Hitler's Spies in Great Britain | Operation Lena
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- čas přidán 7. 03. 2019
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After Operation Sea Lion, the German plan for the invasion of the United Kingdom was written out by the German High Command, they realized they barely had any intelligence officers in Britain, and they weren’t sure what was going on across the English Channel. They thought up Operation Lena, and its purpose was to establish a network of Abwehr agents in Britain. It would be one of the most disastrous intelligence missions the Nazi regime would undertake during the Second World War.
When the invasion plan of Britain, codenamed ‘Unternehmen Seelöwe’ or ‘Operation Sea Lion’, was established, most senior German military commanders weren’t exactly thrilled, especially the navy. Many ships were lost during ‘Operation Weserübung’, the invasion of Denmark and Norway, and the Royal British Fleet outmatched the Kriegsmarine in virtually everything. Furthermore, the Wehrmacht voiced complaints that in order for troops to cross the English channel, both air and sea protection was required to hold back imminent British attacks. Hermann Göring’s Luftwaffe ought to obtain absolute control over the skies before Sea Lion could be launched, according to the Kriegsmarine and Wehrmacht. Göring accepted the task, though the Luftwaffe wasn’t suited to wage battle on its own, and Hitler voiced his complaints that “while the occupied territories were divided from Britain by a 23-mile channel, they did not even know what was going on there”. The lack of accurate intelligence could be fatal, and a plan was devised by the Abwehr to send secret agents to Britain.
In July 1940, Wilhelm Canaris, head of the Abwehr, Heinz Piekenbrock, a Wehrmacht general and Erwin von Lahousen, a high ranking Abwehr official, attended the conference that outlined Sea Lion. Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel and Hitler himself pressed the men to find spies to gather intelligence in Britain, which Canaris thought was a suicide mission, as he could not suddenly conjure up agents. Resisting the orders wasn’t an option, and as such, men were recruited to become Abwehr Spies in what would become known as Operation Lena.
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Time Codes:
0:41 Operation Sea Lion (Unternehmen Seelöwe)
2:27 The London Brothel
3:54 Abwehr Agents in Great-Britain
6:45 Double Agents Jeff and Mutt
Sources:
Christer Jörgensen. Spying for the Führer (Berlin, 2014).
T. Crowdy. Deceiving Hitler: Double-Cross and Deception in World War II (Bloomsbury, 2011).
Photos, paintings and imagery: Public Domain, Wikicommons
#HouseofHistory #History #ww2
Wilfred Dunderdale? Thats Kim Philby in your photo the Russian spy who was MI6 station head and he fled to Russia when he was unmasked.
You're absolutely right - what a silly mistake. Thanks for pointing it out!
@@HoH Thanks for your reply, keep up the good work enjoy your channel!
I was thinking the same thing myself. One interesting thing about Philby was he was the boss of Graham Greene the novelist while he worked as an intelligence officer during the war.
@@HoH At the time, Philby was a genuine anti Nazi officer; though also working for the Russians who were our allies. So, technically he wasn't a traitor though, of course, after the war he certainly was.
Philby was working for Germany, but was managed through Moscow. The USSR was a client state of Germany.
I've not long discovered your channel, I really like it.
all German agents were handled by a group known as 20 Committee
If you read the prefix number '20' in Roman numerals it becomes XX, which in some vernacular is also 'double cross'
Just subscribed.
This channel really deserves more subscribers...
I don't think it's a long time until this channel exblodes in subscribers.
Are you aware that "Mutt and Jeff" is British rhyming slang for "deaf" ? Maybe some MI6 humour there ? 😁
And that's why it's Mutt and Jeff, not Jeff and Mutt. Another German spy caught out!
also the names of 2 comic strip characters in US newspapers
And a jam jar for car
@@allenjenkins7947 Yes, in English we have these "nonreversible binomials" like salt and pepper--never pepper and salt, an arm and a leg, surf and turf, the birds and the bees, which are never said the other way round. They are tricky for non-native speakers.
Excellent channel, I am a new subscriber and find your presentations interesting, precise, and to the point! Keep up the good work, and cheers from Canada😎!
Welcome! Glad you enjoy my work!
That's clearly Kim Philby @4:28 a different double agent. Nice job, friendly suggestion : use pauses and emphasis to make it easier to follow it's a bit monotone but a good story
Mutt and Jeff were popular newspaper cartoon characters at the time.
