The Shamrock and the Swastika

The German Espionage in Ireland in World War II Shamrock by Carolle J. Carter and the $ 12.95 Incredible and revealing! These words truly describe this thorough, documented study of German espionage in Ireland in World War II and of Eamon De Valera’s battle to keep his country neutral during this crucial period in history. This “spy story” is based on official and unoffi- cial sources, especially captured German files used here extensively for the first time, and on personal interviews with many of the participants—Irish government officials, Irish Republican Army members, and the German agents. It discloses to what extent the IRA collaborated with the Germans in their efforts to achieve na- tionalist goals. And it exposes the incredible, almost unbelievable, bungling of the German Ab- wehr (Military Espionage) in its Irish mission because of internal jealousies, falsified reports, and amateurish agents. Although it may read like a Peter Sellers movie at times, this book, points out one of the chief participants, marks a considerable advance in our knowledge of what really went on publicly and secretly in Ireland in this exciting period. The apparent lack of support in Ireland’s southern twenty-six counties for Britain’s life and death struggle in World War II brought sharp criticism from English and American leaders, as well as many exaggerated tales about the extent of Irish cooperation with Germany and the hospitality ac- corded German spies by the IRA. In fact, the Irish government was unsympathetic toward Germany and sought to suppress the IRA, but few people (continued on back flap) THE SHAMROCK AND THE SWASTIKA The German Espionage in Ireland vy* m^v t in World War II OllCtllll ULK by Carolle J. Carter 1 ^1 and the Pacific Books, Publishers Palo Alto, California Map on page 16 by Duilio Peruzzi. Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Carter, Carolle J 1934- The shamrock and the swastika. Bibliography: p. Includes index. 1. Ireland—Neutrality. 2. Irish Republican Army. 3. World War, 1939-1945—Secret service—Germany. 4. World War, 1939-1945—Diplomatic history. 5. Ireland—History— 1922- 6. World War, 1939-1945 —Ireland. I. Title. D754.I6C37 940.54'87’4309415 76-14103 ISBN 0-87015-221-1 Copyright © 1977 by Carolle J. Carter. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. International Standard Book Number 0-87015-221-1. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 76-14103. Printed and bound in the United States of America. Pacific Books, Publishers P.O. Box 558, Palo Alto, California 94302 To Charles B. Burdick for his guidance and encouragement Foreword Several books and newspaper articles have been published dealing with events in Ireland during the World War, 1939-1945. Most of these have been inaccurate in many matters they purported to describe because the authors had access only to limited sources of information and there was a tendency, perhaps natural, to try to offer explanations based on speculation for things not fully understood, even by those who participated in them. The process of sifting information will go on for many years in the future before a reasonably accurate picture of events and their multiple causes will emerge as official sources become more available. Personal recollections by members of the IRA, and by Ger- man agents active in Ireland during the period have been the basis of most of what has been already published and it is valuable to have had these recorded while the individuals in question were still living. The official files of the Irish and of the British governments are not yet available to historians, but those of the German government were captured almost intact at the end of the War. These records have been put on microfilm and made open for public consultation in the United States. It is true to say that all the German files were not microfilmed but most of the material of Irish interest can now be consulted. The value of Mrs. Carter’s volume depends very largely on these German sources, now used extensively for the first time. Not only has she ex- amined these in great detail but she has used the information she found in them to question by personal interviews a large number of those engaged on one side or another in the Irish scene. Her book, therefore, marks a considerable advance in our knowledge of what went on publicly and secretly in Ireland in this exciting period. She can claim to have used all the sources available at the present time, and she has been care- ful to quote her authorities for nearly all the statements she has made. It is not surprising that there is still much in detailed matters which 8 Foreword seems confusing and at times contradictory. This is due to faulty mem- ories of events now recalled some thirty years later, but some of the contradictions are more apparent than real and one must remember that people relate how things seemed to them at the time they experi- enced them and official papers can for the same reason also mislead because those who made official reports were, at the time, themselves misled. Richard J. Hayes, LL.D., Litt. D. The Chester Beatty Library Dublin, Ireland Preface At the outbreak of World War II, the Allies were startled when the leaders of the twenty-six counties of Southern Ireland announced that their country would remain neutral. Many outsiders believed this so- called neutrality concealed pro-Axis sympathies and, years after the conflict had ended, more than a few have continued to entertain this idea. Americans in particular found it difficult to accept the Irish stand, especially after Pearl Harbor. In order to understand the Irish position, it is necessary to look at her history. Traditionally, internal Irish politics have revolved around a lengthy struggle to free the country from the British. Domestic poli- cies have reflected the fluctuating relations between the two countries, and on occasion some Irish groups have looked to outside powers for support. During World War II both sets of belligerents infringed on Irish neutrality, and every act of espionage, every bomb accidentally dropped on Ireland, affected the Irish political position. Allied reactions to violations varied, however. David Gray, the American ambassador to Ireland, did not think the Irish responded strongly enough to provoca- tion. The British, on the other hand, felt that De Valera would bargain neutrality for an end to partition. Outwardly condemning Ireland, they in fact recognized her active support for the Allied war effort in the form of voluntary enlistments in the armed forces and cooperation in matters of intelligence. The tenuous rapprochement between the an- cient enemies was made easier because certain long-standing differ- ences had been resolved the year before the war broke out. Allied capture of entire offices full of documents during the post- D-Day sweep across Europe has meant that more complete records are available for the German side of this story than for either the British or the American. The confiscated papers included reports sent 1 d Preface by Eduard Hempel, German Minister to Dublin from 1937 to 1945, which made it clear that the German Foreign Office hoped to avoid giving the Irish an excuse to become more pro- Allied than they already were. Nevertheless, Hempel did all he could to keep his superiors in- formed on a variety of other matters ranging from evaluations of Irish diplomats to military information gleaned from informers. Only rarely was anything authenticated. The documents also reveal that within Ger- many, interdepartmental clashes, jealousies, and other bureaucratic limitations to effective communication often made Hempel’s job difficult, particularly at those times when he found it necessary to justify specific violations of Irish neutrality. These conflicts affected not only diplomatic relations between Ireland and the major powers but also the amount of assistance an agent sent to intrude upon that neutrality could expect to receive. In this book, neutrality and the IRA serve as a backdrop for a story of espionage. Although Ireland did not crawl with spies, as many people believed, the Germans tried several times to place agents on the island. Sporadically the IRA attempted to collaborate with them and their masters as a means of achieving nationalistic goals. At the same time, the Germans tried to utilize a number of Irishmen who, for various reasons, found themselves in Germany during the war. None of them altered history. They did not even affect the outcome of the war, although in some cases they made quite an impact upon those who came in contact with them. What is important is how Ireland dealt with them, for therein lies evidence of her true position vis-a-vis the belligerents. Carolle J. Carter Saratoga, California Acknowledgments No story about Ireland as a neutral ally would be meaningful if the writer relied solely on documentary sources. In order to make this story come to life, the author found it necessary to consult those, both Irish and German, who took a part in this story, or were instrumental in policy-making. Without their cooperation, there still would be many unanswered questions. Particularly hospitable and helpful in providing first-hand accounts were Colonel Dan Bryan, Head of Irish Army Intelligence, retired, Commandant James Power, retired, who was in charge of the intern- ment camp at Athlone during the war, Richard J. Hayes, Director of the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin, Colonel Eamonn de Buitlear, former aide-de-camp to President Douglas Hyde, Frederick Boland, Undersecretary of External Affairs during the war years, General Jacob Devers, U.S.

Load more