Kim Philby
Page 26
1. Philby’s Government service from 1940 to 1951 was as a member of the British Secret Service (M.I.6). His appointments as First Secretary at H.M. Embassies in Turkey and in the U.S.A. gave him the cover for his M.I.6 functions in these countries. In America he acted as liaison officer between M.I.6, C.I.A. and the F.B.I.
2. In May, 1951, Maclean fled to Russia with Burgess, after apparently becoming aware that he was under suspicion. Enquiries were immediately made into the possibility that Maclean had been alerted by some person in the Foreign Office, M.I.6 or the Security Service.
3. Philby was included in these enquiries by reason of his friendship with Burgess, who had been sharing Philby’s home in Washington. Philby protested that since Burgess had been considered fit for employment in H.M. Embassy there seemed no reason why they should not have lived together. Nevertheless, it was felt by the then Head of M.I.6 that in view of Philby’s friendship with Burgess he could not continue his employment. He was accordingly asked to resign in July 1951 and he was paid the sum of £5,000 with no pension in compensation for the loss of his career. (He had only 8½ years reckonable service, and not 10 − the minimum for a pension).
4. It was after Philby’s resignation that enquiries by the Security Service produced the first evidence of early Communist sympathies. The possibility that he might have been working for the Russians also now came under close investigation. No direct evidence of this could be obtained and it was decided at the highest level to put the matter to the test by severe interrogation. This was undertaken by the experienced barrister, Mr. H. P. Milmo, then by the Security Service and finally by M.I.6. Throughout these cross examinations Philby refused to admit more than youthful Marxist interests and strenuously denied all charges of disloyalty. Nevertheless, the circumstantial case against him seemed strong. Enquiries into the case, therefore, continued both in the Security Service and M.I.6 from 1952 to 1955. These failed to develop anything further against him. On the M.I.6 side certain things were discovered in his favour, in particular that he had himself provided an important clue to the detection of Maclean. It also had to be taken into account that he had had prior knowledge of certain espionage cases which had been successfully completed, e.g. in the U.K., Nunn May and Fuchs;6 and in the U.S.A., Greenglass, Gold and the Rosenbergs.7 In these circumstances the Security Service and M.I.6 agreed that Philby must be given the benefit of the doubt. It was upon this joint report that the Foreign Secretary made his statement in the House of Commons on the 7th November, 1955.
5. After his resignation in 1951 Philby had found no worthwhile permanent employment. He had no private means and a wife and five children to support. The then Head of M.I.6 considered it bad security for a former member of the Secret Service to be destitute and, bearing in mind that an injustice might have been done him, agreed to give him help in finding a journalistic appointment on the ‘Observer’. The approach to the Editor was made by an officer of M.I.6. The Editor undertook to consider an application from Philby if he applied in the normal manner and could obtain the job on his journalistic merits.
6. Philby took up his new assignment as the ‘Observer’s’ Middle East correspondent in 1956, resident in Beirut. He was similarly employed by the ‘Economist’, who were however unaware of any M.I.6 connection. While Philby was in the Lebanon M.I.6 maintained contact with him under strict security precautions. [Editor’s note: There are then just over two lines redacted which almost certainly informed Macmillan that Philby continued to work for MI6 during his period in Beirut.] … He had no access to official information. The arrangement whereby a connection was preserved with Philby seemed right to those who felt that one day further evidence might come to light requiring new investigation. [A final passage of this paragraph is also redacted.]
7. Philby’s continuous residence in the Lebanon from 1956 to 1963 was broken by a few visits to the U.K. on vacation and for consultation with his newspapers. On one of these visits he also remarried. As these were visits by a British subject, they were not recorded by the Immigration Authorities and are, therefore, not on the files of the Security Service. In 1962, certain new information, including the first direct allegation by someone who knew of his activities before the Second World War, came into our hands. The case was therefore re-examined by the Security Services and the conclusion reached that we now had a better chance to induce Philby’s confession, if he were tackled on neutral ground, since without this there was insufficient evidence to warrant a prosecution. An M.I.6 officer, with intimate knowledge of his character, was accordingly sent to the Lebanon in January 1963 where he managed at last to secure from Philby admissions of his guilt, including a signed statement which he typed himself.
8. As background to [one line of text redacted] it must be appreciated that since 1945 evidence had been accumulating of the extent to which Soviet Intelligence had successfully penetrated the British Intelligence Services during the war-time period of alliance. In all there were seven separate indications. The significance of the information recently obtained from Philby may be judged by the fact that it has resolved with certainty these causes of anxiety. It has also resulted in the removal of suspicion from several innocent people.
9. Philby’s disappearance was unexpected. The probable reason was his realisation that, as a result of his confession, it was impossible for him to continue his life in the West. To the best of our knowledge his wife was unaware of his treachery and intentions and she has given us all possible help in our enquiries into his whereabouts. We believe he left Beirut for Odessa clandestinely by a Russian ship on the night of the 23rd January.
