The Man Who Broke Napoleon's Codes: The Story of George Scovell
In 1812 two mighty armies manoeuvred across the Spanish plains. They were finely balanced, under ski...
Read More
In 1812 two mighty armies manoeuvred across the Spanish plains. They were finely balanced, under skilful leaders. Each struggled to gain an advantage. Wellington knew that if he defeated the French, he could turn the tide of the war. Good intelligence was paramount, but the French were using a code of unrivalled complexity - the 'Great Paris Cipher'. It was a daunting challenge, and Wellington looked to one man to break the code: Major George Scovell.In this account of the officer who waged the intelligence battle against Napoleon's army, Mark Urban shows Scovell to be a forerunner to the great code-breakers of the twentieth century. Using a network of Spanish guerillas, Scovell amassed a stack of coded French messages, and set to work decrypting them. But as a man of low birth, Scovell - even with his genius for languages, and bravery on a dozen battlefields - struggled for advancement amongst Wellington's inner circle of richer, better connected officers. Mark Urban draws on a wealth of original sources, including many ciphers and code-tables, to restore Scovell to his rightful place in history.
Read Less