Dotty Englishman?? III.

This is coolbert:

Here is a man who definitely was a "dotty" Englishman.

A man who had a profound impact on the psyche of the British people in the years prior to World War One [WW1].

William Le Queux.

A British author of what can only be categorized as "pulp fiction".

"2. A magazine or book containing lurid subject matter and being characteristically printed on rough, unfinished paper."

"Pulp fiction" of the "invasion literature" genre.

Le Queux was an extremely prolific writer. Very much so. During a period of twenty years he authored about two hundred "pulp fiction" novelettes!!

"Invasion literature" had as it's subject the defeat of Great Britain in a general European war. A general European war that had not occurred in almost one hundred years. A defeat that would be at the hands of Imperial Germany. An Imperial Germany that by 1900 was able to put to sea a navy that WAS worthy of challenging the British fleet.

Le Queux foresaw [as did others at the time] a circumstance where if the British Navy was destroyed by the Germans, invasion of England by the much more powerful and unstoppable German Army WAS a possibility. Great Britain would be invaded, conquered, and occupied.

This was the background behind which Le Queux based his fictional works.

According to Le Queux [in his fictional accounts], Britain was awash with all manner of German agents. Spies, saboteurs, fifth columnists, etc. Thousands, if not tens of thousands of such unsavory German nationals and German controlled persons lived in Britain. Ready to spring into action at a moment's notice, in the service of the Kaiser, attacking England surreptitiously and cravenly.

[the term fifth columnist would not have been used by Le Queux. This is a term first used during the Spanish Civil War. The concept is the same. Someone attacking from within, while cloaked in mufti!!]

Again, according to Le Queux, Britain was under constant attack by German spies, spies that existed in the proverbial "battalions". Spies that constantly conspired with their German masters to undermine British security.

Most of Le Queux's books centered around the counter-espionage efforts of the British government security services, their tireless efforts [always successful too] in thwarting German spies, and their James Bond like heroes.

[it is suggested that Ian Fleming actually GOT the idea for James Bond and his heroics by reading the works of Le Queux!!]

FORTUNATELY FOR THE BRITISH, WHAT LE QUEUX WROTE ABOUT WAS TOTALLY FICTIONAL. THERE WERE NO THOUSAND OR TENS OF THOUSANDS OF GERMAN AGENTS RESIDING IN ENGLAND!! ENGLAND WAS NOT IN DANGER OF INTERNAL UPRISING FROM GERMAN NATIONALS IN TIME OF WAR!!

Whatever threat did exist to British security was extremely miniscule compared to what was contained in the works of Le Queux.

A threat, however, as described by Le Queux, that was widely accepted as being "possible" or "probable" by many British civilians.

Why then would I suggest that Le Queux WAS indeed a "dotty" Englishman??

It seems that at some point Le Queux ACTUALLY BEGAN TO BELIEVE HIS OWN FICTION!!??

Le Queux for whatever reason began to raise an alarm through intermediaries at the highest level of the British government. Said that he had documents [obtained through secret sources of course], that established without a doubt the extent of the enormous German subversion occurring within England.

[keep in mind that none of this espionage or subversion WAS occurring!!]

Le Queux even went to the extreme of organizing spy hunts led by himself. Attempted to uncover those perfidious German spies doing so much damage to England. Searched the English countryside high and low watching for those German spies communicating at night with submarines lurking not so far off shore!!

[again, keep in mind that there were NO spies communicating with submarines. Indeed, there were NO spies period to catch!! All these spies existed only in the overly active imagination of Le Queux.]

Le Queux, as I have said, WAS a "dotty" Englishman if there ever was one!!

Amiably eccentric, bordering on lunacy, but not excessively so!!

[Saki also was seemingly taken in by "invasion literature"!! Wrote a novel, "When Willam Came", that purportedly took place in the aftermath of a German invasion and conquest of England [William=Wilhelm]. Read that novel from here. Is free!!]


coolbert.