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 BLETCHLEY SERIES
A new series of publications about Ultra, the high-grade intelligence decrypted from the German Enigma coding machine by Bletchley Park during World War Two. It was here that German, Italian and Japanese radio signals were sent to be de-cyphered and then distributed to Allied leaders and field commanders. The Series represents a unique body of knowledge about the best-kept secret of the War.
Volume I: THE SECRET WAR OF HUT 3:
Edited by John Jackson.
Foreword by Peter Calvocoressi, Head of Air Section at Bletchley Park during the War. At the end of World War II, those who had actually worked in the Hut wrote a history of the activities of Hut 3. The result was so sensitive that it was immediately given the highest security classification: Top Secret – Ultra. Now declassified and in the Public Record Office, this monograph is based on this publication. Hut 3 was responsible for the processing of the signals once the code in which they had been transmitted had been broken. They translated and annotated them and reported the contents to Government departments and commanders in the field. Churchill received the most important decrypts direct. Hut 3, at its peak of activity, had some 580 men and women working in it, which included 21 Americans. Hut 3 developed into an intelligence organisation the like of which had never been seen before. Their index systems, the technical expertise and research facilities were unique. The monograph explains how Hut 3 handled the signals they received, and how their processing enhanced the value of the signals. There are chapters on the Military, Air and Naval Sections, also the Duty Officers, Signals Section, the Special Liaison Units, the German Book Room, Hitler’s Secret Weapons and the arrival of the Americans.
210 x 295mm, 110 pages + v.
ISBN 0-85420-193-9 Hardback edition: £25.00
ISBN 0-85420-114-9 Softback edition: £15.00
Volume II: ULTRA’S ARCTIC WAR
By John Jackson
The Arctic convoys that took vital supplies at enormous risk to Russia during the Second World War did so within range of Germany’s Luftwaffe, surface ships and U-boats. These convoys were watched over by Bletchley Park codebreakers and intelligence officers, through decrypts of the German Enigma coding machine. In particular, these decrypts were closely involved in three of the key actions of the Arctic battles – the sinking of the battlecruiser Scharnhorst, the destruction of the battleship Tirpitz and the disastrous PQ17 convoy. This book examines the Ultra decodes, and for the first time lists the key details in these events in chronological order, detailing the role of the decrypts in a virtual minute-by-minute breakdown of how the signals were used in these key actions.
127 pages + ii, 3 stills, 7 maps, 5 appendices.
ISBN 0-85420-224-2 Hardback Edition: £25.00
ISBN 0-85420-229-3 Softback edition: £15.00
Volume III: THE OFFICIAL HISTORY OF BRITISH SIGNALS INTELLIGENCE 1914-1945
by Frank Birch : edited by John Jackson
This is the first time that this Official History has appeared in print. It was written in the period immediately after World War II when the author was the official “Sigint” historian in the United Kingdom. He was allowed full access to all records and to ensure accuracy the original manuscript was reviewed by officers of G.C.H.Q. The History has only recently been declassified. It is the most authoritative account of how the British Signals Intelligence organisation was developed to become such a powerful instrument in defeating the Axis. The History begins with an analysis of the rôle and effectiveness of Signals Intelligence in World War I and the aftermath up to the early 1930s. With the increasing threat from Japan, Italy and Germany in the mid 1930s efforts were made to improve the Signals Intelligence at home and overseas. With the outbreak of war in 1939 the skeleton of what became the World War II organisation was in place. There were considerable problems that had to be overcome not least the competing requirements of the Fighting Services as well the friction between the UK and overseas commands. What was eventually arrived at was a unique system that involved the Fighting Services, the Foreign Office and an array of civilians, many of whom had come from the academic foundations. The history includes numerous tables and diagrams that explain the development of the organisation and how it worked, also the inter-connections and the flow of information. For instance “The Chain of Control of Interception in 1941” shows how the “Y Organisation” Committee, which was headed by the Chief of the Secret Service, reported directly to the Chiefs of Staff.
Whilst the G.C & C.S (Bletchley Park) activities, known now as G.C.H.Q, have been well documented, it was only part of the “SIGINT” operations. This history details and explains one of World War II’s greatest secrets.
THE OFFICIAL HISTORY OF BRITISH SIGNALS INTELLIGENCE: 1914 - 1945 : VOLUME 1
[Publication April 2004]
ISBN 0-85420-273-8 Hardback Edition: £32.99
ISBN 0-85420-278-1 Softback Edition: £19.99
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Bletchley Archive Series