Violette Morris (18 April 1893 – 26 April 1944) was a French athlete and Nazi collaborator who won two gold and one silver medal at the

Women's World Games The Women's World Games were the first international women's sports events in track and field. The games were held four times between 1922 and 1934. They were established by Alice Milliat and the Fédération Sportive Féminine Internationale (F ...

in 1921–1922. She was later banned from competing for violating "moral standards". She was invited to the 1936 Summer Olympics by

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

and was an honored guest. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, she collaborated with

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 N ...

and the

Vichy France Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its te ...

regime. She became known as the "Hyena of the Gestapo" and was killed by the

French Resistance The French Resistance (french: La Résistance) was a collection of organisations that fought the German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi occupation of France and the Collaborationism, collaborationist Vichy France, Vichy régim ...

Early life

Violette Morris was born to Baron Pierre Jacques Morris, a retired

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed Force ...

cavalry captain, and Élisabeth Marie Antoinette Sakakini, of

Palestinian Arab Palestinians ( ar, الفلسطينيون, ; he, פָלַסְטִינִים, ) or Palestinian people ( ar, الشعب الفلسطيني, label=none, ), also referred to as Palestinian Arabs ( ar, الفلسطينيين العرب, label=non ...

origin. Morris spent her adolescence in a

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglic ...

, L'Assomption de

Huy Huy ( or ; nl, Hoei, ; wa, Hu) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. Huy lies along the river Meuse, at the mouth of the small river Hoyoux. It is in the ''sillon industriel'', the former industrial ...

. She married Cyprien Édouard Joseph Gouraud on 22 August 1914 in the 8th arrondissement of Paris. They divorced in May 1923.Ruffin, Raymond
Violette Morris
raymond-ruffin.over-blog.com Morris learned how to drive during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and during the war she drove ambulances and worked as a courier including at the Battle of the Somme and the

Battle of Verdun The Battle of Verdun (french: Bataille de Verdun ; german: Schlacht um Verdun ) was fought from 21 February to 18 December 1916 on the Western Front in France. The battle was the longest of the First World War and took place on the hills north ...

Athletic career

Morris played for Fémina Sports from 1917 until 1919, and for

Olympique de Paris Olympique de Paris was a French association football team based in Paris which existed from 1908 to 1926. Founded with the name Olympique de Pantin, it won the Coupe de France in 1918 and played in the finals in 1919 and 1921. It merged with Red S ...

from 1920 to 1926. She also played on the France women's national team. She won gold medals at the 1921 and

1922 Women's Olympiad The 1922 Women's Olympiad ( and ) was the second In addition to her football career, she was an active participant in many other sports. She was selected for the French national

water polo Water polo is a competitive sport, competitive team sport played in water between two teams of seven players each. The game consists of four quarters in which the teams attempt to score goals by throwing the water polo ball, ball into the oppo ...

team even though there was no women's team at the time. She was an avid boxer, often fighting against, and defeating, men. Among the other sports she participated in were road bicycle racing,

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long-distance travel, commuting, cruising ...

racing, car racing, airplane racing, horseback riding,

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

, archery,

diving Diving most often refers to: * Diving (sport), the sport of jumping into deep water * Underwater diving, human activity underwater for recreational or occupational purposes Diving or Dive may also refer to: Sports * Dive (American football), a ...

, swimming, weightlifting, and Greco-Roman wrestling. Her most brilliant athletic years were considered to be from 1921 to 1924, when her slogan was (English: "Anything a man can do, Violette can do!"). In 1924 she participated at the 1924 Women's Olympiad, again taking the gold medal in discus and shot put.

Motor racing

Morris had her breasts removed by a

mastectomy Mastectomy is the medical term for the surgical removal of one or both breasts, partially or completely. A mastectomy is usually carried out to treat breast cancer. In some cases, women believed to be at high risk of breast cancer have the operat ...

, which she claimed was in order to fit into racing cars more easily. She mainly competed in cyclecar endurance races and used a Benjamin cyclecar. She competed in the Tour de France Automobile in 1923;

Bol d'Or The Bol d’Or is a 24-hour endurance race for motorcycles, held annually in France. The riding of each bike is now shared by a team of three riders. History The Bol d’Or, first organized by Eugene Mauve, in 1922, was a race for motorcycles ...

1922, 1923, 1926-8; Paris~Pyrenees 1922, 1923; Paris~Nice 1923, 1927; GP San Sebastian 1926; Dolomites 1934. She won the 1927

24-hour car race at the wheel of a B.N.C.

