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137-634: Anthony Frederick Blunt (26 September 1907 – 26 March 1983), styled Sir Anthony Blunt KCVO from 1956 until November 1979, was a leading British art historian and Soviet spy . Blunt was a professor of art history at the University of London , the director of the Courtauld Institute of Art and Surveyor of the Queen's Pictures . His 1967 monograph on the French Baroque painter Nicolas Poussin

274-408: A weighted average (with higher weight given to marks in the later years of the course, and often zero weight to those in the first year) of the marks gained in exams and other assessments. While grade boundaries are defined by institutions, there are well-defined conventional values that are generally followed: Students who do not achieve honours may be awarded an ordinary degree, sometimes known as

411-603: A "pass". Ordinary degrees, and other exit awards such as the Diploma of Higher Education (DipHE; for completing the first two years of a degree course) and Certificate of Higher Education (CertHE; for completing the first year of a degree course), may be unclassified (pass/fail) or, particularly in Scotland where the ordinary degree is offered as a qualification in its own right, classified into pass, merit and distinction. Integrated master's degrees are usually classified with honours in

548-791: A "third", is the lowest honours classification in most UK universities. Informally, it is referred to as a "gentleman's third" ( cf. the "gentleman's C" in U.S. parlance). Slang terms in the UK for a third include a "Richard" (after Richard III ), a "Douglas" (after Douglas Hurd , the 1980s Conservative MP who actually graduated with a First Class Honours degree in history), or a "Thora" (after Thora Hird , an English TV actress). Approximately 3-5% of UK students graduating between 2018 and 2022 were awarded thirds. While most university bachelor's degree courses lead to honours degrees, some universities offer courses leading to ordinary degrees. Some honours courses permit students who do not gain sufficient credits in

685-592: A 2:1, while the department of English Language and Literature at Oxford considers a GPA of "about 3.8" equivalent to a first class degree. Similarly, the UK NARIC gives equivalent GPAs for determining eligibility for teacher training bursaries. Durham University 's North American Undergraduate Guide gives a conversion table as a guide to understanding British classifications (rather than for admission to postgraduate study) of 1st = 3.8–4.0, 2:1 = 3.3–3.7, 2:2 = 2.8–3.2 and 3rd = 2.3–2.7. The GPA conversions are summarised in

822-597: A bachelor's course, or after completion of a bachelor's course requirements and attaining adequately competitive grades. Some graduate degrees have been or are classified; however, under the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF), no graduate-level degrees (i.e., master's by coursework, master's by research, or higher research degrees) may be classified. To comply with this standard, some institutions have commenced, or will commence, offering high-achieving graduates with "distinction". Notably, this

959-469: A blue ring bearing the motto of the order – victoria (victory) – and surmounted by a Tudor crown . However, there are variations on the badge for each grade of the order: Knights and Dames Grand Cross on certain formal occasions (see below) wear the badge suspended from the Order's collar (chain), but otherwise on a sash passing from the right shoulder to the left hip; Knight Commanders and male Commanders wear

1096-477: A degree award from certain Scottish universities (c.f. Scottish MA ) and is at the same level as a bachelor's degree. The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) has published the number of degrees awarded with different classifications since 1994–1995. The relative proportions of different classes have changed over this period, with increasing numbers of students being awarded higher honours. The table below shows

1233-458: A degree in less than three years, hence Blunt spent four years at Trinity and switched to Modern Languages, eventually graduating in 1930 with a first class degree . Blunt taught French at Cambridge and became a Fellow of Trinity College in 1932. His graduate research was in French art history , and he travelled frequently to continental Europe in connection with his studies. Like Guy Burgess , Blunt

1370-538: A doctoral programme is nearly always required to have a first or 2:1 at bachelor's level. In the United Kingdom, medicine is usually taught as an undergraduate course, with graduates being awarded a master's level qualification: normally the conjoined degrees of Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS, BM BCh, MB ChB, etc.) although at Queen's University Belfast (and universities in Ireland) Bachelor in

1507-540: A fellow art historian. Golding passed them on to the British Library, insisting that they not be released for twenty-five years. They were finally made available to readers on 23 July 2009 and can be accessed through the British Library catalogue. In the typed manuscript, Blunt conceded that spying for the Soviet Union was the biggest mistake of his life. What I did not realise is that I was so naïve politically that I

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1644-640: A first (First Class Honours) grew from 7% in 1997 to 26% in 2017, with the rate of growth sharply accelerating toward the end of this period. A 2018 study by the UK Standing Committee for Quality Assessment concluded that improvements in faculty skill and student motivation are only two of many factors driving average grades upward, that grade inflation is real, that the British undergraduate degree classifications will become less useful to students and employers, and that inflation will undermine public confidence in

1781-458: A first has been awarded to nearly thirty percent of graduates of British universities. The increase is said by some commentators to be due to student-demanded grade inflation rather than students' academic ability. In the early 1990s, First Class Honours went to about 7% of graduates, or about one student in 15. The percentages of graduates achieving a First vary greatly by university and course studied. Students of law are least likely to gain

1918-453: A first, while students of mathematical sciences are most likely to gain a first. A first class honours degree is sometimes colloquially referred to in rhyming slang as a Geoff Hurst after the English 1966 FIFA World Cup footballer, or as a Damien (after the contemporary artist Damien Hirst ). The upper division is commonly abbreviated to "2:1" or "II.i" (pronounced two-one ). The 2:1

2055-673: A general rule, individuals can derive precedence from their fathers or husbands, but not from their mothers or wives. appointment age age age First class degree The UK's university degree classification system, established in 1918, serves to recognize academic achievement beyond examination performance. Bachelor's degrees in the UK can either be honours or ordinary degrees, with honours degrees classified into First Class, Upper Second Class (2:1), Lower Second Class (2:2), and Third Class based on weighted averages of marks. The specific thresholds for these classifications can vary by institution. Integrated master's degrees follow

2192-507: A grade simply existed for every Part of the degree, not for the overall degree. For students beginning their course of study from October 2020, a final class is awarded across the course of study, according to an algorithm determined by the Tripos. Attaining First Class Honours in two Parts culminates in graduating with a "double first". It is possible in some Triposes to be awarded a "starred first", for examination scripts that "consistently exhibit

2329-403: A place in a postgraduate course and to obtain funding, especially in medical and natural sciences. Some institutions specify a 2:1 minimum for certain types of master's program, such as for a Master of Research course. Candidates with a Third or an Ordinary degree are sometimes accepted, provided they have acquired satisfactory professional experience subsequent to graduation. A candidate for

