www.voicesofwar.co.uk
On 5th April 1944, Lilian arrived in occupied France by Lysander, being
dropped at a secret aireld near the village of Azay-sur-Cher, near
Tours. She carried a wireless set strapped around her waist. This was a
new model weighing only 4kg including its case. This compared to the
B-2 wireless which weighed in at 15kg and was a struggle for previous
agents. Lilian was to act s woreless operator for the HISTORIAN circuit,
headed by George “Teddy” Wilkinson and based in the city of Orleans.
Lilian and the other agents arriving around the same time were tasked
with organising the sabotage acts that were to preceed the Allied
invasion on D-Day, and hold up the German response in the following
days. Although Lilian did not meet in person with her cicruit organiser
until the 2nd June, she was working on the ground with members of
the Maquis, and army of the French resistance. Lilian sent a total of 67
wireless messages to SOE headquarters in London enabling the SOE
to air drop supplies and arms for the Maquis in preparation for their role
in hindering the German response to the D-day landings. She moved
from place to place and between transmissions hid her radio in various
locations. She was involved in a skirmish between the Germans and
the Maquis near Olivet.
Capture
Troubles began in late June with German reprisals following the
invasion. Teddy Wilkinson was captured (and later executed) by the
Germans, but Lilian continued working under a local Maquis leader
named Pierre Charié. However, the net was closing in on her. On
31st July the retreating Germans swept the town of Nangis to arrest
suspected Resistance members.They struck lucky when searching a
house and they found Lilian - an SOE wireless operator was a much