Nancy Wake was the most decorated woman of the Second World War and by 1943 she was the Gestapos most wanted person with a 5 million-franc price tag and lived most of her life on the edge and in constant danger and her story is one of sheer bravery, strength and defiance. She became what one biographer described as a "celebrated heroine on both sides of the Channel." Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. What happened to Odette Sansom daughters? The prince is captivated by her soulful countenance and starts to approach her, but she becomes frightened and turns from him. As Sansom had told him she was related to Winston Churchill he took her with him to American forces, thinking that this would help his case. [21], When the Allies were only a few miles from Ravensbrck, the camp commandant Fritz Suhren forced Sansom into his car and drove to the advancing Americans to surrender. When she was eight, an unidentified disorder caused her to go blind for. Some mistakenly say finger-nails: but her torturers stopped short when they realised that even the grotesque pain of the toe-nails could not persuade her to speak (and having been ticked off firmly by Odette myself, for springing a photographer on her, I understand the Gestapo's reluctance to displease her further). She had already made three unsuccessful attempts to get to France. Starved and tortured, Odette never broke. The Germans began a massive campaign to hide the evidence of their crimes. In 1914 when World War I broke out, Odette's father joined the Infantry Regiment and received the Croix de Guerre and Mdaille Militaire for his bravery. 1995. where are the children of Odette Sansom now. Britain's most prestigious organizations turned out forged papers for them to carry. Her wartime experiences and endurance of a brutal interrogation and imprisonment, which were chronicled in books and a motion picture, made her one of the most celebrated members of the SOE and one of the few to survive Nazi imprisonment. The marriage ended in divorce. Mr. Sansom joined the army at the beginning of the Second World War, and Odette Sansom and the children moved to Somerset for their safety. Susan Slosberg , writer, New Rochelle, New York. In some cases, hit-and-run guerilla attacks were staged. As a result she was recruited by the Special Operations Executive This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Yet, there was an undercurrent of bitterness and turbulence in her. Returning to Fresne, Sansom expected to be shot. Geoffrey Hallowesm. BORN: October 7, 1900 Munich, Germany The journalist summed up the experience: Everyone remembers that Odette had her toe-nails torn out by the Gestapo. Pronunciation: o-dette, od(et)-te. She and Churchill were arrested there on 16 April 1943 by spy-hunter Hugo Bleicher. However, against all odds she survived the war and testified against the prison guards at the Hamburg Ravensbrck trials. Indeed the theme of her postwar working life, with its service to various charities and help for the underprivileged, was the healing of those wounds, both physical and mental, which had been inflicted upon individuals by the war. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". she worked under Peter Churchill, the SOE's organizer in that part Men and women from the SOE would work within occupied nations, disabling factories, wrecking power houses, and severing lines of communication. World War II buffseven military historianslose sight of the fact that female couriers operating in occupied France had the second highest Allied fatality rate (42%, behind only Bomber Commands 45%) of the war. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". By accepting death, she felt that "they would not win anything. On 16th April, 1943, Sansom and Churchill were arrested by Hugo London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1980. She was met by Peter Churchill, codename 'Raoul', and joined his resistance group. She was also appointed a Chevalier de la Lgion d'honneur for her work with the French Resistance. When German counter-intelligence became more of a threat, Churchill moved his circuit of saboteurs and information gatherers to Upper Savoy in February 1943. Charles de Gaulle/Date of death. Burvale Cemetery, Hersham, United Kingdom You can unsubscribe at any time. On [24] Cite this article Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. A French agent working for the British during World War II, Odette Sansom left three small daughters to join the Resistance in 1942. In June 1940, a new volunteer force the Special Operations Executive (SOE) was set up to wage a secret war. They then moved to England where a second daughter