How Did Virginia Hall Work As Spies

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During World War II, few women worked as spies, but those that did were good at their jobs. One of the most successful spies had one leg and a mountain of determination. Virginia Hall, or the limping lady, had the title of the most feared Allied spy and was the only civilian woman to receive the Distinguished Service Cross. She was considered one of the best spies during WWII because of her skills in disguise, her skill in recruiting, and her sheer grit and determination. Virginia Hall had many different disguises while stationed in France, but she has two majorly notable disguises. Her first disguise was, “a New York Post reporter from Lyon to the Vichy government.”[1] This position allowed her to send valuable information back to the Special …show more content…

According to one of her activity reports (see Image 1)[3], they bombed railroads and bridges, captured Gestapos, and blocked Natzi communications. Even after Virginia had to flee that area, she established a strong enough network that they continued without her presence. At her next station, she led a group of revolutionaries of approximately 100 men. She split her men into four groups of twenty-four and organized the “coordination of airdrops.destroying railroad lines, bridges and disrupting communications.”[4] She designed a new form of guerrilla warfare while leading her men and is still recognized for her genius today. In an interview with the Smithsonian, Sonia Purnell, the author of her biography, says, “Talking to people there [the CIA headquarters], they pointed to Operation Jawbreaker in Afghanistan, and how they drew on the processes that she pioneered”[5] She and her men were constant thorns in the Nazi side and played a part in making D-Day successful. Due to her skill in recruitment, Virginia Hall set up multiple resistance networks and helped make D-Day a success. Virginia Hall was a very successful spy, but her personality was one of the things that made her so

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