The Man Who Never Was: The Story of Operation Mincemeat

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.