Operation Mincement - Glyndwr Michael

[Sue15]

Hello
This is not a family history enquiry - well not my family but I have been pondering on the point since watching a documentary about Operation Mincemeat last night aka " The Man who never was"

Essentially my question is this - Glyndwr Michael by all accounts lead a deprived life coming from Aberbargoed in Wales. It seems both his parents had predeceased him and he found his way to London and died of Rat poison as a homeless person. By any standards he had had a terrible life.
Major Bill Martin who Glyndwr Michael's copse masqueraded as - was a an Officer, Gentleman and a Royal Marine. Surely the life lead by Glyndwr Michael would not have presented the body of Bill Martin. I am thinking a Marine would be muscular and signs of a life from poverty would have been evident.
The name Glyndwr Michael was found in records released by the National Archives some years back. I wonder if this was a double deception - the name being deliberately planted to throw researchers off the track.

What does anyone think?

Interested to hear

Sue

[avm228]

Hi Sue

Given that the body had been in the morgue for several months before being dumped in the sea, I suspect the finer points of his physique were no longer in evidence in any event.  It did appear from the documentary that the pathologist was not thought to have done the most thorough of jobs on the post-mortem.

I thought it was a fascinating documentary

Anna

[DeeBoneham]

An interesting question though Sue.  Doesnt say very much for the German Secret Service either though.... I recorded the film as I havent seen it for some time.  I havent watched it yet.
Dee 

[lowanslow]

Hi Sue15, what you have to remember is that you dont have to be muscular to be in the marines, but be fit and be able to do the job, and when you think about the war years as long as you were able to do the job you were in. I think the body would have been perfect for the mission as they would have wanted the body to seem that it had been dead for a few days and that it had been floating in the water for that time. 

[Sue15]

Thank you for your replies. I can certainly follow your logic.

I still don;t quite know what to  believe. It seems there is a website on the net that seems to be something to do with family of Glyndwr Michael although it was claimed he had no close ties. The website can be found by googling the name Glyndwr Michael and seems to suggest the family or descendants do not believe the story. This is what set me thinking

Food for thought and thank you for your help
sue

[DeeBoneham]

I giggled when they said they had obtained some professors pants (knickers for the Americans not trousers) that had been left to the university to ensure that he had ones of the right quality.   

[Springbok]

I think that there was some question at the time,regarding the forensic evidence, but as was stated , the brits knew of this and the British Ambassador pushed the Spanish to complete and release the body .Thereby forestalling any investigation into the real cause of death.(which would have revealed death by poisoning and not drowning)
Not only had the body been in the morgue but in a torpedo tube and then in the sea...hardly in a state to be easily examined.

I remember seeing "The Man who Never Was" and then learning later his real identity.
The average person in those day knew nothing about forensic medicine, and it is only through TV programmes and crime books that we do today.In fact looking back, my first knowledge was of Sir Bernard Spilsbury a home office Pathologist who in court, demonstrated(By nearly drowning his secretary) how "The Brides in the Bath" murderer committed the deed


Spring

[Certacito]

I think that there was some question at the time,regarding the forensic evidence, but as was stated , the brits knew of this and the British Ambassador pushed the Spanish to complete and release the body .Thereby forestalling any investigation into the real cause of death.(which would have revealed death by poisoning and not drowning)
Not only had the body been in the morgue but in a torpedo tube and then in the sea...hardly in a state to be easily examined.

I remember seeing "The Man who Never Was" and then learning later his real identity.
The average person in those day knew nothing about forensic medicine, and it is only through TV programmes and crime books that we do today.In fact looking back, my first knowledge was of Sir Bernard Spilsbury a home office Pathologist who in court, demonstrated(By nearly drowning his secretary) how "The Brides in the Bath" murderer committed the deed


Spring

Don't want to be too pedantic but he was not in a torpedo tube at any time although kept in a cylindrical container whilst on the submarine.  It wasn't Spilsbury's secretary but a woman swimmer who nearly drowned and it wasn't Spilsbury that conducted the experiment anyway It was a policeman by the name of Neal.  The film made out that the corpse would have had to die from pneumonia to mimic drowning but this was not the case.  Artistic licence I suppose?

[Springbok]

Thanks Certacito ,
always open to correction of my "Chinese Whispers"  Shows how we should question all our relations certanties!!


Spring