Gerald Brooke
Encyclopedia
Gerald Brooke was a British
teacher who taught Russia
n. In 1965 he travelled to the Soviet Union
. Brooke and his wife Barbara were arrested on 25 April by KGB
agents for smuggling anti-Soviet leaflets.
Barbara was later released and returned to Britain, but Gerald was sentenced to five years detention, including four years in labour camps
, for "subversive anti-Soviet activity on the territory of the Soviet Union".
Brooke lived in Finchley
in north west London
and his case was raised in the House of Commons by MP Margaret Thatcher
.
After four years in custody he was exchanged on 24 July, 1969, for Soviet spies
Morris
and Lona Cohen
, AKA Peter and Helen Kroger, who had been arrested by Special Branch detectives. The Russian authorities only told Brooke he was being sent home 24 hours before he got back to Britain.
Upon his arrival at Heathrow
Brooke was surprised by the huge presence of journalists and reporters. He explained that he was suffering from an inflamed colon
, aggravated by prison food
, and he was not used to speaking English or seeing so many people. Prevented from saying too much about his ordeal he simply stated that prison conditions "were not particularly soft."
The Cohens returned to the Soviet Union in October 1969 after serving nine years of their 20-year sentence.
Such exchanges had happened before. Notable examples included Soviet spy Rudolf Abel for U2 pilot Gary Powers
and Konon Molody
for Greville Wynne
, but British Prime Minister
Harold Wilson
's Labour
Government was criticised by the opposition for agreeing to release Peter and Helen Kroger in exchange for Brooke. Opponents claimed it set a dangerous precedent, and was an example of blackmail rather than a fair exchange.
Brooke later claimed he had passed on concealed documents, including codes, on behalf of the National Alliance of Russian Solidarists
.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
teacher who taught Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n. In 1965 he travelled to the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. Brooke and his wife Barbara were arrested on 25 April by KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
agents for smuggling anti-Soviet leaflets.
Barbara was later released and returned to Britain, but Gerald was sentenced to five years detention, including four years in labour camps
Labor camp
A labor camp is a simplified detention facility where inmates are forced to engage in penal labor. Labor camps have many common aspects with slavery and with prisons...
, for "subversive anti-Soviet activity on the territory of the Soviet Union".
Brooke lived in Finchley
Finchley
Finchley is a district in Barnet in north London, England. Finchley is on high ground, about north of Charing Cross. It formed an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex, becoming a municipal borough in 1933, and has formed part of Greater London since 1965...
in north west London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and his case was raised in the House of Commons by MP Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
.
After four years in custody he was exchanged on 24 July, 1969, for Soviet spies
Portland Spy Ring
The Portland Spy Ring was a Soviet spy ring that operated in England from the late 1950s till 1961 when the core of the network was arrested by the British security services. It is one of the most famous examples of the use of illegal residents — spies who operate in a foreign country but...
Morris
Morris Cohen (Soviet spy)
Morris Cohen also known in London as Peter Kroger was an American convicted of espionage for the Soviet Union. His wife Lona was also an agent.-Birth and education:...
and Lona Cohen
Lona Cohen
Leontine Theresa "Lona" Cohen , also known while she was in London as Helen Kroger, was an American spy for the Soviet Union. She was the wife of another spy, Morris Cohen.-Espionage:...
, AKA Peter and Helen Kroger, who had been arrested by Special Branch detectives. The Russian authorities only told Brooke he was being sent home 24 hours before he got back to Britain.
Upon his arrival at Heathrow
London Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport or Heathrow , in the London Borough of Hillingdon, is the busiest airport in the United Kingdom and the third busiest airport in the world in terms of total passenger traffic, handling more international passengers than any other airport around the globe...
Brooke was surprised by the huge presence of journalists and reporters. He explained that he was suffering from an inflamed colon
Colon (anatomy)
The colon is the last part of the digestive system in most vertebrates; it extracts water and salt from solid wastes before they are eliminated from the body, and is the site in which flora-aided fermentation of unabsorbed material occurs. Unlike the small intestine, the colon does not play a...
, aggravated by prison food
Prison food
Prison food refers to the meals served to prisoners while incarcerated in correctional institutions. While some prisons prepare their own food, many use staff from on-site catering companies.-United States:...
, and he was not used to speaking English or seeing so many people. Prevented from saying too much about his ordeal he simply stated that prison conditions "were not particularly soft."
The Cohens returned to the Soviet Union in October 1969 after serving nine years of their 20-year sentence.
Such exchanges had happened before. Notable examples included Soviet spy Rudolf Abel for U2 pilot Gary Powers
Gary Powers
Francis Gary Powers was an American pilot whose Central Intelligence Agency U-2 spy plane was shot down while flying a reconnaissance mission over Soviet Union airspace, causing the 1960 U-2 incident.- Early life :...
and Konon Molody
Konon Molody
Konon Trofimovich Molody was a Soviet intelligence officer, better known in the West as Gordon Arnold Lonsdale. He was an illegal resident spy during the Cold War and the mastermind of the Portland Spy Ring....
for Greville Wynne
Greville Wynne
Greville Maynard Wynne was a British spy famous for his involvement with, and imprisonment as a result of, the espionage activities of Oleg Penkovsky.-Life:...
, but British Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
Harold Wilson
Harold Wilson
James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, KG, OBE, FRS, FSS, PC was a British Labour Member of Parliament, Leader of the Labour Party. He was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during the 1960s and 1970s, winning four general elections, including a minority government after the...
's Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
Government was criticised by the opposition for agreeing to release Peter and Helen Kroger in exchange for Brooke. Opponents claimed it set a dangerous precedent, and was an example of blackmail rather than a fair exchange.
Brooke later claimed he had passed on concealed documents, including codes, on behalf of the National Alliance of Russian Solidarists
National Alliance of Russian Solidarists
The National Alliance of Russian Solidarists ), known by its Russian abbreviation "NTS" is a Russian far-right anticommunist organization founded in 1930 by a group of young Russian anticommunist White emigres in Belgrade, Serbia .The organization was formed in response to the older generation of...
.