Major Jacques Theodore Paul Marie Vaillant de Guélis (6 April 1907 – 7 August 1945) was a Welsh-born French

Special Operations Executive Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a British organisation formed in 1940 to conduct espionage, sabotage and reconnaissance in German-occupied Europe and to aid local Resistance during World War II, resistance movements during World War II. ...

(SOE) agent during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. de Guélis was initially in the British Expeditionary Force in France in 1940 and later joined SOE and parachuted into France to organise resistance networks. He was badly injured in a motor accident in May 1945 and later died of his injuries in the hospital. He is buried in his home town of

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

Biography

De Guélis was born in Cardiff on 6 April 1907. His French father, Raoul, was a coal exporter, his mother's name was Marie. He was educated at Wrekin College, Shropshire 921-1925 and then studied at

Magdalen College, Oxford Magdalen College ( ) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by Bishop of Winchester William of Waynflete. It is one of the wealthiest Oxford colleges, as of 2022, and ...

. He held dual nationality but completed his required French national service in the 1930s and then returned to Britain to work in advertising in London and Paris. In 1938, he married Beryl Richardson. The family regularly travelled for holidays at the French family property, in

Sancerre Sancerre () is a medieval hilltop town and commune in the department of Cher, Centre-Val de Loire, France, overlooking the river Loire. It is a member of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France (The Most Beautiful Villages of France) Association, no ...

, in

Cher Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...

. De Guélis is described by M.R.D. Foot as a "charmer...keenly interested in French politics, brave, adroit, and energetic." Originally published in 1966. He had a handle-bar mustache and was 6 feet four inches tall (193 cm.).

Second World War

Interpreter

Following the declaration of war in September 1939, de Guélis returned to France to join his unit in

Orléans Orléans (,"Orleans"
(US) and 234 Field Company of Royal Engineers. de Guélis was an interpreter on the staff of

Lord Gort Field Marshal John Standish Surtees Prendergast Vereker, 6th Viscount Gort, (10 July 1886 – 31 March 1946) was a senior British Army officer. As a young officer during the First World War, he was decorated with the Victoria Cross for his actio ...

, commander of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in France. He was later evacuated from

Dunkirk Dunkirk ( ; ; ; Picard language, Picard: ''Dunkèke''; ; or ) is a major port city in the Departments of France, department of Nord (French department), Nord in northern France. It lies from the Belgium, Belgian border. It has the third-larg ...

in early June but later returned to France via

Cherbourg Cherbourg is a former Communes of France, commune and Subprefectures in France, subprefecture located at the northern end of the Cotentin peninsula in the northwestern French departments of France, department of Manche. It was merged into the com ...

on 12 June to assist other forces to escape. Following the surrender of France on 22 June 1940, de Guélis fled south to

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

. He then travelled to neutral Spain via the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees are a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. They extend nearly from their union with the Cantabrian Mountains to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast, reaching a maximum elevation of at the peak of Aneto. ...

. Held in an internment camp by Spanish authorities at

Miranda del Ebro Miranda de Ebro () is a Spanish municipality belonging to the province of Burgos in the autonomous community of Castile and León. Straddling the Ebro river, near its confluence with the Bayas, the city is located on the northern watershed of the ...

, his release was organised by the British Embassy. de Guélis then travelled by sea to

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

arriving in March 1941.

Staff Section F

Back in London – on 14 April 1941 – de Guélis, commissioned in the British Army

General List The General Service Corps (GSC) is a corps of the British Army. Role The role of the corps is to provide specialists, who are usually on the Special List or General List. These lists were used in both World Wars for specialists and those not allo ...

(service number 184312), was recruited by

Lewis Gielgud Lewis Evelyn Gielgud, MBE (11 June 1894 – 25 February 1953) was an English scholar, writer, intelligence officer and humanitarian worker. Life Early years Gielgud was born in South Kensington, London, first of the four children of Frank Henr ...

to be part of the French Section (F Section – headed by

Maurice Buckmaster Colonel Maurice James Buckmaster (11 January 1902 – 17 April 1992) was the leader of the French section of Special Operations Executive and was awarded the '' Croix de Guerre''. Apart from his war service, Buckmaster was a corporate manager ...

) of the

(SOE). His prior experience of the German occupation of France allowed him to pass his experiences onto wireless operators and saboteurs being sent to France. SOE staff members were regarded as knowing too much about the organization to go on missions to foreign countries, but an exception was made in his case.

Mission to Vichy France – August 1941

Members of SOE in southern France in 1944

Three months after the arrival of the first SOE agents in France, de Guélis was parachuted into unoccupied

Vichy France Vichy France (; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was a French rump state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II, established as a result of the French capitulation after the Battle of France, ...

(along with

Gilbert Turck Gilbert may refer to: People and fictional characters *Gilbert (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters *Gilbert (surname), including a list of people Places Australia * Gilbert River (Queensland) * Gilbert River (South A ...

