Manci Howard, Lady Howard of Effingham
Encyclopedia
Maria Malvina Howard, Lady Howard of Effingham née Gertler (born 26 December 1912, date of death unknown) was the first wife of Lord Howard of Effingham (later the 6th Earl of Effingham), eldest son of the 5th Earl of Effingham
, interned for several months as a threat to Britain's security during the Second World War
. She was described by Lord Cottenham of MI5
as "highly sexed". She used a Hungarian diminutive of Maria: "Manci".
, the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary
, which then formed part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Like the Regent of Hungary, Admiral Miklós Horthy
, she was a member of the Protestant minority in Hungary. A file prepared by MI5 suggested that she was of Jewish descent. Her father had acquired Polish citizenship after Poland
regained its independence in 1918, and she subsequently obtained a Polish passport on which it was stated that she was born in 1908.
She married Lord Howard of Effingham in 1938. The head of the counter-espionage section of MI5, Captain, later Major, Maxwell Knight
, described the union as a "purely business arrangement", providing her with British nationality and a title, and Lord Howard of Effingham with money.
The money came from to her from her lover, Édouard Stanislaus Weisblat, also known as Edward Stanislas Weisblatt, a Polish Jew who was married to a Russian and who was alleged to have made his fortune selling boats to the Republican government during the Spanish Civil War
.
The files reveal that Lord Cottenham, of MI5, who met her once over a few drinks, described her as "a not unattractive Gypsy gamin type; highly sexed, I should say". She called him "the Professor".
As early as 1938 Stewart Menzies
, soon to head MI6, reported that he had been told that Lady Howard of Effingham was "suspected of being a spy" by the staff of Antoine's, a hairdresser in London, and that she was seen perusing a "secret report" while at that establishment. The suspicion, the report added, "is apparently based on her general behaviour".
With appropriate euphemism, MI5 alleged that she was on "familiar terms" with Ivan Maisky, the Soviet Ambassador, on "affectionate and intimate terms" with the Turkish Ambassador, while seeing "a considerable amount" of the Egyptian Envoy in London, Nushet Pasha. One of her "closest friendships" was said to be with Habib Lotfallah, a Christian businessman. Her contacts included a Major Mitchell (an officer at the War Office) and Randolph Churchill
's Hungarian cook.
Despite having no evidence against Lady Howard of Effingham, the files show how Maxwell Knight pursued her. Major Knight reported that "our latest information ... points to the fact that she may well be employed directly or indirectly by the Germans". According to Knight, the French security service had warned MI5 that Weisblat was "in contact" with Otto Wolf, a German charterer and arms dealer in The Netherlands
, who was believed to be in contact with German intelligence. It was also believed that he was, at the same time, a French agent and an agent for Soviet intelligence.
Weisblat resided in the French Republic and had French citizenship
. The Vichy
government stripped him of his French citizenship. He escaped to Portugal
and then to Brazil
. There was evidence that he had contacts with the Soviet intelligence service, but the USSR became an ally of the UK after the German invasion in 1941. MI5 received information from a "Spanish source" that a "Gestapo
agent" called "Edouard Weisblat" would leave Portugal and attempt to enter the USA from Brazil.
Lord Swinton
, head of the Home Office Security Executive, described her as "clearly a most undesirable woman against whom a Deportation Order would certainly be made if she were not married to an Englishman".
Lady Howard of Effingham was interned in February 1941 on the grounds that she was involved in the "preparation of acts prejudicial to the public safety or the defence of the realm" and held in Holloway prison. She appealed, declaring: "There is nothing I would not do for this country." She was released three months later following the recommendation of the Home Office's Advisory Committee to Consider Appeals Against Orders of Internment, chaired by Norman Birkett, KC, as the information was insufficient to satisfy the Home Secretary of the requirements laid down in the regulations. She divorced Lord Howard of Effingham (who succeeded as 6th Earl of Effingham shortly afterwards) in 1945 and travelled to Brazil
(where her new partner, a Brazilian diplomat, lived) and Australia
(where her new partner had been posted), attempting to raise funds in Brazil and Australia to send food parcels to Britain. She left Australia and is believed to have married the Brazilian diplomat, who was posted to Sweden
.
She was sometimes confused with her stepmother-in-law, Madeleine, Countess of Effingham, the US-born second wife of the 5th Earl of Effingham.
Gordon Howard, 5th Earl of Effingham
Gordon Frederick Henry Charles Howard, 5th Earl of Effingham was an English peer and member of the House of Lords. The son of Hon...
, interned for several months as a threat to Britain's security during the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. She was described by Lord Cottenham of MI5
MI5
The Security Service, commonly known as MI5 , is the United Kingdom's internal counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its core intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service focused on foreign threats, Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence...
as "highly sexed". She used a Hungarian diminutive of Maria: "Manci".
Biography
She was born Maria Malvina Gertler in BudapestBudapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, which then formed part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Like the Regent of Hungary, Admiral Miklós Horthy
Miklós Horthy
Miklós Horthy de Nagybánya was the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary during the interwar years and throughout most of World War II, serving from 1 March 1920 to 15 October 1944. Horthy was styled "His Serene Highness the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary" .Admiral Horthy was an officer of the...
, she was a member of the Protestant minority in Hungary. A file prepared by MI5 suggested that she was of Jewish descent. Her father had acquired Polish citizenship after Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
regained its independence in 1918, and she subsequently obtained a Polish passport on which it was stated that she was born in 1908.
