Hortense Clews
Encyclopedia
Hortense Daman Clews Croix de Guerre
, Order of Leopold II
, Medal of the Armed Resistance 1940-1945
(12 August 1926—18 December 2006) was an Allied heroine of World War II
.
(Louvain in French
) in 1926 where her mother ran a Grocery shop.
when she was 13 after the Nazis had invaded Belgium
in 1940. She began helping her brother François after he returned home after being a prisoner of war
with his work with the Resistance and helping British servicemen evade capture. She mainly worked as a Courier
which involved carrying messages, explosives and weapons beneath the upper layer in her cycle pannier whilst pretending to be carrying out grocery deliveries for her mother.
raided the family home after someone had informed on the family's resistance work, Hortense was arrested along with her father and mother and they were taken to a local prison where they suffered interrogation
and vicious beatings by the Gestapo and Belgian SS. She was sentenced to death without trial and was moved to the Ravensbrück concentration camp in Germany
with her mother (her father was sent to Buchenwald concentration camp
)
Whilst at Ravensbrück her life was saved by the actions of British secret agent Violette Szabo
who was also a prisoner there.
At the end of the war Hortense and her mother were taken under protection of the Swedish Red Cross and the family (including her father and brother) were reunited at wars end.
In 1946 she met and married Sydney Clews who was a Staff Sergeant in the British Army
and they eventually settled in Newcastle-under-Lyme
in Staffordshire
, where 16 years later despite the experiments that had been carried out during her time at Ravensbrück she gave birth to a daughter Julia and then seven years later a son Christopher.
Croix de guerre
The Croix de guerre is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was awarded during World War I, again in World War II, and in other conflicts...
, Order of Leopold II
Order of Leopold II
The Order of Leopold II is an order of Belgium and is named in honor of King Léopold II. The decoration was established on 24 August 1900 by Leopold II as king of the Congo Free State and was in 1908, upon Congo being handed over to Belgium, incorporated into the Belgian awards system...
, Medal of the Armed Resistance 1940-1945
Medal of the Armed Resistance 1940-1945
The Medal of the Armed Resistance 1940-1945 is a Belgian medal which was awarded to all members of the armed resistance during the Second World War and to members of the intelligence service who operated in occupied areas.-See also:...
(12 August 1926—18 December 2006) was an Allied heroine of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Early years
Born as Hortense Daman to parents Jacques and Stephanie Daman in the Belgian town of LeuvenLeuven
Leuven is the capital of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region, Belgium...
(Louvain in French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
) in 1926 where her mother ran a Grocery shop.
World War Two
She became involved in the Belgian ResistanceBelgian resistance
Belgian resistance during World War II to the occupation of Belgium by Nazi Germany took different forms. "The Belgian Resistance" was the common name for the Netwerk van de weerstand - Réseau de Résistance or Resistance Network , a group of partisans fighting the Nazis...
when she was 13 after the Nazis had invaded Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
in 1940. She began helping her brother François after he returned home after being a prisoner of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
with his work with the Resistance and helping British servicemen evade capture. She mainly worked as a Courier
Courier
A courier is a person or a company who delivers messages, packages, and mail. Couriers are distinguished from ordinary mail services by features such as speed, security, tracking, signature, specialization and individualization of express services, and swift delivery times, which are optional for...
which involved carrying messages, explosives and weapons beneath the upper layer in her cycle pannier whilst pretending to be carrying out grocery deliveries for her mother.
Betrayal and arrest
On the 14 February 1944 the GestapoGestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
raided the family home after someone had informed on the family's resistance work, Hortense was arrested along with her father and mother and they were taken to a local prison where they suffered interrogation
Interrogation
Interrogation is interviewing as commonly employed by officers of the police, military, and Intelligence agencies with the goal of extracting a confession or obtaining information. Subjects of interrogation are often the suspects, victims, or witnesses of a crime...
and vicious beatings by the Gestapo and Belgian SS. She was sentenced to death without trial and was moved to the Ravensbrück concentration camp in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
with her mother (her father was sent to Buchenwald concentration camp
Buchenwald concentration camp
Buchenwald concentration camp was a German Nazi concentration camp established on the Ettersberg near Weimar, Germany, in July 1937, one of the first and the largest of the concentration camps on German soil.Camp prisoners from all over Europe and Russia—Jews, non-Jewish Poles and Slovenes,...
)
Concentration Camp inmate
Whilst at Ravensbrück Hortense was subjected to experiments involving infecting her leg with gangrene (The German doctors deciding not to amputate her leg) and sterilisation.Whilst at Ravensbrück her life was saved by the actions of British secret agent Violette Szabo
Violette Szabo
Violette Reine Elizabeth Bushell Szabo, GC, was a Second World War French-British secret agent.-Early life and marriage:...
who was also a prisoner there.
At the end of the war Hortense and her mother were taken under protection of the Swedish Red Cross and the family (including her father and brother) were reunited at wars end.
In 1946 she met and married Sydney Clews who was a Staff Sergeant in the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
and they eventually settled in Newcastle-under-Lyme
Newcastle-under-Lyme
Newcastle-under-Lyme is a market town in Staffordshire, England, and is the principal town of the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme. It is part of The Potteries Urban Area and North Staffordshire. In the 2001 census the town had a population of 73,944...
in Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
, where 16 years later despite the experiments that had been carried out during her time at Ravensbrück she gave birth to a daughter Julia and then seven years later a son Christopher.