The Secret War - The SOE - Special Operations Executive

The role of the SOE was to fight an 'ungentlemanly' war of espionage behind enemy lines against the axis of powers in Europe or as Churchill famously put it, "to set Europe ablaze".



The secret War exhibition at the Imperial War Museum reveals the clandestine world of espionage, covert operations, and the work of Britians special forces. It shows how Britans secret government agencies MI5 and MI6, have developed since their establishment before the First World War, and how specialist communications technology has been used to gather intelligence and break top-secret codes.