Lesson plan
Great Cipher
The Great Cipher (French: Grand chiffre) was a nomenclator cipher developed by the Rossignols, several generations of whom served the French monarchs as cryptographers. The Great Cipher was so named because of its excellence and because it was reputed to be unbreakable. Modified forms were in use by the French Peninsular army until the summer of 1811. After it fell out of current use, many documents in the French archives were unreadable until it was decoded.
Article summary
The Great Cipher (French: Grand chiffre) was a nomenclator cipher developed by the Rossignols, several generations of whom served the French monarchs as cryptographers. The Great Cipher was so named because of its excellence and because it was reputed to be unbreakable. Modified forms were in use by the French Peninsular army until the summer of 1811. After it fell out of current use, many documents in the French archives were unreadable until it was decoded.
Key claims
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Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
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Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.