| Vienna has a long tradition as a
stronghold of the intelligence scene, and not just on the silver screen! Holy
Roman Emperor Maximilian I, Empress Maria Theresa, and Chancellor Metternich
are known for their intricate intelligence networks. Colonel Alfred Redl was
one of the leading figures of Austro-Hungarian pre-World War I espionage.
Between 1938 and 1945, the Gestapo wreaked havoc. After the war, the four
occupying Allied powers began establishing intelligence bases. Listening
tunnels were dug, and kidnappings by the Soviet authorities were commonplace.
It's no wonder, then, that the classic film The Third Man, shot in Vienna
during this very period, is considered a "thriller set in the world of
espionage." Harry Lime may be a hardened black marketeer, but he's not a
spy! However, his historical counterpart, the British double agent Kim Philby,
was. His spectacular career began in 1930s Vienna. Leon Trotsky’s assassination
in Mexico also had connections to Vienna, and clandestine technological
transfers to Eastern Europe were commonplace during the Cold War. Today, according to reliable estimates,
around 8,000 official and unofficial employees of intelligence organisations,
often members of the diplomatic corps and international organisations based in
Vienna, are shadowing and monitoring each other. |
