Sir Francis WalsinghamÂs official title was principal secretary to Queen Elizabeth I, but in fact this pious, tight-lipped Puritan was EnglandÂs first spymaster. A ruthless, fiercely loyal civil servant, Walsingham worked brilliantly behind the scenes to foil ElizabethÂs rival Mary Queen of Scots and outwit Catholic Spain and France, which had arrayed their forces behind her.Though he cut an incongruous figure in ElizabethÂs worldly court, Walsingham managed to win the trust of key players like William Cecil and the Earl of Leceister before launching his own secret campaign against the queenÂs enemies. Covert operations were WalsinghamÂs genius; he pioneered techniques for exploiting double agents, spreading disinformation, and deciphering codes with the latest code-breaking science that remain staples of international espionage.In the taut narrative of a spy novel, Budiansky recounts how this legendary spymaster invented the art and science of modern espionageÂand in the process set Elizabethan England on the path to empire.
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