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Since it's been suggested my previous WWII questions may have been too easy, here's another challenge:

What was arguably the most substancial (important) document that fell into the allied hands in WWII?

Well, the enigma codes recovered by two Officers of His Majesty's Royal Navy was quite important. I believe that at least one of the two died in the process...

...Then Hollywood came along and re-wrote the story. :-/

[edit]typos, and history check, late October 1942, from U-559, and two sailors died in the process. It seems that several had been recovered before from German weatherships, which had lead to earlier code breakthroughs.

It also appears that some German personnel involve with Enigma failed to believe it had been broken, even when the documentation was released in the 1970s...

That's a good guess but that's not it.

but in fairness, in the ending credits of the movie, it gives credit the HMS Bulldog for actually capturing the enigma device.

After a substantial amount of badgering from the British press...

It seems that was a bit of an enigma but we still haven't decoded his query.

It seems that was a bit of an enigma but we still haven't decoded his query.

Indeed & I don't know the answer either.

While on the subject of Enigma, the codebooks recovered from U110 by HMS Bulldog on 9th May, 1941 would qualify as documents. These were a vital breakthrough & equally as important as the machine itself. There was already an example of the Enigma machine at Bletchley Park, thanks to the efforts of Polish cipher experts supplying a set of rotors & drawings of the rest of the machine. This had enabled a working example to be built & the Luftwaffe codes were being deciphered during the BoB in 1940.

Another vital breakthrough was when HMS Petard recovered an intact example of the latest 4-rotor Enigma machine used by the German Navy together with the code books from U559. This was the incident on 30th October 1942 when two members of Petard's crew lost their lives. It was thanks to the efforts of young canteen assistant Tommy Brown, who it was later discovered had lied about his age to join the RN, that the vital codebooks were recovered intact. http://www.royalnavalmuseum.org/info_sheets_enigma.htm

PS. I think that Winston Churchill would have regarded these as possibly the most vital documents recovered during WWII. He described the 'U-Boat menace' as his worst nightmare, so serious that if allowed to continue could affect the outcome of the war.

BTW, U-571 is an entertaining movie.  .

Really? And here was me thinking it was a pile of historically inaccurate Hollywood drivel.

It can be that and be entertaining at the same time.
Though I've never seen it, so I have no room to comment.

Really? And here was me thinking it was a pile of historically inaccurate Hollywood drivel.

I try and look at movies like this as nothing more than entertainment.  I try and forget any history I know on the subject and hope the movie is fun to see.  I really enjoyed U-571 for that reason.  Although the only truth in the movie was that there was an enigma machine-it was still fun to watch.

I'm going to guess the capture, early on, of the German plans to invade through Belgium.

If I recall, a light plane crash landed on the Belgian side of the lines and before they had a chance to burn the papers, the Belgians captured the officer's briefcase, containing the plans to invade throught the Ardennes.  It was shown to the French/Allied command, but since it didn't fit into the mindset of the Allied commanders, it was discarded as a "plant" and no preparations were made in the dispositions.

Had the Allied command paid heed to the plans, they could have moved troops and armour to head off the attack.  After all, the Allied had more, and better, tanks than the Germans.  The Germans had the better tactics for using tanks.

It was shown to the French/Allied command, but since it didn't fit into the mindset of the Allied commanders, it was discarded as a "plant" and no preparations were made in the dispositions.

However good the intelligence might be it's only useful if anyone in authority believes it.

I'm going to guess the capture, early on, of the German plans to invade through Belgium.

That is indeed significant, and it may be argued that it is the most substantial document, but I would suggest since it was ignored, it was rendered ineffective.

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That is indeed significant, and it may be argued that it is the most substantial document, but I would suggest since it was ignored, it was rendered ineffective.

probably one of those things that's so obvious, we can't see it because it's hidden in plain sight!

Indeed. WWII covers a long period of time & several different theatres over a vast area in almost every part of the world. With no knowledge of the theatre involved or who considered this document vitally important it's extremely difficult even to hazard a guess.

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And