Yvonne Cormeau
Encyclopedia
Yvonne Cormeau, born Beatrice Yvonne Biesterfeld (18 December 1909, Shanghai
, China – 25 December 1997) was a heroine of the Special Operations Executive
during the Second World War who was the second female radio operator to be sent to France and who talked her way out of arrest by pretending her wireless was an X-ray machine.
.
She was living in London when in 1937 she married Charles Edouard Emile Cormeau, a chartered accountant who was a second generation French immigrant born in England. Her husband enlisted in the The Rifles
and in November 1940 he was wounded in France and was sent back to the UK. Shortly afterwards he was killed when their London home was bombed. Amazingly Yvonne's life was saved by a bath which fell over her head and protected her.
as an administrator in November 1941 (Service No 2027172). Whilst serving at RAF Swinderby
she answered an appeal on the noticeboard for linguists, and was recruited by SOE and trained as an F Section wireless operator on 15 February 1943. She was promoted to the rank of Flight Officer
. Her daughter, Yvette, was only two years old at the time and was placed in a convent of Ursine nuns in Oxfordshire where she remained until she was five. She volunteered to "do something and save France from the Nazis".
She did her SOE training with Yolande Beekman
, Cecily Lefort
and Noor Inayat Khan
. On the night of 22 August 1943 she left Tempsford
airbase and was parachuted into St Antoine du Queyret, north-east of Bordeaux
. She was given a powder compact by Colonel Maurice Buckmaster
before leaving for France.
Her role was to work as courier and wireless operator on the Wheelwright
Circuit in Gascony. Cormeau worked on the circuit with George Starr, "Hiliare", who she had known before the War when living in Brussels. Whilst carrying out her secret operations in Occupied France she used the code names "Annette", "Fairy" and "Sarafari".
Cormeau sent over 400 transmissions back to London, which was a record for the F Section. She made arrangements for arms and supplies to be dropped for the local Maquis. She also assisted in the cutting of the power and telephone lines, resulting in the isolation of the Wehrmacht Group G garrison near Toulouse.
She was almost arrested by the Germans after being betrayed by an agent codenamed Rodolph. However, she continued to operate, despite being confronted by "wanted" posters in her neighbourhood which gave an accurate sketch of her appearance. Her success was possibly owed to the fact that she used car batteries rather than mains power, making it more difficult for the German D/F vans to find her.
Famously, Cormeau was stopped at a German road block whilst with Starr and the pair were questioned while a gun was held in their backs. Eventually the Germans accepted her story and ID that she was a district nurse, and she succeeded in passing her wireless equipment off as an X-ray machine.
She worked for 13 months and evaded arrest despite some narrow escapes. Whilst operating in France Yvonne was shot in the leg by a German patrol, but managed to escape. The dress she wore on this occasion and the bloodstained briefcase she carried are on permanent display in the Imperial War Museum in London
A year after the end of the war, she was demobilised with the WAAF rank of Flight Officer
. She then worked as a translator and in the SOE section at the Foreign Office. She became a linchpin of F Section veterans and arranged their annual Bastille Day
dinner.
, and decorated with the Légion d'honneur
, Croix de Guerre
and Médaille combattant volontaire de la Résistance.
Her dress, complete with bullet hole, and a bloodstained briefcase, are exhibited along with her WAAF officer's uniform at the Imperial War Museum
in London. More information can be found in the book Moondrop to Gascony (1946) by Anne-Marie Walters
, who worked as the circuit's courier.
in London and she also was a committee member. She became a British citizen and promoted Anglo-French relations
.
After her 80th birthday she married again to James Edgar Farrow, with whom she lived in Derbyshire
. He died before her, but she was survived by her daughter.
Yvonne spent her later years at Tall Pines nursing home, formerly in Gally Hill Road, Fleet, Hampshire. Her funeral was attended by representatives from both UK and French governments.
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
, China – 25 December 1997) was a heroine of 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...
during the Second World War who was the second female radio operator to be sent to France and who talked her way out of arrest by pretending her wireless was an X-ray machine.
Early life
Beatrice Yvonne Biesterfeld was born the daughter of a Belgian consular official and Scottish mother. She was educated in both Belgium and ScotlandScotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
She was living in London when in 1937 she married Charles Edouard Emile Cormeau, a chartered accountant who was a second generation French immigrant born in England. Her husband enlisted in the The Rifles
The Rifles
The Rifles is the largest regiment of the British Army. Formed in 2007, it consists of five regular and two territorial battalions, plus a number of companies in other TA battalions, Each battalion of the Rifles was formerly an individual battalion of one of the two large regiments of the Light...
and in November 1940 he was wounded in France and was sent back to the UK. Shortly afterwards he was killed when their London home was bombed. Amazingly Yvonne's life was saved by a bath which fell over her head and protected her.
War service and Special Operations executive
Newly widowed, Yvonne decided to "take her husband's place in the Armed Forces" and she joined the WAAFWomen's Auxiliary Air Force
The Women's Auxiliary Air Force , whose members were invariably referred to as Waafs , was the female auxiliary of the Royal Air Force during World War II, established in 1939. At its peak strength, in 1943, WAAF numbers exceeded 180,000, with over 2,000 women enlisting per week.A Women's Royal Air...
as an administrator in November 1941 (Service No 2027172). Whilst serving at RAF Swinderby
RAF Swinderby
RAF Swinderby was a Royal Air Force Bomber Command airfield opened in 1940, one of the last of the stations completed under the RAF's expansion plans started in the 1930s...
she answered an appeal on the noticeboard for linguists, and was recruited by SOE and trained as an F Section wireless operator on 15 February 1943. She was promoted to the rank of Flight Officer
Flight officer
The title flight officer was a military rank used by the United States Armed Forces where it was an air force warrant officer rank. It was also an air force rank in several Commonwealth nations where it was used for female officers and was equivalent to the rank of flight lieutenant...
