Richard B. Spence

Not to be confused with Richard B. Spencer.

Richard B. Spence
Bornc. 1951
Alma materUniversity of California, Santa Barbara
OccupationHistorian
EmployerUniversity of Idaho
Known forModern Russian history, intelligence history, secret societies, occult history

Richard Brian Spence (b. ca. 1951)[1] is an American historian and professor emeritus of history at the University of Idaho.[2][3] He specializes in modern Russian, military, secret societies, espionage, and occult history. He has produced biographies of Sidney Reilly (Trust No One) and Aleister Crowley (Secret Agent 666). He has been interviewed for various documentaries on the History Channel and is a consultant for the International Spy Museum in Washington, DC.

Background

Spence earned a BA in history from California State University, Bakersfield in 1973, then completed an MA in 1976 and a PhD in 1981 at the University of California, Santa Barbara.[2] He taught at UC Santa Barbara as a visiting assistant professor from 1981 to 1985.[3]

Career

Spence joined the University of Idaho faculty in 1986, achieved the rank of professor, and later served as chair of the Department of History.[4] His teaching and research spans modern Russia, intelligence and military history, antisemitism and the Holocaust, the history of secret societies, and occultism.[5][2] He has consulted for the International Spy Museum and has appeared in History Channel programming.[5][6] He holds emeritus status at the University of Idaho and continues to deliver public lectures.[3]

He has published several books and is the author of numerous articles in Revolutionary Russia, Intelligence and National Security, Journal for the Study of Anti-Semitism, American Communist History, The Historian, and other academic journals in addition to articles in general audience magazines. He is known as Rick Spence.

After retiring from teaching, Spence launched the podcast Strange As It Seems in 2024, exploring historical mysteries, espionage, and occult topics drawn from his research career.[7]

Works

Books

Year Title Publisher Notes
1991 Boris Savinkov, Renegade on the Left [8] East European Monographs Biography of Boris Savinkov
1992 Scholar, Patriot, Mentor, Historical Essays in Honor of Dimitrije Djordjević , editor with Linda L. Nelson [9][10] East European Monographs Festschrift
2002 Trust No One, The Secret World of Sidney Reilly [11][12] Feral House Study of British agent Sidney Reilly
2008 Secret Agent 666, Aleister Crowley, British Intelligence and the Occult [13][14] Feral House Monograph on Crowley and intelligence
2011 Empire of the Wheel, Espionage, the Occult and Murder in Southern California , with Walter Bosley [15] Corvos Books Investigation of early 20th century deaths in California
2017 Wall Street and the Russian Revolution, 1905–1925 [16] TrineDay Analysis of finance and politics around the Russian Revolution

Courses

Year Title Format Publisher Notes
2019 The Real History of Secret Societies Video course with guidebook and audio edition The Teaching Company, The Great Courses 24 lectures, History partnership, streaming and audio release[17]
2021 Crimes of the Century, A Selective History of Infamy Video and audio course The Teaching Company, The Great Courses 12 lectures, solo instructor[18]
2022 Secrets of the Occult Video course with audio edition The Teaching Company, The Great Courses, Wondrium 24 lectures, streaming and audio release[19]
2022 The Secret World of Espionage Video series The Great Courses Plus 9 episodes, multi expert panel including Richard B. Spence[20]
2022 True Crime, Decoding the Evidence Video series The Teaching Company, The Great Courses Plus 8 episodes, with Raychelle Burks and Elizabeth A. Murray[21][22]

