In recent weeks, information that has been hidden for several decades, has come to light in relation to the former Oxfordshire cricketer- Dick Hartley!
It has become apparent that Dick was part of a covert group of men, based in Burford in West Oxfordshire called ‘Section VII’, which was set up all over the country by MI6 in 1940, in case of an imminent German invasion!
Dick was part of a remarkable sporting dynasty who, along with his two
brothers, Ernest and Frank, had attended Burford Grammar School before WW1, after which all three brothers went on to play County Cricket and Hockey for Oxfordshire ( Dick captaining both) and The Southern Counties; Frank would also become a professional footballer playing for Spurs and England, while Ernest would play International hockey for England, captaining the team on three occasions in the 1920’s.
Reputedly, Dick and three other local men were secretly trained to respond to German occupation and once defeated, they would become operational and would carry out acts of sabotage and guerrilla warfare against the occupying forces; a recent Facebook post alerted a local man to recall a discussion he had had in the 1980’s where Dick Hartley was identified.
A four- bed bunker was discovered in the grounds of The Priory in Burford in the 1950’s but has sadly been filled in, but the present owner, the entrepreneur Matthew Freud, believes that it was encased in steel, which was removed before it was covered over, suggesting that it was built to withstand significant stress and potential impacts from explosives.
Section VII tended to recruit civilians who could stay in their professions or jobs if an invasion occurred and Dick’s role as a farmer fitted perfectly into this deception; despite being 57 years of age, he was still captaining the 1 st X1 at Shipton Cricket Club and was very fit for a man of his age: he was also a natural leader, known by family and friends as ‘The Guv’nor’, due to his experiences as a cricket and hockey captain and his tendency to take charge.
In the 1920’s, Dick had played cricket and hockey alongside JC Masterman (
another former Oxfordshire cricketer), who became chairman of ‘The Twenty Committee’ at the outbreak of war in 1939, whose primary aim was to turn German spies into ‘double agents’; he may have recommended Dick Hartley for the role he would undertake in Burford!
Malcolm Aitken author of ‘Fighting Nazi Occupation 1939-1945’ published in 2015, responded to finding out about ‘The Burford Cell’, by saying:
‘Many of the operatives like Dick, were middle aged men who had legitimate reasons for not being conscripted and whose occupation gave him a good reason to travel around the countryside. Personal contacts were also important with membership of the intelligence services often being family affairs, so the Masterman connection might be significant!’
Ultimately of course, the invasion never happened and the so-called ‘cells’ were disbanded after the war but Malcolm Aitkin and has no doubt about how important they were:
‘This would have been Britain’s true resistance organisation and was effective because it escaped the attention of Nazi spies during WW2.
Is it one of the best kept secrets of the war?’