The Battle of the Atlantic: Allied Naval Intelligence in World War II


U.S. Navy Commander Joseph N. Wenger (Postwar Era, As an Admiral)
U.S. Navy photograph in the collections of The Mariners' Museum

Concerned about the U-boat threat to Allied shipping, British intelligence leader Edward W. Travis spearheaded a British effort to establish close ties with influential U.S. Navy intelligence officials like Joseph N. Wenger. As a result, Travis and Wenger agreed to cooperate to solve German and Japanese codes and ciphers in 1942. Due to their decisive efforts, Allied codebreakers collaborated to solve Enigma. Based upon the arrangements established by Travis and Wenger, British and American intelligence services continued maintaining a unique working relationship, safeguarding the mutual interests of Great Britain and the United States well into the Cold War era and beyond.