I live in Cheshire in the North of England and I have compiled a number of biographies of Agents of the French Section of the Special Operations Executive,who were captured and executed by the Nazis during the Second World War.
If you have come to this site to compile details of your family tree and this does include members of the Special Operations Executive.
If you wish to know more about the work of S.O.E the book by M.R.D. Foot - The Special Operations Executive can be obtained from many libraries in any major town or any University.
If you are tracing your family tree and you have information passed down from family members, concerning a relative being an active member of a Maquis group - or linked to one of the S.O.E. networks. Please note unless your family member joined S.O.E. and was trained in England, records would exist,if not trained in England no-record would exist for this person. Many recruits joined an S.O.E. network and were trained in the field and did use an 'alias'- the work involved was very dangerous carrying messages and equipment to other groups.
When captured many of these brave young men and women gave the alias as their real name. After brutal interrogation by the Gestapo. Many were then executed and buried in nearby woods,in mass graves, some were transported to concentration camps and executed upon arrival,their bodies then placed in the crematorium furnace, and their ashes scattered with other concentration camp prisoners
Because of this procedure being enforced by the nazis-it is not possible to trace numerous people,who died at the hands of the Germans.
Many young men were also deported for forced labour in Germany and were worked to exhaustion, often in the underground factories.When they died were placed in a mass grave.
Many families in France never saw the young male members again, who were sent to Germany for forced labour.
There are many Memorials throughout France which bear the inscription...Who Died For France....a list of names will follow, if the name of a friend or relative is included on the monument...you can enquire at the offices..of The Mayor of the Town, who will probably have information, why that person's name was entered on the Memorial.
PHOTOS ON MEMORIALS: By My Photo Editor Eileen Dwyer.
S.O.E.AGENTS:
Madeleine Barclay.
Andree Borrel
Anthony Brooks.
Maurice Buckmaster.
Muriel Byck.
Francis Cammerts.
Peter Churchill.
Yvonne Cormeau.
Madeleine Damerment.
Claude de Baissac.
Lise de Baissac.
Marcel Defence.
Granlund Sverre.
Mary Katherine Herbert.
Vera Leigh.
Jacqueline Nearne
Sonya Olschanezk.
Elaine Plewman.
Adolphe Rabinovitch.
Lilian Rolfe.
Diana Rowden.
Yvonne Rudellat.
Romeo Sabourin.
George Starr.
Brian Stonehouse.
Francis Suttill.

I live in Cheshire in the North of England and I have compiled a number of biographies of Agents of the French Section of the Special Operations Executive,who were captured and executed by the Nazis during the Second World War.
If you have come to this site to compile details of your family tree and this does include members of the Special Operations Executive.
If you wish to know more about the work of S.O.E the book by M.R.D. Foot - The Special Operations Executive can be obtained from many libraries in any major town or any University.
If you are tracing your family tree and you have information passed down from family members, concerning a relative being an active member of a Maquis group - or linked to one of the S.O.E. networks. Please note unless your family member joined S.O.E. and was trained in England, records would exist,if not trained in England no-record would exist for this person. Many recruits joined an S.O.E. network and were trained in the field and did use an 'alias'- the work involved was very dangerous carrying messages and equipment to other groups.
When captured many of these brave young men and women gave the alias as their real name. After brutal interrogation by the Gestapo. Many were then executed and buried in nearby woods,in mass graves, some were transported to concentration camps and executed upon arrival,their bodies then placed in the crematorium furnace, and their ashes scattered with other concentration camp prisoners
Because of this procedure being enforced by the nazis-it is not possible to trace numerous people,who died at the hands of the Germans.
Many young men were also deported for forced labour in Germany and were worked to exhaustion, often in the underground factories.When they died were placed in a mass grave.
Many families in France never saw the young male members again, who were sent to Germany for forced labour.
There are many Memorials throughout France which bear the inscription...Who Died For France....a list of names will follow, if the name of a friend or relative is included on the monument...you can enquire at the offices..of The Mayor of the Town, who will probably have information, why that person's name was entered on the Memorial.
PHOTOS ON MEMORIALS: By My Photo Editor Eileen Dwyer.
S.O.E.AGENTS:
Madeleine Barclay.
Andree Borrel
Anthony Brooks.
Maurice Buckmaster.
Muriel Byck.
Francis Cammerts.
Peter Churchill.
Yvonne Cormeau.
Madeleine Damerment.
Claude de Baissac.
Lise de Baissac.
Marcel Defence.
Granlund Sverre.
Mary Katherine Herbert.
Vera Leigh.
Jacqueline Nearne
Sonya Olschanezk.
Elaine Plewman.
Adolphe Rabinovitch.
Lilian Rolfe.
Diana Rowden.
Yvonne Rudellat.
Romeo Sabourin.
George Starr.
Brian Stonehouse.
Francis Suttill.