Emily Anderson

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(17 March 1891 – 26 October 1962) was an Irish scholar of German ancestry, music historian and cryptanalyst at the British Government Code and Cipher School (now GCHQ) for almost 30 years.

Early life

Anderson was born in Galway, Ireland, the daughter of physicist

Alexander Anderson Alexander Anderson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Alexander Anderson (illustrator) (1775–1870), American illustrator * Alexander Anderson (poet) (1845–1909), Scottish poet * Alexander Anderson (cartoonist) (1920–2010), American car ...

, a Presbyterian from

Coleraine Coleraine ( ; from ga, Cúil Rathain , 'nook of the ferns'Flanaghan, Deirdre & Laurence; ''Irish Place Names'', page 194. Gill & Macmillan, 2002. ) is a town and civil parish near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, Northern I ...

, and his wife Emily Gertrude Binns. Alexander Anderson became president of

Queens College Galway The University of Galway ( ga, Ollscoil na Gaillimhe) is a public research university located in the city of Galway, Ireland. A tertiary education and research institution, the university was awarded the full five QS stars for excellence in 201 ...

(QCG) in 1899. She was educated privately and won the Browne Scholarship in both 1909 and 1910 at QCG, where she received a B.A. in 1911. She displayed a strong interest in the

suffragette A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...

movement in Galway. After further study at universities in Berlin and Marburg, she taught for two years at Queen's College, Barbados. She then returned in 1917 to Galway where she was appointed the first Professor of

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

at University College Galway.

Career in cryptanalysis

Anderson was approached to join MI1b, the

cryptanalysis Cryptanalysis (from the Greek ''kryptós'', "hidden", and ''analýein'', "to analyze") refers to the process of analyzing information systems in order to understand hidden aspects of the systems. Cryptanalysis is used to breach cryptographic sec ...

section of the British War Office, in the autumn of 1917 and she moved to London to take up duty in July 1918. She was initially trained to join the Hush WAACs in France but was never deployed. She resigned her academic post for the duration of the war. Her deputy at MI1b was Alda Milner-Barry. In 1919, Anderson returned to Cork to resume her academic career. Major Malcolm Vivian Hay and Alastair Denniston named Anderson as a codebreaker they wanted to keep in the newly formed Government Code and Cipher School (now GCHQ). Anderson agreed, but requested equal pay and grading to the men at her level. She resumed her career at GC&CS on 10 January 1920, with the cover story that she was working in the

Foreign Office Foreign may refer to: Government * Foreign policy, how a country interacts with other countries * Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in many countries ** Foreign Office, a department of the UK government ** Foreign office and foreign minister * Unit ...

. Anderson became Head of the Italian Diplomatic section. In the 1930s, Anderson collaborated with Dilly Knox on building the Hungarian codebreaking books. She also managed and trained codebreakers like Wilfred Bodsworth and Josh Cooper. Anderson and her team moved from London to Bletchley Park in August 1939. She was initially billeted with

Maurice Hayward Sir Maurice Henry Weston Hayward (2 June 1868 – 31 August 1964) was a British colonial administrator who was the Acting governor of Bombay during the British Raj from 8 December 1923 to 10 December 1923. Hayward was the son of Rev. Robert B ...

and his family until October 1939 when she had moved, along with a woman who could have been Dorothy Brooks, to the family home of

Patricia Bartley Patricia Marjorie Bartley, Mrs Brown (1 May 1917, Dacca, British India – 26 February 2021, Ely, Cambridgeshire) was a British codebreaker at Bletchley Park, and a member of British intelligence's diplomatic office in Mayfair, London. Among he ...

. Anderson recognised Bartley's potential and recommended her to Denniston. In May 1940, Anderson asked to be closer to the point Italian signals were being intercepted, in order to decrypt them faster. Her request coincided with a request to Denniston from the commander in chief of the Middle East campaign, and he agreed she should be part of setting up a GC&CS branch closer to the Italian campaign in East Africa. Anderson and Brooks travelled by sea to Durban in South Africa and then overland to Heliopolis in Cairo. In Cairo, the team decrypted Italian

Signals intelligence Signals intelligence (SIGINT) is intelligence-gathering by interception of ''signals'', whether communications between people (communications intelligence—abbreviated to COMINT) or from electronic signals not directly used in communication ( ...

. In July 1943, Anderson was awarded the

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of Ind ...

for her "services to the forces and in connection with military operations". In May 1943, Anderson returned to London to work on German and Hungarian diplomatic codes in GC&CS's Berkeley Street offices. She remained with GC&CS, working primarily on Hungarian codes, until her retirement in November 1950.

Writing career

In parallel with her secret career in GC&CS, Anderson gained public renown for her translation work. In 1923 she published a translation of

Benedetto Croce Benedetto Croce (; 25 February 1866 – 20 November 1952) was an Italian idealist philosopher, historian, and politician, who wrote on numerous topics, including philosophy, history, historiography and aesthetics. In most regards, Croce was a lib ...

's book on Goethe. She edited and translated ''The Letters of

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

and His Family'', which was published in 1938. Her ''Letters of Beethoven'' was published in 1961. West Germany awarded Anderson the

Order of Merit The Order of Merit (french: link=no, Ordre du Mérite) is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by K ...

(Officer's Cross First Class) for her work on Beethoven. In November 1961, Anderson was interviewed on BBC radio about her work on the Beethoven Letters, and in 1962 she presented a lecture on Beethoven to the Royal Musical Association at the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke of ...

Personal life

Anderson never married. She shared a room with Dorothy Brooks whilst living with the Bartley's at Bletchley Park, and Patricia Bartley thought the women were lovers. Anderson asked that Brooks come with her to Cairo. She also, for four years in the 1950s, shared her flat in London with a woman. In Ui Chionna's biography, she suggests there was no economic reason for Anderson, a very private person, to take in a lodger. Anderson died at

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...

, London on 26 October 1962, after a period of heart problems and declining health.

Legacy

The Royal Philharmonic Society awards the annual Emily Anderson Prize to young violinists in Anderson's honour. NUI Galway has named their concert hall the Emily Anderson Concert Hall in her memory. Music for Galway, in conjunction with NUI Galway, holds an annual concert in her honour.

Sources

* Obituary, ''The Times'', Monday, 29 October 1962; pg. 12; Issue 55534; col F * ''On the "Western Outpost":Local Government and Women's Suffrage in County Galway, 1898-1918'', Mary Clancy, pp. 557–587, in "Galway:History and Society", 1996 * Translated Penguin Book – a
Penguin First Editions
reference site of early first edition Penguin Books.

References

Bletchley's hidden weapon: how history forgot the story of Britain's greatest female codebreaker
by Jackie Uí Chionna,

BBC History Magazine ''BBC History Magazine'' is a British publication devoted to both British and world history and aimed at all levels of knowledge and interest. The publication releases thirteen editions a year, one per month and a Christmas special edition, an ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, Emily 1891 births 1962 deaths Academics of the University of Galway Civil servants in the War Office Civil servants in the Foreign Office People from Galway (city) People from County Galway Officers of the Order of the British Empire Officers Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany British women biographers British biographers Beethoven scholars Mozart scholars Irish cryptographers 20th-century cryptographers Women cryptographers