A Royal Shade of Spies

The British monarchy has long dabbled in espionage, a new book recounts

GOOD TO KNOW that the British royal family does more than cut ribbons and gently wave to onlookers—to know that a king of England is more than his ceremonial presence, the equivalent of a department-store Santa Claus—that despite a reputation of dimness and decadence the royals are actually canny manipulators of intelligence.

Or so one learns from a read…