2466-528: A research project of limited scope. This prepares students for the research degrees later in their academic career. The UK NARIC has derived equivalencies for the grades of the Spanish grado and licenciatura degrees for purposes of initial teacher training bursaries. The Netherlands organisation for international cooperation in higher education (NUFFIC) has compared UK degree classification to Dutch degree grades. Dutch equivalencies have also been calculated by

2603-447: A similar classification, and there is some room for discretion in awarding final classifications based on a student's overall performance and work quality. The honours degree system has been subject to scrutiny owing to significant shifts in the distribution of classifications, leading to calls for reform. Concerns over grade inflation have been observed. The Higher Education Statistics Agency has documented changes, noting an increase in

2740-616: A spy for the Soviet Union. He was considered to be the "fourth man" of the Cambridge Five , a group of Cambridge -educated spies who worked for the Soviets between the 1930s and the 1950s. Blunt was the fourth member of the group to be discovered; the fifth, John Cairncross , was yet to be revealed. The height of Blunt's espionage activity was during the Second World War , when he passed to the Soviets intelligence about Wehrmacht plans that

2877-587: A student achieves a particularly good grade average, usually 70% or above. A common example of a Scottish ordinary degree is the Bachelor of Laws course taken by graduates of other subjects, as this is sufficient (without honours) for entry into the legal profession. Until the 1970s the University of Oxford awarded a Fourth Class degree as an equivalent of the ordinary degree. An aegrotat ( / ˈ iː ɡ r oʊ t æ t / ; from Latin aegrōtat  'he/she

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3014-547: A three-year B.A. or a three-year BSc) by default. High-achieving students may be recognised with an honours classification without further coursework or research, as is often the case in engineering (which often contains a research and thesis component) or law. However, other courses (such as humanities, arts, social sciences, and sciences) and other universities may recognise high-achieving students with an honours classification with further coursework or research, undertaken either concurrently with, and as part of or in addition to,

3151-462: A three-year bachelor's degree onto a master's degree (normally requiring a 1st or a 2:1 – those with a 2:2 or a 3rd usually require appropriate professional experience), South Africa does not do so unless the student has proven research capabilities. South African Honours degrees prepare the students to undertake a research-specific degree (in terms of master's), by spending an in-depth year (up to five modules) creating research proposals and undertaking

3288-558: A wartime British agent, recalls meeting Philby and Rothschild in Paris in 1955. He reported that Rothschild argued that much more Ultra material should have been given to Stalin ; for once, Philby reportedly dropped his reserve and agreed. During the war, Blunt attained the rank of major . He was later accused of betraying Operation Market Garden to benefit both the Nazis and the Russians. This defeat

3425-463: A world of rather prissy, cold-blooded, academic puritanism." In 1928, Blunt founded a political magazine, Venture , whose contributors were left-wing writers. Blunt won a scholarship in mathematics to Trinity College, Cambridge . At that time, scholars at the University of Cambridge were allowed to skip Part I of the Tripos examinations and complete Part II in two years. However, they could not earn

3562-428: A year by a small margin to transfer to a parallel ordinary degree course. Ordinary degrees may also sometimes be awarded to honours degree students who do not pass sufficient credits in their final year to gain an honours degree, but pass enough to earn an ordinary degree. Some Scottish universities offer three-year ordinary degrees as a qualification in their own right, as well as an honours degree over four years. This

3699-564: Is a minimum requirement for entry to many postgraduate courses in the UK. It is also required for the award of a research council postgraduate studentship in the UK, although a combination of qualifications and experience equal to a 2:1 is also acceptable. This is often interpreted as possession of a master's degree (sometimes at merit level or above) in addition to a 2:2 undergraduate degree. The percentage of candidates who achieve Upper Second Class Honours can vary widely by degree subject, as well as by university. A 2:1 degree ("two-one")

3836-466: Is a sentiment that achieving a First or Upper Second Class Honours is no longer sufficient for securing desirable employment, pushing students towards extracurricular activities to enhance their resumes. The system affects progression to postgraduate education , with most courses requiring at least a 2:1, although work experience and additional qualifications can sometimes compensate for lower classifications. In comparison to international grading systems,

3973-428: Is consistent with British graduate degree classification. Regulations governing the progression of undergraduate degree graduates to postgraduate programmes vary among universities, and are often flexible. A candidate for a postgraduate master's degree is usually required to have at least a 2:1 (or 2:2 in some cases) bachelor honours degree, although candidates with firsts are in a considerably stronger position to gain

4110-606: Is ill') degree is an honours or ordinary degree without classification, awarded to a candidate who was unable to undertake their exams due to illness or even death, under the presumption that, had they completed those exams, they would have satisfied the standard required for that degree. Aegrotat degrees are often qualified with an appended "( aegrotat )". Following the introduction of new regulations regarding mitigating circumstances, aegrotat degrees are less commonly awarded. Degrees may be granted which incorporate prior learning, such as by means of CATS points transfer. Where

4247-401: Is in contrast to English universities that have honours degrees with three years of study. An ordinary degree in Scotland is not a failed honours degree, as in certain English universities. Students can decide, usually at the end of their second or third year, whether or not they wish to complete a fourth honours year. Scottish universities may also award their ordinary degrees with distinction if

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4384-416: Is in silver. Further, the size of the badge varies by rank, that for the higher classes being larger, and Knights and Dames Grand Cross and Knights and Dames Commander have their crosses surrounded by a star: for the former, an eight-pointed silver star, and for the latter, an eight-pointed silver Maltese cross with silver rays between each arm. The medal bears the effigy and name of the reigning sovereign at

4521-480: Is not that good." Although ordered by the KGB to defect with Maclean and Burgess to protect Philby, in 1951 Blunt realised "quite clearly that I would take any risk in [Britain], rather than go to Russia." After he was publicly exposed, he claims to have considered suicide but instead turned to "whisky and concentrated work." The regret in the manuscript seemed to stem from the way that spying had affected his life, and there

4658-511: Is sometimes referred to as an "Attila" (after Attila the Hun , " Trevor Nunn " in rhyming slang in the UK. Until 1986 the University of Oxford did not distinguish between upper and lower second-class degrees. This is the lower division of Second Class degrees and is abbreviated as "2:2" or '"II.ii" (pronounced two-two ). It is informally referred to, in rhyming slang, as a "Desmond", after Desmond Tutu . Third Class Honours, commonly referred to as

