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From: hofbauer@utcsri.UUCP
Newsgroups: sci.crypt
Subject: Re: Cryptography in WW1, etc.
Message-ID: <5319@utcsri.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 27-Aug-87 02:39:33 EDT
Article-I.D.: utcsri.5319
Posted: Thu Aug 27 02:39:33 1987
Date-Received: Sat, 29-Aug-87 05:14:30 EDT
References: <20278@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU> <8490@utzoo.UUCP>
Organization: CSRI, University of Toronto
Lines: 16

> Don't get too sarcastic.  Remember that the Allies botched this very detail
> in Africa -- Rommel's field cryptanalysts were reading a great deal of the
> traffic from Egypt, including the US ambassador's detailed reports on
> British status and movements.  As I recall, two fairly significant dates
> in the war in Africa were the day the US ambassador was replaced (by a less
> mouthy one) and the day Rommel's field cryptanalysis unit was decimated
> during a confused skirmish.
> -- 

I read a biography of Rommel not that long ago and was also amazed by the
role cryptography seemed to play in his campaign. BTW, the U.S. Ambassador's
name was Feller and Rommel referred to the intercepts as "his little
Feller's". Exactly how significant the cryptography was is hard to
judge. Rommel was a brilliant field commander and he was beset by
supply problems and a high command that eventually thought him and
his campaign as irrelevant.