The incredible story of Alan Turing, who helped beat the Nazis but was then persecuted for his sexuality

Turing, known as the father of modern computing, helped give the Allies their biggest tactical advantage against the Axis forces but died an ignominious death.

WORLD WAR II had many heroes whose names everyone knows: Winston Churchill, Dwight Eisenhower, and Douglas MacArthur are only a few. But those who worked behind the scenes are less known, often because they worked with “classified” information.

One such person is Alan Turing, the man who helped give the Allies their biggest tactical advantage against the Axis forces and is the father of much of modern computing, yet was censured for his sexual orientation after the war and died an ignominious death.

But not everyone is content to let him rest in infamy. Last month, a petition was circulated in the UK to honour Turing by putting his face on the new £10 notes.

So this being the centenary of his birth, we decided to dig into his contributions to the war and science.

The incredible story of Alan Turing, who helped beat the Nazis but was then persecuted for his sexuality

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Alan Turing was born in London on June 23, 1912
He studied mathematics and later taught quantum mechanics at Cambridge University
During World War II, he worked at the British government's code and cipher headquarters, Bletchley Park
It was at Bletchley Park that Turing achieved his crowning glory: breaking the German Navy's Enigma Code
The Enigma machine, originally developed in the 1920s, enabled its operator to type a message, then ‘scramble’ it using a letter substitution system, generated by variable rotors and an electric circuit
Turing led the team that designed a machine known as a 'bombe', which was successful in decoding German messages as early as 1940
After the War, Turing's work at Manchester University formed the basis of artificial intelligence research
Despite helping the Allies win WWII, Turing was arrested for being gay in January 1952
He chose to receive estrogen treatments to "cure" himself, rather than face imprisonment. His career was ruined, and the hormones made him impotent and depressed
On June 7, 1954, he died by suicide after eating an apple laced with cyanide
In 2009, UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown issued a formal apology for the "appalling" treatment of Turing, but refused to pardon his conviction
However, the government has put Turing's face on Royal Mail stamps multiple times over the last few years
There is now also an e-petition requesting that England place him on the next £10 note

Article by Sanya Khetani for Business Insider

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The incredible story of Alan Turing, who helped beat the Nazis but was then persecuted for his sexuality

Alan Turing was born in London on June 23, 1912

He studied mathematics and later taught quantum mechanics at Cambridge University

During World War II, he worked at the British government's code and cipher headquarters, Bletchley Park

It was at Bletchley Park that Turing achieved his crowning glory: breaking the German Navy's Enigma Code

The Enigma machine, originally developed in the 1920s, enabled its operator to type a message, then ‘scramble’ it using a letter substitution system, generated by variable rotors and an electric circuit

Turing led the team that designed a machine known as a 'bombe', which was successful in decoding German messages as early as 1940

After the War, Turing's work at Manchester University formed the basis of artificial intelligence research

Despite helping the Allies win WWII, Turing was arrested for being gay in January 1952

He chose to receive estrogen treatments to "cure" himself, rather than face imprisonment. His career was ruined, and the hormones made him impotent and depressed

On June 7, 1954, he died by suicide after eating an apple laced with cyanide

In 2009, UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown issued a formal apology for the "appalling" treatment of Turing, but refused to pardon his conviction

However, the government has put Turing's face on Royal Mail stamps multiple times over the last few years

There is now also an e-petition requesting that England place him on the next £10 note

Making a difference

A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation.