Spying and Espionage have had a great effect on World War II as a whole. Many countries, specifically Britain, have made great efforts in the counterintelligence department. Britain employed many different spying groups, each with slightly different purposes. The SOE, or Special Operations Executive, formed on July 22, 1940, was a British combination of three distinct spying groups to gather intelligence, scout, and plot against the Axis Powers in Occupied Europe, and help resistance movements, such as the Maquis. The organization was a well-kept secret, only known by those inside it, or related to it, referred to it with a code name. Thus, this led to a very effective and well-kept espionage group within World War II Britain.
The Special …show more content…
Another extremely impactful mission carried out by Norwegian SOE-trained agents was the bombing of the Vemork heavy water plant. This plant was producing deuterium-oxide, which was a water molecule containing a form of hydrogen, deuterium, which contained a neutron. These molecules were incredibly rare in the natural world, only present in about one in every billion water molecules. This “heavy water” was needed by the Germans for atomic bombs due to its effectiveness in moderating the fissioning of Uranium atoms. Heavy water was able to do this so much better than regular H2O because of its ability to slow down neutrons, subsequently allowing the Germans to use far less Uranium to achieve a chain reaction of atom splitting. The carefully trained Norwegian resistance fighters took a quieter, stealthier route, rather than using force to gain access to the production area. They successfully detonated their bombs and escaped without a life lost on either side, but heavily impacting the Axis foothold on the war. One of their most powerful weapons in production had been sabotaged. In brief, the SOE’s impact on swaying the war toward the Allied Powers was unbelievable. If it had not been for Operation Gunnerside, the Nazis may have had atomic bombs on their
The Special …show more content…
Another extremely impactful mission carried out by Norwegian SOE-trained agents was the bombing of the Vemork heavy water plant. This plant was producing deuterium-oxide, which was a water molecule containing a form of hydrogen, deuterium, which contained a neutron. These molecules were incredibly rare in the natural world, only present in about one in every billion water molecules. This “heavy water” was needed by the Germans for atomic bombs due to its effectiveness in moderating the fissioning of Uranium atoms. Heavy water was able to do this so much better than regular H2O because of its ability to slow down neutrons, subsequently allowing the Germans to use far less Uranium to achieve a chain reaction of atom splitting. The carefully trained Norwegian resistance fighters took a quieter, stealthier route, rather than using force to gain access to the production area. They successfully detonated their bombs and escaped without a life lost on either side, but heavily impacting the Axis foothold on the war. One of their most powerful weapons in production had been sabotaged. In brief, the SOE’s impact on swaying the war toward the Allied Powers was unbelievable. If it had not been for Operation Gunnerside, the Nazis may have had atomic bombs on their