4795-465: Is still widely regarded as a watershed book in art history. His teaching text and reference work Art and Architecture in France 1500–1700 , first published in 1953, reached its fifth edition (in a version slightly revised by Richard Beresford) in 1999, at which time it was still considered the best account of the subject. In 1964, after being offered immunity from prosecution , Blunt confessed to having been

4932-708: The Battle of the Atlantic . As the war progressed, Wehrmacht codes were also broken. Sensitive receivers could pick up transmissions, relating to German war plans, from Berlin . There was a great risk that, if the Germans discovered their codes had been compromised, they would change the settings of the Enigma wheels, blinding the code breakers. The entirety of Ultra was known by only four people, only one of whom routinely worked at Bletchley Park . Dissemination of Ultra information did not follow

5069-524: The British Academy after a failed effort to expel him; three fellows resigned in protest against the failure to remove him. He broke down in tears in his BBC Television confession at the age of 72. Anthony Blunt died of a heart attack at his London home, 9 The Grove, Highgate , in 1983, aged 75. Jon Nordheimer, the author of his obituary in The New York Times , wrote: "Details of the nature of

5206-753: The Dearing Report , consider British honours degrees equivalent to a US master's degree and US bachelor's degrees as equivalent to British pass degrees in terms of the standard reached in the major subject, due to the higher degree of specialisation in the UK. However, British institutions generally accept US bachelor's degrees for admission to postgraduate study (see below). In comparing US bachelor's degrees to British honours degrees, equivalencies can be expressed in terms of either US grade point averages (GPAs) or letter grades. British institutions normally state equivalence in terms of GPAs. Approximate mappings between British classifications and GPAs can be inferred from

5343-527: The Foreign Office but was under surveillance and isolated from secret material. Blunt collected Burgess at Southampton Docks and took him to stay at his flat in London, although he later denied that he had warned the defecting pair. Blunt was interrogated by MI5 in 1952 but gave away little if anything. Arthur Martin and Jim Skardon interviewed Blunt eleven times after 1951, but Blunt had admitted nothing. Blunt

5480-655: The Qualifications Framework of the European Higher Education Area . The table below depicts the Greek Grading system while illustrates approximately how the Grades are compared with ECTS and UK grades: from all years, are passed successfully. Years are extended. The University of St Andrews gives equivalencies between French and British grades for its study-abroad programme. Equivalencies for

5617-581: The Royal Peculiars of St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle and Westminster Abbey are customarily inducted as Knights Commander; clergymen appointed to the higher levels of the Royal Victorian Order do not use the associated styles, however, and honorary members are not permitted to hold them at all. Prior to 1984, the grades of Lieutenant and Member were classified as Members (fourth class) and Members (fifth class) , respectively, but both with

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5754-605: The lieutenant governors . The practice of notifying the Prime Minister of Canada of nominees ended in 1982, to distance the order as far from politics as possible. It was reported in 2008 that some in the Chancellery of Honours at Rideau Hall wished to eliminate the Royal Victorian Order from the Canadian honours system and sometimes contested when a Canadian was appointed; however, no formal changes were ever planned. In Canada,

5891-419: The 18th century and were not restored to the personal gift of the sovereign until 1946 and 1947, respectively ). Queen Victoria thus established on 21 April 1896 the Royal Victorian Order as a junior and personal order of knighthood that allowed her to bestow directly to an empire-wide community honours for personal services. The organisation was founded a year before Victoria's Diamond Jubilee , so as to give

6028-590: The Apostles, Blunt met the future poet Julian Bell (son of painter Vanessa Bell ) and took him as a lover. Amongst other members were Victor Rothschild and the American Michael Whitney Straight , the latter also later suspected of being part of the Cambridge spy ring. Rothschild later worked for MI5 and gave Blunt £100 to purchase the painting Eliezar and Rebecca by Nicolas Poussin . The painting

6165-492: The Art of Obstetrics (BAO) is added, and at some universities only the Bachelor of Medicine is awarded – all of these have equal standing. Unlike most undergraduate degrees, the MBBS is not normally considered an honours degree, and thus is not classified into first class honours, etc. Students may be awarded "Merits" and "Distinctions" for parts of the course or the whole course (depending on

6302-531: The British embassy chapel and moved his family to the French capital for several years during Anthony's childhood. Blunt became fluent in French and intensely experienced the artistic culture available to him in Paris, stimulating an interest which lasted a lifetime and formed the basis for his later career. Blunt was educated at Marlborough College , a boys' public school in Marlborough , Wiltshire . There he joined

6439-609: The British government had decided to withhold. His confession—a closely guarded secret for years—was revealed publicly by Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in November 1979. He was stripped of his knighthood immediately thereafter and died a little over three years later. Anthony Blunt was born on 26 September 1907 in Bournemouth , which at the time was in Hampshire but is now in Dorset . He

6576-599: The Courtauld Institute, Blunt was respected as a dedicated teacher, a kind superior to his staff. His legacy at the Courtauld was to have left it with a larger staff, increased funding, and more space, and his role was central in the acquisition of outstanding collections for the Courtauld's Galleries. He is often credited for making the Courtauld what it is today, as well as for pioneering art history in Britain, and for training

6713-604: The Eastern Front to Blunt. According to his obituary in The New York Times , Blunt acknowledged that he had recruited spies for the Soviets from among young radical students at Cambridge, passed information to the Russians while he served as a high-ranking British intelligence officer during World War II and had helped two of his former Cambridge students who had become Soviet moles , Burgess and Maclean, escape in 1951 just as their activities were about to be exposed. Blunt

6850-450: The Faith), and Ind. Imp. ( Empress of India ). The chain supports a larger octagonal medallion with a blue enamel surface edged in red and charged with a saltire , over which is an effigy of Queen Victoria; members of the order suspend from this medallion their insignia as a badge apendant . Though after the death of a Knight or Dame Grand Cross their insignia may be retained by their family,

6987-524: The Final Honours School, or in both the bachelor's and master's components of an integrated master's degree. At University College London , candidates who perform well beyond the requirements of a standard First Class Honours may be nominated to the Dean's List . This is generated once per year and recognises outstanding academic achievement in final examinations. There are no set criteria for nomination to

