Mona Louise Parsons (February 17, 1901 – November 28, 1976) was a Canadian actress, nurse, and member of an informal Dutch resistance network in the Netherlands from 1940 to 1941 during the Nazi occupation. She became the only Canadian female civilian to be imprisoned by the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...

and one of the first and few women to be tried by a Nazi military tribunal in the Netherlands. She received commendations for her bravery in helping Allied airmen evade capture from both Air Chief Marshal Lord Arthur Tedder of the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

on behalf of the British people and from General

Dwight Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

, who expressed the gratitude of the American people.

Early years

Parsons was born in

Middleton, Nova Scotia Middleton is a town in Annapolis County, Nova Scotia, Canada. Situated on the north bank of the Annapolis River, it is located close to the centre of the Annapolis Valley, from which it gets its nickname, "The Heart of the Valley". History Where ...

. Upon graduating from the Acadia Ladies' Seminary in

Wolfville, Nova Scotia Wolfville is a Canadian town in the Annapolis Valley, Kings County, Nova Scotia, located about northwest of the provincial capital, Halifax. The town is home to Acadia University and Landmark East School. The town is a tourist destination du ...

with a certificate in

elocution Elocution is the study of formal speaking in pronunciation, grammar, style, and tone as well as the idea and practice of effective speech and its forms. It stems from the idea that while communication is symbolic, sounds are final and compelli ...

, Parsons attended the Currie School of Expression in Boston. She returned to Wolfville to attend

Acadia University Acadia University is a public, predominantly undergraduate university located in Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada, with some graduate programs at the master's level and one at the doctoral level. The enabling legislation consists of the Acadia ...

for a time, where she acted in several productions. After leaving Acadia, Parsons briefly taught elocution at Conway Central College in

Conway, Arkansas Conway is a city in the U.S. state of Arkansas and the county seat of Faulkner County, located in the state's most populous Metropolitan Statistical Area, Central Arkansas. Although considered a suburb of Little Rock, Conway is unusual in that ...

. She studied acting and moved to New York City in 1929, where she became a Ziegfeld chorus girl in the

Ziegfeld Follies The ''Ziegfeld Follies'' was a series of elaborate theatrical revue productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 to 1931, with renewals in 1934 and 1936. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as ''The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air ...

revues. She later became a nurse after attending the Jersey School of Medicine from which she graduated

cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...

in 1935. She was employed in the Park Avenue offices of an expatriate Nova Scotia

otolaryngologist Otorhinolaryngology ( , abbreviated ORL and also known as otolaryngology, otolaryngology–head and neck surgery (ORL–H&N or OHNS), or ear, nose, and throat (ENT)) is a surgical subspeciality within medicine that deals with the surgical a ...

. In February 1937, Parsons' brother introduced her to millionaire Dutch businessman Willem Leonhardt. The couple married in Laren,

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

on September 1, 1937.

Second World War

Upon the invasion of the Netherlands by the

Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

in May 1940, Parsons joined a network of resistance composed of people from diverse walks of life: farmers, teachers, businesspeople. Like the famous

Corrie ten Boom Cornelia Arnolda Johanna "Corrie" ten Boom (15 April 1892 – 15 April 1983) was a Dutch watchmaker and later a Christian writer and public speaker, who worked with her father, Casper ten Boom, her sister Betsie ten Boom and other family member ...

, Parsons sheltered downed Allied airmen in her home, "Ingleside", near Laren. At the beginning of the German occupation, Parsons dismissed her servants so that their quarters on the top floor of Ingleside could be used to accommodate Allied airmen. A hiding place, behind the closet in the master bedroom, was available as a temporary emergency shelter for the airmen if her home was searched by the Nazis. Once the pilots left Parsons' home, they were transported to

Leiden Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wit ...

, where fishing boats took them to rendezvous with British submarines for their return to England. The number of Allied pilots she saved is unknown. The last airmen to hide at Ingleside remained for an unprecedented six days in September 1941. The network had been infiltrated, and contacts were unable to move the airmen as previously planned.

