Review of 'The Everyday Life of the Intelligence Officer' by Jim Beach (June 2017)

Vince Schürhoff was born to a German couple who had emigrated to England and taken out British citizenship. He typed up his diaries from his experiences during the First World War in 1967 – 250,000 words including recollections. In 1970 he offered the manuscript to the Imperial War Museum. When he spoke to the director of the IWM in 1970, Vince referred to himself as ‘an average youth, quite fond of adventure but with little regard to the more scientific aspects of intelligence work.’

Vince enlisted at the outbreak of war (1914) in the 16 Warwickshire battalion. In 1915 he was promoted to Lance Corporal when his battalion was sent to France and in 1916 he underwent signals training. In 1916 he also applied for a commission but was turned down. By 1917 he was involved in prisoner handling, as he was a fluent German speaker, and became involved in the interrogation of German prisoners. He was also promoted to Corporal in 1917. In 1918 he was moved to handling men at a casualty clearing station (his German family counted against him continuing in the front line) and he was demobbed in 1919.

Signals Intelligence involved listening-in to German telephone conversations which were ‘leaking’ across No Mans Land from cables in the German Lines due to geological conditions. If the conditions were right, listening in could go back to division. The intelligence officers also listened in to telephone conversations from the British lines, sometimes from divisional HQ sometimes from Corps HQ, which could be ‘leaking’ across No Mans Land to the German Intelligence operatives. Informal warnings were given to operators who were indiscrete in their conversations before a court martial offence came into operation as such actions were seen a breach of BEF security. There were two Intelligence ‘listening’ stations per Corps. Each was positioned in a cellar or deep dugout. Vince would serve one month ‘in station’ as one of a team of three followed by two weeks out of the line. Vince managed to train as a signaller during the lull from listening in.

With his German linguistic skills, he was moved to prisoner handling during the Arras Offensive (April 1917) positioned at VI Corps HQ. In August, he was back in an Intelligence listening station, this time at Croiselles, and was promoted to Corporal in November.

In March 1918 after the German Spring Offensive, Vince was attached to a Casualty Clearing Station near Frévent, and in May he was awarded the Military Medal. In June, he was working with a Third Army Prisoner of War Cage and in August he returned to a listening station before being sent to a Dressing Station in 3rd Division. When the war ended he was working at a Signals Depot in Abbeville and was demobbed in January 1919.

In his off-duty time, Vince was a great drinker and loved to socialise with colleagues, who like himself carried Intelligence passes which they used to pass through the tight security close to the Front Line. He records regularly walking back into civilian area to drink at estaminets with a close group of friends. They were able to see off the inquisitive Military Police by demonstrating their position in the intelligence and security organisation.

Vince’s ability to work close to the front line was compromised by an obsession with security which became very oppressive as 1918 drew on. Were there secret German sympathisers among the troops? As Vince had a German name (Schürhoff), even though the family had changed their surname to Shirley in 1917, he must have come under suspicion.

After Vince was demobbed, he returned home, went into business, married and served his time in the Home Guard during WW2.

Report by Peter Palmer