political history news

D-Day was one of the most pivotal moments in history. An enormous invasion force risked everything to gain a toehold in continental Europe, cracking the Nazi stranglehold on France.

This was not an easy task, and the Allies realized the tantamount importance that this battle not only was won, but stayed won. D-Day was an enormous logistical undertaking, and perhaps the least known part of this was Operation Pluto.

This covert operation, often dubbed “D-Day’s Greatest Secret,” played a crucial role in the success of the Allied forces in Europe. Its mission was to supply the Allied war machine with the fuel it needed as it marched ever onward toward Germany by laying pipelines down beneath the English Channel.

Logistics wins wars and Operation Pluto was one of the greatest logistical missions ever undertaken.

A Covert Engineering Marvel

Operation Pluto, also known as the Pipeline Under the Ocean or Pipeline Underwater Transportation Oil, was a clandestine engineering project conceived by the British government during World War II. It was designed to solve a logistical conundrum the Allies were facing having successfully completed the D-Day landings in 1944.

The Allies were making significant advances into German-occupied territory and needed a reliable and efficient means of transporting fuel across the English Channel. Without a supply line, the invasion was on borrowed time.

Up until this point the Allies had been reliant on coastal tankers which came with several severe drawbacks- they were vulnerable to harsh weather, attack from the air, and had to be offloaded into vulnerable shoreside tanks. Operation Pluto on the other hand centered around the construction of an ingenious network of pipelines laid on the seabed, connecting the Isle of Wight to Cherbourg in Normandy, France.

These pipelines, comprising both flexible Hais and rigid Hamel types, were engineered to withstand the harsh conditions of the ocean floor. The flexibility of the Hais pipelines allowed them to be wound onto large drums for easier transport and deployment, while the Hamel pipelines were designed for more challenging terrains.

Outside of wartime, this would have been an impressive engineering feat, during wartime it was a marvel. For the operation to succeed it had to be carried out under complete operational secrecy. This wonder of covert engineering played a pivotal role in sustaining the momentum of the Allied advance into enemy territory.

• Operation Bernhard: The Nazi Forgery Targeting WW2 Britain (Video)
• Operation Ivy Bells: the CIA is Listening, Comrade

In essence, Operation Pluto was intended to be a lifeline, a hidden artery feeding the Allied war machine and ensuring sustained pressure on the Axis powers. The success of this covert mission would determine the ability of the Allied forces to outmaneuver and ultimately defeat the German forces on the European front.

The success of Operation Pluto hinged not only on its engineering brilliance but also on those involved keeping the operation’s existence hidden from enemy forces. The secretive nature of the operation was paramount to its success, requiring meticulous planning and strict security measures.

Like any secret operation, the pipeline plan needed a codename, and Operation Pluto was chosen. Why Pluto? Probably because in Roman mythology Pluto was the god of the underworld and these pipes were going deep under the ocean’s surface.

The engineers working on the design of the pipelines referred to the project as Operation Tombola, simply because tombolas have nothing to do with pipelines (unlike “pluto” which literally stood for “pipe line under the ocean”). The development and deployment of the pipelines were classified at the highest levels, with access limited to those with a need-to-know basis.

The problem with secrets is that the more people who know about them, the more likely it is for a leak to occur. Operation Pluto wasn’t just an engineering feat, there was a lot of construction needed too. Construction sites were strategically chosen, and workers involved in the project were often unaware of the broader context of their efforts.

The flexible Hais pipelines were wound onto large drums and transported under the guise of other military supplies, further concealing their true purpose. As for the rigid Hamel pipelines, their deployment required specialized equipment, which was transported discreetly to the chosen locations.

The laying of the pipelines, which required an incredible degree of precision, was carried out under the cover of darkness to avoid detection. This was no easy feat when one considers the challenges of working on the ocean floor. Surveillance and reconnaissance efforts by both air and sea were intensified to detect any signs of suspicious activity that could reveal the operation.

It’s amazing to think they managed to complete the operation without the enemy realizing. In this cloak-and-dagger world of wartime secrecy, Operation Pluto’s construction unfolded behind a curtain of strategic misdirection and careful concealment.

Success or Failure?

There is some disagreement between historians as to whether Operation Pluto was truly a success. Some claim that Operation Pluto succeeded in its primary mission: to establish a reliable and efficient means of transporting fuel across the English Channel to support the advancing Allied armies.

• Fight Them on the Beaches: the Remains Of The Allied D-Day Landings (Video)
• The Kugelpanzer: Why Did the Nazis Build a Spherical Tank?

