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Government Communications Headquarters
GCHQ is one of Britain's three major Intelligence Agencies. GCHQ works
in partnership with the Security Service (MI5)
and the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6)
to protect UK national security interests.
GCHQ is responsible for providing Signals Intelligence (SIGINT)
and information assurance.
Its main customers are the UK Government and the British Armed Forces.
GCHQ started life during World War I as GC&CS,
the Government Code & Cypher School.
In WWII, they established a major codebreaking operation at
Bletchley Park (which is now a museum).
Immediately after WWII, in 1946, the name was changed to GCHQ and eventually
moved to Eastcote. In 1951, GCHQ moved to Cheltenham, where the organization
is still located today.
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The image on the right shows the current GCHQ headquearters in Cheltenham (UK)
at the point where the building was nearly finished in 2003.
The building is nicknamed 'the Doughnut'.
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Although GCHQ is a secret - and therefore rather closed- organisation,
they present themselves to the general public regularly, and provide
information about their work, their responsibilities and their history.
GCHQ was, for example, one of the major sponsors of the
Enigma Reunion 2009 at
Bletchley Park, where they exhibited a number of
rare cipher machines and methods.
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At the event, crypto collectors from all over the world had come
to Bletchley Park for the weekend, to show the most special items from
their collection. As the major sponsor of the event, GCHQ occupied the
stand immediately opposite the entrance to the venue.
The image on the right shows two GCHQ employees (right) explaining
the ins and outs of a rare cipher machine to a couple of WWII BP-veterans.
➤ More about the Enigma Reunion 2009
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© Crypto Museum. Last changed: Wednesday, 20 January 2021 - 16:45 CET.
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![People at the GCHQ stand at the Enigma Reunion 2009. Copyright Kevin Coleman [3].](img/500395/000/full.jpg)
![GCHQ stand at Enigma Reunion 2009. Copyright Frederic Andre [2].](img/500395/002/full.jpg)
![People at the GCHQ stand at the Enigma Reunion 2009. Copyright Kevin Coleman [3].](img/500395/001/full.jpg)