Kim Philby facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Kim Philby |
|
|---|---|
Philby in 1955
|
|
| Allegiance |  Soviet Union |
| Codename(s) | Sonny, Stanley |
|
|
|
| Birth name | Harold Adrian Russell Philby |
| Born | 1 January 1912 Ambala, Punjab, British India |
| Died | 11 May 1988 (aged 76) Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union |
| Buried |
|
| Nationality | British, Soviet |
| Parents |
|
| Spouse |
|
| Alma mater | Trinity College, Cambridge |
Harold Adrian Russell "Kim" Philby (1 January 1912 – 11 May 1988) was a British intelligence officer who secretly worked as a double agent for the Soviet Union. A double agent is someone who pretends to work for one side but secretly works for the other.
In 1963, it was discovered that he was a member of the Cambridge Five. This was a group of spies who shared British secrets with the Soviets. They did this during World War II and the early years of the Cold War. Many believe Philby was the most successful of the group in giving secret information to the Soviets.
Philby was born in British India. He went to Westminster School and Trinity College, Cambridge. Soviet intelligence recruited him in 1934. After university, Philby worked as a journalist. He reported on the Spanish Civil War and the Battle of France. In 1940, he started working for the United Kingdom's Secret Intelligence Service (SIS or MI6). By the end of the Second World War, he had become a high-ranking officer.
In 1949, Philby became the chief British contact with American intelligence agencies in Washington, D.C. During his time as an intelligence officer, he passed many secrets to the Soviet Union. This included information about a plan to overthrow the communist government of Albania.
Philby was suspected of warning two other spies, Donald Maclean and Guy Burgess. Both of them then fled to Moscow in May 1951. Philby resigned from MI6 in July 1951. He was publicly cleared of suspicion in 1955. After this, he went back to being a journalist and a spy for MI6 in Beirut, Lebanon. In January 1963, he was finally exposed as a Soviet agent. Philby then fled to Moscow, where he lived until his death in 1988.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Harold Adrian Russell Philby was born in Ambala, British India. His father, St John Philby, was an author and explorer. He was also a civil servant and advisor to King Ibn Sa'ud of Saudi Arabia.
Philby was nicknamed "Kim" after the boy-spy in Rudyard Kipling's novel Kim. He attended Aldro preparatory school. As a teenager, he spent time with the Bedouin people in the Saudi Arabian desert. He then went to Westminster School and later won a scholarship to Trinity College, Cambridge. There, he studied history and economics. He graduated in 1933.
At Cambridge, Philby showed an interest in communism. His father later wondered if Kim always planned to be disloyal to the government while working for it.
Starting a Secret Career
Vienna and Recruitment
In Vienna, Philby helped refugees from Germany. There, he met Litzi Friedmann, a young Austrian communist. Philby acted as a courier, helping people escape to Prague and delivering supplies. He and Litzi married in February 1934, which allowed her to move to the United Kingdom with him.
It is believed that Edith Tudor Hart, a Soviet agent, first approached Philby about working for Soviet intelligence. In 1934, Arnold Deutsch, another Soviet agent, was sent to London to recruit bright students. Deutsch recruited Philby into the Soviet intelligence services in June 1934. Philby then suggested some of his Cambridge friends to Deutsch, including Donald Maclean and Guy Burgess.
Journalism and Early Espionage
In London, Philby started working as a journalist for a magazine called World Review of Reviews. Philby and his wife, Litzi, later separated but remained friends. They divorced in 1946.
In 1936, Philby worked for a trade magazine. He tried to make contact with Germans, including Joachim von Ribbentrop, who was the German ambassador in London. Philby also joined the Anglo-German Fellowship, an organization that wanted friendly relations between Britain and Germany. He made many trips to Berlin.
In February 1937, Philby traveled to Seville, Spain. Spain was in the middle of a bloody Spanish Civil War. Philby worked as a freelance journalist and later as a correspondent for The Times. He reported from the side of General Francisco Franco's forces. He also began working for both Soviet and British intelligence. He would send coded letters to a fake girlfriend in Paris for the Soviets.
Philby's Soviet handler, Theodore Maly, asked him to find out how Franco's security worked. The goal was to find ways to get close to Franco. However, Maly later reported that Philby did not have the courage for such a dangerous task.
In December 1937, Philby was injured when a shell hit near his car during the Battle of Teruel. He suffered a minor head wound. Because of this, Franco awarded Philby the Red Cross of Military Merit in March 1938.
