Secret War - Short Synopsis

SECRET WAR

Short Synopsis

Secret War is the true story of a Greek espionage organization during the Nazi occupation, written by its founder and leader, Rigas Rigopoulos. It spans the period of Occupation from April 1941 to October 1944 and historical events up to May 1945.

The Prologue describes the Greek and British retreat from Greece in the Spring of 1941. At that time Rigopoulos miraculously escaped death twice, the first while heading south with other Greek officers to avoid capture by the Germans, and the second while helping British troops escape to their fleet via Greek fishing boats. After a last battle with German parachutists dropped in the Southern coast, he returned to Athens feeling humiliated by being obliged to succumb to the conqueror’s orders, his thoughts dominated by the necessity of a reaction.

Part 1. Preparations

The book begins with a description of “an unusual Athens,” that is, Athens under Occupation. Part 1 relates the complex series of events that led Rigopoulos to find Paliatseas, a wireless set operator, and Menegatos, a liaison for the British Intelligence Service, and thus establish radio contact with the Allied services abroad. These chapters tell of the failed initial attempts to get resistance activity started, the fundamental formation of information nets, and the agony of waiting night after night for confirmation from abroad that their initial radio message had been received before starting regular transmissions of information vital to the resistance.

Part 2. In Action

Part 2 describes how Service 5-16-5 was formed, how it operated, and the types of information it provided to the Allies. The main story in these chapters is that of the young lawyer Alexander Kairis, who has been eventually executed by the Germans. His heroism stemmed not only from what he did, but also from how he withstood the rejection of his friends who believed he was a Nazi collaborator. Kairis worked in the German Headquarters of Southern Greece where he regularly took documents from the secret archives about the Germans’ military plans. These documents, together with the activities of the organization’s Harbor and Technical Divisions, helped Service 5-16-5 provide the Allies with information that contributed to the sinking of 55 ships used by the Germans, damage to German fortifications, sabotage, and avoidance of mine fields by Allied ships.

Just before Easter 1943, the activities of Service 5-16-5 were detected by the Germans. The liaison Menegatos was arrested and important documents fell into the enemy’s hands. Soon after, wireless set operator Paliatseas was also arrested. Both were executed by the Germans along with two others, the skipper of one of the caïques used by the organization to transfer information to the Allies and a liaison to the British Headquarters.

Rigopoulos immediately contacted Kairis, who could be easily identified as the source of the documents the Germans found in Menegatos’ possession. He warned, begged, and ordered Kairis not to return to his work at the German headquarters. But Kairis replied, “From the moment we started this struggle, I never believed we would survive. They are very strong and are everywhere around us. The only question now is how to offer more before we die. This is the only important thing.”

When Kairis returned to his work the day after Easter, he was immediately arrested. After three trials in which he was defended by the counsel to the Archbishop of Greece, Kairis was executed by the Germans on November 2, 1943. The last member of Service 5-16-5 to be executed was Peter Drakopoulos, a pilot officer in the Piraeus harbor.

Part 3. The Pursuit

Part 3 tells of Rigopoulos’ escape from the Gestapo as they closed in on him. For three months he hid in the house of a retired Admiral on a small street before they found out where he was. However, they had discovered only the street, not the exact house in which he was hiding. The Germans positioned armored vehicles at both ends of the block and searched the houses.

When the Admiral saw the street blocked, he asked, “What are you going to do?” Rigopoulos answered that he would go out in such a way that the Germans would not know where he had come from, thus keeping the Admiral and his family safe. The Admiral said, “Tell me, on your word of honor as a fighter for Greece and for the liberation of this country, what you would do if we were not here and didn’t face this danger for our lives?”

Rigopoulos patted his two revolvers and replied, “I would remain here and, if necessary, fight for my life.” The old Admiral answered, “And this is exactly what you are going to do.” So Rigopoulos stayed in the Admiral’s house. By some miracle the Germans left without knocking on their door.

Part 4. The Conspiracy

Rigopoulos escaped to Turkey in July 1943. Menegatos had told him of the two rival factions of the British services: the Special Operations Executive (SOE) operating out of Cairo, and the Balkan Intelligence Center (BIC) operating out of Istanbul. Menegatos (and thus Service 5-16-5) was working with the BIC, and Menegatos told Rigopoulos that if he ever needed direct contact with the British Services, he should ask only to meet the British officer “Major Hadjis” in Istanbul. No one else should be trusted.

When Rigopoulos reported to the British Consulate in Izmir he unknowingly came into contact with SOE agents. They told him that there was no Major Hadjis, that this was just a password of sorts. They sent him to Cairo, where they treated him royally but interrogated him for four days. In that time Rigopoulos became convinced that these officials were completely ignorant of the activities of Service 5-16-5.

When they finally let him go, Rigopoulos requested new wireless sets so that he could return to Greece and continue his work. The SOE claimed they never allowed organizations that had been partially caught to continue. This was a lie, rooted in the SOE’s rivalry with the BIC. Only after Liberation did Rigopoulos discover the true secret of the conspiracy from a British officer who had served with the real “Major Hadjis” in Istanbul.

Part 5. The Final Reckoning

The book ends with a meeting at which Rigopoulos gathered the surviving members of the organization. Only then did most learn that he was the Chief of Service 5-16-5. Rigopoulos related how he regretted turning down British financial support when they offered it in the beginning, and how he was later duped by the SOE. Had he accepted money, he felt, perhaps the British would have had more invested in Service 5-16-5 and would have let it continue. “The British would have difficulty terminating the activity of an organization which had cost them money,” he told his fellow companions bitterly. “Ours had cost naught but human lives.”

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