Treachery by Chapman Pincher

Author:Chapman Pincher [Pincher, Chapman]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-58836-859-1
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 2009-05-14T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 46

Volume of Deception

—

PARLIAMENT AND THE PUBLIC HEARD NOTHING ABOUT SONIA’S spying relationship with Fuchs for thirty years, save for a brief and misleading reference in 1952 to “a woman” in an MI5-inspired book called The Traitors, which will be dealt with in chapter 49. Meanwhile, in October 1949, Alexander Foote’s autobiography had been published under the title Handbook for Spies and became something of a classic in espionage literature, in both Great Britain and the United States. It appeared to be a firsthand account of Soviet espionage by an honest man who had been converted to communism when young and gullible, had been cleverly induced to become a successful GRU agent, and had eventually realized his folly. In reality, it was rather different.

After his return to Britain in August 1947, Foote had needed money, and MI5 could not prevent him from writing his memoirs, as he had never operated against Britain, only against the Germans. He could not tell the story of his recruitment and work for the GRU without mentioning Sonia, her sister Brigitte, and Len, who were all still in England. Dick White and Roger Hollis in particular were opposed to any publicity that might induce investigators to try to track down any of them. So a compromise was reached in which Foote agreed to various amendments and falsehoods. These were inserted by MI5, using the argument that Foote might face serious libel actions if he used real names, though none of them would have dared to sue.

The MI5 counterespionage officer Courtney Young was detailed by White to “ghost” the book to his requirements. Nevertheless, when it was published—by Museum Press—it was at pains to stress that the story was “entirely factual,” with “every incident and every character true and genuine,” and “wherever possible, actual names being given.” As a result, it has been widely used as a reliable work of reference.

Foote knew that Sonia’s first married name had been Hamburger and that when she had married Len it became Beurton, but these names were changed, creating difficulties for any investigator wishing to find any of the GRU spies. Sonia was called Maria Schultz, previously married to Alfred Schultz, while Len was Bill Phillips. Even Sonia’s nanny was given a fabricated name, all of which confused many people for a long time, with the pseudonyms appearing in other books by writers who had accepted what they believed to be Foote’s honest statements.

The fabrications had been agreed to several months before the book appeared, which was just as well for MI5, because in October 1949, the secret inquiries into Fuchs’s treachery were under way. Presumably, Hollis and White congratulated themselves on their foresight, as the use of Sonia’s true name might have led to her discovery by the media.

Making the most of MI5’s license to lie, the book faked even the date of Foote’s defection in Berlin, which was given as August 2 instead of July 2. The apartment where Brigitte had recruited Foote was described as being in St.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.