Nancy Wake (code name, Hélène) was the most decorated Allied servicewoman of WWII. She parachuted into France to assist the Resistance, and was known as “The White Mouse” by the Gestapo for her ability to evade capture, 1940s
Nancy Wake (code name, Hélène) was the most decorated Allied servicewoman of WWII. She parachuted into France to assist the Resistance, and was known as “The White Mouse” by the Gestapo for her ability to evade capture, 1940s
this woman had main character energy before it trended
Daflehrer1 on
Many of my students, especially girls, did reports of her through my years teaching. Nancy Wake, AC, GM, is a true hero. She is worth reading about.
sugarsaltsilicon on
Is she in shorts? Damn.
CelesteVine_ on
Absolute legend. She didn’t just fight, she outsmarted an entire regime.
goteamnick on
An Australian hero
AnalFanatics on
A New Zealand born, Australian raised hero of the highest order, who was lauded and revered by millions of people in multiple nations.
Her autobiographical book *”The White Mouse”* (the code name given to her by the Nazis) is well worth the read if you can find a copy.
Nancy Wake is truly one of the greatest female warriors in known history, and as such, she is as deserving of as much recognition and respect as the likes of Boudicca, Joan of Ark and Rani Durgavati…
SunTypical5571 on
So impressive. This also takes me back to those glorious days when being against fascism wasn’t condemned by Western governments.
BadgerlandBandit on
I thought this was Dewey from Malcom in the Middle at first.
TimeReduxion on
Why hasn’t her story been told in a movie yet?!?
Jindabyne1 on
She looks like Greta Thunberg
GetsMeEveryTimeBot on
Lived to age 98.
The_Great_Googly_Moo on
She looks like a wes Anderson character
Shawon770 on
Badass. Definitely gonna google the shit outta this woman.
mathliability on
My absolute favorite tidbit about her:
After her second husband died in the 90’s, she sold her medals to fund herself, saying, “There was no point in keeping them, I’ll probably go to hell and they’d melt anyway.”
Inside_Ad_7162 on
She was a Kiwi born in New Zealand & grew up in Australia, she married a French man & was living in Marseille in France when it was invaded.
She became a courier for the Pat O’Leary escape line. This was created by a British officer called Ian Garrow. He’d been stranded at Dunkirk, managed to make his way to Marseille on foot, (if you’re not good at geography, they’re pretty much opposite sides of France). Rather than go on to “neutral” spain, he created an escape line getting British airmen to Spain.
In 43 the Germans became aware of her, so she escaped yo Spain, made her way to England & joined the SOE that the cia was modelled on. Her husband was executed.
In 44 she parachuted into France, part of a 3 man team &, amongst other things, took part in the battle between German & Marquis forces. The marquis lost & she bicycled 500km to give a situation report to SOE.
She was the recipient of the George Medal from the United Kingdom (17 July 1945), the Medal of Freedom from the United States (1947), the Légion d’honneur from France (1970: Knight; 1988: Officer), a Companion of the Order of Australia from Australia (22 February 2004), and the Badge in Gold from New Zealand (2006).
The official historian of the SOE, M. R. D. Foot, said that “her irrepressible, infectious, high spirits were a joy to everyone who worked with her.”
Jack-Tar-Says on
I remember seeing her in an interview and she spoke of the time they captured a female spy, who had infiltrated their, I think “Maquis” resistance group. The spy was given a sentence of death, but none of the men would do it as she was a woman.
Nancy called the men pathetic and executed the female spy herself.
She was a force to be reckoned with. She also lost her husband to the Nazi’s and she knew to save him would be to jeopardize the resistance group she was part of, so she had to let him be taken.
Tough woman. A Kiwi, an Australian, and Hero of France.
17 Comments
Baller
this woman had main character energy before it trended
Many of my students, especially girls, did reports of her through my years teaching. Nancy Wake, AC, GM, is a true hero. She is worth reading about.
Is she in shorts? Damn.
Absolute legend. She didn’t just fight, she outsmarted an entire regime.
An Australian hero
A New Zealand born, Australian raised hero of the highest order, who was lauded and revered by millions of people in multiple nations.
Her autobiographical book *”The White Mouse”* (the code name given to her by the Nazis) is well worth the read if you can find a copy.
Nancy Wake is truly one of the greatest female warriors in known history, and as such, she is as deserving of as much recognition and respect as the likes of Boudicca, Joan of Ark and Rani Durgavati…
So impressive. This also takes me back to those glorious days when being against fascism wasn’t condemned by Western governments.
I thought this was Dewey from Malcom in the Middle at first.
Why hasn’t her story been told in a movie yet?!?
She looks like Greta Thunberg
Lived to age 98.
She looks like a wes Anderson character
Badass. Definitely gonna google the shit outta this woman.
My absolute favorite tidbit about her:
After her second husband died in the 90’s, she sold her medals to fund herself, saying, “There was no point in keeping them, I’ll probably go to hell and they’d melt anyway.”
She was a Kiwi born in New Zealand & grew up in Australia, she married a French man & was living in Marseille in France when it was invaded.
She became a courier for the Pat O’Leary escape line. This was created by a British officer called Ian Garrow. He’d been stranded at Dunkirk, managed to make his way to Marseille on foot, (if you’re not good at geography, they’re pretty much opposite sides of France). Rather than go on to “neutral” spain, he created an escape line getting British airmen to Spain.
In 43 the Germans became aware of her, so she escaped yo Spain, made her way to England & joined the SOE that the cia was modelled on. Her husband was executed.
In 44 she parachuted into France, part of a 3 man team &, amongst other things, took part in the battle between German & Marquis forces. The marquis lost & she bicycled 500km to give a situation report to SOE.
She was the recipient of the George Medal from the United Kingdom (17 July 1945), the Medal of Freedom from the United States (1947), the Légion d’honneur from France (1970: Knight; 1988: Officer), a Companion of the Order of Australia from Australia (22 February 2004), and the Badge in Gold from New Zealand (2006).
The official historian of the SOE, M. R. D. Foot, said that “her irrepressible, infectious, high spirits were a joy to everyone who worked with her.”
I remember seeing her in an interview and she spoke of the time they captured a female spy, who had infiltrated their, I think “Maquis” resistance group. The spy was given a sentence of death, but none of the men would do it as she was a woman.
Nancy called the men pathetic and executed the female spy herself.
She was a force to be reckoned with. She also lost her husband to the Nazi’s and she knew to save him would be to jeopardize the resistance group she was part of, so she had to let him be taken.
Tough woman. A Kiwi, an Australian, and Hero of France.