Military Review English Edition January-February 2017 | Page 143
BOOK REVIEWS
importance of peer-to-peer teamwork, leadership, and
organization within large bureaucracies.
Maj. Matthew Prescott, U.S. Army,
Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
CHURCH OF SPIES
The Pope’s Secret War Against Hitler
Mark Riebling, Basic Books, New York,
2015, 384 pages
M
ark Riebling has written an extraordinary
work of literature in Church of Spies: The
Pope’s Secret War Against Hitler. In this, his
second major publication, Riebling does a fantastic job of
delivering his thesis that contrary to public opinion, Pope
Pius XII was actively
engaged in establishing
a covert network to
work for peace during
World War II. An
accomplished academic, Riebling worked as
a book editor before
serving as the editorial director of the
Manhattan Institute
for Policy Research for
ten years. Post-9/11,
he cofounded and
became the director of
the Center for Policing
Terrorism, which gave him experience in successfully
profiling secret groups. Widely considered an expert in
intelligence and espionage, his experience allows him to
navigate the networks he writes about in Church of Spies.
Riebling’s writing style will capture you quickly. Easy
to read, Church of Spies primarily follows the actions of
Josef Müller, a German Catholic patriot, who acted as
the primary liaison between the German regular army
intelligence chief and the Vatican.
This book primarily covers the period starting six
months before Germany’s invasion of Poland and continuing through the end of the war. Church of Spies also
dives into the history of Bishop Eugenio Pacelli, including
how his upbringing as a priest and bishop influenced
MILITARY REVIEW January-February 2017
his actions once he became Pope Pius XII. My one
complaint about this book is how Riebling alternates
between names—Pacelli and Pius—during the early
chapters. I came to the understanding that he did this
to help the reader identify the time he was referencing
in the pope’s life. Pope Pius XII, as politically motivated as he was spiritually, used his experience while
leading the Catholic Church during this tragic time to
build networks and influence people to plan a regime
change in Germany, through assassination if necessary. Müller carried messages between the regular
German army and the Vatican. Acting as an agent for
the intelligence chief Adm. Wilhelm Canaris, Müller
took extreme risks by flying sport planes between
Germany and the Vatican.
I highly recommend this book to people who are
interested in World War II history or Catholic Church
history. It certainly adds to the understanding of
Pope Pius XII’s actions and leadership of the Catholic
Church during this horrific and tragic period in our
world’s history. Understanding the political sensitivities
and the nature of the Nazi Party allowed Pope Pius
XII to act and lead in a manner that prevented Adolf
Hitler from using the pope’s words and deeds as a reason to begin executing Catholics.
Lt. Col. Joe Schotzko, U.S. Army,
Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
EISENHOWER’S ARMIES
The American-British Alliance
During World War II
Niall Barr, Pegasus Books, New York,
2015, 544 pages
M
ore than seventy years have passed since the
alliance of American and British powers saw
the eventual downfall of the Axis powers in
World War II. In Eisenhower’s Armies, author Naill Barr
traces the Anglo-American relationship that eventually
led to the success of the Allied forces in the Second World
War. Dra wing from a vast array of published and unpublished primary and secondary sources from national archives, museums, letters, lectures, and private collections,
Barr is able to provide a unique perspective not only into
the plans, operations, and battles but also into the politics
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