Whitney Bendeck - A Force: The Origins of British Deception in the Second World War

Naval Institute Press

291 Wood Road

Annapolis, MD 21402

2013 by Whitney T. Bendeck

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Bendeck, Whitney T.

A force : the origins of British deception during the Second World War / Whitney T. Bendeck.

1 online resource.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record and CIP data provided by publisher; resource not viewed.

ISBN 978-1-61251-234-1 (ePub) 1. World War, 19391945DeceptionGreat Britain. 2. World War, 19391945Secret serviceGreat Britain. 3. Clarke, Dudley, 18991974. 4. World War, 19391945Egypt. 5. World War, 19391945Middle East. 6. World War, 19391945Africa, Eastern. 7. Intelligence officersGreat BritainBiography. 8. Deception (Military science)History20th century. I. Title. II. Title: Origins of British deception during the Second World War.

U167.5.D37

940.548641dc23

2013027937

Maps created by Charles Grear.

Print editions meet the requirements of ANSI/NISO z39.48-1992 (Permanence of Paper).

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First printing

To my parents,

Del and Alice Talley,

and to my husband,

Oscar Bendeck

CONTENTS

T hey say it takes a village to raise a child. A similar truth applies to producing a book, at least in my case. It would be absolutely insulting to claim complete credit for this project as it has benefitted from the help of so many along the way. I must begin by thanking my parents, Del and Alice Talley. My parents have always been my greatest supporters. They have been a constant source of encouragement and both have generously sacrificed so much of the own time and resources to see me succeed. I am forever grateful. Being a female in academia, while at the same time serving as a full time wife and mother, has its challenges. For that, I am greatly indebted to my husband, Oscar, who has also been a tremendous source of support. Without his assistance and many sacrifices, I could never have even dreamed of taking on this project.

There are so many who offered advice and served as sounding boards throughout the writing process. My mom and my dear friend Jennifer Henderson found themselves as frequent victims of my incessant brainstormingI was utterly surprised that they continued to answer their phones! There are others, such as Professors Jonathan Grant, Peter Garretson, Bawa Singh, Darrin McMahon, and Mark Souva, who deserve mention for taking the time to read the work, offer suggestions, and/or provide guidance. I owe a special debt of gratitude to my mentor, Professor Michael Creswell. His continued support, advice, and masterful editing proved invaluable to me throughout this entire process.

Writing a book is one thing, publishing it is another altogether. I would like to offer a special thanks to my editor, Adam Kane at the Naval Institute Press. There is also a team of professionals at the press, or affiliated with the press, who have been instrumental in putting this work into print. Those individuals are Claire Noble, Judy Heise, Brian Walker, George Keating, Emily Bakely, Susan Corrado, Marlena Montagna, Julie Kimmel, Charles Chuck Grear, Maryam Rostamian, Matthew Simmons, and Adam Nettinaamong many others.

I must mention the incredibly helpful and professional staff at both the British National Archives (Kew, UK) and the Imperial War Museum (London). The research process was truly wonderful and I look forward to getting back to both for another round of digging through files!

Finally, for any success I might have, or gifts I might possess, I give God all the glory.

Whitney T. Bendeck