Page 130 - JSOM Fall 2019

Female Special Forces Agents in World War II Europe

D-Day at 75

Reviews by COL (Ret) Warner “Rocky” D. Farr

ultiple books have been released lately on the 75th anniversary of D-Day. The OSS and SOE commit-
role of the women agents and team members of ted increasing assets to France and to the Maquisards
MAllied Special Forces in World War II. Many of prior to D-Day, and many Operatives did not return. In
the books, but not all, are in conjunction with the current the SOE alone, 470 were inserted and 117 were killed.

Rose S. D-Day Girls. The Spies Who Armed the Resistance, Purnell S. A Woman of No Importance. The Untold Story of
Sabotaged the Nazis, and Helped Win World War II. New the American Spy Who Helped Win World War II. New York:
York: Crown; 2019. ISBN 978-0-451-49508-2. Viking Press; 2019. ISBN 978-0-7352-2529-9.
The author covers three top Special The most highly decorated Ameri-
Forces (SOE) Operatives in occupied can (OSS) agent was Virginia Hall,
France: Andrée Borrel (ultimately Croix de Guerre, MBE, who received
killed by the Nazis in a concentration an American Distinguished Service
camp), Odette Sansom (who received Cross for extraordinary heroism. She
the British Empire’s highest civil- was the most highly decorated civil-
ian award for gallantry), and Lise ian in World War II and was one of
de Baissac (a bicycle courier for the the very few female OSS agents to
maquis). have a successful postwar CIA ca-
reer. Having lost a leg before the war,
she parachuted into France with her
wooden leg named “Cuthbert.” A fa-
mous portrait of her sending code hangs in both the Langley
CIA HQ and the Special Force Club in London. New CIA
Loftis L. Code Name: Lise. The True Story of the Woman recruits are now trained in the Virginia Hall Expeditionary
Who Became WWII’s Most Highly Decorated Spy. New York: Center.
Gallery Books; 2019. ISBN 1-5011-9865-6.
A full-length book on the exploits of
Odette Sansom, of the SOE, includ- Stevenson WS. Spymistress. The True Story of the Great-
ing her imprisonment and torture in est Female Secret Agent of World War II. New York: Arcade
Ravensbruck concentration camp. Publishing; 2007. ISBN 978-1-61145-231-0.
She was the most highly decorated Vera Adkins handpicked, trained,
British agent in World War II, receiv- and personally inserted agents into
ing the George Cross and the French France. She was supposedly the in-
Legion of Honour. spiration for Ian Fleming to create
the “Moneypenny” character in his
007 novels. He worked down the
hall from her at the SOE Baker Street
headquarters.

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