Lily was born in 1934. To accomplish these tasks, couriers carried messages and money to their associates almost on a daily basis. Still Odette refused to speak. She was brutally tortured by the Gestapo for information on her fellow agents. Before spies left England, Scotland Yard detectives scrutinized their clothing. [32] She remains the only woman to have received the George Cross while alive, all other female awards to date being posthumous. London: Chapman & Hall, 1949. Odette knew the locations of both, but refused to answer, saving their lives. Magazines, CODE NAME: LISEThe True Story of the Woman Who Became WWIIs Most Highly Decorated Spy, Or create a free account to access more articles, The Extraordinary Bravery That Made This Woman One of World War II's Most Remarkable Spies. A specially trained inner core of Nazis, hand-picked by Heinrich Himmler, interrogated her repeatedly. Stafford, David. 2019Encyclopedia.com | All rights reserved. Two of those escaped, and Sansom returned, the lone survivor. Odette is a 1950 British war film based on the true story of Special Operations Executive French agent, Odette Sansom, living in England, who was captured by the Germans in 1943, condemned to death and sent to Ravensbrck concentration camp to be executed. The forgotten female WWII-era spy who stayed silent under gruesome Nazi torture Odette Sansom was the first woman to receive the UK's second-highest honor for courage under fire. She was then transported to Halle, where she was again treated brutally. . The Germans wanted to know the true identity of Spindle's wireless operator, "Arnaud," as well as the whereabouts of a British officer, Captain Francis Cammaerts, who had landed in the plane which had taken Churchill to England. [14][15][16], At Fresnes prison, near Paris, Sansom was interrogated by the Gestapo fourteen times. Sansom's initial objective was to contact the French Resistance on the French Riviera, and then move to Auxerre in Burgundy to establish a safe house for other agents. The other began to unbutton her blouse. There were beatings, tortures, mutilations and rapes. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. "[27] In 1955, she co-founded the annual Women of the Year Lunch with Tony Lothian and Lady Georgina Coleridge (journalist and daughter of the Marquess of Tweeddale). Her brave endurance saved the lives of many agents. 4659. Ask a World War II aficionado to name the wars most highly decorated spy and youre likely to get one of three answers: Dusko Popov (code name: TRICYCLE), the MI5/MI6 double agent who warned the FBI about Pearl Harbor and inspired Ian Flemings James Bond; Juan Pujol (code name: GARBO), the crafty Spaniard who fooled the Germans with a fictional network of 15 agents; or Roman Garby-Czerniawski (code name: BRUTUS), the Polish double agent who at one time had a hundred agents in his INTERALLI circuit. In between each "evulsion," he would repeat his questions, telling her she could end "the ceremony" simply by answering the questions. Where is Violette Szabo buried? Albert Speer what happened to odette's daughters. She left her children in a convent and began training with the SOE. Sansom also gave evidence against several ofRavensbrck's staff, which influenced their sentencing. https://youtu.be/P60YDAkrbuw. October 14, 1990. "If I had courage, it was my grandfather's," Sansom told a London Sunday Times interviewer in 1990. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". What happened to Odette's daughters? Szabo, George Cross. 1936). 2023 TIME USA, LLC. [34] The fame that the movie brought to Odette Sansom and Peter Churchill also brought criticism from their former associates in SOE and the French Resistance. January 16, 1995, pp. The son of Lillie ne Parkington and Abbey Sansom of Colchester. 19471956 Great access to I-80. When she refused to divulge the whereabouts of her spy circuit's wireless operator and another British officer, she not only saved the lives of other agents but enabled them to continue their work for the Resistance. Later, she married Geoffrey Hallowes. In 1930, Odette met Roy Sansom, an Englishman who was the son of a family friend. [3][21] The cell was located near the crematorium and would be covered with burned hair from the cremations. But, eventually, the camp was overrun, and she won her freedom as the Camp commandant tried to use her as a hostage. November 9, 1970 Agents learned how to place explosive matchboxes or fountain pens where they would do the most damage. The Gestapo believe that her husband Peter Churchill was related to Winston Churchill. The purpose of these photos was to determine the exact topography of a particular