Episode 365 – The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, Part 1

November 20, 2020 3 Comments

This week, we begin our exploration of the life and career of Richard Sorge, one of the most famous spies in Japanese (and arguably world) history. We’re beginning this week with the story of his recruitment and his first trip to Asia — a two year posting in Shanghai.

Sources

Matthews, Owen. An Impeccable Spy: Richard Sorge, Stalin’s Master Agent.

Murphy, David E. What Stalin Knew: The Enigma of Barbarossa.

Chapman, John W.M. Richard Sorge, the GRU, and the Pacific War.

Images

Sorge’s birth home in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Richard Sorge (left) and his cousin during their war service.
A group photo of prominent German communists in the 1920s; Sorge is seventh from the left in the standing row.
Agnes Smedley (second from right) with Soong Ching-ling (one of the three Soong sisters; Ching-ling was the one who eventually joined the communist party).
Ozaki Hotsumi, the Japanese journalist who would become one of Sorge’s most important sources.

 

3 thoughts on “Episode 365 – The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, Part 1”

  1. Hi there. Love your show. I just wanted to point out that you did already have an episode called “The Spy Who Came in from the Cold,” Episode 340, about Akashi Motojiro.

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