Articles

  • "The Savinkov Affair Reconsidered." East European Quarterly 24, no. 1, March 1990.[23][24]
  • "The Terrorist and the Master Spy, the political partnership of Boris Savinkov and Sidney Reilly, 1918–25." Revolutionary Russia 4, no. 1, June 1991, 111–131.[25]
  • "White against Red in Uriankhai, Revolution and Civil War on Russia's Asiatic Frontier, 1918–1921." Revolutionary Russia 6, no. 1, June 1993, 97–120.[26]
  • "Sidney Reilly in America, 1914–1917." Intelligence and National Security 10, no. 1, January 1995, 92–121.[27]
  • "Sidney Reilly's Lubyanka Diary, 30 October–4 November 1925." Revolutionary Russia 8, no. 2, December 1995, 179–194.[28]
  • "K. A. Jahnke and the German Sabotage Campaign in the United States and Mexico, 1914–1918." The Historian 59, no. 1, Fall 1996, 89–112.[29]
  • "Useful brigand, Ataman S. N. Bulak-Balakhovich, 1917–21." Revolutionary Russia 11, no. 1, 1998, 17–36.[30]
  • "The Tragic Fate of Kalamatiano, America's Man in Moscow." International Journal of Intelligence and CounterIntelligence 12, no. 3, Fall 1999, 346–374.[31]
  • "Russia's Operatsiia Trest, A Reappraisal." Global Intelligence Monthly 1, no. 4, April 1999, 19–24.[32]
  • "Secret Agent 666, Aleister Crowley and British Intelligence in America, 1914–1918." International Journal of Intelligence and CounterIntelligence 13, no. 3, 2000, 359–371.[33]
  • "Interrupted Journey, British Intelligence and the Arrest of Leon Trotskii, April 1917." Revolutionary Russia 13, no. 1, 2000, 1–28.[34]
  • "The Strange Case of Sergius Riis, A Spy in the Interwar Baltic." International Journal of Intelligence and CounterIntelligence 15, no. 2, 2002, 222–242.[35]
  • "Englishmen in New York, The SIS American Station, 1915–21." Intelligence and National Security 19, no. 3, Autumn 2004, 511–537.[36]
  • "Senator William E. Borah, Target of Soviet and Anti-Soviet Intrigue, 1922–1929." International Journal of Intelligence and CounterIntelligence 19, no. 1, Spring 2006, 134–155.[37]
  • "Catching Louis Fraina, Loyal Communist, US Government Informant, or British Agent?" American Communist History 11, no. 1, April 2012, 81–99.[38]
  • "John Reed, American Spy? Reed, American Intelligence and Weston Estes' 1920 Mission to Russia." American Communist History 13, no. 1, 2014, 39–63.[39]
  • "Death in the Adirondacks, Amtorg, Intrigue, and the Dubious Demise of Isaiya Khurgin and Efraim Sklyansky, August 1925." American Communist History 14, no. 2, August 2015, 135–158.[40]
  • "The Voyage of the Shilka, The Bolshevik Revolution Comes to Seattle, 1917." American Communist History 16, no. 1–2, 2017, 88–101.[41]
  • "Tsarina's Necklace, Russian Jewels, Secret Agents, and the Romanovs." International Journal of Intelligence and CounterIntelligence 33, no. 2, 2020, 309–327.[42]

Book contributions

  • "Boris I of Bulgaria." In: Dictionary of World Biography, vol. 2, edited by Frank Northen Magill and Alison Aves. Routledge (1998). ISBN 978-1579580414.

Book reviews

Media appearances

Television

Year(s) Title Network Role
2021–2024 The UnXplained [43] History On-air expert
2021 America's Book of Secrets [44] History On-air expert
2024–2025 Mysteries Unearthed with Danny Trejo [45] History On-air expert

Podcasts and long-form interviews

Date Program Episode or title
30 October 2024 Lex Fridman Podcast "Rick Spence, CIA, KGB, Illuminati, Secret Societies, Cults & Conspiracies"[46]
17 February 2025 Unfiltered Rise "Secrets of the Occult with Dr Richard Spence"[47]
5 March 2025 Conspirinormal "Dr. Richard Spence 5, Strange As It Seems"[48]
30 April 2025 Dalton Fischer Show "CIA, Mossad, Epstein, MK Ultra, Cults & Secret Societies"[49]
2023 FADE to BLACK with Jimmy Church "Richard Spence, Secret Societies in America"[50]
2022 Truth Be Told "Independence Under Oath, Masons, Illuminati and the Founding Secrets"[51]
2023 Becoming Outlaws "The Occult w/ Dr. Richard B. Spence"[52]
2024–2025 Strange As It Seems Host with Stephen Austin[53]

