by Larry Loftis
under Johnny’s spell Popov, Spy Counter-Spy, 7; Macintyre, 8.
“He is courageous” “Tricycle” memo, March 26, 1943, KV 2/852 (p. 456B).
For Jebsen description Dusko Popov, undated “Dramatis Personae,” KV 2/849 (p. 177b).
black, tobacco-stained teeth December 20, 1940, memo, KV 2/845 (p. 2).
water polo, horsemanship, tennis Dusko Popov, interview with Alan Road, “Double-Agent Popov and the James Bond Affair,” Observer, 24; Dusko Popov, interview with Jonathan Braun, “Superspy Dusko Popov: The Real-Life James Bond,” Parade, 24.
thin and frail While Dusko graciously described Johnny as “handsome, strong, wiry” (Popov, Spy Counter-Spy, 7), extant photos of Jebsen suggest otherwise. In addition, British agent Kenneth Benton, who met Jebsen in Madrid in 1943, described Johnny as “a small man who was chain smoking and looking rather sweaty and apprehensive.” Kenneth Benton, “The ISOS Years: Madrid 1941–3,” Journal of Contemporary History 30, no. 3 (July 1995), 395.
Orwell’s poor Winston George Orwell, 1984, 1.
Johnny suffered from varicose veins Ian Wilson memo, KV 2/852 (p. 456B).
willing to pay $600 Dusko Popov, “Report by Tricycle,” May 1, 1941, KV 2/847 (sub-file 2, part 3) (p. 86b).
prison “The Story of SKOOT,” December 23, 1940, KV 2/845 (pp. 2a, 6x).
“The blankets” Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Letters & Papers from Prison, 248–49. See also Irene Tomaszewski, I Am First a Human Being: The Prison Letters of Krystyna Wituska.
“In a very few weeks” George Langelaan, Knights of the Floating Silk, 136–37.
Schutzhaft Rürup, 99.
Courts §7 of the law of February 10, 1936, concerning Secret State Police provided: “Orders and concerns of the Secret State Police are not subject to the scrutiny of the courts of administration.” Rürup, 58.
“feet first” Popov, Spy Counter-Spy, 15; Russell Miller, Codename TRICYCLE, 18.
By 1937 such camps United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Holocaust Encyclopedia, “Concentration Camps, 1933–1939.” http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005263.
Sonderbehandlung Rürup, 99.
scheduled for transfer to a camp and eventual extermination Richard Farrington, “Super Spy Dusko Popov: He Lived the James Bond Legend,” True Action, 74.
CHAPTER 3 SPYING FOR HITLER, KILLING FOR CHURCHILL
February 4, 1940 “The Story of SKOOT,” December 23, 1940, KV 2/845 (p. 6x); Popov, Spy Counter-Spy, 2.
von Stein Dusko Popov, “Dramatis Personae” memo, KV 2/849 (p. 177b); “The Story of SKOOT,” KV 2/845 (p. 6x).
more and better work “The Story of SKOOT,” KV 2/845 (p. 6x); “Tricycle” memo, KV 2/852 (p. 456B).
“You are well acquainted” “The Story of SKOOT,” KV 2/845 (p. 6x).
Dr. Jaksitch “The Story of SKOOT,” KV 2/845 (p. 6x); “Summary of Tricycle Case,” July 15, 1941, KV 2/849 (177b); Ian Wilson “Tricycle” memo, March 26, 1943, KV 2/852 (p. 456B).
“Lapad, Dubrovnik” John Marriott “SKOOT” memo, January 8, 1941, KV 2/845 (p. 13a); author correspondence with Marco Popov (Dusko’s son), October 27, 2014.
vacationed annually a month or more in Paris William Luke “SKOOT” memo, February 23, 1941, KV 2/845 (p. 38a).
owned a yacht, Nina Ibid.; Ewen Montagu memo, January 2, 1941, KV 2/845 (p. 10a).
“born in the sun” Dusko Popov, interview with Alan Road, “Double-Agent Popov and the James Bond Affair,” Observer, 24.
cable from Berlin Russell Miller, Codename TRICYCLE, 20; Macintyre, Double Cross, 9.