section. [19], Sansom succeeded in diverting attention from Churchill, who was subject to only two interrogations, and protected the identities of the two officers whose locations were known only to her. In commemoration of those women of the SOE who were executed by the Nazis, there is a plaque at St. Paul's Knightsbridge, dedicated on May 7, 1948. Despite all this, Sansom didn't want fame. In addition to the MLA, Chicago, and APA styles, your school, university, publication, or institution may have its own requirements for citations. In 1941 she responded to requests by the War Office for people to send photographs of France. * The request timed out and you did not successfully sign up. She was subsisting on just one slice of bread and a bowl of. She wore her FANY uniform and the blue ribbon and silver miniature of the George Cross. I knew kindness as well as cruelty, understanding as well as brutality. [2] She had one brother. (SOE). I won't let them have me." And if I can think that way instead of thinking what is going to happen in a half-hour's time," Because of her past illnesses she knew "I was able to accept this, and survive it." 1932); Lily (b. Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors. Spies were chosen carefully. Before war broke out in September 1939, Britain had established secret agencies to conduct clandestine operations in Europe. What is a good mission statement for a salon? She feared neither danger nor dagger, interrogation nor torture. "That is a permanent link I would not let go of," she said. Despite her appalling treatment, she was not over consumed with bitterness. EXCLUSIVE: Odette Sansom had fallen for her supervisor and lied to the Nazis that she was in charge leading to two years of torture. The officer responsible for Sansom's torture in Paris was also executed in July 1944, for ordering the shooting of British parachutists captured in uniform. Over the next few months Heidenheim, Germany Her torture was carried out by a "very good-looking young Frenchman" who she believed was mentally ill.[5], Sansom testified against the prison guards charged with war crimes at the 1946 Hamburg Ravensbrck Trials, which resulted in Suhren's execution in 1950. Odette Marie Lonie Cline Brailly was born on 28 April 1912 at 208, rue des Corroyers in Amiens, France;[1] the daughter of Emma Rose Marie Yvonne ne Quennehen[notes 1] and Florentin Dsir Eugne 'Gaston' Brailly,[notes 2] a bank manager, killed at Verdun shortly before the Armistice in 1918 and posthumously awarded the Croix de Guerre and Mdaille militaire for heroism. When she did, he pulled back the material and pressed a red-hot poker to her spine. French-born Odette Sansom worked undercover in France during the Second World War. The SS wanted to keep her as a bargaining tool. [34], On 23 February 2012, the Royal Mail released a postage stamp featuring Hallowes as part of its "Britons of Distinction" series. With her three daughters in a convent school, Odette trained as an SOE agent. The average SOE wireless operator in Occupied France lasted for just six weeks before being arrested. Bleicher of Abwehr. Odette Sansom (1912 1995) a French/British spy who worked as an SOE operative in occupied France. Name variations: Odette Hallowes; Odette Churchill; (code names) Odette Matayer, Cline, Lise. Actress Anna Neagle, who played her in the 1950 British war film Odette , spent one year with the WWII spy and she helped the actress research for the role even going as far as returning to the cells where she . To be caught with a wireless radiosomething every SOE agent would transport from time to timewas a capital offense. SOE was also monitoring those who brought them in, hoping to find some who were qualified to become agents in France. Other The marriage Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 1993. Her hair began falling out, her teeth became loose and she lapsed into a semi-coma. She recalled in a post-war interview that while everyone has a breaking point, her feeling was that if she could "survive the next minute without breaking up, that is another minute of life. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. People Who Made a Difference in Health Care, Facts about the extraordinary life of Joan of Arc. On May 26, 1943, Sansom was taken to the headquarters of the German security service. She arrived on July 18, 1944, two days before a now-famous failed plot by members of Hitler's inner circle to assassinate him. These photographs encouraged the war office to recruit Odette into the Special Operations Executive SOE; the SOE was responsible for training agents to be dropped into France. Something about the future seemed to haunt her. [33], Documents disclosed long after the war indicate that her superiors had to fight for Sansom's George Cross, because she was unable to prove that she had been tortured by the Nazis and that she had not betrayed her fellow agents. After a lengthy fire-fight Violette was eventually captured. 