Richard Sorge: spy of all spies

Spokesman Magazine, Oct, 2004 by Dennis Casey

In Russia, the year 1895 appeared like any other year under the Tsar, Nicholas II in the second half of the 19th century.

Nicholas II had been Tsar for less than a year and was focused on consolidating his power and doing what was necessary to keep a lid on growing political opposition. This opposition had grown to the extent that nearly 5,000 so-called revolutionary emigres were actively preparing to overthrow the Tsar.

In many parts of Russia the Jews had become a convenient scapegoat on whom to focus popular discontent. The Russian Okhrana, the Tsar's secret police, helped implement state-sponsored anti-Semitism and actively participated in pogroms or massacres in rural areas predominantly populated by Jewish farmers.

But as Tsar Nicholas would learn years later, massacres and action by the Okhrana would not prevent a series of events that would change the face of the entire nation. A birth in 1895 would produce a person who ultimately would enter the ranks of those who wanted to change Russia and in later years would become a solid supporter of Joseph Stalin.

On October 4, 1895, a mining engineer working for a German-owned company in Baku Russia, now called Azerbaijan near the Caspian Sea, reported that his Russian wife had given birth to a baby boy who they named Richard Sorge. The father, along with his wife and their nine children, returned to Germany when Richard was just two years old.

The family settled in Lankwitz, a suburb of Berlin, Richard grew up essentially as a German but his mother maintained a very close relationship with family in Russia. This tie would fundamentally influence Richard in later years.

When war broke out in Europe, Richard Sorge joined the German Army. In June 1915 his unit was transferred to the Eastern Front. His military records and eyewitness accounts confirmed that he was a courageous soldier and was awarded the Iron Cross for his bravery.

In March 1916 his participation in the war ended abruptly when both of his legs were badly broken by shrapnel. During his long convalescence in the hospital he began a relationship with one of the nurses whose father was a Marxist.

Over a period of several months Mr. Sorge became acquainted with Marxist ideology and concluded that it offered the promise of a better future for Russia than the continuation of the Tsars. Not physically fit for frontline duties, Mr. Sorge received permission to study at Berlin University. There he dedicated himself to his studies as a serious student but also decided to take part in the revolutionary movement to unseat the Tsar.

In 1919 Mr. Sorge received his final release from the German Army and completed his bachelor's degree from the University of Berlin. He then transferred his studies to the University of Kiel and later received a doctorate in political science from the University of Hamburg and graduated summa cum laude. He also joined the newly formed German Communist Party, KPD.

Shortly after leaving the university, Dr. Sorge sought a position as a journalist and by April 1925 he had taken up residence in the Soviet Union. Within a year the Comintern Intelligence Division recruited him as an agent. He remained determined to use his substantial skills to benefit the Soviet Union and international communism.

Just as Dr. Sorge launched his new career, he took a step that would alter his life. He met and married Yekateri, a Russian ballerina of considerable talent and promise. Now essentially a spy for the Bolsheviks, he received instructions to use his position as a journalist to travel to various European countries to determine if communist revolutions might be possible.

In early 1929 he traveled to England with his new wife in tow to study the labor movements and determine the status of the Communist Party. He also received instructions to provide his new employers with overviews of political and economic conditions in England. At no time was he to become involved in politics.

In November 1929 the Comintern decided to send Dr. Sorge back to Germany. He received directives to join the Nazi Party and to avoid leftwing activists. To cover his activities he obtained a position with the newspaper Getreide Zeitung. In just a few weeks he created the impression with neighbors and acquaintances that he was a loyal member of the Nazi party and destined to soar in prominence.

From Germany Dr. Sorge moved to China, his travel papers and visa noting that he was still a journalist. Once in China he made contact closely after his arrival with Max Klausen, another Soviet spy. In his first months in China he met Agnes Smedley, the well-known left-wing journalist working for the Frankfurter Zeitung. Their cooperation on a number of projects caused many to comment that they were having a torrid affair that had been only temporarily interrupted by the birth of a child. Smedley introduced Dr. Sorge to Hotsumi Ozaki who was employed by the Japanese newspaper, Asahi Shimbun.

At a later date, Hotsumi joined Dr. Sorge's spy network. While in China, Dr. Sorge, with help from Smedley, established himself as an expert on Chinese agriculture. This reputation allowed him to travel throughout China making contacts with members of the Chinese Communist Party. In his four years in China, Dr. Sorge learned Chinese and became very knowledgeable of Chinese customs and traditions.