References

  1. ^ "Spence, Richard B. 1951-." Encyclopedia.com. Accessed 1 June 2022.
  2. ^ a b c "The Spy Who Wasn't There, Uncovering the True Past of 'Atomic Spy' Arthur Adams". University of Idaho Libraries, Malcolm M. Renfrew Interdisciplinary Colloquium Web Archive. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  3. ^ a b c "Richard B. Spence, PhD". The Great Courses Plus. The Teaching Company. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  4. ^ "Historian Reveals the Double Life of "The Great Beast 666"". University of Idaho News Archive. 17 June 2008. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  5. ^ a b "John Reed, American Communist or American Spy?". University of Idaho Libraries, Malcolm M. Renfrew Interdisciplinary Colloquium Web Archive. 8 October 2013. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  6. ^ "Secret Agent 666, Aleister Crowley, British Intelligence and the Occult". Feral House. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  7. ^ "Strange As It Seems with Richard B. Spence". Podbean. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  8. ^ "Boris Savinkov, renegade on the left". AbeBooks listing of East European Monographs edition. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  9. ^ Shashko, Philip (1994). "Scholar, Patriot, Mentor, Historical Essays in Honor of Dimitrije Djordjević". Slavic Review. 53 (4). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  10. ^ Sugar, Peter F. (1997). "Richard B. Spence and Linda L. Nelson, eds, Scholar, Patriot, Mentor". Nationalities Papers. 25 (2). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  11. ^ "Trust No One". Feral House. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  12. ^ Trust No One, The Secret World of Sidney Reilly. Feral House. 2002. ISBN 9780922915798. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  13. ^ "Secret Agent 666". Feral House. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  14. ^ Secret Agent 666: Aleister Crowley, British Intelligence and the Occult. Feral House. 2008. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  15. ^ "Empire of the Wheel: Espionage, the Occult and Murder in Southern California". True Oak Books. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  16. ^ "Wall Street and the Russian Revolution: 1905-1925". VitalSource listing for TrineDay edition. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  17. ^ "The Real History of Secret Societies". The Great Courses Plus. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  18. ^ "Crimes of the Century, A Selective History of Infamy". The Great Courses Plus. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  19. ^ "Secrets of the Occult". The Great Courses Plus. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  20. ^ "The Secret World of Espionage". The Great Courses Plus. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  21. ^ "True Crime, Decoding the Evidence". The Great Courses Plus. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  22. ^ "True Crime, Decoding the Evidence, DVD". Colorado Mountain College Library Catalog. 2022. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  23. ^ "The "Savinkov Affair" Reconsidered". ProQuest abstract. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  24. ^ "Wraga papers finding aid noting printed copy". Online Archive of California. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  25. ^ "The Terrorist and the master spy". Revolutionary Russia. 4 (1). 1991. doi:10.1080/09546549108575563. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  26. ^ "White against red in Uriankhai". Revolutionary Russia. 6 (1). 1993. doi:10.1080/09546549308575596. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  27. ^ Spence, Richard B. (1995). "Sidney Reilly in America, 1914–1917". Intelligence and National Security. 10 (1): 92–121. doi:10.1080/02684529508432288. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  28. ^ Spence, Richard B. (1995). "Sidney Reilly's Lubianka 'Diary' 30 October–4 November 1925". Revolutionary Russia. 8 (2): 179–194. doi:10.1080/09546549508575638. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  29. ^ Spence, Richard B. (1996). "K. A. Jahnke and the German Sabotage Campaign in the United States and Mexico, 1914–1918". The Historian. 59 (1): 89–112. doi:10.1111/j.1540-6563.1996.tb00986.x. JSTOR 24449795. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  30. ^ Spence, Richard B. (1998). "Useful brigand, Ataman' S.N. Bulak-Balakhovich, 1917–21". Revolutionary Russia. 11 (1): 17–36. doi:10.1080/09546549808575681. