Churchill and Secret Service

'A fascinating narrative and a scholarly exegesis' - SUNDAY TIMES

Uniquely among modern British statesmen, Churchill believed passionately in the value of secret intelligence both in peace and war.

As a young correspondent and soldier in Cuba, India, Sudan and South Africa, he experienced its worth at first hand. Later, preoccupied by fears of German spying before World War I, he was a member of the Cabinet that established the Secret Service.

Churchill helped ensure the passing of the Official Secrets Act of 1911, and was the first Home Secretary to authorise general warrants for the secret interception of mail. As wartime Prime Minister he built a centralised intelligence community, created the Special Operations Executive to work behind enemy lines, and with Roosevelt built the transatlantic intelligence alliance that endures to this day.

Based on wide-ranging sources, many never explored or only recently released, Churchill and Secret Service offers an intriguing insight into both modern intelligence and the mind and character of Churchill himself.