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Cohen, Kenneth Herman Salaman (1900–1984), was an intelligence officer, the son of Herman Cohen (a solicitor) and his wife Bessie Salaman.

He studied at Elstree School and then Eastbourne College before joining the Royal Navy. He served on HMS Iron Duke and later became a torpedo specialist.

In 1935, thanks to his interpreting skills (French and Russian), he was transferred to the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS).

On 22 July 1932, he married Mary Sarah (daughter of Ernest Martin Joseph, an architect), with whom he had a son and a daughter.

Soon after joining SIS, Cohen was appointed head of the passport section dealing with diplomatic delegations abroad.

Under the pseudonym Kenneth Crane and the code name Z-3, Cohen worked to develop a network of informants and sources (British newspapers in France, the Netherlands, Switzerland, etc.).

In 1937, he was appointed assistant to Thomas “Tommy” Kendrick, head of the Passport Control Office (PCO/BPC) in Paris.

During the “Phoney War”, Kendrick and Cohen developed clandestine intelligence operations, with Kendrick using the cover name “Major Scodell”, and Cohen as “Captain Crank”.

In May 1940, in the face of the German advance, the BPC had to evacuate SIS staff and associated services back to England.

In the summer of 1941, Cohen was posted as liaison officer in Washington, contributing in particular to the creation of an effective agent network in the Iberian Peninsula.

Later, he helped organise intelligence activities and coordinate efforts between the French BCRA and the American Office of Strategic Services (OSS).

In 1943–1944, as part of preparations for the landings, he played a role in Allied coordination and in maintaining links with networks in Western Europe.

Decorations

• CB (Companion of the Order of the Bath), 1954
• CMG (Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George), 1946
• Officer of the Légion d’Honneur (France), 1945
• Croix de Guerre with palms (France), 1945
• Legion of Merit (USA), Officer grade, 1945
• Officer of the Order of the Crown (Belgium)
• Order of the White Lion (Czechoslovakia)
• Commander of the Ordre de l’Étoile Noire (France), 1960

Positions (post-war)

• European Adviser — United Steel, 1953–1966
• President — Franco-European Company, 1967–1972
• Vice-President — European League for Economic Cooperation, from 1972

Personal details

Born on 15 March 1900. Died on 19 September 1984.