12 World War II Moments (That Hardly Anybody Ever Talks About)

12. The Double Cross System

Espionage was a huge part of World War II, though given its nature many of the specifics were kept classified for decades following the conflict or taken to the grave by the individuals involved. Ian Fleming’s experiences with the wartime Naval Intelligence Division inspired his creation of James Bond, but even the most outlandish 007 plots were nothing compared to some of the schemes devised by the Security Service (MI5), Special Intelligence Service (MI6) and various other organisations.

Perhaps Britain’s most successful wartime espionage accomplishment was the cracking of German Enigma codes, but the ‘Double Cross’ system that was employed to great effect throughout the war is highly downplayed. Hundreds of real and fictional agents were utilised to spread disinformation, such as misreporting high volumes of V1 rockets falling in the north of London so that their aim would be adjusted (to hit unsettled areas south of the city instead) and the build-up of a fictional army group in the southeast of the country to lend credence to the belief that a Patton-led invasion of France would come through Calais instead of Normandy.

Notable agents included Garbo (Juan Pujol Garcia), who built up a network of 27 fictional agents funded and believed by the Germans, and Zigzag (Eddie Chapman), who was highly trusted by the enemy during spells in Portugal and Norway. Both have been the subjects of books by renowned historian Ben Macintyre and the lives of both would certainly make for fascinating cinema.