Percy Sillitoe
British intelligence official; Director General of MI5, 1946–1953
| Percy Sillitoe
| |
|---|---|
| Image |  Percy Sillitoe. Public domain. |
| Born | 1888[1] |
| Died | 1962[1] |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | Director General of Security Service (MI5); 1946–1953[1] |
| Known for | Chief constable; later head of the International Diamond Security Organization[1] |
| Predecessor | David Petrie (born 1879) |
| Website | Biography and career |
Percy Sillitoe was Director General of the Security Service from 1946 to 1953.[2]
Sillitoe was a former policeman who had headed a number of constabularies before taking over MI5.[2]
He was the first head of the Security Service to publish an autobiography, Cloak without Dagger which came out in 1955.[2]
Policing and the early Cold War
Before joining the Security Service, Sillitoe headed police forces including those in Sheffield, Glasgow and Kent. His tenure at MI5 coincided with the exposure of Soviet atomic espionage and the Cambridge spy ring, major challenges during the transition from wartime counter-espionage to the Cold War.[1]
Christopher Andrew describes an organisation reduced by post-war cuts and still organised into three main divisions. Sillitoe’s successor, Dick White, replaced this arrangement with six branches in 1953. Andrew also notes that, in contrast to the policy subsequently followed under White, Sillitoe’s appointment had been publicly announced.[3]
Diamond security after MI5
After leaving the Security Service, Sillitoe headed the International Diamond Security Organization. MI5’s account credits him with countering the smuggling of diamonds from Sierra Leone.[1]
External Resources
- NameBase: Sillitoe Percy Joseph
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Security Service, Percy Sillitoe, accessed 8 November 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Former Directors General, MI5, accessed 8 July 2009.
- ↑ Christopher Andrew, Defend the Realm: The Authorized History of MI5, New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2009, section D, introduction, “The Security Service and its Staff”.