Charmian Brinson and Richard Dove
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- January 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780719090790
- eISBN:
- 9781781707357
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719090790.003.0013
- Subject:
- Political Science, Conflict Politics and Policy
The Free German League of Culture was the foremost cultural, social and political organisation catering to the needs of German refugees during the years of the Second World War in London. It boasted ...
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The Free German League of Culture was the foremost cultural, social and political organisation catering to the needs of German refugees during the years of the Second World War in London. It boasted some 1500 members, although its regular cultural events, ranging from concerts to literary readings, theatre productions and art exhibitions, were attended by many more. MI5 considered it a Communist Front, calling it ‘the largest Communist sideshow in London’: the truth was far more nuanced. MI5 kept a close eye on the League through the surveillance of its leading members, such as the composer E.H. Meyer, the actor Gerhard Hinze, and the artist John Heartfield. It also received regular reports from refugee informants who attended its events and who provided a constant stream of adverse comment on the League.Less
The Free German League of Culture was the foremost cultural, social and political organisation catering to the needs of German refugees during the years of the Second World War in London. It boasted some 1500 members, although its regular cultural events, ranging from concerts to literary readings, theatre productions and art exhibitions, were attended by many more. MI5 considered it a Communist Front, calling it ‘the largest Communist sideshow in London’: the truth was far more nuanced. MI5 kept a close eye on the League through the surveillance of its leading members, such as the composer E.H. Meyer, the actor Gerhard Hinze, and the artist John Heartfield. It also received regular reports from refugee informants who attended its events and who provided a constant stream of adverse comment on the League.
Charmian Brinson and Richard Dove
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- January 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780719090790
- eISBN:
- 9781781707357
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719090790.003.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Conflict Politics and Policy
The introduction outlines the overall subject of the book: the surveillance of anti-Nazi refugees from Hitler's Germany by MI5 during the period 1933–1950. It broaches the major themes pursued in the ...
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The introduction outlines the overall subject of the book: the surveillance of anti-Nazi refugees from Hitler's Germany by MI5 during the period 1933–1950. It broaches the major themes pursued in the narrative, such as the distinction between ‘racial’ and ‘political’ refugees and MI5’s preoccupation with the surveillance of Communist refugees throughout the 1930s and 1940s. It also evaluates the scope and content of intelligence in the security files which furnish the subject-matter of the book, including the files relating to the major refugee organisations – the Free German League of Culture, the Austrian Centre and the Czech Refugee Trust Fund. The introduction also poses the question: why has this extensive MI5 operation hitherto remained hidden from history?Less
The introduction outlines the overall subject of the book: the surveillance of anti-Nazi refugees from Hitler's Germany by MI5 during the period 1933–1950. It broaches the major themes pursued in the narrative, such as the distinction between ‘racial’ and ‘political’ refugees and MI5’s preoccupation with the surveillance of Communist refugees throughout the 1930s and 1940s. It also evaluates the scope and content of intelligence in the security files which furnish the subject-matter of the book, including the files relating to the major refugee organisations – the Free German League of Culture, the Austrian Centre and the Czech Refugee Trust Fund. The introduction also poses the question: why has this extensive MI5 operation hitherto remained hidden from history?