I enjoyed this WWII history. Nicely done.
Excellent quality video. Thank you
RS. Canada
When the Abwehr ran into Pub owners, suspicious locals, Police officers, and the Double Cross organization.
Concise and to the point brilliant narration. Pleasure to listen to.
Thank you Ian!
A very detailed, concise video. Thank-you.
Great video, most enjoyable. A video on The Shetland Bus would be interesting. Boat trips between Shetland and Norway supporting the Norwegian Resistance
I seem to remember the actual final destination of so many of the shetland buses was Buckie?
Thanks for an excellent video. About 40 years ago I met an old lady in a town in Germany. She had been part of a German resistance organisation (against the Nazis) during the Second World War. I didn’t speak much German and she spoke no English so I didn’t get much of her story. But, apart from the attempt on Hitler’s life by members of the German Army, there is little published about German resistance against the Nazis. I think there were escape lines for Jews and allied aircrew through southern Germany across the Bodensee to Switzerland. But again nothing published. May be you could do a feature on the subject.
S tephen Farthing
I would like this aswell
Every German was a member of the resistance after the war ended
@@MeragRealm How?
@@MeragRealm SAME WITH THE FRENCH
good interesting content, I'd love to know more about the German SA and its role in 1930s German, plus on a personal note more on the work SOE did in Norway as my grandfather served in that theater of operations for SOE but sadly he's no longer with us
I THANK YOU OF VLOGGING THIS WORLD WAR 2 HISTORY. YOUR VOICE IS VERY CLEAR AND FLUENT. PLEASE DON'T STOP VLOGGING. THE NEW MILLENNIAL GENERATION SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THIS HISTORY AND NOT TO BE REPEATED AGAIN. THERE'S A SAYING THAT HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF BUT NOT THIS ETHNIC CLEANSING. THANKS A LOT. I LEARNED A LOT AGAIN.
Please don't shout at us (caps lock on)- it's so rude.
''The SIS Station Head, Commander Wilfred...(something or other, almost unintelligible)'' shows a picture of Kim Philby! Lol.
They had no chance anyway, Captain Mainwaring and his men were waiting for them.!!
and all the while he was muttering...so who do you think you are kidding Mr. Hitler
They don’t like it up ‘em Captain Mainwaring.
Thank you for the very informative documentary.
Thank you for sharing 🙏
The level of incompetence these Nazi agents showed was almost at par to my father's when he took part in a WW2 spies training show on the BBC (Not even a joke: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Churchill%27s_Secret_Agents:_The_New_Recruits).
Glad he didn't get hanged though. Another great episode man!
@@HoH Haha he's not the French side of the family so not as fitting. Thank you man, really enjoyed this video!
All these stories make interesting plots for new films. I liked the humour of the German air drop returning supplies from the French and Dutch Resistance so MI5 knew they were using Mo as a double agent!
how about finding out about the Birkenau/Auchwitz Camp Fire brigade one former firefighter wrote a book about his life in Camp.
And Canaris himself was the most prominent double agent of them all.
At minute 3.07 you mention "The Greenhouse" a brothel in London to be run by "Mrs Erikson" and "an Italian lady ...". Do you have any more information on these two characters, in particular the Mrs Erikson?
3:07
Hello. I have a request for a video. You seem to enjoy topics of forgotten aspects of the war. My Dad was in a forgotten theatre of ww2. Dad was a flight engineer on a Catalina at Dutch Harbor in the Aleutians. Adm. Nimitz ordered Catalinas from Pearl, Midway and Dutch Harbor to look for the approaching Japanese fleet. I believe Dutch had 6 Catalinas out over the ocean when the Japanese northern fleet attacked Dutch on either June 2nd or 3rd. Dutch told Dad’s Catalina not to come back as the base was under heavy attack. Dad’s Catalina did not have fuel to land anywhere else. They knew they were going to end the day in the ocean. So they decided to continue on mission looking for the Japanese fleet until they ran out of gas. Eventually, they ditched in the ocean. Soon, their Catalina floundered in the heavy seas of the North Pacific. They spent 3 days in a raft before being rescued by a tin can. Not sure, but I believe all of Dutch’s Catalinas were lost. I don’t know if all the crews were rescued.