Later, Walter Krivitsky, a former Soviet officer, told British intelligence that a Soviet agent worked as a journalist in Spain. However, no one connected this to Philby at the time.
Working for MI6
World War II Service
In July 1939, Philby returned to The Times in London. When Britain declared war on Germany, he lost contact with his Soviet handlers. Philby worked as a correspondent with the British Expeditionary Force. He was evacuated from Boulogne and later returned to France before sailing back to England in June 1940.
In 1940, Philby joined MI6's Section D, which looked into ways to attack enemies without military force. He also became an instructor for agents learning about secret propaganda. His role as an instructor brought him to the attention of Soviet intelligence again.
Philby gave Joseph Stalin advance warning about Operation Barbarossa, Germany's attack on the Soviet Union. He also warned that Japan planned to attack Southeast Asia instead of the Soviet Union. The first warning was ignored, but the second helped Stalin move troops to defend Moscow.
By September 1941, Philby worked for Section Five of MI6, which handled counter-intelligence. He was in charge of the section dealing with Spain and Portugal. His work helped stop German efforts to spy on Allied ships near Gibraltar.
In 1944, Philby became the head of Section Nine, which focused on anti-communist efforts. He managed to get this position on instructions from his Soviet handler.
While in Section Five, Philby met James Jesus Angleton, an American intelligence officer. Angleton later became suspicious of Philby when information about a British agent was not passed on. However, Angleton's suspicions were not taken seriously.
In August 1945, Konstantin Volkov, a Soviet agent in Istanbul, asked Britain for political asylum. He offered to name three Soviet agents in Britain. Philby was given the task of handling Volkov. He warned the Soviets about Volkov's plan. By the time Philby arrived in Turkey, Volkov had been taken back to Moscow. Philby was able to avoid blame for this incident.
In 1946, Philby was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE).
Istanbul Assignment
In February 1947, Philby became the head of British intelligence for Turkey. He was based in Istanbul with his second wife, Aileen, and their children. His public job was First Secretary at the British Consulate. His secret work involved overseeing British agents and working with Turkish security services.
Philby was involved in a plan to send groups of people into Albania to try and overthrow the communist government. Most of these infiltrators were caught by the Albanian Security Service. It was later suspected that Philby was one of the people who leaked information about these missions.
Aileen Philby suffered from mental health problems. In 1948, she had a breakdown and was sent to a clinic in Switzerland. Philby was soon moved to Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C. and the "Third Man"
In September 1949, the Philbys arrived in the United States. Philby was the chief British intelligence representative in Washington. He worked closely with the CIA, including his former colleague, James Jesus Angleton, who remained suspicious of him.
A serious threat to Philby came from the Venona project. This project decrypted Soviet messages. It showed that documents were being sent to Moscow from the British Embassy in Washington by an agent called "Homer." Philby knew that "Homer" was Donald Maclean, who worked in the British Embassy. Philby had to help find "Homer" but also wanted to protect Maclean.
In October 1950, Guy Burgess, another Soviet spy and Philby's friend, arrived in Washington. Burgess was given a job at the British Embassy and lived with the Philby family. Burgess caused many problems with his behavior. His presence made things difficult for Philby.
Maclean became the main suspect in the Embassy leak investigation. Philby planned for Maclean to escape. Burgess was sent back to England in May 1951 after getting several speeding tickets. He then met Maclean in London.
The British intelligence planned to question Maclean on May 28, 1951. On May 25, Burgess drove Maclean to Southampton. Both of them boarded a ship to France and then went to Moscow.
Return to London and Public Clearance
Burgess had intended to help Maclean escape, not go with him. The disappearance of Burgess and Maclean caused a lot of public attention. Burgess's flight made Philby look very suspicious. Philby returned to London and was questioned by MI5. They wanted to know if he was the "third man" in the spy ring. In July 1951, he resigned from MI6.
Even after leaving MI6, people still suspected Philby. He was questioned many times but kept denying that he was a Soviet agent. From 1952, Philby struggled to find work as a journalist. He eventually worked for a newsletter called the Fleet Street Letter. At this time, he had little contact with Soviet intelligence.
On October 25, 1955, a Member of Parliament, Marcus Lipton, publicly accused Philby of being the "third man." Philby threatened legal action, and Lipton later withdrew his comments. Philby was officially cleared by Foreign Secretary Harold Macmillan on November 7. Macmillan told the House of Commons that he had no reason to believe Philby had betrayed his country. Philby then held a press conference, calmly stating, "I have never been a communist."
