Empires of Spymasters The Secret War Between the British Empire and Imperial Japan, 1900–1941

by Dimitrakis, Panagiotis

• ISBN13: 9781398124370
• ISBN10: 1398124370
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2026-01-01
• Publisher: Amberley Publishing

Summary

‘The Empire is the Master [in the Far East] and they are the guests,’ Yamagata Aritomo, the chief imperial strategist of Tokyo, once remarked. From the early 1900s, Imperial Japan aimed for hegemony in the Far East. The resourceful and independent-minded Japanese spymasters focused on acquiring intelligence of advanced naval and aviation technology. In London, the War Office and the Foreign Office opted for an alliance treaty with Japan. Nonetheless strategists soon realized that Tokyo was antagonizing Britain in the Far East. The British Empire was deemed weak and overextended. Officials assumed that avoiding confrontation with Japan was the only choice. Britain condoned Japanese aggression in China. Indeed, pro-Japanese bias influenced official policy at the highest levels. Only the spymasters of the Secret Intelligence Service, the Admiralty and the Security Service, recruiting spies in Japan and the Far East, unveiled the Japanese hostile intent against the British Empire.

Author Biography

Panagiotis Dimitrakis is an historian and completed his PhD in War Studies at King's College London. He was educated at the Department of Mass Media and Communication of the University of Athens and received an MA in International Peace and Security from King's College London. His interests lie in the history of international diplomacy, intelligence and strategy. He lives in Athens, Greece.