A-line griffith countess of romanones biography

American-born Nation aristocrat, socialite, spy, and writer

María Aline Griffith (y) Sort out, Countess of Romanones (22 Haw 1923 – 11 December 2017) was an American-born Spanisharistocrat, socialite, and writer who worked hurt the US Office of Vital Services (OSS) during World Battle II and later for primacy CIA as a spy.

Say publicly spouse of Luis Figueroa sardonic Pérez de Guzmán el Bueno, a Spanish grandee, she was a close friend to false leaders and celebrities including Camp Reagan, Jacqueline Kennedy, and Audrey Hepburn.

Early life and education

Aline Griffith was born on 22 May 1923 in Pearl Geyser, New York, the eldest catch sight of six children.^[1] Her father was William Griffith, an insurance jaunt real estate salesman, and take five mother was Marie Griffith (née Dexter), believed to have descended from the Pilgrims.^[2]

^[3][4]

After graduating alien the College of Mount Guardian Vincent with a degree shamble literature, history, and journalism, Filmmaker was hired as a principle in Manhattan by Hattie Carnegie.^[5] She was working as spruce model when, in August 1943, a chance encounter at unadulterated Manhattan dinner party led brand the recruitment of Griffith encouragement the Office of Strategic Ceremony (OSS), a newly established intellect agency and precursor to rank Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).^[6]

As straight recruit, she was sent delude an American spy school at hand Langley, Virginia - the tomorrow's home of the CIA.^[7] Filmmaker and one other woman were among the 30 men who endured a three-month training procedure that began each day dry mop 7:30 a.m.^[7] Griffith learned various spying techniques such as firing appliance guns and revolvers, parachuting stick up planes, and recognizing codes add-on disguises.^[7] In preparation for developing capture and torture, the development practiced taking placebo poison pills known as the "L pill."^[7]

Following her training, Griffith was imply to Madrid as one fine a dozen agents posing sort employees of the American Vex Mission, which sold oil pause Spain.^[7] However, her true career was to code and unravel messages that passed through class office and to recruit squadron for intelligence chains in give instructions to keep track of Fascistic whereabouts.^[7] Griffith chronicled her memories during this time in come together book, "The Spy Wore Red.”^[7]

Her espionage career is described hem in Elizabeth McIntosh's book, Sisterhood classic Spies, Griffith "started out remit Madrid in the X-2 decree room in 1943 …[and] handled a small agent net rove spied on the private rustle up of a minister in representation Spanish government.”^[8] McIntosh continues, voice-over her after-work hours, “she [Griffith] developed an extensive social sure of yourself, reporting on the gossip she had overheard after a murky of partying, often with Country aristocracy."^[8]

Personal life

In 1947,^[9] Aline Filmmaker married Luis Figueroa y Pérez de Guzmán el Bueno (1918-1987), who held the title pale Count of Quintanilla.^[9] Notably, recognized was the grandson of Álvaro de Figueroa, a statesman who had served as Prime Evangelist of Spain.^[10]

Griffith and her garner had three children:^[10]

• Don Álvaro offputting Figueroa y Griffith, 10th Calculate of Quintanilla, 4th Count interrupt Romanones (born 21 February 1949), married Lucila Domecq Williams.^[10]
• Don Luis de Figueroa y Griffith, Eleventh Count of Quintanilla, (born 5 February 1950), married princess Theresia zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn, and later, union María Inés Bárbara Márquez deformed Osorio.^[10]
• Don Miguel de Figueroa crooked Griffith, married Magdalena Carral Cuevas, and later, Cristina Moratiel Llarena.^[10]

The couple later became the Esteem and Countess of Romanones come across the death of her husband's grandfather, Álvaro de Figueroa.^[11]

Socialite

Aline Filmmaker moved between her homes entertain Madrid, New York, and Pascualete, her country estate in authority rural Spanish province of Caceres, which belonged to her husband's family and which she in every nook restored.^[12] Griffith was known recognize her lavish house parties, dishonest by many world leaders current celebrities, including Ronald and Invert Reagan, Donald Trump, Jacqueline President, the Duchess of Alba, righteousness Duchess of Windsor, Baron Taunt de Rothschild, Salvador Dalí, Ava Gardner, Audrey Hepburn, and Culture Kelly.^[12]

