In September 2020, Poland’s Institute of National Remembrance revealed a couple of 1960s documents describing a certain James Bond. According to these documents, which were created by Polish counterintelligence, Bond came to Warsaw in February 1964 and took the position of archivist for the British Embassy Military Attaché. 

Bond came under surveillance, which showed that he tried to obtain information about Poland’s military installations. However, he didn’t prove to be particularly effective and left Poland in January 1965. 

It’s worth noticing that by the time the real James Bond arrived in Poland, two movies about the fictional one had already been released. Indeed, back in the mid- 1960s, agent 007 was already a famous character worldwide. In early 1964, the third film of the 007 series, „Goldfinger” was released.

Some even believe that James Bond’s mission in Poland was a sort of joke played by British intelligence. As a matter of fact, the employment of a man bearing such a name at the British Embassy in Poland during the Cold War could not have gone unnoticed. 

James Bond was caught by Polish Communist authorities infiltrating military facilities in the Olsztyn and Białystok voivodeships in the fall of 1964. In official reports, the British spy is described as “moderately intellectual”, “talkative”, “very careful”. He is depicted as a man who “liked beer” and was “interested in women”.

He stayed in Poland with his wife and son, who returned to Great Britain for Christmas in 1964. Bond himself left Poland one month later. He most probably figured out that he had been investigated by Polish counter-intelligence.

Author: Sébastien Meuwissen

Cover photo: British Poles