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Penguin
October 2010
On Sale: September 21, 2010
832 pages
ISBN: 1594202745
EAN: 9781594202742
Hardcover
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Non-Fiction
The authorized history of the world's oldest and most
storied foreign intelligence service, drawing extensively on
hitherto secret documents. Britain's Secret Intelligence Service (also commonly known
as MI6) was born a century ago amid fears of the rising
power of other countries, especially Germany. The next forty
years saw MI6 taking an increasingly important-and, until
now, largely hidden-role in shaping the history of Europe
and the world. This thorough, fascinating, and revelatory
account draws on a wealth of archival materials never before
seen by any outsider to unveil the inner workings of the
world's first spy agency. MI6's early days were haphazard but it was quickly forged
into an effective organization in the crucible of World War
I. During these war years, MI6 also formed ties with the
United States-harbingers of a relationship that would become
vital to both countries' security as the century progressed.
These early years also saw the development of techniques
that would become plot devices in a thousand books and
films-forgery, invisible ink, disguises, concealing
mechanisms, and much more. The interwar years were nominally
peaceful, but Britain perceived numerous threats, all of
which MI6 was expected to keep tabs on. The outbreak of
World War II once again caught MI6 off balance, and
high-profile blunders (and the memoirs of MI6 operatives
such as Graham Greene) created an impression of
ineffectiveness. At the same time, however, the service was
pioneering cryptography at Bletchley Park (where the Enigma
code would be broken) and devising the very methods and
equipment that would inspire Ian Fleming's novels. In a way, the aftermath of World War II was as dramatic as
the war itself had been, because 1945-49 saw not only the
end of the British Empire but also the emergence of a new
sort of conflict-the Cold War. We witness MI6 wrestling with
these epic developments as it tightens its bonds with the
newly christened CIA, changes that would dictate the shape
of the service-and the world-for decades to come.
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