Marching Orders: The Untold Story of How the American Breaking of the Japanese Secret Codes Led to the Defeat of Nazi Germany and Japan

by Bruce Lee

be considered a breach in security. This message referred to “Circular Twenty Four Forty Four from Tokyo [on] one December,” indicating clearly that either Washington or London was breaking the Japanese codes. The message also said that Tokyo was ordering its embassies and consulates in various capitals around the world to immediately destroy their codes and more importantly their Purple code machines. Kimmel was also told that British Admiralty in London reported that the Japanese embassy in London had already complied with Tokyo’s request to destroy its Purple machine. (It was this vital information that Kimmel failed to pass on to Gen. Walter Short, who bore the joint responsibility for defending Pearl Harbor.)2