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Spying in WW1
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Message 1.Â
Posted by Mr Pedant (U2464726) on Tuesday, 2nd November 2010
The general impression I get is that Germany had no spies in the UK for any period in WW2.
But reading various general books relating to WW1 I often find passing reference to German agents in Britain.
I’m aware they were able to get people to report on the effects of air-raids and also that they had at least one spy in the censors office. It seems that they were more successful than the UK in this respects.
I’d be interested in any information and book recommendations. -
Message 2
Posted by Amphion (U3338999) on Tuesday, 2nd November 2010
Excellent question Mr. Pedant
One is almost tempted to say that the introduction of the ‘updated’ Aliens Restriction Order 1914 would have dealt with the question from the very first day of the war. Of course, there are examples of members of the press and public ‘demanding’ the immediate imprisonment of all ‘aliens’ throughout the entire course of the war. The feeling being that not all Germans had been imprisoned.
Then there was the introduction of the ruling, as part of the A.R.O., that all foreign nationals had to register with the local police force in any district of the UK that they might travel to or from.
Here is a news report taken from the first week of the war.
Two old boys from Preston Grammar School who have joined a Territorial company have had an exciting adventure with an Austrian spy. According to a letter received by the father of one, they were on duty guarding the waterworks of an English town when an Austrian crept up and seized his companion from behind, holding a pistol to his head. I prodded him with my bayonet. As I expected, he turned round, dropped his pistol, and closed with me. I tackled low, and we soon had him hors de combat.....
We took him to the guardroom and searched him. He had three test tubes filled with Typhoid germs with which to contaminate the water. It would have affected about 50,000 people. The man was court martialled to-day, and is to be shot tomorrow.
Of course, although it was the duty of the local police forces to stop, apprehend, and prosecute anybody who might be regarded as a ‘foreigner,’ this, of course, was a somewhat random process as it required the police to basically question anybody who might look ‘foreign.’ Also, English women who had married Germans, or those naturalised Britons who may have come to these shores, 20, 30, 40 years before. Those who may have even fought in the South African War on the side of the British, or those who even now (1914) were fighting in the line on the western front, but were originally of German/Austrian birth were open to prosecution under the order. This created the problem that the police couldn’t be everywhere. Now as then, the introduction of certain laws was simpler in purpose than it could be in practice.
At this point, its interesting to consider the actions of the German High Command and their attitude towards the Belgian population, for example, this is an extract from a letter of a Belgian woman who had come to England from Brussels just as the Germans had entered the city. “Miss Hemolle related how a friend of hers was taken for a spy, and stopped by the soldiers. The lady was working in connection with one of the Red Cross depots, and late at night was journeying to the place to take up night duty. Being rather tall, she attracted the attention of the guards and she was pulled up and asked to account for her being out at such a time. She had no papers of identification on her at the time, and she had to go with the soldiers to their headquarters to clear herself from suspicion. This being done to the satisfaction of the officers, she was escorted to the Red Cross depot to carry on her work
However, your question deserves further, in depth study. Have you looked on the internet at the question. Hansard Refugees (Naturalisation) makes some reference to the laws as they were introduced. This may prove a good place to start. -
Message 3
Posted by LairigGhru (U14051689) on Wednesday, 3rd November 2010
Mr Pedant,
On p.331 of 'Most Secret War' by Prof R.V. Jones you will find mention of German agents reporting on the fall of V-1s in 1944. In actual fact we had secretly caught them all and 'turned' them so that they sent back false information. -
Message 4
Posted by MB (U177470) on Wednesday, 3rd November 2010
There was a very effective network monitoring for any radio transmissions from inside the UK and Direction Finding them quickly. It seems unlikely that any German agents were sending information to Germany by radio.
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Message 5
Posted by Amphion (U3338999) on Thursday, 4th November 2010
With the introduction of the Lighting Restrictions Order, which came into effect after the bombing by Zeppelin of various East Coast towns, local police forces would issue summons against anybody who displayed a light at night. This was particularly true of seaside or coastal towns. I have read many many court reports of these summons.
There has also been mention of 'certain peoples' on the ground using flash lights to guide Zepplins towards certain targets. However, most these references were in documnetary's on the TV, the actual origins of the claims never being explained.
It was a practice that some towns, when aware of an approaching Zeppelin would light fires in nearby open fields, making those aboard the Zepplin believe that a target had already been hit, and hopefully luring the Zepplin away from the town. -
Message 6
Posted by dmatt47 (U13073434) on Friday, 5th November 2010
German spies were rounded up at the beginning of the Second World War and 'turned and the British Government would had war preparations by 1938/1939. I would suggest last year's book on the official history of MI5 as there should be some information there. Messages were sent back to Germany that the V1s were falling short of London when they were not and by increasing the range to hit London as the German hierarchy thought they were over-shooting London. You could gauge what was happening in the UK by redaing between the lines in the censored records in the British newspapers.
Professor R V Jones' book 'Most Secret War' is really good and there are lots of files about German spies at The National Archives, Kew. -
Message 7
Posted by Sambista (U4068266) on Friday, 5th November 2010
The misreporting was that the V1s were overshooting, not falling short. The Germans cut the range, and the resulting bombardment fell on the "less valuable" targets in the south of London. The populace of the affected areas might have had doubts about the matter.
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Message 8
Posted by Mr Pedant (U2464726) on Tuesday, 9th November 2010
Rushed reply - sorry
Thanks for your replies
It would seem that 11 foreign nationals were executed for spying in the UK in WW1. All at the tower and in the first half of the war.
Many were from neutral countres and they came in from neutral countries such as the Netherlands and Norway with the intention of sending information back by mail\telegram or verbally, if they intended to return to the neutral country during the course of hostilities.
Generally the information seems to be about military dispositions such as which ships are in which port.
They were often caught as the addresses they were writing to (in neutral countries) were known to the UK Intelligence people as connected with espionage.
The importance of these mens work this seems marginal compared to deciphering of codes the Allies managed.
Another man Silber had work i the censors office, checking mail from increasingly important people. He wasn’t caught.
A man called Duquesne claims to have got HMS Hampshire, with Kitchener on board, sunk by a German u-boat. He got an Iron Cross for his efforts. The only problem was that Hampshire was sunk by a mine. -
Message 9
Posted by Amphion (U3338999) on Thursday, 11th November 2010
Its strange in a sense, the fact that we take so much for granted now, with regards warfare and technology
Your point, Mr. Pedant, regarding 'spies' being caught because the address on the letter was known to the Uk Intelligence reminds me of the somewhat naive attitude the combatants had back in 1914/18.
Having just watched the excellent programme ‘The First World War From The Air’, in which an encampment of German soldiers living in specially built camp within the protection of a wood, was actually spotted by the British, because in a clearing next to the wood, the German troops had created neat rows of gardens, little realising that it was the gardens that gave their position away to the British who began a bombardment. I doubt they knew what hit them, or why??? -
Message 10
Posted by MB (U177470) on Thursday, 11th November 2010
I suppose you can understand the Germans in WWI who did not realise that their gardens would show up from their but there are plenty of similar examples from later periods when people should have been aware of what could be seen from the air.
It is said that a set of aerial photographs of the area around the UK Cold War Central Government War Headquarters were given to some photo-interpreters. They recognised the function of the site from various features that they spotted.
MB
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