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Jul 25, 2006 | ISBN 9780452287471 Buy
Jul 25, 2006 | ISBN 9781440627132 Buy
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Jul 25, 2006 | ISBN 9780452287471
Jul 25, 2006 | ISBN 9781440627132
Sir Francis Walsingham’s official title was principal secretary to Queen Elizabeth I, but in fact this pious, tight-lipped Puritan was England’s first spymaster. A ruthless, fiercely loyal civil servant, Walsingham worked brilliantly behind the scenes to foil Elizabeth’s rival Mary Queen of Scots and outwit Catholic Spain and France, which had arrayed their forces behind her. Though he cut an incongruous figure in Elizabeth’s worldly court, Walsingham managed to win the trust of key players like William Cecil and the Earl of Leicester before launching his own secret campaign against the queen’s enemies. Covert operations were Walsingham’s genius; he pioneered techniques for exploiting double agents, spreading disinformation, and deciphering codes with the latest code-breaking science that remain staples of international espionage.
STEPHEN BUDIANSKY is the author of seventeen books about military history, intelligence and espionage, science, the natural world, and other subjects. His most recent books are Code Warriors: NSA’s Codebreakers and the Secret Intelligence War Against the Soviet Union and Mad Music: Charles Ives, the… More about Stephen Budiansky
Fascinating and superbly written. Walsingham was the CIA’s ‘Wild Bill’ Donovan and George Smiley rolled into one.—The Wall Street Journal
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