Latest news with #Women'sRoyalArmyCorpsAssociation
New York Times
01-04-2025
- General
- New York Times
Betty Webb, Who Helped Bletchley Park Code Breakers, Dies at 101
Charlotte Webb, who as a young woman helped code breakers decipher enemy signals at Britain's top-secret Bletchley Park, died on Monday. She was 101. Her death was confirmed by the Women's Royal Army Corps Association and by the Bletchley Park Trust. Ms. Webb, known as Betty, was 18 when she joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service, the women's branch of the British Army, and was assigned to work at the base in Buckinghamshire where Bletchley Park was located. From 1941 to 1945, she helped in the decryption of German messages, and also worked on Japanese signals. In 2015, Ms. Webb was appointed as Member of the Order of the British Empire and in 2021 she was awarded the Légion d'Honneur, France's most prestigious honor. She was one of the last surviving members of the storied Bletchley Park code breaking team. Ms. Webb was one of a handful of young women working at Bletchley, where mathematicians, cryptographers and code breakers endeavored to crack encrypted messages and gather information about the Axis powers. She had been studying domestic sciences at a local college, but as war swept across Europe, she dropped out. 'Several of us decided that we ought to be serving our country rather than just making sausage rolls,' she recalled for an oral history in 2012. With German submarines on the hunt for Allied vessels in the Atlantic Ocean, the work of the cryptologists at Bletchley Park was critical to Allied war effort. With the enemy messages decoded, Allied ships could change course and avoid peril. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. Already a subscriber? Log in. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Sky News
01-04-2025
- General
- Sky News
Betty Webb: 'Exceptional' Bletchley Park codebreaker dies at 101
A Bletchley Park codebreaker, who showed "dedication and exceptional work" during the Second World War, has died at the age of 101. Betty Webb died on Monday, the Women's Royal Army Corps Association said. She was one of the last surviving codebreakers from Bletchley Park in Buckinghamshire. Ms Webb, whose first name was Charlotte but preferred to be known as Betty, worked at Bletchley Park as a member of the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) from 1941 to 1945. She indexed German messages and paraphrased Japanese signals and was eventually sent to Washington DC in May 1945 to assist with the Pacific War effort. She was made an MBE in 2015 for services to remembering and promoting the work of Bletchley Park. She was also awarded France's highest distinction, the Legion d'Honneur, in 2021. She started volunteering for the ATS in 1941 after deciding she decided she "ought to be serving our country rather than just making sausage rolls", according to an interview she gave as part of the Bletchley Park oral history project in February 2012. Mrs Webb never told anyone about her work, including her parents, who died not knowing her secret. But after 1975, she was able to give talks to schools and other organisations and wrote a book about her experiences. In a tribute, the Women's Royal Army Corps Association wrote: "We lost a proud ATS and WRAC veteran, Bletchley codebreaker, Knight of the Legion d'Honneur, WRAC Association member, and president of our Birmingham branch. "Betty inspired women in the Army for decades and we will continue to take pride in her service during WWII and beyond, and as a champion of female veterans." In a statement, Bletchley Park said her contributions to the estate's work during the Second World War and to ensuring its legacy, will "never be forgotten". Iain Standen, chief executive of Bletchley Park Trust, added: "She will be remembered, not only for her work at Bletchley Park during World War Two, but also for her efforts to ensure that the story of what she and her colleagues achieved is not forgotten.