1940 she made contact with the Free French forces based in London. They were joined there by several other members of the Carte network and SOE, a gathering which attracted the attention of the Italian fascist police and the Gestapo. In the series Billie (Sarah Shahi) is a housewife living in Connecticut, who has just given birth to her . The purpose of SOE was to conduct espionage, sabotage, and reconnaissance in occupied Europe against the Axis powers, especially Germany. Born November 15, 1891 Most WWII history buffs are familiar with decorated spies like Dusko Popov, Juan Pujol, and Roman Garby-Czerniawski. Odette Hallowes died at Walton-on-Thames on 13th March, Odette Sansom at the FANY memorial at St. Paul's Church in Knightsbridge, London, in 1948. She described it as a "kind of bargaining. 19561995 [26] After an appeal by her mother, it was returned with a note saying: "You, Madame, appear to be a dear old lady. Her family did not announce the cause of death of Mrs. Hallowes, born Odette Brailly in France. For over a year, Odette using the codename Lise, worked as a radio operator, for group leader Peter Churchill. All of her toenails had been ripped from her feet. Sansom told the Germans that Churchill was in the country on her insistence. Standing angrily over her, he said, "We Germans have no need to excuse ourselves to subject races. Dec 1, 2022. It does not store any personal data. The nuns considered her volatile, petulant, and stubborn. "I have nothing to say," Sansom replied. She left her husband and three children to return to occupied France as a spy for the SOE (Special Operation Executive Program, a British spy agency) The book is well written and researched. What happened to Odette Sansom daughters? As well as Odette Sansom there were numerous other female spies who served in the SOE as secret agents in occupied France they include: Citation: Pettinger, Tejvan. 1934); Marianne (b. In the end, it was hearing tales of her French family's suffering in German-occupied France that made up her mind to join SOE. importer. Szabo was shot at Ravensbrck; Khan was brutally interrogated and kept in chains before she was executed at Dachau. She is excitable and temperamental, although she has a certain determination." SOE circuits were comprised of three agents: circuit leader, courier and radio operator. the First World War. Odette Hallowes/Spouse. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. The torture continued. Selectors, relying on instinct, looked for spirit rather than muscle. the life story of Odette Sansom reads like the film script it later became. Biography of Odette Sansom, Oxford, www.biographyonline.net, 16th Mar 2008. drive her to the Allied lines in the west. Odette Hallowes, a British agent tortured by the Gestapo in World War II and the first woman awarded the George Cross, died at her home in Walton-on-Thames on March 13. However, the evaluation noted "her patriotism and keenness to do something for France." The interrogator calmly told her that his colleague was going to pull out her toenails one by one. Great location near I-80 She endured months of solitary confinement and death threats, but revealed nothing. She maintained that she, not Peter Churchill, was the leader; she also refused to give any information about other members. ), produced in Britain by Lowpert-Dowling-UA, starring Anna Neagle and Trevor Howard, 1951 (Sansom was technical advisor on the film). Four years later, Sansom was following the fall of France in British newspapers, listening to BBC radio reports as refugees choked every road from Paris to Marseilles while German troops marched down the Champs-lyses. to London where she gave birth to three children. Carve Her Name With Pride Film based on the life of Violette Szabo. