Denis Oswald (codebreaker)
Denis Geoffrey Oswald (12 November 1910 – 5 February 1998) was an English first-class cricketer, educator and a codebreaker at Bletchley Park.
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Denis Geoffrey Oswald | ||||||||||||||
| Born | 12 November 1910 Stanley, Falkland Islands | ||||||||||||||
| Died | 5 February 1998 (aged 87) Uppingham, Rutland, England | ||||||||||||||
| Batting | Right-handed | ||||||||||||||
| Domestic team information | |||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | ||||||||||||||
| 1931 | Oxford University | ||||||||||||||
| 1931–1932 | Hertfordshire | ||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | |||||||||||||||
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Source: Cricinfo, 7 July 2019 | |||||||||||||||
Early life and first-class cricket
Oswald was born at Stanley in the Falkland Islands to Louis and Lillian Oswald. He left the Falklands for England with his family when he was 8 years old aboard the SS Inca.[1] He was educated in England at St Lawrence College, Ramsgate, before going up to Wadham College, Oxford.[2] While studying at Oxford, he made two appearances in first-class cricket for Oxford University in 1931, playing against Leicestershire and the touring New Zealanders at Oxford.[3] In addition to playing first-class cricket, Oswald also played minor counties cricket for Hertfordshire in 1931 and 1932, making a total of nine appearances in the Minor Counties Championship.[4] After graduating from Oxford in 1932, Oswald took up the post of languages teacher at Uppingham School.[5]
Bletchley Park
Oswald served in the Intelligence Corps during the Second World War, initially as a private. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in June 1941.[6] In Autumn 1942, Oswald, alongside Ralph Tester, Jerry Roberts and Peter Ericsson, founded the Testery section at Bletchley Park.[5]
References
- "Certificates of Nationality Issued in 1919" (PDF). Falkland Islands Government. Retrieved 2019-07-07.
- "Player profile: Denis Oswald". CricketArchive. Retrieved 2019-07-07.
- "First-Class Matches played by Denis Oswald". CricketArchive. Retrieved 2019-07-07.
- "Minor Counties Championship Matches played by Denis Oswald". CricketArchive. Retrieved 2019-07-07.
- "Major Denis Oswald: The Bletchley Code-Breaker" (PDF). OU Magazine. No. 40. Uppingham: Uppingham School. 2012. p. 28. Retrieved 2019-07-07.
- "No. 35269". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 September 1941. p. 5213.