The Guardian
01-04-2025
- General
- The Guardian
‘Remarkable' Bletchley Park code breaker Betty Webb dies aged 101
The Bletchley Park code breaker, Charlotte 'Betty' Webb, has died at the age of 101, the Women's Royal Army Corps Association (WRACA) has confirmed. Arriving at Bletchley from the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS) aged just 18, Webb spent four years during the second world war at the code-breaking centre working in various roles. Webb, from Wythall in Worcestershire, intercepted German police messages, which revealed the beginning of the Holocaust, and paraphrased decoded Japanese messages for the Pentagon in the US. Confirming her death, the WRACA said on Facebook: 'Betty inspired women in the Army for decades and we will continue to take pride in her service during WWII and beyond, and as a champion of female veterans. This article includes content provided by Facebook. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. To view this content, click 'Allow and continue'. Speaking to the Guardian in 2018, Webb admitted she was unaware of the significance behind the complex codes she was breaking. 'The messages were in groups of five letters or figures in morse code – nothing was clear at all. Some dates appeared. It was total gibberish, but you had to register everything, so senior people could call on a date or message at any time. We knew very little of what was going on. We really were in the dark.' Webb was appointed MBE in 2015 and Knight of the Légion d'Honneur in 2021, a prestigious order of merit awarded for both military and civil service in France. She was president of the WRACA Birmingham branch. In a statement, Bletchley Park said her contributions to the estate's work during the second world war and to ensuring its legacy, would 'never be forgotten'. They said: 'Betty was not only a member of the incredible team at Bletchley Park during world war two, but she also dedicated much of her life to raising the profile of Bletchley Park in more recent years. 'Her tireless efforts in bringing the history of Bletchley Park to a wider audience, through sharing the stories of those who worked here, helped ensure that the vital role of Bletchley Park during world war two and its impact on the conflict was recognised. 'Betty's passion for preserving the history and legacy of Bletchley Park has undoubtedly inspired many people to engage with the story and visit the site. Betty's impact at Bletchley Park will be remembered for many years to come.' Tess Dunlop, historian and broadcaster, said she was with Webb on her final day. Posting on X, Dunlop said: 'Betty was the very best. I was lucky enough to hold her hand yesterday as she gently glided to another place. She is one of the most remarkable woman I have ever known.' Betty Webb MBE, Bletchley Park and ATS veteran, an exceptional person who grew in old age, has died aged 101. Betty was the very best. I was lucky enough to hold her hand yesterday as she gently glided to another place. She is one of the most remarkable woman I have ever known A German speaker, Webb's job was taking decoded messages and reordering the unencrypted wording to be sent to allied commanders, so that if intercepted by the enemy, they would not discover their transmissions were being deciphered. She was 18 and studying at domestic science college near Shrewsbury in Shropshire when she and several others on her course decided to serve. She completed her basic training in Wrexham at the Royal Welch Fusiliers' barracks before being taken to London for an interview and then immediately to Bletchley Park. Webb never told anyone about her work and it remained a secret until 1975. She was never able to tell her parents as they had already died. From then, she gave talks to schools and other organisations and wrote a book about her experiences.
The Independent
01-04-2025
- General
- The Independent
Bletchley Park codebreaker who ‘inspired women in the Army' dies aged 101
A Bletchley Park codebreaker who 'inspired women in the Army for decades' has died at the age of 101. Charlotte 'Betty' Webb MBE, who was one of the last surviving codebreakers from Bletchley Park in Buckinghamshire, died on Monday, the Women's Royal Army Corps Association said. She worked at Bletchley Park as a member of the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS), from 1941 to 1945, indexing German messages and paraphrasing Japanese signals, Bletchley Park said. She later paraphrased Japanese messages at The Pentagon in the US, during the Pacific War, and was also awarded France's highest distinction, the Legion d'Honneur, in 2021, for her work in the ATS. Mrs Webb, from Wythall in Worcestershire, worked at Bletchley Park initially as a secretary, which she said was 'pretty boring but had to be done', until she moved into paraphrasing in F block. A German speaker, her job was taking decoded messages and reordering the unencrypted wording to be sent to Allied commanders, so that if intercepted by the enemy, they would not