Throughout the Second World War, there were a number of spies who were captured by the
enemies. The Americans even condemned a number of Germans who were found spying, and they
even executed a number of teenagers who were members of the Hitler youth. But the Germans
implrisoned many British spies inside of concentration camps, and a number of them were women. Inside
of some camps, a number of women who had been found guilty of spying were burned alive inside
of the ovens, and their stories were told by those who survived the camp. Spies often
were subjected to a harrowing ordeal of torture also, and one woman who suffered at the hands
of the Germans was Hannah Szenes, who had been caught trying to help Hungarian Jews
who were being deported to Auschwitz. But she was subjected to a harrowing ordeal, before
she was then executed. Join us today as we look at the execution of the female spy shot
by the Germans. To support our channel please make sure to subscribe.
Hannah Szenes was born on the 17th July 1921 in Hungary. Her father was a well respected
playwright and also a journalist who died when Hannah was just 6, and following his
death she then lived with her other and her brother. Hannah had a normal school life,
as she joined a Protestant private school that also accepted Jewish pupils, but those
who were Jewish had to pay double and sometimes three times the amount that Protestants paid.
Her mother then believed it was too expensive, and Hannah was considered a gifted student
who had to pay double the normal rate. But as she was from an assimilated Jewish family,
she realised that life for Jewish people in Hungary was getting tougher and that persecution
was on the horizon. Following graduating in 1939, Hannah moved to the British Mandate
of Palestine to study at an agricultural girls school, and whilst the Second World War was
going on, she joined a Kibbutz and then took part in a paramilitary group that later became
the Israel Defence Forces. But in 1943, being desperate to have a role in the Second World
War, and to fight the Nazis she enlisted in the British Women’s auxiliary air force
and became a 2nd class Aircraftwoman. But then she was recruited to become part of Special
Operations executive or SOE. This was a secret British organisation that conducted many operations
across Europe, and they were behind the training of the assassins that killed Reinhard Heydrich
inside of Prague.
Hannah Szenes was also herself a poet and a playwright and she continued to write, and
she wrote in Hebrew and Hungarian. But following her training she then was sent to Egypt to
undergo parachute training, and to learn how to be sent into enemy territory. The Jewish
community in Palestine at this time decided to send agents and parachutists behind enemy
lines to help the Allies and also Jewish people inside occupied Europe and to try and help
save people’s lives. The mission Hannah was sent on was a dual mission between the
British and the Jewish community in Palestine to create a commando unit inside of the British
Army. Hannah Szenes volunteered for this and she was chosen along with 32 others to be
dispatched and sent on missions behind enemy lines. At the time, Hungary had been allied
with Nazi Germany, and the kingdom would eventually deport hundreds of thousands of Jews to concentration
camps. Inside of Auschwitz in 1944, Jews and Roma from the country were sent to Auschwitz
and Rudolf Hoess the former commandant of the camp was brought back to try and kill
as many people as they could in around 50 murderous days. It was a dire situation for
many across the country, and Germany would later occupy the country. On the 14th March
1944, Hannah and two other agents parachuted into Yugoslavia and they joined and linked
up with a local partisan group.
Hannah pressed on for the Hungarian border, and when she got there she was arrested by
Hungarian Gendarmes and along with her colleagues she was taken in prison. The authorities found
her British military radio transmitter which was used to communicate with SOE agents and
other resistance groups, and this was complete evidence which was damning. Szenes was then
taken to a prison cell and she was forced to strip, before she was tied to a chair and
was then tortured for three days. She was whipped and battered with clubs for days,
and she lost a number of teeth from her torture and beating. The guards were desperate to
know what the code was to her radio transmitter as they wanted to find out who the other spies
were to try and snare the other undercover agents. But she refused to give over any information,
and when she was transferred to another prison in Budapest, the beatings continued. She refused
to give over any information regarding the transmitter and only revealed her name to
her torturers. But then her mother was arrested, and they tried to force Hannah’s hand by
saying the Hungarians would kill her mother if she did not give over information, but
Hannah continued to refuse to give over intelligence regarding the radio. She was incredibly strong
and was defiant in her stance against her interrogators, who she decided were the enemy.
Her mother was brought to her as it was said, ‘On the morning of 17 June 1944, a man in
civilian garb knocked on the door… He had a warrant for my arrest… They interrogated
me. …. They asked about the children, especially about Hannah. The investigator asked me where
Hannah was, and smiling, I answered that she was in an agricultural settlement near Haifa.
He shook his head and said: "She is here, in the next room". The door opened. I was
dumbstruck. Aniko [Hannah] was standing in the doorway, held by four men. Her disheveled
hair did not conceal the blue contusions above her eyes. She escaped their grip and jumped
on me, sobbing: "Mother, forgive me”’
But as she was a spy, it was incredibly dangerous for her to be inside of captivity. She was
then brought to trial for treason in Hungary, as the Arrow Cross party (who were fascist)
wanted to punish her. They appointed a court to deal with her, and to begin with it looked
favourable towards Hannah as the judges wanted more time to come up with a verdict against
her. But then the Arrow Cross Party instilled a judge who was more biased against Hannah,
and with this she was sentenced to death and was to be executed by a firing squad. During
the trial of another, her mother would testify that her daughter could have been saved, and
that she could have been spared if she would have been given more help inside of the court
room. But this never came, she wrote a diary in prison and on her final day she wrote,
‘In the month of July I shall be 23, I played a number in a game, the dice have rolled.
I have lost, I loved the warm sunlight.’
On the 7th November 1944, Hannah Szenes was led into a courtyard in Budapest which was
covered in snow. She was led out and was stood against a wall, and opposite her stood a firing
squad which had been made up of Hungarian soldiers. Snow covered the ground, and she
was then approached by the executioner who offered her a blindfold, however this man
in charge then stepped back and prepared his firing squad to fire. The men were told to
ready, and they were then told to take aim. They raised their rifles and then fired at
Hannah instantly killing and executing her. It was said by one witness, ‘Suddenly, a
shot rang out, one or two shots. They were shooting in the courtyard. What had taken
place? Perhaps someone was executed again? But no, that couldn't be… Surely it was
just a stray bullet from the guard's rifle. …Close to noon. … "What happened?", asked
Fleischman, and was answered: "The shooting we heard was 'the shooting'. … They executed
Hannah an hour ago." We stood as though turned to stone. Hannah? Impossible! Error,
error error! Every drop of blood within me roared, every nerve ending. It couldn't be!
Why her, of all people and not us?! … I felt I had to say something, but the words
lodged in my throat. I saw that all eyes were on me. I stammered: "She was the most
wonderful person I met in my life!" … We got up, and stood in silent tribute for a
long time. Afterwards, we sat down without a word. … They killed Hannah! They killed
Hannah!’
Following her death, Hannah Szenes’ remains and body were taken from Budapest where they
had been buried to Israel, and they were buried in a cemetery on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem.
Her tombstone was also later taken to Israel, and today she is considered a forgotten victim
of the Second World War. Hannah was an incredibly brave woman who sought to try and save people’s
lives who were being persecuted by the Germans and the Hungarians. She was a woman who wanted
to help, but ultimately she was captured and she faced horrific torture and suffering iniside
of a Hungarian prison. But she was then led to an execution site at just the age of 23
and for her role as a British spy she was condemned to death, and was executed by the
firing squad. Her story was one which was tragic, and it deserves to be well known.
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