ABSTRACT

At the end of the Second World War, Germany lay at the mercy of its occupiers, all of whom launched programmes of scientific and technological exploitation. Each occupying nation sought to bolster their own armouries and industries with the spoils of war, and Britain was no exception. Shrouded in secrecy yet directed at the top levels of government and driven by ingenuity from across the civil service and armed forces, Britain made exploitation a key priority. By examining factories and laboratories, confiscating prototypes and blueprints, and interrogating and even recruiting German experts, Britain sought to utilise the innovations of the last war to prepare for the next.

This ground-breaking book tells the full story of British exploitation for the first time, sheds new light on the legacies of the Second World War, and contributes to histories of intelligence, science, warfare and power in the midst of the twentieth century.

chapter |12 pages

Introduction

chapter 1|23 pages

The scientific war

chapter 2|27 pages

The origins of exploitation

chapter 3|22 pages

Exploitation in earnest

chapter 4|20 pages

The spoils of war

chapter 5|15 pages

Exploiting expertise

chapter 6|23 pages

The brain drain

chapter 7|26 pages

Allies and rivals

chapter 8|23 pages

A new adversary

chapter 9|15 pages

Exploitation and the occupation

chapter 10|19 pages

Exploitation in context

chapter |15 pages

Conclusion