John Dennis Profumo (born
1915) was the British
Conservative cabinet minister whose indiscretions effectively brought down the government in
1963. Profumo was educated at
Harrow and
Magdalen College, Oxford, and went into parliament in
1940. He married the
actress,
Valerie Hobson. In
1960, he was appointed Secretary of State for War (a now obsolete title) under
Harold Macmillan, but became embroiled in a relationship with
Christine Keeler, a showgirl who was simultaneously involved with a Russian KGB official. Although there was no suspicion of his having passed on any state secrets, Profumo was forced to resign when the details of the affair were discovered. He retired from public life, becoming a charity worker, and was awarded the
CBE in
1975. His son is the journalist and
novelist,
David Profumo[?].
See also: