Thadeau Ary Pilley

http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/ww2/bletchleyjews.html

Ary Thadee “Ted” Pilley was born at 123, Boulevard St Michel in Paris, on March 7th 1909, son of the famous Polish Jewish artists Leopold and Lena Pilichowski (see above). Aged four years, his family all came to live in London at 7, Hill Road, St John’s Wood, which became a famous meeting place for the Jewish intelligentsia of the day, including visits from Einstein on occasions, and many of the foremost Zionist leaders of the day. Ted went to the Merchant Tailors School and then to St John’s College Oxford. Later he worked as a sales manager in the international Textile business, using his languages, when he met his wife in Holland.

Ted and his wife had founded and managed the Linguists Club in London in the 1930’s, where clients met to speak and practice in various European languages led by a facilitator. Ted was serving at Aldergrove RAF base , Northern Ireland, at the outbreak of war [67] as Intelligence Officer for 245 squadron protecting the port of Liverpool . His log book shows that he flew several sorties. But it was his linguistic skills that led him to be recruited to BP (his wife was also screened over tea at Simpsons by a discreet and cultivated MI5 agent, as well, as she had been born in Holland!). Peter Pilley says that it was Ted who recommended Naky Doniach – his brother in law! - for recruitment to BP (see above).

Ted worked in the watch room in Hut 3 with Jim Rose (see above) in the Air Intelligence section, deciding on the priority and precise and concise wording of distilled, decoded Luftwaffe messages and intelligence and to whom and in what wording, to pass them on to in the field.

At the end of the war at some stage, probably in Italy, he was given the job of interrogating a senior Nazi leader or general (Peter Pilley is not sure who) and almost as soon as they had begun, the Nazi asked Ted if he was a Jew. Answering yes, the German said he should leave as he would not speak to a Jew. Ted walked out of the cell.

Post war he again ran the Linguists Club, was made Officier d’Academie by France, and helped found the Association of International Conference Interpreters and Institute of Linguists. He died in London in June 1982.