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The Pat O'Leary Line (also known as the Pat Line, the O'Leary Line, and the PAO Line) was a resistance organization in
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
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 ...
. The Pat O'Leary escape line helped Allied soldiers and airmen stranded or shot down over occupied Europe evade capture by
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...
and return to
Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...
. Downed airmen in northern France and other countries were fed, clothed, given false identity papers, hidden in attics, cellars, and people's homes, and escorted 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 ...
, where the line was based. From there, a network of people escorted them to neutral
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
. From Spain, British diplomats sent the escapees home from British-controlled
Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...
. Many different escape lines were created in Europe of which the Pat Line was the oldest and one of the most important. Collectively, the many escape lines helped 7,000 Allied military personnel, mostly airmen, escape occupied France,
Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
, and the
Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
. The Pat Line received financial assistance from
MI9 MI9, the British Directorate of Military Intelligence Section 9, was a secret department of the War Office between 1939 and 1945. During World War II it had two principal tasks: assisting in the escape of Allied prisoners of war (POWs) held b ...
, a British intelligence agency. "Pat O'Leary" was the pseudonym of Albert Guérisse, one of the early leaders of the line, which helped more than 600 Allied soldiers and airmen escape from France to Spain. More than 100 volunteers or "helpers" as they were often called, mostly French, working for the Pat Line were arrested and imprisoned by Vichy French or German authorities. Most were imprisoned for the remainder of the war but many were executed or died in concentration camps.


Overview

The Pat O'Leary Line was one of many escape and evasion networks in the Netherlands, Belgium, and France during World War II. Along with networks such as the Comet Line, the Shelburne Escape Line, and others, they are credited with helping 7,000 Allied airmen and soldiers, about one-half British and one-half American, escape Nazi-occupied Western Europe during World War II. Approximately 12,000 people, nearly all civilians and almost one-half women, were engaged in the work of the escape lines. About 500 of them were captured and executed or died in concentration camps. Many more were imprisoned by the Germans. In the words of a member of the escape lines, "it was raining aviators" over Europe at the height of World War II. For example, on one day, 14 October 1943, 82 bombers with 800 crewmen of the U.S.
Eighth Air Force The Eighth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) is a numbered air force (NAF) of the United States Air Force's Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). It is headquartered at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The command serves as Air Forces S ...
were shot down or crash-landed in occupied Europe. Most of the crewmen were killed or captured, but some were rescued by escape lines and made it back to Great Britain. "The morale of airmen on bases rose considerably when they saw their buddies miraculously reappear after having been shot down over occupied Europe." For the allies the rescue of downed airmen by the Pat and other escape lines had a practical as well as a humanitarian objective. Training new and replacement air crews, especially pilots, was expensive and time-consuming. Rescuing airmen downed in occupied Europe and returning them to duty became a priority of the allies.


