Now the subject of a major new film starring Colin Firth as Ewen Montagu in Operation Mincemeat 
In the early hours of 30 April 1943, a corpse wearing the uniform of an officer in the Royal Marines was slipped into the waters off the south-west coast of Spain. With it was a briefcase, in which were papers detailing an imminent Allied invasion of Greece. As the British had anticipated, the supposedly neutral government of Fascist Spain turned the papers over to the Nazi High Command, who swallowed the story whole. It was perhaps the most decisive bluff of all time, for the Allies had no such plan: the purpose of ‘Operation Mincemeat’ was to blind the German High Command to their true objective – an attack on Southern Europe through Sicily. Though officially shrouded in secrecy, the operation soon became legendary (in part owing to Churchill’s habit of telling the story at dinner). Ewen Montagu was the operation’s mastermind, and in his celebrated post-war memoir, The Man who Never Was, he reveals the incredible true story behind ‘Operation Mincemeat’.

The Man Who Never Was: The Remarkable Story of Operation Mincemeat (Now the subject of a major new film starring Colin Firth as Ewen Montagu)

Biographies & Memoirs

Ewen Montagu

Leaders & Notable People

The History Press

In the early hours of 30 April 1943, a corpse, wearing the uniform of an officer in the Royal Marines, was slipped into the waters off the south-west coast of Spain. With it was a briefcase, in which were papers detailing an imminent Allied invasion of Greece. As the British had anticipated, the supposedly neutral government of Fascist Spain turned the papers over to the Nazi High Command, who swallowed the story whole. It was perhaps the most decisive bluff of all time, for the Allies had no such plan: the purpose of 'Operation Mincemeat' was to blind the German High Command to their true objective - an attack on Southern Europe through Sicily. Though officially shrouded in secrecy, the operation soon became legendary (in part owing to Churchill's post-war habit of telling the story at dinner). It gave rise to two very different books. In 1950 came Duff Cooper's poignant novel Operation Heartbreak, a romantic tale, one which the government - right up to PM Clement Attlee - attempted to suppress. Its publication prompted the intelligence services to pressurize the operation's mastermind, Ewen Montagu, into writing a factual account, The Man Who Never Was. Spellmount are proud to present these two accounts, fictional and factual, of one of the greatest intelligence operations ever undertaken, with an introduction by Duff Cooper's son, John Julius Norwich. 'Operation Heartbreak is a work of jewel-like brevity and intensity.' New York Herald Tribune

Operation Heartbreak

History

World

Non Basic Stock Line

The Man Who Never Was, first published in 1954, is a fascinating account of the ingenious Second World War counter-intelligence plot by the British Intelligence service known as "Operation Mincemeat." The goal of the operation, which took place in 1943, was to mislead the Germans as to where the next Allied landing in the Mediterranean would occur. Operation Mincemeat, because of its thorough planning and careful execution, successfully misled the Germans into a belief that the landings would occur in Greece, rather than in Sicily—the true invasion target. As a result, a number of German forces were removed from Sicily to prepare for the believed location of the Allied invasion.To carry out the ruse, Operation Mincemeat used a dead body, dressed as a Royal Marine officer, and carrying false information about the supposed upcoming Allied invasion of Greece. The body would, according to the plan,wash up on a beach in Spain near the town of a known Nazi agent. The body was discovered as planned, the officer's documents examined and verified by German intelligence, and action was taken. By any measure, the Allied operation was a success, and likely saved many lives. Even two weeks into the invasion of Sicily, German leaders still believed that the main attack would be in Greece.The Man Who Never Was remains a classic book of a World War Two intelligence operation. Included are 25 pages of photographs and diagrams.

Man Who Never Was

CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform

The Man Who Never Was

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Ewen Montagu. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Ewen Montagu