The Enigma machine was an electromechanical cipher device used by Germany to send secret messages before and during World War II.
Polish mathematicians, led by Marian Rejewski, made the first breakthroughs in the 1930s and shared their work with Britain and France in 1939.
Bletchley Park
At Bletchley Park in England, codebreakers including Alan Turing built machines called bombes that helped read Enigma messages. The resulting intelligence was known as Ultra.
Legacy
Historians widely agree that breaking Enigma shortened the war, and the effort helped lay groundwork for modern computing.
See It in Person
Ohio is a great place to see military history up close. The National Museum of the United States Air Force near Dayton is free and displays hundreds of aircraft, and local veterans memorials, county historical societies, and VFW and American Legion posts across the state often display vehicles and artifacts. Thank a veteran when you visit.
Save this pin to your military history board and share it with a veteran or history lover. Seen one at a museum? Pin it next to this one.