The London Cage – The Secret History of Britain`s World War II Interrogation Centre

I knew about the London cage and had read about other prisoner of war camps in the U.K which held some really nasty people. The book does not come up with a definitive answer regarding what went on in the cage but leaves the reader to decide whether they went to far or not. Personally I think they did a good job in difficult times.

The London Cage is certainly an interesting analysis of a intriguing component of the British Intelligence operation during the Second World War, which offers an enlightening expose of its operations. It has not however, been a 'secret' for 70 years, nor do comments on the London Cage such as such as 'shocking' or 'controversial' add any value to the debate, whilst attempts to compare it to the actions of the Gestapo are quite frankly, improper. Observations on key characters and a description of the site are illuminating, activities supported by a wealth of detail, although errors and confusion relating to military terminology is frustrating.What is missing is the contextual. One is left with the distinct impression that the actions of the players are judged by the standards of 2016, whilst the critical imperatives, which drove the existence of the Cage, including National survival in the defining campaigns of the night blitz and the Battle of the Atlantic, in which hundreds of British Empire service personnel and civilians were being killed every week, is but a mute background mural. One key aspect though, is briefly introduced: the impact of the London Cage upon Allied operations, through the acquisition of information relating to Germany's industrial capability. The study of how the output of the London Cage influenced Allied military, economic and political decisions must be ripe for examination and this book certainly provides the initiator to assess how effective the London Cage was.

My problem with this book is the fact that the authoress twice refers to the 80 men who escaped from Sagan. I understand 76 escaped , according to Paul Brickhill, who was there. Also she refers to the 'Wooden Horse' escape in chapter 12 and states 'it was an ingenious escape plan and almost succeeded but the airmen were recaptured and warned....'. The three men who escaped were not all airmen and I say 'escaped' because they did so successfully and were not recaptured (I have read somewhere that it had been tried at a camp for Army officers and failed but the Abwehr didn't communicate this to Luftwaffe run camps due to the rivalry between the German forces). Makes me wonder about the accuracy of the rest of the book.

This compelling and revealing latest book by Dr Helen Fry on the workings of MI19 is thoroughly researched and referenced. The London Cage was a secret interrogation centre located in Kensington Palace Gardens and supported by eight other cages in the UK during WW II. Led by Col. Scotland who personally selected and trained his interrogators they gleaned valuable intelligence for the war effort, although the prisoners treatment was thought to be controversial. Col. Scotland had previously served in the Boer War and WW I and personally experienced lengthy interrogation and solitary confinement himself. He was adamant that only 'soft' interrogation techniques worked. However Dr Fry is able to reveal the 'truth' about the use of truth drugs. Was this why The London Cage was shrouded in secrecy for more than 70 years? The interrogators converted into war crime investigators and identified and hunted down war criminals that committed atrocities against British soldiers retreating to Dunkirk and Airmen who were shot having escaped from Stalag Luft III. The London Cage (which continued in use until 1948) is part of a trilogy of books by Dr Fry on the successful workings of MI19. The others being Spymaster: The Secret Life of Kendrick and The M Room. This is the best so far.

This book covers a subject which some would not like to Know ! However we were not saints and we could have been a lot worse, and as some said "History is writtern by the Victors"

This is a good read shining a bright light into the dark corners of the London Cage. It is well researched and Colonel Scotland comes across as a man of his time, the right man in the right place at the right time - like Churchill.. Helen like I was uneasy about the alleged treatment of some prisoners which was never fully clarified due to public documents being unavailable, mislaid or conveniently destroyed. However times were very different then and very few complaints of ill treatment were made from inmates as they transited through the cage. One must also not forget that Scotland was dealing with feral psychopaths who were quite compliant to take part in a mass killing machine. Arguably one could argue a version of the Spanish Inquisition would have been more appropriate. Happily this was not required as Scotland skillfully persuaded most of his 'guests' to make voluntary statements which were cross referenced to get at the truth. Highly recommended.

This book gives you an insight to the war behind closed doors . Gathering information to help bring the war to an end and bring the leaders to justice who committed war crimes. But there is a lot of questions left unanswered.

This book was spoilt by being interrupted and jumping ahead at least twice and I haven't got round to starting it again.