Notes
1. Sir William Strang, Permanent Under-Secretary of State at the Foreign Office 1949–53.
2. Sir Percy Sillitoe, Director General of the Security Service (MI5) 1946–53.
3. In fact, Major-General Sir John Sinclair did not become Chief of the SIS, or ‘C’, until 1953. At this stage, and at the time of the reference in paragraph 5 of this document to 17 January 1952, the Chief of the SIS was Sir Stewart Menzies, who served as ‘C’ from 1939 to 1953.
4. Sir Patrick Dean, chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee 1953–60.
5. Sir Ivone Kirkpatrick, Permanent Under-Secretary at the Foreign Office 1953–57.
6. Klaus Fuchs, German scientist who worked on the Manhattan Project, the Anglo-US nuclear weapons programme, and betrayed its secrets to the Russians.
7. David Greenglass and Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were American communists who worked on the Manhattan Project and were among the Soviet ‘atom spies’; Harry Gold, another American communist, was a courier for the ‘atom spies’. The Rosenbergs were the only ‘atom spies’ to be executed, even though in Ethel’s case there was no evidence that she had done anything more than support her husband. Their execution while others served only relatively short prison sentences or went free altogether remains highly controversial.
† White, a wartime friend of Philby, was Director General of MI5 (1953–6) before taking charge of MI6.
Index
Abwehr 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15
Albania Kim Philby and Tim Milne in 1, 2
Anglo-German Fellowship 1, 2, 3
Arabia of the Wahhabis (Philby) 1
Arnold-Forster, Christopher 1
Axel (TM’s dog) 1
Azores 1
Bankhead, Tallulah 1
Barsley, Michael 1
Beck, Ludwig 1
Birch, Frank 1
Bishop, Adrian 1, 2
Blake, George 1
Bletchley Park 1
Blunt, Anthony 1, 2
Bodden operation 1
Bowra, Maurice 1, 2
Brackenbury, Buz 1
Brewer, Eleanor (KP’s third wife) 1, 2, 3, 4
Brewer, Sam 1
Brook-Shepherd, Gordon 1
Brooman-White, Dick 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
Budapest Kim Philby and Tim Milne travel to 1
Burgess
, Guy 1, 2 Tim Milne meets 1, 2, 3
at The Spinney 1
visits Kim Philby in Turkey 1, 2
concerns over behaviour 1
disappearance of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Kim Philby talks about 1
loses usefulness to Soviet Union 1
recruitment of 1
and Donald Maclean 1, 2, 3
contact with Soviet Union 1
relationship with Kim Philby 1
Cairncross, John 1
Canaris, Admiral 1
Cecil, Robert 1
Christ Church, Oxford Tim Milne at 1, 2
Churchill, Winston 1, 2
CICERO 1
Collins, Douglas 1
Collins, Patsy 1
Coplon, Judith 1
Cowgill, Felix 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16
Cowgill, Mary 1
Dansey, Claude 1
Dawson, Geoffrey 1
Doble, Frances 1
Dollfuss, Chancellor 1, 2
Driberg, Tom 1
Dulles, Allen 1, 2
Eden, Anthony 1
Egypt Tim Milne posted to 1, 2
Elliott, Nicholas 1, 2, 3
Engleheart, Jock 1
FELIPE 1, 2
Franco, General 1, 2, 3
Friedmann, Lizy (KP’s first wife) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Furse, Aileen (KP’s second wife) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15
Gaynor, Janet 1
Gedye, Eric 1, 2
Gentleman Traitor (Philby) 1
Germany Kim Philby and Tim Milne holiday in 1, 2
Section V works on 1
Kim Philby and Tim Milne at end of war 1
Gisevius, Hans Bernd 1
Goerdeler, Carl Friedrich 1
Gort, General 1
Greene, Graham 1, 2, 3
Greenhill, Denis 1
Guzenko, Igor 1
Hackett, John 1
Hammond, Wally 1
Hardy, Harold 1
Harris, Hilda 1, 2, 3
Harris, Tommy 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Haw-Haw, Lord 1
Healey, Denis 1
Hitler, Adolf heard by Kim Philby and Tim Milne 1
becomes Chancellor 1
assassination attempt on 1
Hoover, J. Edgar 1
Hugenberg, Alfred 1
Iran Tim Milne posted to 1, 2
ISOS messages 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
Italy Kim Philby and Tim Milne in 1
Section V work on 1
Ivens, Jack 1, 2, 3
Japan Section V work on 1
John, Otto 1
Jones, R. V. 1, 2
Knox, Dilly 1
Koestler, Arthur 1
Krivitsky, Walter 1, 2, 3, 4
Kunz, Charlie 1
Lipton, Marcus 1
Lonsdale, Gordon 1
Loxley, Peter 1
Luce, Kenneth 1
Lunan, Gordon 1
Lyall, Archibald 1
Mackenzie, Bobby 1
Maclean, Donald 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Maclean, Melinda 1
Macmillan, Harold 1, 2, 3, 4
McNeil, Hector 1, 2
May, Alan Nunn 1
Menzies, Sir Stewart 1, 2
MI5 and Section V 1, 2
and double-agent operations 1
and War Room 1
investigates Kim Philby 1
Midgley, John 1, 2
Milmo, Helenus 1, 2, 3, 4
Milne, A. A. (TM’s uncle) 1, 2
