Guy Burgess
| Guy Burgess | |
|---|---|
Guy Burgess
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| Allegiance | Soviet Union |
| Codename(s) | Hicks, Madchen |
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| Birth name | Guy Francis de Moncy Burgess |
| Born |
16 April 1911 Devonport, Devon, England |
| Died | 30 August 1963 (aged 52) Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union |
| Nationality | British |
| Alma mater | Trinity College, Cambridge |
Guy Francis de Moncy Burgess (16 April 1911 – 30 August 1963) was a British radio producer, intelligence officer and Foreign Office official. He was a member of the Cambridge Five spy ring that passed Western secrets to the Soviets before and during the Cold War. He defected to the Soviet Union in 1951.
Burgess was born in Devonport, Devon, England, the son of Evelyn Mary (Gillman) and Malcolm Kingsford de Moncy Burgess (1881-1925), a naval officer. The Burgesses were of Huguenot origin, having changed the name from Bourgeois, and had been successful bankers in Kent during the Napoleonic wars. Although Burgess attended the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, he failed to follow in his father's footsteps. Like most of the Cambridge Five, he came from a privileged background, attending Lockers Park School and Eton College, and eventually attending Trinity College, Cambridge. He joined the conservative Pitt Club but was also recruited into the Cambridge Apostles, a secret, elite debating society at the University, whose members at the time were largely Marxist and included Anthony Blunt. In 1934 Burgess travelled to the USSR during his summer vacation.
Burgess, together with Blunt, Donald Maclean and Kim Philby, was recruited by Soviet intelligence. Anthony Blunt in his memoir described Burgess as "an extraordinarily persuasive person" who talked him into joining the spy ring. Although they were both homosexual and once shared a house together, Blunt said that there was "nothing sexual" in their relationship. According to author Andrew Lownie, Soviet intelligence considered that Burgess's homosexuality was an advantage as he was used to covert activities and had a loyal network of contacts. On recruitment, Burgess supplied a list of friends and contacts which included economist John Maynard Keynes, historian G. M. Trevelyan, National Labour MP Harold Nicolson, and Conservative MP Captain "Jack" Macnamara.
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