Operation Mincemeat

A British deception operation in 1943 that used fabricated documents planted on a corpse to persuade Germany that the Allies would invade Greece and Sardinia rather than Sicily.

Glyndwr Michael: A Welsh man whose body was used as the fictional Royal Marines officer William Martin. His body supplied the human evidence that made the planted documents credible.
The Trout Memo: A 1939 memorandum by British intelligence officer John Godfrey proposing deceptive methods against Germany. Its ideas included planting false papers on a corpse, a precursor to Mincemeat.
Operation Barclay: An Allied deception plan intended to support the invasion of Sicily by suggesting a broader threat to the eastern Mediterranean. It complemented Mincemeat by reinforcing the appearance of an Allied threat to Greece.
Ian Fleming: A British naval intelligence officer and novelist who worked in the Admiralty during the Second World War. He was associated with the Trout Memo, an early source of deception ideas.
William Martin: The invented Royal Marines officer whose identity was assigned to the corpse used in the operation. The operation’s false identity gave its documents an apparent owner and history.
John Godfrey: A Royal Navy officer who served as Director of Naval Intelligence during the early years of the Second World War. His Trout Memo supplied an early framework for wartime deception schemes.
Operation Husky: The Allied invasion of Sicily in July 1943, which opened the campaign to remove Italy from the war. Mincemeat’s strategic purpose was to protect this invasion from concentrated German resistance.
John Masterman: A British academic and intelligence officer who chaired the committee coordinating the Double-Cross System. His committee helped manage the intelligence channels through which German beliefs were shaped.
Operation Mincemeat documents: Forged personal and military papers planted with the body of the fictitious William Martin. Their misleading references to Greece and Sardinia carried the false invasion plans.
Charles Cholmondeley: A British intelligence officer who helped devise and carry out Operation Mincemeat. He developed the corpse-based proposal that became the operation.

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