The Aleutians received very little press. No war movies were made about the war in the Aleutians. Very few people know that the Battle of Dutch Harbor was the opening round of the Battle of Midway. I’ve never heard any mention of the lost Catalinas of Dutch Harbor. Dad survived the war. Had careers in the Navy and at McDonell Aircraft. He did come home from the war with a very unusual type of PTSD. Dad never let his car gas tank go below half a tank. At 3/4’s a tank Dad would start planning where he was going to gas up. My normally very calm and cool farther would go crazy in our cars if any of us kids let the tank go below half. I mean crazy. Mom explained when we were young about Dads aversion to running out of gas. So we never let Dad’s sudden rages bother us. We all understood. My Mom always joked, “Well, at least our car never ran out of gas even once.”
Please consider doing a video on the Aleutians.
Thank you.
Thank you for your suggestion! I'll have a look if I can find some books, chapters and articles about it.
Oh, one last thing. I’m your newest subscriber. You have a very interesting channel. Thank you.
Take care.
Welcome aboard!
Great work thank you for your efforts,really appreciate it 👍
My pleasure, and you're completely right about Kim Philby, my mistake
@@HoH not a problem,keep up the good work 👍
The photo of Dunderdale is actually Kim Philby, the Russian spy
What about the British Double Agent Chapman?? What a fascinating story!
From a British War Veteran
Also "Garbo" (Juan Pujol Garcia) and "Tricycle" (Dusko Popov). There were others in the "Double Cross" ("Twenty" Committee) scheme run by the British Secret Service. Fascinating history of these brave and resourceful double agents.
Can you do another sort of video like how you did the Wilhem period in Germany but about the Bismarck period?
I don’t want to spoil too many details but I have several videos on Bismarck planned (and several scripts are already written).
Good question, one of my favourite eras in history.
Interestingly, a Vera von Schalburg search shows two far different death dates. One, in Germany, in 1946. Another date, in Great Brittain, in 1993, the date you gave. . Both entries show the same date of birth, location of birth, and other biographical markers. Was she a double agent for the NKVD as well?
Does anyone know the types of aircraft used to insert German agents into Britain 1941-1942, the units involved and markings of the planes? Thank you.
Hi house of history enjoying the videos , could you do one WW2 a man going by the name of Paddy Mayne?? cheers
Great suggestion, thank you very much!
Thank you!
Great video. Thank you.
Probability not a good idea to land at Invergordon, it was a Royal Navy Fleet anchorage.
Talking about Invergordon, I would love to see a video about the lone Junkers Ju88 that attaked the oil tank farm and then straffed the seaplanes moored in the Cromarty Firth.
Always wondered if it made it back to it's base in Norway.
Mark Rogers, you beat me to it by 3 years! Just browsing I saw the title and took a look. Seems a decent sort of a fellow but there it was at 4.27: Kim Philly in his Mother's flat in 1955 holding a press conference after Macmillan had cleared him of being traitor - and not a Dunderdale in sight. Pity - had the look of a knowledgable presenter, but short on attention to detail. With the proliferation of low cost, high tech equipment out there these days and a little bit of learning from books, or more likely and problematically, from other videos of dubious authenticity, every wannabe professor can launch themself into cyberspace with a presentation plausible enough but not bearing close attention. To those interested in the subject I recommend the book, 'The Double Cross System' by J C Masterman', himself the chairman of the Twenty (XX - double cross) Committee which had such success in turning Abwehr spies when they came calling. Notwithstanding previous comments, this young chap presents well and good luck to him.
This is great! Really good job. Keep doing the small stuff. We have all read about the Bulge or Bodenplatte...
but more about the Nazi Brothels! [Oh, I did say that out loud, didn't I?] Also, the lengths of your pieces are perfect.
There is one character I would love to see more about...Col Oreste Pinto...a Dutch counter intelligence officer responsible for interrogating and detecting potential spies during WW2. There was an excelent tv series many years ago called Spycatcher.
I remember it well, we used to watch it regularly in glorious black and white. You've also corrected one of my misconceptions. I had always thought that Pinto was Spanish, both from his name and what others had told me. It seems that I was misinformed and I thank you for the correction.
I had the books. He'd tell the story of each of the interogations and I was so joyful if I could pick how he caught them before he explained.
I remember one story from a documentary, when a german spy was cought in London, riding his bike on the right side of the road with a huge german sausage hanging out of his backpack 😂😂
I enjoyed the "Foyle's war" episodes that dealt with this subject.
Unfortunately it is untrue . But some unbelievable things did happen at that time .
Excellent video. Well researched. Much better than the skewed tidbits CZcams superstar Mark Felton puts out.
