British Spies and Irish Rebels (eBook)

British Intelligence and Ireland, 1916-1945

Paul McMahon (Autor)

eBook Download: PDF

2008
540 Seiten
Boydell & Brewer Ltd (Verlag)
978-1-84615-614-4 (ISBN)

Infos

The turbulent history of English/Irish intelligence reinterpreted, using documents now available for the first time.One of the Irish Times' Books of the Year, 2008 Rebellion, partition and a messy peace settlement ensured that Ireland was a constant thorn in Britain's side after 1916. Britain was confronted by the bombs and bullets of militant republicans, the clandestine intrigues of foreign powers and the strategic dangers of Ireland's wartime neutrality - a final, irrevocable step in the country's difficult transition to independence. Using newly-opened archives, this book reveals for the first time how the British intelligence system responded to these threats. It lifts the lid on the underground activities of Britain's secret agencies - MI5, MI6/SIS and the Special Branch. It putssecret intelligence in the context of the government's other sources of information and explores how deep-rooted cultural stereotypes distorted intelligence and shaped perceptions. And it shows how, for decades, British intelligence struggled to cope with Ireland but then rose to the challenge after 1940, largely because the Dublin government began to share its secrets. The author casts light on characters long kept in the shadows - IRA gunrunners, Bolshevik agitators, Nazi agents, Irish loyalists who acted as British spies. His compelling book fills a gap in the history of the British intelligence community and helps explain the twists and turns of Anglo-Irish relations during atime of momentous change. PAUL MCMAHON gained his PhD from Cambridge University.

Inhalt

Introduction
Losing Southern Ireland
Alarms, Excursions and Civil War
An International Conspiracy
Security and Sectarianism in Northern Ireland
British Images of Ireland
The Cosgave Years
The de Valera Challenge
England's Back Door
The Irish Fifth Column
Operational Intelligence
Debunking the Fifth Column
Opinion and Propaganda
Leakage of Information
Coming to Terms with Irish Independence
Bibliography
Index

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 19.6.2008
• Reihe/Serie: History of British Intelligence
• Reihe/Serie: History of British Intelligence
• Zusatzinfo: 37 b/w, 1 line illus.
• Verlagsort: Woodbridge
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Geschichte ► Allgemeine Geschichte ► Neuzeit (bis 1918)
• Themenwelt: Geschichte ► Allgemeine Geschichte ► 1918 bis 1945
• Themenwelt: Geisteswissenschaften ► Geschichte ► Regional- / Ländergeschichte
• Themenwelt: Sozialwissenschaften ► Politik / Verwaltung ► Staat / Verwaltung
• Schlagworte: Anglo-Irish relations • Bolshevik Agitators • British Double Agents • British Intelligence Community • Intelligence Agencies • IRA Gunrunners • Irish Revolutionaries • Nazi saboteurs • Political influence
• ISBN-10: 1-84615-614-9 / 1846156149
• ISBN-13: 978-1-84615-614-4 / 9781846156144