Spies in the Congo: The Race for the Ore That Built the Atomic Bomb

A thrilling account of the extraordinary efforts of Allied intelligence in gaining control of Belgian Congo's uranium mines and keeping them from Hitler and Stalin. ''Truly remarkable.'' ''A highly informative and valuable historical record.'' ''The first book to tackle this important and overlooked subject.'' ''To have found in the history of the Second World War a million square miles of unfamiliar territory- the Congo- is an achievement in itself. On top of that, her story is thrilling. Even the mundane details are delightful.'' ''Ms Williams pieces together her history in forensic fashion. The result is a gripping, if occasionally dense, work that uncovers a world long cast in shadow ... tells a little-known story, but one with a terribly familiar ring-and ultimately devastating consequences.'' ''[Williams''s] new, meticulously researched book has shades of Graham Greene, a hint of Conrad, even echoes of Indiana Jones ... truly a thriller, in which Williams paints clear and sympathetic pictures of characters thrust into a totally unfamiliar territory.'' ''Williams lays out in fascinating detail how several score US spies went about monitoring whether the Germans were gathering Congolese uranium and preparing to scupper them if so. ... Her account is nuanced but gripping and does a sterling job of delineating a complicated plot while at the same time giving a clear sense of the characters of the major players.'' ''Spies in the Congo is an espionage classic. Scrupulously researched, it illuminates a barely-known aspect of arguably the most significant event of the 20th century, giving fresh perspectives.'' ''The US was determined first to ensure that the Shinkolobwe mine in particular wouldn''t be able to supply Germany with uranium, and then to take control of its whole production. This is the theme of Spies in the Congo. It''s a clever book, because it''s based on almost no explicit evidence ... [Williams] analyses what little evidence there is, much of it only recently released, with great skill.'' ''Williams has pieced together the details of a story so enormous it seems incredible that most people will have heard nothing about it before ... a thrilling tale ... sometimes comical, sometimes tragic, but always riveting.'' ''This is an extraordinary and fascinating story, revealed here with all the detail and pace of a well crafted thriller.'' ''Using recently declassified material, Susan Williams reveals the startling story of the small and colourful band of secret agents who jealously guarded this ore in a game of cat and mouse that may well have been the key to Allied victory.'' ''Williams has greatly advanced our knowledge of the Allied strategic and atomic effort in the Congo as well the unique role of OSS in Africa. She has also provided excellent background as to why so much of the cold war played out in the Congo. Spies in the Congo is an excellent contribution to the history of intelligence, Africa, World War Two and Atomic Power.'' ‘A very well-written book . . . a deep discussion about World War II geopolitics [which brings] these individuals, too many of whom died at a young age, to life.’ Spies in the Congo is the untold story of one of the most tightly-guarded secrets of the Second World War: America''s desperate struggle to secure enough uranium to build its atomic bomb.The Shinkolobwe mine in the Belgian Congo was the most important deposit of uranium yet discovered anywhere on earth, vital to the success of the Manhattan Project. Given that Germany was also working on an atomic bomb, it was an urgent priority for the US to prevent uranium from the Congo being diverted to the enemy - a task entrusted to Washington''s elite secret intelligence agents. Sent undercover to colonial Africa to track the ore and to hunt Nazi collaborators, their assignment was made even tougher by the complex political reality and by tensions with Belgian and British officials. A gripping spy-thriller, Spies in the Congo is the true story of unsung heroism, of the handful of good men -- and one woman -- in Africa who were determined to deny Hitler his bomb.

• | Author: Susan Williams
• | Publisher: C Hurst & Co Publishers Ltd
• | Publication Date: May 31, 2018
• | Number of Pages:
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• | Binding: Paperback / softback
• | ISBN-13: 9781849049528
• | ISBN-10: 1849049521