The Magnificent Five

Kim Philby, Donald Maclean, Guy Burgess, Anthony Blunt and John Cairncross met while studying at Cambridge University and caught the attention of Prof. Arnold Deutsch, who at the time was the recruiter of agents for the Soviet Union. The World was changing and the 1930's were seeing massive changes in World power than ever before. The rise of the Facists in Europe was on the minds of the leaders of the Soviet Union, Britain, and the USA.

It was under this pretence that the five were recruited, to save the World from Facism. But as Europe went to war dragging the rest of the World in behind it, the spy arena had also changed. Now the five were invloved in giving their master's details on the British war effort. From their positions of trust in the Foreign Office, MI6 and the secret radio station at Bletchley Park. John Cairncross was based there, his high intellect gained him entry to the top secret plans and knowledge of the Germans Eastern Front Defences along with troop movements that had been decoded from transmissions using the Enigma device, this alone probably enabled the Russians to stop the Germans and begin the long push back. It could have been the turning point in World history as we know it.

At the war's end, a more serious battle began - the Cold War, a war of nerves and a war of spies. The five could have been the best ring of spies ever, if it was not for a touch of bad luck, for it was not until the 1950's when the USA had finally completed the decoding of all the war time radio interceptions, and it was here when they first started to notice a pattern of events that led right to Burgess and Maclean.

Maclean, was the weaker of the two, after suffering a nervous breakdown in Cairo, coupled with a serious drinking problem, the five knew that he would not survive an interrogation. Burgess had to get himself sent back from America as not to draw attention to himself, he went on a speeding rampage through State lines getting stopped by several State Troopers, to whom he was extremely rude, this was enough, he returned to England in disgrace. Now he was able to meet up with Maclean and travel to France via the Channel ports and then, they just disappeared into the European mainland and on to Russia.

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