Editing Operation Sea Lion (section)

=== German intelligence ===
At least 20 spies were sent to Britain by boat or parachute to gather information on the British coastal defences under the codename "Operation Lena"; many of the agents spoke limited English. All agents were quickly captured, and many were convinced to defect by [[MI5]]'s [[Double-Cross System]], providing disinformation to their German superiors. It has been suggested that the "amateurish" espionage efforts were a result of deliberate sabotage by the head of the army intelligence bureau in Hamburg, [[Herbert Wichmann]], in an effort to prevent a disastrous and costly amphibious invasion; Wichmann was critical of the Nazi regime and had close ties to [[Wilhelm Canaris]], the head of the ''Abwehr'', the German military intelligence agency.<ref>{{cite news
| last        = Frenzel
| first       = EikeAbwehr
| date        = 21 August 2014
| title       = Hitlers Unternehmen "Seelöwe": Invasion der Amateure
| trans-title = Hitler's Operation "Sea Lion": Invasion of Amateurs
| url         = http://www.spiegel.de/einestages/hitlers-unternehmen-seeloewe-die-invasion-die-nie-stattfand-a-986303.html
| language    = de
| journal     = [[Der Spiegel]]
| location    = Hamburg
| publisher   = Spiegel-Verlag
| access-date  = 21 August 2014
| url-status     = live
| archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20140821203750/http://www.spiegel.de/einestages/hitlers-unternehmen-seeloewe-die-invasion-die-nie-stattfand-a-986303.html
| archive-date = 21 August 2014
}}</ref>

While some errors might not have caused problems, others, such as the inclusion of bridges that no longer existed<ref name=Wheeler-10>German Invasion Plans for the British Isles, Ed Rob Wheeler, [[Bodleian Library]] 2007, p. 10</ref> and misunderstanding the usefulness of minor British roads,<ref name=Wheeler-10 /> would have been detrimental to German operations, and would have added to the confusion caused by the layout of Britain's cities (with their maze of narrow roads and alleys){{clarify|date=May 2016}} and the removal of road signs.<ref>Wheeler, text of plate 7</ref>