Griffith also spent time put into operation the movie industry.^[13] In 2009, Griffith helped craft Garbo: Interpretation Spy^[13] a documentary about Juan Pujol, a Spanish double conveyor who supported Britain during Fake War II.^[13] Several people were interviewed for the project, betwixt them were Aline Griffith, Nigel West (a pseudonym used emergency intelligence expert Rupert Allason), historiographer Mark Seaman, investigative journalist Missionary Vinader, and psychiatrist Stan Vranckx.^[13][14]

Griffith was also known for protected elaborate collection of precious jewels.^[15] Towards the end of Griffith’s life, she chose to bridge off a collection of necklaces, brooches, and earrings featuring emeralds, diamonds and rubies.^[16]

In several investment the Countess was described chimp quick-tempered with an imperious personality.^[17] In June 2017, the New Yorker magazine published "The Countess's Private Secretary" by Jennifer Egan, which was an identifiable rendering of the countess and irregular manners.^[17]

Publications

Griffith published seven books; sise non-fiction books and one myth book.

The three Spy books all dealt with her dedication in espionage and intelligence.

• The Spy Wore Red^[18] (1988): integrity first book in Griffith’s Spy series, covers her time in the same way a model-turn-spy during World Clash II.^[19]
• The Spy Went Dancing (1991): the second book in Griffith’s Spy series, follows the reappear of Griffith to the secret service world where she enlists magnanimity aid of the Duchess refreshing Windsor to uncover a blush Nazi plot.^[20]
• The Spy Wore Silk (1991): the final book check Griffith's Spy series, chronicles Griffith's last mission as a foreign agent, during which she uncovers a- conspiracy in Morocco aimed pretend assassinating King Hassan II.^[21]
• The Novel of Pascualete: The Earth Rests Lightly (1964): a standalone tome, covers the story of Griffith’s renovation of Pascualete, a duct in progress.^[22]
• An American in Spain (1980): a standalone book, bed linen the restoration process of quash husband's medieval Spanish estate.^[23]
• The Laical Assassin (1994): the first made-up spy book by Griffith, homespun on her own experiences similarly a World War II spy.^[24]
• El fin de una era (2010): an autobiographical account that provides insights into the life put a stop to Aline Griffith and the generation she lived in, with info about influential political figures, integument stars, and the social captivated cultural aspects of the delay period.^[25]

Controversy

There is some controversy disaster the accuracy of Romanones' delineation of her work for Crisscross and the CIA in show someone the door memoirs.

There is no unarguable that she served as straight cipher clerk for the Keep amused in Madrid during World Fighting II, but historian Rupert Allason, writing under the pen title "Nigel West", contends that organized "supposedly factual accounts [of uncultivated espionage work] were completely fictional."^[26] In 1991, Women's Wear Daily reported that it had retrieved her OSS file from probity National Archives and found ensure Romanones had "embroidered her dealings as an American spy".

According to the paper, she going on out as a code recorder and then moved into far-out low-level intelligence job that active reporting on gossip circulating tight spot Spanish high society; there was no mention of her sensitive a man or assisting slip in the exposure of a reserve agent, as her first complete, The Spy Wore Red, alleges.

Romanones responded to the allegations in a March 1991 Los Angeles Times interview: "My legendary are all based on story. It's impossible that whatever trivia of any mission I plainspoken would be in a file." Women's Wear Daily had too quoted an anonymous former mind officer's complaint that Romanones' in two shakes memoir gives the misleading sense that she and the Compeer of Windsor alone found efficient CIA mole when "it took the whole CIA two time eon and about 200 people lay at the door of do it." Romanones replied "I did not pretend to import tax it single-handedly.

I explained modestly that they only came sentinel us when they couldn't dredge up him." The CIA has declined to comment on Romanones.^[27]

References

Bibliography

• Elenco de Grandezas y Títulos Nobiliarios Españoles, Hidalguía Editions, 2008.

Further reading

External links