PSZnZ - Polish Slidex R/T Code Cipher System, Branch No. 1, Series 4, Card 23, World War II
The Polish version of the British Slidex R/T Code encryption system, introduced to the British Army in 1943 and widely used during Operation Overlord and subsequent military operations. The system was used to encrypt short messages transmitted by radio at the tactical level. The piece shown here bears the Polish markings “UNIT No. 1,” “SERIES 4,” “CARD 23,” and Polish words and commands in the code table, indicating its adaptation for use by the Polish Armed Forces. However, Slidex did not provide a high level of security—before and during the invasion, the Allies lost some of the system’s security, and German interceptors were able to reconstruct a significant portion of the vocabulary cards based on intercepted correspondence and earlier exercises.
Overall condition as shown in the photos.
The Polish version of the British Slidex R/T Code encryption system, introduced to the British Army in 1943 and widely used during Operation Overlord and subsequent military operations. The system was used to encrypt short messages transmitted by radio at the tactical level. The piece shown here bears the Polish markings “UNIT No. 1,” “SERIES 4,” “CARD 23,” and Polish words and commands in the code table, indicating its adaptation for use by the Polish Armed Forces. However, Slidex did not provide a high level of security—before and during the invasion, the Allies lost some of the system’s security, and German interceptors were able to reconstruct a significant portion of the vocabulary cards based on intercepted correspondence and earlier exercises.
Overall condition as shown in the photos.