Lifestyle

Morris's lifestyle in the 1920s was quite different from the traditional role of women. In addition to her wide-ranging athletic activities, Morris was outside traditional behaviours of the time in several other ways. She was homosexual, dressed in men's attire, was a heavy smoker and swore often. In 1928, the (FFSF) (French Women's Sports Federation) refused to renew her licence amid complaints about her lifestyle; she was barred from participating in the 1928 Summer Olympics. The agency cited her lack of morals, in particular, Morris's penchant for wearing men's clothing. She had also punched a football referee and had been accused of giving amphetamines to other players. After 1928, her auto racing license was revoked on similar moral grounds and Morris started a car-parts store in Paris,. Along with her employees, she built racing cars. The business went bankrupt.Bard, Christine
La championne Violette Morris perd son procès en 1930
. musea.univ-angers.fr In 1930, Morris unsuccessfully sued the FFSF, claiming damages, as she could no longer earn wages competing as an athlete. During the trial, an obscure ordinance from 1800 forbidding women to wear trousers was used against her. Historian Marie-Jo Bonnet claimed that although Morris's homosexuality was not directly targeted in the trial, it was made an issue throughout. One of the lawyers representing the FFSF was Yvonne Netter, a noted campaigner for French women's rights. A quote attributed to Morris after the trial was censored: Violette Morris devant son magasin d'amagasin d’accessoires automobile parisien, Porte de Champerret (1928)

Violette Morris devant son magasin d'amagasin d’accessoires automobile parisien, Porte de Champerret (1928)

During her athletic career in the 1920s, Morris became friends and associates with many of France's artists and intellectuals. She had longstanding friendships with American-born entertainer

Josephine Baker Josephine Baker (born Freda Josephine McDonald; naturalised French Joséphine Baker; 3 June 1906 – 12 April 1975) was an American-born French dancer, singer and actress. Her career was centered primarily in Europe, mostly in her adopted Fran ...

, actor Jean Marais, and poet, author, and filmmaker

Jean Cocteau Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau (, , ; 5 July 1889 – 11 October 1963) was a French poet, playwright, novelist, designer, filmmaker, visual artist and critic. He was one of the foremost creatives of the s ...

. In 1939, Morris and her partner, actress

Yvonne de Bray Yvonne de Bray (12 May 1889 – 1 February 1954) was a French stage and film actress. She was born Yvonne Laurence Blanche de Bray in Paris and died there. In 1939, she and her partner Violette Morris invited Jean Cocteau to stay with them a ...

, invited Cocteau to stay with them at their houseboat docked at

Pont de Neuilly The Pont de Neuilly (English: Bridge of Neuilly) is a road and rail bridge carrying the Route nationale 13 (N13) and Paris Métro Line 1 which crosses the Seine between the right bank of Neuilly-sur-Seine and Courbevoie and Puteaux on the left b ...

. There he wrote the three-act play .

Arrest and acquittal for homicide

In January 1933 Morris moved into a houseboat, , with her partner, Yvonne de Bray, which was moored on the Seine at Pont de Neuilly in northwest Paris near the

Bois de Boulogne The Bois de Boulogne (, "Boulogne woodland") is a large public park located along the western edge of the 16th arrondissement of Paris, near the suburb of Boulogne-Billancourt and Neuilly-sur-Seine. The land was ceded to the city of Paris by t ...

. Living off inheritance annuities, she took up lyrical singing and was successful enough in the hobby to be broadcast performing on the wireless. On Christmas Eve 1937, while having dinner with friends and neighbors Robert and Simone de Trobriand at a restaurant in Neuilly, the trio encountered a drunk and aggressive young man named Joseph Le Cam. The unemployed ex-

Legionnaire The French Foreign Legion (french: Légion étrangère) is a corps of the French Army which comprises several specialties: infantry, Armoured Cavalry Arm, cavalry, Military engineering, engineers, Airborne forces, airborne troops. It was created ...

became embroiled in a heated argument with Simone de Trobriand. Morris was able to calm the man after some time. The following evening, after more drinking in

Montmartre Montmartre ( , ) is a large hill in Paris's northern 18th arrondissement. It is high and gives its name to the surrounding district, part of the Right Bank. The historic district established by the City of Paris in 1995 is bordered by Rue Ca ...

, Le Cam arrived at Morris' houseboat and another argument took place, this time between Morris and Le Cam. Le Cam left the houseboat, but soon returned after seeing Simone de Trobriand boarding . They had argued the night before and Le Cam rushed back to the houseboat, brandishing a knife, and threatened both Morris and de Trobriand. Morris pushed Le Cam several times before he lunged at her and she produced a 7.65mm revolver. Morris fired four shots, the first two into the air, the following two at Le Cam. He later died in hospital. Morris was arrested and charged with homicide and incarcerated for four days at the La Petite Roquette prison in the 11th arrondissement of Paris. She was tried in the in March 1938, but was acquitted when the court accepted her plea of self-defense.

