Betrayal at Pearl Harbor – How Churchill Lured Roosevelt Into War

Published in 1991 by O’Mara Books, Betrayal at Pearl Harbor: How Churchill Lured Roosevelt Into War by James Rusbridger and Eric Nave is a controversial revisionist study of the events leading up to the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. The book advances an alternative interpretation of pre-war intelligence, diplomacy, and geopolitical manoeuvring, arguing that the attack and the circumstances surrounding it were influenced by deeper strategic calculations among Allied leadership.

In Betrayal at Pearl Harbor, Rusbridger and Nave examine intercepted communications, intelligence failures, and diplomatic exchanges between the United States, Britain, and Japan in the years preceding the Second World War. A central theme of the book is the claim that British intelligence under Winston Churchill may have played a more active and deliberate role in shaping American entry into the war than is acknowledged in mainstream historical accounts. The authors explore signals intelligence operations, codebreaking capabilities, and the limitations of wartime information sharing to support their argument.

James Rusbridger, a former intelligence officer and author, and Eric Nave, a cryptographic specialist with wartime experience, bring technical knowledge of intelligence systems to their analysis. Their combined perspectives give Betrayal at Pearl Harbor a strong focus on espionage, codebreaking, and operational intelligence, while also situating these elements within broader political and military strategy. The book’s conclusions have been widely debated and are generally considered outside mainstream historical consensus, but it remains part of the literature exploring alternative interpretations of World War II intelligence history.

Today, Betrayal at Pearl Harbor is primarily read within the context of intelligence history debates and revisionist WWII scholarship. Its emphasis on signals intelligence and geopolitical strategy makes it a recurring reference point in discussions about the complexities of pre-war diplomacy and wartime decision-making.

Condition: Very Good – Light wear present.