Letter from Frederick H. Boland to Seán Nunan (Dublin)
(Personal and Confidential) (Copy)

I have your personal and confidential letter of the 19th February about our friend, L.H. Kerney.¹

At this distance of time, I find it impossible to be certain as to the circumstances of Kerney’s return to Dublin early in 1943. My memory of events during the war years has let me down so often that I never rely on it without the greatest reserve. Subject to this, my recollection of the reasons why Kerney came back in February, 1943, is as follows.

For some time prior to his return, there had been uneasiness about Kerney on security grounds. He appeared to be in touch with Frank Ryan and others considered dangerous to the State, but there was a feeling that the information he furnished to the Department about these contacts lacked amplitude and candour. Warnings about Kerney’s discretion and contacts also reached us from Dan Bryan. We had reason to think that Kerney was misusing the diplomatic bag in a way likely to become obvious to belligerent security services, e.g., on one occasion he forwarded to his son for encashment a cheque on an English bank drawn by an Irish citizen in occupied France.

Just when these apprehensions were troubling the Department, Kerney wrote a minute complaining bitterly of the inadequacy of his allowances and suggesting that he would not wish to stay in Madrid unless they were improved. The then Secretary² spoke to the Taoiseach about the minute and it was apparently decided to take advantage of it to call Kerney back for consultation. While the immediate occasion of his return, therefore, was this minute – and perhaps also a report he had furnished about the Spanish Government’s proposal for a ‘neutral block made up of Spain, Argentine, Ireland, the Holy See, etc.’ – the real, or at least the principal purpose was to use his presence in Dublin to talk to him seriously about the need for extreme care and prudence in security matters, particularly in view of the prospect of a second front being opened.³ The Taoiseach saw Kerney on his return and dealt with this matter himself. The then Secretary told me at the time that the Taoiseach had spoken to Kerney very seriously indeed.

I saw a good deal of Kerney when he was over and he and I saw Seán Moynihan⁴ at least once on the question of his allowances. So far as I can recall, Kerney did not mention to me at any time during his stay in Dublin, the talks he is alleged to have had the previous year with emissaries of the German Government in Madrid. If he mentioned them to the then Secretary, the latter did not tell me.

Incidentally I heard two stories in London connected with the action which Kerney has begun against the Irish Press and Professor Desmond Williams. One is that, after consultation with their legal adviser, the Foreign Office have agreed to make available, for the purposes of Professor Desmond Williams’ defence, the full texts of the documents in the German Foreign Office archives on which Williams’ statements about Kerney were based. The only condition which the Foreign Office make is that it will be necessary for them to secure the assent of the CRO. It is possible that the British Ambassador in Dublin may be taking soundings about this matter. The second story I heard is that an official in the Foreign Office with Irish connections was recently asked whether she knew anything about L.H. Kerney and what his background was.