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This page is about the famous Enigma cipher machine, well known for
the vital role it played during WWII.
Below are descriptions of the various models, their manufacturers
and a number of accessories.
There is no such thing as the Enigma. In fact, Enigma is
the brand name of a series of cipher machines,
developed before and during WWII,
some of which are compatible with each other,
and some of which are not.
If your are interested in the history of Enigma,
you might want to check
the Enigma Family Tree
or the Enigma Timeline.
Before and during WWII, the Enigma has been the inspiration for many
other designs of rotor cipher machines, such as the British
Typex and
the American Sigaba.
And even after WWII, some cipher machines were based on the
same principle, for example the American KL-7,
the Russian Fialka and
the Swiss Nema.
If you own an Enigma machine, you may want to check our page
about Enigma restoration materials.
We are always interested in acquiring new equipment for the museum.
If you have something to offer, please contact us.
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Enigma machines and accessories described here:
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Many attempts have been made to describe the working principle of
the Enigma machine on the internet. Some of these are correct, and
some are not. This is yet another attempt.
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Some years ago, when creating an electronic replica of the Enigma,
called Enigma-E,
we experienced great difficulty in understanding the precise
operating of the machine; something that is vital for a reliable
simulator. Some websites only give a rough description of the
principle, but many important details are often omitted.
We then decided to create our own description and share it with you.
 More information
If you are interested in building your own electronic Enigma machine,
you might want to learn more about the Enigma-E
self-build kit.
It is compatible with a real Enigma machine.
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Before and during WWII, many different Enigma machines were
developed and built. Some of these machines are compatible with
each other, but others are not. Below is a list of some of these
machines that we've seen over the years. Please note that
this list is by no means complete and will be subject to future
changes, as and when we find 'new' machines.
Each machine is described briefly below.
Click the image for a full description with many photographs.
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The Enigma I was developed especially for the German Wehrmacht
and forms the basic design on which all German Army Enigma machines are
based. Is has three moving wheels, a fixed Umkehrwalze (UKW, reflector)
and a Steckerbrett (plug board).
The Naval Enigma M3 is functional identical to this one.
More information
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On 2 February 1942, the Kriegsmarine (German Navy) suddenly
introduced this new version of the Enigma machine. The M4 had
4 wheels instead of the usual 3 and caused great upset with the
allied codebreakers.
The M4 was used exclusively by the U-Boot division of the
German Navy. The rest of the Navy kept using the M3.
More information
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Enigma G (Zählwerk Enigma)
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At some point in the Enigma family tree, a machine was developed
with an improved wheel-turnover mechanism and a counter. It was
called the Zählwerk Enigma and was used by various commercial
customers as well as the German Abwehr (secret service).
This machine is sometimes referred to as the Enigma G
or Abwehr Enigma.
More information
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The Enigma T, codenamed Tirpitz, was developed during WWII by the Germans
especially for use by the Japanese Army. It was based on the
commercial Enigma K, but had differently wired wheels and multiple
turnovers on each wheel. Furthermore, it had an Eintrittswalze (ETW)
that was wired differently than all other Enigma machines.
More information
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In 1923, the first machine under the Enigma brand appeared on
the market. It was the Enigma A that was large and bulky.
It resembled an electric typewriter and printed its output
directly on paper.
Although we've never actually seen the machine, and therefore
have no good photographs available, we did find an
accurate description of the machine by Arthur Scherbius himself.
More information
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The Enigma B was developed in 1924 as the successor to the
Enigma A.
The rotating print head of the Enigma A was replaced
by a series of type bars, like the ones commonly
found on typewriters.
The machine looks very similar to a standard typewriter and is very well
finished. Nevertheless, there were many production problems and
it appeared very difficult to operate it reliably at higher printing
speeds. In 1926 it was replaced by a modified and improved version,
which probably looked similar to the 1924 model.
Eventually, in 1929, it was replaced by the Enigma H
(see below) which was far more bulky.
More information
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The Enigma H was the last model in the range of Schreibende Enigma
(printing Enigma) machines. It was developed and introduced in 1929, as
the successor to the Enigma B.
The official model number for this machines was H29 and the internal
designator was Ch. 14, whilst it was called
Enigma II by the Reichswehr (the predecessor of the Wehrmacht).
This machine was sometimes used as a printer for
a modified Enigma I
or Enigma G.
More information
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The Enigma C was the first machine that used light bulbs (Glühlampen)
for its output. It was introduced in 1924 as a lower-cost alternative
to the large and bulky typewriter-style machines such as the
Enigma A.
The letters on the keyboard and on the lamp panel are organised in the
order of the alphabet.
More information
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This Enigma D was developed in 1926 as the successor to the
Enigma C.
The official model number was A26
and it was given the internal designator Ch. 8.
The image on the right shows a picture of the Enigma D as it
was printed in the instruction manual.
