Battle Of Wits: The Complete Story of Codebreaking in World War II - Hardcover

Stephen Budiansky

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0684859327 ISBN 13: 9780684859323

Publisher: Free Press, 2000

Synopsis

A million pages of new World War II codebreaking records have been released by the U.S. Army and Navy and the British government over the last five years. Now, Battle of Wits presents the history of the war that these documents reveal. From the Battle of Midway until the last German code was broken in January 1945, this is an astonishing epic of a war that was won not simply by brute strength but also by reading the enemy's intentions. The revelations of Stephen Budiansky's dramatic history include how Britain tried to manipulate the American codebreakers and monopolize German Enigma code communications; the first detailed published explanations of how the Japanese codes were broken; and how the American codebreaking machines worked to crack the Japanese, the German, and even the Russian diplomatic codes. This is the story of the Allied codebreakers puzzling through the most difficult codebreaking problems that ever existed. At the same time, the compelling narrative shows the crucial effect codebreaking had on the battlefields by explaining the urgency of stopping the wolf pack U-boat attacks in the North Atlantic, the burning desire in the United States to turn the tide of the war after Pearl Harbor, the importance of halting Rommel's tanks in North Africa, and the necessity of ensuring that the Germans believed the Allies' audacious deception and cover plans for D-Day. Budiansky brings to life the unsung codebreaking heroes of this secret war: Joseph J. Rochefort, an intense and driven naval officer who ran the codebreaking operation in "The Dungeon," a dank basement at Pearl Harbor, that effectively won the Battle of Midway; Alan Turing, the eccentric father of the computer age, whose brilliant electromechanical calculators broke the German Enigma machine; and Ian Fleming, whose daredevil espionage schemes to recover codebooks resembled the plots of the 007 novels he later wrote. Among the villains, we meet the Nazi Admiral Donitz, who led the submarine wolf packs against Allied shipping in the North Atlantic with horrific casualty rates?until the codebreakers stopped him. Budiansky, a Harvard -- trained mathematician, demonstrates the mathematical insight and creativity of the cryptographers by showing step-by-step precisely how the codes were broken. This technology -- the flow of information, its encryption, and the computational methods of recovering it from the enemy -- had never before been so important to the outcome of a war. Informative diagrams, maps, appendices, and photographs show exactly how, why, and where the secret war was won. Unveiled for the first time, the complete story of codebreaking in World War II has now been told.

About this title

About the Author

Stephen Budiansky received a master's degree in applied mathematics from Harvard University and worked on classified military studies as a Congressional Fellow. He is a correspondent for The Atlantic, and his articles have also appeared in The Economist, The New York Times, and U.S. News & World Report. He lives in Leesburg, Virginia.

Reviews

In February of 1926, German codes, long intercepted and analyzed by Polish cryptanalysts, abruptly became impenetrable. As BudianskyDan Atlantic Monthly correspondent, applied math degree-holder and former congressional fellowDnotes in this penetrating, edgy study, the wary Poles suspected that these new, seemingly unbreakable codes had been generated by a machine. How the Allies' mathematicians and cryptanalysts later deciphered nearly every top-level code produced by that machine, called EnigmaDwhose internal rotors could be wired in 10 to the 80th power (1 followed by 80 zeroes) waysDand by other machines in Axis use is a story already covered by David Kahn's classic The Codebreakers and many other books. Budiansky's bibliography reflects a reliance on those sources, deploying them along with a wealth of archival material; unlike Codebreakers, this book foregrounds the role of cryptanalysis in fighting the war, rather than treating the war as background to cryptanalysis. Readers of a technical bent will be particularly drawn to the meticulous explanations and diagrams depicting trial-and-error code breaking at work. Doling out a consistent measure of beautifully turned observations ("No matter how elaborate a scheme was used to scramble and disguise the original text, its ghost always shone through"), Budiansky is a master at interweaving the science of code breaking within its cultural and historical contexts. He depicts with clarity how the World War II-era code breakers struggled to halt German aggression at a time when the role of signals intelligence in heightening the impact of force was little understood, and delineates the remarkable achievement of those who recognized that the minutiae of enemy communications are well worth knowing. This book gives a fascinating impression of just how crucial these efforts were. (Oct.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Allied success in cryptology unquestionably contributed to victory in World War II, and Budiansky here recounts the code breakers' battles with the enciphering schemes and technical designs of Germany's and Japan's coding machines. A fascination with cryptological principles will smooth the way for readers, for Budiansky tours the technicalities of the subject. Once immersed in Budiansky's account, however, readers will appreciate the comprehensive quality of this author's research: it is meticulous and presented in lucid prose. As framing material, he keeps in view how Britain and the U.S. established and expanded their code-cracking operations--and how their militaries came to value them. But the drama naturally inheres in the code breakers' straining to keep up with the regular changes in the codes of the Germans--who were not, as were the Japanese, complacent about cipher security. Whereas in blood-and-guts histories the climax arrives garbed in combat, Budiansky's history of the cerebral war peaks when a mathematician strips the "additive" from a double-enciphered message from Donitz to his U-boats--now that's excitement! An able and comprehensive account. Gilbert Taylor
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

This is another entry in the fascinating history of the secret intelligence battle during World War II. Much of this story has been told many times before (especially the battle of Midway and the U-boat war), but interesting new details are always coming out. Journalist Budiansky takes advantage of the thousands of newly declassified files on the so-called war behind the warAfeats such as breaking the Japanese codeAthat are legendary in the history of wartime espionage. Having conducted numerous interviews and dug into the primary sources, the author reveals the difficulties of organizing an efficient operation, the mind-numbing work, and getting the military brass to understand and use the product correctly. What is frightening is how stupid bureaucratic battles could cripple important operations. There is sufficient technical explanation of this complicated science/art form, as Budiansky has a degree in mathematics. A chronology, glossary, and notes are included. This easy-to-read work complements Maurice Freedman's The Codebreakers, 1901-1945: Bletchley Park and the Second World War (Leo Cooper, 2000). Suitable for both public and academic libraries. (Photos and index not seen.) [For another book by Budiansky, see The Truth About Dogs, reviewed on p. 106.AEd.]ADaniel K. Blewett, Coll. of DuPage Lib., Glen Ellyn, I.
-ADaniel K. Blewett, Coll. of DuPage Lib., Glen Ellyn, IL
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Free Press
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0684859327
• ISBN 13: 9780684859323
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 448