Rolfe, Lilian Vera

Lilian Vera Rolfe - member of the RAF, SOE and the French resistance

(1914-1945)


She was born 26. April 1914 in Paris, as one of the twins. Her father was an Englishman who worked in Paris as an accountant for a british company. Although Lilian grew up in Paris, often to visit my grandparents near London. When she was sixteen, sent the company her father in Brazil and so the family again moved. In Brazil Lilian finished school and started working at the british embassy in Rio de Janeiro.

At the beginning of the war went to London, where in 1943 joined the auxiliary forces of the air force – WAAF. For the perfect French was assigned to the the Headquarters of the special operations – SOE, you were trained as a radiotelegrafistka-rozvědčík. 5. April 1944 was Lilian Rolfeová planted in France near the town of Orleáns, where the operated a resistance group maquistů. Follow up with them the connection and forwarded to London important information for the preparation of the allied the invasion to France. Along with members of the local resistance has participated in a number of sabotage actions against the occupiers, and with weapons in their hands helped to defuse the Germans in the city of Olivet south of Orleánsu.

After the invasion the Allies in Normandy heightened gestapo the hunt for the resistance and turned out the commander of a group, whose member was also Lillian. She still continued in his dangerous job to to 31. July 1944, when it gestapáci arrived in Nargis. Was imprisoned in Fresnes – paris vyšetřovně gestapa and subjected to interrogations and torture. Neprozradila nothing about his mission, nor the other members of the resistance group, and in August 1944 was sent to a concentration camp Hotel. 5. February 1945, was executed along with Denise Bloch, Cecily Letory and Violettou Szabo.

In the English city of Surrey is today its memorial. The French government her posthumously awarded the Croix de Guerre and in the town of Montargis, where a war was fought, bears her name of the street. In the town of Valencay on the memorials for the heroines of SOE, which lay life for the freedom of France is located in the charter of honor her name..