Spies posing as journalists is not new in espionage especially in first-world countries where political and economic information is desired, but it still works — at least for awhile. …
Ayla, a young Jewish woman, walked for miles in the middle of the night through mountainous regions with snowdrifts and freezing temperatures toward the German front.
Nearing the front with its …
Although settling in the English countryside with three children and a husband, Ursula Kuczynski was a deep spy and colonel in the Red Army with a transmitter in her Cotswold outhouse.
The …
In 1944, Aline Griffith was sent to Spain by the OSS to search out Nazi sympathisers. She infiltrated Spanish society through high profile soirées and nightclubs.
Post WW 2, it was unusual for …
Before the CIA had women at the helm, a philanthropist and abolitionist, Elizabeth Van Lew (1818-1900), ran an underground spy network called the “Richmond Underground” which included clerks in the …
In 1918 when women were not considered as serious war correspondents, Marguerite Harrison, a journalist, linguist and adventurer turned to the U.S. Army Military Intelligence asking if she could …
Even prior to WW 2, Elizebeth Smith Friedman was indispensable to the U.S. government because of her unique perspective on patterns and language rhythms. At a time when the FBI was in its infancy and …
By 1944 and as the Nazis became more astute at discovering Allied male agents, the US Office of Strategic Services (OSS) working in France began using women from the Free French Intelligence …
A powerful espionage agent from the WW 2 era, Lidia Menapace, who fought Fascists in Italy died in December 2020 at the age of 96 from Covid-19.
Lidia Menapace , photo by dumplife (Mihai …
Recently, I attended a virtual Smithsonian Institute seminar created by the American Women’s History Initiative called, Female Spies of World War II given by two CIA men. These presenters reviewed …
On her wedding day Liliana discovered that she was not only saying yes to marriage, but also to the perilous work of a wireless operator in one of the first resistance cells in France.
Speaking 5 …
Women made excellent spies in WW 2 partly because of western gendered projections about them not being astute, strategic or creative enough to be a threat. Stereotypically, women were believed to be …
When mandatory spying, like mandatory military training is imposed on a country’s citizens, it has a direct impact on foreign countries and potentially the balance of power in the world. This …
To do their job well, code breakers usually have different ways of perceiving and solving puzzles than most of us. The UK’s Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) is consistently looking …
Some western countries are being flooded by short and long-term spies who are planted by their enemies into the political and technological fabric of a country. These women and men are astute, have …
Richard Moore, the new head of the UK’s SIS, the Secret Intelligence Service, has put out a call for those with disabilities to join the intelligence community. He is broadening the diversity of …
From this article in the local Bowen Island newspaper, to listeners around the world. It’s gratifying to see the genuine and cross-cultural interest and enthusiasm in these women’s brave war …
What is it about secrets and spying that holds such interest, curiosity and energy for us? And, why were these women agents, who were living ordinary lives pre-war, exhilarated by …
A Call to Spy, releasing this week, is a movie about three Special Operations Executive (SOE) women agents in WW 2 who were initially selected to spy behind enemy lines because they easily passed …
“Female barristers say men-only club is symbolic of diversity problems within legal profession” and it is condoning an “invisible pattern of networking between male …
Women’s Spy Craft in WW 2, as discussed in Episode 2 (releases Dec. 11. 20), includes how women were selected, how they were trained and what types of espionage work they performed at home and …
President-elect Joe Biden has announced two women to the highest positions in U.S. intelligence, Avril Haines will be the director of national intelligence while Gina Haspe will head up the CIA. These …
As in WW 2 when women were invited into work usually reserved for men, today women’s contributions are receiving greater acknowledgement through the English Heritage’s plaques.
On the streets of …
I interviewed 4 military and 4 resistance cell women for my research. Although the women military agents’ acts of bravery were recorded in military files, this is not necessarily true for resistance …