Anatoly Gorsky
Encyclopedia
Anatoly Veniaminovich Gorsky (Анатолий Вениаминович Горский) ( ca. 1907 - 1980), was a Soviet
spy
who, under cover as First Secretary "Anatoly Borisovich Gromov" of the Soviet Embassy in Washington, was secretly rezident in the United States at the end of World War II.
in 1928 and worked in the internal political police. In 1936 he transferred to foreign intelligence and was sent to England as cipher clerk and assistant to the London rezident. During the Great Purges of 1939 the London rezidentura was liquidated, and in March 1940 Gorsky was recalled to Moscow. Gorsky survived the purges and was appointed London rezident in November 1940, during the Hitler-Stalin pact. In London his first cover was attaché, then second secretary of the Soviet embassy.
As London rezident Gorsky took over managing eighteen agents, including the Cambridge Five
, and the initial Soviet
penetration of the British atomic bomb project. The London rezidentura consisted of only three people. By the end of the war there were twelve operational workers. In the heaviest period of war, from 1941 to 1942 the London rezidentura was the basic information source of Soviet operations on Germany and countries of the anti-Hitler coalition. More than 10 thousand documentary materials along political, economic, military and other questions were sent from the London rezidentura to Moscow.
In September 1941 the London rezidentura obtained and sent to Moscow documentary materials on work in Great Britain and the USA on the creation of nuclear weapons and supplied a constant stream of information. During January 1944 Gorsky returned to Moscow after the completion of this mission and was assigned deputy division head.
in 1944, Gorsky was appointed rezident in the United States. The Federal Bureau of Investigation identified him the following year when, at the direction of the Bureau, defecting Soviet courier Elizabeth Bentley
met under FBI surveillance with Gorsky, whom she knew as "Al."
When FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover informed Sir William Stephenson, head of British intelligence in the western hemisphere, of Bentley’s defection, the head of British counter-espionage against the Soviet Union—-Soviet agent Kim Philby
of the Cambridge spy ring
—-promptly alerted Soviet intelligence. Moscow cabled all U.S. station chiefs to “cease immediately their connection with all persons known to Bentley in our work [and] to warn the agents about Bentley’s betrayal.” The cable specifically ordered Gorsky to cease meeting with Harold Glasser
, Donald Wheeler
, Alan Rosenberg, Charles Kramer
, Victor Perlo
, Helen Tenney
, Maurice Halperin
, Lauchlin Currie
, and others.
Gorsky sent a long memorandum to Moscow discussing the best way to kill Bentley. He considered shooting, poisoning, faking an accident or faking her suicide, suggesting that the job might be assigned to Joseph Katz
. Within two months of the meeting, Gorsky had been recalled to Moscow, along with Iskhak Akhmerov
and others.
document in which he listed 43 Soviet sources and intelligence officers likely to be identified to American authorities by Bentley after her defection, including Alger Hiss
, Harry White
and Lauchlin Currie
.
In 1953 Gorsky shifted to internal security work. For successful work in the United States Gorsky obtained the rank of Colonel and in 1945 was awarded the Order of the Patriotic War
. He also received the Order of the Red Banner
, the Order of the Red Banner of Labour
, the Order of the Badge of Honor
, and the Red Star
.
Chronology of Soviet secret police agencies
There was a succession of Soviet secret police agencies over time. The first secret police after the Russian Revolution, created by Vladimir Lenin's decree on December 20, 1917, was called "Cheka"...
spy
Espionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
who, under cover as First Secretary "Anatoly Borisovich Gromov" of the Soviet Embassy in Washington, was secretly rezident in the United States at the end of World War II.
Career
Gorsky joined the Soviet secret policeChronology of Soviet secret police agencies
There was a succession of Soviet secret police agencies over time. The first secret police after the Russian Revolution, created by Vladimir Lenin's decree on December 20, 1917, was called "Cheka"...
in 1928 and worked in the internal political police. In 1936 he transferred to foreign intelligence and was sent to England as cipher clerk and assistant to the London rezident. During the Great Purges of 1939 the London rezidentura was liquidated, and in March 1940 Gorsky was recalled to Moscow. Gorsky survived the purges and was appointed London rezident in November 1940, during the Hitler-Stalin pact. In London his first cover was attaché, then second secretary of the Soviet embassy.
