Louis de Wal was able to convince MI5 intelligence that the Fuehrer's tactical decisions were heavily influenced by his horoscope. He suggested studying what the stars were preparing for Hitler, as well as for other major military figures, such as British General Bernard Montgomery and Japanese Emperor Hirohito, in order to give Britain an edge.
Despite accusations of quackery, Wal's services were used by various government structures during the war.
At the same time, it follows from documents now published by the National Archives that some of Wal's predictions have come true. He seems to have predicted the German invasion of Crete and the Battle of Midway to within days, as well as Montgomery's success in the operation against German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel.
In 1941, Wahl was sent to America, which refused to go to war, to campaign and undermine American perceptions of Germany's invincibility, thus convincing the United States to join the Allies.
When the US entered the war after Pearl Harbor, Wal returned to Britain. There he stated that Hitler had his own astrologer - Karl Ernst Krafft, whose forecasts the Fuehrer followed, and suggested using this fact.
"The system according to which advice is given to Hitler is universal, and, being mathematical, it has nothing to do with clairvoyance and mysticism," he wrote to his superiors.
But it seems that the astrologer's efforts were in vain. Professor Christopher Andrew, who is now writing the official history of MI5, says: "Hitler actually considered astrology to be nonsense, but the belief that he really followed the horoscopes did indeed appear in the government."