The undersea pipelines played a crucial role in sustaining the momentum of the Allied offensive by providing a steady and secure source of fuel for vehicles, tanks, and aircraft. This ensured that the Allied forces could maintain their push into German-occupied territory without the logistical hindrances that had plagued previous military campaigns.

These historians would say that the impact of Operation Pluto on the overall war effort was profound. By circumventing the need for traditional fuel supply routes, which were vulnerable to disruption by enemy forces, Pluto provided a strategic advantage to the Allies. The operation contributed to the flexibility and mobility of the Allied forces, allowing them to outmaneuver the German defenses and exploit weaknesses in the enemy lines.

Others, however, are less convinced that Operation Pluto had such a profound effect. The operation was plagued by a series of delays and technical difficulties. Of the two lines, Bambi and Dumbo, Bambi was the most troublesome to get working.

The laying of the pipelines across the Bristol Channel and Solent had been carried out by expert technicians guided by the designers. Laying the pipeline on the French end, however, came down to naval laying parties who weren’t as experienced. Repeated setbacks even led to the Allies considering abandoning the operation completely.

In the end, Bambi only ran from 22 September 1944 to October 3, 1944. Just 3,300 long tons (3,400 t, 4,250,000 L) had been pumped. Dumbo, on the other hand, ran for much longer and managed to carry 180 million imperial gallons (820 million liters) of petrol, a much more impressive feat.

A Solid Foundation

The ultimate success of Operation Pluto was evident in its ability to meet the critical need for a secure and reliable fuel supply for the advancing Allied forces. By surmounting the logistical challenges that had hindered previous military campaigns, Pluto became a silent architect of victory, enabling the Allies to maintain their offensive momentum and press further into enemy territory.

Top Image: Pipe lengths stored for Operation Pluto. Source: Official Photographer / Public Domain.

The state of King Tut’s burial chamber raised concerns in 2012, and these prompted conservationist Adam Lowe and his team to embark on a groundbreaking mission. Faced with the challenge of decay, they harnessed technology to create a meticulous 3D model spanning 860 square feet (80 square meters).

This innovative approach allowed for the preservation of intricate details beneath the surface, previously unseen by the naked eye. By sharing the high-resolution scans with the academic community, Lowe facilitated unprecedented scrutiny of Tut’s burial chamber.

Dr. Nicholas Reeves, captivated by the surface scan’s revelations, made a remarkable observation—an indication of two potentially concealed doorways on the north wall. Stripped of paint, the scans exposed faint lines that Reeves believes outline hidden passages.

Astonishingly, these subtle markings, overlooked since Howard Carter’s discovery in the 1920s, hint at the possibility of undiscovered spaces within the iconic tomb.

• The Legendary Curse of King Tutankhamun’s Tomb
• Why was King Tutankhamun Buried with Two Babies?

Top image: Tutankhamun’s tomb which may contain secret doors. Source: Sergii Figurnyi / Adobe Stock.

In 1836, three boys were out hunting for rabbit holes and found a puzzling group of 17 dolls in a small niche near the rocky structure called Arthur’s Seat at Holyrood Park. Oddly, each doll lay securely in its own coffin. Later, people named them the Burke and Hare Murder Dolls because they assumed the strange figurines were related to the 17 murder victims of William Burke and William Hare in Edinburgh, Scotland, during the late 1820s. However, whether or not this was true, and who made the dolls and hid them in the nook, or why, is still a mystery.

This image from the National Museum of Scotland shows five of eight figurines and their coffins with intricate metal details.

Discovery of the Burke and Hare Murder Dolls

As the boys looked for rabbit burrows, they spotted a strange opening about one foot wide and one foot deep in the rocky hillside. A few pieces of slate stones were stuffed into the opening and protected the coffins from the weather.

Initially, the Burke and Hare Murder Dolls, also known as the “Lilliputian coffins” and the “Fairy Coffins”, didn’t appear to be anything special. Even the children who found them did not realize their value. The youngsters supposedly pitched the dolls at one another and destroyed about half of them. Only eight unopened coffins made it down from the hillside, which sat about 820 feet high overlooking the city of Edinburgh.

