Deathly Deception: The Real Story of Operation Mincemeat

390 Pages·2010·1.81 MB·English

by  Denis Smyth

DEATHLY DECEPTION
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DEATHLY
DECEPTION
the real story of
operation mincemeat
DENIS SMYTH
1
3
GreatClarendonStreet,Oxfordox26dp
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For Margaret and in memory of Sir Harry Hinsley
and Professor T. Desmond Williams
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Acknowledgements
Historiansarenotalwayshigh-flyersbuttheyareusuallyhigh-maintenance.
Gettingthisparticularhistoricalprojectairbornerequiredacollectiveeffort
from a substantial ground crew and, once aloft, careful guidance from an
expert team of air traffic controllers to arrive at the desired destination.
The individuals to whose memory this book is dedicated initiated me
into the ways and wiles of international relations. Professor T. Desmond
Williams of University College, Dublin, enlightened my undergraduate
mind with his profound insights into the nature of statecraft and strategy.
Professor Sir Francis ‘Harry’ Hinsley of the University of Cambridge
fostered my postgraduate understanding of the phenomenon of war in
international history with his blend of scholarly expertise and personal
experience. I was privileged to come under his doctoral supervision at the
time he was embarking upon the writing of his magisterial, multi-volume
official history of British secret intelligence during the Second World
War.SirHarry’s pioneeringworkonthesecretwaragainstNazi Germany
and Fascist Italy had an early impact upon my academic career.
It prompted me to present a senior-level seminar course on the clandes-
tine dimensionof the SecondWorld War to undergraduate studentsat the
University of Toronto. The unflagging enthusiasm of my Toronto stu-
dents for such a course—which I have now offered for two decades—has
sustained my own interest in the secret intelligence history of the Second
World War. Moreover, the pedagogical need to keep abreast of current
scholarship in this field has kept me informed on the progressive opening-
up of significant archival collections—particularly in the United Kingdom
and the United States—relating to the covert history of the period. The
abiding influence of my original mentors, the unfailing interest of my
students and the scholarly opportunities offered by access to previously
sealed, ‘top-secret’ records, have led me to undertake my own study of
one of the more celebrated covert operations mounted during the Second
World War.
viii acknowledgements
In working on this book, I have been helped by old friends and new.
Once more, Professors Desmond Dinan, Paul Preston, and Angel Vin˜as
gave personal encouragement, professional advice, and practical assistance.
Two successive Chairs of the Department of History at the University of
Toronto,ProfessorsRonPruessenandJaneAbray,alsolentgenerousmoral
and material support to my project. I deeply appreciate their consideration
in view of their heavy administrative responsibilities. Two Spanish histor-
ians,DrManuelRosAgudoandDrJesu´sRam´ırezCopeirodelVillar,were
kindenoughtoprovidemewithcopiesoftheirownbooksonaspectsofthe
clandestine competition between the belligerent camps inside Franco’s
Spain during the Second World War. In actually conducting the archival
researchforthisworkIwasfortunateenoughtobeabletodrawonthekind
assistance of former students of my seminar course at the University of
Toronto. Chantal Aubin, Alexandra Luce, and Dr Mathilde von Bu¨low
were unstinting in their efforts to track down my documentary desiderata.
The following graduates of the University of Toronto also pitched in to
feed my insatiable archival appetite: Lorne Breitenlohner, Dr Joseph
Maiolo, and Dr Hilary Earl. Another Toronto alumna, Vasilis Dimitriadis,
provedhisworth,asatruefriendandcolleague,bydevotingmanyhoursto
tracing recondite published sources on my behalf. To all of these selfless
individuals, I owe a very considerable debt of gratitude.
Myprofessionalresearchassistant,DrKevinJones,alsorenderedsterling
service to the project. His archival investigations combined industry and
intuition in equal measure. He identified key sources, examined them
critically and reported his findings with clarity and concision. Moreover,
hisenthusiasmfortheworkneverdimmed,evenwhenIsethimonthetrail
of elusive documents which had utterly defeated my own efforts to track
them down. Needless to say, he got them by hook or by crook.
There was one form of expertise which this study required and which
I could not readily find amongst my existing circle of personal friends and
professional colleagues, namely, an understanding of forensic pathology.
In deciding to write about Operation Mincemeat—a strategic deception
schemewhichsoughttopassmisleadinginformationtotheenemythrough
the medium of a dead body—I badly needed the professional advice of an
expertwhocouldguidemethroughthecomplexmedicalissuesinvolvedin
suchacovertplan.IfoundjustsuchanindividualinthepersonofDrNoel
McAuliffe, a forensic pathologist in the Office of the Chief Coroner for
Ontario. In addition to being a master of his medical speciality,
acknowledgements ix
Dr McAuliffe has a natural talent for explaining its subject matter to a lay
person like myself. Such light as I have been able to shed in the following
pages on the medical aspects of Operation Mincemeat primarily derive from
my illuminating discussions with him. Dr Lorraine Philp and Dr Lesley
Douglas also helped with this facet of the project.
Asmylibrarianwifeneverfailstoremindme,thekeepersofthewritten
(andspoken)wordalsomakeanindispensablecontributiontothecomple-
tionofanyworkofhistory.Amongstthelibrariansandarchivistswhohave
rendered me priceless assistance are the following individuals: Ms Lara
AndrewsoftheLibraryoftheCanadianWarMuseum,Ottawa;MsMargaret
Brooks, Keeper of the Sound Archive at the Imperial War Museum,
London; Ms Phyll Melling, Printed Books Department, Guildhall Library,
London; and Mr Matthew Sheldon, Head of Curatorial Department,
Library of the Royal Naval Museum, Portsmouth. Many other members
ofstaffatthefollowinginstitutionshavealsogreatlyfacilitatedtheresearch
upon which this work is based: the National Archives of the United
Kingdom, Kew, Richmond, Surrey; the United States National Archives
and Records Administration, College Park, Maryland; the Department of
DocumentsandtheSoundArchiveattheImperialWarMuseum,London;
the British Library, London; the Library of the Royal Naval Museum,
Portsmouth; Toronto Public Library; the University Library, Cambridge;
and University of Toronto Libraries.
PermissiontoquotefromthetypescriptmemoirsofRearAdmiralDavid
Scott has been kindly granted by the Head of Curatorial Department,
Library of the Royal Naval Museum, Portsmouth.
IamalsoverygratefultoMrNicholasReedforpermissiontoincludethe
photograph of his father, Major Ronnie Reed, in the illustrations for this
book. His generosity has allowed the reader to compare that photograph
with the official snapshot of ‘Major Martin’ affixed to the latter’s identity
card. Mr Nicholas Reed’s help in this regard is all the more appreciated in
thelightofhisintentiontopublishhisownbookonhislatefather’slifeand
fascinating times in secret service.
My editor at Oxford University Press, Matthew Cotton, also deserves
special acknowledgement for his wise counsel and courteous attention
throughout our partnership in the production of this book. He kept me
on an even keel with his steady hand and congenial manner. I am also
grateful to Ms Deborah Protheroe, Senior Picture Researcher at Oxford
University Press, for her invaluable work on the illustrations for this book