Flight Engineer A flight engineer (FE), also sometimes called an air engineer, is the member of an aircraft's flight crew who monitors and operates its complex aircraft systems. In the early era of aviation, the position was sometimes referred to as the "air me ...

William 'Jock' Moir and Navigator

Richard Pape Richard Bernard Pape Military Medal, MM (17 March 1916 – 19 June 1995) was a British Second World War escapee, adventurer, autobiographer and novelist. Pape was born in 1916 in Roundhay, Leeds, Yorkshire. He worked as a journalist in the ''York ...

were finally moved to Leiden, where they were caught by the

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organi ...

. Based on information available at the

Dutch Institute for War Documentation The NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies (Dutch: ''NIOD Instituut voor Oorlogs-, Holocaust- en Genocidestudies'') is an organisation in the Netherlands which maintains archives and carries out historical studies into the Second Wo ...

, Mona Parsons' biographer Andria Hill learned that she was arrested by the Gestapo at her home on September 29, 1941. She was taken first to Amstelveense Prison and then to

Weteringschans Prison Amsterdam-Centrum is the inner-most borough and historical city centre of Amsterdam, Netherlands, containing the majority of the city's landmarks. Established in 2002, Amsterdam-Centrum was the last area in the city to be granted the status of se ...

in Amsterdam (present day Holland Casino). At her trial on December 22, 1941, Parsons was found guilty of treason and sentenced to death by firing squad. She is reported to have responded to her sentence with such dignified calm that the chief judge permitted her to appeal. The sentence was commuted to life with hard labour. On March 6, 1942, Parsons was taken with several other prisoners for transport to

Anrath Willich () is a town in the district of Viersen, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is 20 km west of Düsseldorf, 14 km north of Mönchengladbach, 10 km south of Krefeld, about 30 kilometres east of the border with the Netherlands and 45 km ...

Prison in Germany. Parsons was transferred to Wiedenbruck, where she worked on an assembly line creating plywood wings for small craft, then on a line assembling igniters for bombs. She became ill with

bronchitis Bronchitis is inflammation of the bronchi (large and medium-sized airways) in the lungs that causes coughing. Bronchitis usually begins as an infection in the nose, ears, throat, or sinuses. The infection then makes its way down to the bronchi. ...

several times and, when put in the infirmary, was tasked with knitting socks for German soldiers. On February 6, 1945, the prisoners at Wiedenbruck were herded onto a train bound for another prison in

Vechta Vechta (; Northern Low Saxon: ''Vechte'') is the capital and largest city of the Vechta (district), Vechta district in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is home to the University of Vechta. It is known for the 'Stoppelmarkt' fair, which takes place every ...

. Close by were two hospitals, an airfield and a major train junction. Parsons was put to work both in the prison and on occasional details outside to take food from the prison kitchen to wounded soldiers and other patients in the hospitals. She wrote: :The first year I was ill a lot, weighed only about 94 pounds & was green - night sweats, coughing & diarrhoea every day for 3½ months & often vomiting. Tears have run down my cheeks for hunger. When the diarrhoea got better I was given a pint of soup extra - made from turnip & potato peelings - every day for 6 months & my vitamin tablets which I had been allowed to keep with me. There were no medicines to be had. We slept four in a tiny cell built for one. In all the years of imprisonment I slept always on a straw sack on the floor. :I was in solitary once for two weeks, for writing a letter in English. Fortunately no one could read English, otherwise another prisoner might have been involved. I got out of it by saying it was only a little story I was writing to amuse myself. We were not allowed to have pencil or paper. Practically 4 years of isolation. During my first contact with people - after throwing off my half-witted act - I felt only half conscious of all that went on about me. My body was shaky - my brain seemed quite numb - thoroughly incapable of absorbing what was said to me. My head spun. It just seemed too much, all of a sudden. We'd had literally no brain stimulation all these years - we were forbidden to talk during our 12 hour working day - at night too tired to do anything but crawl into bed. Even when we weren't too tired to talk - we'd have little to talk about. We heard no news scarcely. We were not even allowed to have books. On March 24, 1945, as Allied forces bombed the prison camp, Parsons escaped with young Dutch Baroness Wendelien

van Boetzelaer Van Boetzelaer (or: van den Boetzelaer) is an old aristocratic family that stems from the region of Kalkar, Germany. History The family history in the Duchy of Cleves can be traced back to the 13th century ("Uradel"), when the van Boetzelaers be ...