Later Life and Defection
Beirut Assignment
After being cleared, Philby was no longer employed by MI6, and Soviet intelligence lost contact with him. In August 1956, he was sent to Beirut, Lebanon, as a Middle East correspondent for The Observer and The Economist. His journalism served as a cover for renewed work for MI6.
In Lebanon, Philby lived in his father's house. He later got a flat in Beirut and started a relationship with Eleanor Brewer, the wife of a New York Times correspondent. After his second wife, Aileen, died in 1957, Philby and Eleanor married in London in 1959. They lived together in Beirut. From 1960, Philby traveled often throughout the Middle East for his journalism.
In 1961, Anatoliy Golitsyn, a major in the KGB, defected to the United States. Golitsyn told the CIA about Soviet agents in American and British intelligence. He confirmed suspicions about Philby's role. Nicholas Elliott, an MI6 officer and friend of Philby's, was sent to get Philby's confession.
Philby admitted to Elliott that he had been spying for the Soviets. However, he asked for a delay before signing a written statement.
Flight to Moscow
On the evening of January 23, 1963, Philby disappeared from Beirut. A Soviet cargo ship, the Dolmatova, had left Beirut that morning. Philby claimed he left on this ship. Others believe he escaped through Syria to Soviet Armenia and then to Russia.
It was not until July 1, 1963, that Philby's flight to Moscow was officially confirmed. On July 30, Soviet officials announced that they had given him political asylum and Soviet citizenship. MI6 faced criticism for not stopping Philby's escape. Some believe MI6 might have allowed him to flee to avoid an embarrassing public trial.
Life in Moscow
When Philby arrived in Moscow, he found he was not a high-ranking KGB officer as he had expected. He was paid a monthly salary. His family could not join him right away. Philby was kept under virtual house arrest, with all visitors checked by the KGB. It was ten years before he was given a small role in training KGB recruits. His closest KGB contact, Mikhail Lyubimov, said this was for Philby's safety, but later admitted it was because the KGB feared he would return to London.
In 1967, Philby gave an interview to The Times in Moscow. He confirmed he had worked for the KGB and said his goal was "to destroy imperialism."
Philby wrote his memoirs, called My Silent War, which were published in the UK in 1968. In the book, he stated his loyalty was always with the communists. He saw himself as a "straight penetration agent" working for the Soviet Union. Philby continued to read The Times and listen to the BBC World Service.
His British honor, the Order of the British Empire, was canceled in 1965. In January 1988, Philby publicly said he did not regret his choices. He only missed a few friends, Colman's mustard, and Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce from England.
In the early 1970s, Philby worked in the KGB's Active Measures Department. He created fake documents by adding "sinister" paragraphs to real US government papers. The KGB would then stamp them "top secret" and spread them. Philby was valuable to the Soviets for his excellent English in their disinformation efforts.
Philby died of heart failure in Moscow in 1988. He was given a hero's funeral and received many medals from the Soviets.
Why He Did It
In a 1981 lecture, Philby said that the British Secret Service failed to expose him partly because of the British class system. It was thought impossible that someone "born into the ruling class" could be a traitor. He also said the organization was sometimes amateurish.
Philby explained that when he was recruited, he had no immediate use as a spy. He was told to work his way into the Secret Service, which took years. He started with journalism and built contacts. He said there was little discipline in MI6. He became friends with the archivist, which allowed him to take secret documents home and return them the next day. His handler would photograph them overnight.
When he was told to replace his boss, Felix Cowgill, he used office politics to do it. Philby also claimed that by sabotaging the operation to send anti-communists into Albania, he helped prevent another World War.
Family Life
In February 1934, Philby married Litzi Friedmann, an Austrian communist he met in Vienna. They moved to Britain but later separated. Litzi eventually settled in East Germany.
In 1940, he began living with Aileen Furse in London. They had five children together. Philby divorced Litzi in 1946 and married Aileen. Aileen suffered from mental health problems and lived separately from Philby with their children. She died in 1957.
In 1956, Philby started a relationship with Eleanor Brewer. After Eleanor's divorce, they married in January 1959. When Philby fled to the Soviet Union in 1963, Eleanor visited him in Moscow. However, Philby had started a relationship with Donald Maclean's wife, Melinda. Philby and Eleanor divorced in 1965. Melinda briefly lived with Philby in Moscow before returning to Maclean in 1968.
In 1971, Philby married Rufina Pukhova, a Russo-Polish woman 20 years younger than him. They lived together until his death in 1988.
