Codebreakers' Victory: How the Allied Cryptographers Won World War II

by Hervie Haufler

For years, the story of the World War II codebreakers was kept a crucial state secret. Even Winston Churchill, himself a great advocate of Britain s cryptologic program, purposefully minimized their achievements in his history books. Now, though, after decades have passed, the true scope of the British and American cryptographers role in the war has come to light. It was a role key to the Allied victory. From the Battle of Britain to the Pacific front to the panzer divisions in Africa, superior cryptography gave the Allies a decisive advantage over the Axis generals. Military intelligence made a significant difference in battle after battle. In"Codebreakers Victory," veteran cryptographer Hervie Haufler takes readers behind the scenes in this fascinating underground world of ciphers and decoders. This broad view represents the first comprehensive account of codebreaking during World War II. Haufler pulls together years of research, exclusive access to top secret files, and personal interviews to craft a captivating must-read for anyone interested in the behind-the-front intellect and perseverance that went into beating the Nazis and Japan."

Genres: History, Nonfiction, World War II, War, Historical

434 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 4, 2003

Reviews

[Sarah]

My great-uncle wrote this book, and it's been sitting on our family bookshelf for some time without me ever having read it. I took it on a cross-country road trip this summer, and really enjoyed the history that I learned from it. Not only was the information about cryptography incredibly interesting, the book does a fantastic job at describing the war overall in all its theaters. The writing was engaging and well-structured enough for me to follow along with all the developments without feeling like I was getting lost in too much history or didn't have enough information to understand the context. The only tricky bit was keeping track of some of the acronyms; I found myself having to flip back now and then to refresh my memory. Overall, I would highly recommend this book to anybody who enjoys non-fiction, even if history books aren't usually your thing.

[Anthony Ambruso]

Very nicely done

Lots of good history and information. I found this book interesting but very detailed in technical information. I also lost interest about halfway through the book. Nevertheless, it was a good read about World War II intelligence success.

[Bill]

A very readable book about the importance of the codebreakers and other intelligence folks in winning the Second World War. At times you will wonder why it took so long when we usually knew what the Axis powers were going to do.

[Stephen F. Johnson]

Comprehensive look at both the codebreakers and the war

Great book.! Covers both codebreaking and how it influenced battles. I really liked the stories if deception -- like the spies who never were.

[Robert Drumheller]

Very good book concerning reading the other side's secret messages along with the attempt to keep this hidden from the enemy.

[Zlatko Dimitrioski]

An excellent overview of the cryptographers' contribution to the Allied victory.

[John G]

The title is correct

This is a very readable and informative book. It starts with a history of codes and code breaking. We learn of the complexity of codes when machines added. How the cryptographers provided the valuable information that the commanders used to bring victory is a fascinating read.

[Sara Best]

It was exciting to read this book, not only because the revelation of the role of the codebreakers in winning WWII an exciting tale, it is very personal to me as my father was one of the Americans of the 6812th Signal Security Detachment. My only wish was I had read it while my Dad was still alive so I could talk to him about his role. They were all bound to secrecy for so long he could never tell us about it. By the time he could speak freely, I was out of the home and living overseas.

[Mary]

Fascinating story of Enigma, but it seemed sandwiched in with too many in depth battle descriptions.