Art. Thanks for taking the time to respond to my post about the war in the Aleutians. I had no idea that Heston and Bronson were in the Aleutians. Funny story that recently happened. When trying to tell people my last name, I would say my name is Bronson, like Charles Bronson, the actor. Why? People often seem to think I’m saying “Johnson”. He was the only famous Bronson in History. Well, I’m placing an order on the phone after having problems placing the order online. I give my name to a woman who sounded very young, and I said, “My last name is Bronson, like Charles Bronson the actor.” She responded, “Who’s that? I’ve never heard of him.” I was devastated. The only famous Bronson is not famous anymore. And, as I’m sure you know, he wasn’t really a Bronson. He’s Polish. His real last name was really Buchinsky. After he became a minor star in a Vincent Price horror movie, his agent told him to change his name. He did. The only famous Bronson, ain’t a Bronson. And now, he’s not that famous anymore. My life is crushed. My life has no meaning. I also tend to overact a lot.
Again, thanks for taking the time to reply. I know you must be busy. Thanks for letting me know that two huge (or once huge) movie stars served close to Dad in the Aleutians.
Stay safe.
Reid Bronson
It's "Mutt and Jeff", not "Jeff and Mutt". The names come from a famous cartoon so-called.
Maybe that's how the Abwehr figured out that they had been compromised.
I didn't quite hear that 😁
@@ndr8469 lol
From their tall heights they look like two Jeff's. I looked up history beyond being the first comic strip and it's a Cockney term for being deaf, good cop bad cop plus the spy ring here
Im not sure if this is entirely related, but I the area i live in (in south england) had a RAF airfield in the war, and a local lady was hired to moniter for german aircraft (or something along those lines, im not entirely sure on her job, it might have been something else, but i heard this story a while agp), and one day, she was offered a ride from a couple to get back to the nearby village from the airfield, which she accepted. The people she accepted the lift from turned out to be German agents who drove further into the countryside and beat her up, trying to kill her, and left her unconcious in the countryside. She survived. She was a customer of mine and passed away recently. Im not 100% sure on this story credibility as i heard it from her word of mouth, although aparently it was in a local newspaper. I just think it is interesting story about the area in which i live, and is scary to think about.
One Agent walked into a country pub wearing the sort of clothes you would expect for someone from the upper class who was spending the weekend shooting. He wore an Oxford jacket, plus fours etc cetera and a bowler hat. Though the bowler was originally worn by people in the countryside, estate bailiffs for example, it would never have been worn with this outfit. He was arrested as a spy.
In contrast German counter espionage was much better. Probably because it was not something cobbled together at last minute.
thats how spys operated before internet and google streat vieuw ;)
@@ysvry The British paid maticulas attention to detail with their spies, making sure that their clothes did not stand out and looked the part. They even got people to donate European clothing just to make sure they looked right. Compare that to the Germans were they were caught carrying food not available in Britain and not even speaking English you can see why so many were caught.
A bit like the 19 illegal immigrants(from Pakistan I think) caught walking along a beach in the south of England at 5 am dressed in full 1950s-60s business attire complete with bowler hats and umbrellas and all identical,I still laugh about it to this day!
@@bigblue6917 Absolutely right. However there was one SOE agent caught when in a French cafe he asked for cream with his coffee. It hadn't been available for some time.
One agent landed in Scotland went to the nearest main railway station and bought a ticket costing 10/- (ten old shillings) - he handed over a £10 note ( x 20 more than the ticket price) and walked off. The ticket clerk called the police, another spy collared.
This seems about the right place so here goes ! Non religious folks may well get a laugh from this or pity. simply couldn't care. THIS HAPPENED TO ME ! I was wokrking as a third line Legacy support enginner for the TFL estate, outsourced to CSC, my company. During my time in projects I had to access the basement in Broadway buildings, St James Park. Opposite used to be M.I.5 building. I went from the canteen down some steps to the basement then along the corridor to the cage. at the T junction just before it I was attacked spiritually, a severe one too ! This has never happened to me bofore or since ! I Made the Jesus Christ cross sign in four directions, then found myself talking to absolutely no one anyone could see. Thin air if you like. I said "Go to the light" then found myself having a chat with no one saying you are dead now you have passed, why do you think people keep walking through you ? They said they were lonely. They ? Well up to you. It then went very quiet, there was peace ! Anxiety attack ? Possibly. My contention is that they were the spirits of folks who had been tortured to death down there during World War II, when MI5 occupied the opposite building, and used the basement for interrogation. My story, believe it or believe it not. This really happend !
