Customer Reviews

Churchill's Wizards

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Nicholas Rankin opens up a fascinating hidden world of camouflage, deception, and trickery that makes for a crackling good read, British-style. This is an engrossing account of the some of the geniuses who "saved the day" for Britain in the two world wars, some of them famous (T.E. Lawrence and John Buchan), some of them undeservedly obscure (Sefton Delmer, Dudley Clarke). The depth of detail uncovered by Rankin's research is remarkable in itself, but it is the deft and entertaining writing that makes this a hugely enjoyable book. I've rarely had such a good time reading such an intricately woven history, and I am sure other readers will enjoy it too.

The roots of the Allies' victory over Hitler's Germany in World War II, Nicholas Rankin argues in this fascinating, were sown decades earlier during the First World War in 1914, when military strategists recognized the need for new tactics. In the trenches, decisive victories in face-to-face battles by armies appeared to be impossible to come by. Maybe, they mused, finding ways to baffle and distract the enemy -- painting warships in bizarre patterns that confused U-boat captains, say, or hiding snipers in fake trees -- was not only possible but could actually give them an edge in this new kind of warfare.

Winston Churchill had been in a unique position to learn these lessons, overseeing the disaster of the Gallipoli landings (and the crucial role played by camouflage in the successful evacuations from under the noses of the Turks in 1916) as well as trench warfare on the Western front. Not surprisingly, he became convinced that propaganda, special forces, camouflage and propaganda would be vital in winning the next war. When that war came in 1939, he enlisted the talents of a vast array of artists, novelists, film-makers, scientists and other oddball experts and fantasists - collectively referred to as "Churchill's Wizards" - in the collective project of deceiving Hitler's Germany and Mussolini's Italy. (Japanese intelligence officers, the British eventually concluded, were too dim-witted and ineffective to fool.)

The genesis of these strategies and tactics in the first war and the extraordinary heights to which they rose during the second that serve as the focus of Rankin's excellent book. Some of the wizards, for instance, wondered whether they could use a surplus of oil to literally set fire to the sea and deter a threatened German invasion in 1940. When that didn't work out, other wizards decided to turn their unsuccessful research into successful propaganda by convincing German troops encamped on the French coast that this was a distinct possiblility. German pilots shot down in their (burning) aircraft, were cited as evidence; arch-wizard Sefton Delmer, a journalist, gave mock English lessons revolving around phrases like "The sea is burning", in radio programs beamed to German troops (and presented as if they originated back in Munich or Bremen.) That did work, as Rankin recounts, and panicky German troops wrote letters home in which they told of their fear of being burned alive. The reasons that the Nazi invasion of Britain was never launched had little to do with this campaign, of course, but it's tempting to ponder about the impact on German morale if it and the other defense tactics (machine-gun posts embedded in gentlemens' public toilets) prepared and carefully camouflaged had actually been put to use.

Rankin's book is a fascinating glimpse behind the scenes at unfamiliar campaigns like this as well as far better-known ones (notably, the attempt to convince Hitler that the Normandy invasion was actually a diversion). It is based on a vast treasure trove of material, which Rankin has miraculously whipped into a narrative that is not only coherent (no mean feat!) but lively and compelling. The reader is immediately engrossed in the often-oddball stories he tells, such as the evolution of air warfare (at first, enemy pilots engaged in reconaissance would salute each other respectfully; then they started hurling bricks at each other; ultimately, they began trying to shoot each other down with pistols) and the adventures of the great spy, `Garbo', aka Juan Pujol. But Rankin goes well beyond simply assembling an array of great tales and fascinating portraits of such characters as Pujol, Sefton Delmer or T.E. Lawrence (yes, that Lawrence.) He chronicles the way in which warfare and the nature of military intelligence underwent a fundamental transformation and the evolution of a world in which military success would hinge to a large extent on the success of the wizards. Rankin shows convincingly how and why simple camouflage was not enough; deceiving the eyes of the enemy was good, but military strategists had to deceive their minds as well, to move on to outright psychological manipulation. Moreover, successful deception wasn't just "about getting them to think what you want, but to do what you want."

The wizards triumphed, and World War Two finally ended with the defeat of Hitler's Germany and later, of Japan. But Rankin's book ends on a more somber note, with his thoughts on the role that deception and propaganda played in convincing the public in the United States and Britain that the Iraqi war was necessary in 2003. His point that these tactics have their problematic side is valid, but it's an awkward end to the book that should have been reserved for an author's afterward. Still, those few pages aside, this book stands as an impeccably-researched work of history. Over its course, Rankin successfully instills in the reader a sense of deep admiration for the creativity and commitment of the "wizards" during the years of the Second World War, when to many of them it must have seemed as if defeat - and the triumph of fascist regimes - was all too likely. It's a salutary reminder of the real nature of evil, and the many and different roles that individuals played in defeating it. As exciting to read as many of the best spy thrillers, it deserves to becomes a classic.

