Spies and Ciphers

Since reading the history of MI5, I've been a little obsessed with finding out more about the mysterious shadowy world of spies, codes, agents, double-crosses, and more. And not the fictional world either; the real world of spies - which sometimes seems a lot stranger than fiction!
To that end, I got two books out of the library the other day while browsing through the spy section; The Emperor's Codes: The Breaking of Japan's Secret Ciphers by Michael Smith, and Agent Zigzag: A True Story of Nazi Espionage, Love, and Betrayal by Ben Macintyre.

The first of the two books that I read was The Emperor's Codes. I have always been interested in secret codes and messages and how to crack them. This book is written by a former British Military Intelligence codebreaker, so he really knows his stuff!

What I hadn't realized, however, was that codes are so mathematical! Basically, you need to be some sort of genius level math savant to crack them. Also, given that the author was a code-breaking expert, sometimes I found the vocabulary a little too technical and without explanation. However, he does include a handy appendix which shows how that code breakers would have cracked a sample Japanese message, so that was quite helpful - if, again, very mathematical!

Another thing that hampered me a bit was my lack of knowledge of the Pacific/Indian Ocean theaters of war during World War Two. I tend to take a long-term view of history anyway - anything after 1900 is current events! I studied both wars in high school and further in university, but I'm not a war buff by any stretch of the imagination. Plus, I am more Europe-oriented in my history, so I would have focused more on the European theater of war, perhaps to the detriment of the rest of the world. Fortunately, the author included a map of the region with the major towns highlighted and a line showing the extent of Japanese occupation. I always like to learn stuff when I'm reading books, so I enjoyed learning about this particular aspect of the War.

What I most enjoyed about the book was the personal touch. The author interviewed numerous ex-code breakers, both women and men (lots of women worked on code-breaking), for the book, and their stories enliven and personalize the otherwise broad and far-reaching narrative. You care a little bit more about the Japanese advancing on Singapore when you here about 3 WRENs' secret marriages to other servicemen before the fall. You get the human side of code-breaking, which can be a very mathematical and analytical discipline.

As usual, the book leaves me wanting to know more: Australia and the War, the Japanese occupation, Bletchley Park (the chief code-breaking center in England). I was also furious throughout the book at the reluctance of the American and British High Commands to share intelligence and help each other to crack the codes, instead of selfishly hording messages and refusing to share. Neither side, however, can take any responsibility for Pearl Harbour - neither side was able to crack any codes relating to that terrible event. The author also has some interesting things to say about the intelligence related to the nuclear bombs dropped on Japan and the necessity of that deployment.

For anyone interested in the Pacific Theatre of war, and/or the breaking of codes, this is a very interesting book. It is also a good book for anyone who wants to learn a little more about the personal stories of some the veterans. I enjoyed it.

The second book I got out the library focused on a spy instead of the codes. Agent Zigzag is a biography of the notorious Agent Zigzag - one of the key spies in England's famous Double-Cross system of counterintelligence against the Nazis during World War Two. This lead to the famous D-Day deception where the Germans were successfully deceived that the pivotal attack to take back the continent would happen at Calais, instead of where it did happen (as we all know) in Normandy.

Agent Zigzag was born Eddie Chapman, in England in 1914. Sadly, Eddie was not one of the brighter lights of society - he turned early to crime. His first detention was for desertion - when he deserted his army regiment to live with a woman in Soho for several months. Eddie was fascinated by the bright lights and seedy underworld of Soho and as soon as he was dishonourably discharged from the army he went right back. He was captivated by crime and by women. He was arrested numerous times, but also joined a gang which very successfully robbed a number of stores.

Finally young Eddie made his way to Jersey Island with a young lady by the name of Betty Farmer for a relaxing holiday off his ill-gotten gains. (Jersey Island is one of the Channel Islands located in the English Channel between England and France.) However, it was not really a holiday - Eddie was a wanted man in England and he was trying to escape the police. He failed, and was arrested, only to escape the Jersey jail, commit another robbery and be re-arrested. Because he had committed a crime on Jersey soil, he was subject to the criminal law of Jersey (apparently different to that of England) and was sentenced to do time on Jersey instead of being sent back to England like his confederates. He escaped jail once more, but found it hard to escape the island and was sent back to jail. By the time he finally got out, England was at war and the Channel Islands were occupied.

It is a little known fact that the Channel Islands were the only part of England to be occupied by Germany during World War Two. Eddie was desperate to get off Jersey and so he and a friend (met in jail) one Anthony Faramus, sent letters to the German High Command stating that they would be willing to spy for Britain. However, Eddie and Anthony were arrested for crimes they (for once!) did not commit and shipped off to the notorious Romainville prison in Paris. Fortunately for Eddie, High Command was interested in using his criminal talents for espionage. Unfortunately for Anthony, they weren't interested in him - instead keeping him as hostage for Eddie's good behaviour. What happened to Anthony later makes for chilling reading, so I will not spoil it here.

Eddie successfully trained as a spy in German-occupied France (living and training in a villa, whose original Jewish owners were "mysteriously" absent) and eventually was parachuted into England, where he was turned and worked against the Germans. The deception was so successful that the Germans never even suspected a thing and awarded Eddie the Iron Cross. Eddie traveled to Portugal, France, German-occupied Norway and even Germany. His story makes for fascinating reading, so I won't spoil it by revealing any more of it here.

What also makes the story fascinating is Macintyre's writing style. He is a fabulous writer (I am going to look up his other books) and you feel like you are reading some incredible spy thriller - except it is all true! You feel sympathy for this strange character of Eddie Chapman - reprobate, womanizer, spy - willing to spy for Germany, but equally as willing to turn against them and spy for England. All the characters are fully realized - Eddie's numerous women, his German spy handler (who is remarkably sympathetic), and the British agents who controlled and ran this complex double agent. But the story doesn't end there - Macintyre adds an epilogue which explains the fate of all the major characters: Anthony Faramus, Betty Farmer, the British agents, and Eddie's German spy handler. I love finding out what happens to people "after the book", but usually have to do most of that research myself. I appreciate Macintyre's thoroughness and attention to detail. Further, you can see that he was enthralled and fascinated by the subject himself and so wanted to present the complete story to his readers.

I highly recommend Agent Zigzag to anyone who is interested in spies, World War Two, the Double-Cross System, spy novels, James Bond, or anyone who just likes a good story. For this is a good story indeed - romance, danger, secrets. It has all the elements of a good spy thriller - except it's all fact. It is true what is said: truth is stranger than fiction.