History

The
Dunkirk evacuation The Dunkirk evacuation, codenamed Operation Dynamo and also known as the Miracle of Dunkirk, or just Dunkirk, was the evacuation of more than 338,000 Allied soldiers during the Second World War from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk, in the ...
of France by British forces in June 1940 left thousands of British and Allied soldiers stranded on the European mainland. Most surrendered or were captured by the Germans, but about 1,000 made their way to
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, ...
, nominally independent, especially the coastal city of Marseille where many took refuge in the British Seaman's Mission headed by a Presbyterian minister named Donald Caskie. Donald Darling, working for the British intelligence agency MI9, in Portugal (later Gibraltar) engaged businessman,
Nubar Gulbenkian Nubar Sarkis Gulbenkian (; 2 June 1896 – 10 January 1972) was an Armenians, Armenian-British people, British business magnate and Playboy (lifestyle), socialite born in the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire. During World War II, he helped organ ...
, to lay the groundwork for a network of people to guide stranded allied soldiers over 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. ...
mountains to neutral
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
from where they could be repatriated to the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
. As the war went on most of the escapees became airmen shot down over occupied Europe. The initial leader of what became known as the Pat O'Leary Line was a Scottish soldier, Ian Garrow. Taking advantage of the limited freedom of movement initially accorded him by the Vichy government, he organized the escape system, recruited dozens, and later hundreds, of volunteer workers for the escape line, and found funds for the expenses of housing, transporting, and documenting the Allied soldiers and airmen. At first, some of the exfiltrations to Spain were by sea, but the more common route was for local guides (often smugglers familiar with the Pyrenees), to accompany the soldiers and airmen on foot across the border to Spain. The escapees were then moved onward by train or car to the British Consulate in
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
, and then flown back to the United Kingdom, usually from
Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...
where the MI9 office was headed by Donald Darling. Garrow gathered funds for the expenses of the escape line from residents of Marseille, but MI9 later financed the costs. Garrow was arrested and imprisoned by the Vichy police in October 1941. Garrow's successor as leader of the Pat Line was Albert-Marie Guérisse, a medical officer in the Belgian army. After Belgium's surrender to the Germans in 1940, Guérisse escaped to Britain through Dunkirk. He then joined the French-crewed ship, Le Rhin, which had been accepted for special operations and renamed HMS Fidelity. He gained a commission in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve under the name of "Pat O'Leary." He was of French-Canadian origin and became a British intelligence operative. On 25 April 1941, during a mission to place SOE agents on the French Mediterranean coast near Collioure, he was arrested by the Vichy police. He escaped and joined Garrow in Marseille, with the hope to make his way to Gibraltar and resume his original naval service. Garrow enlisted him as an assistant. After Garrow was arrested, Guérisse took over as chief of the escape network. Guérisse expanded the reach of the escape line's operations. Working for the escape line became more dangerous in November 1942 when the German military occupied Vichy France and took control of much of the government. Guérisse was arrested by the
Gestapo The (, ), Syllabic abbreviation, 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 F ...
on 2 March 1943, betrayed by Roger le Neveu who had worked with the Pat Line but had been bribed or blackmailed to work for the Germans. The arrest of Guérisse and many others nearly destroyed the O'Leary Line, but a 61-year-old woman named Marie Dissard (code named "Françoise") revived the Line in summer 1943. Dissard lived in
Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...
and sheltered many downed airmen in her apartment and escorted them or directed their escort to Spain.
Airey Neave Lieutenant Colonel Airey Middleton Sheffield Neave, () (23 January 1916 – 30 March 1979) was a British soldier, lawyer and Member of Parliament (MP) from 1953 until his assassination in 1979. During the Second World War he was the first ...
, the MI9 agent who supported the Pat O'Leary line, said that the eccentric Dissard and her cat were "almost the sole survivors" of the Pat Line. Under the leadership of Dissard, the remnants of the O'Leary Line are often called the "Françoise Line." According to Neave, the Pat Line helped more than 600 allied soldiers and downed airmen escape from France to Spain and return to England.


Routes

The O'Leary Line collected allied soldiers and, after 1940, mostly airmen from northern France, plus a few from other countries. The military personnel were passed down from
safe house A safe house (also spelled safehouse) is a dwelling place or building whose unassuming appearance makes it an inconspicuous location where one can hide out, take shelter, or conduct clandestine activities. Historical usage It may also refer to ...
to safe house and escort-to-escort to Marseille. As exfiltration by
felucca A felucca is a traditional wooden sailing boat with a single sail used in the Mediterranean, including around Malta and Tunisia. However, in Egypt, Iraq and Sudan (particularly along the Nile and in the Sudanese protected areas of the Red Sea), ...
down the French and Spanish coasts to Gibraltar became more dangerous, the Line used land routes through the easternmost Pyrenees, and, as that also became more hazardous, shifted its main routes to the high Pyrenees further west which were not patrolled extensively by German soldiers, French police, and Spanish border guards. With the arrest of many O'Leary Line workers and leaders in Marseille, the primary collection point for escapees in 1943 and 1944 became
Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...
. The most famous of the routes is known as the "Freedom Line," ("Chemin de la Liberté"). From Toulouse, the airmen were taken to the town of Saint-Girons at the foot of the Pyrenees. From there the guide and escapees hiked across the border, via the slopes of Mont Valier, in elevation, and onward to the small town of Esterri d'Aneu in Spain. The distance from Saint-Girons to Esterri d'Aneu was only in straight line distance, but it involved several days of climbing steep slopes, often through snow and ice. The job of guiding allied airmen across the Pyrenees to Spain was usually handled by the Ponzán group, headed by the Spanish anarchist Francisco Ponzán. The Ponzán Group was based in
Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...
. The Ponzán group had no affection for the British and Americans, but accepted money and arms from the allies to further their objective of overthrowing the Franco government of Spain. Ponzán was captured in 1943 and executed in 1944 by the Germans.


