‘Pinching’ German Military and Economic Knowledge: British Targeted Intelligence Capture 1942 – 1947

Creighton, Angus (2026) ‘Pinching’ German Military and Economic Knowledge: British Targeted Intelligence Capture 1942 – 1947. Doctoral thesis, The University Of Buckingham.

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Abstract

To Pinch: To take or steal something without permission.
A euphemistic term applied by British code breakers for the plan and successful capture of cryptographic code books or keys and later synonymous with the stealing of any targeted knowledge or equipment.

This dissertation will analyse how and why British intelligence target collation, capture and ultimately dissemination adapted in response to changing military, operational and political needs between 1942 and 1947. In 1942, the pressing need to ‘pinch’ German cryptographic knowledge influenced the formation of the first permanent Intelligence Assault Unit in September of that year. Factors influencing their creation and how their role evolved from deployment in the Mediterranean, through Western Europe and finally to Germany in 1945, will be analysed. The evolution of Intelligence target research and collation will be analysed from early plans drawn up ahead of the capture of Tunis, to those prepared by Anglo-US teams preparing for the fall of cities in Sicily and Italy. In the latter, intelligence target list compilation was undertaken on a city by city basis, while targets identified in Western Europe were collated from the entire continent. Here target collation was undertaken in anticipation of the sudden collapse of German forces, whose departure would necessitate a swift Anglo-US occupation of vacated research sites. This eventuality influenced target analysis before, during, and long after the landings in Normandy in June 1944. Collating such target lists was initially a British endeavour, though US experts soon joined the research groups to pool expertise and reduce duplication. Sites of military interest were published as a ‘Black List’ that defined target capture from Normandy to the end of the War. By early 1945, the attention of Anglo-US governments was slowly redirected to the exploitation of Germany’s commercial intelligence, with Anglo-US teams collaborating on targets to be investigated after hostilities ended. Post-war investigations were undertaken along national lines, though findings were disseminated through published reports for sale in the UK and US. Investigation of German industry ceased after 1947 which is where the analysis of this dissertation ends. Research has been supported by extensive use of contemporary primary source documentation, accessed from multiple archives and provides an accurate evolution of the nomenclature and chronology, often misrepresented in secondary sources.

Item Type:	Thesis (Doctoral)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	British intelligence ; German military ; cryptographic knowledge ; economic knowledge ; Intelligence Assault Unit.
Subjects:	D History General and Old World > D History (General) > D731 World War II D History General and Old World > D History (General) > D839 Post-war History, 1945 on D History General and Old World > DA Great Britain D History General and Old World > DD Germany U Military Science > U Military Science (General)
Divisions:	School of Humanities & Social Sciences > History and History of Art
Depositing User:	Freya Tyrrell
Date Deposited:	06 Feb 2026 10:32
Last Modified:	06 Feb 2026 10:32
URI:	https://bear.buckingham.ac.uk/id/eprint/722

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