White Mouse
Page 23
Perhaps I haven’t achieved what I set out to do over fifty years ago but on the whole I have led an interesting life. Certainly it has seldom been boring.
One thing I have appreciated more than anything else is that the true friends I made over the years remained true friends and to some of them I owe my life. Perhaps I should dedicate this book to all my friends, wherever they may be.
INDEX
‘Albert’ (resistance worker), 179
Alexander, King of Yugoslavia, 6, 7, 8
Allier, the (département), 136, 144, 153, 157
Alsop, John, 138, 139, 140, 142, 148, 150, 151, 152, 154, 183
Anderson, Ron, 93, 94
‘Anselm’ see Bazooka
Armistice Convention, 38
Arnal, Frank, 58, 59, 60, 64
Aurillac, 131–3
Auvergne, the, 114, 120, 123, 130, 131, 134, 137, 157–8, 190; see also Maquis
Bachelor, Raymond, 105, 106, 109–10
Barton, New South Wales, 175–6
Basso’s Bar, Marseille, 42, 45, 46
Bazooka (‘Anselm’, René Dusacq), 121–3, 124, 125, 128, 130, 135, 136, 137, 190
Beaulieu, Hampshire, 108, 109
Beaumont, Jimmy, 91, 92
Besalu gaol, 86–7
Bismark (German ship), 49
black market, 145, 193
Bourges, 133
Braddon, Russell, 196
Briançon, 58, 66, 67, 68
Brion, 134
Brindley, Michael, 196, 199
British Broadcasting Corporation, 119, 136, 148, 190
British Expeditionary Force, 39
Broad, Richard, 102, 103, 104, 119
Buchanan, Graham, 126, 127
Buchenwald, 115, 173
Buckmaster, Colonel, 104, 116, 135, 157, 162
Busch, Commander (‘Xavier’), 43, 47, 51, 52, 54, 59, 60, 63, 64
Caillat, Pepe, 36
Camargue, the, 18, 19, 20
Canet-Plage, 79, 80
Cannes, 6, 29, 49
Carne, Colonel, 178
Carve Her Name With Pride: see Szabo, Violette Castres prison, 76, 78
Châteauroux, 131, 132, 133, 134, 199
Chaudes-Aigues, 116, 117, 118, 122, 123, 124, 126, 127, 129, 197
Chevalier, Maurice, 36
Clarke, Captain, 109
Clermont–Ferrand area, 137
Cole, ‘Paul’ (Sergeant Harold), 50, 199
collaborators, 65, 93, 194, 195
Combined Operations Headquarters, 103
Corrèze, the, 134
Cosne-d’Allier, 114, 138
Dauchau, 63, 81, 159
Darling, Donald, 93, 160
‘Denden’, see Rake, Denis
Deuxième Bureau, 16–17
Dieppe raid by Allies, 55
Digard, Andrée, 30
Digard, Micheline, 30, 31, 47, 95, 96–7, 100, 196
Dowding, Bruce, 47
Dunkirk, 39, 47
Dusacq, René, see Bazooka
Ficetole family, 54–5, 58, 69, 72, 154
Fidelity, HMS, 48
Fiocca, Henri, 26, 27–8, 31–33; army call-up, 37–8; arrest and death, 51; death, 153–4, 155, 158, 196; return to Marseille, 39; mentioned, 45, 47, 50, 52, 54, 55, 56, 59, 60, 61, 63, 64, 65, 67, 68, 69, 72, 73, 74, 80, 89, 100, 112; see also Wake, Nancy
Forward, John, 57, 181; see also Wake, Nancy
Fournier, Henri, 116, 117, 118, 120–22, 123, 124, 125, 126, 127, 129, 197
Fragnes, Château de, 151–4, 199
Franco, General, 28
Françoise, 74, 76, 77, 81
Free French movement, 102, 134, 135; see also Konig, General
Free Zone, 39, 49, 71, 78
Fridfont, 127, 128, 197
Gamelin, General, 39
Gaspard, Colonel, 114, 115, 116, 117, 119, 126, 197; evacuation of Vichy, 153; battle of Mont-Mouchet, 128
Garrow, Ian, 48, 49, 50, 53, 56, 57, 58, 97, 99, 103; escape to England, 62; Mauzac concentration camp, 59, 60, 61, 62, 198
Gaulle de, General, 41, 42, 43, 51, 102, 192
George VI, 165, 173
Germans, 144, 147, 152; migration to Paris, 1933, 4; compulsory labour force (relève), 55, 66, 137; surrender, 155
Gestapo, 4, 72, 143, 158, 197; headquarters, Toulouse, 63
Gohan, Bernard, 81, 82, 83, 86, 87, 89, 163
