PWD/SHAEF

<h1 class="firstHeading" id="firstHeading">Psychological Warfare Division</h1>

<h3 id="siteSub">From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</h3>

<div id="jump-to-nav">Jump to: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_Warfare_Division#column-one">navigation</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_Warfare_Division#searchInput">search</a></div>

Safe Conduct Pass - Probably PWD/SHAEF's most famous and successful propaganda leaflet. Many German soldiers surrendering waived copies of this leaflet and treated it as an official document and promise of good treatment. The reverse listed various points from the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geneva_Convention" title="Geneva Convention" class="mw-redirect">Geneva</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hague_Conventions_%281899_and_1907%29" title="Hague Conventions (1899 and 1907)">Hague Conventions</a> on treatment of prisoners of war.</div>

</div>

<p>The <b>Psychological Warfare Division</b> of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SHAEF" title="SHAEF" class="mw-redirect">SHAEF</a> (<i>PWD/SHAEF</i>) was a joint Anglo-American organisation set-up in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II" title="World War II">World War II</a> tasked with conducting principally 'white' tactical <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_warfare" title="Psychological warfare">psychological warfare</a> against German troops in North-west <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europe" title="Europe">Europe</a> during and after <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D-Day" title="D-Day" class="mw-redirect">D-Day</a>. It was headed by US Brigadier-General <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_A.McClure" title="Robert A. McClure">Robert A. McClure</a> who had previously commanded the Psychological Warfare Branch (PWB/AFHQ) of U.S. General <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dwight_D.Eisenhower" title="Dwight D. Eisenhower">Dwight D. Eisenhower</a>'s staff for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Torch" title="Operation Torch">Operation Torch</a>.

PWD was formed from staff of the US <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Office_of_War_Information" title="Office of War Information" class="mw-redirect">Office of War Information</a> (OWI) and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Office_of_Strategic_Services" title="Office of Strategic Services">Office of Strategic Services</a> (OSS) and the British <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_Warfare_Executive" title="Political Warfare Executive">Political Warfare Executive</a> (PWE).

The Division used radio and leaflet <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propaganda" title="Propaganda">propaganda</a> to undermine German soldiers' morale.

PWD operated the <i>Voice of SHAEF</i> radio station as well as taking over <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio_Luxembourg_%28English%29" title="Radio Luxembourg (English)"><i>Radio Luxembourg</i></a>.

The bulk of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airborne_leaflet_propaganda" title="Airborne leaflet propaganda">aerial propaganda leaflets</a> were printed in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom" title="United Kingdom">United Kingdom</a> and a dedicated <i>Special Leaflet Squadron</i> of the US 8th Air Force disseminated the leaflets from their base in Cheddington in south-east <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/England" title="England">England</a>.

Tactical Combat propaganda teams were also attached to the Army Groups to produce leaflets in the field on mobile printing presses for shell firing over the frontline and to conduct loudspeaker operations to talk enemy soldiers into surrendering.

PWD/SHAEF was also responsible for consolidation propaganda in recently liberated European countries.

'<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_propaganda" title="Black propaganda">Black propaganda</a>' continued to be controlled by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_Warfare_Executive" title="Political Warfare Executive">Political Warfare Executive</a>'s <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sefton_Delmer" title="Sefton Delmer">Sefton Delmer</a>.

The famous director <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Mackendrick" title="Alexander Mackendrick">Alexander Mackendrick</a>, who later went on to enjoy considerable success at <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ealing_Studios" title="Ealing Studios">Ealing Studios</a>, had some of his earliest experience of working in film with the division. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Huston" title="John Huston">John Huston</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Ambler" title="Eric Ambler">Eric Ambler</a>, as a token Britisher, also made a film for the PWD about civilian Italy under its new conquerors.

<h2>Bibliography</h2>

<ul>

<li><i><cite class="book">The Psychological Warfare Division Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force - An Account of its Operations in the Western European Campaign, 1944-1945</cite></i><cite class="book">. 1945.</cite>  Modern reprint available <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.psywar.org/books.php" title="http://www.psywar.org/books.php" class="external text">here</a></li>

<li><i><cite class="book">Publicity and Psychological Warfare 12th Army Group, 1943-1945</cite></i><cite class="book">. United States Army. 1945.</cite> </li>

<li><cite id="CITEREFLerner.2C_Daniel1971" class="book">Lerner, Daniel (1971). <i>Psychological Warfare Against Nazi Germany - The Sykewar Campaign, D-Day to VE-Day</i>. M.I.T. Press. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0262120453" class="internal">ISBN 0-262-12045-3</a>.</cite> </li>

</ul>

<ul>

<li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_warfare" title="Psychological warfare">PsyWar</a></li>

<li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PSYOP" title="PSYOP" class="mw-redirect">Psychological Operations / PSYOP</a></li>

<li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airborne_leaflet_propaganda" title="Airborne leaflet propaganda">Aerial Propaganda Leaflets</a></li>

<li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_Warfare_Executive" title="Political Warfare Executive">Political Warfare Executive</a></li>

<li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Office_of_War_Information" title="Office of War Information" class="mw-redirect">Office of War Information</a></li>

<li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Office_of_Strategic_Services" title="Office of Strategic Services">Office of Strategic Services</a></li>

<li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SHAEF" title="SHAEF" class="mw-redirect">SHAEF</a></li>

<li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II" title="World War II">World War II</a></li>

</ul>

<h2>External links</h2>

</div>