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| Anna Chapman |
Anna Chapman is a television star and lingere model from Moscow. She and other Russian spies were caught by the FBI last year, but not before they came dangerously close to accomplishing a portion of their undercover mission in the United States. Chapman was handpicked out of the Russian intelligence academy, because of her fluency in languages, and ability to acclimate into another society
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| Noor Inayat Khan |
Noor Inayat Khan was one of Churchill's elite band of women spies. She was the first radio operator to aid the French Resistence. Despite being tortured and interrogated by Gestapo she never gave up her loyalty to Britain. Shot by firing squad in 1944, Noor's last word was 'Liberte'. In November, seven decades after her death aged 30, a statue to the forgotten heroine was unveiled in London by the Princess Royal. The bronze bust commemorating Britain’s only female Muslim war heroine is the first stand-alone memorial to an Asian woman in the UK.
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| Mata Hari |
Nancy Wake who was born in Wellington on 13 August 1912 and emigrated to Australia with her family when she was two, fought with the French Resistance and was dubbed the 'White Mouse' for her ability to evade Nazi agents. A close friend confirmed Wake's death early on Monday.When France was occupied by the Nazis in 1940 she and French husband Henri Fiocca became active in the resistance movement, saving thousands of Allied lives by setting up escape routes and sabotaging German installations. Trained as a spy by the British, she led resistance fighters in D-Day preparations and was on top of the Gestapo's most wanted list. Nancy is also regarded as a heroine in France, which decorated her with its highest military honour, the Legion d'Honneur, as well as three Croix de Guerre and a French Resistance Medal. She was also awarded Britain's George Medal, the US Medal of Freedom, and she was made a Companion of the Order of Australia in 2004.
Liu Hulan was a young female spy during the Chinese Civil War between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party. She joined the Communist Party in 1946 and soon after joined an association of women working in support of the Liberation Army. She was actively involved in organizing the villagers of Yunzhouxi in support of the Communist Party of China.Her contributions involved a wide range of activities, such as supplying food to the Eighth Liberation Army, relaying secret messages, and mending boots and uniforms.
On January 12, 1947, the Kuomintang army invaded her village in response to the assassination of Shi Peihuai, the village chief of Yunzhouxi, who was known to be loyal to the Kuomintang. Upon entering the village, Kuomintang soldiers rounded up several reputed Communist Party members, among them the teenager Liu Hulan. The party members were decapitated in the town square. Before killing Liu Hulan, the executioners paused, giving her one final chance to renounce her allegiance to the Communist Party. She refused, and was immediately beheaded. She was 14 years old.
Since then, the life and death of Liu Hulan has become a symbol of the courage of the Chinese people, and is often cited as a homily of their loyalty to Communism. Her story is often told as an homage to the struggles endured, and the sacrifices made, for the cause of liberating China from centuries of rule by foreign powers
Violette Szabo was a British spy operating in France against the Nazis. Violette Szabo's bravery, beauty, and tragically short life have contributed to her legend (and even inspired a video game for the Xbox 360, Velvet Assassin). As a secret agent for the Special Operations Executive in England, her missions in occupied France ranged from intelligence-gathering to sabotage.Shortly after D-Day, she was captured by German troops following an intense gun battle during which Szabo emptied every clip of ammunition she had. Brought to Ravensbruck concentration camp, her open defiance inspired fellow prisoners and led to her execution in 1945, at just 23 years old.