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7124-467: The House of Commons on 21 November, Thatcher disclosed more details of the affair. For weeks after Thatcher's announcement, Blunt was hunted by journalists. Once found, he was besieged by photographers. Blunt had recently given a lecture at the invitation of Francis Haskell , Oxford University 's professor of art history. Haskell had a Russian mother and wife and had graduated from King's College, Cambridge. To

7261-546: The King's Chapel of the Savoy is ex officio the Chaplain to the Royal Victorian Order. The current incumbent is Canon Thomas Woodhouse. Membership in the Royal Victorian Order is conferred by the monarch without ministerial advice on those who have performed personal service for the sovereign. Foreign members will generally be admitted as honorary members of the Royal Victorian Order when

7398-760: The King; the Registrar, held by the Secretary to the Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood ; the Chaplain , held by the Chaplain of the King's Chapel of the Savoy ; and the Genealogist . Thereafter follow those honoured with different grades of the order, divided into five levels: the highest two conferring accolades of knighthood and all having post-nominal letters and, lastly,

7535-570: The Newspaper Library in Colindale to check facts, but was unhappy at being recognised. "I do know he was really worried about upsetting his family," said Sewell. "I think he was being absolutely straight with me when he said that if he could not verify the facts there was no point in going on." Blunt stopped writing in 1983, leaving his memoirs to his partner, John Gaskin, who kept them for a year and then gave them to Blunt's executor, John Golding,

7672-479: The Palace – a visit to Germany at the end of the war. Please do not pursue this matter. Strictly speaking, it is not relevant to considerations of national security." For unknown reasons, Prime Minister Alec Douglas-Home was not informed of Blunt's spying, although the Queen and Conservative Home Secretary Henry Brooke had been fully informed. In November 1979, Thatcher informed Parliament of Blunt's treachery and

7809-476: The Queen time to complete a list of first inductees. The order's official day was made 20 June of each year, marking the anniversary of Queen Victoria's accession to the throne. In 1902, King Edward VII created the Royal Victorian Chain "as a personal decoration for royal personages and a few eminent British subjects" and it was the highest class of the Royal Victorian Order. It is today distinct from

7946-561: The Royal Collection, as well as a supplement of Addenda and Corrigenda to the Italian catalogues (in E. Schilling's German Drawings). Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order ( French : Ordre royal de Victoria ) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria . It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of

8083-409: The Savoy chapel can no longer accommodate the gathering of members held every four years, and St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle is now employed for the event. The Sovereign and Knights and Dames Grand Cross of the order are allotted stalls in the Savoy chapel's choir, and on the back of each stall is affixed a brass plate displaying the occupant's name, coat of arms , and date of admission into

8220-700: The Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF). Bachelor's degrees (including the Scottish MA , but not including medical degrees , dentistry degrees or degrees in veterinary science) attained in the UK are at FHEQ level 6/FQHEIS level 9 (ordinary) or 10 (honours); master's degrees (including integrated master's degrees and first degrees in medicine, dentistry and veterinary science) are at FHEQ level 7/FQHEIS level 11, and doctoral degrees are at FHEQ level 8/FQHEIS level 12. Bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees map to first, second and third cycle qualifications in

8357-458: The UK NARIC. NUFFIC also noted that the grading culture is different in the Netherlands, so that it is very rare for even the best students in the Netherlands to be awarded a 9 or a 10, which represent near perfection and absolute perfection. US comparison services treat English three-year bachelor's degrees and American four-year bachelor's degrees as equivalent. Some British sources, such as

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8494-404: The UK's classifications have equivalents in various countries, adapting to different academic cultures and grading scales. The ongoing debate over grade inflation and its implications for the UK's higher education landscape reflect broader concerns about maintaining academic standards and the value of university degrees in an increasingly competitive job market. The classification system as used in

8631-525: The United Kingdom was developed in 1918. Honours were then a means to recognise individuals who demonstrated depth of knowledge or originality, as opposed to relative achievement in examination conditions. Concern exists about possible grade inflation . It is claimed that academics are under increasing pressure from administrators to award students good marks and grades with little regard for those students' actual abilities, in order to maintain their league table rankings. The percentage of graduates who receive

8768-550: The Vicky correspondence before the Americans found it and published it." Blunt made three more trips to other locations over the following eighteen months, mainly "to recover royal treasures to which the Crown did not have an automatic right." On one trip he returned with a twelfth-century illuminated manuscript and the diamond crown of Queen Charlotte . The King had good reason to worry about

8905-517: The WES grades given using the letter grade to GPA conversion of Duke University . Canadian academic grades may be given as letters, percentages, 12-point GPAs or 4-point GPAs. The 4-point GPAs are sometimes seen to differ from the US but other sources treat them as equivalent. The Durham conversion specifies GPAs for the US and letter grades/percentages for Canada while the UK NARIC has separate GPA conversions for

9042-430: The actions of an individual, whose name has been supplied to her, in relation to the security of the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister: "The name which the hon. Member for Hartlepool (Mr. Leadbitter) has given me is that of Sir Anthony Blunt." In a statement to the press on 20 November, Blunt claimed the decision to grant him immunity from prosecution was taken by the then-prime minister, Sir Alec Douglas-Home. Speaking in

9179-580: The alert for any documents relating to the Duke, "it seems unlikely that they found any." Much later, Queen Victoria's letters were edited and published in five volumes by Roger Fulford , and it was revealed they contained numerous "embarrassing and 'improper' comments about the awfulness of German politics and culture." Hugh Trevor-Roper remembered discussing the trip with Blunt at MI5 in the autumn of 1945, recalling (in Carter's retelling): "Blunt's task had been to secure

9316-478: The badge on a ribbon at the neck; male Lieutenants and Members wear the badge from a ribbon on the left chest; and women in all grades below Dame Grand Cross wear the badge on a bow pinned at the left shoulder. For Knights and Dames Grand Cross, Commanders, and Lieutenants, the Maltese cross is rendered in white enamel with gold edging, while that for Knights and Dames Commander (on the star) and Members (the badge itself)

9453-537: The bait. ...she found the whole episode thoroughly reprehensible, and reeking of Establishment collusion." On 15 November 1979, Thatcher revealed Blunt's wartime role to the House of Commons in reply to questions put to her by Ted Leadbitter , MP for Hartlepool , and Dennis Skinner , MP for Bolsover : Mr. Leadbitter and Mr. Skinner: Asked the Prime Minister if she will make a statement on recent evidence concerning

