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Nancy Wake (1912-2011) by Wu Wenjie & Kayson Wang

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Nancy Wake (1912-2011) by Wu Wenjie & Kayson Wang Personality Profi le 78 Nancy Wake (1912-2011) by Wu WenJie & Kayson Wang INTRODUCTION then London where she trained herself as a journalist. In the Nancy Wake was a prominent 1930s, she settled in Paris and figure in the maquis, the French worked for the Hearst newspapers Resistance during World War Two as a European correspondent. She (WWII), and one of the Allies' witnessed the rise of Adolf Hitler most decorated servicewomen of and the Nazi movement and the war. She played an important "saw roving Nazi gangs randomly role in WWII, serving as a British beating Jewish men and women in Special Operations Executive the streets" of Vienna.2 (SOE) agent. WORLD WAR TWO EARLY LIFE As the 1930s progressed, the Nancy Grace Augusta Wake, rise of German Fascism formed also known as Nancy Wake, was the basis of many of Wake's born in Roseneath, Wellington, stories. In 1935, she visited New Zealand, on 30th August, Vienna and Berlin where the 1912. Wake’s father, Charles overt and violent anti-Semitism Augustus Wake, was a journalist and due to his career, the family movement formed in her a desire had to move to North Sydney, to oppose Nazism. In 1937, Wake Australia in 1914. However, her met wealthy French industrialist father returned to New Zealand, Henri Edmond Fiocca, whom she th leaving her mother, Ella Wake to married on 30 November, 1939, raise the children.1 in Marseilles. Six months later, Germany invaded France. Wake In Sydney, she attended the and Fiocca joined the fledgling North Sydney Household Arts Resistance movement after (Home Science) School. At the France's surrender in 1940. age of 16, she ran away from home and worked as a nurse. After the fall of France in After Wake turned 20, with £200 1940, Wake became a courier for that she had inherited from an the French Resistance and later aunt, she journeyed to New York, joined the escape network of POINTER, JOURNAL OF THE SINGAPORE ARMED FORCES VOL.42 NO.2 78-82_PP NancyWake.indd 78 14/6/16 4:13 PM Personality Profile 79 Captain Ian Garrow. In a reference Toulouse but was released four "A little powder and a little drink to Wake's ability to elude capture, days later. An acquaintance on the way, and I'd pass their the Gestapo called her the White managed to have her released (German) posts and wink and Mouse. The Resistance exercised by making up stories about say, “Do you want to search me?” caution with her missions; her her supposed infidelity to her Wake made use of her natural life was in constant danger, with husband. She succeeded, on her advantage as a woman and her the Gestapo tapping her phone sixth attempt, in crossing the charm to bypass many obstacles and intercepting her mail. Pyrenees to Spain. Until the war that a lot of men couldn’t, which ended, she was unaware of her made her a very a capable agent.6 In November 1942, Wehrmacht husband's death and subsequently troops occupied the southern blamed herself for it. On the night of 30th April, part of France after the Allies' 1944, when Wake was 31, she was Operation Torch had started. This Wake found her way to England among 39 women and 430 men gave the Gestapo unrestricted and was accepted for training by who were parachuted into France access to all papers of the the British Special Operations to help with preparations for Vichy régime and made life more Execuitive (SOE), an intelligence D-Day. Wake was parachuted into dangerous for Wake. In the war, group working with the French the Auvergne, becoming a liaison she was credited with saving Resistance. Her colleague, Vera between London and the local the lives of hundreds of Allied Atkins, who also worked in maquis group headed by Captain soldiers and downed airmen the SOE, recalls her as a “real Henri Tardivat in the Forest between 1940 and 1943 by Australian Bombshell.”3 Wake of Tronçais. Upon discovering escorting them through occupied was known for her tremendous her tangled in a tree, Captain France to safety in Spain. vitality and immense fighting Tardivat greeted her remarking, spirit. Training reports record "I hope that all the trees in Her growing involvement in that she was "a very good and France bear such beautiful fruit the Resistance saw Wake and her fast shot," possessed excellent this year," to which Wake replied husband assisting in the escape field craft and was noted to with a firm tone, "Don't give me of Allied servicemen and Jewish have "put the men to shame by that French crap."7 refugees from France into neutral her cheerful spirit and strength Spain. By 1943, Wake was the of character."4 