discover their transmissions were being deciphered. Mrs Webb was 18 and studying at domestic science college near Shrewsbury in Shropshire when she and several others on her course decided 'we ought to be serving our country rather than just making sausage rolls'. She started volunteering for the ATS in 1941, according to an interview she gave as part of the Bletchley Park oral history project in February 2012. She completed her basic training in Wrexham at the Royal Welch Fusiliers' barracks before being taken to London for an interview and then immediately to Bletchley Park. Mrs Webb remembered registering messages immediately without any training, and said they were told to just 'get on with it', before being taken into a separate room occupied by a 'rather severe' Army captain and given the Official Secrets Act to read. She said every message that came in had to be registered. About 10,000 messages came into Bletchley Park each day, all requiring sorting and storing correctly. Mrs Webb was then moved into the Japanese section, paraphrasing the translated Japanese messages, and was sent to Washington in May 1945 to assist with the Pacific War effort. Mrs Webb never told anyone about her work and it remained a secret until 1975. She was never able to tell her parents as they had already died. From then, she gave talks to schools and other organisations and wrote a book about her experiences. For services to remembering and promoting the work of Bletchley Park, she was made an MBE in 2015. Mrs Webb was also invited to King Charles's coronation in 2023, for which she had a front row seat, which she told the BBC was 'magnificent'. In a tribute on Tuesday, the Women's Royal Army Corps Association said: 'Last night we lost a proud ATS and WRAC veteran, Bletchley codebreaker, Knight of the Legion d'Honneur, WRAC Association member, and president of our Birmingham branch. 'Betty inspired women in the Army for decades and we will continue to take pride in her service during WWII and beyond, and as a champion of female veterans.' In a statement, Bletchley Park said her contributions to the estate's work during the Second World War and to ensuring its legacy, will 'never be forgotten'. They said: 'Betty was not only a member of the incredible team at Bletchley Park during World War Two, but she also dedicated much of her life to raising the profile of Bletchley Park in more recent years. 'Her tireless efforts in bringing the history of Bletchley Park to a wider audience, through sharing the stories of those who worked here, helped ensure that the vital role of Bletchley Park during World War Two, and its impact on the conflict, was recognised. 'Betty's passion for preserving the history and legacy of Bletchley Park has undoubtedly inspired many people to engage with the story and visit the site. Betty's impact at Bletchley Park will be remembered for many years to come.' Iain Standen, chief executive of Bletchley Park Trust, added: 'The Trust was very sad to learn of Betty's death. 'She will be remembered, not only for her work at Bletchley Park during World War Two, but also for her efforts to ensure that the story of what she and her colleagues achieved is not forgotten. 'She was an unrivalled advocate and supporter of the heritage site that Bletchley Park is today. 'Whether through media interviews, events or books, Betty has been involved in spreading the word about Bletchley Park for many, many years. 'Our thoughts are with her family, friends and all those who were touched by her warmth, dedication and exceptional work.'
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Bletchley Park code breaker Betty Webb dead at 101
A decorated World War Two code breaker who spent her youth deciphering enemy messages at Bletchley Park has died at the age of 101. Charlotte "Betty" Webb MBE - who was among the last surviving Bletchley code breakers - died on Monday night, the Women's Royal Army Corps Association confirmed. Mrs Webb, from Wythall in Worcestershire, joined operations at the Buckinghamshire base at the age of 18, later going on to help with Japanese codes at The Pentagon in the US. She was awarded France's highest honour - the Legion d'Honneur - in 2021. The Women's Royal Army Corps Association described Mrs Webb as a woman who "inspired women in the Army for decades". Speaking to the BBC in 2020, she said she had "never heard of Bletchley" before starting work there as a member of the ATS, the Auxiliary Territorial Service. Her mother had taught her to speak German as a child and she said she was "taken into the mansion [at Bletchley] to read the Official Secrets Act". "I realised that from then on there was no way that I was going to be able to tell even my parents where I was and what I was doing until 1975 [when restrictions were lifted]," she recalled. This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version. You can receive Breaking News on a smartphone or tablet via the BBC News App. You can also follow @BBCBreaking on X to get the latest alerts.