9590-454: The cataloguing of the collection. In 1947, Blunt became both Professor of the History of Art at the University of London , and the director of the Courtauld Institute of Art , University of London, where he had been lecturing since the spring of 1933, and where his tenure in office as director lasted until 1974. This position included the use of a live-in apartment on the premises, then at Home House in Portman Square . During his 27 years at

9727-405: The close of the 19th century, most general honours within the British Empire were bestowed by the sovereign on the advice of her British ministers , who sometimes forwarded advice from ministers of the Crown in the Dominions and colonies (appointments to the then most senior orders of chivalry, the Order of the Garter and the Order of the Thistle , had been made on ministerial advice since

9864-404: The collar must be returned. Knights and Dames Grand Cross also wear a mantle of dark blue satin edged with red satin and lined with white satin, bearing a representation of the order's star on the left side. Since 1938, the chapel of the Royal Victorian Order has been the King's Chapel of the Savoy , in central London , England . However, the population of the order has grown to the point that

10001-450: The college's secret "Society of Amici", in which he was a contemporary of Louis MacNeice (whose unfinished autobiography The Strings Are False contains numerous references to Blunt), John Betjeman and Graham Shepard . He was remembered by historian John Edward Bowle , a year ahead of Blunt at Marlborough, as "an intellectual prig, too preoccupied with the realm of ideas." Bowle thought Blunt had "too much ink in his veins and belonged to

10138-460: The defection of Burgess and Maclean in 1951. In April 1945, Blunt, who had worked part-time at the Royal Library , was offered and accepted the job of Surveyor of the King's Pictures . His predecessor, Kenneth Clark , had resigned earlier that year. The Royal Librarian , Owen Morshead , who had become friends with Blunt during the two years he worked in the Royal Collection, recommended him for

10275-473: The espionage carried out by Mr. Blunt for the Russians have never been revealed, although it is believed that they did not directly cause loss of life or compromise military operations." Blunt withdrew from society after he was officially exposed and seldom went out, but continued his work on art history. His friend Tess Rothschild suggested that he occupy his time writing his memoirs. Sewell, his former pupil, said they remained unfinished because he had to consult

10412-455: The examining professors ask no questions about the candidate's written work but simply stand and applaud" and Martin Amis described as "the sort where you are called in for a viva and the examiners tell you how much they enjoyed reading your papers". A "double first" at Oxford informally refers to First Class Honours in both components of an undergraduate degree, i.e., Moderations or Prelims, and

10549-545: The final days of World War II in Europe , King George VI asked Blunt to accompany Morshead on a trip to Friedrichshof Castle near Frankfurt to retrieve almost 4,000 letters written by Queen Victoria to her daughter, Empress Victoria , the mother of Kaiser Wilhelm II . The account of the trip in the Royal Archives states that the letters, as well as other documents, "were exposed to risks owing to unsettled conditions after

10686-528: The first or second year, but their results do not typically affect the final degree classification. Until the 1970s, the four honours divisions in Oxford's moderations and final examinations were named first, second, third and fourth class, but from the 1970s onwards, Oxford began to adopt the classification system used by other British universities. Oxford sometimes grants a congratulatory first, which The New York Times described as "a highly unusual honor in which

10823-507: The following table: Letter grade equivalents are more commonly used by American institutions. World Education Services (WES), a nonprofit organisation which provides qualification conversion services to many universities and employers, gives 1st = A, 2:1 = A−/B+, 2:2 = B, 3rd = B−, Pass = C. The Fulbright Commission has also created "an unofficial chart with approximate grade conversions between UK results and US GPA". The table below summarises these conversions, including GPA equivalents for

10960-526: The four-year bachelor's honours, baccalauréat and professional bachelor's degrees (which differ from their US GPA equivalents by at most 0.1) and the three-year bachelor's degree (which is seen as a lower standard). The British Graduate Admissions Fact Sheet from McGill University uses the conversion 1st = 4.0; 2:1 = 3.0; 2:2 = 2.7; 3rd = 2.0; Pass = 1.0; Fail = 0.0. Some universities, such as those in Australia, offer ordinary or pass degrees (for instance, as

11097-562: The gift of the monarch, the appointment of Canadians to the order resumed in 1972 and eligibility was extended to those who render services to the monarch's representatives in the country; officials within the provincial spheres being included after 1984. Originally, the sovereign chose inductees personally, though the Governor General of Canada and the Canadian Secretary to the King could provide suggestions, some passed to them by

11234-466: The graduate admissions criteria used by British universities, which often give international equivalents. For example, University College London (UCL) equates the minimum classification for entrance to GPAs using 2:1 = 3.3 and 2:2 = 3.0. Different universities convert grades differently: the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) considers a GPA of 3.5 or better as equivalent to gaining

11371-587: The group has, since 2008, gathered biennially. As the Royal Victorian Order is open to the citizens of fifteen countries, each with their own system of orders, decorations, and medals, the RVO's place of precedence varies from country to country. Some are as follows: In the United Kingdom, the wives of male members of all classes also feature on the order of precedence, as do sons, daughters and daughters-in-law of Knights Grand Cross and Knights Commanders; relatives of Dames, however, are not assigned any special precedence. As

11508-404: The guts to betray his country." In 2002 the novelist Julian Barnes asserted that "Blunt exploited, deceived, and lied to far more friends than he was loyal to ... if you betray your country, you by definition betray all your friends in that country..." The Queen stripped Blunt of his knighthood, and in short order he was removed as an Honorary Fellow of Trinity College. He resigned as a Fellow of

11645-514: The higher class. However, even students with a high average mark may be unable to take honours if they have failed part of the course and so have insufficient credits. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, a bachelor's degree with honours normally takes three years of full-time study and usually requires 360 credits , of which at least 90 are at level 6 (final year of a bachelor's degree) level, while an ordinary bachelor's degree normally requires 300 credits, of which 60 are at level 6. In Scotland,

11782-479: The holders of the Royal Victorian Medal in gold, silver or bronze. Foreigners may be admitted as honorary members. There are no limits to the number of any grade, and promotion is possible. The styles of knighthood are not used by princes, princesses, or peers in the uppermost ranks of the society, save for when their names are written in their fullest forms for the most official occasions. Retiring Deans of

11919-413: The honours bachelor's degree takes four years and requires 480 credits with a minimum of 90 at level 10 of the Scottish framework (last year of the honours degree) and 90 at level 9 (penultimate year), while the ordinary degree takes three years and requires 360 credits with a minimum of 60 at level 9 (last year of the ordinary degree). In Scotland, it is possible to start university a year younger than in

