Portraits

portraits

Pope Leo XIII, steward of a vanished world

Leo XIII presided over an intellectually and spiritually ambitious papacy that helped steer the Catholic Church from the 19th century into the 20th. His example is an excellent gui..

Ioannes Chountis de Fabbri June 5, 2025

portraits

‘Slippery Sam’ — Britain’s man in Madrid

As Britain’s ambassador to Francisco Franco’s Spain, Sir Samuel Hoare played a difficult hand with remarkable imagination and skill. His deft diplomacy avoided costly strategic err..

Tim Bouverie May 28, 2025

portraits

Was Richard Sorge the perfect spy?

The Soviet spy Richard Sorge, arguably one of the most successful intelligence agents in history, was emblematic of the twisted and ruined personalities created by an era of ideolo..

Owen Matthews May 19, 2025

portraits

Betty Webb, the humble codebreaker who helped to defeat the Nazis

The recent passing of Betty Web, a codebreaker at Bletchley Park during the Second World War, reminds us of the extraordinary role played by female intelligence analysts in defeati..

Helen Fry May 8, 2025

portraits

A political lesson from Lord Rockingham

Twice prime minister in times of constitutional crisis, Rockingham quietly reshaped 18th-century British politics. By pioneering the idea of a principled, party-driven politics, he..

Ioannes Chountis de Fabbri May 1, 2025

portraits

Joachim Burwitz, spymaster of the Baltic world

The 16th-century Pomeranian spy, Joachim Burwitz, made a decisive contribution to Swedish foreign policy. His call for Sweden to counter Russian expansionism in the Baltic has a pe..

Martin Neuding Skoog April 15, 2025

portraits

George Carver, the CIA’s man in Vietnam

The events of the Vietnam War forced the hawkish CIA analyst George Carver to confront the limits of American power. His painful personal journey mirrored a deep crisis in US forei..

Ronan Mainprize March 31, 2025

portraits

Noël Coward the spy

The actor and playwright Noël Coward revelled in his reputation as 'the playboy of the West End World'. In his brief but important career as a spy during the Second World War, he w..

Oliver Soden March 11, 2025

portraits

Pamela Harriman: an unsung hero of the Atlantic world

The formidable socialite and diplomat devoted her life to bringing the United States and Europe closer together. As a trusted adviser to Winston Churchill and, later, Bill Clinton,..

Sonia Purnell March 5, 2025