The Passionate Spies
How Gertrude Bell, St. John Philby, and Lawrence of Arabia Ignited the Arab Revolt
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Skyhorse Publishing
Publishing:26th Feb '26
£13.99
This title is due to be published on 26th February, and will be despatched as soon as possible.
How Gertrude Bell, St. John Philby, and Lawrence of Arabia Ignited the Arab Revolt—and How Saudi Arabia Was Founded.
This is the true story of how three British Secret Service agents from the Arab Bureau in Cairo helped General Edmund Allenby defeat Germany’s ally, the Turks, and end World War I. TE Lawrence, better known as Lawrence of Arabia. reignited a failing Arab Revolt by training and leading a guerrilla force of Arab irregulars to take the port of Aqaba on the Red Sea. The Passionate Spies details the forgotten nomadic life of the Bedouin tribes and their raiding parties; the founding of oil-rich Saudi Arabia led by King Ibn Saud; and his double-agent, the treacherous Major St. John Philby whom spymaster Major Gertrude Bell of the SIS had trained in spy-craft; as well as the critical moment that David Lean featured in his famous film in which young Captain Lawrence discovers a secret back door into the Turkish interior.
Experience the exciting adventure story of how these three British Intelligence officers rekindled the failed Arab Revolt, and also helped to found modern Saudi Arabia. Follow Lawrence of Arabia and the team of Middle Eastern specialists in British Intelligence—chosen by the new Colonial Secretary Winston Churchill in 1921—which included successful travel writer Gertrude Bell, who became the first female officer in Britain’s army.
“John Harte’s book, The Passionate Spies, is important, shedding light on British conspiracy and agents who shaped the Middle East. It focuses on the careers and contributions of three individuals: Gertrude Bell, St. John Philby, and TE Lawrence—better known as Lawrence of Arabia. Skeptics will argue that they have been studied in the past. But never in one book, however, and not with the hindsight of one hundred years, packaged in a gripping manner that will appeal to twenty-first century readers.”
—Sami Moubayed, Steel & Silk; founding chairman of the Damascus History Foundation
“The Passionate Spies by John Harte is an extraordinary and thrilling read about three agents in Britain’s secret service, who organized and led the ‘Arab Revolt’ in 1917, that gave independence to new Arab-speaking nations in the Middle East and founded oil-rich Saudi Arabia. The colorful characters of spymaster Gertrude Bell (the first female officer in the British army), TE Lawrence, the legendary “Lawence of Arabia,” and the astute traitor St. John Philby (father of the notorious KGB double-spy Kim Phiby) are all so dynamic that their heroics are hard to believe. Yet. They are nevertheless true and soundly researched by a perceptive author who depicts them for us in stylish prose. The PassionateSpies is filled with such thrilling twists, turns, surprises, and amazing characters that I found it hard to put down.”
- Steve Harris, America’s Secret History.
ISBN: 9781510784789
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 250g
264 pages