Double Cross

Britain’s Double Cross System turns captured or volunteered German agents into a controlled network reporting to the Abwehr. Agents including Garbo, Tricycle, Treasure, Brutus and Bronx send information designed by British intelligence, creating a channel through which the Allies can influence German assessments of invasion plans.

Before D-Day, the network supports Operation Fortitude by persuading German commanders that Normandy is a diversion and that the main assault will fall around Calais. Macintyre shows how the deception depended on the agents’ unstable personalities, their case officers and the difficult task of mixing accurate information with lies convincing enough to shape military deployment.