Description
Book SynopsisSurprising revelations about the active role of the monarch in British intelligence The British Royal Family and the intelligence community are two of the most mysterious and mythologized actors of the British State. Crown, Cloak, and Dagger offers a new history of how the two have been inextricably linked from the reign of Queen Victoria to the present. Richard J. Aldrich and Rory Cormac unveil a wealth of archival detail that changes our understanding of the role of the monarch in politics, intelligence, and international relations. Successive queens and kings have all played an active role in steering British intelligence, sometimes against the wishes of prime ministers. Even today, the monarch receives “copy No. 1” of every intelligence report. Attempted assassinations and kidnappings, the abdication crisis, world wars and the Cold War, and the death of Princess Diana are just some of the topics covered in the book. Fascinating and fast-paced, Crown, Cloak, and Dagger demonstrates that the British monarch continues to be far more than a figurehead. This book will inform as well as entertain anyone with an interest in history, espionage, and the royals.
Trade ReviewFor both aficionados of the royal family and serious students of the history of intelligence, this is a remarkable and fascinating read, made possible by the author's extraordinary access to royal and official government archives only recently opened to researchers. * New York Journal of Books *
Quite interestingly, convincingly, and informatively, Crown, Cloak, and Dagger puts into historical light and context the secret relationship or partnership between the royals and the British intelligence services. * The Cipher Brief *
Readers will find Crown, Cloak, and Dagger a page-turner. * CHOICE connect *
Table of ContentsBritish Royal Family Tree Since Victoria Introduction: 007 Part I: The Rise and Fall of Royal Intelligence1. Queen Victoria: Assassins and Revolutionaries2. Queen Victoria's Secrets: War and the Rise of Germany3. Queen Victoria's Great Game: Empire and Intrigue4. Queen Victoria's Security: Anarchists and Fenians5. Edward VII and the Modernization of Intelligence Part II: Royal Relations and Intrigues6. King George V and the First World War7. King George V and the Bolsheviks8. Abdication: Spying on Edward VIII and Wallis Simpson Part III: Royals and Spies at War9. Outbreak of the Second World War10. War in the Americas, 1941-194211. The end of the Second World War, 1943–1945 Part IV: Royal Secrets12. Queen Elizabeth II: Coronation and Cold War13. Queen Elizabeth's Empire: Intrigue in the Middle East14. The Global Queen Part V: Protecting the Realm and the Royals15. Terrorists and Lunatics, 1969–197716. Terrorists and Lunatics, 1979–198417. The Diana ConspiracyConclusion: The Secret Royals Appendix: Ruling the Past, A Note on MethodsAcknowledgmentsEndnotesBibliographyIndexAbout the Author
