Alan Turing to be Honoured by his Country

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fountainhall

Alan Turing to be Honoured by his Country

Post by fountainhall »

One of Britain’s heroes of World War 2 who not only solved the Enigma Code but invented the computer, the once disgraced Alan Turing who committed suicide aged 41 after being convicted of being homosexual is being honoured by his native United Kingdom and will appear as the face on a new £50 note in two years time. This announcement comes six years after his posthumous Royal Pardon.
traveller123

Re: Alan Turing to be Honoured by his Country

Post by traveller123 »

Not only was he convicted but he was given the choice of a custodial sentence or chemical castration.
He chose chemical castration.
What a way to treat a war hero
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Re: Alan Turing to be Honoured by his Country

Post by Gaybutton »

traveller123 wrote: Tue Jul 16, 2019 9:56 am What a way to treat a war hero
He achieved far more than that too. See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Turing

To my mind, the USA is just as guilty of ruining the life of a true genius who was essential to the war - Robert Oppenheimer.

And Stalin did the same kind of thing to Zhukov.
fountainhall

Re: Alan Turing to be Honoured by his Country

Post by fountainhall »

Totally agree with traveller123. However, we do need to be mindful of those far less liberal times. Homosexuality was illegal in the UK, as indeed it was in many if not all of the states in the USA at the time of Turing's arrest. Many prominent men were arrested and convicted at around the same time, including the great actor Sir John Gielgud (prior to the award of his knighthood). Turing had befriended an unemployed man 20 years his junior, a friend of whom eventually burgled Turing's apartment. Turing perhaps naively, perhaps stupidly, reported it to the police. As a result his relationship was discovered and he was convicted under the existing sodomy laws. This was not repealed in England and Wales until 1967 and in Scotland until 1980.

As a result of the Official Secrets Act which Turing had signed prior to working at Bletchley Park as a code breaker, in his defence Turing had no option but to remain completely silent about his service during the war. Had the Court been made aware that he had, as we now know, shortened the war in Europe by some 2 years and saved an estimated 14 million lives, perhaps the verdict would have been very different. But that is something we will never know.
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