The astonishing story of Henry Coombe-Tennant (1913-89), who served in the British Army in World War II, escaping from a POW camp, joining Special Forces and aiding the French Resistance, before working for the British Secret Service in Baghdad and ending his days as a Benedictine monk! Over 30 photographs and maps.
Bernard Lewis lives in Neath and has a Diploma in Local History from the University of Wales (Swansea). He is the author of five books on local history, including 'Swansea and the Workhouse - The Poor Law in Victorian Swansea', 'Foul Deeds and Suspicious Deaths Around Swansea' and 'Swansea in the Great War'.
Title: Wales' Unknown Hero: Soldier, Spy, Monk: The life of Henry Coombe-Tennant, MC, of Neath
Author: Bernard Lewis
ISBN: 9781912631339
Binding:
Publisher: Y Lolfa
Publication Date: 2021-10-15
Number of Pages: 288
Weight: 0.3901 kg
Bernard Lewis has written an engaging biography of a man of great gifts which is of both historical and personal value to the reader. - The Guards Magazine A real life Welsh James Bond. - Neil Prior, BBC News The astonishing biography of Henry Coombe-Tennant (1913-89), whose family lived at Cadoxton Lodge near Neath and created Port Tennant at Swansea. Henry's mother, Winifred Coombe-Tennant, was a well-known suffragette, political campaigner and psychic medium, and he was the result of her extra-marital affair with the brother of the Prime Minister. According to Winifred, her spirit-world contacts claimed that Henry was to become the 'New Messiah', bringing peace to a troubled world. After Eton, Cambridge and China (having taught himself Mandarin), Henry went into the Welsh Guards, before being captured during World War II, escaping from his POW camp and making it back to Britain. He then joined Special Forces, parachuting into occupied France to assist the Resistance. Post-war, he served with NATO and then MI6, becoming 'our man in Baghdad' after a bloody revolution in Iraq. Converting to Catholicism in the early 1960s, he ended his days as a Benedictine monk at Downside Abbey near Bath. An incredible life and a fascinating read, this is the untold story of a forgotten Welsh hero. -- Publisher: Y Lolfa