Vera Von Schalburg died in Hamborg in 1946.She died, under the name of Vera Von Wedel, from pneumonia 8 February 1946 at four o'clock in the morning at the hospital Marienkrankenhaus in Hamburg. She was buried in the Ohlsdorf Cemetery. The grave was paid for by Ernst Bodo Von Zitzewitz. The grave existed until 1971.
This is recently discovered information (apparently). Thanks for sharing, funny how new discoveries change small parts of my videos!
@@HoH Yeah, A book about Vera Schalburg were published, earlier this year in Denmark.The writer found her grave site in Hamburg, and her death certificate in a German archive.
Your photograph captioned Wilfred “Biffy” Dunderdale, look much mor like a photographer Kim Philby.
Hi Giles, you're absolutely right. I made a pinned comment pointing out my mistake, it was an oversight on my part.
Nice presentation. Strange resemblance between you and Nikolaus Ritter? What is our past before this lifetime?
Do you have anything on operation Willi the attempt on the former king by the Nazi's?
Hi! Great question, I have been planning on writing a video about it. I'll probably get to it sometime in the next couple of weeks!
Imagine if there had been no Britain. Spain in the USA , no Oz , Canada or NZ …
The free world can thank that unknown archer that put the arrow into Harold’s eye
probably all sounded like Arnold. Yaaa vat are da plans for d day ?
Great information, the ability of the uk to stop an nvasion seems to me the most important aspect of saving europe.
Hol ee
That Jeff and Mutt story should be made into a movie
Thats some intricate "No U"s lol
Very interesting video. Before I say, the bravery of European resistance fighters must always be honoured. But you know Britain was the only country that already had an organised underground resistance in place just in case of invasion basically after Dunkirk. There was also back slang ... very interesting subject on it's own, sometimes confined to individual villages. My Dad recalls as a kid being encouraged by the police to loosen road signs and point them in the wrong direction ... because no one here uses them, we knew where were are going. The whole domestic thing is quite fascinating and the people that remember are becoming fewer, it all needs documenting. My Dad also mentioned a German POW who was allowed out and used to help out tending the gardens of the old folk in the street he lived in (quite a poor street)?
There was a quiet, well liked German POW who worked on a farm until the end of the war, then was shipped home. Everybody thought he was a nice quiet man. In the spring, though, into summer, they discovered he had planted bulbs that came up in a swastika in the lawn!
There was a secret group linked to the real Dad's Army that was sworn to perform murders and blow up things. I think Frank Pakenham was one of them? Was he later Lord Longford?
They had hidden stashes of food and weapons and I think were given a bottle of scotch, so they could drink themselves into reckless bravery for jobs that were near suicidal. The specially picked young chaps were taught how to garrote, kill silently, etc and I think they had food supplies for 1 month, because nobody believed they would survive longer.
Talk maybe about Agent Sonya. Telll why her radio transmissions were not detected.
Good shout, I've noted it down. Thanks!
Portgordon is nowhere near Inverness? A small village on the moray firth? Near buckie, the final stop of the shetland express?
I heard a rumour that Mussolini knew of a particular young Italian mystery woman called Lina. Her unknown background fascinated Mussolini and he took her to a dinner party and she was introduced to Hitler and his high ranking officers. Heinrich Himmler supposedly did not trust her but everybody else was fascinated with her beauty and knowledge. This knowledge was of a mystical/religious nature and Hitler was intrigued. Mussolini had taken a great gamble in recommending her to Hitler. Her counsel was taken very serious. So serious that Hitler increased his searching for Artefacts since he toyed with the rumour that she was either an angel or a time traveler. Because of Lina, the Reich went searching for an all important Artefact that could help him win a war. The end game was that it was the Allies that ended up with an Artefact. Not exactly THE right one but nonetheless better than nothing. Was Operation Lena named after her? Maybe, maybe not. I don't know. Just a rumour I guess. Oh, and I almost forgot. Apparently, this mysterious Lina betrayed the Reich and simply vanished. Gone. I heard this rumour in 1996.
I can 100% confirm the above to be absolute bollocks.
There were also 2 German spies, caught in England with german sausages and "Nivea " hand cream. (Nivea was a German company and unavailable in Britain during the war. Knowing the English, if they just said they were just kinky, I am sure the upper classes at MI6 would have understood, and turned a blind eye.
