MacArthur's ULTRA: Codebreaking and the War against Japan, 1942-1945

Recently declassified intelligence documents reveal America's knowledge of and collaboration with the German resistance to Hitler during World War II. The collection includes reports from the OSS, the CIA's predecessor, detailing internal German society and specific plots like the July 20th assassination attempt. Documents are arranged in chronological order and accompanied by explanatory footnotes and a comprehensive introduction.

Use Cases

• Analyzing the structure and activities of the German anti-Nazi resistance based on OSS intelligence reports.
• Studying U.S. propaganda and disinformation tactics, such as bogus newspapers and fake radio broadcasts, described in the documents.
• Researching the attitudes of different German social groups (workers, churches, military) towards the Nazi regime as revealed in the intelligence.
• Examining specific historical events like the July 20th plot or Count von Moltke's 1943 capitulation offer through primary source documents.

Strengths

• Based on recently declassified intelligence documents from the CIA and OSS.
• Includes explanatory footnotes and a comprehensive introduction providing historical context.
• Documents are arranged in chronological order, facilitating historical analysis.

Limitations

• Row count and file formats are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.

Provenance

Source

Declassified intelligence documents from the OSS (predecessor to the CIA).

Collection Method

Collection and analysis of historical intelligence reports.

Time Range

World War II era, specifically 1942-1945 as indicated in the title.

Geography

Primarily focused on Germany and U.S. intelligence operations.