Arthur’s Seat, where three boys purportedly found 17 figurines interred in coffins. CC3.0 David Monniaux

Descriptions of the Dolls and Coffins

The number of dolls appeared to represent the bodies sold to Dr. Knox (including the one that died of natural causes). Dating of the fabrics used for the burial cloths and the threads places their origins around the same time as the murders. However, whoever made the dolls and stashed them may have done so numerous times between 1800 and 1830. According to author Charles Fort, someone had placed the dolls and their coffins one-by-one in the cave in three levels. The bottom level of eight had the most decomposition in the coffins and their contents. The next level up, consisting of another row of eight dolls, was in slightly better shape. There was only one doll on the upper level. This one seemed the newest and lead many people to believe that more dolls would have followed in that row at some future time.

Most people assume the varying degrees of decomposition reflect different times of placement. However, it is possible that some dolls may have been more exposed to weathering than others. Analysis of the figurines indicates that they probably started out as toys or something other than corpses. None of the figures had closed eyes, and they all had black feet as if they were wearing boots. One figure had its arms removed before it could be fit into its coffin. Apparently, someone then repurposed the figures into corpses after building the coffins.

Report in the Scotsman

According to Mike Dash from Smithsonian, the Scotsman newspaper reported that each coffin:

“contained a miniature figure of the human form cut out in wood, the faces in particular being pretty well executed. They were dressed from head to foot in cotton clothes, and decently laid out with a mimic representation of all the funereal trappings which usually form the last habiliments of the dead. The coffins are about three or four inches in length, regularly shaped, and cut out from a single piece of wood, with the exception of the lids, which are nailed down with wire sprigs or common brass pins. The lid and sides of each are profusely studded with ornaments, formed with small pieces of tin, and inserted in the wood with great care and regularity.”

The coffins were made from Scots pine. There are some inconsistencies about their construction. Therefore, experts believe two different people may have created them. The maker carved out one solid piece of wood for the coffin and then placed another piece on top for the lid.

Brief Story of Burke and Hare

As their name suggests, the Burke and Hare Murder Dolls are related to the sinister deeds of two men: William Burke and William Hare. Both were Irishmen who met in Scotland and became close friends in the 1820s. Hare ran a boarding house with his wife. There, one of the tenants died of natural causes. Burke and Hare sold the body of the man to a doctor at Edinburgh University for use as a medical school cadaver.

William Burke (L) and William Hare (R), as they appeared in court. George Andrew Lutenor, c. 1829.

At the time, the medical schools had a shortage of bodies to use for dissection. They were only allowed to use executed criminals. The problem was, however, that criminals were facing execution less frequently. To supplement their needs, anatomists began purchasing corpses from body snatchers.

Edinburgh’s Underground City

Dr. Knox, of the University of Edinburgh, relied on Burke and Hare to furnish his anatomy school with plenty of fresh cadavers. After they sold the deceased tenant’s body for 7 pounds — a significant amount in those days — Burke and Hare realized that they could make a sizeable living in corpses. Future fresh corpses went for 10 pounds.

After 17 victims, police caught the duo, and Hare made a deal to turn King’s evidence in exchange for his freedom. He testified against Burke, who died by execution, and in a morbid twist of fate, the judge sentenced him to public dissection. Anatomists saved several of his body parts, including a death mask of his face. Hare walked. No one knows what happened to him.

Burke’s death mask and Hare’s life mask. Anatomical Museum of Edinburgh University. Image: Kim Traynor

Theories About the Murder Dolls

One theory is that one of the murderers may have felt such guilt about the victims who never got a proper funeral, that he made coffins and gave the victims a symbolic burial. Others theorize that they represent sailors lost at sea or that Celtic magic or Voodoo rituals were their true purpose.

If someone made the Burke and Hare Murder Dolls before the murders became public knowledge, only a handful of people could have carved them. There was Dr. Knox, who likely knew the corpses he was purchasing were murder victims. There were Burke and Hare, Hare’s wife, and Burke’s wife. Dr. Knox’s brother possibly knew as well. One of these people could have made the dolls out of guilt or for religious reasons. Alternatively, one of the killers could have made them as souvenirs and stashed them in the cave. Theoretically, Hare could have made them after Burke’s murder trial and put them there as well. However, he fled town rather quickly to avoid the angry public.

Some theorists suggest that Burke couldn’t have made the dolls since there are 17, and he would not have had the time after police found their last victim. The arrest happened too quickly for him to stash the last doll. However, it is possible that Burke and Hare actually had an additional victim. If this is the case, he may have stashed the last figurine before police stopped them. People who knew Burke claimed that he was a very religious man. Although scientists collected DNA from Burke’s body, they were unable to acquire DNA from the dolls and look for a match.

The main issue with the theory that the dolls resulted from the Burke and Hare murders, also called the West Port Murders, is that at least 12 of their victims were women. The figurines are clearly all-male wearing men’s burial attire. (Emery 2014).

