Georges Bégué
Georges Bégué (born November 22, 1911 in Périgueux , France, † December 18, 1993 in Falls Church , Virginia, USA) was an officer of the Special Operations Executive (SOE) and involved in the liberation of France from the German National Socialists. He was the first SOE Section F agent to jump over France and a key SOE figure in deploying England-trained agents behind enemy lines in France.
Georges Bégué enjoyed fast but extensive special training. He parachuted over France on the night of May 5th, 1941 and landed between Valençay and Levroux (Indre department). He was trained as a "pianist" (radio operator) and was one of the most important links between various SOE agents who very effectively supported the French Resistance . After his arrival in France, Georges Bégué accompanied the landing of other agents. On October 24, 1941, he was lured into a trap in the Villa des Bois in Châteauroux and captured by the Vichy police . Around ten SOE agents were also arrested and taken together to Beleyme prison in Périgueux . The conditions there were very bad. Thanks to US intervention with the Vichy Police, the group was taken to the Mauzac prison camp in May 1942 . A plan drawn up by Mme Bloch outside the camp and Georges Bégué inside the camp enabled the escape on July 16, 1942. To escape, Bégué used a duplicate of a key, the original of which he could not get hold of and the shape of which he therefore optically memorized.
Between Bégué's first jump and the liberation of Paris in August 1944, more than 400 agents of the F-Section were dispatched to the country occupied by Nazi Germany.
Bégué was also familiar with the composition of secret messages on the BBC's Overseas Service . After his return to England in October 1942, Georges Bégué was awarded the Military Cross for his work and was assigned to Section F as Signals Officer under Maurice Buckmaster .
George Bégué died on December 18, 1993 at the age of 82. He was married and had two daughters.
Honors
- Military Cross (MC)
- proposed for the Order of the British Empire (MBE)
- Knight of the French Legion of Honor
- Order of Leopold II
Individual evidence
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Bégué, Georges |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | French agent of the Special Operations Executive |
| DATE OF BIRTH | November 22, 1911 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Périgueux , France |
| DATE OF DEATH | 18th December 1993 |
| Place of death | Falls Church , Virginia, USA |