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| Version 9 | Version 10 |
|---|---|
| The piece of paper that fooled Hitler | The piece of paper that fooled Hitler |
| (40 minutes later) | |
GROUP II / IAMADRID I to BERLINRSS 128, 130/9/6/44TPC on 12896 kcs at 1030 GMT 9/6/44AUI on 9288 kcs at 1107 GMT 8/6/44256 | By Jon Kelly BBC News Magazine href="/nol/shared/spl/hi/uk/11/d-day-toggle/css/togglev1_2.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" /> Select GROUP II / IAMADRID I to BERLINRSS 128, 130/9/6/44TPC on 12896 kcs at 1030 GMT 9/6/44AUI on 9288 kcs at 1107 GMT 8/6/44256 |
| 267. To HEROLD. Please engage LUDWIG MARTIN in this. Other departments have not. V ALARIC ARABEL reports 9th June from GOLF COURSE via FELIPE. After personal consultation on 8th June in LONDON with my agents DONNY DICK and DORICK, whose messages forwarded today, I believe on the basis of the fact that there are strong provisions of troops in South East and East England, which are not involved in present operations, that these operations are red herring, with the aim to bind hostile resources, and that there will follow critical attacks elsewhere. Bearing in mind the air attacks that have happened there and the strategically advantageous situation of the mentioned marshalling area, these could well happen in the area of PAS DE CALAIS, especially as during such an attack the nearest airbases would alleviate such an endeavour with air strikes. As I have heard yesterday from my contact V AMY (letter KO SP OKDOS No 934, 4/44), there were 75 Divisions in ENGLAND before the start of the FRANCE operation. | 267. To HEROLD. Please engage LUDWIG MARTIN in this. Other departments have not. V ALARIC ARABEL reports 9th June from GOLF COURSE via FELIPE. After personal consultation on 8th June in LONDON with my agents DONNY DICK and DORICK, whose messages forwarded today, I believe on the basis of the fact that there are strong provisions of troops in South East and East England, which are not involved in present operations, that these operations are red herring, with the aim to bind hostile resources, and that there will follow critical attacks elsewhere. Bearing in mind the air attacks that have happened there and the strategically advantageous situation of the mentioned marshalling area, these could well happen in the area of PAS DE CALAIS, especially as during such an attack the nearest airbases would alleviate such an endeavour with air strikes. As I have heard yesterday from my contact V AMY (letter KO SP OKDOS No 934, 4/44), there were 75 Divisions in ENGLAND before the start of the FRANCE operation. |
| KOSP 5879. | KOSP 5879. |
class="hd">1.GROUP II/IAMADRID I to BERLIN | |
| GROUP II/IA refers to the German agent transmitting the message and their controller. Madrid is where the message was sent from with a German Enigma encryption machine. | GROUP II/IA refers to the German agent transmitting the message and their controller. Madrid is where the message was sent from with a German Enigma encryption machine. |
class="hd">2.RSS 128, 130/9/6/44 | |
| 128 tells us the code was the 128th message picked up by the British Radio Security Service (RSS) that day. 130 is the number of the agent listening in. | 128 tells us the code was the 128th message picked up by the British Radio Security Service (RSS) that day. 130 is the number of the agent listening in. |
class="hd">3.TFC on 12896 kcs at 1050 GMT 9/6/44AUI on 9288 kcs at 1107 GMT 8/6/44 | |
| The message was sent twice, on 8 and 9 June 1944, at different times from stations AUI and TFC, call signs the Germans changed every day. | The message was sent twice, on 8 and 9 June 1944, at different times from stations AUI and TFC, call signs the Germans changed every day. |
class="hd">4.267 | |
| This was message number 267 from Madrid to Berlin that day. | This was message number 267 from Madrid to Berlin that day. |
class="hd">5.An HEROLD | |
| HEROLD is the German codename for a senior German army officer, probably Gen Alfred Jodl, based in Berlin. | HEROLD is the German codename for a senior German army officer, probably Gen Alfred Jodl, based in Berlin. |
class="hd">6.LUDWIG MARTIN | |
| Code for a figure, unknown to the British, who the agent believes should be informed of the memo's contents. | Code for a figure, unknown to the British, who the agent believes should be informed of the memo's contents. |
class="hd">7.V ALARIC ARABEL meldet 9ten Juni aus GOLFPLATZ ueber FELIPE | |
| "V ALARIC ARABEL reports 9 June from GOLFPLATZ via FELIPE". V means secret agent. Alaric Arabel is the German codename for Juan Pujol Garcia - a Spanish businessman and British double-agent who the Nazis believed was running a network of spies in the UK for them. Golfplatz is the German code for Britain, Felipe is Pujol's handler. | "V ALARIC ARABEL reports 9 June from GOLFPLATZ via FELIPE". V means secret agent. Alaric Arabel is the German codename for Juan Pujol Garcia - a Spanish businessman and British double-agent who the Nazis believed was running a network of spies in the UK for them. Golfplatz is the German code for Britain, Felipe is Pujol's handler. |
