Queen's fears after major security breach as intruder stays the night

The Queen has reportedly had an intruder spend the night at Windsor Castle - unknown to her.

The 96-year-old royal suffered a security breach last week, when a trespasser, who claimed to be a priest, made their way into the barracks with the Royal Guardsmen on Tuesday 26 April, which is a mere 250 metres from Windsor Castle.

It has been alleged the intruder spent the evening in the officer's mess where he ate and drank throughout the evening, before he was offered a bed to sleep for the night, followed by breakfast in the morning.

The uninvited visitor was not asked to show any form of identification before entering the royal residence, where the Queen has recently moved to for good.

It has also been reported the intruder claimed he was a friend of one of the Coldstream Guards.

An investigation has been launched after the police were called to tend to the trespasser on the morning of Wednesday 27 April, and escorted the intruder off of the premises 16 hours after entering.

The British monarch was not at Windsor Castle at the time, but was staying at her royal residence in Sandringham, Norfolk, so was out of harm's way.

However, just a few hours after the security breach, Her Majesty returned to her home in Windsor.

A source told TalkTV, which has also been reported on Mirror Online: "This is just an extraordinary breach of security.

“The guy turned up at the gate in the evening and said his name was Father Cruise and claimed to be a friend of the battalion's Padre Rev Matt Coles.

“He was telling lots of tall stories and the lads were enjoying his banter and having a few drinks."

The Ministry of Defence are dealing with the breach "extremely seriously".

A separate spokesman said: "The Army takes this breach of security extremely seriously and it will be thoroughly investigated as a matter of priority.

"This incident is now part of an ongoing investigation and it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time."

The ordeal comes shortly after Prince Harry visited his grandmother over concerns for her safety.