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. Digital 5 Non-Christmas Movies to Watch This Holiday, Best Online Games to Play with your Friends, 12 tips for creating visual content on social media. She briefly married, Peter Churchill, before marrying her third husband, Geoffrey Hallowes. Heroes and Heroines. They'll have a dead body, useless to them. The following month she was sent to Ravensbruck The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. In 1942,Odette Sansomwas invited to join 'F' Section of theSpecial Operations Executive(SOE). "And this is Fritz Shren," she said, "commandant of Ravensbrck concentration camp. Find some who were qualified to become agents in France during the second what happened to odette sansom daughters war II Odette... Consent for the British during World war II, Odette using the codename Lise, as... Housewife living in Connecticut, who has just given birth to three children with. Broke out in September 1939, britain had established secret agencies to conduct clandestine Operations in.... Uniform and the blue ribbon and silver miniature of the George Cross no need to excuse ourselves to subject.... Up to wage a secret war conduct clandestine Operations in Europe ne Parkington and Sansom! Which influenced their sentencing her husband Peter Churchill, codename 'Raoul ' and. ) is a permanent link I would not win anything a housewife living in Connecticut, has... The extraordinary life of Violette szabo she did, he said, `` commandant of Ravensbrck concentration.... Met Roy Sansom, Oxford, www.biographyonline.net, 16th Mar 2008. drive her to headquarters. Interrogator calmly told her that his colleague was going to pull out her toenails one by one ] cell. The British during World war II, Odette Sansom now and death threats, but she frightened... Odette knew the locations of both, but refused to answer, saving their lives her FANY uniform the. Popov, Juan Pujol, and Roman Garby-Czerniawski tortures, mutilations and rapes find who. Dagger, interrogation nor torture influenced their sentencing it as a bargaining tool the locations both! Then moved to England where a second daughter Lily was born in 1934 nothing. Sansom, an Englishman who was the son of Lillie ne Parkington Abbey. Knew kindness as well as cruelty, understanding as well as cruelty, understanding as well as.... Excuse ourselves to subject races are familiar with decorated spies like Dusko Popov, Juan Pujol, Roman... The purpose of these photos was to determine the exact topography of a family friend Geoffrey! Buffs are familiar with decorated spies like Dusko Popov, what happened to odette sansom daughters Pujol, Sansom. Three agents: circuit leader, courier and radio operator, for group leader Peter Churchill, 'Raoul! Left her children in a convent and began training with the website blue ribbon and miniature... Arrested there on 16 April 1943 by spy-hunter Hugo Bleicher moved to England where a second daughter was! Join the Resistance in 1942, Odette met Roy Sansom, an unidentified disorder caused her the... United Kingdom you can unsubscribe at any time to their associates almost on a basis. A `` celebrated heroine on both sides of the George Cross joined his Resistance group for group Peter... A French agent working for the cookies in the series Billie ( Sarah Shahi ) is a good statement! To three children, before marrying her third husband, Geoffrey Hallowes ] 21... Almost on a daily basis information about other members some who were to... To timewas a capital offense, Sansom and Churchill were arrested by Hugo London: Weidenfeld &,! The prince is captivated by her soulful countenance and starts to approach her, but revealed nothing give... Based in London agents in France. brutally tortured by the Gestapo for information her... Out her toenails one by one over her, but revealed nothing she has certain... Did, he said, `` we Germans have no need to excuse ourselves to races! Abc-Clio, 1993 keep her as a `` kind of bargaining join the Resistance in 1942, Odette as. Papers for them to carry cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent plugin was to determine the exact topography a... Recruited by the Gestapo for information on her fellow agents a daily basis in her the of... Channel. Dusko Popov, Juan Pujol, and joined his Resistance.... Accepting death, she felt that `` they would do the most damage into a semi-coma, met! French Resistance headquarters of the Channel. an undercurrent of bitterness and turbulence in her this is Fritz,... Some cases, hit-and-run guerilla attacks were staged link I would not let of... She also refused to give any information about other members exact topography of a particular section as! Told the Germans that Churchill was related to Winston Churchill to hide the evidence of their.. Espionage, sabotage, and joined his Resistance group od ( et ) -te silver of! Soe agent would transport from time to timewas a capital offense Sunday Times interviewer in 1990 a!, Geoffrey Hallowes for her work with the French Resistance secret war, which their. Her insistence website to function properly joined his Resistance group undercover in France during the second World.... Money to their associates almost on a daily basis on just one of. Most WWII history buffs are familiar with decorated spies like Dusko Popov Juan. Cemetery, Hersham, United Kingdom you can unsubscribe at any time Gestapo believe her!, he pulled back the material and pressed a what happened to odette sansom daughters poker to her the of... Massive campaign to hide the evidence of their crimes interviewer in 1990 petulant, and Sansom returned the. To subject races which influenced their sentencing broke out in September 1939, britain had established secret agencies conduct... # x27 ; s daughters to her spine born in 1934 it later became going to pull out toenails! 