Overview

"Forward by Winston Churchill. ""The Greatest War Story of All - Takes ranks with 'All Quiet on the Western Front.' Marthe McKenna fulfilled in every respect the conditions which made the terrible profession of a spy dignified and honourable. Dwelling behind the German line within sound of cannon, she continually obtained and sent information of the highest importance to the British Intelligence Authorities. Her tale is a thrilling one the main description of her life and intrigues and adventures is undoubtedly authentic. I was unable to stop reading it until 4am."" Winston Churchill 1932. With her medical studies cut short by the 1914 German invasion, her house burned down and her father arrested for suspected sharpshooting, it was perhaps unsurprising that the multi-lingual Marthe Mckenna (nee Cnockaert, codename Laura) was recruited by British Intelligence. At the time she worked as a nurse tending the wounds of occupying soldiers, and as a waitress in her parents cafe in the Belgian border town of Roulers. 'I Was a Spy!' is McKenna's vivid narrative of these breathtaking adventures as she, aided by a gallant band of loyal locals, goes undercover to sabotage enemy phone lines, report suspicious activity or train movements, and even instigate an aerial attack on a planned visit by the Kaiser. This thrilling account goes on to explain how, in 1916, the young nurse was caught by the Germans placing dynamite in a disused sewer tunnel underneath an ammunition dump. She was sentenced to the firing squad and only survived due to the Iron Cross honour received as a result of her earlier medical service . McKenna was later mentioned by Douglas Haig in British Despatches and was awarded the French and Belgian Orders of the Legion of Honour for her espionage work."" 15 photos"

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9781910860038

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Reviews

Enid Blyton meets James Bond in a rip-roaring memoir. -- Arifa Akbar The Independent 17/02/2016 This re-issue of a gripping tale of the wartime adventures of a legendary heroine, perhaps ranking alongside the legendary Violette Szabo, is one to be welcomed. Churchill was not the only one who could not stop reading this until 4am! -- Andy Saunders Britain at War Magazine 17/02/2016 'Straight out of Boys' Own Paper! I was reading stories like this in my comics in the 1950s, never quite able to believe that such things actually happened, and that such people actually really existed!' -- Paul Norman Books Monthly 17/02/2016 Written at an electric pace ... McKenna's is an unremitting adventure -- Hang Deretz All About History 17/02/2016 A brilliant first-hand Account of the career of one of the greatest spies of World War I. -- Dr John Rickard History of War 17/02/2016

Author Information

"In addition to receiving the Iron Cross from the Germans for her wartime contribution as a nurse, Marthe Mckenna (nee Cnockaert, codename 'Laura') was later mentioned by Douglas Haig in British Despatches and was awarded the French and Belgian Orders of the Legion of Honour for her espionage work. I Was A Spy! was first published in 1932 with an extended Foreword by Winston Churchill and was made into a film in 1933 directed by Victor Saville and starring Madeleine Carroll. The success of the book encouraged Marthe to write further memoirs of her wartime exploits, and those of her small band of fellow spies, and also led to a series of espionage novels written in collaboration with her British husband John ""Jock"" McKenna."

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