Education, intelligence and cultural diplomacy at the British Council in Madrid, 1940–1941 part 1:founding a school in troubled times

The British Council opened its first office in Madrid in 1940. It included an English language institute, a cultural centre and a children’s school. Based on new sources, this research (published as two separate articles in consecutive issues) examines the Council’s three-pronged work in wartime Spain: education, intelligence support activities and cultural diplomacy. It illuminates the crucial contribution made by Walter Starkie, the Hispanist who founded the Council’s Spanish branch. This article discusses the circumstances leading to the Council’s establishment in Madrid, and the opening of the British Institute School, the Council’s only school in the world to date.