Britain pardons gay 'father of computing' Alan Turing

BRITAIN's granted a posthumous pardon to Alan Turing, the code-breaking hero who committed suicide after a conviction for homosexuality.

UK pardons gay 'father of co...

ALAN TURING, the British mathematician who helped to crack the Enigma code but who took his own life after a conviction for "homosexual activity", has been given a posthumous pardon.

The official British government announcement marks the successful end of a campaign to restore the honour of a brilliant scientist and war hero.

Dr Turing's code-breaking work at Bletchley Park during World War II saved thousands of lives and helped to lay the foundations for modern computing.

Six years later he was made a Fellow of the Royal Society in recognition of the work that he had carried out in his twenties.

However, in 1952 the logician - whose Turing machine used new concepts such as the algorithm to foreshadow the modern computer - was convicted of gross indecency after he reported a burglary that he suspected had been carried out by an acquaintance of his gay lover.

Homosexuality was a criminal offence and remained so in Britain until 1967.

Dr Turing accepted a form of chemical castration as an alternative to a prison sentence after he pleaded guilty.

Unable to work at GCHQ - his security clearance was revoked after his conviction - and rendered impotent by the injections of female hormones, he took his own life in 1954, just before his 42nd birthday.

His mother and some friends insisted that his death from cyanide poisoning may have been an accident, while others have claimed that it might have been connected to his fascination with Walt Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs after a half-eaten apple was found at his bedside, an echo of a scene in the film where the Wicked Witch poisons an apple.

However, friends, family and former colleagues were united in seeking to right what they considered a historic wrong.

In 2009, then prime minister Gordon Brown issued an apology for the "appalling way he was treated", but a private member's bill to go farther faltered amid cabinet infighting.

At first the government refused to back the bill, citing rules that stipulated that the Queen could be asked to use her royal prerogative of mercy only where the person was innocent of the offence and the pardon was being sought by a family member.

However, Chris Grayling, the Justice Secretary, announced yesterday that Dr Turing had been given a pardon.

"Dr Alan Turing was an exceptional man with a brilliant mind. His brilliance was put into practice at Bletchley Park during the Second World War where he was pivotal to breaking the Enigma code, helping to end the war and save thousands of lives," said Mr Grayling.

"His later life was overshadowed by his conviction for homosexual activity, a sentence we would now consider unjust and discriminatory and which has now been repealed."

Mr Grayling added: "Dr Turing deserves to be remembered and recognised for his fantastic contribution to the war effort and his legacy to science. A pardon from the Queen is a fitting tribute to an exceptional man."

Prime Minister David Cameron said the code-breaker's work had saved ``countless lives''.

"Alan Turing was a remarkable man who played a key role in saving this country in World War II by cracking the German Enigma code,'' Mr Cameron said.

"He also left a remarkable national legacy through his substantial scientific achievements, often being referred to as the father of modern computing.''

The Times