Who Was Fitzroy MacLean?

Fitzroy MacLean was a distinguished British diplomat and soldier who, some say, formed the basis for the character James Bond.

In 1930s, Maclean served at the British embassy in Moscow when Stalinism was at its peak. While there, he took the opportunity to indulge his fascination with history by sneaking around the Soviet Union, dodging NKVD guards, visiting historical sites in parts of the country that were normally forbidden to foreigners. MacLean spoke many languages and was able to amaze the locals by conversing with them in their native tongue.

When the Second World War broke out, MacLean joined the British army and became one of the founder members of the SAS (Special Air Service). Later in the war MacLean became Churchill's special representative to the Yugoslav resistance, fighting alongside the future leader of Yugoslavia Tito. Some credit MacLean with persuading Tito to remain outside the Soviet camp and stay neutral in the Cold War once the shades of the new conflict started to gather.

MacLean later described many of his adventures in the book Eastern Approaches.

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