‘Gonzales, Count’, 15–16, 20, 21–2
Groome, Tom, 62–3, 83, 159
Hampson, Kathleen, 160–61
Hector (SOE agent), 114, 115, 116, 121, 173
Hitler, Adolph, 3, 4, 16, 170–71; panzer divisions, 39
Hodges, Bob (Sir Lewis), 46–7, 99
‘Holy Marys’ (Camargue), 18–19
‘Hubert’ (British army officer), 110, 113, 114, 115, 116, 119, 123, 136, 139, 141; mentioned, 143, 144, 151, 155, 157; evacuation of Vichy, 153; in London, 161–2
Issoudon, 133, 134
Jean (Spanish guide), 84–8
Jepson, Selwyn, 105
Jews, 3, 4, 41, 49, 51, 193
Juan les Pins, 25, 26
Kenny, Micheline see Digard, Micheline
Kenny, Patrick, 199; see also Digard, Micheline
Konig, General, 128
Korean War, 177, 178
Langley, Captain James, 98
Laurent (Maquis leader), 115, 116, 131, 144, 154
Laval, Pierre, 55, 75
Laycock, Sir Robert, 57, 103
Les- Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, 18, 19, 20
Lieutades, 198
London, 1, 17, 30, 101, 107, 113, 125, 136, 152
Los Angeles, 182, 184
Lourdes, 11, 12
Mackenzie, Sir Robert, 169, 170
Maginot Line, 39
Malta, 181
Manual of Combat Survival, 179, 180, 188
Maquis, Maquisards, 55, 114–55; Americans join, 138, 146; battle at Mont Mouchet, 123–4, 127, 128; groups attacked by Germans, 144; losses, 130; Spanish group, 145, 146; see also Alsop, John; Auvergne, the; Bazooka; Clermont–Ferrand; Gaspard, Colonel; Schley, Reve; Wake, Nancy
Marseille, 6–8, 26, 31, 32, 33, 35–6, 71; Fort Saint-Jean, 45, 48, 197; Fort Saint-Nicholas, 53, 56, 197; Hotel du Louvre et Paix, 7, 9, 28, 31, 45, 53, 154; post-war, 197; Vieux Port, 7, 197; see also Wake, Nancy; World War II
Marshall, Ian, 169
Martinez, Hotel, Cannes, 35
Mason, James, 187
Mauzac, 53, 58, 59, 60, 62, 63
Merode, Prince de, 80
Mers-el-Kebir, 41
Milice, 40, 71, 76, 132, 143, 146, 147, 193
Montluçon, 114, 121, 122, 133, 135, 148, 149, 150, 151, 198; evacuation by Germans, 153
Mont-Mouchet, 120, 121; attacked by Germans, 123; Resistance monument, 198
Mountbatten, Lord Louis, 103
Nazis, 3, 4, 143, 177, 193, 195
Negre, Gaston, 77, 79
Nice, 54, 82–3, 196–7
Occupation of France, 39, 42–3
Occupied Zone, 38, 102
O’Leary, Patrick, 48, 50, 53, 56, 57, 59, 62, 63, 73, 74–6, 160; arrest, 82, 121; reports on ‘Albert’, 179; sent to Dachau, 81; travels with Nancy, 78–80; visited by Nancy in Paris, 159
parachute drops, 77, 124, 127, 136, 138, 146, 152, 198
Paris, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 11, 18, 29; liberated, 152–3, 155; see also Wake, Nancy
Passport Control Office, Paris, 169
Passy, Colonel, 102
Pearl Harbor, 53
Perpignan, 73, 78, 79, 82, 83
Pétain, Marshall, 38, 40, 42, 52, 192
Peuleve, Harry, 162
Picon, 5, 6, 31, 49, 58, 73, 83, 154, 170, 186
Pilar (Spanish guide), 84–8
Prague, 170–73, 179
Puy-de-Dome, 115, 133, 144
Pyrenees, 39, 73, 76, 83, 84, 95; see also O’Leary, Patrick; Wake, Nancy
Rake, Denis (‘Denden’), 104, 117, 118, 119, 123, 125, 127, 128, 130, 133, 136, 139, 140, 141, 144, 146, 148, 155, 1
57, 162, 163, 175; posted to British Embassy, Paris, 169
Rapley (British Vice-Consul, Gerona), 88
Ravensbruck, 111
Red Cross, 57, 178
refugees, 12, 38; see also German migration to Paris
relève: see Germans, compulsory labor force
Renard, Madame, 121–2, 152, 153
Resistance Movement, 37, 40, 43, 44, 47, 51, 57, 65, 72, 73, 191; German attitude, 121; major role in liberation, 195; see also Busch, Commander; Dowding, Bruce; Maquis; Milice; Special Operations Executive