As London rezident Gorsky took over managing eighteen agents, including the Cambridge Five
Cambridge Five
The Cambridge Five was a ring of spies, recruited in part by Russian talent spotter Arnold Deutsch in the United Kingdom, who passed information to the Soviet Union during World War II and at least into the early 1950s...
, and the initial Soviet
Chronology of Soviet secret police agencies
There was a succession of Soviet secret police agencies over time. The first secret police after the Russian Revolution, created by Vladimir Lenin's decree on December 20, 1917, was called "Cheka"...
penetration of the British atomic bomb project. The London rezidentura consisted of only three people. By the end of the war there were twelve operational workers. In the heaviest period of war, from 1941 to 1942 the London rezidentura was the basic information source of Soviet operations on Germany and countries of the anti-Hitler coalition. More than 10 thousand documentary materials along political, economic, military and other questions were sent from the London rezidentura to Moscow.
In September 1941 the London rezidentura obtained and sent to Moscow documentary materials on work in Great Britain and the USA on the creation of nuclear weapons and supplied a constant stream of information. During January 1944 Gorsky returned to Moscow after the completion of this mission and was assigned deputy division head.
Espionage Activities in the United States
Following the sudden recall of Vasily ZarubinVasily Zarubin
Vasily Mikhailovich Zarubin Василий Михайлович Зарубин was a Soviet intelligence officer. In the United States, he used the cover name Vasily Zubilin and served as Soviet intelligence Rezident from 1941 to 1944. Zarubin's wife, Elizabeth Zubilin, served with him.Zarubin was born in Moscow...
in 1944, Gorsky was appointed rezident in the United States. The Federal Bureau of Investigation identified him the following year when, at the direction of the Bureau, defecting Soviet courier Elizabeth Bentley
Elizabeth Bentley
Elizabeth Terrill Bentley was an American spy for the Soviet Union from 1938 until 1945. In 1945 she defected from the Communist Party and Soviet intelligence and became an informer for the U.S. She exposed two networks of spies, ultimately naming over 80 Americans who had engaged in espionage for...
met under FBI surveillance with Gorsky, whom she knew as "Al."
When FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover informed Sir William Stephenson, head of British intelligence in the western hemisphere, of Bentley’s defection, the head of British counter-espionage against the Soviet Union—-Soviet agent Kim Philby
Kim Philby
Harold Adrian Russell "Kim" Philby was a high-ranking member of British intelligence who worked as a spy for and later defected to the Soviet Union...
of the Cambridge spy ring
Cambridge Five
The Cambridge Five was a ring of spies, recruited in part by Russian talent spotter Arnold Deutsch in the United Kingdom, who passed information to the Soviet Union during World War II and at least into the early 1950s...
—-promptly alerted Soviet intelligence. Moscow cabled all U.S. station chiefs to “cease immediately their connection with all persons known to Bentley in our work [and] to warn the agents about Bentley’s betrayal.” The cable specifically ordered Gorsky to cease meeting with Harold Glasser
Harold Glasser
Harold Glasser , was an economist in the United States Department of the Treasury and spokesman on the affairs of the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration 'throughout its whole life' and he had a 'predominant voice' in determining which countries should receive aid...
, Donald Wheeler
Donald Wheeler
Donald Niven Wheeler was a lifelong social activist, teacher and member of the Communist Party, as well as an accused Soviet spy. Allegations of espionage made against him were never proved, and he was never convicted despite repeated investigations.-Education:He was a graduate of Reed College and...
, Alan Rosenberg, Charles Kramer
Charles Kramer
Charles Kramer, originally Charles Krevisky, was an American economist who worked for U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt as part of his brain trust. Among other contributions, he wrote the original idea for the Point Four Program. He also worked for several congressional committees and hired...