class="hd">8.DONNY, DICK AND DORICK | |
| These are the names of three entirely fictious spies for Germany who, Pujol writes, have told him that large numbers of Allied troops remain gathered in southern England. This, Pujol says, means the initial D Day landings were just a "red herring". Of course, this is disinformation. | These are the names of three entirely fictious spies for Germany who, Pujol writes, have told him that large numbers of Allied troops remain gathered in southern England. This, Pujol says, means the initial D Day landings were just a "red herring". Of course, this is disinformation. |
class="hd">9.PAS DE CALAIS | |
| Pujol writes that the "critical attacks" are still to come, most likely to be focused on Pas de Calais in northern France. In truth, this is a bluff on Pujol's part, intended to keep German forces away from the rearguard of the actual invasion sites in Normandy. | Pujol writes that the "critical attacks" are still to come, most likely to be focused on Pas de Calais in northern France. In truth, this is a bluff on Pujol's part, intended to keep German forces away from the rearguard of the actual invasion sites in Normandy. |
class="hd">10.AMY | |
| Here Pujol quotes AMY, another fictitious agent, telling him that there were 75 divisions in England before the France landings - meaning more were still to come. The Germans have no idea that this is untrue. | Here Pujol quotes AMY, another fictitious agent, telling him that there were 75 divisions in England before the France landings - meaning more were still to come. The Germans have no idea that this is untrue. |
| It was an audacious double-cross that fooled the Nazis and shortened World War II. Now a document, here published for the first time, reveals the crucial role played by Britain's code-breaking experts in the 1944 invasion of France. | |
| All the ingredients of a gripping spy thriller are there - intrigue, espionage, lies and black propaganda. | All the ingredients of a gripping spy thriller are there - intrigue, espionage, lies and black propaganda. |
| An elaborate British wartime plot succeeded in convincing Hitler that the Allies were about to stage the bulk of the D-Day landings in Pas de Calais rather than on the Normandy coast - a diversion that proved crucial in guaranteeing the invasion's success. | An elaborate British wartime plot succeeded in convincing Hitler that the Allies were about to stage the bulk of the D-Day landings in Pas de Calais rather than on the Normandy coast - a diversion that proved crucial in guaranteeing the invasion's success. |
| Now fresh documentary evidence has come to light showing how Britain's army of code-breakers received advance word that the Nazis had been fooled - meaning Allied troops had the go-ahead to attack. | Now fresh documentary evidence has come to light showing how Britain's army of code-breakers received advance word that the Nazis had been fooled - meaning Allied troops had the go-ahead to attack. |
| An intercepted memo picked up by British agents and decoded by experts at Bletchley Park - the decryption centre depicted in the film Enigma - revealed that German intelligence had fallen for the ruse. | An intercepted memo picked up by British agents and decoded by experts at Bletchley Park - the decryption centre depicted in the film Enigma - revealed that German intelligence had fallen for the ruse. |
| It was an insight that saved countless Allied lives and arguably hastened the end of the war. | It was an insight that saved countless Allied lives and arguably hastened the end of the war. |
| Now archivists at the site of the code-breaking centre hope that a new project to digitise and put online millions of documents, using equipment donated by electronics company Hewlett-Packard, will uncover further glimpses into its extraordinary past. | Now archivists at the site of the code-breaking centre hope that a new project to digitise and put online millions of documents, using equipment donated by electronics company Hewlett-Packard, will uncover further glimpses into its extraordinary past. |
| Behind the story of this crucial message and its global impact lies Juan Pujol Garcia, an unassuming-looking Spanish businessman who was, in fact, one of the war's most effective double agents. | Behind the story of this crucial message and its global impact lies Juan Pujol Garcia, an unassuming-looking Spanish businessman who was, in fact, one of the war's most effective double agents. |
| The Nazis believed Pujol, whom they code named Alaric Arabel, was one of their prize assets, running a network of spies in the UK and feeding crucial information to Berlin via his handler in Madrid. | The Nazis believed Pujol, whom they code named Alaric Arabel, was one of their prize assets, running a network of spies in the UK and feeding crucial information to Berlin via his handler in Madrid. |
