Information jigsaw

Throughout the six years of war with Germany, the M Room unit gathered a significant amount of intelligence on all aspects of the Nazi war machine. In themselves, these tens of thousands of snippets of information may have seemed obscure, but when pieced together like a jigsaw, they gave a detailed understanding of the enemy. There was material that was relevant to the war at sea, in the air and on land. This ranged from details of German battle plans and U-boat communication codes, to new technology used on German aircraft, as well as the first references to Hitler's secret weapons programme. Information was picked up on the strength of enemy Armed Forces and their training, on aerial and magnetic torpedoes, the production of enemy aircraft and their navigation systems, conditions in Germany, tanks, "S" boats, aerodromes in German-occupied countries, paratroopers, and even details about Hitler's personal movements and daily habits.

These are just some examples of the range of material that was gathered. Lt. Col. Kendrick collated the intelligence and categorised all reports and transcripts into either Top Secret, Most Secret or Very Secret. Only certain people were entitled to see material in these categories. The success of this operation relied on a highly organised and efficient programme.