I did not know that about Nivea! My new fact for the day!
Do you know the wonderful story of Joe Herman and John Vivash, in the RAAF?
If not, it is my thanks to you. You should go straight to their extraordinary story if you google their names.
@@georgielancaster1356 will do,thanks
Who I want to know more about from WWII? That's easy - nothing to do with spies but Carl Schmitt, the crown jurist of the Third Reich. Please make a video about him and his life before/during/after WWII. Thanks! :)
Fascinating mate.
Good job.
I wish you rainbows.
William Stephenson
Caught in a Free State about nazi spies sent to Ireland, an Irish 80's tv show based on historical facts, worth a watch, quite a funny show, watched it back in the 80's........
How many know that the main headquarters for British Intelligence at that time was located in, believe it or not, New York City? In the early days of the war when there was a real, or at least perceived, threat of Germany invading Britain, their intelligence headquarters was moved to New York so they would be able to continue clandestine operations in the event Britain fell. Although America was not yet (officially) in the war, we not only turned a blind eye to this 'violation' of our neutrality, but the FBI worked closely with the British in counter espionage matters in the western hemisphere. For full details, get a copy of the book "A Man Called Intrepid".
Very interesting, thanks for sharing!
@@HoH You're welcome. And thank you for all of the effort you put into supplying high quality and accurate historical videos.
Wasn't the head man, Intrepid, a Canadian?
What about Lucy?
What was more of a disaster? This, or SOE’s Dutch Network?
All i can say is: Search the story of Agent ZigZag (Eddy Chapman). You'll thank me afterwards!
TRIPLE CROSS movie.
Where the hell were you raised? Your pronunciation of German names and things are flawless.
good research. what about all the latest revelations of Hitler and many other going by submarine and or amphibious plane to Argentina and San Carlos de Bariloche hideout?
Agent zig zag please
I think intelligence Spionage services had been a war discipline, that lacked efficiency inside the NS-system, compared to Anglo-American services. Beneath the pure material superiority of the allies it was a second cobblestone, the third Reich lost stability. At all until today, Spionage, couterspionage and permanent undermining both of partners and enemies is the discipline Anglo-American and Israeli services manage in an outstanding brilliance, which always will be an obstacle for any other nation worldwide to trust the governments of those countries.
I want this guy to be the bad guy in every movie ever!
Apparantly, the Germans were very well prepared for their invasion in France: they knew the roads, they know exactly which bridges could withstand the weight of tanks. I've heard stories that in Belgium, they knew where potentially intersting or symbolic vehicles were kept etc. It all was very well prepared, probably by the many German "tourists" that visited France in the 1930's, who gathered important information. I've always been surprised that the Germans didn't have German agents in place years before they started the war, since that idea must have been tossed around years before 1940. There were some claims that German spies helped Gunther Prien to enter Scapa Flow, but later books said this was untrue, and that no clock repair shop near the base with a sleeper agent was involved. But this kind of sleeper agents was exactly what the Germans should have had. Just getting from Scotland to London etc. turned out to involve too much risks, and I'm not even talking about the double and triple agents.... Nicely told, the German is relatively good (although it is pronounced Weser - Ubung, not as one long word), too bad indeed for Kim's cameo :0)
They never wanted to fight Britain and thought Britain would ignore them or Hitler hoped ally with germany.
He was shocked
the British saw a bunch of landing craft being made they dumped gas into the channel and lit it that is what stopped sea lion.
you do know how big the channel is?
Have you any records of what the Germans knew about Northern Ireland born Col Paddy Maine ..
That would be interesting...very..💥
@@justaroot4315 verry 😍
"Where are we here" was a seriously meant question from previously boat landed german spies when they entered the first village.
MI6 Agent #1: Will you tell us how many landed with you?
German Spy: Nine
MI6 Agent #1: Ah ha! He refuses. Shoot Him!
MI6 Agent #2: He did answer you.
Vera lives in Argentina dead in Argentina
A lot of detailed stuff here, all focused on personalities who were putative members of some organized program of espionage. I think it ignores many things we now know to be true.
I'm suggesting that there are a number of myths which still hold credence with too many historians.