More information
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The Enigma K can be regarded as a series of 'special' machines
based on the design of the Enigma D. The official
model number is A27 and the first internal designator for this
machine is Ch. 11b. The machine was introduced in 1927, but it
wasn't before 1936 that the letter K was used in the serial number.
Other machines, such as the Tirpitz (T), the KD and
the Swiss K, belong to this family.
More information
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The Enigma Z is a rather strange variant of the light bulb machine
(Glühlampenmaschine) as it only has 10 keys and 10 lamps, containing
the numbers 0 thru 9.
Not much is known about this machine, although it is likely that there
were two different versions of it; one based on the Enigma D
and the other based on the Zählwerk Enigma (G).
More information
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During WWII, some attempts were made to make Enigma traffic more
secure. In January 1944, a field-rewirable reflector, called UKW-D,
was introduced by the Luftwaffe (German Air Force).
It is little known that an UKW-D was also developed for the Kriegsmarine
(Navy).
The UKW-D shown here is such a rare naval variant.
More information
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In another attempt to make the Enigma more secure, the Luftwaffe
introduced the Enigma Uhr in July 1944.
It was a small wooden box that connected directly to the
Steckerbrett of the Enigma by means of 20 cables.
With a large wooden knob, the operator
could quickly select any of the 40 available alternative wirings.
More information
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Another measure to make the Enigma safer, was the so-called
Lückenfüllerwalze (gap-fill wheel)
that featured 26 user-configurable notches. This way, the
number and position of the notches of each wheel could be
changed frequently.
The Lückenfüllerwalze was planned to be used in combination
with UKW-D, but like UKW-D and the
Uhr it came too late.
More information
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The Power Supply Unit (PSU) shown here is very rare and was used with the
Enigma K machines
supplied to the Swiss Army and the Swiss Foreign Office. It can be connected
to a variety of mains voltages and has output terminals for 4 Enigma
machines.
More information
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In 1918, the first Enigma-related patent was registered by
Arthur Scherbius in Germany. Since then, numerous other inventions
have been patented by Scherbius and his collegues, in Germany
as well as in many other countries.
We've collected the most important Enigma-related patents on
a single page, which are also available for download.
More information
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An Enigma machine uses small - rather unusual - lamps for its output.
These lamps have a common E10 fitting, but have a somewhat
flattened glass bulb. It is important to find these lamps, as ordinary
bulbs are too high and will penetrate the celluloid lamp film.
There are two variants: clear and half-opaque.
More information
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Many Enigma machines found today, are not in very good condition
and may require some work in order to get them going again.
In the past few years, various people have made an effort to produce
good and accurate reproduction parts in order to restore Enigma
machines. Some of these parts are available through the Crypto Museum.
More information
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Based on many years of research by Frode Weierud, we've been able
to put together the most accurate family tree of Enigma machines to date.
It shows the relationship between the various models and variants,
and provides a lot of additional information.
Please note that the tree is based on ongoing research and is therefore
subject to changes in the future.
More information
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Initially, Enigma machines were manufactured by the original company
Chiffriermaschinen AG (Aktiengesellschaft) in Berlin (Germany).
After the Germans acquired the Enigma patents, the name of
the company was changed to Heimsoeth und Rinke
and other companies were appointed to manufacture
Enigma machines under license.
Below is the complete list of Enigma manufacturers
[1]
with their official manufacturer's code
(except for the original manufacturer, who is listed first).
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| Code |
Issued |
Name |
Address |
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Chiffriermaschinen AG |
Steglitzerstraße 2
Berlin W 35 |
| aye |
Oct 1940 |
Olympia
Büromaschinenwerke AG |
Mainzerhofplatz
Erfurt |
| bac |
Feb 1941 |
Ertel-Werk
für Feinmechanik |
Westendstr. 160
München |
| gvx |
Jul 1941 |
Konski & Krüger
Fabrik elektr. u. mechanischer Apparate |
Chausseestr. 117
Berlin N 4 |
| jla |
Sep 1941 |
Chiffriermaschinengesellschaft
Heimsoeth und Rinke |
Uhlandstr. 136
Berlin-Wilmersdorf |
| jmz |
Sep 1941 |
Atlas-Werke AG
Maschinenfabrik |
Steinhöft 11
Bremen |
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- Oberkommando des Heeres,
Liste der Fertigungskennzeichen für Waffen, Munition und Gerät
Reichsdrückerei Berlin 1944, reprinted by Pawlas, Nürnberg, 1977.
ISBN 3-88088-214-2
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Below are digital copies of the original Enigma logo.
This logo has been recreated from scratch and is presented here
as a PDF file, in order to preserve the resolution.
The copyright of this logo belongs to us.
You may download and use these logo's for your
own - non-commercial - personal use.
For commercial use of the logo, please ask permission first.
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In the past few years, a number of Enigma computer simulations
have been developed for a variety of platforms. Below is a list
of popular Enigma simulations. Click any of the links, or click
the logo of your favorite operating system below.
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Perl
