Vera Schalburg (23 November 1914 in Siberia – 8 February 1946 in Hamburg) was a Soviet, German and British

agent Agent may refer to: Espionage, investigation, and law *, spies or intelligence officers * Law of agency, laws involving a person authorized to act on behalf of another ** Agent of record, a person with a contractual agreement with an insuranc ...

and sister of Christian Frederik von Schalburg.

Biography

Vera von Schalburg was born in Siberia, Russia as the second of three children to August Theodor von Schalburg and wife, Helene. Her father was born 1879 in Nyborg and her mother was born 1882 in Ukraine (possibly

Poltava Poltava (, ; uk, Полтава ) is a city located on the Vorskla River in central Ukraine. It is the capital city of the Poltava Oblast (province) and of the surrounding Poltava Raion (district) of the oblast. Poltava is administratively ...

). She lived in Russia until the October Revolution of 1917 when she fled with her family to Denmark. In 1920, she moved with her family from Hellerup to Vibevej 14, Copenhagen, and in 1922 the family moved to Borups Allé 4, where in 1925 she still lived with her parents and youngest brother August. In Denmark she was known to the authorities as ''Vera Schalburg''. Later, Schalburg lived in Paris, where she made a living as a dancer. There she was recruited by the

Abwehr The ''Abwehr'' (German for ''resistance'' or ''defence'', but the word usually means ''counterintelligence'' in a military context; ) was the German military-intelligence service for the ''Reichswehr'' and the ''Wehrmacht'' from 1920 to 1944. A ...

and sent to England in 1938. Her older brother C. F. Von Schalburg was not pleased and believed that it would hurt his reputation and that of his party, the DNSAP, if it became known that she had been both in German and Soviet service. In May 1939 he therefore brought up the issue with Renthe-Fink, a German diplomat in Denmark, who arranged for Vera's recall from London. She continued as an agent for the Abwehr in Copenhagen until the night of 30 September 1940, where she was sent from

Stavanger Stavanger (, , American English, US usually , ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the fourth largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the a ...

by seaplane and rubber raft to the Scottish coast near Buckie. She and two other agents, Karl Theodor Drücke and Werner Waelti, landed on the northeast coast of Scotland (Operation Lena). Under her code-name Vera Erikson, she soon caught the attention of the Scottish police. She and her two companions were arrested at Portgordon as they tried to buy a train ticket to London. She was supposed to return to London as hostess for a fashionable tea salon in

Mayfair Mayfair is an affluent area in the West End of London towards the eastern edge of Hyde Park, in the City of Westminster, between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane. It is one of the most expensive districts in the world. ...

, attended by key politicians. However, the three agents were quickly arrested and Drücke and Waelti were convicted of espionage and hanged in the

Wandsworth prison HM Prison Wandsworth is a Prison security categories in the United Kingdom, Category B men's prison at Wandsworth in the London Borough of Wandsworth, South West (London sub region), South West London, England. It is operated by His Majesty's Pri ...

. Vera Schalburg survived by becoming an agent for the British. She was first taught by Klop Ustinov of MI5 and then sent to Isle of Wight to spy on prisoners taken by Britain, while herself pretending to be a prisoner.

Death

Returning to Germany after the war, Schalburg died, under the

name A name is a term used for identification by an external observer. They can identify a class or category of things, or a single thing, either uniquely, or within a given context. The entity identified by a name is called its referent. A personal ...

of Vera von Wedel, from pneumonia on 8 February 1946 at the Marienkrankenhaus hospital in Hamburg, aged 31. She was buried in the Ohlsdorf Cemetery. The grave, paid for by Ernst Bodo von Zitzewitz, a former Hamburg Abwher officer.

Portrayal in the media

*In the 2013 German TV production '' The Beautiful Spy'', Vera von icSchalburg is portrayed by Valerie Niehaus.

Sources and references

* Main source: * “The Beautiful Spy”, David Tremain, The History Press, 2019 {{DEFAULTSORT:Schalburg, Vera 1914 births 1946 deaths Danish people of Russian descent Soviet spies World War II spies for Germany World War II spies for the United Kingdom White Russian emigrants to Denmark Emigrants from the Russian Empire to Denmark Deaths from pneumonia in Germany