FRUMEL
Encyclopedia
Fleet Radio Unit, Melbourne (FRUMEL) was a United States
-Australia
n-British
signals intelligence unit, based in Melbourne
, Australia
during World War II
. It was one of two major Allied
signals intelligence units, called Fleet Radio Unit
s, in the Pacific theatres
, the other being FRUPAC
(also known as Station HYPO), in Hawaii
. FRUMEL was an inter-navy organisation, subordinate to the Commander of the United States Seventh Fleet
, while the separate Central Bureau
in Melbourne (later Brisbane) was attached to the Allied South West Pacific Area command headquarters.
FRUMEL was established at the Monterey Apartments in Queens Road, in early 1942, and was made up of three main groups. First was Lieutenant Rudolph J. (Rudi) Fabian's 75-man codebreaker unit, previously based at the United States Navy
's Station CAST
in the Philippines
before being evacuated by submarine on 8 April 1942. The second was Commander Eric Nave
's small Royal Australian Navy
-supported cryptography unit, which had moved to the Monterey Apartments from Victoria Barracks
in February 1942. Nave's unit was made up of a core of naval personnel, heavily assisted by university academics and graduates specialising in linguistics and mathematics. These included Arthur Dale Trendall
, Athanasius Treweek
, Eric Barnes, Jack Davies and Ronald Bond. The third group was a trio of British Foreign Office
linguists (Henry Archer, Arthur Cooper and Hubert Graves), and Royal Navy
support staff, evacuated from Singapore
, particularly from the Far East Combined Bureau
(FECB) there. IBM (punched-card) equipment was obtained in 1942 to replace that left behind in Manila Bay on leaving Corregidor.
Nave and Fabian had a difficult relationship, and Nave eventually joined the Army’s Central Bureau
at Brisbane. According to Jenkins:
Fabian wasted no time in getting rid of the civilian supernumaries at Monterey, many of them British service wives who had been evacuated fromn Singapore. He also squeezed out the British diplomatic corps types like Cooper and Archer, Eventually he seems to have succeeded in ousting Nave, who went to Central Bureau
, the joint Australian-US Army codebreaking unit in Brisbane. Men like Jamieson (A. B. Jamieson, Nave’s second recruit) and (Athanasius) Treweek
, who had cordial relations with the Americans, remained with FRUMEL throughout the war.
Fabian or his deputy John Lietweller were always in the office, 24 hours a day. Fabian was a highly professional officer with an air of authority and a hint of Central European sophistication although he was born in Butte, Montana in 1908. But he regarded co-operation with anyone who was not in the US Navy or under its command as poor security One senior British officer said the atmosphere at FRUMEL was What is yours is mine, and what is mine is my own, and Fabian (backed by Redman) was not interested in any exchange of material with the Army’s Central Bureau
) but not cryptographic work were:
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
-Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n-British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
signals intelligence unit, based in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. It was one of two major Allied
Allies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
signals intelligence units, called Fleet Radio Unit
Fleet Radio Unit
Fleet Radio Units were the major centers for Allied cryptological and signals intelligence during the Pacific Campaign of World War II. Initially two FRUs were established in the Pacific, one at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, called Station HYPO or FRUPAC , and the other, called Station CAST or Belconnen,...
s, in the Pacific theatres
Pacific War
The Pacific War, also sometimes called the Asia-Pacific War refers broadly to the parts of World War II that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands, and in East Asia, then called the Far East...
, the other being FRUPAC
Station HYPO
Station HYPO, also known as Fleet Radio Unit Pacific was the United States Navy signals monitoring and cryptographic intelligence unit in Hawaii during World War II. It was one of two major Allied signals intelligence units, called Fleet Radio Units in the Pacific theaters, along with FRUMEL in...
(also known as Station HYPO), in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. FRUMEL was an inter-navy organisation, subordinate to the Commander of the United States Seventh Fleet
United States Seventh Fleet
The Seventh Fleet is the United States Navy's permanent forward projection force based in Yokosuka, Japan, with units positioned near Japan and South Korea. It is a component fleet force under the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of the forward-deployed U.S. fleets, with...
, while the separate Central Bureau
Central Bureau
The Central Bureau was one of two Allied Sigint organisations in the South West Pacific area during World War II. Central Bureau was attached to the HQ of the Allied Commander of the South West Pacific area, Douglas MacArthur. The other unit was the joint RAN/USN Fleet Radio Unit, Melbourne ,...
in Melbourne (later Brisbane) was attached to the Allied South West Pacific Area command headquarters.
FRUMEL was established at the Monterey Apartments in Queens Road, in early 1942, and was made up of three main groups. First was Lieutenant Rudolph J. (Rudi) Fabian's 75-man codebreaker unit, previously based at the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
's Station CAST
Station CAST
Station CAST was the United States Navy signals monitoring and cryptographic intelligence fleet radio unit at Cavite Navy Yard in the Philippines, until Cavite was captured by the Japanese forces in 1942, during World War II. It was an important part of the Allied intelligence effort, addressing...
in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
before being evacuated by submarine on 8 April 1942. The second was Commander Eric Nave
Eric Nave
Captain Eric Nave was a Navy Paymaster Commander and an Australian cryptographer, before and during World War II. He served in the Navy from 1917 to 1949. As a midshipman in the 1920s, he was required to learn a foreign language and chose Japanese: with French and German you got sixpence a day...