Johnny looked like hell Popov, Spy Counter-Spy, 17; Miller, 20; Kenneth Benton, “The ISOS Years: Madrid 1941–3,” Journal of Contemporary History 30, no. 3 (July 1995), 395.
100 to 150 cigarettes a day KV 2/856 (sub-file 3).
ships in the Norddeutche Lloyd fleet “The Story of SKOOT,” KV 2/845 (p. 6x); Ewen Montagu memo, January 2, 1941, KV 2/845 (p. 10a); “Tricycle” memo, KV 2/852 (p. 456B). For Jebsen as director of the company, see Felix Cowgill correspondence to Tar Robertson, April 19, 1941, KV 2/846 (p. 82c).
“a bloody tyrant” Popov, Spy Counter-Spy, 19.
“The King of Prussia” Augustino von Hassell and Sigrid MacRae, Alliance of Enemies: The Untold Story of the Secret American and German Collaboration to End World War II, xviii.
“the home of thought” Hans Schoeps quoting Madame de Staël, who described Prussia as la patrie de la pensée—“the home of thought.” Von Hassell and MacRae, xix (citing Madame de Staël, De l’Allemagne, 1813).
Mr. How It appears that either Ian Wilson was confused at times about the man’s identity, or Mr. How used aliases. In various memos this man is referred to as “Mr. Dow” (“The Story of SKOOT,” December 23, 1940, KV 2/845, p. 6x); “a British representative” (“Summary of Tricycle Case,” July 28, 1941, KV 2/849, p. 183A); “Mr. How” (“Tricycle” memo, March 26, 1943, KV 2/852, p. 456B); and “Mr. Dew” (August 18, 1944, memo at KV 2/859, p. 972B).
willingness to work for the Germans “The Story of SKOOT,” December 23, 1940, KV 2/845 (p. 6x); “Summary of Tricycle Case,” July 28, 1941, KV 2/849 (p. 183A); “Tricycle” memo, March 26, 1943, KV 2/852 (p. 456B).
H. N. Sturrock Popov identifies this man as “Mr. Sturrack” in his memoirs (Spy Counter-Spy, 20), misspelling the name. Sturrock’s formal title was “Commercial Secretary to His Majesty’s Legation in Belgrade.” Author correspondence with Sturrock’s grandson, Stephen Sharp, December 13–31, 2014. Sturrock and Sharp were good friends of the Popovs, and Sharp later lived with Dusko’s family for a short while after the war.
Forscher Kenneth Benton, “The ISOS Years: Madrid 1941–3,” Journal of Contemporary History 30, no. 3 (July 1995), 395.
“greater world” Von Hassell, 5.
Lethbridge In his memoirs Popov states that the man gave his name as “Spiradis,” a name Dusko later understood was a cover. Popov, Spy Counter-Spy, 35. Ian Wilson in his memo of March 26, 1943, refers to the man as “Mr. Fickis” of Passport Control; this also appears to have been an alias. KV 2/852 (p. 456B). In a memo on May 5, 1943, Wilson noted that the man was an MI6 representative. The six places where the man’s name appeared in the memo have been censored, as well as his cover name. “Meteor” memo, KV 2/852 (p. 489a). The secrecy surrounding his name appears to have been necessary due to later work: The May 5 memo suggests, and a May 18, 1943, memo confirms, that this officer of the Belgrade PCO (Passport Control Office) in 1940 became an operative with SOE. Ian Wilson “Tricycle” memo, KV 2/854 (p. 504a). In all likelihood the man was St. George Lethbridge, SIS station head in Belgrade. See Nigel West, MI6: British Secret Intelligence Service Operations, 208.
Ivanovitch “The Story of SKOOT,” December 23, 1940, KV 2/845 (p. 6x); “Interview with SKOOT,” February 5, 1941, KV 2/845 (p. 19b); Ian Wilson “Tricycle” memo, KV 2/852 (p. 456B).