First Unternehmen Seelöwe : Churchill was a big promoter of the idea that Britain was about to be invaded - it was one of the beliefs which kept him in power. We now know he was reading German messages through Ultra [ a secret that was kept during the war and for many years after ]. and he knew that invasion was a bluff [ knowing this but not admitting he knew, he weakened our land defences by sending troops and materiel to North Africa ]. Churchill also created the myth that the RAF saved Britain from invasion.
The real fact is that Germany was in no position to mount a major amphibious attack against Britain even if they had wanted to. Comparing the resources which were eventually employed in 1944 in launching OVERLORD, it becomes clear that if Germany had tried to invade using troops in towed barges it is doubtful if a single barge would have made it.
Hitler did not want to invade Britain for both political and practical reasons. It is quite possible that Goering like many airforce leaders of the time believed that wars could be won by airforces alone. Everybody who has believed that has been proven wrong. The so-called Battle of Britain [ another Churchill-coined term ] is a fine example of heroism and intelligent use of air power on the part of Britain, but of little consequence in the greater scheme of things.
To suggest that individual spies made any difference in the general picture is again a romantic myth and good material for novels and movies. WW2 is a perfect example of how SIGINT will trump personal espionage every day of the week and twice on Sunday.
Invading France was Hitler's biggest strategic error. The West Wall was for all intents and purposes impregnable to the forces arraigned on the other side; and would be for years given the behaviour, weaponry and machines of the French and the BEF. The Nazis could have gone East earlier leaving a skeleton crew on that barrier. The *German War of Expansion,* a minor event, '39-'42.
What else may (not) have happened? Japan vs the entire globe, hardly. The US remains largely neutral. Development stops except the the jet engine which creeps forward. Computer, Radar tech stays in Britain. Other development stops at the Bren Carrier and the Churchill tank. Italy is kicked out of Africa post haste. Totalitarianism (hyper male, ubermensch, Bushido) thinking is the seed of doom.
1940 operations that should have begun in 1925-35.
Here's a story about the spy, Karl Richter....
Albert Pierrepoint wrote in his autobiography that the execution of Karl Richter was the most difficult in the whole of his career as an executioner.
He wrote nearly all culprits went to the gallows totally resigned to their fate....but not Richter.
Pierrepoint also wrote that it was the only time in his career he had ever had to be 'rough' with a condemned man....and here's why.
What should have taken 20 seconds lasted a full 15 minutes, with Richter literally fighting for his life.
The struggle was apparently so intense that Richter even managed to break his pinioning strap, splitting the leather strap from one eye-hole to another!
Pierrepoint didn't think such strength was possible in a man and became thoroughly alarmed at this (Whoaa!! wtf?!!....) and it took him, his assistant and two guards 15 minutes to pacify and finally drag Richter to the gallows.
Even there his assistant, Steve Wade, had to stop Pierrepoint from pulling the lever as he was not able to strap Richter's legs properly, as he was kicking out to avoid being strapped.
He shouted to Pierrepoint: "Stop! Straps on legs and DOWN HE GOES!!", which after even more struggle on the trap, inevitably happened.
But then, to Pierrepoint's horror, the noose had begun to loosen because of Richter's violent twisting head movements and as he dropped, the noose caught him under his nose.
Fortunately, this was enough to break his neck instantly, ensuring instant death.
Pierrepoint and everybody else had never experienced anything like it, before or since.
You're welcome!
Very gruesome and detailed description... I didn't know about this - probably one of the worse ways to die.
I used to believe that all this executing of the defeated was the right thing to do but one gets older and wiser, realises that it is not right and was not right at the time ! Picking and choosing which were right in killing/ordering of killings and whom was not !!!!
@Gazzara5
Firing squads were reserved for spies who were identified as being military personnel. In fact the last person to be executed in the Tower of London was the German spy, Josef Jakobs, who was shot by firing squad in 1941.
I'm not sure, since the end result was inevitable, that all the struggling really achieved anything except to make the whole business even more unpleasant than it had to be for everyone. Including, and parhaps especially, the condemned man himself. The British system of hanging was designed to be quick, about 20 seconds from the moment the execution party entered the condemned cell. It was felt that this reduced the stress on the execution party and also the stress and terror of death for the condemned person. There was no ceremony of any sort and the victim would be surprised and probably a bit confused, leaving only a few seconds to fully realise what was happening before it was all over. The gallows chamber, unknown to the prisoner, was in a room immediately adjacent to the condemned cell through a concealed door, so there was no long walk or climbing steps to reach the noose, a few paces through the quickly revealed and opened door was enough.
