H. Montgomery HydeRezensionen

The story of the British Intelligence Center in New York during World War II

With headquarters in New York at 630 Fifth Avenue, Room 3603, the organization known as the British Security Coordination, or B.S.C., was the keystone of the successful

Anglo-American partnership in the field of secret intelligence, counterespionage and “special operations.”

The man chosen by Sir Winston Churchill to set up and direct this crucial effort was Sir William Stephenson. A fighter pilot in the First World War, he had become a millionaire before he was thirty through his invention of the device for transmitting photographs by wireless. The late General Bill Donovan, director of the Office of Strategic Services, said of him; “Bill Stephenson taught us all we ever knew about ...

I picked this up for two main reasons: 1. The Ian Fleming foreword, and 2. Although I was aware of the British intelligence operations based in New York during WW2 (I’d referenced them in one of my pulp stories) I didn’t really know the details. This series of recollections and case stories by one of their former operatives provides some degree of insight. However as this was written in 1962 most of the content has been superseded by declassification of certain material and more recent scholarship. But it remains a readable first hand account of an often overlooked area of wartime Anglo-American cooperation.

Original in corrected proof copy

I have to say I was disappointed in reading this book. The scandal seemed to be something of a damp squib, with only a few underlings actually tried and convicted. It seemed to me (in a bit of a spoiler) that the individuals that fled abroad were mostly the beneficiary of inaction, rather than a desire to cover up crimes. Ultimately, it makes the narrative that much less interesting.

1130 Roger Casement Famous Trials Ninth Series, by H. Montgomery Hyde (read 23 Sep 1971) Casement was born in 1864 and on April 21, 1916, he landed from a German submarine on the Irish coast. He was captured, taken to London, and tried for treason under an old statute. The key words of this statute were that he was "adherent to the King's enemies in his realm giving them aid and comfort in the realm and elsewhere." All the acts proved against Casement were committed in Germany, so the defense was that the acts were not committed in the King's realm. I think the statute is obscure and ambiguous, so Casement should have been acquitted. But apparently this common law rule is not applicable in England! Very interesting book. It spends much time on the diaries. The author is convinced they are genuine. A well-written and intriguing book.

1347 Stalin: The History of a Dictator, by H. Montgomery Hyde (read 12 July 1975) I found this a chore to read, and not particularly well put together--it seemed pasted together. Stalin of course was a monster and so one does not really enjoy such a biography. I concluded it was not worth the time I spent reading it.

Acquired 2022

Title on dust jacket: The amazing story of John Law, Scottish financier and gambler.