. Walking in frigid temperatures in short-sleeved prison garb, their shoes soon gave out. Although as a young woman Parsons spoke fluent German and knew the country well, she did not risk speaking German with a Canadian accent. Using her acting skills, she posed as the young woman's mentally-challenged auntie who could not speak because of a

cleft palate A cleft lip contains an opening in the upper lip that may extend into the nose. The opening may be on one side, both sides, or in the middle. A cleft palate occurs when the palate (the roof of the mouth) contains an opening into the nose. The te ...

. The pair walked and evaded capture for three weeks, exchanging labour for food and lodging, often in a barn. During that time, they covered approximately 125 km through Germany. The two became separated at

Rhede Rhede () is a municipality in the district of Borken in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located near the border with the Netherlands, approximately east of Bocholt. Notable residents * Thomas Giessing, athlete and Olympic ...

, near the Dutch/German border. Parsons continued her act alone. Eventually, after an Allied artillery bombardment, she was able to cross to

Vlagtwedde Vlagtwedde () is a village in the very southeast of Groningen province in the northeastern Netherlands. It lies on the Dutch border with the German state of Lower Saxony to the east. History The municipality of Vlagtwedde was created in Decemb ...

, the Netherlands. There Parsons told a Dutch farmer that she was Canadian and needed to find British troops. The farmer took her to the

North Nova Scotia Highlanders The North Nova Scotia Highlanders was an infantry regiment of the Canadian Army founded in 1936. In 1954, it was amalgamated with The Pictou Highlanders and 189 LAA RCA Battery to form 1st Battalion, The Nova Scotia Highlanders (North). History ...

Nova Scotia

Parsons and her husband Leonhardt were reunited after the war, but he never fully recovered from his imprisonment and died in 1956. Soon after his death, Parsons learned that he had left one quarter of his estate to his mistress. Shortly after the funeral, Parsons learned that Leonhardt had a biological son. Under Dutch law, he was entitled to three quarters of Leonhardt's multi-million guilder estate. Parsons was left with nothing. Although she launched a legal battle that would span several years and one ocean, she was unsuccessful. Parsons returned to Nova Scotia in December 1957 with what had been deemed her possessions. There she became reacquainted with a childhood friend, Major General Harry Foster. They married in 1959 and lived in Lobster Point,

Chester, Nova Scotia Chester is a village on the Chester Peninsula, Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada. The nearby waters of Mahone Bay and its numerous islands are well known for yachting and have made the Chester Yacht Club into a cruising destination. A provi ...

(near the Chester Golf Club). Foster died in 1964; Parsons eventually moved back to

in 1970, where she remained until her death. She is buried in the family plot at the Willowbank Cemetery, Wolfville, Nova Scotia. In 2005,

Historica Canada Historica Canada is a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to promoting the country's history and citizenship. All of its programs are offered bilingually and reach more than 28 million Canadians annually. A registered national charitabl ...

released a

Heritage Minute ''The Heritage Minutes'' is a series of sixty-second short films, each illustrating an important moment in Canadian history. The ''Minutes'' integrate Canadian history, folklore and myths into dramatic storylines. Like the Canada Vignettes of t ...

on Parsons, detailing her arrest, and her eventual escape. In May 2017 a statue in her honour titled ''The joy is almost too much to bear'' was unveiled in Wolfville.

References

*Andria Hill, ''Mona Parsons: From Privilege to Prison, from Nova Scotia to Nazi Europe''. Nimbus Press. 2000.

Endnotes

External links