She married Lord Howard of Effingham in 1938. The head of the counter-espionage section of MI5, Captain, later Major, Maxwell Knight
Maxwell Knight
Charles Henry Maxwell Knight OBE, known as Maxwell Knight, was an English spymaster, naturalist and broadcaster, whilst reputedly being a model for the James Bond character M.-Spymaster:...
, described the union as a "purely business arrangement", providing her with British nationality and a title, and Lord Howard of Effingham with money.
The money came from to her from her lover, Édouard Stanislaus Weisblat, also known as Edward Stanislas Weisblatt, a Polish Jew who was married to a Russian and who was alleged to have made his fortune selling boats to the Republican government during the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
.
The files reveal that Lord Cottenham, of MI5, who met her once over a few drinks, described her as "a not unattractive Gypsy gamin type; highly sexed, I should say". She called him "the Professor".
As early as 1938 Stewart Menzies
Stewart Menzies
Major General Sir Stewart Graham Menzies, KCB, KCMG, DSO, MC was Chief of MI6 , British Secret Intelligence Service, during and after World War II.-Early life, family:...
, soon to head MI6, reported that he had been told that Lady Howard of Effingham was "suspected of being a spy" by the staff of Antoine's, a hairdresser in London, and that she was seen perusing a "secret report" while at that establishment. The suspicion, the report added, "is apparently based on her general behaviour".
With appropriate euphemism, MI5 alleged that she was on "familiar terms" with Ivan Maisky, the Soviet Ambassador, on "affectionate and intimate terms" with the Turkish Ambassador, while seeing "a considerable amount" of the Egyptian Envoy in London, Nushet Pasha. One of her "closest friendships" was said to be with Habib Lotfallah, a Christian businessman. Her contacts included a Major Mitchell (an officer at the War Office) and Randolph Churchill
Randolph Churchill
Major Randolph Frederick Edward Spencer-Churchill, MBE was the son of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and his wife Clementine. He was a Conservative Member of Parliament for Preston from 1940 to 1945....
's Hungarian cook.
Despite having no evidence against Lady Howard of Effingham, the files show how Maxwell Knight pursued her. Major Knight reported that "our latest information ... points to the fact that she may well be employed directly or indirectly by the Germans". According to Knight, the French security service had warned MI5 that Weisblat was "in contact" with Otto Wolf, a German charterer and arms dealer in The Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, who was believed to be in contact with German intelligence. It was also believed that he was, at the same time, a French agent and an agent for Soviet intelligence.
Weisblat resided in the French Republic and had French citizenship
Citizenship
Citizenship is the state of being a citizen of a particular social, political, national, or human resource community. Citizenship status, under social contract theory, carries with it both rights and responsibilities...
. The Vichy
Vichy
Vichy is a commune in the department of Allier in Auvergne in central France. It belongs to the historic province of Bourbonnais.It is known as a spa and resort town and was the de facto capital of Vichy France during the World War II Nazi German occupation from 1940 to 1944.The town's inhabitants...
government stripped him of his French citizenship. He escaped to Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
and then to Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. There was evidence that he had contacts with the Soviet intelligence service, but the USSR became an ally of the UK after the German invasion in 1941. MI5 received information from a "Spanish source" that a "Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
agent" called "Edouard Weisblat" would leave Portugal and attempt to enter the USA from Brazil.
Lord Swinton
Philip Cunliffe-Lister, 1st Earl of Swinton
Philip Cunliffe-Lister, 1st Earl of Swinton GBE, CH, MC, PC , known as Philip Lloyd-Greame until 1924 and as The Viscount Swinton from 1935 until 1955, was a prominent British Conservative politician from the 1920s until the 1950s.-Background and early life:Born as Philip Lloyd-Graeme, he was the...
, head of the Home Office Security Executive, described her as "clearly a most undesirable woman against whom a Deportation Order would certainly be made if she were not married to an Englishman".
Lady Howard of Effingham was interned in February 1941 on the grounds that she was involved in the "preparation of acts prejudicial to the public safety or the defence of the realm" and held in Holloway prison. She appealed, declaring: "There is nothing I would not do for this country." She was released three months later following the recommendation of the Home Office's Advisory Committee to Consider Appeals Against Orders of Internment, chaired by Norman Birkett, KC, as the information was insufficient to satisfy the Home Secretary of the requirements laid down in the regulations. She divorced Lord Howard of Effingham (who succeeded as 6th Earl of Effingham shortly afterwards) in 1945 and travelled to Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
(where her new partner, a Brazilian diplomat, lived) and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
(where her new partner had been posted), attempting to raise funds in Brazil and Australia to send food parcels to Britain. She left Australia and is believed to have married the Brazilian diplomat, who was posted to Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
.
She was sometimes confused with her stepmother-in-law, Madeleine, Countess of Effingham, the US-born second wife of the 5th Earl of Effingham.
External links
- Penniless 'spy' who slept her way to the top (with picture) http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/09/04/narchive04.xml
- http://www.guardian.co.uk/secondworldwar/story/0,,1864240,00.html
- Files in the (British) National Archives:http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/releases/2006/september/4sep06.htm
- Files in National Archives of Australia on "Countess of Effingham": http://naa12.naa.gov.au/scripts/ItemDetail.asp?M=0&B=857000