Synopses & Reviews
Among the more sensational espionage cases of the Cold War were those of Moscows three British spies—Kim Philby, Donald Maclean, and Guy Burgess. In this riveting book, S. J. Hamrick draws on documentary evidence concealed for almost half a century in reconstructing the complex series of 1947-1951 events that led British intelligence to identify all three as Soviet agents.
Basing his argument primarily on the Venona archive of broken Soviet codes released in 1995-1996 as well as on complementary Moscow and London sources, Hamrick refutes the myth of MI5s identification of Maclean as a Soviet agent in the spring of 1951. British intelligence knew far earlier that Maclean was Moscows agent and concealed that knowledge in a 1949-1951 counterespionage operation that deceived Philby and Burgess. Hamrick also introduces compelling evidence of a 1949-1950 British disinformation initiative using Philby to mislead Moscow on Anglo-American retaliatory military capability in the event of Soviet aggression in Western Europe.
Engagingly written and impressively documented, Deceiving the Deceivers breaks new ground in reinterpreting the final espionage years of three infamous spies and in clarifying fifty years of conjecture, confusion, and error in Anglo-American intelligence history.
Synopsis
A reexamination of the downfall of three infamous British spies and a long overdue vindication of the British intelligence services
Synopsis
This riveting book presents sensational new information on the notorious Cold War espionage case of the three British spies known as the Cambridge Ring. Clarifying fifty years of confusion and error in intelligence history, S. J. Hamrick offers groundbreaking evidence about when the British intelligence community identified the spies and seized their advantage to flummox all three.
About the Author
S. J. Hamrick was a Foreign Service officer for more than two decades. In 19951996 he returned to the State Department as a senior policy adviser. As a young draftee he was assigned to the Army Counter Intelligence Corps. He has written seven novels under the pseudonym W. T. Tyler, including The Man Who Lost the War, The Ants of God, The Lion and the Jackal, Last Train from Berlin, and most recently The Consuls Wife.