Operation Barclay facts for kids

Operation Barclay was a super clever trick used by the Allies during World War II. It was a plan to fool the Axis powers about where the Allies would attack next. This trick helped the Allies invade Sicily in July 1943, which was called Operation Husky.

Operation Barclay: A Big Secret Trick

The main goal of Operation Barclay was to make the Axis powers believe the Allies would invade Europe through the Balkans. The Balkans are a region in Southeast Europe. This would draw Axis soldiers and supplies away from Sicily, making the real invasion easier for the Allies.

How Did the Allies Fool the Enemy?

The Allies used many smart ways to trick the Axis. They made it look like they were moving lots of troops. They also sent fake radio messages. They even hired Greek interpreters and bought Greek maps. All these actions made it seem like an invasion of Greece or another Balkan country was coming.

Operation Barclay created a fake army in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. This pretend army was called the Twelfth Army. It was made up of 12 imaginary divisions. Adolf Hitler, the leader of Germany, already thought the Allies might invade through the Balkans. Operation Barclay helped make him even more sure of this.

Other Clever Plans

As part of Operation Barclay, the British also launched other secret missions:

• Operation Mincemeat: This involved planting fake documents in Spain. These documents suggested the Allies would invade somewhere else, not Sicily.
• Operation Waterfall: A pretend invasion force was put together in Cyrenaica, a region in North Africa. This made it look like an attack was coming from there.

To make the trick even more believable, a group called the Special Operations Executive (SOE) worked with Greek fighters known as andartes. They carried out Operation Animals. This involved attacking rail and road networks in Greece. This made it seem like the Allies were preparing for a real invasion there.

Did the Trick Work?

Yes, the deception was very successful! The German High Command, which was the top military group, believed there were many more Allied forces in the eastern Mediterranean than there actually were. They kept believing this, which made later tricks even more believable.

Because of Operation Barclay, Germany sent more soldiers to the Balkans. The number of German divisions there went from 8 to 18. The Italian fleet, called the Regia Marina, was also moved into the Adriatic Sea. This meant the Allied invasion of Sicily achieved total surprise. The Axis powers were not ready for the attack on Sicily at all.

However, there were some tough consequences for the Greek Resistance. Because so many more German soldiers were sent to Greece, they caused many problems for the Greek people who were fighting back.