Defence Intelligence and Security Centre
Encyclopedia
Defence Intelligence and Security Centre (DISC) is the location of the Headquarters of both the Defence College of Intelligence and the British Army
Intelligence Corps. It is located at Chicksands
, Bedfordshire
, approximately 35 miles (56.3 km) north of London
.
Chicksands, an RAF signals collection station during and after World War II; during the war it was one of the "Y-Stations" which sent intercepted signals to the Government Code and Cypher School (GC&CS) at Bletchley Park
, where ciphers and codes of several Axis
countries were decrypted, most importantly the ciphers generated by the German Enigma and Lorenz
machines. The station was used by the United States Air Force
from 1950 to 1995, also for signals collection, being the location for its first 1443 feet (439.8 m) diameter FLR-9 direction finding antenna, commonly known as the Elephant Cage, from 1963 to 1995. The site was closed as an RAF station in 1997, then handed over to the Intelligence Corps allowing the Corps Headquarters and training delivery to re-locate from Templer Barracks in Ashford
, Kent
.
and security to members of the British Armed Forces
, police
and other public sector staff as well as international partners. Training is delivered over three sites, Chicksands, Defence School of Language Beaconsfield
and the School of Photography at the Defence College of Aeronautical Engineering, Cosford.
which delivers Intelligence related operational capability.
Formerly known as 15 (UK) Information Support Group, it was codenamed Shadow
in the mid-1990s.
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British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
Intelligence Corps. It is located at Chicksands
Chicksands
Chicksands is a village in the Central Bedfordshire district of Bedfordshire, England and part of the civil parish of Campton and Chicksands . It is on the River Flit. Nearby places are Shefford and Campton....
, Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire is a ceremonial county of historic origin in England that forms part of the East of England region.It borders Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the south-east....
, approximately 35 miles (56.3 km) north of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Site History
Chicksands was the site of RAFRoyal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
Chicksands, an RAF signals collection station during and after World War II; during the war it was one of the "Y-Stations" which sent intercepted signals to the Government Code and Cypher School (GC&CS) at Bletchley Park
Bletchley Park
Bletchley Park is an estate located in the town of Bletchley, in Buckinghamshire, England, which currently houses the National Museum of Computing...
, where ciphers and codes of several Axis
Axis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
countries were decrypted, most importantly the ciphers generated by the German Enigma and Lorenz
Lorenz cipher
The Lorenz SZ40, SZ42A and SZ42B were German rotor cipher machines used by the German Army during World War II. They were developed by C. Lorenz AG in Berlin. They implemented a Vernam stream cipher...
machines. The station was used by the United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
from 1950 to 1995, also for signals collection, being the location for its first 1443 feet (439.8 m) diameter FLR-9 direction finding antenna, commonly known as the Elephant Cage, from 1963 to 1995. The site was closed as an RAF station in 1997, then handed over to the Intelligence Corps allowing the Corps Headquarters and training delivery to re-locate from Templer Barracks in Ashford
Ashford, Kent
Ashford is a town in the borough of Ashford in Kent, England. In 2005 it was voted the fourth best place to live in the United Kingdom. It lies on the Great Stour river, the M20 motorway, and the South Eastern Main Line and High Speed 1 railways. Its agricultural market is one of the most...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
.
Defence College of Intelligence
The Defence college of Intelligence is responsible for delivering training in intelligenceMilitary intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that exploits a number of information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to commanders in support of their decisions....
and security to members of the British Armed Forces
British Armed Forces
The British Armed Forces are the armed forces of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.Also known as Her Majesty's Armed Forces and sometimes legally the Armed Forces of the Crown, the British Armed Forces encompasses three professional uniformed services, the Royal Navy, the...
, police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
and other public sector staff as well as international partners. Training is delivered over three sites, Chicksands, Defence School of Language Beaconsfield
Beaconsfield
Beaconsfield is a market town and civil parish operating as a town council within the South Bucks district in Buckinghamshire, England. It lies northwest of Charing Cross in Central London, and south-east of the county town of Aylesbury...
and the School of Photography at the Defence College of Aeronautical Engineering, Cosford.
HQ Intelligence Corps
The Headquarters of the Intelligence Corps is located on site, with all core training for Intelligence Corps soldiers and officers being delivered through the DCI.HMS Ferret
is a training unit of the Royal Naval ReserveRoyal Naval Reserve
The Royal Naval Reserve is the volunteer reserve force of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. The present Royal Naval Reserve was formed in 1958 by merging the original Royal Naval Reserve and the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve , a reserve of civilian volunteers founded in 1903...
which delivers Intelligence related operational capability.
15(UK) Psychological Operations Group (PSYOPS)
15 Psychological Operations Group is a unit of the Intelligence Corps which contains personnel from all three UK armed forces. The unit supports deployed commanders in the provision of psychological operations in the operational and tactical environments.Formerly known as 15 (UK) Information Support Group, it was codenamed Shadow
Shadow
A shadow is an area where direct light from a light source cannot reach due to obstruction by an object. It occupies all of the space behind an opaque object with light in front of it. The cross section of a shadow is a two-dimensional silhouette, or reverse projection of the object blocking the...
in the mid-1990s.
External links
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- Chicksands on Placeopedia See nearby places with Wikipedia articles