If someone placed them in the niche to give a group of people a proper burial, was it due to some disaster in which people perished? Author Jeff Nisbet believes they resulted from the populist uprising Radical War of 1820. Rather than the Burke and Hare Murder Dolls, he calls them the Arthur’s Seat Coffins. He states:

Authenticity of the Dolls

Many people have accepted that the figurines and their coffins are genuine. However, there are those who believe they are a hoax. None of the children gave any first-hand testimony about them. What happened to the other nine dolls? When the boys realized that people seemed interested in the wooden objects, wouldn’t they have gone back to find the “remains” of the other figurines up on the hillside? Not knowing the truth adds one more dimension to the mystery.

According to Smithsonian, the boys’ schoolmaster acquired the set. He then took it to his archaeological society, and the set amazed the group. Oddly, it wound up under the ownership of a jeweler, who displayed the objects in his personal museum until he retired and sold the set at auction for 4 pounds around 1845. Private collectors maintained the Burke and Hare Murder Dolls for the remainder of the century. In 1901, Christina Couper donated the entire set of eight to the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh. But the mystery of Edinburgh’s coffin dolls endures.

Every day, five times a day, Muslims across the globe face Mecca and pray. When they face Mecca, it is not Mecca that they are truly facing, it is a cube-shaped building known as the Ka’aba or simply Kaaba. This building is also known as Baitullah or “The House of Allah.” On the east corner of this revered building, there is a cornerstone known as the Black Stone of the Ka’aba. It is steeped in mystery, legend, and speculation.

Close-up of the Black Stone or Hajar al-Aswad. Photo credit: makkahmadeenah on Instagram.

The Ka’aba resides in Makka or Mecca, Saudi Arabia. It stands in the relative center of the Al-Haram Mosque, where millions of Muslims flock every year to see this building and walk around it seven times. Most of the year, it is covered in black cloth. Beneath the black cloth is a stone building that may date back as far as 2030 B.C.E. Each side of the cube measures about 60 ft. across. There is a gold door on the southeast side. Inside, there is a polished marble floor and three pillars.

Muslims believe that Allah himself ordered that the Ka’aba be constructed. The story is that Abraham built the mosque with his oldest son, Ishmael. The building is said to be the likeness of Allah’s home in heaven. It is supposedly the oldest mosque on Earth. Historians believe it was once used by pagans, before Islam came into being. Likewise, the Black Stone is said to have been placed there and used by pagans, who were worshipful of such natural things. Islam forbids idolatry, so the Black Stone is not revered by them. They tell a completely different story about what the rock is and why it is so important.

There are various, slightly different, versions of the following story regarding the significance and origin of the Kaaba Black Stone. All are similar. When Adam was banished from Paradise or The Garden of Eden, he was filled with sin. The Black Stone was given to Adam to erase him of this sin and give him entrance into heaven. It is said to be from Heaven. At the time it belonged to Adam, it was white. Now, it is black because it has absorbed so much sin.

Muslims believe that the prophet Mohammad kissed the Black Stone and so, they kiss the Black Stone, if it is possible, during their obligatory, at least once a lifetime, trip to Ka’aba. If they are unable to kiss the stone, they point to it every time they pass on their seven-circle journey around the Ka’aba. This is a story steeped in religion and important religious figures. Therefore, the Black Stone has great importance as being linked to Allah, Adam and Mohammad. However, those outside of the Muslim faith have little to go by.

Another closeup of the Black Stone: Image: By Amerrycan Muslim (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0]

The Black Stone of the Ka’aba has been described as somewhere around 2 ft. in length. It is broken into roughly seven pieces, which are held together in a silver frame. The surface is certainly a blackish color, but there is some speculation that the color derives from all of the hands and mouths that have touched it, as well as the oils with which it is anointed. Not knowing the true color for sure makes it difficult to say just what it is. There is also a problem with getting a sample. Taking a sample would be extremely disrespectful. It might even be dangerous. There are stories about people being killed for messing around with the stone and the Ka’aba.

Thus far, speculation about the Kaaba Black Stone regard it being old and placed there by pagans. Those interested have postulated that the stone may be glass, agate or meteorite. It may also be glass from a meteorite. It is obviously brittle or it has been damaged by something very strong, which is certainly possible, considering it has been stolen and in the midst of a war in its history. Evidence pointing to any of these theories is slim, though the meteorite theory is the most popular. In the end, the stone holds much less importance to non-Muslims. The mystery of its origins will have to be left to myth and legend for now.