. Her daughter, Yvette, was only two years old at the time and was placed in a convent of Ursine nuns in Oxfordshire where she remained until she was five. She volunteered to "do something and save France from the Nazis".
She did her SOE training with Yolande Beekman
Yolande Beekman
Yolande Beekman was a World War II spy.-Early life:...
, Cecily Lefort
Cecily Lefort
Cecily Lefort was a British SOE agent, during World War II.-Early life:Born as Cecily Margot MacKenzie in London of Scottish ancestry, she lived on the coast of Brittany in France from the age of 24 with her French husband, Dr...
and Noor Inayat Khan
Noor Inayat Khan
Assistant Section Officer Noor Inayat Khan / Nora Baker, GC, MBE , usually known as Noor Inayat Khan was of Indian Muslim origin...
. On the night of 22 August 1943 she left Tempsford
Tempsford
Tempsford is a village and civil parish in the English county of Bedfordshire.The village is split by the A1 Great North Road and is located just before the junction with the A428 at the Black Cat Roundabout...
airbase and was parachuted into St Antoine du Queyret, north-east of Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
. She was given a powder compact by Colonel Maurice Buckmaster
Maurice Buckmaster
Colonel Maurice James Buckmaster OBE was the leader of the French section of Special Operations Executive and was awarded the Croix de Guerre. He was a corporate manager with the French branch of the Ford Motor Company, in the postwar years serving in Dagenham...
before leaving for France.
Her role was to work as courier and wireless operator on the Wheelwright
SOE F Section networks
These are the networks, also known as circuits, established in France by F Section of the British Special Operations Executive during the Second World War...
Circuit in Gascony. Cormeau worked on the circuit with George Starr, "Hiliare", who she had known before the War when living in Brussels. Whilst carrying out her secret operations in Occupied France she used the code names "Annette", "Fairy" and "Sarafari".
Cormeau sent over 400 transmissions back to London, which was a record for the F Section. She made arrangements for arms and supplies to be dropped for the local Maquis. She also assisted in the cutting of the power and telephone lines, resulting in the isolation of the Wehrmacht Group G garrison near Toulouse.
She was almost arrested by the Germans after being betrayed by an agent codenamed Rodolph. However, she continued to operate, despite being confronted by "wanted" posters in her neighbourhood which gave an accurate sketch of her appearance. Her success was possibly owed to the fact that she used car batteries rather than mains power, making it more difficult for the German D/F vans to find her.
Famously, Cormeau was stopped at a German road block whilst with Starr and the pair were questioned while a gun was held in their backs. Eventually the Germans accepted her story and ID that she was a district nurse, and she succeeded in passing her wireless equipment off as an X-ray machine.
She worked for 13 months and evaded arrest despite some narrow escapes. Whilst operating in France Yvonne was shot in the leg by a German patrol, but managed to escape. The dress she wore on this occasion and the bloodstained briefcase she carried are on permanent display in the Imperial War Museum in London
A year after the end of the war, she was demobilised with the WAAF rank of Flight Officer
Flight officer
The title flight officer was a military rank used by the United States Armed Forces where it was an air force warrant officer rank. It was also an air force rank in several Commonwealth nations where it was used for female officers and was equivalent to the rank of flight lieutenant...
. She then worked as a translator and in the SOE section at the Foreign Office. She became a linchpin of F Section veterans and arranged their annual Bastille Day
Bastille Day
Bastille Day is the name given in English-speaking countries to the French National Day, which is celebrated on 14 July of each year. In France, it is formally called La Fête Nationale and commonly le quatorze juillet...
dinner.
Honours & Decorations
After the war she was appointed MBEMBE
MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...
, and decorated with the Légion d'honneur
Légion d'honneur
The Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
, Croix de Guerre
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...
and Médaille combattant volontaire de la Résistance.
Her dress, complete with bullet hole, and a bloodstained briefcase, are exhibited along with her WAAF officer's uniform at the Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. The museum was founded during the First World War in 1917 and intended as a record of the war effort and sacrifice of Britain and her Empire...
in London. More information can be found in the book Moondrop to Gascony (1946) by Anne-Marie Walters
Anne-Marie Walters
Anne-Marie Walters MBE was a WAAF officer recruited into the Special Operations Executive during the Second World War. Her code name was Colette....
, who worked as the circuit's courier.
Post war
After the war, Cormeau and her daughter, Yvette Pitt, were reunited and lived in London. Cormeau was one of the earliest members of the Special Forces ClubSpecial Forces Club
The Special Forces Club was founded by surviving members of the Special Operations Executive , in 1946. "The Club", as it is simply known by its members, was established for all secret agents as a home in London....
in London and she also was a committee member. She became a British citizen and promoted Anglo-French relations
Anglo-French relations
United Kingdom – French relations are the relations between the governments of France and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland . In recent years the two countries have experienced a very close relationship....
.
After her 80th birthday she married again to James Edgar Farrow, with whom she lived in Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
. He died before her, but she was survived by her daughter.
Yvonne spent her later years at Tall Pines nursing home, formerly in Gally Hill Road, Fleet, Hampshire. Her funeral was attended by representatives from both UK and French governments.