Nancy Wake was a secret agent during WWII, working in France against the Germans.
Born in Wellington, New Zealand in 1912, Wake was married to French industrialist Henri Edmond Fiocca when the war broke out. She worked as a courier for the French Resistance, and by 1943, was the Gestapo’s most wanted person, with a price of 5 million Francs on her head. Wake proved so adept at evading capture, the Germans nicknamed her The White Mouse.
When her network was betrayed, she decided to flee France. Fiocca stayed behind. He was captured, tortured and executed when he would not give up Wake’s whereabouts.
Wake traveled to Britain, where she joined the SOE and was trained by them. In 1944, she parachuted into occupied France near Auvergne:
“Upon discovering her tangled in a tree, Captain Tardivat greeted her remarking, “I hope that all the trees in France bear such beautiful fruit this year.”, to which she replied, “Don’t give me that French shit.”
Wake was a liaison between Britain and a local maquis group. She recruited new members and eventually their ranks swelled to over 7,000. From April, 1944 until France’s liberation, her maquisards fought the Germans in many ways.
“She also led attacks on German installations and at one point destroyed the local Gestapo HQ in Montluçon killing 38 Germans. At one point Wake discovered that her men were protecting a girl who was a German spy. They did not have the heart to kill her in cold blood, but when Wake insisted that she would perform the execution, they capitulated.She was a fast shot, a superb organizer, and at one time “killed an SS sentry with her bare hands to prevent him from raising the alarm during a raid.” {Nancy Wake}
She rode a bicycle 300 KM through German checkpoints to find a new wireless operator after hers was forced to destroy codes.
And then back.
All in 72 hours.
Wake was the recipient of numerous awards, including the George Medal, the United States Medal of Freedom, the Médaille de la Résistance, and thrice, the Croix de Guerre.
Wake died in 2011, age 98 in London.
Nancy Wake: The Socialist Who Killed a Nazi with her Bare Hands (the name given to her inclusion in a NYT list of notable obituaries in 2012).
Learn more about Nancy Wake here.
Happy Women’s History Month!
Wine and Cheese (Doodles) 
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