The legendary spy Kim Philby sent caviar and fur coats home to Britain while living in the USSR, and in return received his favorite sweets from undercover students. Izvestia learned about this by examining the intelligence officer’s personal archive and talking with his granddaughter Charlotte.
Philby was among the leaders of British intelligence and remained undisclosed for three whole decades, and his personal correspondence, which was kept in a Moscow apartment, even longer.
It is noted that one day a little girl from England admitted that she decided to express her admiration secretly from her parents, and a young man from Poland joked that knowledgeable comrades from MI6 would now close his entry to the West for a letter to Kim.
Philby has been married four times. They had no children with Rufina Pukhova, and from their second marriage, three sons and two daughters remained in their homeland. They did not know anything about his secret life, and the exposure was a big blow to them. John, Josephine and Miranda continued to warmly communicate with their father even after the incident – this, in particular, can be seen from the preserved postcards from various countries. They traveled a lot and on the cards they sent, they mainly shared their impressions of what they saw. In her messages, Josephine referred to Kim as “dear daddy.” And John came to his funeral in 1988.
Caught in a folder with documents saved by people from the inner circle, and a card with a picture from Charlotte’s granddaughter: “Grandfather Kimsky, I love you.”
“I think that studying his legacy for me was an attempt to understand the man behind his mask. To understand how a person chooses between family and ideology, how a double life affects him, ”Charlotte shared with Izvestia.
In addition, Philby’s granddaughter said that her new book entitled “Edith and Kim” will be published in March, telling about Edith Tudor-Hart, the woman who introduced Kim to his future Soviet handler Arnold Deutsch in 1934, after recommending him to recruit. It will feature adapted letters he sent to his family from Moscow and from his dacha from the 1960s until his death in 1988.
Read more in the exclusive Izvestia article:
Red caviar: what was hidden in the home archive of the legendary spy Kim Philby
Source: IZ
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