Milne, Angela (TM’s sister) 1, 2, 3
Milne, J. V. (TM’s grandfather) 1
Milne, Janet (TM’s sister) 1
Milne, Marie (TM’s wife) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11
Milne, Tim press interest in 1
death of 1
at Westminster School 1, 2, 3, 4
first trip to Continent with Kim Philby 1
at Christ Church, Oxford 1, 2
second trip to Continent with Kim Philby 1
witnesses rise of Nazis 1
trip to Germany with Kim Philby 1
travels to Vienna to see Kim Philby 1
works for S. H. Benson 1, 2
joins SIS 1
travels to Spain to see Kim Philby 1
works for Section V 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
early childhood 1
at start of Second World War 1
political views of 1
visit to Bletchley Park 1
move to London 1
made head of Section V 1
fails to report Kim Philby’s communist views 1
in Germany for Section V 1
posted to Egypt 1
visits Turkey 1, 2, 3
posted to Iran 1, 2
last meeting with Kim Philby 1
named by Kim Philby as ‘fellow conspirator’ 1
Milne, Tony (TM’s brother) 1
Monroe, Elizabeth 1, 2, 3
Montague, Evelyn 1
Muggeridge, Malcolm 1, 2, 3
Murder Must Advertise (Sayers) 1
Musaddiq, Mohammed 1
Mussolini, Benito 1, 2
My Silent War (Philby) 1, 2, 3
‘ORKI companions’ incident 1
Orlov, Alexander 1, 2
OSS/X 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Page, Denys 1, 2
Pakenham, Desmond 1, 2, 3
Palmer, Leonard 1, 2
Papen, Franz von 1
PASCAL 1
Paterson, Geoffrey 1
Pearson, Norman 1
Petrov, Vladimir 1
Philby, Burgess and Maclean (TV film) 1
Philby, Diana (KP’s sister) 1, 2
Philby, Dora (KP’s mother) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Philby, Harry (KP’s son) 1
Philby, Helena (KP’s sister) 1, 2, 3
Philby, Josephine (KP’s daughter) 1, 2, 3
Philby, Kim Sunday Times reports on 1, 2, 3, 4
at Westminster School 1, 2
sexuality of 1, 2, 3
relationship with father 1, 2, 3
at Trinity College, Cambridge 1, 2
first trip to Continent with Tim Milne 1
political views of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
trip to Yugoslavia 1
second trip to Continent with Tim Milne 1
witnesses rise of Nazis 1
trip to Germany with Tim Milne 1
moves to Vienna 1, 2
marriage to Lizy Friedmann 1, 2, 3
works for Review of Reviews 1, 2
fakes sympathy for Nazism 1, 2, 3
as journalist in Spain 1, 2
first approached by SIS 1
work during Second World War 1
political influence on Tim Milne 1
works for Section V 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21
relationship with Aileen Furse 1, 2, 3
home life 1, 2, 3
and ‘ORKI companions’ incident 1
personality of 1, 2
move to London 1
works for Section IX 1, 2, 3
communist views not reported 1
in Germany for Section IX 1
and Konstantin Volkov 1
drinking habits 1
posted to Turkey 1, 2
marriage to Aileen Furse 1, 2, 3
visits Egypt 1
suspicions over 1, 2, 3
talks about Guy Burgess 1
affair with Connie 1, 2, 3
work as freelance journalist 1, 2, 3
relationship with Eleanor Brewer 1, 2
marriage to Eleanor Brewer 1
last meeting with Tim Milne 1
defects to Soviet Union 1
starts as spy for NKVD 1, 2
access to Section V information 1
access to Section IX information 1
limitations on as spy 1
usefulness of to Soviet Union 1
and Donald Maclean 1
propaganda value of
1
reasons for becoming a Soviet agent 1
relationship with Guy Burgess 1
names Tim Milne as ‘fellow conspirator’ 1
Philby, Miranda (KP’s daughter) 1
Philby, Patricia (KP’s sister) 1, 2
Philby, St John (KP’s father) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
Philby, Tommy (KP’s son) 1, 2, 3, 4
Philby of Arabia (Monroe) 1
Radio Security Service (RSS) 1
Reilly, Patrick 1, 2
Review of Reviews 1, 2
Roberts, Colin 1, 2
Robertson, ‘Tar’ 1
Rothschild, Victor 1
Ryle, Gilbert 1
S. H. Benson (advertising agency) 1
Sammy (dog at Section 5) 1
Sandham, Andrew 1
Sandys, Duncan 1, 2
Sayers, Dorothy L. 1
SD 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
Seale, Patrick 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Section V Tim Milne works for 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
description of 1, 2
Kim Philby works for 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21
and MI5 1, 2
and ISOS messages 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
under Felix Cowgill 1
links to OSS/X2 1, 2, 3
and German sabotage attempts 1
work on Azores 1
moves to London 1
work on Italy 1
work on Germany 1
and V-weapons 1
Tim Milne made head of 1
and War Room 1
work on Japan 1
at end of Second World War 1
appraisal of 1
information on given to Soviet Union 1