, Victor Perlo
Victor Perlo
Victor Perlo was a Marxist economist, government functionary, and a longtime member of the governing National Committee of the Communist Party USA...
, Helen Tenney
Helen Tenney
Helen Barrett Tenney worked for the Comintern apparatus in the 1930s and funnelled information to the Soviet Union on behalf of the Spanish Communists where she learned espionage tradecraft....
, Maurice Halperin
Maurice Halperin
Maurice Hyman Halperin was an American writer, professor, diplomat, and Soviet spy .-Biography:...
, Lauchlin Currie
Lauchlin Currie
Lauchlin Bernard Currie was a Canadian-born U.S.economist from New Dublin, Nova Scotia, Canada, and allegedly an agent of espionage for the Soviet Union....
, and others.
Gorsky sent a long memorandum to Moscow discussing the best way to kill Bentley. He considered shooting, poisoning, faking an accident or faking her suicide, suggesting that the job might be assigned to Joseph Katz
Joseph Katz
Joseph Katz allegedly worked for Soviet intelligence from the 1930s to the late 1940s as one of its most active liaison agents. Katz was assigned management of the “First Line,” that part of the NKGB mission aimed at recruiting selected members of the Communist Party USA...
. Within two months of the meeting, Gorsky had been recalled to Moscow, along with Iskhak Akhmerov
Iskhak Akhmerov
Iskhak Abdulovich Akhmerov was a Soviet spy of Tatar ethnicity who joined the Bolshevik Party in 1919. Akhmerov attended the Communist University of Toilers of the East and the First State University, where he graduated from the School of International Relations in 1930...
and others.
Later career
In 1948, Gorsky authored the Gorsky memo, an internal Soviet secret policeChronology of Soviet secret police agencies
There was a succession of Soviet secret police agencies over time. The first secret police after the Russian Revolution, created by Vladimir Lenin's decree on December 20, 1917, was called "Cheka"...
document in which he listed 43 Soviet sources and intelligence officers likely to be identified to American authorities by Bentley after her defection, including Alger Hiss
Alger Hiss
Alger Hiss was an American lawyer, government official, author, and lecturer. He was involved in the establishment of the United Nations both as a U.S. State Department and U.N. official...
, Harry White
Harry Dexter White
Harry Dexter White was an American economist, and senior U.S. Treasury department official, participating in the Bretton Woods conference...
and Lauchlin Currie
Lauchlin Currie
Lauchlin Bernard Currie was a Canadian-born U.S.economist from New Dublin, Nova Scotia, Canada, and allegedly an agent of espionage for the Soviet Union....
.
In 1953 Gorsky shifted to internal security work. For successful work in the United States Gorsky obtained the rank of Colonel and in 1945 was awarded the Order of the Patriotic War
Order of the Patriotic War
The Order of the Patriotic War is a Soviet military decoration that was awarded to all soldiers in the Soviet armed forces, security troops, and to partisans for heroic deeds during the German-Soviet War, known by the former-Soviet Union as the Great Patriotic War.- History :The Order was...
. He also received the Order of the Red Banner
Order of the Red Banner
The Soviet government of Russia established the Order of the Red Banner , a military decoration, on September 16, 1918 during the Russian Civil War...
, the Order of the Red Banner of Labour
Order of the Red Banner of Labour
The Order of the Red Banner of Labour was an order of the Soviet Union for accomplishments in labour and civil service. It is the labour counterpart of the military Order of the Red Banner. A few institutions and factories, being the pride of Soviet Union, also received the order.-History:The Red...
, the Order of the Badge of Honor
Order of the Badge of Honor
The Order of the Badge of Honour was a civilian award of the Soviet Union.It was instituted on 25 November 1935 and conferred on citizens of the USSR for outstanding achievements in production, scientific research and social, cultural and other forms of social activity, for promotion of economic,...
, and the Red Star
Red star
A red star, five-pointed and filled, is an important ideological and religious symbol which has been used for various purposes, such as: state emblems, flags, monuments, ornaments, and logos.- Symbol of communism :...
.