A Balancing Act : British Intelligence in Spain During the Second World War

This book reveals the development, strategy and extraordinary success of Britain's secret services in Franco's Spain during the second World War. The main claim of this study is that British pressure, exercised above all through their intelligence services, led Franco to distance himself from the Axis cause and eventually embrace that of the Allies. Spy networks--including those of the Germans, Italians, Portuguese, and British--proliferated in the Iberian Peninsula. The British exploited this two-way traffic to let Franco know that if he did not accede to their demands, they would back a restoration of the Bourbon monarchy under Don Juan. This pressure culminated in the meeting of 1943 between Franco and the British Ambassador, Sir Samuel Hoare, the British underlining their purpose by flying warplanes close by the estate. Following this meeting, Franco began to move away from the Axis powers and towards the Allies. [Subject: History, WWII, Military History, Spanish Studies, British Secret Service]