27. A Recovered Briefcase’s Contents and an Allied Deception Plan
During the Spanish Civil War, 1936 to 1939, the Spanish fascist forces led by General Francisco Franco had been generously supplied and armed by Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. During WWII, tens of thousands of Spanish volunteers fought under German command in the Spanish Blue Division on the Eastern Front. Spain allowed German U-boats to resupply and refit in its waters. So when the Germans asked the Spanish authorities to share the contents of the drowned Major William Martin’s briefcase in 1943, the Spaniards eventually complied.
Little did the Germans or Spaniards know that they had just fallen for an intricate British plan, or that they were about to become unwitting dupes in one of WWII’s most fascinating bits of espionage, deception, and counter-deception. At first, the Spanish authorities played hard to get and resisted German entreaties to let them take a look at the contents of Major Martin’s briefcase. However, Admiral Wilhelm Canaris, head of German military intelligence, the Abwehr, personally intervened, and the Spaniards relented.