Jebsen delivered three questionnaires Ian Wilson, “Tricycle” memo, KV 2/852 (p. 456B).
“now both in the same service” “The Story of SKOOT,” KV 2/845 (p. 6x); “Summary of Tricycle Case,” KV 2/849 (p. 177b); “Tricycle” memo, KV 2/852 (p. 456B).
wanted an easier living Ibid.
For Ollschlager, Munzinger, Hoeflinger, Anzueto, see Dusko Popov report of May 1, 1941, KV 2/847 (p. 87a); “Summary of Tricycle Case,” KV 2/849 (p. 177b); Tar Robertson letter to Frank Foley, March 23, 1943, KV 2/852 (p. 453a); Ian Wilson “Tricycle” memo, March 26, 1943, KV 2/852 (p. 456B).
head of the Abwehr’s I. H. Ost. Robertson letter to Foley, March 23, 1943, KV 2/852 (p. 453a).
For Munzinger description, see “Summary of Tricycle Case,” KV 2/849 (p. 177); Robertson letter to Foley, KV 2/852 (p. 453a).
At a restaurant outside Belgrade “The Story of SKOOT,” December 23, 1940, KV 2/845 (p. 6x).
“You’re being sold out” Popov, Spy Counter-Spy, 40–42; Dusko Popov, interview with Frederick Bear, “Dusko [007] Popov: Exclusive Interview,” Genesis, November 1974, 48; Russell Miller, Codename TRICYCLE, 25.
“Bozidar is a cancer” Popov, Spy Counter-Spy, 42–43; Miller, 26.
CHAPTER 4 MAGIC
“A world at war” Dusko Popov, interview with Frederick Bear, “Dusko [007] Popov: Exclusive Interview,” Genesis, November 1974, 36.
“Have I been running” Popov, Spy Counter-Spy, 45.
Bozidar had been shot Ibid.; Miller, Codename TRICYCLE, 26; Popov, Genesis, 48.
“could have caused death” Popov, Genesis, 48.
“Would you kill” Popov, Spy Counter-Spy, 46.
“Act as if” Ibid., 48–49; Miller, 27.
Arthur Owens (codenamed SNOW) See, generally, Nigel West and Madoc Roberts, Snow: The Double Life of a World War II Spy; J. C. Masterman, The Double-Cross System, 36–45. See also, Guy Liddell Diaries, KV 4/187 (particularly pages 815, 851–54). After a meeting with J. C. Masterman, Tar Robertson, Dick White, and John Marriott on April 10, 1941, Liddell recorded in his diary that “the future control of Snow and Celery was not finally decided on. There was general agreement that they would have to be kept under close supervision and that it might be necessary to shut Snow up or alternatively to remove him from the country.” KV 4/187 (p. 853).
Toward the end of the war, Owens was released from prison, continued nominal MI5 duties, and eventually moved to Canada. After the war, MI5 never resolved whether Owens was loyal to Germany or Britain. At the very least, he was an opportunist looking for adventure, money, and/or business advantages.
Popov’s talents Dusko Popov, interview with Jonathan Braun, “Superspy Dusko Popov: The Real-Life James Bond,” Parade, 24.
SKOOT See, e.g., “The Story of SKOOT,” KV 2/845 (p. 6x), KV 2/845 (p. 1); Guy Liddell Diaries, KV 4/187. Perhaps due to his still learning English in 1940, Popov misremembered his initial code name as “SCOUT.” Popov, Spy Counter-Spy, 57. In a few instances, MI5 reports show the name as “Scoot.” See, e.g., KV 2/845 (p. 2).
“Rubicon” “A. D. SKOOT” Minute Sheet, undated, KV 2/845 (p. 1); “Summary of Tricycle Case,” KV 2/849 (p. 177); Ian Wilson “Tricycle” memo, KV 2/852 (p. 456B).
On November 17, 1940 Ibid. “The Story of SKOOT” memo records the dates as November 16 and 18. KV 2/845 (pp. 2x, 6x).
