Operation Mincemeat: The Corpse that Fooled Hitler

Operation Mincemeat: The Corpse that Fooled Hitler

Date: April 30, 1943

Story:

One of the most audacious and successful deception operations of WWII was "Operation Mincemeat." British intelligence, specifically the Twenty Committee (XX Committee), concocted a brilliant plan to mislead the Axis powers about the Allied invasion of Sicily. They acquired the body of a deceased vagrant, dressed him as a Royal Marines officer named Major William Martin, and meticulously created a false identity and backstory for him. They then planted fake "top secret" documents on his person, detailing an imminent Allied invasion of Greece and Sardinia (instead of Sicily). The corpse was then deliberately released from a submarine off the coast of Spain, where it was sure to be found. Spanish authorities, despite their neutrality, were known to be sympathetic to the Axis and likely to share any sensitive finds. The Germans fell for the deception hook, line, and sinker, diverting significant forces to Greece and Sardinia, leaving Sicily less defended. The success of Mincemeat directly contributed to the relatively swift Allied conquest of Sicily (Operation Husky), saving countless lives.

Reference:

Montagu, Ewen. The Man Who Never Was. J. B. Lippincott & Co., 1953. (Written by one of the key figures in the operation).

Macintyre, Ben. Operation Mincemeat: How a Dead Man and a Bizarre Plan Fooled the Nazis and Assured an Allied Victory. Harmony Books, 2010.