Reynaud, Paul, 38
Roger (Marine wireless operator), 137, 139, 145, 147
Roger the Légionnaire (French agent of Gestapo), 81, 83, 121
Rommel, Frau, 180
Sablon, Jean, 10
Sainson, Madame, 82, 83, 84, 196–7, 198–9
Saint-Amand, 133
Saint-Hilaire, 149
Saint-Martial, 124, 128, 197
Saint-Santin, 129, 130, 131, 132, 135, 136, 199
Saint-Tropez, 29
Schley, Reeve, 138–42, 147, 150, 151, 183
Scotland, 98, 103–5
Service d’ordre de la Légion, 40
SOE see Special Operations Executive
Spain/Spaniards, 11, 16, 153; see also Maquis, the
Spanish Civil War, 17, 21, 26, 28, 143, 145
Special Operations Executive (SOE), vii, 103, 104, 116, 134, 151, 157, 162, 173
Stavisky scandals (1933), 27
Stephanie, 5, 8, 9, 10, 17, 18, 19, 20, 29, 51–2, 199; attempted suicide, 21; family in Yugoslavia, 13–15; post-war, 155; see also ‘Gonzales, Count’
Stump, Al, 186
Szabo, Violette, 111
Sydney, 1, 175, 199
Tarbes, 11, 12, 15, 16
Tardivat, Henri, 136, 137, 141, 145, 146, 148, 149, 163, 198, 199; joins Army after Liberation, 155; leg amputated, 173
torture, 142, 143, 158, 177, 178–9
Toulon, 49, 62, 69
Toulouse, 73, 77, 80
Treacy, Paddy, 74
Tronçais, Fôret de, 141
Truyère River, 129, 197
United Nations Prisoner of War Reports, 177
Unoccupied Zone, 63; Germans enter, 61
Vellat, Dr Pierre, 154, 155
Veterans Legion, France, 40
Vichy, 144, 153; monument to war dead, 199; police, 72, 75
Vichy Government, 48, 192
Vienna, 4, 5, 12
Wake, Nancy: leaves Australia, 1; life in Paris, 1930s, 3–5, 6, 10–11, 12, 15–16; 20–22; 26–8, 29–30; visits Vienna, 4, 5, 12; visits Yugoslavia, 13–15; marries Henri Fiocca, 31–3; life in Marseille, 35–6, 52; chalet in Nevache, 52, 54, 58; drives ambulance, 38; travels as courier for Resistance, 49, 51, 60, 63, 64–6; as ‘White Mouse’, 63, 68–9, 72; escapes from France to London: arrest in Toulouse, 11, 73–4; crosses Pyrenees, 76–85; in Spain, 85–93; voyage from Gibraltar, 93–7; arrives in London, 98; trains for SOE, 103–13; parachutes into France, vi, 114; works with Maquis as SOE agent, 114–55; code names, 87, 113, 128; death of Henri Fiocca, 154, 155, 158, 199; tours France with Col. Buckmaster, 157–8; returns to Paris for victory celebrations, 162–3; in Victory Parade, London, 164; at British Embassy, Paris, 169; posted to Prague, 170–73; returns to Sydney post-war, 175; joins Liberal Party of NSW, 175–6; contests Federal seat of Barton, 175–6; returns to England (1951), 176; works at Air Ministry, London, 176–81; granted Indulgence Pass, RAF, 179; joins WRAF, 181; marriage to John Forward, 181; publication of Russell Braddon book, 181; lives in Malta, 181; experiences of filmmakers, 183–90; returns to Auvergne (1980), 190; returns to scenes of wartime France (1984), 197, 200
Walker, Captain, 109, 110
war cemeteries, Libya, Tobruk, 180
Wood, Moya, 196, 197, 199
Wellington, New Zealand, 1, 32
Weygand, General, 39
‘White Mouse’ see Wake, Nancy
Wilkins, Leslie (Wilkie), 46, 99
World War II, 30, 31, 35, 180; British attack on French fleet, 40–41; collapse of French army, 38; German Occupation, France, 39; see also Dunkirk
‘Xavier’ see Busch, Commander
Ygrande, 136, 137, 138
R.M. Williams with Olaf Ruhen
Beneath Whose Hand
He left home in his teens and went bush. For months he trekked through the desert and ranges of Central Australia as the camel-man of a two-man expedition. He then worked as a drover.