Ala Littoria . . . Ambasciadore . . . Rome 44168 “The Story of SKOOT,” KV 2/845 (pp. 2x, 6x); “Summary of Tricycle Case,” KV 2/849 (p. 177).
“Dear Dusko” “The Story of SKOOT,” KV 2/845 (p. 6x).
“receiving attention” Ibid. (p. 2x). See also Dusko Popov’s “Dramatis Personae,” KV 2/849 (p. 177b); Wilson’s “Tricycle” memo, KV 2/852 (p. 456B).
Ardanghi description Popov, “Dramatis Personae,” KV 2/849 (p. 177b).
Dusko met Johnny for drinks “The Story of SKOOT,” KV 2/845 (p. 2x); “Summary of Tricycle Case,” KV 2/849 (p. 177); “Tricycle” memo, KV 2/852 (p. 456B).
the ENIGMA machine I. C. B. Dear and M. R. D. Foot, The Oxford Companion to World War II, 1165.
Bletchley Park Officially known as the Government Code and Cypher School, Bletchly Park was the location—and unofficially the name—of the British code breaking organization.
By the end of July F. W. Winterbotham, The Ultra Secret, 70.
Major Ludovico von Karsthoff Popov, “Dramatis Personae,” KV 2/849 (p. 177b); Popov, Spy Counter-Spy, 56.
“Albert von Karsthof” PVDE records contain the official German embassy list of diplomats and staff, and “Albert von Karstof” (one “f”) appears second from the bottom on page 2 and is listed as an “Adjunto” (deputy). Polícia de Vigilância e Defesa Estado, Serviços de Informação, Biblioteca Nacional, Lisboa. MI5 files sometimes spell his name as “Karsthof” (see, e.g., KV 2/845, p. 6x) but most often as “Karsthoff.”
Ludovico, Anzuweto Popov, “Dramatis Personae,” KV 2/849 (p. 177b).
Anzuweto Dusko Popov MI5 report, May 1, 1941, KV 2/847.
“He was a terribly likeable person” Popov, Genesis, 48.
rendezvous instructions Popov, Spy Counter-Spy, 56–57; see also Miller, 51.
Venlo For an analysis of the Venlo incident from the British perspective, see Anthony Cave Brown, C: The Secret Life of Sir Stewart Graham Menzies, Spymaster to Winston Churchill, 208–23; from the German point of view, see Walter Schellenberg, The Memoirs of Hitler’s Spymaster, 82–98.
“full lists” Schellenberg, 133.
intercepting so many radio signals Joshua Levine, Operation Fortitude: The Story of the Spy Operation That Saved D-Day, 57.
Radio Security Service was intercepting Nigel West, MI6: British Secret Intelligence Service Operations, 107.
German agents operating in England Masterman, 3.
“C” had a secret passageway Anthony Cave Brown, C: The Secret Life of Sir Stewart Graham Menzies, Spymaster to Winston Churchill, 225.
“a small fortress” Schellenberg, 241–42.
his belongings would be searched Popov, Genesis, 68.
Major Conti “The Story of SKOOT,” KV 2/845 (p. 2x); “Dramatis Personae,” KV 2/849 (p. 177b); “Tricycle” memo, KV 2/852 (p. 456B).
gave instructions on a better formula “The Story of SKOOT,” KV 2/845 (p. 2a).
Don Augustin Mutiozobal . . . “Still . . . waggons deliverable,” Ian Wilson “Tricycle” memo, KV 2/852 (p. 456B).
CHAPTER 5 THE BEE HIVE
“The most fascinating place” Ronald Weber, The Lisbon Route, 1, citing Irish Times, October 23, 1941, 4.
Duke and Duchess of Windsor Neill Lochery, Lisbon: War in the Shadows of the City of Light, 1939–45, 71 et seq.; Weber, 146–48.
Duke of Alba, King of Romania William D. Bayles, “Lisbon: Europe’s Bottleneck,” Life, April 28, 1941, 77–78; Harvey Klemmer, “Lisbon—Gateway to Warring Europe,” National Geographic, August 1941, 274.
