Origins of codenames and Market Garden in particular

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Chandos - 03 Jul 2009 00:22 GMT

Hello all,

I have a question about the origins of the codename Market Garden.

Someone I know believes it is from a phrase used in Tolstoy's War and
Peace.

Generally speaking ( no pun intended ) who comes up with codenames?
I assume Monte himself would not have thought it up.

At what stage in the development is an operation given a codename?

I have lots of information about the operation and understand the name
refers to the two separate phases.
I am specifically trying to determine where the phrase came from.

Thanks in advance for any answers or direction.

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Rich Rostrom - 03 Jul 2009 00:45 GMT

> At what stage in the development is an operation given a codename?

As soon as it is a definite concept.

Code names were, generally, chosen
at random from a list of acceptable
possibilities. (Churchill insisted that
code names be reasonably dignified;
it would be particularly awful to learn
that a husband or father had died in
"Operation Choc Ice".)

Some were more impressive than
others:

GRENADE, AVALANCHE, BATTLEAXE,
OVERLORD, TIDAL WAVE, LUMBERJACK,
DYNAMO, CRUSADER, ANVIL, DRAGOON,
COBRA, HARPOON - all nifty.

DIADEM, PEDESTAL, BREVITY, LUSTRE,
SUPERCHARGE, CORKSCREW, MANDIBLES,
VARSITY, VENERABLE, BAYTOWN,
SLAPSTICK, CHRONOMETER, GYMNAST
- not so nifty.

Occasionally an operation would be
given a name with some significance:
TORCH, for example, was supposed
to set fire to the tail of the "Desert
Fox". But as a rule, "significant" names
were avoided, because they could be
clues for the enemy.

MARKET and GARDEN were random
choices, AFAIK.

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Chandos - 03 Jul 2009 02:28 GMT

Thank you very much for the quick reply.

After I posted it i managed to find another thread that mentioned the
fact that codenames were pulled from an acceptable list, just as you
mention.

Can suggest any books that would mention this "list"?

I don't necessarily need the list but would rather have a source that
i can show someone that illustrates the process and the use of the
"list".

I am not settling a bet...but close. 8^)

Thanks again.

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David H Thornley - 03 Jul 2009 06:47 GMT

> Occasionally an operation would be
> given a name with some significance:
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> were avoided, because they could be
> clues for the enemy.

Anvil was an example of a significant name that should
have been avoided. It was later changed to Dragoon.
Churchill said it was because he'd been dragooned into
the operation (he preferred to leave the extra forces in
Italy), but no matter what the motivation it was a good
name - military-sounding, neither overconfident nor
embarrassing.

Somewhere in Churchill's memoirs (AKA The History of
World War II) there's a memo he wrote on good
operation codenames.

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David H. Thornley | If you want my opinion, ask.
david@thornley.net | If you don't, flee.
http://www.thornley.net/~thornley/david/ | O-

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Alan - 03 Jul 2009 15:44 GMT

Perhaps you'll find this web site interesting.

http://www.history.army.mil/reference/code.htm

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Rich Rostrom - 03 Jul 2009 20:59 GMT

> > But as a rule, "significant" names were avoided, because they could be
> > clues for the enemy.
>
> ANVIL was an example of a significant name that should
> have been avoided. It was later changed to Dragoon.

Operation NEPTUNE, IIRC, was the actual
amphibious and naval component of the
Normandy invasion. This may have been a
deliberate choice, and IMHO should have
been avoided.

The Abwehr was rather sloppy in its code
naming. They used SAMLAND for the
U.S., and GOLFPLATZ for Britain.

On a few occasions, the British counterintelligence
service used "clever" codenames.

Plan MIDAS was to get a large sum of money
(20,000 pounds!) from the Abwehr to its nominal
agents in Britain.

Plan GUY FAWKES was a faked sabotage
operation to build up the reputation of two
double agents with the Germans. Ewen
Montagu wrote later that they figured it was
safe because it was _too_ obvious: "[these
code names] were _never_ signalled and in
the extremely unlikely event of an unauthorized
person reading them... he... would assume
that GUY FAWKES could have nothing to
do with an explosion!"

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Alan - 04 Jul 2009 00:12 GMT

You probably already know this.

Market-Garden were two different code names. "Market" was the airborne
operation to sieze the bridges to allow "Garden" major ground forces
crossing of the Rhine.

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SolomonW - 06 Jul 2009 21:10 GMT

> MARKET and GARDEN were random
> choices, AFAIK.

I recall that the main organizers of an operation were offered a choice of
several names that were available and picked the one, they liked.

For major operations, Churchill like Hitler liked to pick names that had a
ring to it,

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William Black - 07 Jul 2009 05:06 GMT

>> MARKET and GARDEN were random
>> choices, AFAIK.
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
> For major operations, Churchill like Hitler liked to pick names that had a
> ring to it,

The Allies had a special 'major operations' list of codewords.

Signature

William Black

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The Horny Goat - 06 Aug 2009 16:38 GMT

>>> MARKET and GARDEN were random
>>> choices, AFAIK.
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
>
>The Allies had a special 'major operations' list of codewords.

In Churchill's 6 volume history he has a memos (which was to the Chief
of the Imperial General Staff if I recall correctly) dictating that a
list of names be devised for operations and that the names must be
suitably martial or aggresive suggesting bravery. He said that one of
the criteria must be that the operation name could not be cowardly in
any way - that it SIMPLY WOULD NOT DO to require an officer to write
to a bereaved family saying their son was killed in "Operation
Fieldmouse" or something like that.

Market-Garden was in fact TWO operations, one code name for the
paratroop assault and the other for the ground operations.

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Rich Rostrom - 07 Aug 2009 08:06 GMT

> In Churchill's 6 volume history he has a memos (which was to the Chief
> of the Imperial General Staff if I recall correctly) dictating that a
> list of names be devised for operations and that the names must be
> suitably martial or aggresive suggesting bravery.

That didn't happen. Most operation names
were neutral. Yes, OVERLORD, SUPERCHARGE,
BATTLEAXE, DYNAMO, AVALANCHE, DRAGOON,
TORCH, CRUSADER, HARPOON, HUSKY,
CATAPULT, VIGOROUS...

But also LUSTRE, BREVITY, ATLANTIC,
PEDESTAL, CHRONOMETER, BAYTOWN,
PLUNDER, SLAPSTICK(!), EPSOM, GOODWOOD,
MARTLET, CHARNWOOD, BLUECOAT, PERCH,
TRACTABLE, SUBSTANCE, COMPASS.

> He said that one of
> the criteria must be that the operation name could not be cowardly in
> any way - that it SIMPLY WOULD NOT DO to require an officer to write
> to a bereaved family saying their son was killed in "Operation
> Fieldmouse" or something like that.

What he said was the name must not be frivolous
or potentially ridiculous. His example was
"Operation CHOC ICE".

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History Forum / War History / World War II / August 2009

Origins of codenames and Market Garden in particular