| In fact, the Spaniard was working for British intelligence, who referred to him as Garbo. Almost the entirety of his elaborate web of informants was fictitious and the reports he sent back to Germany were designed, ultimately, to mislead. | In fact, the Spaniard was working for British intelligence, who referred to him as Garbo. Almost the entirety of his elaborate web of informants was fictitious and the reports he sent back to Germany were designed, ultimately, to mislead. |
| But agent Garbo was so completely trusted at the top level of the Nazi high command that he was honoured for his services to Germany, with the approval of Hitler himself, making him one of the few people to be given both the Iron Cross and the MBE for his WWII exploits. | But agent Garbo was so completely trusted at the top level of the Nazi high command that he was honoured for his services to Germany, with the approval of Hitler himself, making him one of the few people to be given both the Iron Cross and the MBE for his WWII exploits. |
| "He was no James Bond - he was a balding, boring, unsmiling little man," says Amyas Godfrey, an associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute. | "He was no James Bond - he was a balding, boring, unsmiling little man," says Amyas Godfrey, an associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute. |
| "But he had the Germans completely fooled. They thought the information he was sending was so accurate." | "But he had the Germans completely fooled. They thought the information he was sending was so accurate." |
| To maintain his cover, much of what Garbo fed the Germans was absolutely genuine. But when it came to the looming Allied invasion of France, his "intelligence" was anything but. | To maintain his cover, much of what Garbo fed the Germans was absolutely genuine. But when it came to the looming Allied invasion of France, his "intelligence" was anything but. |
| Ahead of D-Day, the British launched Operation Fortitude, a plot to confound the Nazis about the location of the landings. Garbo was an integral part of the plan. | Ahead of D-Day, the British launched Operation Fortitude, a plot to confound the Nazis about the location of the landings. Garbo was an integral part of the plan. |
| To establish his credibility, he sent advance warning ahead of the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944 - but too late for the Germans to act on it. | To establish his credibility, he sent advance warning ahead of the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944 - but too late for the Germans to act on it. |
| Then, in the days afterwards, he fed them entirely fictitious intelligence from his fake "agents" that the invasion had been a red herring and "critical attacks" would follow elsewhere - most likely down the coast in Pas de Calais. He also reported, again falsely, that 75 divisions had been massed in England before D-Day, meaning that many more were still to land in France. | Then, in the days afterwards, he fed them entirely fictitious intelligence from his fake "agents" that the invasion had been a red herring and "critical attacks" would follow elsewhere - most likely down the coast in Pas de Calais. He also reported, again falsely, that 75 divisions had been massed in England before D-Day, meaning that many more were still to land in France. |
| It was an account the Nazis took extremely seriously. As can be seen in the document reproduced by the BBC, it was transmitted to their high command by Garbo's German handler. | It was an account the Nazis took extremely seriously. As can be seen in the document reproduced by the BBC, it was transmitted to their high command by Garbo's German handler. |
| As a result, German troops were kept in the Calais area in case of an assault, preventing them from offering their fullest possible defence to Normandy. | As a result, German troops were kept in the Calais area in case of an assault, preventing them from offering their fullest possible defence to Normandy. |
| But what truly gave the Allies the edge was the fact that they know the Nazis had been duped. | But what truly gave the Allies the edge was the fact that they know the Nazis had been duped. |
| Unknown to Berlin, the Germans' seemingly foolproof Enigma code for secret messages had been cracked by Polish code breakers. | Unknown to Berlin, the Germans' seemingly foolproof Enigma code for secret messages had been cracked by Polish code breakers. |
| In Bletchley Park, Buckinghamshire, some 10,000 men and women were employed deciphering the messages. And when the document above was cracked, the Allies knew they could press forward in the confidence that thousands of German troops would be tied up vainly standing guard at Calais. | In Bletchley Park, Buckinghamshire, some 10,000 men and women were employed deciphering the messages. And when the document above was cracked, the Allies knew they could press forward in the confidence that thousands of German troops would be tied up vainly standing guard at Calais. |