Prince of Sweden, the Prince of Poland, and the Princess of Greece and Denmark See Cristina Pacheco, editor, Hotel Palácio: Estoril-Portugal: Boletins de Alojamento de Estrangeiros/Boletins Individuais, 1939–1945, 160, 208.
Guggenheims Countless Guggenheims fled to Lisbon upon the German occupation of Paris on June 14, 1940. On December 11, 1940, Reine, Charles, Caroline, Jacques, Madeleine, Michel Ernest, Micheline, and Suzanne Guggenheim all checked into Estoril’s Palácio Hotel. See Pacheco, Hotel Palácio, Estoril-Portugal: Foreigners’ Accommodation Registration Forms/Individual Registration Forms, 1939–1945. Peggy Guggenheim, daughter of millionaire Benjamin Guggenheim (who died a heroic death aboard the RMS Titanic), initially stayed in downtown Lisbon’s Hotel Francfort before moving to the Monte Estoril Hotel. Lochery, ix, 99 (with Monte Estoril photo and registration on page 17 of the photo section).
City of Light Lochery, 2.
City of Refuge William Bayles, “Lisbon: the City of Refuge,” Picture Post, June 28, 1941, vol. 11, no. 13, 9.
“last of the gay capitals” Klemmer, 270.
“port of good hope” Weber, 5, citing Lilian Mowrer, “Fiesta in Lisbon,” New Yorker, July 20, 1940, 36.
“veritable bee hive” Weber, 5, citing Alva E. Gaymon, New York Times, July 28, 1940, 4.
languages heard See, e.g., Bayles, Life, 77, 86 (English, French, German, Japanese, Polish); Klemmer, 260, 274 (Italian, Spanish, Romanian); Bayles, Picture Post, 9 (Japanese); Lochery, 39 (Russian).
no rationing Demaree Bess, “American Strategy Pains Portugal,” Saturday Evening Post, August 30, 1941, 36.
McVitie’s petits beurre
s Weber, 74, citing Andy Marino, A Quiet American: The Secret War of Varian Fry, 313.
aircraft rested side by side Klemmer, 260; Weber, 2.
signed in 1373 Klemmer, 274.
Salazar Lochery, 14, et seq.
Portugal’s colonial empire Bess, 36.
May 27, 1940, President Roosevelt announced Bess, 18.
The joke Weber, 4.
“Youth Movement” Klemmer, 265; Weber, 3.
fascist salute Klemmer, 265.
“Felix” . . . “Isabella” William Shirer, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, 817.
wolfram Donald G. Stevens, “World War II Economic Warfare: The United States, Britain, and Portuguese Wolfram,” Historian 61, no. 3 (1999), 539–55.
demanded payment in gold Lochery, 201.
Germany, by comparison, held 133 tons George Dorgan “Gold Tells the History of the 20th Century,” SNBCHF.com, http://snbchf.com/gold-history/gold-tells-20th-century-history/.
Casino Estoril pulsed all night Klemmer, 274.
generals slept in attics Weber, 14, citing W. E. Lucas, Times, December 3, 1940.
more than eighty thousand Weber, 13, citing New Horizons, May 1942, 18. The figure was later confirmed by the PVDE. In 1940, it reported, 43,540 European refugees entered Portugal, most of whom swarmed the streets of Lisbon. Lochery, 43.
forty thousand refugees Klemmer, 261; Bayles, Picture Post, 9.
“bottleneck of freedom” Bayles, Life, 77; Picture Post, 9.
one ship a week Bayles, Picture Post, 9.
disguised as refugees Weber, 19, citing Samuel Lubell, “War by Refugee,” Saturday Evening Post, March 1941.
Operation Willi The secret police’s scheme to kidnap the Duke of Windsor while he stayed in Lisbon was planned for months. Fortunately, the operation was never initiated.
croupiers greeted him in German Bayles, Life, 78.
inside a refrigerated meat locker Richard Farrington, “Super Spy Dusko Popov: He Lived the James Bond Legend,” True Action, June 1975, 76.