The sale of a handmade pack-saddle to Sir Sidney Kidman for five pounds was the beginning of a business which grew rapidly. Soon bushmen from all over Australia were sending ‘cash with order’ for R.M.’s elastic-sided boots and other products. The mail-order business made him wealthy and positioned him as a household name throughout the bush.
Always restless and enterprising, R.M. has never been content just to be a businessman. The bush is his greatest love, and throughout his life he has remained as close to it as possible, droving, running cattle-stations, and breeding and training horses. From gold-mining in the Northern Territory, to tea-planting in the New Guinea Highlands, publishing poetry and establishing the Stockman’s Hall of Fame, R.M. Williams has earned his place as a hero of the Australian bush.
R.M. WILLIAMS, bushman, grazier, businessman, folk hero, raconteur – in fact one of the great legends of our time. This is his story.
‘. . . a great Australian in a manner all his own . . . I cannot begin to describe the fascination of this book. It is different. Biographies of Australians who have made their marks . . . proliferate. Not one of them I have read paints a picture of a man so vital, of so many parts, as R.M. Williams.’
COURIER MAIL
Sara Henderson
From Strength to Strength
Sara Henderson’s bestselling autobiography has touched the hearts of thousands of people all over Australia. As tough, spirited, warm and funny as the woman herself, From Strength to Strength is the inspirational story of one woman’s extraordinary courage and determination.
In 1959 Sara met American war hero and shipping magnate, Charles Henderson III, and so began what she calls the world’s most demanding, humiliating and challenging obstacle course any human could be expected to endure.
Three years after their marriage, Charles presented Sara with her new home – a tin shack in a million acres of red dust. Bullo River. After twenty years of back-breaking work on this remote Northern Australian cattle station, Charlie’s death revealed that Sara had not only been left with a floundering property, but also with a heart-breaking mountain of debt.
With very little to lose, Sara and her daughters Marlee and Danielle, took up the challenge of rebuilding Bullo River . . . with such tremendous results that in 1991 Sara was named the Bulletin/Qantas Businesswoman of the Year.
‘Everyone has a book in them, they say, but not everyone has the kind of story Sara Henderson tells, and tells well.’
THE BULLETIN
Janine Shepherd
Never Tell Me Never
‘Nurse, let’s get moving. What’s her current status?’
‘I can’t find a pulse . . . Hang on. I’ll see what her blood pressure is . . . No luck, I still can’t find it!’
‘Come on, let me try. It’s dropped, it’s 40 over nothing! We’ve got to get her out of here. Phone Intensive Care and tell them we’ve got a hot one!’
On an afternoon bike ride in the Blue Mountains Janine Shepherd’s life was altered irrevocably. When the champion cross-country skier in training for the Winter Olympics was hit by a truck, doctors warned her parents that she was not expected to survive her ordeal. The bleeding alone was enough to kill her. Even if by some small chance she recovered, she would never walk again.
Coming to terms with her shattered Olympic dreams, refusing to believe what expert medical staff were telling her about her chances of any kind of recovery, Janine focused every sinew of her being on healing her broken body and crushed morale.
Her fighting spi
rit was rekindled watching small planes flying overhead. She said to herself, ‘If I can’t walk, I’ll fly’. And fly she did. Within a year she had her private pilot’s licence; twelve months later, her commercial licence; then her instructor’s permit. Never Tell Me Never is her story, a testament to the power of the human spirit, and one that will move and inspire all who read it.
‘The ultimate in dedication, achievement, determination, accomplishment . . . A celebration of life.’
SARA HENDERSON