Agent Zigzag (Eddie Chapman)

 

de Havilland site

Hertford Archives and Local Studies

World War 2 Spy

This is the story of Eddie Chapman, a professional criminal and double agent, known as Agent Zigzag, who fooled the Germans into thinking that he had carried out his mission to destroy the de Havilland factory.

Before the Second World War Eddie Chapman was a professional criminal who specialised in blowing up safes using explosives. In 1939 he was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment for burgling a nightclub and was released in October 1941. After being in prison Chapman volunteered his services and was accepted by the German secret Service (the Abwehr) as a spy. To the Germans Chapman seemed like a good choice as he appeared to be very hostile towards Britain. The Germans wanted Chapman to carry out an attack on the de Havilland aircraft factory. The factory posed a threat to the Germans because of its production of the Mosquito aircraft.

In 1942 Chapman returned to Britain but was taken by MI5 to a detention centre in London and interrogated. Chapman informed them of the mission the Abwehr had given him to destroy the de Havilland aircraft factory. Chapman became a double agent (Agent Zigzag) and cooperated with MI5 to work against the Germans.

The Mission

On the 29th and 30th January, using camouflage, the de Havilland aircraft factory was made to look like it had been hit by a very large bomb. The area was littered with rubble to make it look like a bomb had exploded. As well as this MI5 printed a fake report in the Daily Express, which stated that there had been an explosion at a factory.

Success

The fake attack was a complete success as the Germans were fully deceived into believing that the factory had been attacked. In 1943 Chapman returned to Germany and received an iron cross (Germany’s highest honour) for the attack he supposedly carried out on the factory. What makes this so incredible is that Agent Zigzag is the only British citizen to have received this medal.

Find out more

If you would like to know more about Eddie Chapman a book has been written by Ben Macintyre entitled, Agent Zigzag: The true wartime story of Eddie Chapman: The most notorious double agent of World War II.