Nazi collaboration and assassination

Morris was invited to attend the 1936 Summer Olympics by

. Historian

Anne Sebba Anne Sebba (''née'' Rubinstein, born 1951) is a British biographer, lecturer and journalist. She is the author of nine non-fiction books for adults, two biographies for children, and several introductions to reprinted classics. Life Anne Sebba ...

has said that Morris was an honored guest. During

and the

German occupation of France The Military Administration in France (german: Militärverwaltung in Frankreich; french: Occupation de la France par l'Allemagne) was an interim occupation authority established by Nazi Germany during World War II to administer the occupied zo ...

, Morris served as a collaborator for the Nazis and

. The nature of her alleged collaboration varies. Some, such as writer Raymond Ruffin, claim that one of her main responsibilities during the war was to foil the operation of the

Special Operations Executive The Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a secret British World War II organisation. It was officially formed on 22 July 1940 under Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton, from the amalgamation of three existing secret organisations. Its pu ...

, a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

-run organisation that helped the Resistance. He also suggested that, in addition to being a spy for the Nazis, she would have been involved in the torture of suspects during interrogation. For all of these activities, she was convicted and sentenced to death ''

in absentia is Latin for absence. , a legal term, is Latin for "in the absence" or "while absent". may also refer to: * Award in absentia * Declared death in absentia, or simply, death in absentia, legally declared death without a body * Election in ab ...

''. Although Morris sourced black-market petrol for the Nazis, ran a garage for the

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

, and drove for the Nazi and Vichy hierarchy, others say that this appears to be the limit of her collaboration. In any case, they note that she had conducted these activities before the fall of France and no evidence exists to support Ruffin's claim that she was involved either in spying or torturing. They suggest that she was perhaps a suitable scapegoat, especially considering her controversial comments before the war. Whether or not it is accurate, her reputation for involvement in torture and enjoying it resulted in her becoming known popularly as the "hyena of the Gestapo". On 26 April 1944, while driving in her Citroën Traction Avant on a country road from

Lieurey Lieurey () is a commune in the Eure department in Normandy in northern France. Population International relations The 14 communes of the former canton of Saint-Georges-du-Vièvre (Normandy, France), including Lieurey, are twinned with Slim ...

Épaignes Épaignes () is a commune in the Eure department in northern France. Population See also *Communes of the Eure department The following is a list of the 585 communes of the Eure department of France. The communes cooperate in the followi ...

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

with the Bailleul family, who were favourably positioned with the Nazi regime in France, Morris's car sputtered and came to a halt. Earlier in the day, the engine had been tampered with by maquisards of the French Resistance Maquis Surcouf group. Resistance members emerged from a hiding spot and opened fire on the car. The three adults and two children in the car were killed. Ruffin claimed that Morris was the target, but Bonnet states this is not clear, given the influence of the Bailleul family with the Nazis. Morris's body, riddled with bullets, was taken to a morgue, where it remained unclaimed for months. She was buried in an unmarked communal grave.

In popular culture

Francine Prose Francine Prose (born April 1, 1947) is an American novelist, short story writer, essayist, and critic. She is a visiting professor of literature at Bard College, and was formerly president of PEN American Center. Life and career Born in Brookl ...

based her character of collaborationist athlete Lou Villars on Morris in her novel ''Lovers at the Chameleon Club, Paris 1932'' (2014).

References

Sources

* Jean-Emile Neaumet, ''Violette Morris, la Gestapiste'', éd. Fleuve Noir, coll. « Crime Story », 1994 * Jacques Delarue, ''Histoire de la Gestapo'', éd. Fayard, 1996 * Christian Gury, ''L'Honneur ratatiné d'une athlète lesbienne en 1930'', éd. Kimé, 1999 *, ''Violette Morris, la hyène de la Gestapo'', éd. Le Cherche Midi, 2004 * * ''Miroir du Sport'', 14 April 1921 * ''Miroir des Sports'', n° 260, 3 June 1925 * Morris is the subject of Francine Prose's historical novel ''Lovers at the Chameleon Club'', Paris 1932 (Harper, 2014): hear Prose interviewe
here
Morris' character is called Lou Villars. {{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, Violette 1893 births 1944 deaths Women's association footballers not categorized by position Deaths by firearm in France Female wartime spies French collaborators with Nazi Germany French female discus throwers French female racing drivers French female shot putters French people of Arab descent French racing drivers French women boxers French women in World War I French women in World War II French women's footballers French LGBT sportspeople French lesbians Athletes from Paris Women's World Games medalists Lesbian sportswomen Lesbian feminism Assassinated French people People acquitted of murder LGBT track and field athletes French civilians killed in World War II 20th-century French LGBT people Nazis sentenced to death in absentia Assassinated Nazis