12056-544: The immunity deal that had been arranged. Blunt's life was little affected by the knowledge of his treachery. In 1966, two years after his secret confession, Noel Annan , provost of King's College, Cambridge, held a dinner party for Labour Home Secretary Roy Jenkins , Ann Fleming (widow of James Bond author Ian Fleming ), and Victor Rothschild and his wife Tess. The Rothschilds brought their friend and lodger – Blunt. All had had wartime connections with British intelligence; Jenkins at Bletchley Park. In 1979, Blunt's role

12193-472: The job. Morshead had been impressed with Blunt's "diligence, his habitual reticence, and his perfect manners." Blunt often visited Morshead's home in Windsor . His student Oliver Millar , who would become his successor as Surveyor, said, "I think Anthony was happier there than many other places." Carter writes: "The royal family liked him: he was polite, effective and, above all, discreet." In August 1945, during

12330-599: The list, but typically only a small number of students from each faculty are nominated per year. Comparable recognition in other anglophone countries is the award of a University Medal . Degrees in the UK are mapped to levels of the Frameworks for Higher Education Qualifications of UK Degree-Awarding Bodies (FHEQ), which includes the Framework for Qualifications of Higher Education Institutes in Scotland (FQHEIS), which has an alternative numbering of levels corresponding to those of

12467-411: The medal, which has three levels of service. While all those honoured may use the prescribed styles of the order – the top two grades grant titles of knighthood, and all grades accord distinct post-nominal letters – the Royal Victorian Order's precedence amongst other honours differs from realm to realm and admission to some grades may be barred to citizens of those realms by government policy. Prior to

12604-518: The monarch. The present monarch, King Charles III , is the sovereign of the order. The order's motto is Victoria. The order's official day is 20 June. The order's chapel is the Savoy Chapel in London . There is no limit on the number of individuals honoured at any grade. Admission is at the sole discretion of the monarch. Each of the order's five grades represent different levels of service, as does

12741-779: The neighbouring Trinity Hall ) a few years younger than he – as potential spies for the Soviets. With the invasion of Poland by German and Soviet forces, Blunt joined the British Army in 1939. During the Phoney War he served in France in the Intelligence Corps . When the Wehrmacht drove British forces back to Dunkirk in May 1940, Blunt was part of the Dunkirk evacuation . During that same year he

12878-539: The new insignia. The order's ribbon is blue with red-white-red stripe edging, the only difference being that for foreigners appointed into the society, their ribbon bears an additional central white stripe. For Knights Grand Cross, the ribbon is 82.5 millimetres (3.25 in) wide, for Dames Grand Cross 57.1 millimetres (2.25 in), for Knights and Dames Commander 44.4 millimetres (1.75 in), and for all other members 31.7 millimetres (1.25 in). At formal events, or collar days , of which there are 34 throughout

13015-567: The next generation of British art historians. While at the Courtauld, Blunt contributed photographs to the Conway Library of art and architecture, which are currently being digitised. In 1953, Blunt published his book Art and Architecture in France, 1500–1700 in the Pelican History of Art (later taken over by Yale University Press), and he was in particular an expert on the works of Nicolas Poussin , writing numerous books and articles about

13152-470: The order has come to be colloquially dubbed as the "Royal Visit Order", as the majority of appointments had been made by the then sovereign during her tours of the country . The Royal Victorian Order Association of Canada exists for all Canadians appointed to the order or who have received the Royal Victorian Medal; it is the only such organisation in the Commonwealth realms . Founded by Michael Jackson,

13289-557: The order, though it is officially issued by the chancery of the Royal Victorian Order. The order was open to foreigners from its inception, with the Prefect of Alpes-Maritimes and the Mayor of Nice being the first foreigners to receive the honour in 1896. The reigning monarch is at the apex of the Royal Victorian Order as its Sovereign, followed by the Grand Master ; the latter position

13426-583: The organisation. Upon the occupant's death, the plate is retained, leaving the stalls festooned with a record of the order's Knights and Dames Grand Cross since 1938. The only heraldic banners normally on display in the chapel are those of the Sovereign of the Royal Victorian Order and of the Grand Master of the Royal Victorian Order as there is insufficient space in the chapel for more knights' and dames' banners or other heraldic devices. The Chaplain of

13563-409: The overall value of higher education. Students already believe that a first or upper second, by itself, is no longer sufficient to secure a good job, and that they need to engage in extra-curricular activities to build their CV . A bachelor's degree can be an honours degree (bachelor's with honours) or an ordinary degree (bachelor's without honours). Honours degrees are classified, usually based on

13700-556: The painter, and serving as curator for a landmark exhibition of Poussin at the Louvre in 1960, which was an enormous success. He also wrote on topics as diverse as William Blake , Pablo Picasso , and the Galleries of England, Scotland, and Wales. He also catalogued the French drawings (1945), G. B. Castiglione and Stefano della Bella drawings (1954) Roman drawings (with H. L. Cooke, 1960) and Venetian (with Edward Croft-Murray , 1957) drawings in

13837-438: The percentage of classified degrees (i.e., not including fails or unclassified degrees such as MBBS ) in each class at five-year intervals; note that HESA stopped giving statistics separately for third class honours and pass degree after 2003. First Class Honours, referred to as a "first", is the highest honours classification and indicates high academic achievement. Historically, First Class Honours were uncommon, but since 2019

13974-502: The post-nominals MVO . On 31 December of that year, Queen Elizabeth II declared that those in the grade of Member (fourth class) would henceforth be Lieutenants with the post-nominals LVO . Upon admission into the Royal Victorian Order, members are given various insignia. Common for all members is the badge, which is a Maltese cross with a central medallion depicting on a red background the Royal Cypher of Queen Victoria surrounded by

14111-511: The press, this made him an obvious suspect. They repeatedly telephoned Haskell's home in the early hours of the morning, using the names of his friends and claiming to have an urgent message for "Anthony." Although Blunt was outwardly calm, the sudden exposure shocked him. His former pupil, art critic Brian Sewell , said at the time, "He was so businesslike about it; he considered the implications for his knighthood and academic honours and what should be resigned and what retained. What he didn't want

14248-431: The proportion of First Class and Upper Second Class honours degrees awarded; the percentage of First Class Honours increased from 7% in 1997 to 26% in 2017. Critics argue this trend, driven partly by institutional pressures to maintain high league table rankings, dilutes the value of higher education and undermines public confidence. Despite improvements in teaching and student motivation contributing to higher grades, there