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  31. ^ Spence, Richard B. (1999). "The Tragic Fate of Kalamatiano, America's Man in Moscow". International Journal of Intelligence and CounterIntelligence. 12 (3): 346–374. doi:10.1080/088506099305070. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  32. ^ "Russia's Operatsiia Trest, A Reappraisal". Internet Archive scan of Global Intelligence Monthly article. April 1999. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  33. ^ Spence, Richard B. (2000). "Secret Agent 666, Aleister Crowley and British Intelligence in America, 1914–1918". International Journal of Intelligence and CounterIntelligence. 13 (3): 359–371. doi:10.1080/08850600050140634. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  34. ^ "Interrupted journey, British intelligence and the arrest of Leon Trotskii, April 1917". Revolutionary Russia. 13 (1). 2000. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  35. ^ Spence, Richard B. (2002). "The Strange Case of Sergius Riis". International Journal of Intelligence and CounterIntelligence. 15 (2): 222–242. doi:10.1080/08850600252869047. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  36. ^ Spence, Richard (2004). "Englishmen in New York, The SIS American Station, 1915–21". Intelligence and National Security. 19 (3): 511–537. doi:10.1080/0268452042000316269. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  37. ^ Spence, Richard B. (2006). "Senator William E. Borah, Target of Soviet and Anti-Soviet Intrigue, 1922–1929". International Journal of Intelligence and CounterIntelligence. 19 (1): 134–155. doi:10.1080/08850600590945461. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  38. ^ "Catching Louis Fraina, Loyal Communist, US Government Informant, or British Agent?". American Communist History. 11 (1). 2012. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  39. ^ "John Reed, American Spy? Reed, American Intelligence and Weston Estes' 1920 Mission to Russia". American Communist History. 13 (1). 2014. doi:10.1080/14743892.2014.896642. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  40. ^ "Death in the Adirondacks, Amtorg, Intrigue, and the Dubious Demise of Isaiya Khurgin and Efraim Sklyansky, August 1925". American Communist History. 14 (2). 2015. doi:10.1080/14743892.2015.1089086. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  41. ^ Spence, Richard B. (2017). "The Voyage of the Shilka, The Bolshevik Revolution Comes To Seattle, 1917". American Communist History. 16 (1–2): 88–101. doi:10.1080/14743892.2017.1330106. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  42. ^ "International Journal of Intelligence and CounterIntelligence, Volume 33, Issue 2 listing". Taylor & Francis. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  43. ^ "The UnXplained, Cast & Crew". TV Guide. Retrieved 7 October 2025. "Das Unerklärliche mit William Shatner, Cast & Crew". Fernsehserien (in German). Retrieved 7 October 2025. "The UnXplained". IMDb. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  44. ^ ""America's Book of Secrets" The Freemason Factor". IMDb. Retrieved 7 October 2025. ""America's Book of Secrets" The Hunt for Hitler's Relics". IMDb. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  45. ^ "Mysteries Unearthed with Danny Trejo, Season 1". History.com. Retrieved 7 October 2025. ""Mysteries Unearthed with Danny Trejo" Dark & Deadly". IMDb. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  46. ^ "#451 Rick Spence: CIA, KGB, Illuminati, Secret Societies, Cults & Conspiracies". Apple Podcasts (Podcast). Retrieved 7 October 2025. "Rick Spence on Lex Fridman Podcast". Spotify (Podcast). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  47. ^ "146. Secrets Of The Occult with Dr Richard Spence". Spotify (Podcast). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  48. ^ "Conspirinormal 499, Dr. Richard Spence 5". Apple Podcasts (Podcast). Retrieved 7 October 2025. "Episodes index referencing Dr. Richard Spence appearances". Conspirinormal. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  49. ^ "CIA, Mossad, Epstein, MK Ultra, Cults & Secret Societies". Buzzsprout (Podcast). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  50. ^ "Ep. 2054 Richard Spence, Secret Societies in America". YouTube. FADE to BLACK. 2 October 2024. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  51. ^ "Independence Under Oath". Poddtoppen (Podcast). Retrieved 7 October 2025. "Truth Be Told, program page". Amazon Music. Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  52. ^ "The Occult w/ Dr. Richard B. Spence". Becoming Outlaws (Podcast). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
  53. ^ "Strange As It Seems". Apple Podcasts (Podcast). Retrieved 7 October 2025.
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