Review by Choice Review
The decryption of the Zimmermann telegram is considered one of the greatest intelligence coups of the 20th century. For over 50 years, scholars have relied upon Barbara Tuchman's 1958 classic, The Zimmermann Telegram, as the prime source in understanding the message's significance. Now, Boghardt (US Army Center of Military History) sheds new light on how British Naval Intelligence acquired and disseminated the message, forcing Woodrow Wilson's hand in declaring war on Germany in 1917. By relying on German archival materials, Boghardt not only manages to trace the message's origins, but also reconstructs the role played by Admiral William Reginald "Blinker" Hall in orchestrating the document's release in hopes of inflaming anti-German hysteria in the US, especially the disclosures of a proposed Mexican-Japanese alliance directed against the US. Likewise, "Blinker" Hall concealed from the Americans that the British were systematically eavesdropping on all US diplomatic traffic before, during, and after the conflict. Boghardt blends the scholarship of a refined historian with the narrative skills of a John Le Carre in retelling the story of the Zimmerman telegram. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries. C. C. Lovett Emporia State University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
