Max Manus - An Extraordinary Man By Bob Pearson

Who was Max Manus? No birth records exist ..... it seems that he was hired by his relatives Röda Hesten (Malcolm M), Per Kristiansen ("Jens Chr. Hauge" - not a real name) and Max Mauser (Jonas Lie) to infiltrate British intelligence through the privately held SOE ... and the OSS through "Project X" ... they all are related, went to the same school and were recruited in 1935 by the Soviet super spy Rudolf Abel ... Norway is the last Soviet republic after all ...

<http://www.nuav.net/maxmanus.html>

I have to take issue with this posting: I suggest the writer checks out the Norwegian state archives whereupon he/she will find Max Manus' records. Failing that, the SOE record on Manus is now open and freely available for inspection at the National Archives, Kew, London, UK. The file number is: HS 9/986/2. Access is without any restriction.

It is true there are connections to Malcolm Munthe aka 'Red Horse', but the connections to Johan Rognes are stronger. Once again, I suggest you check the file at the NA for details.

As for being recruited to spy on British Intelligence via SOE - if I have read and understood the posting correctly - then please supply the proof to support the statement as I am sure I and many others would like to see it.

Bob

Bob,

You have produced an article about "An Extraordinary Man", but no evidence exist
in the "Norwegian state archives" to suggest that 'MAX MANUS' ever legally existed ...

according to Wikipedia, "Maximo Guillermo Manus" was born in Bergen on December 9, 1914,
but no church records exist ... no birth certificate ...

<http://www.arkivverket.no/URN:kb_read>

The remaining SOE docs in the National Archives, Kew further confirm that the Brits and the
Norwegians were double crossed - "Operation Mardonius" never took place ...

So, who was the person behind the code name MAX MANUS?

Once again, I refer you to the National Archives whereupon reading and understanding the records will perhaps change your opinion of Max Manus. This file is extensive in size, one of the largest I have seen and is certainly comprehensive. You will of course see quite quickly that the only connection to the security services - SIS/MI6 - is that Manus' relationship with a married woman was noted. This lady was watched for a period of time and her movements noted. Other than his success with the ladies there were no other concerns about Manus, indeed you will see that all reports of this officer are complimentry, bar one British officer who had taken a dislike to Manus. As an aside, prior to his adventures with SOE, Manus fought in the Finnish-Russo war...for the Finnish as part of the volunteer force, hardly the actions of Russian sympathiser.

His war record is amazing and that is without question. He was awarded the MC, plus a bar to this decoration as well as the DSO for his and his partner's, Gregers Gram, endeavours. To state that Op Mardonious did not happen is utter folly and I again ask you to check the NA, in particular HS 9/986/2. Have you been to the NA to check out SOE records or do you rely only on Wikapedia and hear say?

BTW Manus' file was restricted until about two year ago. I applied for its release and subsequently the application was successful and the file opened to the general public. Upon release I made copies and sent them off to:

Hjemmefrontmusuem - Oslo

Max Manus' widow

Aksel Hennie - actor who played Max Manus in 2008 movie

various Norwegian historians

NUAV

I can confirm that I have never seen Max Manus' birth certificate, although I have seen his death certificate, which confirms at one point that he was alive! And this is certainly in the Norwegian public archives. BTW There are many folk whose birth has not been registered. Indeed, at least one British WW2 Admiral had no certificate as he had been born at sea, so not having a certificate proves little against Manus if indeed there isn't one.

Finally, if you have evidence to prove that Max Manus was a cover name or that Op Mardonious didn't take place or that Manus was some sort of Russian inflitrator then please state those references for all to see.

Bob

Bob,

Why don't make your SOE docs, incl. the "Manus' file" public on the internet (i.e. Google docs)?

Enough I hear you shout of that extraordinary Norwegian gentleman, Max Manus...well, almost. With apologies to the late Sir Charles Hambro I would like to reiterate one of his favoured sayings to those who were subduing the war effort...'Round Objects'. Anyone who has a working knowledge of SOE will understand and sympathise with those words.

And finally...If Max Manus was looking down on the following and perusing the comments against him I am sure he would have a smile on his face:

OD OG AD UW YU UW AO RO TW OT WX

Bob