Operation Elster
Encyclopedia
Operation Elster was a Nazi German mission to gather intelligence on and sabotage the Manhattan Project
during World War II
. The mission was commenced in 1944 with Nazi agents sailing from Kiel, Germany on the U-1230, coming ashore in Maine
on November 30, 1944. Within a month the operation ended, resulting in espionage convictions for the agents.
, Erich Gimpel
and William Colepaugh
boarded U-1230 to sail for the United States to gather intelligence on the Manhattan Project and sabotage it. They also were tasked with gathering intelligence on shipyards, airplane factories, and rocket-testing facilities.
On November 29, 1944, after spending eight days resting on the ocean floor off the coast of Maine to avoid American patrols, the U-1230 passed into Frenchman Bay
and Gimpel and Colepaugh came ashore. They made their way to New York City
.
, producing genealogical evidence. Roosevelt dismissed this, however.
previously. During this period, American intelligence had detected an increase in German
radio activity in the North Atlantic. Although the Americans took the threat seriously
, it never materialized.
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development program, led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada, that produced the first atomic bomb during World War II. From 1942 to 1946, the project was under the direction of Major General Leslie Groves of the US Army...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The mission was commenced in 1944 with Nazi agents sailing from Kiel, Germany on the U-1230, coming ashore in Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
on November 30, 1944. Within a month the operation ended, resulting in espionage convictions for the agents.
Mission
After completing training in The HagueThe Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
, Erich Gimpel
Erich Gimpel
Erich Gimpel was a German spy during World War II. He was very professional, resisting interrogation. Indeed, his interrogators came to admire him in some respects.-German secret agent:...
and William Colepaugh
William Colepaugh
William Curtis Colepaugh was an American who, following his 1943 discharge from the US Naval Reserve , defected to Nazi Germany in 1944. While a crewman on a United States Merchant Marine ship that stopped off in Lisbon, Colepaugh defected at the German consulate...
boarded U-1230 to sail for the United States to gather intelligence on the Manhattan Project and sabotage it. They also were tasked with gathering intelligence on shipyards, airplane factories, and rocket-testing facilities.
On November 29, 1944, after spending eight days resting on the ocean floor off the coast of Maine to avoid American patrols, the U-1230 passed into Frenchman Bay
Frenchman Bay
Frenchman Bay is a bay in Hancock County, Maine, named for Samuel de Champlain, the French explorer who visited the area in 1604....
and Gimpel and Colepaugh came ashore. They made their way to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Arrest
Colepaugh quickly took up womanizing and drinking, and by Christmas, being an American defector, had a changed of heart and turned himself into the FBI. Colepaugh subsequently turned in Gimpel.Colepaugh and Roosevelt
During his arrest, Colepaugh claimed to be a cousin of U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt and First Lady Eleanor RooseveltEleanor Roosevelt
Anna Eleanor Roosevelt was the First Lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945. She supported the New Deal policies of her husband, distant cousin Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and became an advocate for civil rights. After her husband's death in 1945, Roosevelt continued to be an international...
, producing genealogical evidence. Roosevelt dismissed this, however.
Conviction
In February 1945, the pair were convicted of espionage by a military tribunal and sentenced to death. This this was subsequently commuted to life imprisonment by President Harry Truman. Gimpel was paroled in 1955;[2] Colepaugh was paroled in 1960.Revelation of robot bombs
During their interrogation, Colepaugh disclosed information that U-1230 was shadowed by a U-boat pack equipped with V-weapons, to be launched at New York City and Washington D.C. Washington was familiar with the weapons, having been launched at LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
previously. During this period, American intelligence had detected an increase in German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
radio activity in the North Atlantic. Although the Americans took the threat seriously
Operation Teardrop
Operation Teardrop was a United States Navy operation of World War II conducted during April and May 1945 to sink German U-boats that were believed to be approaching the United States east coast armed with V-1 flying bombs. Two large U.S. Navy anti-submarine warfare task forces succeeded in...
, it never materialized.