a monster, and History Extra reports that when Mary was six months pregnant, Stewart had her friend violently murdered right in front of her.
Later, when Mary and her son were staying in a different house from Stewart, a major explosion rocked the field nearest to Stewart. There, Steward and a servant were found dead, but not of the explosion. Rather, the two were strangled to death.
Mary was a suspect from the beginning, especially after she hesitated to prosecute the relevant suspects. She also went on to marry the main suspect, James Hepburn, though History Extra reports he forced her to do so after kidnapping and raping her. Either way, Mary later lost the throne as well as her life, ensuring we’d never get a firm answer as to whether she had Stewart murdered.