's small Royal Australian Navy
Royal Australian Navy
The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...
-supported cryptography unit, which had moved to the Monterey Apartments from Victoria Barracks
Victoria Barracks, Melbourne
Located on St Kilda Road in Melbourne, Australia, Victoria Barracks Melbourne is of architectural and historical significance as one of the most impressive 19th century government buildings in Victoria, Australia.-Pre-World War II:...
in February 1942. Nave's unit was made up of a core of naval personnel, heavily assisted by university academics and graduates specialising in linguistics and mathematics. These included Arthur Dale Trendall
Arthur Dale Trendall
Arthur Dale Trendall AC CMG was a New Zealand-born Australian art historian and classical archaeologist whose work on identifying the work of individual artists on Greek ceramic vessels at Apulia and other sites earned him international prizes and a papal knighthood...
, Athanasius Treweek
Athanasius Treweek
Major Athanasius Pryor "Ath" Treweek was an Australian academic, linguist and code-breaker. He was the son of Walter Henry Treweek who came to Australia in the mid-1890s and Mary Treweek....
, Eric Barnes, Jack Davies and Ronald Bond. The third group was a trio of British Foreign Office
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, commonly called the Foreign Office or the FCO is a British government department responsible for promoting the interests of the United Kingdom overseas, created in 1968 by merging the Foreign Office and the Commonwealth Office.The head of the FCO is the...
linguists (Henry Archer, Arthur Cooper and Hubert Graves), and Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
support staff, evacuated from Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, particularly from the Far East Combined Bureau
Far East Combined Bureau
The Far East Combined Bureau, an outstation of the British Government Code and Cypher School, was set up in Hong Kong in March 1935, to monitor Japanese, and also Chinese and Russian intelligence and radio traffic...
(FECB) there. IBM (punched-card) equipment was obtained in 1942 to replace that left behind in Manila Bay on leaving Corregidor.
Nave and Fabian had a difficult relationship, and Nave eventually joined the Army’s Central Bureau
Central Bureau
The Central Bureau was one of two Allied Sigint organisations in the South West Pacific area during World War II. Central Bureau was attached to the HQ of the Allied Commander of the South West Pacific area, Douglas MacArthur. The other unit was the joint RAN/USN Fleet Radio Unit, Melbourne ,...
at Brisbane. According to Jenkins:
Fabian wasted no time in getting rid of the civilian supernumaries at Monterey, many of them British service wives who had been evacuated fromn Singapore. He also squeezed out the British diplomatic corps types like Cooper and Archer, Eventually he seems to have succeeded in ousting Nave, who went to Central Bureau
Central Bureau
The Central Bureau was one of two Allied Sigint organisations in the South West Pacific area during World War II. Central Bureau was attached to the HQ of the Allied Commander of the South West Pacific area, Douglas MacArthur. The other unit was the joint RAN/USN Fleet Radio Unit, Melbourne ,...
, the joint Australian-US Army codebreaking unit in Brisbane. Men like Jamieson (A. B. Jamieson, Nave’s second recruit) and (Athanasius) Treweek
Athanasius Treweek
Major Athanasius Pryor "Ath" Treweek was an Australian academic, linguist and code-breaker. He was the son of Walter Henry Treweek who came to Australia in the mid-1890s and Mary Treweek....
, who had cordial relations with the Americans, remained with FRUMEL throughout the war.
Fabian or his deputy John Lietweller were always in the office, 24 hours a day. Fabian was a highly professional officer with an air of authority and a hint of Central European sophistication although he was born in Butte, Montana in 1908. But he regarded co-operation with anyone who was not in the US Navy or under its command as poor security One senior British officer said the atmosphere at FRUMEL was What is yours is mine, and what is mine is my own, and Fabian (backed by Redman) was not interested in any exchange of material with the Army’s Central Bureau
Intercept Stations
The major (naval) Intercept Stations which carried out intercept and D/F (direction findingDirection finding
Direction finding refers to the establishment of the direction from which a received signal was transmitted. This can refer to radio or other forms of wireless communication...
) but not cryptographic work were:
- Park OrchardsPark Orchards, VictoriaPark Orchards is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 23 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Manningham. At the 2006 Census, Park Orchards had a population of 3590....
in Melbourne - HMAS HarmanHMAS HarmanHMAS Harman is a Royal Australian Navy communications and logistics facility. The main base is located in the Australian capital of Canberra, and is geographically recognised as the suburb of Harman...
near CanberraCanberraCanberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne... - HMAS CoonawarraHMAS CoonawarraHMAS Coonawarra is a Royal Australian Navy base located in the city of Darwin and is home to twelve fleet units of the Royal Australian Navy.-History:...
near Darwin