Richard B. Spence

Writing a biography of a man as complex — and elusive — as Boris Savinkov is not an easy task. But Richard Spence has done an exemplary job of this. HIs 1991 book is comprehensive and authoritative — and it is also surprisingly readable.

The story of Savinkov is basically in three chapters. At first, and until around 1911, Savinkov was a leading member of the Battle Organisation of the Party of Socialist-Revolutionaries (PSR) in tsarist Russia. He was involved in organising successful assassinations of top tsarist government officials and members of the ruling Romanov family. But he had a fraught relationship with the PSR’s political leadership abroad which grew worse after Ievno Azef, Savinkov’s leader in the Battle Organisation, was exposed as a tsarist police spy.

The second chapter is considerably shorter. During the First World War, Savinkov was a defencist — he supported Russia fighting on the same side as the democracies — Britain, France and the United States. With the overthrow of the tsarist regime in March 1917, Savinkov returned to Russia where he became one of the ministers in Kerensky’s government. His links at this time to the PSR were tenuous.

The third and final chapter followed Savinkov’s struggle against the Bolsheviks. Savinkov played all sides here — he served for a time with various White generals, but could not stomache their reactionary politics. He fought for a time as a Green, leading peasants against both the Whites and Reds. By the early 1920s, he was largely a spent force, living in exile, unable to influence affairs back in Russia.

His “last throw”, as Spence put it, was his decision ot return to Soviet Russia where he announced that he had switched sides and now supported the Bolsheviks. A few months after his trial, where his death sentence was commuted and he seemed on his way to playing a role in the Soviet system, he fell (whether he was pushed or jumped is debated) from a window in Moscow’s notorious Lubyanka, headquarters of the Cheka.

A truly gripping tale, well told and highly recommended.… (mehr)

History of a wide variety of secret societies from ancient to modern, exposing the areas where aspects have become mythologized (Knights Templar) or have been outright fiction (The Protocols of the Elders of Zion).

Never-ending circles of the same people, ideas, and groups pop up again and again across the centuries. While I had knowledge of some of these societies, it was very much incomplete knowledge, and the author airs all the laundry from these often-overlapping groups. Their influence of some historical events sometimes seems to straddle into conjecture, but there's never a dull moment.… (mehr)

Not one of the Teaching Company's best courses, but Professor Spence is likable and engaging as he tells a somewhat rambling but nevertheless connected story about secret societies from the Ancient Greek Mysteries to present day terrorists. Some at the Teaching Company let the professor down, however, with a bunch of clips apparently from old A&E videos that are used to show the Knights Templar or various conspirators. These are really a distraction, and this would have been about as good as an audio course. But we do get to see a few pictures of real people. Aleister Crowley turns up more than once and is given credit for some successful spying for British Intelligence. He was certainly a man who liked to try different things.… (mehr)

A nonfiction book that delves into some theories on controversial subjects and very famous urban legends and( conspiracy ) theories. They bring up world wide topics like ( U.s ) presidents, big bankers the British royal family, pharmaceutical companies, Fbi, Cia, the military, the vatican and ceo's of huge corporations like Shell, Face book , Google, Bp and microsoft. you also read about some secret societies and conspiracy theories on some famous people. Some of the concepts and ideas are fiction while most of the book is proven fact. I enjoyed the book it left me wondering how much we don't know about what is happening in the world today that society knows little to nothing about. I highly recommend for age 18 and over.… (mehr)