, his radio operator) on the night of 6/7 August 1941, landing near

Châteauroux Châteauroux ( ; ; ) is the capital city of the French department of Indre, central France and the second-largest town in the province of Berry, after Bourges. Its residents are called ''Castelroussins'' () in French. Climate Châteauroux te ...

, with a number of objectives: * contact agents

Pierre de Vomécourt Pierre de Crevoisier de Vomécourt (1 January 1906, Chassey-lès-Montbozon, Haute-Saône – 1986), code names Etienne, Lucas, and Sylvain, was an agent of the United Kingdom's clandestine Special Operations Executive during World War II. The purpo ...

and

Georges Bégué Georges Pierre André Bégué (22 November 1911 – 18 December 1993), Social Security Death Index code named Bombproof, was a French engineer and agent of the United Kingdom's clandestine organization, the Special Operations Executive (SO ...

; * recruit additional agents (such as radio operators and couriers); * provide financial assistance where necessary; * identify locations for clandestine landings on the coast of the

Bouches-du-Rhône Bouches-du-Rhône ( ; , ; ; "the Mouths of the Rhône") is a Departments of France, department in southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var (department), Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the sout ...

; * identify suitable landing strips to enable light aircraft to drop supplies and agents; * prepare the way for

Virginia Hall Virginia Hall Goillot DSC, Croix de Guerre, (April 6, 1906 – July 8, 1982), code named Marie and Diane, was an American who worked with the United Kingdom's clandestine Special Operations Executive (SOE) and the American Office of Stra ...

, the first agent sent as a permanent SOE agent to France; * acquire paper specimens (ration cards, demobilization certificates) to enable them to be copied in England; de Guélis was picked up in France the night of 4/5 September 1941 by a

Lysander Lysander (; ; 454 BC – 395 BC) was a Spartan military and political leader. He destroyed the Athenian fleet at the Battle of Aegospotami in 405 BC, forcing Athens to capitulate and bringing the Peloponnesian War to an end. He then played ...

of 138 Squadron; the first time this Special Duties Flight had been done. His arrival at the rendezvous had been severely delayed by an inspection of identity papers by the local police. He arrived back at

RAF Tangmere Royal Air Force Tangmere or more simply RAF Tangmere is a former Royal Air Force (RAF) station located in Tangmere, England, famous for its role in the Battle of Britain. It was one of several stations near Chichester, West Sussex. The Seco ...

. For the successful completion of this mission de Guélis was recommended for the MBE by

Minister of Economic Warfare The Minister of Economic Warfare was a British government position which existed during the Second World War. The minister was in charge of the Special Operations Executive Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a British organisation formed ...

Hugh Dalton Edward Hugh John Neale Dalton, Baron Dalton, (16 August 1887 – 13 February 1962) was a British Labour Party (UK), Labour Party economist and politician who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1945 to 1947. He shaped Labour Party foreig ...

Section AMF Algiers

In November 1942, de Guélis was sent to head up the French section of SOE in

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

. In September 1943 he was sent to conduct operations against the Germans on the island of

Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...

. The Germans withdrew from the island in early October and de Guélis returned to London in late October 1943.

Low Countries & France

On 19 December 1943 de Guélis was assigned to cover the

Low Countries The Low Countries (; ), historically also known as the Netherlands (), is a coastal lowland region in Northwestern Europe forming the lower Drainage basin, basin of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta and consisting today of the three modern "Bene ...

, France and Allied French Directorate as Assistant to Lieutenant-Colonel JRH Hutchinson, to assist with planning for the invasion of France in summer 1944. In April 1944 he attended radio courses on Eureka-Rebecca devices.

Mission LINDEN

On 7 July 1944 de Guélis was sent to south-western France, to work with resistance forces in the

Corrèze Corrèze (; ) is a département in France, named after the river Corrèze which runs through it. Although its prefecture is Tulle, its most populated city is Brive-la-Gaillarde. Corrèze is located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, on the bo ...

area.

Post war

After the liberation of France, he was assigned to the

Special Allied Airborne Reconnaissance Force In late February 1945, when the defeat of Germany appeared imminent, the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF) was provided with a mandate for dispatching troops whose mission would be to secure the safety of Allied prisoners of ...

(SAARF) to help coordinate the resistance and to provide feedback information, mainly on the conditions of prisoners of war and concentration camps. He was sent across Europe to search for information. Whilst in Germany, his car was involved in an accident between Flossenbürg and the Weiden on 16 May 1945. He was transferred to a hospital in

Lichfield Lichfield () is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated south-east of the county town of Stafford, north-east of Walsall, north-west of ...

, England, but died on 7 August 1945. de Guélis' body was cremated and his ashes interred in

Cathays Cemetery The Cathays Cemetery is one of the main cemeteries of Cardiff, Wales. It is in the Cathays district of the city, about north of Cardiff city centre Cardiff city centre () is the city centre and central business district of Cardiff, Wal ...

, Wales.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Guelis, Jacques Vaillant de British Special Operations Executive personnel French Special Operations Executive personnel 1907 births 1945 deaths Road incident deaths in England