Room 40; British Naval Intelligence 1914-18

New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1982. First American Edition [stated]. Hardcover. Very good/Very good. xi, [3], 338 pages. Maps. Illustrations. Footnotes. List of Abbreviations. List of Staff Identified. Sources and Select Bibliography. Index. Black mark on bottom edge. Patrick Beesly (27 June 1913 - 16 August 1986) was a British author and intelligence officer during World War II. Just before World War II, he joined the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve (RNVR) in June 1939, became a Sub-Lieutenant (Special Branch), and was appointed to the Naval Intelligence Division (NID 2), in the section concentrating on France, Spain, and the Benelux countries. His first assignment was with the activities of armed merchant raiders but from 1941 until the end of the war with Germany he worked on submarine tracking as Deputy to Commander Rodger Winn. Patrick Beesly's first book, Very Special Intelligence in 1977 was well received. He proceeded to write other works on related intelligence and historical themes, some of which involved some far-reaching conclusions. Derived from a Kirkus review: Because of Britain's slowness in declassifying official documents, it has fallen to the leading authority on British WW II naval intelligence to make first use of the files on British WW I naval intelligence--opened only in 1976 and still not fully. Beesly makes several distinct contributions. He describes the organization and personnel of Room 40--a pioneering operation, and Bletchley Park's forerunner; also, how it procured German naval codes. He expands on both submarine and surface warfare: knowledge of U-boat whereabouts enabled shipping to be routed evasively. He scrutinizes the Lusitania question: did Churchill have advance knowledge of the danger, and sacrifice the Lusitania to get America into the war? He concludes that such is not likely--but not impossible either. He gives close attention to the interception of the Zimmerman telegram--offering Mexico part of the American Southwest in return for an alliance--which indeed did precipitate American entrance into the war. A rewarding work for SIGINT buffs, the naval following, and students of World War I.