Stefan Mayer
Encyclopedia
Colonel Stefan A. Mayer was a Polish
military intelligence
officer and prewar chief of the Intelligence Department within the Polish
General Staff
's Section II (Oddział II). In that capacity, he supervised the General Staff's Cipher Bureau
, whose achievements included the breaking of German Enigma-machine
cipher
s.
was to recall — "directed that statistics be compiled for a two-week [test] period, comparing the [quantities of Enigma-message] material solved, with the [quantities of] Enigma-enciphered material intercepted by the radiotelegraphers. The ratio came to 75 percent.... With slightly augmented personnel, we might have attained about 90 percent..."
Mayer would recall in 1974 that, before World War II
, Colonel Tadeusz Pełczyński, chief of the Polish General Staff's Section II, suggested to the chief of the General Staff
, General Wacław Stachiewicz, that in case of impending war the secret of Enigma decryption "be used as our Polish contribution to the common... defence and divulged to our future allies." In early January 1939, when Pełczyński was replaced as chief of Section II by Colonel Józef Smoleński, Pełczyński repeated the suggestion to Smoleński. That, writes Mayer, was the basis of Lt. Col. Gwido Langer
's instructions when he represented the Polish side at the trilateral Polish-French-British cryptological conferences at Paris
in January 1939 and at Warsaw
in July 1939.
Mayer participated in the July 26, 1939, Warsaw conference at which the Cipher Bureau
disclosed its achievements in Enigma
decryption to French and British intelligence
representatives.
During the ensuing war, Mayer in 1941-1945 headed the Polish exile military's Intelligence Officers School, at Bayswater
, in London
, which in early 1942 was moved to Glasgow
, Scotland
.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
military intelligence
Military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that exploits a number of information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to commanders in support of their decisions....
officer and prewar chief of the Intelligence Department within the Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
General Staff
General Staff
A military staff, often referred to as General Staff, Army Staff, Navy Staff or Air Staff within the individual services, is a group of officers and enlisted personnel that provides a bi-directional flow of information between a commanding officer and subordinate military units...
's Section II (Oddział II). In that capacity, he supervised the General Staff's Cipher Bureau
Biuro Szyfrów
The Biuro Szyfrów was the interwar Polish General Staff's agency charged with both cryptography and cryptology ....
, whose achievements included the breaking of German Enigma-machine
Enigma machine
An Enigma machine is any of a family of related electro-mechanical rotor cipher machines used for the encryption and decryption of secret messages. Enigma was invented by German engineer Arthur Scherbius at the end of World War I...
cipher
Cipher
In cryptography, a cipher is an algorithm for performing encryption or decryption — a series of well-defined steps that can be followed as a procedure. An alternative, less common term is encipherment. In non-technical usage, a “cipher” is the same thing as a “code”; however, the concepts...
s.
Career
In January 1939 Mayer — cryptologist Marian RejewskiMarian Rejewski
Marian Adam Rejewski was a Polish mathematician and cryptologist who in 1932 solved the plugboard-equipped Enigma machine, the main cipher device used by Germany...
was to recall — "directed that statistics be compiled for a two-week [test] period, comparing the [quantities of Enigma-message] material solved, with the [quantities of] Enigma-enciphered material intercepted by the radiotelegraphers. The ratio came to 75 percent.... With slightly augmented personnel, we might have attained about 90 percent..."
Mayer would recall in 1974 that, before 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...
, Colonel Tadeusz Pełczyński, chief of the Polish General Staff's Section II, suggested to the chief of the General Staff
General Staff
A military staff, often referred to as General Staff, Army Staff, Navy Staff or Air Staff within the individual services, is a group of officers and enlisted personnel that provides a bi-directional flow of information between a commanding officer and subordinate military units...
, General Wacław Stachiewicz, that in case of impending war the secret of Enigma decryption "be used as our Polish contribution to the common... defence and divulged to our future allies." In early January 1939, when Pełczyński was replaced as chief of Section II by Colonel Józef Smoleński, Pełczyński repeated the suggestion to Smoleński. That, writes Mayer, was the basis of Lt. Col. Gwido Langer
Gwido Langer
Lt. Col. Karol Gwido Langer was chief of the Polish General Staff's Cipher Bureau from at least mid-1931.-Life:...
's instructions when he represented the Polish side at the trilateral Polish-French-British cryptological conferences at Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in January 1939 and at Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
in July 1939.
Mayer participated in the July 26, 1939, Warsaw conference at which the Cipher Bureau
Biuro Szyfrów
The Biuro Szyfrów was the interwar Polish General Staff's agency charged with both cryptography and cryptology ....
disclosed its achievements in Enigma
Enigma machine
An Enigma machine is any of a family of related electro-mechanical rotor cipher machines used for the encryption and decryption of secret messages. Enigma was invented by German engineer Arthur Scherbius at the end of World War I...
decryption to French and British intelligence
Military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that exploits a number of information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to commanders in support of their decisions....
representatives.
During the ensuing war, Mayer in 1941-1945 headed the Polish exile military's Intelligence Officers School, at Bayswater
Bayswater
Bayswater is an area of west London in the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea to the west . It is a built-up district located 3 miles west-north-west of Charing Cross, bordering the north of Hyde Park over Kensington Gardens and having a population density of...
, in London
London
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...
, which in early 1942 was moved to Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
See also
- History of Polish Intelligence ServicesHistory of Polish Intelligence ServicesThis article covers the history of Polish intelligence services dating back to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.-Commonwealth:Though the first official Polish government service entrusted with espionage, intelligence and counter-intelligence was not formed until 1918, Poland and later the...
- List of Poles