A celebration of cleverness and cunning! This book explores the creation and use of camouflage, propaganda, secret intellengence, and special forces in the twentieth century British military. Anyone interested in military history will be fascinated to follow the evolution of this aspect of the action. Would love to hear the author speak or read excerps, as enthusiasm for the subject is clear and engaging. Didn't want to put it down!

Nicholas Rankin's fresh take on British military history makes for an engaging read. Yes, certain topics may interest you more than others, but where else can you read about the origins of modern camouflage and the controversies surrounding its proponents, then cut to the desert warfare tactics of Lawrence of Arabia, then to counterspying. I have read avidly on WWI and WWII, but I learned new facts in every chapter.

An excellent book if you are into this genre. Lots of details, names, dates, but interesting reading. It is especially exciting for me because of previous books I have read on the subject, such as The Wizard War.

If you like history, you will love this book.

This reviewer would like to present the reader with some biographical data about the author of 'Wizards'. Nicholas Rankin is a well-known name in broadcasting and, now, in historical literature too,especially since his book Dead Man's Chest (which traced the steps of Robert Louis Stevenson's between Scotland and Samoa)and Telegram from Guernica, an extremely well received treatise on the life of the war-correspondent and propagandist, George Lowther Steer 1909 - 1944). Rankin, then is seasoned in the dual disciplines of communication and of historical research. 'Wizards' combines these disciplines with thoroughness and esprit.

The author sets the historical context very carefully, whilst maintaining the readers concentration and interest (as observed by the previous reviewer) with deft phrases and vivid, sometimes terse, descriptive phraseology and terminology.

By the time the Second World War 'occurred', the British military and secret services had become masters of the art of deception. This book chronicles their achievements, despite the difficulties in obtaining 'the full story' in certain instances; British geniuses cracked what had appeared to be apparently impenetrable German secret codes and were able to glean intelligence from their messages. Apprehended German spies were used to send back false information to officers.

And there is more ... much more; in short, Nicholas Rankin entertainingly presents the reader with well-researched heroic episodes about the hurriedly assembled band of 'creative mavericks' who purloined a victory in what that phrase-smith Churchill referred to as 'the war of the Unknown Warriors'. As alluded to earlier, some of the material was apparently not that easy to obtain; "Official secrecy has weighed heavily on the subject", Rankin says. As well as making the finished project an even greater achievement, that fact renders this work even more commendable to the general reader and valuable to the interested historian.

Michael Calum Jacques (author of 1st Century Radical: the shadowy origins of the man who became known as Jesus Christ)

EwGog (Croton, NY)

It read a lot longer than 480 printed pages, but it also provided a great deal of informstion in a relatively readable fashion. Worth the time and money.

Took a break from fiction to read this, book is very well-written with occasional bursts of light humor and tremendous research of names and dates. Very enjoyable, a strong recommendation

If you are expecting a book detailing the methods of camouflage used in WWI and WWII, prepare to be disappointed. There are very few photos or illustrations of camouflage being used or constructed. Very few tales from soldiers on the battlefield or the artists and engineers who designed and built decoys. Most of us would consider camouflage to be a 'visual' art, so the lack of photos is inexplicable.

What the book IS about is personal rivalries between camo artists, the men in parliament who set up the various propaganda departments, a new take (new to me) on T.E. Lawrence, a brief treatment of the Home Guard, and the people who ran the radio propaganda machine.

The cover and description seemed to imply an action-packed account of deception on the battlefield....unfortunately it's a very dry read. I've donated it to the local library, as I won't be reading it twice.

Nicholas Rankin has written a very detailed history of the British use of deception in war. He's clearly done his research well and has a readable prose style (American readers will find that he uses several words that will send them for their dictionaries.) I found this work to be a bit overly long and and that he treated some topics with more pages than I thought was warranted (fake trees for observation posts in WWI) and not enough in others (the case of 'The Man Who Never Was' in WWII.

But on the whole, the book will be of interest to anyone interested in espionage, camouflage, and the history of WWI and WWII. American readers will need to go to Wikipedia for some references (e.g., Hammer Films is very well known in the UK; not so well known in America.)

It's a story made up of many strands and Rankin has done a good job pulling all of this together from a lot of sources. The photographs were very useful.