Codeword Overlord: Axis Espionage and the D-Day Landings

Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of German-occupied France, achieved crucial tactic surprise on the Normandy beaches on June 06, 1944. D-Day has long been touted as a success for British and American Intelligence, and a failure for the Germans. The truth, according to veteran intelligence historian Nigel West, may be a bit more complex.The book leans heavily on a post-war review of captured German intelligence documents, supplemented by now public information about the Overlord deception operations. The narrative reveals what the Germans knew and when they knew it. Along the way, the author suggests German intelligence operations were likely more proficient than they are often given credit for, including the shocking level of infiltration of British Special Operations Executive networks in France.Much of the narrative is rather dry technical material about the conduct of intelligence. The general reader may find this to be a challenge. The student of intelligence and of the conflict is likely to find it much more interesting. Recommended to that audience.