The Emperor's Codes: Bletchley Park's Role in Breaking Japan's Secret Ciphers

While Allied Forces understandably pursued a "Europe-first" policy in the Second World War, the Japanese threat in the Far East grew with every passing month. Popular history credits the Americans with breaking Japanese codes and saving perhaps two years of conflict. This is not Michael Smith's view. The Emperor's Codes uses recently released British archive records to fill in the details of British and Australian involvement in the Far East. In fact, Smith goes further and controversially concludes that internal bickering in the US military, compounded by a less than open exchange of information with the British, 'must have cost many lives, the majority of them American'. In addition, he observes that the Allies knew a Japanese "unconditional surrender", dependent on Emperor Hirohito remaining on the throne, was on the cards before the atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, throwing into considerable doubt the need for such demonstratively horrific tactics. The best collection of military, espionage, and adventure stories ever told. The Dialogue Espionage Classics series began in 2010 with the purpose of bringing back classic out-of-print spying and espionage tales. From WWI and WWII to the Cold War, D-Day to the SOE, Bletchley Park to the Comet Line this fascinating spy history series brings you the best stories that should never be forgotten.

About the Author :
Michael Smith is an award-winning journalist and number one bestselling author. Smith served in the British Army's Intelligence Corps before joining the BBC. He has since worked as a reporter for both the Daily Telegraph and the Sunday Times, covering the wars in the Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan. His many journalistic scoops include the publication of the Downing Street Memos, which exposed the way in which intelligence was 'fixed' in Washington DC in order to justify the war in Iraq. Smith's many books include Six: A History of Britain's Secret Intelligence Service 1909-1939; The Secrets of Station X: How the Bletchley Park Codebreakers Helped Win the War; The Spying Game; Britain's Secret War 1939-1945; and Foley: The Spy Who Saved 10,000 Jews (Hodder & Stoughton, 1999), which led to the naming of MI6 officer Frank Foley as Righteous Among Nations, the highest award the Israeli state can give to a gentile. He is also the editor, with Ralph Erskine, of The Bletchley Park Codebreakers. He lives near Henley-on-Thames with his wife and family.