Memorandum by the Department of External Affairs
'Mr. Charles Bewley: Activities during the War'

Shortly after the outbreak of war, Mr. Bewley went to Rome, ostensibly as representative of a Swedish news agency. The Swedish Minister told Mr. MacWhite that he believed this agency was in reality a German propaganda organisation directed by Dr. Goebbels. Mr. Bewley was also rumoured to be representative in Rome of the 'IRA'. He posed as the Irish Minister to Berlin or Rome and used visiting cards bearing these titles. In 1941, for instance, he called at our Legation in Rome to see the Irish papers and presented a card on which the description 'Irish Minister in Berlin' had been crossed out. In 1943, he presented a card at the Swiss Consulate in Venice on which he was described as the Irish Minister to Rome, and requested the use of the Swiss diplomatic bag for the transmission of letters to insurance companies in Zurich. The request was referred to the Swiss Minister in Rome, who gave a blunt refusal and informed our Minister to the Holy See about it.

During all this period, Mr. Bewley paid frequent visits to Berlin for the purpose, apparently, of consulting the Ministry of Propaganda. In 1944, he published in German a book entitled 'Ladies and Gentlemen', consisting of short sketches depicting English activities and morality, political and otherwise, in a bad light. In February of that year, he left Rome and went to live in Merano in Northern Italy with the intention of crossing later into Switzerland.

Beyond a note to the Chargé d'Affaires in Berlin giving his address, nothing further was heard of him until June, 1945, when both Mr. MacWhite and Dr. Kiernan received undated notes, smuggled out of a concentration camp, saying that he had been arrested three weeks previously in Merano and had been refused permission to communicate with the Irish Legation.¹ According to these notes, no charge had been made, but it had been suggested in cross-examination that he was connected with 'certain bodies' with which actually he had nothing to do. He urged that all possible steps should be taken to secure his release. The note to Mr. MacWhite was written on a visiting card on which the inscription 'Envoy Extraordinaire et Ministre Plenipotentiaire d'Irlande' had been crossed out.

After some weeks, Mr. Walshe spoke informally to the British Representative and suggested that the best course would be to release Mr. Bewley. Though a complete fool, he could not be regarded as a dangerous criminal and there was nothing to be gained by making too much of his war activities.

A copy of a further note smuggled out of the concentration camp to Dr. Kiernan at the end of July is attached.² Dr. Kiernan was on leave in Ireland at the time and did not receive the note until his return in November. Mr. Bewley had also got a message through to an official of the Vatican, who had asked the British Embassy to the Holy See to improve his living conditions and to speed up the investigation. We agreed to a suggestion by Dr. Kiernan that he also should ask the British to secure better treatment.

Mr. Bewley was released unconditionally on the 15th December, 1945, no charge having been made against him. He told Dr. Kiernan that he attributed his release to the fact that he possessed an Irish Passport. Incidentally, it transpired last year, when he applied to the Legation in Rome for a new Passport, that the words 'passeport diplomatique' had been forged on the Passport issued to him in Berlin in August, 1939.

The above information is based on reports from the Representatives in Rome and Berlin. According to a report received by G.2 Branch towards the end of 1945, Mr. Bewley was employed by the German Intelligence Service and received a salary of 1,000 marks per month. G.2 have little doubt that this report is true.