Reginald Victor Jones facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
R. V. Jones
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R. V. Jones (left) with R. James Woolsey Jr. (Director of Central Intelligence) and Jeannie Rousseau (French WWII spy), 1993
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| Born | 29 September 1911 Herne Hill, London
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| Died | 17 December 1997 (aged 86) |
| Alma mater | Wadham College, University of Oxford |
| Known for | Physicist and scientific military intelligence expert |
| Awards | Commander of the Order of the British Empire (1942) Companion of the Order of the Bath (1946) Duddell Medal and Prize (1960) Fellow of the Royal Society (1965) R. V. Jones Intelligence Award (1993) Companion of Honour (1994) Doctor of Science (honoris causa, 1996) |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | Royal Aircraft Establishment Air Ministry (Intelligence) University of Aberdeen |
Reginald Victor Jones (September 29, 1911 – December 17, 1997) was a brilliant British physicist. He was also an expert in military intelligence, which means he helped his country understand enemy plans and technology. During World War II, he played a super important role in defending Britain. He did this by solving tough scientific and technical problems. He also used clever tricks to confuse the Germans, which helped the Allies win the war.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Reginald Jones was born in Herne Hill, South London, on September 29, 1911. He went to Alleyn's School in Dulwich. Later, he studied Natural Sciences at Wadham College, which is part of the Oxford University.
In 1932, he finished his physics degree with top honors. He then earned his PhD in 1934 while working at the Clarendon Laboratory. After that, he continued his studies in astronomy at Balliol College, Oxford.
Becoming a Science Spy
In 1936, Jones started working at the Royal Aircraft Establishment in Farnborough. This was part of the Air Ministry, which looked after Britain's air force. His job was to figure out how to protect Britain from air attacks. Later, he helped with the plan to free Europe from the Nazis.
Jones loved playing practical jokes. He even wrote in his book Most Secret War about how he used his cleverness to trick the Germans during the war. He often used disinformation, which means giving false information or fake evidence to mislead an enemy.
Joining the Intelligence Team
In September 1939, the British government decided to add a scientist to the Air Ministry's intelligence section. This was a big deal because no scientist had ever worked for an intelligence service before! Jones quickly became the Assistant Director of Intelligence (Science).
During World War II, he was deeply involved in studying enemy technology. He also helped create new ways to attack and defend. He solved many difficult science and technology puzzles. Because of his work, he is often called the "father of S&T Intelligence" (Science and Technology Intelligence).
He briefly worked at Bletchley Park in September 1939. This was a secret place where codebreakers worked. But he soon moved back to London. He left a small team at Bletchley Park who sent him any secret messages about science or technology.
The Oslo Report: A Key Clue
A man named F. W. Winterbotham gave Jones a secret document called the Oslo Report. This report came in 1939 from a German scientist who was against the Nazis. Jones believed the report was real and very helpful. Other government groups thought it was a trick and threw their copies away. But Jones kept his copy, saying, "... in the few dull moments of the War, I used to look up the Oslo report to see what should be coming along next." This report gave him early warnings about German weapons.
Stopping German Radio Beams
One of Jones's first big tasks was to study new German weapons. The first one was a radio navigation system called Knickebein. Jones quickly figured out that this system was a more advanced version of the Lorenz blind landing system. It allowed German planes to fly very accurately along a chosen path.
Jones told Winston Churchill, Britain's Prime Minister, how dangerous this was. Churchill then ordered an RAF plane to search for the Knickebein radio signals. On the night of June 21, 1940, the plane found the signals exactly where Jones had predicted!
With this knowledge, the British built special equipment to jam the Knickebein beams. This made the beams "bend," causing German bombers to drop their bombs far away from their targets for months. This started the "Battle of the Beams," which lasted through much of the war. The Germans kept inventing new radio systems, and the British kept finding ways to stop them.
Jones often had to fight against people in the armed forces who didn't understand his scientific ideas. But he had Churchill's trust and strong support from others, like Churchill's science advisor F. A. Lindemann.
Fooling Radar with Metal Strips
As early as 1937, Jones had an idea: what if small pieces of metal foil falling through the air could create fake signals on radar screens? He, along with Joan Curran, helped create "Window" (now called chaff). These were strips of metal foil cut to a specific length to match the enemy radar's wavelength. When dropped from planes, they made it look like many more planes were in the sky, confusing the enemy radar.
Both the British and Germans knew about this trick. But they were both afraid to use it first, fearing the other side would copy them. This delayed its use for almost two years.
Jones also became an expert on the V-2 rocket, a long-range German weapon. He led a secret plan to trick the Germans about where their V-weapons were hitting, as part of the Double-Cross System.
After the War and His Awards
In 1946, Jones became a professor at the University of Aberdeen. He stayed there until he retired in 1981. He didn't want to continue working in intelligence after the war. At Aberdeen, he focused on making scientific instruments more sensitive. He improved things like seismometers (which detect earthquakes) and other precise tools. His book Instruments and Experiences explains a lot about his later work.
Jones received many honors for his important work. He was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1942. This was for helping plan a raid to capture German radar equipment. He was later made a Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in 1946. In 1994, he received the Companion of Honour (CH), a very special award.
He was also elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1965, which is a big honor for scientists. In 1996, he received an honorary Doctor of Science degree from the University of Aberdeen.
In 1977, Jones was the main person interviewed in a BBC TV show called "The Secret War." His autobiography, Most Secret War: British Scientific Intelligence 1939–1945, was published in 1978. A famous historian, A. J. P. Taylor, called it "the most fascinating book on the Second World War that I have ever read."
In 1981, Jones helped start the World Cultural Council. In the same year, he gave the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures for young people, talking about topics from the Magna Carta to microchips.
In 1993, the CIA (America's intelligence agency) created an award in his honor, called the R. V. Jones Intelligence Award. He was the very first person to receive it.
Personal Life
Reginald Jones married Vera Cain in 1940. They had two daughters and one son.
He passed away on December 17, 1997. He is buried in Corgarff Cemetery in Scotland. His personal papers are kept at Churchill College, Cambridge.
See also
