On 25 September, British coastal defense units were told that "a scheme was afoot to produce an impenetrable barrage of flame on the sea to prevent or destroy enemy ships attempting a landing." Flame barrages were recommended at the following localities; Bawdsey, Mouth of River Deben, Mouth of River Orwell, and Felixstowe, from Ferry to Landguard Fort. No flame barrages were installed further north than Shoeburyness. There are still those who believe the story. In the midst of researching this propaganda campaign, I received this letter:
My father who is now 90 was stationed on the South Coast in WWII somewhere near Hythe and he can clearly recall burnt bodies being pulled from the sea dressed in German ARMY not Navy or Air Force uniforms. They were all taken to a makeshift mortuary and the troops involved were each individually reminded of the penalties for breaking the Secrets Act and one officer of the unit was taken away after having discussed it with another unit commander. What exactly happened there he cannot say but he is convinced this had something to do with the operation you talk of.
It is hard to determine if this was a successful black propaganda campaign. Although it might have caused the Germans to think more cautiously, it is doubtful that it stopped the invasion. The British rumor that a small German landing had been repulsed, and later that a large invasion flotilla had been incinerated halfway across the Channel did spread across occupied Europe and to America, then filtered back to Britain. It might have encouraged the occupied nations to believe that the war could still be won, and may have helped Americans believe that Great Britain would be able to block an invasion. It probably had little effect on the Germans since they clearly knew that they had not attempted to invade England. In truth, It was Göring's inability to defeat the Royal Air Force that stopped the invasion. But, perhaps the rumors helped, and certainly they gave support and hope to the British and the occupied people of Europe.
Before we leave this deception campaign we should mention that there were dozens of such stories being written and disseminated by the British. Besides leaflets, newspaper and radio stories, in an attempt to raise the morale of occupied Europe and lower the morale of the German military, civilians and their allies, the secret British “Underground Propaganda Committee” produced well over eight thousand rumors, (they called them “Sibs” from the Latin sibalare – to hiss). Researcher Lee Richards mentions the “whisper campaign” and many of these rumors in his book Whispers of War, Psywar.org, 2010. In regard to British propaganda rumors about the dangers of a cross-channel invasion and British secret weapons he lists dozens of moral-destroying rumors. The British were clearly working overtime attempting to make the invasion look like a perilous undertaking. I have selected a few of the more interesting ones:
13 July 1940 – Britain has a new and deadly sea mine designed for the special purpose of preventing the landing of German troops in shallow-draught boats…Another type of mine is concealed beneath the runways of airfields. It cannot be seen from the air and is remote controlled. It will destroy German aircraft attempting to land troops on British airfields.
27 July 1940 – Britain has a wireless controlled bomb-carrying aircraft…
27 September 1940 – The British have a mine dropped from aircraft that spreads a thin film of highly inflammable liquid over the surface of the water…
17 October 1940 – The British have perfected a flamethrower for use in their aircraft…
31 January 1941 – Two hundred sharks have been sent from Australia to Britain and released in the Channel.
I particularly like that last one because in December, 2010, after a string of shark attacks in Egyptian waters, the South Sinai Governor stated that this could be a plot to destroy Egyptian tourism by the Israeli Mossad. A good rumor never dies.
