Special Operations Executive was an origination on World War II of the United Kingdom, it was formed by Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton on July 22nd 1940.

Its mission was to facilitate sabotage and espionage behind enemy lines, also to serve to the Auxiliary Units, a British resistance movement.

Was also known as “Churchill’s Secret Army” or “The ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare.

Prime Minister Winston Churchill

Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton

Georges Bégué, set up radio communications, then he met the next agents parachuted in France.

More than 400 F-section agents were sent into occupied France. They served in different variety of functions such as arms and sabotage instructors, liaison officers and radio operators.

SOE sent out 39 female agents into the field.

SOE refused to instigate Polish resistance, because the poles overwhelmingly refused to cooperate with the Nazis.

SOE assisted the Polish government with training facilities and logistical support.

Secret Intelligence Service member, helped establish a group of Polish spies in Central Europe.

Thanks to the cooperation between SOE and Polish Home Army, Poles were able to deliver Allied intelligence on the Holocaust to London..

The Jewish Holocaust.

He was the first Canadian to volunteer in SOE, originally form France he emigrated into Montreal when he was 20 and became a Canadian citizen 10 years later.

After four months of training, he parachuted into France, his landing in France as he severely injured his back and spend many months recovering.

After recovering he recruited agents for his sabotage network, it was used to receive arms from the SOE and use it to blow up trains and rail lines to disrupt German troop movements.

Unfortunately, Biéler stayed a little too long for the Germans to pick up his radio transmissions.

In January 1944, Germans closed his radio operator and closed in on Biéler, and arrested them in a small café in northern France.   

Due to dangers and lack of friendly population, only a few operations were conducted in Germany.

Most of the war was mainly involved in black propaganda and administrative sabotage.

A lot of major operations were planned. Such as Operation Foxley, a plan to assassinate Hitler, and Operation Periwig, a plan to increase existence of anti-Nazi resistance movement within Germany.

Foxley was never attempted but Periwig went ahead and several German prisoners of war were trained as agents, to make contact with the anti-Nazi and to conduct sabotage.

Most of the operations were railway sabotage to hinder German troop and material movements from/to Norway.

In October 1943 the Danish resistance saved nearly all the Danish Jews from certain death in German concentration camps.

This overnight operation was recognised among Jews as one of the most significant displays of public defence against the Germans.

He was tortured for four months, but he refused to let anything out, except for his courage and dignity.

When he walked his death on September 1944, he was accompanied by an SS guard of honour.

Instead of being hanged or gassed, he was shot.

According to Gabriel Chartrand, Biéler’s co-worker, Biéler was “The Great Canadian War Hero”

SOE has a wide variety of weapons and equipment such as:

Miniature folding bike (Welbike) used by parachutists

Silenced pistol (Welrod) Miniature submarines (Welman

submarine) Agents working required

clothing, documents etc which would not arouse suspicion

Agents produced foreign clothing and forged identity cards, ration cards etc.

Agents used assassination weapons such as De Lisle carbine, which required little training or care.

Welbike

De Lisle Carbine

SOE developed large range of explosive sabotage weapons like limpet mines

SOE also used captured German/Italian weapons, which were available greatly after the surrender of Italy.

SOE usually trained agents to use foreign weapons.

SOE stated that resistance fighters would be handicapped rather than using heavy equipment like anti-tank guns. As these were impossible to hide and required a lot of training.

SOE developed crossbows which were powered by multiple rubber bands to shoot incendiary bolts

Limpet mines

"This plaque is placed as an evergreen tribute to VIOLETTE SZABO, G.C. British Secret Agent born 26th June 1921, executed by the Gestapo at Ravensbrück during 1945 in deep appreciation of her outstanding courage in England's hour of need. Violette spent many happy holidays here at "Cartref" with her Aunt and Uncle Mr. & Mrs. H. Lucas and family.R.I.P. Violette. "Carve her name with pride".Rosemary E. Rigby, 1988“

SOE was used to sabotage behind enemy lines.

Prevented the death of all Danish-Jews Helped raise awareness of the anti-Nazi. Tracked down many information about enemy

countries and helped out allied countries. Helped our country with war without direct

military engagement.

Special Operations executive’s objectives were to encourage and facilitate espionage and sabotage behind enemy lines

To serve as the core of the Auxiliary Units, A British resistance movement.

Had to manage a lot of training, research, and development centres.

Had to travel a lot, create forged I.D cards, develop foreign clothing and stay out of suspicion.

Had to do a lot of training, get used to foreign weapons, like parachuting, bombing, etc.

Had to infiltrate several countries such as Germany, Poland, south Asia etc.

They helped Canada by sabotaging other countries and sending spies and secret agents to find out information about certain countries and also capturing their weapons.This helped a lot because getting to know your enemy is the biggest weapon out there in war!

http://www.edenbridgetown.com/assets_2006/community/in_the_past/soe/soe_images/women_of_soe.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9c/Sir_Winston_S_Churchill.jpg http://image.absoluteastronomy.com/images/encyclopediaimages/s/so/soe_(f)_networks_in_france_june_1943.jpg http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_hyECORLe2jg/SBZP93MiUGI/AAAAAAAABWQ/5eYuOYbhsDA/s400/Jewish+Holocaust.bmp http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/5117G84TPVL._SL500_AA300_.jpg http://www.knowledgerush.com/wiki_image/9/9b/GustaveBieler.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Welbike.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/20/De_Lisle_Carbine_Folding_Stock.jpg http://www.skylighters.org/visquiz/device2.gif http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/e/ee/WW2_SOE_Crossbows.jpg       http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/remembers/sub.cfm?source=history/secondwar/courage/canheroes http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_Operations_Executive http://www.violette-szabo-museum.co.uk/foyer.htm