Betrayals

Given the large number of helpers involved in escape lines, their isolation from each other, and their geographic dispersion, the escape lines were relatively easy to infiltrate by German agents. The Pat O'Leary line was nearly destroyed by two betrayers: Harold Cole, code name "Paul," and Roger Le Neveu, called "Roger Le Legionnaire." Cole worked his way into the confidence of the Pat line by successfully escorting several groups of airmen from
Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...
in northernmost France to Marseille. The former English soldier was captured by the Germans in December 1941, and gave the Germans information which led to the arrest of several dozen helpers working for the Pat Line, nearly destroying the Line in northern France. Le Neveu, a Frenchman, similarly worked his way into the confidence of the Pat Line and was responsible for the arrest of Albert-Marie Guérisse and other Pat Line helpers in Marseille in March 1943.


Notable members of the Line

The government of
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
later recognized 475 men and women, 89 percent of them French, for their work with the Pat Line helping allied soldiers and airmen escape occupied Europe. Many others gave occasional assistance to the Pat Line. Prominent helpers of the Pat O'Leary Line were George Rodocanachi, a medical doctor, and his wife, Fanny; the afore-mentioned Donald Caskie; and Louis Nouveau, a businessman, and his wife, Renée. All three men were arrested and spent the rest of the war in prison. Rodocanachi died in the
Buchenwald concentration camp Buchenwald (; 'beech forest') was a German Nazi concentration camp established on Ettersberg hill near Weimar, Nazi Germany, Germany, in July 1937. It was one of the first and the largest of the concentration camps within the Altreich (pre-1938 ...
. Fanny Rodocanachi survived the war in Marseille and Renée Nouveau escaped to Great Britain. Nancy Wake was a courier for the Pat Line and, along with her husband, Henri Fiocca, sheltered many airmen in their luxurious Marseille apartment. Wake escaped to Spain in 1943; the Gestapo arrested and executed Fiocca.
Andrée Borrel Andrée Raymonde Borrel (18 November 1919 – 6 July 1944), code named Denise, was a French woman who served in the French Resistance and as an agent for Britain's clandestine Special Operations Executive in World War II. The purpose of SOE was ...
evaded arrest as a member of the Pat Line and became an agent of the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
's clandestine organization, the
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), and was later captured and executed. Mary Lindell, resident in Paris, collected downed airmen and sent them to the Pat Line in Marseille. She founded the "Marie-Claire Line" and was imprisoned by the Germans. In
Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...
, SOE agent and American Virginia Hall assisted downed airmen and the Pat Line. SOE agent Anthony Brooks, worked with the Pat Line in 1941. Alfonsina Bueno ran a house on the line in
Banyuls-sur-Mer Banyuls-sur-Mer (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales Departments of France, department in southern France. Geography Location Banyuls-sur-Mer is located in the canton of La Côte Vermeille and in the arrondissemen ...
until her arrest in February 1943.


See also

* Escape and evasion lines (World War II)


References

{{reflist, 2 French Resistance World War II resistance movements Spain in World War II French Resistance networks and movements