Wwi Russian Imperial
MI6 and “C” – First Head of MI6 from 1911
-
My family tree has been traced back to the early Kings of England from the 7th. Century AD. This gives me an interest in English History which is great fun to research. As I am a direct descendent of Sir Christopher Wren and have many ancestors from London who were members of various Livery companies. I have decided to create this article about the first head of MI6 as it’s one of the Icons of Britain.
-
Sir George Mansfield Smith-Cumming (1 April 1859 – 14 June 1923) was the first director of what would become the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), also known as MI6. In this role he was particularly successful in building a post-imperial intelligence service.
-
Born into a middle-class family, Smith attended the Royal Naval College at Dartmouth and, upon graduation, was commissioned a sub-lieutenant. He was posted to the HMS Bellerophon in 1878 and for the next seven years saw sea duty in the East Indies. However he increasingly suffered from severe seasickness, and in 1885 was placed on the retired list as “unfit for service“.
-
He was recalled to duty into the foreign section of Naval Intelligence in 1898 and undertook many missions. He would travel through eastern Germany and the Balkans pretending to be a German businessman, even though he didn’t speak any German. His work was so successful that he was recruited to the Secret Service Bureau as the director of the foreign section. During this period he married the extremely rich May Cumming, and as part of the marriage changed his name to Smith-Cumming.
-
In 1911 Cumming’s became the new head of the Foreign Section, responsible for all operations outside Britain. Over the next few years he became known as ‘C’, after his habit of initialing papers he had read with a C written in green ink. This habit became a custom for later directors, although the C now stands for “Chief”. Ian Fleming took these aspects for his “M”, Sir Miles Messervy – using Cumming’s other initial for the name and having M always write in green ink.
In 1914, he was involved in a serious road accident in France, in which his son was killed. Legend has it that in order to escape the car wreck he was forced to amputate his leg using a pen knife. Hospital records have shown however that while both his legs were broken, his left foot was only amputated the day after the accident. Later he often told all sorts of fantastic stories as to how he lost his leg, and would shock people by interrupting meetings in his office by suddenly stabbing his artificial leg with a knife, letter opener or fountain pen
-
Budgets were severely limited prior to World War 1 and Smith-Cumming came to rely heavily on Sidney Reilley (aka the Ace of Spies), a secret agent of dubious veracity based in Saint Petersburg. He described pre-1914 espionage as ‘capital sport’, but was given few resources with which to pursue it. His early operations were directed almost entirely against Germany. Between 1909 and 1914 he recruited part-time ‘casual agents’ in the shipping and arms business to keep track of naval construction in German shipyards and acquire other technical intelligence. He also had agents collecting German intelligence in Brussels, Rotterdam and St. Petersburg.
-
At the outbreak of war he was able to work with Vernon Kell and Sir Basil Thomson of the Special Branch to arrest twenty-two German spies in England. Eleven were executed, as was Sir Roger casement found guilty of treason in 1916. During the war, the offices were renamed: the Home Section became MI5 or Security service, while Smith-Cumming’s Foreign Section became MI6 or the Secret Intelligence Service. Agents who worked for MI6 during the war included Augustus agar, Paul Dukes, John Buchan, Compton Mackenzie and W. Somerset Maugham. When SSB discovered that Lemon Juice made a good invisible ink his agents adopted the motto “Every man his own stylo”.
With the outbreak of the First World War, Cumming’s control of strategic intelligence gathering as head of the wartime MI1c was challenged by two rival networks run by general headquarters. Cumming eventually out-performed his rivals. His most important wartime network, ‘La Dame Blanche’, had by January 1918 over 400 agents reporting on German troop movements from occupied Belgium and northern France. Cumming was less successful in post-revolutionary Russia. Despite a series of colourful exploits, his agents obtained little Russian intelligence of value.
Secret Service budgets were once again severely cut after the end of WWI, and MI6 stations in Madrid, Lisbon, Zurich and Luxembourg were closed. Cumming succeeded, however, in gaining a monopoly of espionage and counter-intelligence outside Britain and the empire. He also established a network of SIS station commanders operating overseas under diplomatic cover.
To the end of his life Cumming retained an infectious, if sometimes eccentric, enthusiasm for the tradecraft and mystification of espionage, experimenting personally with disguises, mechanical gadgets, and secret inks in his own laboratory. As I also have an interest in all things English I thought I would write articles on my favorite bits of England. As a snippet of information which may be of interest to the reader did you know the first steam powered Passenger Car and Bus was built in England in 1801 and the first manned flight was in Brompton, England in 1849. I have written articles on these subjects at my article listing website at: http://bloggs.resourcez.com
Please visit my Funny Animal Art Prints Collection @ http://www.fabprints.com
My other website is called Directory of British Icons: http://fabprints.webs.com
The Chinese call England “The Island of Hero’s” which I think sums up what we English are all about.
