Arthur Ransome (KV 2/1903-1904)
Arthur Ransome (KV 2/1903-1904)
Ransome (1884-1967), the author of Swallows and Amazons, came to MI5's attention in 1917 when, as a journalist for the Daily News in Russia, he witnessed the October Revolution at first hand and was on friendly terms with many prominent Bolshevik figures.
These two reconstituted files document MI5's intense interest in Ransome in the years 1917-1920, as he produced propaganda for the Bolsheviks, travelled between Moscow, Stockholm and the UK, and aroused a great debate as to whether he was a genuine Bolshevik, or was feigning an interest to enable him to continue his journalistic work, or to gather information for the British authorities. The files contain some details of his relationship with Evgenia Shelepin, Trotsky's former secretary, who Ransome married in 1924 having played a large part in arranging her emigration from Russia.
KV 2/1903, covering 1918-1919, is full of scraps of reports about Ransome's activities, interspersed with more detailed analysis of his work and views. The initial reports all suggest that he is a genuine supporter of the Bolsheviks – his supposed marriage to Trotsky's secretary is one of the first events reported (in August 1918), and he is described as "a keen supporter of Trotsky and is himself an ardent Bolshevik." At serial 16 he is reported to have identified himself using the phrase "in the name of the Soviet." On his arrival in Stockholm in August 1918, however, it is reported that he has changed his views – though many are unconvinced and one unidentified MI6 officer states that Ransome had named him as a British agent to two Russians. Unsurprisingly, a close watch was kept on Ransome. This contrasts with a description in March 1919 which indicates that he was acting for the British authorities in developing close ties with the Bolsheviks: "[Ransome is] not a Bolshevik…his association with the Bolsheviks was begun, and has been continued throughout, at the direct request of responsible British Authorities. He was first asked to get into the closest possible touch with them by Mr Lindley when he was Chargé d'Affaires." The file continues to gather information on Ransome, including from his interview on return to the UK in April 1919. Ransome returned to Russia in 1919 despite the opposition of MI5, after pressure was applied by the Manchester Guardian.
There is further correspondence, but tracing Ransome's movements and career at a lower level of detail, in KV 2/1904 (covering 1918-1937). The debate as to his true political sympathies continues, and there are reports about his visit to Ceylon and China later in the 1920s. The file closes with a copy of Ransome's passport renewal form in 1937 (which includes a relatively poor copy photograph of Ransome), at which time it was agreed that his name could be removed from the blacklist.