14385-485: The purposes of initial teacher training have also been derived by the UK NARIC for 1st, 2:1 and 2:2 degrees, which do not align with St Andrews' table. The South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) compares international degrees with local degrees before any international student continues their studies in that country. While the British degree accreditation and classification system allows students to go straight from

14522-404: The qualities of first class answers to an exceptional degree." Some Cambridge alumni who achieved Firsts in three Parts of the Tripos are described by their colleges and others as having achieved a "triple first". At the University of Oxford , a formal degree class is awarded, typically based on the final examinations. Examinations for Prelims or Honour Moderations are also undertaken in

14659-595: The rest of the United Kingdom, as the Scottish Higher exams are often taken at age 16 or 17 (as opposed to 18), so Scottish students often end a four-year course at the same age as a student from elsewhere in the UK taking a three-year course , assuming no gap years or students skipping the first year (direct entry to 2nd year). When a candidate is awarded a degree with honours, "(Hons)" may be suffixed to their designatory letters – e.g. BA (Hons), BSc (Hons), BMus (Hons), MA (Hons). An MA (Hons) would generally indicate

14796-482: The safety of the objects he had sent Blunt to retrieve: the senior American officers at Friedrichshof Castle, Kathleen Nash and Jack Durant, were later arrested for looting and put on trial. Some people knew of Blunt's role as a Soviet spy long before his public exposure. According to MI5 papers released in 2002, Moura Budberg reported in 1950 that Blunt was a member of the British Communist Party , but this

14933-464: The same way as a bachelor's honours degree, although some integrated master's degrees are classified like postgraduate taught master's degrees or foundation degrees into: At most institutions, the system allows a small amount of discretion. A candidate may be elevated to the next degree class if their average marks are close to (or the median of their weighted marks achieves) the higher class, and if they have submitted several pieces of work worthy of

15070-542: The sheer amount of material he was passing over, suspecting him of being a triple agent . Later, he was described by a KGB officer as "ideological shit." With the defection of Burgess and Maclean to Moscow in May 1951, Blunt came under suspicion. Burgess returned on the RMS Queen Mary to Southampton after being suspended from the British embassy in Washington for his conduct. He was to warn Maclean, who now worked in

15207-429: The source. John Cairncross was posted from MI6 to work at Bletchley Park. Blunt admitted to recruiting Cairncross and may well have been the cut-out between him and Soviet contacts. Although the Soviet Union was now an ally, the Russians were not trusted. Some information concerned German preparations and detailed plans for the Battle of Kursk , the last major German offensive on the Eastern Front. Malcolm Muggeridge ,

15344-550: The sovereign is making a state visit to the individual's country or a head of state is paying a state visit to the United Kingdom. As admission to the top two levels of the organisation provides for an honorary prefix, Canadians are not normally appointed to these levels as long as the monarch's Canadian ministry adheres to the Nickle Resolution of 1919. As it was deemed by the Canadian Cabinet to be an honour within

15481-478: The substance of incorporated credit exceeds a given threshold, the granting institution may be unable to grade sufficient work to award a degree classification. Any degree granted may then be unclassified. At the University of Cambridge , undergraduate Tripos examinations are split into one or more Parts, which span either one or two years. Each student receives a formal classification for each Part (i.e. Class I, II.i, II.ii, or III). Until October 2020, officially

15618-574: The time of its awarding, as well as the phrase DEI • GRATIA • REX (or REGINA) • F.D. (by the grace of God, King (or Queen), Defender of the Faith ), and on the reverse is the Royal Cypher upon an ornamental shield within a laurel wreath . Bars may be awarded to each class of medal for further services, and should recipients be awarded a higher level of medal or be appointed to a grade of the order itself, they may continue to wear their original medal along with

15755-451: The trip was to retrieve letters from the Duke of Windsor to Philipp, Landgrave of Hesse , the owner of Friedrichshof Castle, in which the Duke knowingly revealed Allied secrets to Hitler , have some credibility, given the Duke's known Nazi sympathies. Variants of this version have been published by several authors. Carter allows that, while George VI may have also asked Blunt and Morshead to be on

15892-449: The usual intelligence protocol but maintained its own communications channels. Military intelligence officers gave intercepts to Ultra liaisons, who in turn forwarded the intercepts to Bletchley Park. Information from decoded messages was then passed back to military commanders through the same channels. Thus, each link in the communications chain knew only one particular job and not the overall Ultra details. Nobody outside Bletchley Park knew

16029-465: The war." According to Morshead, Blunt was needed because he knew German , which would make it easier to identify the desired material. There was a signed agreement made at the time, since the royal family did not own the documents. The letters rescued by Morshead and Blunt were deposited in the Royal Archives and were returned in 1951. Carter mentions that other versions of the story, which claim that

16166-460: The year, such as New Year's Day and royal anniversaries, Knights and Dames Grand Cross wear the Royal Victorian Order's livery collar , consisting of an alternating string of octagonal gold pieces depicting a gold rose on a blue field and gold oblong frames within which are one of four inscriptions: Victoria , Britt. Reg. (Queen of the Britons), Def. Fid. ( fidei defensor , or Defender of

16303-562: Was "recruited between 1935 and 1936", while his biographer Miranda Carter says that it was in January 1937 that Burgess introduced Blunt to his Soviet recruiter, Arnold Deutsch . Shortly after meeting Deutsch, writes Carter, Blunt became a Soviet "talent spotter" and was given the NKVD codename "Tony." Blunt may have identified Burgess, Straight, Kim Philby , Donald Maclean and John Cairncross – all undergraduates at Trinity College (except Maclean at

16440-610: Was a great debate at his clubs, the Athenaeum and the Travellers . He was incredibly calm about it all." Sewell was involved in protecting Blunt from the extensive media attention, and his friend was spirited away to a flat within a house in Chiswick . In 1979, Blunt said that the reason for his betrayal could be explained by the E. M. Forster adage "if asked to choose between betraying his friend and betraying his country, he hoped he would have

16577-400: Was convinced that his confession would be kept secret. "I believed, naively, that the security service would see it, partly in its own interest, that the story would never become public," he wrote. Indeed, in return for a full confession, the British government agreed to keep his espionage an official secret , though only for fifteen years, and granted him full immunity from prosecution . Blunt

