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The Elusive Madame G: a life of Christine Granville
CHRISTINE GRANVILLE was one of the most courageous British agents to emerge from the second world war. Winner of Britain's most prestigious awards, Christine was actually born in pre-war Poland, living a carefree life of privilege, the daughter of a feckless count who was frequently absent from her life. He did appear now
and then, long enough to teach her to ride. Her
have-a-go attitude toward life and her natural
beauty attracted a bevy of admirers, one of whom
married her before the war.
CHRISTINE however was not satisfied with being
the wife of a wealthy man and found herself divorced before the war. A second marriage ended in the same manner. Free and with no ties CHRISTINE quickly bought into Warsaw's revived
social life and it was in that over-heated milieu that
she met the British journalist and covert agent who recruited her for the secret service.
CHRISTINE and her second husband were enjoying a honeymoon in Africa when the Germans
invaded Poland. Unable to return to her homeland
the couple fled to England. There she was reunited
with that journalist-agent. By early 1940 CHRISTINE found herself in Budapest posing as a
travel writer. Her true mission was to enter occupied Poland and gather as much intelligence
as she could. To do this she made the arduous trek
across the Tatra mountains, braved furious snow-
storms, narrowly escaped Nazi agents and finally
made it to Warsaw. There she connected with a
renegade outfit calling themselves the Musketeers.
They began a 2-year association gathering
information about the Germans which CHRISTINE
then smuggled across the mountains on her return
to Budapest.
CHRISTINE'S role with the Musketeers ended
when she and her lover Andrew Kennedy were
arrested by the Hungarian secret police. By feigning a consumptive illness she tricked her captors in to releasing her and Andrew. Budapest
was no longer safe for them and so began the long
trip to Cairo.
Rumors that she was a German spy reached
Cairo before she did and she was summarily dismissed from the secret service.
Two years passed before she was cleared of all
charges. Preparations began to drop her into France where she was to become deputy to the
head of the Jockey Circuit. But shortly after
arriving in France, Francis Cammaerts, Jockey's leader, was arrested by the Gestapo. CHRISTINE then took charge of matters. She brazenly walked into the German prison, declared herself to be a
British agent and began negotiating for Cammaerts' release. She was so convincing that
the prison warden not only released Cammaerts but left his post with his prisoners.
With the Allies steaming across Europe in 1944
spies were no longer needed in France. CHRISTINE
returned to London where she floated through a
series of menial jobs, looking forward to an uncertain future. She did find a job that appealed
to her but it came with a high price. A man she
befriended aboard a cruise ship fell passionately in
love with CHRISTINE. She could not return his
affection and when his erratic behavior became
threatening she decided to leave England.
Fate intervened however. Before she could manage her escape the frustrated lover appeared
at her hotel and after a brier argument, stabbed
her to death. CHRISTINE died in the hotel lobby
on June 15, 1952, age 44. She was given a state funeral with
full military honours and is buried in St Mary's cemetary, north London.
and then, long enough to teach her to ride. Her
have-a-go attitude toward life and her natural
beauty attracted a bevy of admirers, one of whom
married her before the war.
CHRISTINE however was not satisfied with being
the wife of a wealthy man and found herself divorced before the war. A second marriage ended in the same manner. Free and with no ties CHRISTINE quickly bought into Warsaw's revived
social life and it was in that over-heated milieu that
she met the British journalist and covert agent who recruited her for the secret service.
CHRISTINE and her second husband were enjoying a honeymoon in Africa when the Germans
invaded Poland. Unable to return to her homeland
the couple fled to England. There she was reunited
with that journalist-agent. By early 1940 CHRISTINE found herself in Budapest posing as a
travel writer. Her true mission was to enter occupied Poland and gather as much intelligence
as she could. To do this she made the arduous trek
across the Tatra mountains, braved furious snow-
storms, narrowly escaped Nazi agents and finally
made it to Warsaw. There she connected with a
renegade outfit calling themselves the Musketeers.
They began a 2-year association gathering
information about the Germans which CHRISTINE
then smuggled across the mountains on her return
to Budapest.
CHRISTINE'S role with the Musketeers ended
when she and her lover Andrew Kennedy were
arrested by the Hungarian secret police. By feigning a consumptive illness she tricked her captors in to releasing her and Andrew. Budapest
was no longer safe for them and so began the long
trip to Cairo.
Rumors that she was a German spy reached
Cairo before she did and she was summarily dismissed from the secret service.
Two years passed before she was cleared of all
charges. Preparations began to drop her into France where she was to become deputy to the
head of the Jockey Circuit. But shortly after
arriving in France, Francis Cammaerts, Jockey's leader, was arrested by the Gestapo. CHRISTINE then took charge of matters. She brazenly walked into the German prison, declared herself to be a
British agent and began negotiating for Cammaerts' release. She was so convincing that
the prison warden not only released Cammaerts but left his post with his prisoners.
With the Allies steaming across Europe in 1944
spies were no longer needed in France. CHRISTINE
returned to London where she floated through a
series of menial jobs, looking forward to an uncertain future. She did find a job that appealed
to her but it came with a high price. A man she
befriended aboard a cruise ship fell passionately in
love with CHRISTINE. She could not return his
affection and when his erratic behavior became
threatening she decided to leave England.
Fate intervened however. Before she could manage her escape the frustrated lover appeared
at her hotel and after a brier argument, stabbed
her to death. CHRISTINE died in the hotel lobby
on June 15, 1952, age 44. She was given a state funeral with
full military honours and is buried in St Mary's cemetary, north London.
- GenresWorld War II
404 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 18, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
January 10, 2018
Christine
Unbelievable that such an brave heroic lady could be treated so badly by those organizations that used her services after the war was over
Unbelievable that such an brave heroic lady could be treated so badly by those organizations that used her services after the war was over
March 21, 2020
Full of cinematic derring-do and begging to be a movie.
May 15, 2019
An interesting story about a seemingly fearless woman. Four stars because I found it a bit all over the place, and with so many names mentioned it was hard to remember who was who.
June 12, 2023
Why read the book when the Book Description (here) is a synopsis covering the highlights of this woman's adult life and tragic death. 2 stars for this broad description.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews