Catalogue description Frederick Joseph RUTLAND: British. A former naval flying officer and First World War...

Frederick Joseph RUTLAND: British. A former naval flying officer and First World War hero, he was recruited by the Japanese as an adviser on naval flying during the 1920s and volunteered to Japanese Naval Intelligence as a spy to operate in America in the event of war, during the 1930s. He was interned in 1941-1942 as a result of his associations with the Japanese, though it was doubful whether he ever passed on classified information. There is certainly no proof of British information being passed. He was the subject of a biography and of press speculation whether he was a spy or not. The file shows for the first time, from decrypted Japanese cypher traffic, the depth of RUTLAND'S relations with the Japanese.