# Canonical recap data for Profumo Affair and UK Cabinet Crisis (1963)
# Source: https://recap.at/1963/profumo-affair
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: profumo-affair
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1963/profumo-affair"
title: Profumo Affair and UK Cabinet Crisis
subtitle: Secretary of State John Profumo's resignation over a security scandal triggered the most damaging political crisis in post-war British governance and reshaped public trust.
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1963-01-01
datePrecision: year
year: 1963
decade: 1960
country:
name: United Kingdom
slug: united-kingdom
summaryShort: The Profumo affair was a major scandal in British politics during the early 1960s. John Profumo, the 46-year-old Secretary of State for War in Harold Macmillan's Conservative government, had an extramarital affair with then 19-year-old model Christine Keeler beginning in 1961. Profumo denied the affair in a statement t
summaryLong: The Profumo affair was a major scandal in British politics during the early 1960s. John Profumo, the 46-year-old Secretary of State for War in Harold Macmillan's Conservative government, had an extramarital affair with then 19-year-old model Christine Keeler beginning in 1961. Profumo denied the affair in a statement to the House of Commons in 1963; weeks later, a police investigation proved that he had lied. The scandal severely damaged the credibility of Macmillan's government, and Macmillan resigned as Prime Minister in October 1963, citing ill health. The fallout contributed to the Conservative government's defeat by the Labour Party in the 1964 general election.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2c/John_Profumo.jpg/1280px-John_Profumo.jpg"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "Profumo affair"
importance: 72
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts: []
timeline: []
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Profumo_affair"
  title: Profumo affair
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
categories:
- election
- protest
metaDescription: The Profumo affair was a major scandal in British politics during the early 1960s. John Profumo, the 46-year-old Secretary of State for War in Harold Macmillan'
wikidataQid: Q1401251
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20260628162731/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Profumo_affair"
  capturedAt: 2026-06-28
  label: Profumo affair
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Profumo_affair"
