Author: MORTON, JAMES (1938-)
Title: Spies of the First World War : under cover for King and Kaiser / James Morton
Description: Kew. Richmond. Surrey : National Archives 2010. First Edition. An exceptional copy; fine in an equally fine dust wrapper. Particularly and surprisingly well-preserved; tight. bright. clean and especially sharp-cornered. Literally as new.; 8vo 8' - 9' tall; 240 pages; Physical description; 240 p. [8] p. of plates : ill. ; 24 cm. Contents; Part One - 1. The early spy novels and Germans in England 2. The formation of MI5 and MI6 3. Pre- First World War German spies in England and abroad 4. Pre-First World War British and other spies abroad Part Two - 5. German spies 6. The spymasters - English. French and German 7.Codes and code breakers Part Three - 8. Shot in the tower 1914-1916 9. The spy survivors 10. Women spies 1. German spies in Europe. America and India during the war 12. After the war was over. Summary; When Colonel James Edmonds argued for a British secret service in 1907. officials mocked that he had 'espionage on the brain'. But fracturing European relations and the resulting explosion in spy activity were to prove Edmonds' prescience. By the time of the First World War undercover agents operated in cities from Geneva to Paris. New York to Moscow. and German spies were being shot in the Tower of London. Spies of the First World War balances accessible history of a profession fashioned by conflict with human stories of heroism and cowardice. brilliance and incompetence. loyalty and betrayal. Spies of the First World War is the first popular history of international espionage in the early twentieth century. This major collection of real-life stories begins with the British spy panic that prompted the creation of the fledgling MI5 and MI6 in one set of rooms. and tells how by the end of the First World War sophisticated networks like La Dame Blanche surveyed the Western Front. Ranging freely across Europe. America and the wider world. James Morton describes events that shaped history. from the bungling beginnings of Britain's Intelligence Corps to the decryption of the Zimmermann telegram and the execution of Edith Cavell. The book is peopled with agents. handlers. officials and spy catchers of all nationalities. driven by love. money. duty. patriotism and the struggle to survive. There are accidental spies like the elderly Lord Brassey. arrested for rowing too close to the Imperial dockyard; tragic gentlemen amateurs like Carl Lody; and professionals like the pugnacious Richard Tinsley. who ran 300 agents from Rotterdam. There are 'ordinary' people like the Belgian train-watchers who used beans to count guns and soldiers. as well as notorious figures such as Mata Hari and the Fraulein Doktor. Best-selling author James Morton tells the story of organized espionage in Britain from spy fever early in the 20th century to the end of the First World War and the rise of air intelligence. He introduces us to a world of colorful characters and dark underhand dealing in which spies. male and female. driven by love. money. patriotism or a mix of all of them. struggled to survive. The first English officer spies are featured alongside their frequently flamboyant French. Belgium and German counterparts - from the hunchback dentist Wilhelm Klauer to the 'Grande (and lesser) horizontales' such as Mata Hari. So too are their controllers such as authors John Buchan and Somerset Maugham and men like Richard Tinsley who oversaw a network of some 2000 spies from Holland. As professionalism grew great successes emerged - not least the deciphering of the intercepted Zimmerman telegram - along with notable failures. Morton tackles both in a meticulously researched narrative that balances the history of espionage with the human stories of individuals and tales of heroism with cowardice. incompetence and betrayal. Subjects; Great Britain. MI5. Great Britain. MI6. Espionage - Europe - History - 20th century. World War. 1914-1918 - Secret service. Spies - Europe - History - 20th century. Warfare and Defence. Great War 1914-1918. and Associated Conflicts - Intelligence.Weight in Kg appr.:

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