August 25, 2024Open Access

Espionage, sabotage, Propaganda. German military attachés in neutral countries and their organisation and tasks during the first World war

Key Points

Espionage and sabotage activities increased significantly among military attachés during World War I.
Military attachés focused on undermining the war effort of the Entente through covert operations.
Assessment of German military attachés in neutral countries highlights their evolving responsibilities during the conflict, particularly in Spain and Switzerland. Their new roles reflected the strategic shifts of the war surrounding them, indicating a restructured approach to intelligence gathering and operations.

Abstract

At the beginning of the 20th Century, military attachés were the most important source of intelligence for the Prussian General Staff. Their primary tasks were to observe the land forces of their host country and to provide military advice to the German ambassador or envoy. With the beginning of the First World War, a profound change in the attachés' functions set in. While the German military diplomats had to be recalled from Great Britain, France and Russia, the attachés in hitherto insignificant neutral countries gained enormously in importance. As 'active agents of war', they were henceforth responsible for espionage, sabotage and covert operations to damage the Entente's war effort. The contribution traces this change using the examples of the German military attachés in Spain and Switzerland.

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