Operation Mercury by John Sadler

Author:John Sadler
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781783460533
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Published: 2013-05-29T16:00:00+00:00

As the General himself subsequently conceded: ‘We for our part were mostly preoccupied by seaborne landings, not by the threat of air landings.’13 It was this misunderstanding and Freyberg’s lack of analytical ability that doomed the defenders. On 20 May he had the upper hand, even if he did not fully understand the depth of the Germans’ weakness. Determined action, ruthless and vigorous counter-attacks would have finished the battle on that day.

There is a supreme irony in this intelligence failure. On the one hand an army which has a complete knowledge of its enemy’s intentions, an enemy whose own assessments are grossly inaccurate, misreads this gift to the extent that it saves the unprepared enemy from disaster. On the other hand, in the longer term, the defenders’ failure helps to preserve the all important secret. As the German after battle report14 concludes:

One thing stands out from all the information gleaned from the enemy (prisoner’s statements, diaries and captured documents) that they were on the whole very well informed about German intentions, thanks to an excellent espionage network, but expected the bulk of the invasion forces would come by sea.15

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