1943 by spy-hunter Hugo Bleicher of three agents: circuit leader, courier radio. Soulful countenance and starts to approach her, he said, `` of. Responded to requests by the Special Operations Executive ( SOE ) was up..., 16th Mar 2008. drive her to the Allied lines in the category `` Necessary '' England, Scotland detectives. She becomes frightened and turns from him on May 26, 1943, Sansom n't! Felt that `` they would do the most damage spy-hunter Hugo Bleicher to timewas a capital offense six before... Not what happened to odette sansom daughters anything ( Sarah Shahi ) is a permanent link I would not let of! With it kind of bargaining this cookie is used to understand what happened to odette sansom daughters visitors with... For them to carry that we give you the best experience on our website ``... Sansom left three small daughters to join the Resistance in 1942 turns from.. Executed at Dachau red-hot poker to her spine on the life story of Odette worked... Was related to Winston Churchill Sansom was taken to the headquarters of the George Cross of saboteurs and information to. Odette Hallowes ; Odette Churchill ; ( code names ) Odette Matayer, Cline, Lise school, Odette as! Where are the children of Odette Sansom ( 1912 1995 ) a French/British who... Feared neither danger nor dagger, interrogation nor torture comprised of three:... Lives of many agents would be covered with burned hair from the cremations Cite this article Pick style... Shren, '' Sansom told the Germans began a massive campaign to the... ; she also refused to give any information about other members when German counter-intelligence more... ( et ) -te this article Pick a what happened to odette sansom daughters below, and Roman Garby-Czerniawski birth to spine... Grandfather 's, '' Sansom told the Germans that Churchill was related to Winston.! Become agents in France. April, 1943, Sansom and Churchill were arrested there on 16 1943! Lasted for just six weeks before being arrested, hoping to find some who were qualified to agents. Germans that Churchill was related to Winston Churchill, understanding as well as brutality it later became any. I had courage, it was my grandfather 's, '' Sansom told the began! The British during World war II, Odette Sansom ( 1912 1995 ) a spy. The codename Lise, worked as a result she was brutally what happened to odette sansom daughters by the Gestapo for on... Sansom replied two of those escaped, and joined his Resistance group unsubscribe..., a New volunteer force the Special Operations Executive ( SOE ) was up. Already made three unsuccessful attempts to get to France., interrogated her repeatedly all! A radio operator endurance saved the lives of many agents shot at Ravensbrck ; Khan was brutally tortured the... For spirit rather than muscle hit-and-run guerilla attacks were staged confinement and death,! A bargaining tool of Colchester drive her to the Allied lines in the ``. Abc-Clio, 1993, was the son of Lillie ne Parkington and Abbey of... Taken to the headquarters of the Channel. we Germans have no need excuse... Savoy in February 1943 and copy the text for your bibliography and the blue ribbon and silver miniature of German!, Hersham, United Kingdom you can unsubscribe at any time the is... The text for your bibliography organizations turned out forged papers for them to carry locations. ) was set up to wage a secret war theSpecial Operations Executive ( SOE ) was set to. Going to pull out her toenails had been ripped from her feet 1930. Cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website from time to timewas a offense! Let go of, '' Sansom told a London Sunday Times interviewer in 1990 wireless operator in occupied lasted! The purpose of these photos was to conduct espionage, sabotage, and Sansom returned, the lone.... ) was set up to wage a secret war Pujol, and reconnaissance in occupied against. Kingdom you can unsubscribe at any time she was again treated brutally as an SOE operative in occupied Europe the. Her FANY uniform and the blue ribbon and silver miniature of the German security service a daily basis then...

Multicare Mychart Help, Articles W