Michael Arbuthnot Ashcroft (1920–1949) was a code breaker at
Bletchley Park
Bletchley Park is an English country house and estate in Bletchley, Milton Keynes ( Buckinghamshire) that became the principal centre of Allied code-breaking during the Second World War. The mansion was constructed during the years following ...
during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, working in
Hut 8
Hut 8 was a section in the Government Code and Cypher School (GC&CS) at Bletchley Park (the British World War II codebreaking station, located in Buckinghamshire) tasked with solving German naval ( Kriegsmarine) Enigma messages. The section was ...
under
Alan Turing
Alan Mathison Turing (; 23 June 1912 – 7 June 1954) was an English mathematician, computer scientist, logician, cryptanalyst, philosopher, and theoretical biologist. Turing was highly influential in the development of theoretical co ...
.
Early life
Ashcroft was born in 1920 to parents of German descent. He was the fourth child of Frederick Noel Ashcroft, a keen geologist and treasurer for 18 years (1924-1945) and later president of the
Royal Geological Society and of Muriel Ashcroft (''née'' im Thurn) the niece of the explorer and colonial governor Sir
Everard im Thurn
Sir Everard Ferdinand im Thurn (9 May 1852 – 9 October 1932) was an author, explorer, botanist, photographer and British colonial administrator. He was Governor of Fiji in the years 1904–1910.
Life
Im Thurn was born in Camberwell, Lond ...
.
He was educated at
Bancroft's School
Bancroft's School is a co-educational independent day school located in Woodford Green, London Borough of Redbridge. The school currently has around 1,000 pupils aged between 7 and 18, around 200 of whom are pupils of the Preparatory School an ...
and then
Eton College
Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...
where he was King's Scholar making his mark as a mathematics specialist winning various school prizes.
In 1940, he went up to
Magdalen College
Magdalen College (, ) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by William of Waynflete. Today, it is the fourth wealthiest college, with a financial endowment of £332.1 million as of 2019 and one of the s ...
,
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
, where, as a
natural sciences
Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatab ...
scholar, he became Secretary of the Union in Hilary Term 1941. In June 1941, after only two full terms at Oxford, he was recruited by
Conel Hugh O'Donel Alexander
Conel Hugh O'Donel Alexander (19 April 1909 – 15 February 1974), known as Hugh Alexander and C. H. O'D. Alexander, was an Ireland, Irish-born United Kingdom, British cryptanalyst, chess player, and chess writer. He worked on the ...
to join Hut 8 at Bletchley Park.
Bletchley Park
Ashcroft joined Hut 8 in Bletchley Park in June 1941, two days before
Rolf Noskwith
Rolf Noskwith (19 June 1919 – 3 January 2017) was a British businessman who during the Second World War worked under Alan Turing as a cryptographer at the Bletchley Park British military base.
Early life and education
Noskwith's parents, Ch ...
, and worked there until mid-1944, when he joined Newmanry working on Tunny. He later worked in the secretariat as assistant to Nigel de Grey.
Within Hut 8, he made his mark and a major contribution to breaking the Atlantic and Mediterranean
Naval Enigma "Shark" (or
Triton
Triton commonly refers to:
* Triton (mythology), a Greek god
* Triton (moon), a satellite of Neptune
Triton may also refer to:
Biology
* Triton cockatoo, a parrot
* Triton (gastropod), a group of sea snails
* ''Triton'', a synonym of ''Triturus' ...
), as the expert on short signals. This expertise was particularly significant during the period December 1942 to June 1943 when, during the blackout that followed the introduction by the Germans of the fourth Enigma wheel, short signals became the route back into Shark (see
Enigma in 1942). This work was considerably aided by the capturing of the short signal code books from
German submarine U-559 by men from
HMS ''Petard''.
After June 1943, Shark was broken on the 4 wheel bombes built by the US equivalent of Bletchley Park – OP – 20 – G.
Ashcroft left Bletchley Park in 1946. Following the end of the war he contributed a chapter on short signals to the Official History of Hut 8.
Post war study and career
In 1946, Ashcroft returned to Magdalen and obtained a first class honors degree in
philosophy, politics and economics. He stayed only two terms and left to join the
Civil Service
The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...
. He was assigned to
HM Treasury
His Majesty's Treasury (HM Treasury), occasionally referred to as the Exchequer, or more informally the Treasury, is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for developing and executing the government's public finance policy and ...
on an accelerated career programme as one of its first post-war administrative recruits. "He undoubtedly found in the Treasury both work and an environment very much to his liking and, had he lived, he would have travelled far. As an administrator he was, for his age, in the first flight, zealous and effective in all things he did, a first class draftsman and a tireless worker."
[Obituary, ''The Times'', 21 December 1949]
Death
Ashcroft died from
cancer
Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...
in December 1949, so his civil service career was cut short. He was only 29.
Ashcroft's funeral service took place at
St Margaret's, Westminster
The Church of St Margaret, Westminster Abbey, is in the grounds of Westminster Abbey on Parliament Square, London, England. It is dedicated to Margaret of Antioch, and forms part of a single World Heritage Site with the Palace of Westminster ...
, on 17 December 1949, attended by
Stafford Cripps, then
chancellor of the exchequer
The chancellor of the Exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and head of His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, the Chancellor is ...
, and many
MPs, colleagues, family and friends.
Personality
Described as "one of the most vigorous and questing minds of his generation",
[Statement in the House of Commons, 19 December 1949] Ashcroft was a great intellect and conversationalist. A very good friend of
Roy Jenkins, he was best man at his wedding in 1945. Definitely a
Labour Party supporter, he was indifferent to social distinctions and differences of class.
[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ashcroft, Michael Arbuthnot
1920 births
1949 deaths
British cryptographers
Bletchley Park people
Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford