In the carefully staged world of royal image‑making, Christmas cards are meant to be harmless: a snowy lodge, festive smiles, a slightly awkward family photo. What they are not meant to be is evidence. Yet that is precisely what newly released documents from theJeffrey Epstein filesappear to have made of Prince Andrew's seasonal greetings.
According to material disclosed in the latest tranche of Epstein-related records, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor — the man once formally known as HRH The Duke of York — continued to send Epstein Christmas cards in 2011 and 2012, complete with photographs of his daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie. At the time, Epstein was not some murky rumour in Manhattan society; he was a registered sex offender who had pleaded guilty in 2008 to procuring a minor for prostitution.
To be absolutely clear, appearing in the Epstein files does not, in itself, prove criminal wrongdoing. But it does raise sharp questions about judgement — and, in Andrew's case, about truthfulness.
The cards matter because they clash squarely with Andrew's own public account. In his now notorious 2019 interview with BBCNewsnight, the prince insisted that after he went to see Epstein in New York in December 2010 — the visit that produced those damning Central Park photographs — he broke off all contact. 'To this day, I never had any contact with him from that day forward,' Andrew told Emily Maitlis, presenting the trip as a final, ill-advised farewell.
The documents say otherwise. A Christmas card dated Dec. 21, 2011, sent from Andrew to Epstein, carries his personal signature and warm wishes for 'much joy and happiness at this time and for the year ahead.' It was addressed to a man who had, by then, served time and was living under the legal restrictions of a convicted sex offender.
Inside were at least three photographs of Beatrice and Eugenie, then 23 and 21. One image reportedly shows the sisters together in a winter setting: Beatrice in a silver Christmas cracker hat with ear muffs, Eugenie in a fur hat and brown scarf. Other pictures depict a snow-covered Royal Lodge, Andrew's Windsor home, and a cartoon of a man strongly resembling the prince walking four dogs towards a snowman.
A year later, on Dec. 20, 2012, another card followed. Again, Epstein received a curated glimpse into the life of the Yorks. Beatrice is shown scaling Mont Blanc on a February 2012 expedition, hand on hip in a proud mountaineering pose. Eugenie appears in high-vis gear and helmet, taking part in a Night Rider charity cycle ride through London. Sarah Ferguson, Andrew's former wife, also features in the imagery, underlining that this was not some perfunctory, photocopied royal mailout.
It was personal. Both cards were sent under Andrew's then-official styling: 'HRH The Duke of York.'
That timeline is hard to wave away.Epstein's 2008 convictionwas not obscure. It was covered extensively, in the US and beyond. For Andrew to continue corresponding, sending pictures of his daughters, after that conviction — and then to tell the public, years later, that he had no further contact after 2010 — is at best a staggering lapse of judgement. At worst, it suggests that the BBC interview was not the full story.
Andrew has always denied the allegations of sexual misconduct linked to Epstein and his network. Like many names that appear in Epstein's orbit, he argues that presence in these files or on flight logs should not be conflated with participation in Epstein's crimes. Legally, that distinction matters.
Source: International Business Times UK