16714-782: Was created in 1937 and was occupied by Queen Elizabeth (later the Queen Mother) from that date until her death in 2002. Queen Elizabeth II then appointed her daughter, Anne, Princess Royal , to the position in 2007. Below the Grand Master are five officials of the organisation: the Chancellor , held by the Lord Chamberlain ; the Secretary , held by the Keeper of the Privy Purse and Treasurer to

16851-533: Was given the distinguished position of Surveyor of the King's Pictures, and later the Queen's Pictures (after the death of King George VI in 1952), in charge of the Royal Collection , one of the largest and richest collections of art in the world. He held the position for 27 years, was knighted as a KCVO in 1956 for his work in the role, and his contribution was vital in the expansion of the Queen's Gallery at Buckingham Palace, which opened in 1962, and organizing

16988-540: Was greatly distressed by Burgess' flight and, on 28 May 1951, confided in his friend Goronwy Rees , a fellow of All Souls College, Oxford , who had briefly supplied the NKVD with political information in 1938–39. Rees suggested that Burgess had defected because of his virulent anti-Americanism and belief that the United States would involve Britain in a Third World War , and that he was a Soviet agent. Blunt suggested that this

17125-466: Was ignored. According to Blunt himself, he never joined because Burgess persuaded him that he would be more valuable to the Soviet cause by working with Burgess. He was certainly on friendly terms with Sir Dick White , the head of MI5 and later MI6 , in the 1960s, and they used to spend Christmas together with Rothschild in the latter's Cambridge residence. Blunt's KGB handlers had also become suspicious at

17262-602: Was informed shortly thereafter. He also named Cairncross, Jenifer Hart , Phoebe Pool , Peter Ashby, Brian Simon and Leonard Henry Long as spies. Long had also been a member of the Communist Party and an undergraduate at Trinity College, Cambridge. During the war, he served in MI14 military intelligence in the War Office , with responsibility for assessing German offensive plans. He passed analyses but not original material relating to

17399-555: Was known to be homosexual , the practice of which was a criminal offence at the time in the United Kingdom. Both were members of the Cambridge Apostles (also known as the Conversazione Society), a clandestine Cambridge discussion group of twelve undergraduates , mostly from Trinity and King's Colleges who considered themselves to be the brightest minds; many were also homosexual as well as Marxist sympathisers. Through

17536-520: Was no apology. The historian Christopher Andrew felt that the regret was shallow, and that he found an "unwillingness to acknowledge the evil he had served in spying for Stalin." Throughout the time of his activities in espionage, Blunt's public career was as an art historian, a field in which he gained eminence. In 1940, most of his fellowship dissertation was published under the title of Artistic Theory in Italy, 1450–1600 , which remains in print. In 1945, he

17673-440: Was not justified in committing myself to any political action of this kind. The atmosphere in Cambridge was so intense, the enthusiasm for any anti-fascist activity was so great, that I made the biggest mistake of my life. The memoir revealed little that was not already known about Blunt. When asked whether there would be any new or unexpected names, Golding replied: "I'm not sure. It's twenty-five years since I read it, and my memory

17810-447: Was not stripped of his knighthood until Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher officially announced his treachery in 1979. According to the memoir of MI5 officer Peter Wright , Wright had regular interviews with Blunt from 1964 onwards for six years. Prior to that, he had a briefing with Michael Adeane , the Queen's private secretary, who told Wright: "From time to time you may find Blunt referring to an assignment he undertook on behalf of

17947-482: Was not sufficient reason to denounce Burgess to MI5, pointing out that "Burgess was one of our oldest friends and to denounce him would not be the act of a friend." Blunt quoted E. M. Forster 's belief that country was less important than friendship, arguing that "Burgess had told me he was a spy in 1936 and I had not told anyone." In 1963, MI5 learned of Blunt's espionage from Straight, whom he had recruited. Blunt confessed to MI5 on 23 April 1964, and Queen Elizabeth II

18084-689: Was recruited to MI5, the Security Service. Before the war, MI5 employed mostly former members of the Indian Imperial Police . In MI5, Blunt began passing the results of Ultra intelligence (from decrypted Enigma intercepts of Wehrmacht radio traffic on the Eastern Front ) to the Soviets, as well as details of German spy rings operating in the Soviet Union. Ultra was primarily working on the Kriegsmarine naval codes, which eventually helped win

18221-614: Was reported in the magazine Private Eye and drew his attention. In early November excerpts were published in The Observer , and on 8 November Private Eye revealed that "Maurice" was Blunt. In interviews to publicise his book, Boyle refused to confirm that Blunt was "Maurice" and asserted that was the government's responsibility. Based on an interview with Blunt's solicitor, Michael Rubinstein (who had met with Thatcher's Cabinet Secretary , Sir Robert Armstrong ), Carter states that Thatcher, "personally affronted by Blunt's immunity, took

18358-472: Was represented in Andrew Boyle 's book Climate of Treason , in which Blunt was given the pseudonym "Maurice", after the homosexual protagonist of E. M. Forster's novel of that name . In September of that year, Blunt had tried to obtain a typescript before the publication of Boyle's book. "Technically there was no defamation , and Boyle's editor, Harold Harris, refused to cooperate." Blunt's request

18495-535: Was sold by Blunt's executors in 1985 for £100,000 (totalling £192,500 with tax remission) and is now in Cambridge's Fitzwilliam Museum . There are numerous theories of how Blunt was recruited to the Soviet Union . As a Cambridge don , Blunt visited the Soviet Union in 1933 and was possibly recruited in 1934. At a press conference decades later, Blunt claimed that Burgess recruited him as a spy after both had left Cambridge. The historian Geoff Andrews writes that Blunt

18632-497: Was the third and youngest son of a vicar , the Revd (Arthur) Stanley Vaughan Blunt (1870–1929), and his wife, Hilda Violet (1880–1969), daughter of Henry Master of the Madras civil service. His siblings included the writer Wilfrid Jasper Walter Blunt and numismatist Christopher Evelyn Blunt . One of his grandfathers was Bishop Frederick Blunt . Blunt's father was assigned to Paris with

18769-674: Was usually attributed to the Dutch traitor Christiaan Lindemans . In The Traitor of Arnhem , premiered by The Times , there is talk of another traitor, a certain "Josephine", who the author believed to be a cover name for Blunt. The aim of the Soviets, and therefore of Blunt, would have been to prevent Allied forces from arriving in Berlin before the Russians. After the war, Blunt's espionage activity diminished, but he retained contact with Soviet agents and continued to pass them gossip from former MI5 colleagues and documents from Burgess. This continued until

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