| "The whole of the 20th Century might have been very different if it wasn't for this," says Kelsey Griffin, Bletchley Park's director of museum operations. | "The whole of the 20th Century might have been very different if it wasn't for this," says Kelsey Griffin, Bletchley Park's director of museum operations. |
| "Churchill's official biographer, Martin Gilbert, said it was difficult to imagine how the D-Day landings could have happened without Bletchley Park. | "Churchill's official biographer, Martin Gilbert, said it was difficult to imagine how the D-Day landings could have happened without Bletchley Park. |
| "We had an army of unarmed intellectuals here." | "We had an army of unarmed intellectuals here." |
| The intercepted document - in its original, freshly-released, German language version - is all the more extraordinary for having been found by volunteers digging through Bletchley Park's archives. | The intercepted document - in its original, freshly-released, German language version - is all the more extraordinary for having been found by volunteers digging through Bletchley Park's archives. |
| One of them, retired civil servant Peter Wescombe, 79, recalls the excitement of realising its significance for the first time. | One of them, retired civil servant Peter Wescombe, 79, recalls the excitement of realising its significance for the first time. |
| "It was like turning up a crock of gold," he remembers. "It was absolutely wonderful." | "It was like turning up a crock of gold," he remembers. "It was absolutely wonderful." |
| It is a find archivists at the site, run by the Bletchley Park Trust, hope will be repeated after HP donated scanners and experts to provide technical expertise to the digitisation project. | It is a find archivists at the site, run by the Bletchley Park Trust, hope will be repeated after HP donated scanners and experts to provide technical expertise to the digitisation project. |
| Many of the records at the centre have not been touched for years, and the charity hopes that by putting them online in a searchable format they can "crowdsource" the expertise of historians and amateurs alike. | Many of the records at the centre have not been touched for years, and the charity hopes that by putting them online in a searchable format they can "crowdsource" the expertise of historians and amateurs alike. |
| And surely then many more real-life tales of deception, double-crosses and painstaking effort will emerge. | And surely then many more real-life tales of deception, double-crosses and painstaking effort will emerge. |
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| Bletchley Park ended the war so early and saved so many lives. The children should learn about it as one of Britain's finest moments.However, in this era of anti-intellectualism, they do not. They do not know of British heroes, and they do not know of Alan Turing, who was mercilessly being prosecuted for being different despite him alone saving millions of lives. | Bletchley Park ended the war so early and saved so many lives. The children should learn about it as one of Britain's finest moments.However, in this era of anti-intellectualism, they do not. They do not know of British heroes, and they do not know of Alan Turing, who was mercilessly being prosecuted for being different despite him alone saving millions of lives. |
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| Another fascinating account of the Enigma story. Alan Turing,although commemorated in some organizations is still unrecognized as the genius he was. A Wehrmacht re-enactment group member at last year's Dover Castle D-Day commemoration patiently demonstrated a genuine example of an Enigma coder . Eventually my wife had to drag me away. Thanks to all the Bletchley Park and Dover staff ,keep it up. | Another fascinating account of the Enigma story. Alan Turing,although commemorated in some organizations is still unrecognized as the genius he was. A Wehrmacht re-enactment group member at last year's Dover Castle D-Day commemoration patiently demonstrated a genuine example of an Enigma coder . Eventually my wife had to drag me away. Thanks to all the Bletchley Park and Dover staff ,keep it up. |
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| Recently I found out that my mother , a WREN was based at Y-Station HMS Flowerdown during 1944-5. This small unit was one of several that intercepted messages and passed some to Bletchley Park for de-coding. It would be intersting to know more about this - I've an xmas day menu (breakfast,dinner,tea,supper) from 1944 with the names of 8 colleagues. | Recently I found out that my mother , a WREN was based at Y-Station HMS Flowerdown during 1944-5. This small unit was one of several that intercepted messages and passed some to Bletchley Park for de-coding. It would be intersting to know more about this - I've an xmas day menu (breakfast,dinner,tea,supper) from 1944 with the names of 8 colleagues. |
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