The Secret WW2 Learning Network is an educational charity registered in the UK - a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) No. 1156796

Welcome to

Secret WW2

This is the website for The Secret WW2 Learning Network – the UK registered educational charity with the mission to

EDUCATE, COMMEMORATE and INSPIRE

 

Latest Secret WW2 News

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Events

Unveiling of information board commemorating SOE’s Special Training School (STS 3) in Liss, Hampshire
Unveiling of information board commemorating SOE’s Special Training School (STS 3) in Liss, Hampshire
  • June 22, 2024
  • 10:30
  • Riverside Walk, Liss, Hampshire - by the railway station.
Tuesday, 18th June 2024, 10.30 am – L’appel 
Tuesday, 18th June 2024, 10.30 am – L’appel 
  • June 18, 2024
  • 10:30
  • De Gaulle statue, Carlton Gardens, London SW1Y 5AA.
COMMEMORATIONS IN FRANCE FOR F (FRENCH) SECTION SOE – PT 2 VALENÇAY
COMMEMORATIONS IN FRANCE FOR F (FRENCH) SECTION SOE – PT 2 VALENÇAY
  • May 6, 2024
  • 11:00
  • F Section Memorial, Carr Bénévent,
COMMEMORATIONS IN FRANCE FOR F (FRENCH) SECTION SOE – PT 1 ROMORANTIN-LANTHENAY
COMMEMORATIONS IN FRANCE FOR F (FRENCH) SECTION SOE – PT 1 ROMORANTIN-LANTHENAY
  • May 5, 2024
  • 16:00
  • Quai de l'Île Marin, Romorantin-Lanthenay

Help us to keep the memories alive while engaging younger and wider audiences.

Latest Facebook Posts

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1AUeBob9BF/
VE Day didn’t mark the end of the war...

On 8 May 1945, Europe celebrated peace. But the war continued in the Pacific, and so did the work at Bletchley Park.

British Codebreakers had been cracking Japanese codes since the 1920s. In fact, decrypted Japanese diplomatic messages played a crucial role in the lead-up to D-Day.

After VE Day, many codebreakers shifted focus, working on Japanese traffic not only at Bletchley Park, but also in Washington and Sri Lanka. As Germany fell, some staff were reassigned to work on non-German messages. This move didn’t sit well with everyone.

James Thirsk, a log reader from 1942 to 1945, remembered:

“They wanted us to start reading French and Russian logs… A group of about 15 of us said we weren’t going to. It was a mutiny, really.”

Japan surrendered on 15 August 1945, now commemorated in the UK as VJ Day.

#VEDay #VJDay #BletchleyPark #WW2 #HiddenHistory #Codebreaking #WW2Stories
“Valland’s unique role, that of a female spy working on behalf of the French Resistance, has long deserved its own special treatment. Michelle Young’s new book, ‘The Art Spy’, places Valland at the center of the action, and illuminates aspects of her personal life and details about her spying methods that have received scant attention in the past …”
Book Review: ‘The Art Spy,’ by Michelle Young (Gift Article) Book Review: ‘The Art Spy,’ by Michelle Young (Gift Article)
Unveiling of a Blue Plaque to commemorate Odette Hallows Unveiling of a Blue Plaque to commemorate Odette Hallows
https://www.facebook.com/share/v/15UfqwHN3s/
Commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Ravensbrück Concentration Camp Commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Ravensbrück Concentration Camp
Hello You, This is Me - FANY SOE Veteran shares her memories of World War II service Hello You, This is Me - FANY SOE Veteran shares her memories of World War II service
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Title image – B24 ‘Carpetbagger’ conducting parachute drop. Courtesy of Clive Bassett, Harrington Aviation Museum –  https://harringtonmuseum.org.uk/