Near which city in the Caucasus was Sorge born in 1895?
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Baku
His father worked as an engineer for an oil company; his mother was Russian.
💡 Did you know? The family moved to Berlin before Richard was three years old.
All questions with answers
Which German paper did he write for as a correspondent in Japan?
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Frankfurter Zeitung
His articles on Japan were so good that they earned him a reputation as an expert in Berlin.
💡 Did you know? Journalism was the perfect cover: it explained why he was always asking for news.
In which city did Sorge build up his spy ring from 1933?
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Tokyo
Before that he had worked in Shanghai from 1930 to 1932.
💡 Did you know? He was so popular there that the German community invited him to its celebrations.
Which state did Sorge spy for, while posing as a convinced Nazi?
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Soviet Union
He worked for the Red Army’s intelligence directorate, later known as the GRU.
💡 Did you know? As cover he had joined the Nazi Party and played the enthusiastic party member.
Which German ambassador to Japan was a close friend of his?
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Eugen Ott
Ott let him read confidential reports and valued his advice on Japan.
💡 Did you know? Sorge also had an affair with Ott’s wife Helma.
Which German attack did he warn Stalin about in vain?
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Operation Barbarossa
As early as May he reported the build-up and an attack date around 20 June.
💡 Did you know? Stalin took the many warnings for British deception.
Which city could the Red Army hold with troops from Siberia, helped by his report that Japan would not attack?
Show answer
Moscow
With no threat in the east, Stalin moved seasoned divisions from the Manchurian border to the front.
💡 Did you know? How large Sorge’s share in that decision was is disputed among historians.
In which year did the Japanese police arrest Sorge?
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1941
Hotsumi Ozaki had been taken into custody a few days earlier.
💡 Did you know? Ambassador Ott at first thought the arrest was a mistake and protested.
In which year was Sorge executed?
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1944
His comrade Hotsumi Ozaki was hanged on the same day.
💡 Did you know? 7 November was the anniversary of the October Revolution.
Which distinction was he awarded in 1964, twenty years after his death?
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Hero of the Soviet Union
Until then Moscow had denied knowing him at all.
💡 Did you know? In 1965 the Soviet Union even issued a postage stamp with his portrait.
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