Copyright © 2010 Paul Hussey. All Rights Reserved
About the Author
My family tree has been traced back to the early Kings of England from the 7th Century AD. I am also a direct descendent of Sir Christopher Wren which has given me an interest in English History which is great fun to research. My articles are all about my interests in English History that the world will be amazed at. For example: The first powered passenger vehicle was invented in England in 1801 and the first manned flight was in England in 1849.
Please visit my Funny Animal Art Prints Collection @ http://www.fabprints.com
The Chinese call England “The Island of Hero’s” which I think sums up what we English are all about.
Copyright © 2010 Paul Hussey. All Rights Reserved.
Russian Imperial History 1/20
|
|
WWI Imperial Russian Pilot Wing Sterling Silver $59.00 |
|
|
Imperial Russian Russia WW1 WWI Mosin Rifle Bayonet $120.00 |
|
|
WWI RUSSIAN IMPERIAL MILITARY COSSACK UNIFORM CHERKESKA $499.00 |
|
|
WWI ERA RUSSIAN IMPERIAL MILITARY UNIFORM OVERCOAT $499.00 |
|
|
WWI ERA RUSSIAN IMPERIAL MILITARY NAVAL UNIFORM TUNIC $316.99 |
|
|
Antique Russian Photo Tsar Nicholas II Romanov WW I Imperial Russia Navy Rare $39.99 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL OFFICER WWI PHOTO $22.49 |
|
|
NEW 3ftx5 IMPERIAL RUSSIA RUSSIAN CZAR STORE BANNER WWI FLAG FLAGS $6.95 |
|
|
WWI ERA RUSSIAN IMPERIAL MILITARY NAVAL UNIFORM TUNIC $379.99 |
|
|
WWI RUSSIAN IMPERIAL MILITARY COSSACK UNIFORM CHERKESKA $549.99 |
|
|
Rare WWI Imperial Russian silver medal for Zeal $750.00 |
|
|
WWI Russian Imperial Army Officer of the Order $35.00 |
|
|
WWI Russian Imperial Army Soldiers with a Accordion $40.00 |
|
|
WWI Russian Imperial Army Soldiers of the 12 Siberian Rifle Regiment . $55.00 |
|
|
WWI IMPERIAL RUSSIAN COSSACK WINTER FUR CAP HAT PAPAKHA $623.22 |
|
|
WWI Russian Imperial Army Belt Buckle Brass Original $51.00 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL WWI CAVALRY TYPE THE ORDER OF St. ANNA 4st CLASS SWORD KNOT $33.50 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL WWI WINTER HOOD “BASHLYK”. WHITE MOVEMENT, MARKOV REGIMENT $74.00 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL WWI CAVALRY TYPE SWORD KNOT WITH BLACK LEATHER STRAP $33.00 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL WWI INFANTRY TYPE SWORD KNOT WITH BLACK LEATHER STRAP $55.50 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL ARMY WWI EM/NCO WINTER HOOD “BASHLYK”. WOOD, HANDMADE $74.00 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL WWI INFANTRY TYPE THE ORDER OF St. ANNA 4st CLASS SWORD KNOT $55.50 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL WWI BUTTON STATE SEAL (EAGLE), 14MM FOR GYMNASTYORKA. YELLOW $3.50 |
|
|
40 post seals seal russia imperial russian WW1 WWI items postal old lead rare 2 $35.00 |
|
|
40 post seals seal russia imperial russian WW1 WWI items postal old lead rare $34.00 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL WWI CAVALRY UNIFORM SET: GYMNASTYORKA, PANTS, SHOULDERBOARDS $145.00 |
|
|
Russian WWI Imperial Railway Trip Greetings PC 1916 $42.50 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL WWI GUARD INFANTRY BACKPACK M1894 $397.00 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL WWI INFANTRY BACKPACK TYPE 1909-1910 $110.00 |
|
|
WWI Russian Imperial Army Belt Buckle Brass Original $55.00 |
|
|
WWI Russian Imperial Army Erivan 13th Life Grenadier Regiment Regimental Badge $50.00 |
|
|
IMPERIAL WWI RUSSIAN DOCTOR BADGE / DOCUMENT / PICTURE $999.00 |
|
|
Imperial Russian Straps 4th Hussars Regiment Mariupol Empress Elizabeth WWI Copy $109.99 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL WWI MOSIN SHOULDER BELT (GUARD) $74.00 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL WWI SMALL 30 CARTRIDGES POUCH $28.00 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL WWI GRENADIER INFANTRY BUCKLE $67.00 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL WWI GRENADIER INFANTRY BUCKLE (WHITE) $67.00 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL WWI YELLOW RANK STAR FOR SHOULDERBOARDS. BRASS, HIGH QUALITY $3.00 |
|
|
RUSSIAN IMPERIAL WWI RANK STAR FOR SHOULDER BOARDS. BLACK. METAL, HIGH QUALITY $3.00 |