Milicent Bagot
Milicent Bagot | |
---|---|
Born | 28 March 1907 |
Died | 26 May 2006 |
Occupation | British intelligence officer |
Milicent Jessie Eleanor Bagot,
Early life and education
Milicent Jessie Eleanor Bagot was born on 28 March 1907 to Ethel (née Garratt) (d. 1944) and Cecil Villiers Bagot,
Bagot was educated at
Career
Bagot began work as a temporary registry clerk with the Metropolitan Police Special Branch in 1929, at the age of 22. She entered the Ministry of Defence from Scotland Yard as a secretary in 1931, when her section was transferred to MI5. The move resulted in a forced significant pay cut of £8 a year, a not inconsiderable sum at the time. She went on to work for both MI5 and MI6.[5]
During her long career Bagot became one of the security service's principal experts on
Bagot also wrote a definitive account of the 1924
During the Second World War Bagot worked as a clerk in the Registry and the counter subversion section, at Wormwood Scrubs and later at Blenheim Palace. She later spent time in the Middle East advising on how to counter Soviet subversion to British authorities in the area. By the late 1940s she was recognised as a leading expert on Soviet Communism. Her knowledge was supposed to have impressed J Edgar Hoover. In 1949 she was promoted to officer.
In 1953 Bagot became the first female intelligence officer in MI5 to reach the rank of Assistant Director, taking charge of an Overseas Branch section.[5] She retired in 1967.
Recognition and commemoration
Bagot was made an MBE in 1949 and promoted to CBE in 1967.[1] She lived in Putney for most of her life.[7]
A blue plaque was unveiled on 15 October 2021 at Milicent Bagot's former home in Putney.[8]
References
- ^ a b c d e Condell, Diana (16 June 2006), "Milicent Bagot: First woman appointed to a senior rank in MI5", The Guardian, retrieved 22 December 2011
- ISBN 2-940085-02-1.
- ^ Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage, 146th edition, ed. Charles Kidd, Debrett's Peerage Ltd, 2000, p. 103
- ^ Oxford University Calendar 1932, Oxford : Oxford University Press, 1932, pg. 314
- ^ a b "Celebrating Vote 100". www.mi5.gov.uk. Retrieved 2021-10-15.
- ^ C. Andrew, The Defence of the Realm : The Authorized History of MI5, London : Penguin Books, 2009, pg.131
- )
- ^ "Putney's Local Web site". www.putneysw15.com. Retrieved 2021-10-15.