After her training, Wake’s duties included Gestapo's most wanted person, Wake became a courier and then allocating arms and equipment with a 5 million-franc price on an escort for Allied soldiers and that were parachuted in and her head. When her network was refugees trying to leave the minding the group's finances. betrayed that same year, she country. “It was much easier for Wake became instrumental in decided to flee Marseilles. Her us, you know, to travel all over recruiting more members and husband, Henri Fiocca, stayed France,” she told an interviewer making the maquis groups into a behind; he was later captured, for Australian television. “A formidable force, roughly 7,500 tortured and executed by the woman could get out of a lot of strong. She also led attacks on Gestapo. In her attempt to trouble that a man could not.”5 German installations and the flee, Wake had been arrested in Wake once described her tactics: local Gestapo HQ in Montluçon. POINTER, JOURNAL OF THE SINGAPORE ARMED FORCES VOL.42 NO.2 POINTER, JOURNAL OF THE SINGAPORE ARMED FORCES VOL.42 NO.2 78-82_PP NancyWake.indd 79 14/6/16 4:13 PM Personality Profile 80 At one point, Wake discovered 100 themselves. Her French had tortured her husband to death that her men were protecting a companions, especially Henri in 1943 for refusing to disclose girl who was a German spy. They Tardivat, praised her fighting her whereabouts. In September did not have the heart to kill spirit, amply demonstrated when 1944, Wake left the Resistance her in cold blood, but Wake did. she killed an SS sentry with her and went to SOE Headquarters After the war, Wake said that it bare hands to prevent him from in Paris, and then to London was war, and she had no regrets raising the alarm during a raid. in mid-October. Shortly after, 8 about the incident. Throughout After a period of training, Wake she worked for the Intelligence the war, Wake helped establish returned to France in April 1944 Department at the British Air communication lines between the to help organise the Resistance Ministry attached to embassies British military and the French before D-Day. Working in the in Paris and Prague. Resistance that were deemed Auvergne region, Wake was crucial to weakening German engaged in organising parachute Not long after, Wake returned strength in France in advance of drops of arms and equipment, to Australia and stood as a Liberal the Allied invasion. and after D-Day, was involved in candidate in the 1949 Australian combat with bodies of German Federal election for the Sydney Once Wake was on a mission troops sent to destroy the Maquis. seat of Barton, running against Dr. to replace codes her wireless Herbert Evatt, then Deputy Prime operator had been forced to During a 1990s television Minister, Attorney-General and destroy in a German raid. She interview, when asked what had Minister for External Affairs in the rode a bicycle for more than happened to the sentry who Ben Chifley Labour government. 500 kilometres through several spotted her, Wake simply drew her German checkpoints. During a While Chifley lost the government finger across her throat. "They'd German attack on another maquis to Robert Menzies, Wake recorded a taught this judo-chop stuff with group, Wake, along with two 13% swing against Evatt, with Evatt the flat of the hand at SOE, and I American officers, took command retaining the seat with 53.2% of practised away at it. But this was of a section whose leader had the vote on a two-party preferred the only time I used it—whack— been killed. She directed the basis. Wake ran against Evatt again and it killed him all right. I was use of suppressive fire, which at the 1951 federal election. By really surprised."9 facilitated the group's withdrawal this time, Evatt was Deputy Leader without further losses. of the Opposition. The result was AFTER THE WAR extremely close. However, Evatt From April 1944 until the Immediately after the war, retained the seat with a margin of liberation of France, her 7,000+ Wake was awarded the George fewer than 250 votes. maquisards fought 22,000 Medal, the United States Medal Schutzstaffel soldiers (SS), a of Freedom, the Médaille de la Wake left Australia just major paramilitary organisation Résistance, and thrice the Croix after the 1951 election and under Adolf Hitler, causing 1,400 de Guerre. Upon liberation, Wake moved back to England. She casualties, while suffering only finally learned that the Gestapo worked as an intelligence POINTER, JOURNAL OF THE SINGAPORE ARMED FORCES VOL.42 NO.2 78-82_PP NancyWake.indd 80 14/6/16 4:13 PM Personality Profile 81 officer in the department of the British and American forces club admitted with a chest infection.
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