War Office: Directorate of Military Operations and Intelligence, and Directorate of Military Intelligence; Ministry of Defence, Defence Intelligence Staff : Files

Reference:

WO 208

Title:

Description:

The series consists of records of the Directorate of Military Intelligence as established in 1939, together with some inherited from the former Directorate of Military Operations and Intelligence.

Additional sections were formed during the course of the Second World War, dealing with subjects including publicity and propaganda, prisoners of war, scientific and technical matters, censorship, air photography, anti-aircraft intelligence and military attaches. (Some of these sections had existed during the latter stages of the Great War and for a short period thereafter, but had been disbanded when their work ceased to be necessary). The series includes files on individual prisoners of war, both Allied and enemy, and on prominent Nazis.

There is also medical, historical, and military information about countries which were - or might have been - involved in hostilities.

Information on the organisation of the Directorate of Military Intelligence in World War II can be found in WO 208/5568.

Date:

1917-1974

Arrangement:

The papers of the Directorates and their sections were not always carefully and systematically filed. As far as possible, within each accession, they have been arranged under the heading of the geographical area to which they refer (in alphabetical order of areas), and then listed in chronological order.

There are also collections under various general headings and from various sources, such as the Allied Translation and Interpretation Service, the Deputy Director of Information and Publicity, the Combined Services Detailed Interrogation Centre and the British Military Mission to the Soviet Forces, Berlin.

Related Material:

For files of the tri-service Defence Intelligence Staff see DEFE 31
For unregistered papers of the Services, Press and Broadcasting Committee and predecessors see DEFE 53
See also: WO 344

Held by:

The National Archives, Kew

Legal status:

Public Record

Language:

English

Creator:

Ministry of Defence, Defence Intelligence Staff, 1964-
War Office, Directorate of Military Intelligence, 1915-1922
War Office, Directorate of Military Intelligence, 1939-1964
War Office, Directorate of Military Operations and Intelligence, 1922-1939

Physical description:

5639 files and volumes

Access conditions:

Open unless otherwise stated

Immediate source of acquisition:

from 1973 Ministry of Defence

Accruals:

Series is accruing.

Unpublished finding aids:

Subject and topographical indexes, and a glossary to codes used with regard to the interrogation of prisoners of war, are in the reading rooms at The National Archives, Kew.

Administrative / biographical background:

The Directorate of Military Intelligence came into existence in 1939 when, with the Directorate of Military Operations, it superseded a previously combined Directorate of Military Operations and Intelligence (DMO & I). Five of the Military Intelligence sections previously under the control of DMO & I - namely MI 1 to MI 5 - continued their work within the new Directorate, dealing (as before) with organization, geographic, topographic and security matters.

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