Elizabeth Devereux-Rochester
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth Devereux Rochester (20 December 1917, date of death between 1981-1983 in St. Malo, France) was a member of the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry
who served with the Special Operations Executive
(SOE) during World War II and worked as a courier for the French Section.
in England. Her parents divorced and her mother married Myron Reynolds. Devereaux went by the name Rochester pre-dominantly, but seems to have also used Reynolds.
In the 1930s, she was living in Paris with her mother; when the Germans invaded France. She successfully worked as a driver for the French Red Cross until her cover was compromised. She escaped with a group leading several Jews into Switzerland. She became one of the leaders of the group and was later asked to return to France and work with the French Resistance
. She led several downed pilots across the border to Switzerland until that route had to be closed. For this group she developed a new escape route across the Pyrénées
.
(SOE) in early 1943. Following training, she landed in a Hudson
aircraft on 18 October 1943 in France with Richard Heslop (organiser of the Marksman circuit, codename "Xavier", a male radio operator and a RF agent).
In Spring 1944 she was recalled by SOE to England, as she was deemed "too conspicuous". She left the Marksman circuit, but didn't return to England and instead went to Paris to see her mother. She was arrested on 20 March 1944 in Paris. She was released from the French gaol and eventually put in a Prison of War camp where she stayed until liberation.
First Aid Nursing Yeomanry
The First Aid Nursing Yeomanry is a British independent all-female unit and registered charity affiliated to, but not part of, the Territorial Army, formed in 1907 and active in both nursing and intelligence work during the World Wars.-Formation:It was formed as the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry in...
who served with the Special Operations Executive
Special Operations Executive
The Special Operations Executive was a World War II organisation of the United Kingdom. It was officially formed by Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton on 22 July 1940, to conduct guerrilla warfare against the Axis powers and to instruct and aid local...
(SOE) during World War II and worked as a courier for the French Section.
Early Life
The daughter of American parents, Babe Gunning and Richmond Rochester, Devereux Rochester was educated by an English governess and at Roedean SchoolRoedean School
-Roedeanians in fiction:* Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward * Dawn Drummond-Clayton * Emily James...
in England. Her parents divorced and her mother married Myron Reynolds. Devereaux went by the name Rochester pre-dominantly, but seems to have also used Reynolds.
In the 1930s, she was living in Paris with her mother; when the Germans invaded France. She successfully worked as a driver for the French Red Cross until her cover was compromised. She escaped with a group leading several Jews into Switzerland. She became one of the leaders of the group and was later asked to return to France and work with the French Resistance
French Resistance
The French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
. She led several downed pilots across the border to Switzerland until that route had to be closed. For this group she developed a new escape route across the Pyrénées
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...
.
Special Operations Executive
She joined the Special Operations ExecutiveSpecial Operations Executive
The Special Operations Executive was a World War II organisation of the United Kingdom. It was officially formed by Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton on 22 July 1940, to conduct guerrilla warfare against the Axis powers and to instruct and aid local...
(SOE) in early 1943. Following training, she landed in a Hudson
Lockheed Hudson
The Lockheed Hudson was an American-built light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft built initially for the Royal Air Force shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and primarily operated by the RAF thereafter...
aircraft on 18 October 1943 in France with Richard Heslop (organiser of the Marksman circuit, codename "Xavier", a male radio operator and a RF agent).
In Spring 1944 she was recalled by SOE to England, as she was deemed "too conspicuous". She left the Marksman circuit, but didn't return to England and instead went to Paris to see her mother. She was arrested on 20 March 1944 in Paris. She was released from the French gaol and eventually put in a Prison of War camp where she stayed until liberation.