A professor of politics at St. Mary's College of California and author of a study of WWII-era codes, Alvarez emphasizes diplomatic relations throughout much of this carefully considered blend of Vatican and intelligence history, though he does detail the careers of several spies and works in some cryptology. The opening chapter details the Vatican's cooperation with European monarchies against burgeoning revolutionary movements, as well as depicting the Italian police commissioner who spied on the pope for the Italian crown. The creation of an intelligence department in the Vatican by Umberto Benigni takes Alvarez to the beginnings of WWI, which found the nation courting Italy through the Vatican (Italy joined the Allies in mid-1915); the German spy Valente cuts a noteworthy figure here. After WWI, the Vatican covertly supported the Russian Orthodox Church against the newly founded Soviet Union. The Vatican's relations with Fascist Italy under Mussolini included the pope's support of anti-Nazi German resistance activities; Alvarez also recounts the activities of German agent Father Michael in staid tones. The best WWII story concerns Alexander Kurtna, a convert from the Russian Orthodox Church who studied at the Vatican and became a Soviet spy in 1940. As a double agent working for the Germans, Kurtna was arrested by the Italians, who thought he was only a Soviet agent, in 1942. Freed by the Germans in 1943, he worked for the Soviets while posing as a German agent in 1944, was arrested by the Italian government now allied with the Allies, released and ended up in a Soviet labor camp. The book's last section proposes that Allied governments knew of the Holocaust earlier than the Vatican did, a stance counter to most recent scholarship. While the title and subtitle indicate "trade book," most of the discussion builds on a footnoted case; casual readers will have to pick through to the few thrills. (Nov.) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
This well-documented study covers two centuries of espionage in the Vatican, including the Catholic Church's supposedly far-reaching intelligence network. Alvarez counters the popular perception of a powerful secret organization by arguing that the Church has little staff, expertise, funds, equipment, or even desire to participate actively in the secret world. The 19th century saw what was perhaps the Church's most active intelligence efforts, as it was beset by deadly political turmoil, threats against the Popes, and the elimination of the Papal States. In fact, most of the espionage activity seems to have involved other governments trying to ferret out what international policies the Popes would follow, but the Church's small, tight, close-mouthed bureaucracy has been its best defense. Naturally, the Vatican's controversial actions during World War II have garnered the most public interest, a period Alvarez covered in Nothing Sacred: Nazi Espionage Against the Vatican, 1939-1945. The author concludes that the Vatican recognizes its limitations and depends on the kindness of others for information and protection. This reviewer hopes for a similar volume on the postwar years. Suitable for the espionage collections of all libraries. (Index not seen.)-Daniel K. Blewett, Coll. of DuPage Lib., Glen Ellyn, IL Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
"In a narrative that is both lively and authoritative, Alvarez demonstrates that the much-vaunted intelligence capability of the Vatican was more myth than reality."—Catholic Historical Review
"This interesting, informative, and objective study provides a survey of diplomatic events during an eventful century and a half. Among other things, it sheds light on the revolutionary events of the first half of the nineteenth century, the unifications of Italy and Germany, the collapse of the temporal power, the First and Second World Wars, the Holocaust, and the opening of the cold war. In the process, Alvarez dispels the myth that the Vatican was extraordinarily well informed about events worldwide and possessed one of the best intelligence networks."—International History Review
"A tour de force, a remarkable achievement, elegantly written, likely to remain the definitive account of the matters it touches on for years to come."—The Heytrop Journal
"A wonderful surprise. . . . Alvarez drew heavily upon Vatican archives accumulated by a Jesuit priest, Father Robert Graham, before Rome snatched them back into secrecy. . . . [He] convincingly establishes that the Vatican’s intelligence service, rather than making the pope ‘the best informed of the world’s leaders,’ as some statesmen have claimed, was no such thing. . . . authentic debunking book [in the field of intelligence]."—Washington Times
"A lucid analysis of the intelligence activities centering around the Vatican from the pontificate of Pius VII to that of Pius XII. . . . The intelligence operatives described by Alvarez seem frequently inept but are always colorful. Recommended for all levels and collections."—Choice
"A tale of intrigue, the double cross, rogues, popes, and high-level espionage."—Virginia Quarterly Review
“A must read for anyone interested in the inside workings of the Vatican in modern times.”—J. Michael Phayer, author of The Catholic Church and the Holocaust, 1930–1945
“People have long contended that the Vatican possesses the world’s best intelligence network. But is it so? Intelligence historian David Alvarez here probes this myth with impeccable scholarship, exceptional insight, and great literary vigor. An outstanding book.”—David Kahn, author of Hitler’s Spies and The Codebreakers
“In a grand tour of intrigue in and by the Vatican, David Alvarez quickly disabuses the reader of the notion that the Papal leadership and the Catholic hierarchy were focused solely on the spiritual world.”—Warren F. Kimball, author of Forged in War: Roosevelt, Churchill, and the Second World War
