In 1944, during the Second World War, a mass landing of British and US troops began on the coast of France (D-Day), occupied by the Nazis. This operation was prepared in the strictest secrecy and was codenamed "Overlord".
Thirty-three days before the start of the operation, the London Daily Telegraph published a block of crosswords sent to the editor by an unknown person, which, purely by chance, drew attention to one of the high-ranking British officers who participated in the top-secret development of the details of Operation Overlord.
He began to solve it and was horrified to see that all the guessed words in the crossword puzzle were strictly classified code words of the upcoming operation "Neptune", "Utah", "Omaha" and even the very name of the landing - "Overlord". In the crosswords, in general, all (!) Main positions and nuances of the planned operation were indicated.
The publication of the block of crosswords immediately caused panic at the joint headquarters of the Anglo-American troops in London.
It was suggested that the German spies somehow got hold of the complete plan of the operation, and die-hard warriors from the German General Staff, with their characteristic heavy German humor, decided to venomously inform their opponents of this fact. Like, here's our "encryption". Try it, decipher!
The editorial office of the newspaper was very surprised. The crossword puzzle was sent to them by an old school teacher, Mr. Dow, who has long worked with the newspaper. He knew nothing about data secrecy.
After a long debate, the joint command of the Anglo-American forces decided not to cancel Operation Overlord.
The landing of Allied troops on the shores of France came as a complete surprise to the German command. After the end of the war, it became clear that the Germans knew nothing about the preparation of this operation.
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The publication of a mysterious block of crosswords is considered to this day one of the greatest mysteries of the Second World War. What is it? A rare coincidence, almost unthinkable? Or is it something else - let's say, one of the inconceivable "jokes" of the Beyond, the Mysterious, the Unknown?
Officially, it was still taken as a coincidence.