The Secret History Of MI6

Product Description

The authorized history of the world's oldest & 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-&, until now, largely hidden-role in shaping the history of Europe & the world. This thorough, fascinating, & 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 & films-forgery, invisible ink, disguises, concealing mechanisms, & 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, & 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) & devising the very methods & equipment that would inspire Ian Fleming's novels.