Bismarck’s Counterintelligence Crisis

Abstract By December 1886 a number of sensational spy scandals had starkly revealed serious weaknesses in the German Empire’s intelligence capabilities. As a result, Bismarck’s head of military counter-intelligence, Hermann Krüger, attempted to deal with the emerging crisis by advocating a major paradigm shift in Germany’s approach to battling increasingly successful French military espionage. He made this proposal in a lengthy secret memorandum to the chancellor that analyzed the problem and recommended far-reaching changes to deal with it. In his rejection of these proposals, Bismarck provided a rationale that offers important new insights into his approach to espionage and counter-espionage during his chancellorship. Both documents are key new sources that significantly advance our understanding of the conduct and evolution of military intelligence operations in the period 1871–1890.