Defend the Realm : The Authorized History of MI5

New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2009. 1st Edition . Hardcover. Very Good/Very Good. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. xxiii 1032 pages, indexed and annotated. The jacket's edges are chipped and its front has a vertical crease running along the outer edge, else a very nice copy, clean, unmarked and solid. Overseas customers please note the book weighs over a kilo and will attract additional postage. "An unprecedented publishing event: to mark the centenary of its foundation, the British Security Service, MI5, has for the first time opened its archives to an independent historian. The book reveals the precise role of the Security Service in twentieth-century British history, from its foundation by Captain Kell of the British Army in October 1909, through two world wars, up to and including its present roles in counterespionage and counterterrorism. The book describes how MI5 has been managed, what its relationship has been with government, where it has triumphed, and where it has failed. In all of this no restriction has been placed on the judgments made by the author." (publisher)