SECRET WARFARE
Spies, Special Forces & Resistance
EP.1: THE SPIES OF WWII
VIRGINIA HALL & DUSKO POPOV
In the midst of the fury and horror of World War 2, a secret war was waged in the towns, cities and countryside of Europe. Spy games respected neither borders nor neutrality, and the agents that played them knew that if caught, they would be first interrogated, probably tortured, and then either shot or hanged.
The spies of WWII took on assignments that made hearts hammer and palms grow sweaty, but two of them in particular took them on with such cool-headed swagger that their exploits resound with heroism and adventure.
Virginia Hall was a Gestapo-swerving, jail-breaking, one-legged hero who supported the French Resistance until it was finally time to get out of dodge. Dusko Popov was one of the inspirations for James Bond, a Serbian playboy and womanising double-agent who could have changed the course of the entire war.
Both of them, and all Allied spies like them, fought a different kind of war to the men flying Spitfires or storming the beaches of Normandy, but it was all in the cause of the liberation of Europe from Hitler’s Nazism, and their contribution was just as dangerous and just as great as any soldier, sailor or airman.
EP.2: FRANCIS WALSINGHAM
THE ELIZABETHAN SPYMASTER
16th century England was a seething hotbed of religious rivalry, a cauldron of conspiracies, treason, rebellion, persecution and war. At stake was the life of Queen Elizabeth I, English Protestantism, and England itself.
Into this mix strode Francis Walsingham, Elizabeth's ingenious and pioneering spymaster. He was an expert in subterfuge, a creator of international networks of informants, a code-maker and code-breaker, and agent provocateur.
Without him, its possible England would have become dominated by Spain just as it was about to burst on to the world stage.
Delve into 16th century intrigue and spy games, with Francis Walsingham.
EP.3: THE CULPER RING
“I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.” The last words of Nathan Hale, an American patriot sent to spy on New York by George Washington, but captured by the British and hanged.
George Washington was hit hard and resolved never to use amateurs to do his spying for him again. Instead, he set up the United States' first professional spy network - the Culper Ring.
They saved the critical fort at West Point, uncovered the treachery of Benedict Arnold, saved the newly arrived French under Rochambeau, the new American economy and George Washington himself. I think, they saved the Revolution, and the new United States with it.
EP.4: THE SAS & OPERATION TRENT
In the wake of 9/11, Britain stood shoulder to shoulder with the United States. It joined the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, and soon its special forces were engaged all over the country.
In one mission, the largest concentration of SAS firepower since World War II took on crack al-Qaeda terrorists guarding an elevated, fortified opium factory at the base of a mountain.
The Regiment had to draw on all its expertise to face down hardened, heavily-armed fanatics in a rare, direct-action assault.
EP.5: THE HUNT FOR BIN LADEN
On 9/11, 2001, the United States and the world watched in shocked disbelief as al-Qaeda hijacked passenger airliners were flown directly into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre, causing them to collapse into dust, blood and tears. Nearly 3000 people were killed.
The Pentagon, a symbol of the United States’ military prestige, was hit too, and a final airliner crashed when its heroic passengers fought back against the hijackers.
The experience was searing, enraging, and awakening for the United States, in a way the country hadn’t experienced since Pearl Harbour 60 years before. And like Pearl Harbour, the American military giant now unfurled itself, flexed its muscles and called its friends to assemble.
Just a month later, the United States and its allies retaliated in a massive invasion of Afghanistan, from where the attack was orchestrated and financed. But while the conventional militaries of the coalition overran Afghanistan’s Taliban, what the American people and government wanted most of all was the man who had masterminded 9/11. Revenge would not be considered to have been had until he had been found and brought to justice.
That demand sparked the largest, most expensive, most determined and most far-reaching manhunt the world has ever seen. From the mission control rooms of the CIA, to the barren wastes of the Afghan-Pakistani mountains, the hunt lasted a decade.
EP.6: THE CHINDITS
There was once a group of unsung heroes from World War II, a pioneering band of jungle warfare specialists fighting the Japanese behind enemy lines. This elite force was named after the mythical Burmese beast, the Chinthe, a fearsome blend of eagle and lion. To its commander, Orde Wingate, the Chinthe symbolised his vision of the close co-ordination of air and land forces.
The Chindits braved searing humidity, deadly diseases, impenetrable jungle and the remorseless Japanese army to disrupt the enemy behind their lines, destroy vital bridges and railways, and provoke them into rash decisions from which they could be punished.
The Chindits were responsible for provoking one of the greatest defeats for the Japanese Empire, and the lessons learned greatly enhanced the Allied cause both during and after World War II.
EP.7: ARMINIUS & ROME
THE BATTLE OF THE TEUTOBERG FOREST, 9 AD
The Battle of the Teutoberg Forest in 9 AD was one of Rome's worst ever defeats. Just a few years either side of the death of Christ, the Romans had been subjugating many of the Germanic tribes just east of the Rhine – some by treaty, some by force.
But the Germans resented the encroachment and the will to resist was building.
All they needed was an opportunity to fight back. And soon, there was someone willing to give them one by betraying Roman trust.
In the year 9 AD, three Roman legions would be lured to the Teutoberg Forest, and the result would lead to the Emperor Augustus butting his head against a wall screaming.
EP.8: LAWRENCE OF ARABIA
& THE ARAB REVOLT
The Middle East of WWI was controlled by the Ottoman Empire, but it was beginning to unravel. Arab nationalism was rising, and Britain told them that they would be allowed to establish a new, independent Arab nation following WWI.
So the Arab Revolt broke out. But in secret, Britain also settled on the Sykes-Picot Agreement with France, which divided the area between them instead, leaving nothing for the Arabs.
Into this cauldron of conspiracy strode Lawrence of Arabia, an unconventional archaeologist, writer, romantic, soldier and intelligence officer of the British Army. He was a lover of all things Arabia, and his effect on the Arab Revolt, and the coming post-war geopolitical battleground was profound.
EP.9: THE RESISTANCE OF WWII
In the face of the crushing ideologies of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan, hundreds of thousands of civilians and former soldiers banded together in resistance right across Europe and Asia.
These created tales that need telling, and while some of them are already famous, I want to bring you some of those that are lesser-known but equally gripping.
Much as you’d imagine from WW2, these stories are full of horror and heroism, catastrophe and courage, tragedy and triumph. From daring rescues to audacious assassinations, and everyday people risking death by hiding Jews from Nazi hunters, to young men and women blowing up bridges and laying ambushes.
So get ready for an emotional rollercoaster in this, the final episode of the Bitesize Battles Secret Warfare series, the Resistance of WW2.