The road to intelligence
He was born in 1912 in Barcelona, into a family of moderate means. In 1941 he tried three times to make contact with the British in Madrid and Lisbon, and was turned down each time.1
German intelligence in Madrid, after some hesitation, accepted his offer to spy in Britain. Instead of going to England, however, Pujol went to Lisbon and began inventing sub-agents.1
The National Archives stresses that he was not originally a German spy but started out on his own in Lisbon. His wife, Araceli, contacted the American assistant naval attaché in Lisbon, which eventually brought him to the attention of British intelligence (file KV 2/4190).2
GARBO in London
In April 1942 he reached MI6 and was brought to London, where MI5 took over his management. His case officer was the Spanish-speaking Tomás Harris.1,2
By 1944, working with Harris, he had built a fictitious network of 27 sub-agents. The National Archives calls him the most remarkable of Britain’s agents in the Double Cross System.1,2
Fortitude and D-Day
In 1944 he played one of the leading roles in Operation Fortitude, which was meant to convince the Germans that the main invasion would come at the Pas de Calais. A key element was the fictitious First US Army Group (FUSAG) under Patton.1
On 9 June 1944, three days after the landings, he sent a long message arguing that the Normandy landings were a diversion and that the main attack would come at the Pas de Calais.1
On 29 July 1944 he was told that Hitler had awarded him the Iron Cross for extraordinary services to Germany. In December 1944 the Director General of MI5, Sir David Petrie, presented him with the MBE; the award was kept secret so as not to expose him.1,3
After the war
He moved to Venezuela, where he lived in relative anonymity. In 1985 he published his memoir, Operation GARBO, under his own name. He died in Caracas in October 1988.1,3
In 2020 English Heritage put up a blue plaque at 35 Crespigny Road in Hendon, north London, where he lived and worked.3
Sources
- MI5 (Security Service), Agent GARBO
- The National Archives (UK), blog, Garbo: the story behind Britain’s greatest Double Cross agent
- English Heritage, PUJOL GARCIA, Juan (1912–1988): blue plaque, 35 Crespigny Road, Hendon
Checked: 7 November 2026