@@HoH Horrible indeed!
But if I had to end my days by judicial execution.....I would rather be in the hands of Mr.Pierrepoint or any modern British executioner, because at least I know it would be quick and not botched.
Richter prolonged his sad end himself, because he must have known that despite the pointlessness of his struggle, it could only have ended one way. Poor bastard.
Better to get it over with quickly, if you ask me!
An American execution by hanging is a ghastly, morbid theatre piece, with the miscreant hooded and noosed on the trap and the poor bugger has to stand there for 2-3 minutes whilst his entire sentence is read to him. And the American method is way, way inferior to the British method!
Apropos the American method, in post war Austria, the Austrian executioners went on strike! Not for more pay, but for instruction in the British method.
They refused to carry out any more executions until Pierrepoint was sent out to Austria to teach them.
I am completely against capital punishment., but I must admit that whilst my intellect unreservedly rejects the death penalty, sometimes the crimes of some people, especially against children, makes my emotional response reevaluate my position on the subject....but then my intellect kicks in, thank goodness!!!!
The video is good, but you are attracting some awful commenters. Keep going, and eventually they will be filtered out. I hate those numpties.
Been having lots of fun making this videos - thanks for your kind comment!
Oh, dear. Interesting information but delivered in a droning manner.
Really? I quite like his accent, but I guess I get what you are saying. Where is he from? Does anyone know?
Nope - definitely Philby ( has been giving me the willies since 1963)
How about german anti-partisan operations in Aegean islands and Greece
If I come across some sources about that I will definitely consider it! Thanks!
I have to give the Abwehr some props for returning the British supplies to their busted agents, and giving MI5 a thumb in the eye.
Actually, the Abwehr unintentionally payed for the "Double Cross" system by sending their "turned" German agents the supplies they requested.
the picture of dunderdale is actually a picture of kim philby
You’re right - I pinned the first comment that pointed it out. Thanks! 😉
Check out agent Zigzag
Ach...'Lenin in de trein', is dat een aardig boek? Keurige das overigens.
PHILIP HAMMOND
such a good looking man
Im not a spy, I'm a shepherd!, shepherd's pie!
Damn! Now I want shepherd-spy for me bloody dinner. Thanks for making me drool (and laugh).
LOL LOVE IT
Didn’t they get a lot of help From the IRA with getting information to them ?
there was a story of a Indian national as a German agent who landed in Ireland and the 1st person he approached he ask kindly "take me to the IRA" he was promptly caught and executed if i remember.
It sounds like you have two or three towels wrapped around your microphone. The clarity is appalling
Hi Harry, is it really that bad? I use a medium quality clip-on microphone.
I am currently saving up for a more expensive one! Hopefully I'll be able to buy one soon 😉
👍
Who else is here after watching ALLIED?
Consider the large number of socialites who in the 1930's were happy to rub shoulders with the nazis and also take into account the british fascists not to mention the politicians who promoted appeasement. Not all spies are landed by plane or submarine. These jewels would have been highly protected serving initially as influencers then intelligence gatherers. The hard part would have been reporting back. I imagine the british security services kept a very close eye on Lisbon.
Robert Smith don't forget that appeasement gave Britain an extra year (approx) to stengthen their military. Also don't forget many of the Nazi sympathisers and fascists were interned.
@@neildahlgaard-sigsworth3819 Britains did not appease Germany to buy more time for military preparation. It did so because those in power had little stomach for a fight. Most of the leading politicians were simply out of their depth and imagined reasoning with Hitler would eventually produce results. As for internment it was patchy and inconsistent. Some internees did not stay locked up for very long. For some that brief incarceration was long enough as they were shunned upon release but for others with the right political and social contacts it was not. I do not believe everyone who cuddled up to the nazis in the 30's suddenly became patriots when war broke out. As we saw with the Cambridge spies some people will put personal relationships above the interests of their country.
John Amery a case in point. Hanged, postwar, but father was one of the attackers of Chamberlain and fought for Britain to get prepared. John was a huge supporter of everything Nazi - including being totally anti Jewish, but his father had previously hidden the family on his side, were at least, partly Jewish.
John had been seen as odd all his life. And alcoholic. He was actually majorly incompetent and probably a weapon against the Germans, on their side.
Owned up as guilty to everything and hanged. I think he said to Pierrepoint, I always wanted to meet you - but not in these circumstances...