Welcome to a new section that I’m thinking of as ‘The Big Questions.’ In every biography, there are unanswered questions, details that elude us even when we have tons of historical documentation about a subject. So after every episode, I’ll ask those big questions and give us room to discuss them in the comments below.
This week, let’s chat about Noor-un-nissa Inayat Khan. Her story is well-documented, but there are still lingering questions about her time as an agent in France.
During Noor’s time in France, she met two Nazis posing as Canadian agents. What followed was a massive fumble of basic spycraft by the Nazis. No one followed her after their meeting, and they didn’t arrest her for weeks. Why? Was it something Noor did right? Was the SS getting sloppy?
Why did Renée Garry turn in Noor to the Nazis? People have always believed that it was out of jealousy that her crush was pursuing Noor, but at her trial, Renée said it was for money. Was she lying at her trial? Or did she really not realize how much “Madeleine” would be worth to the Nazis?
Noor’s stance against violence influenced her mission (and almost convinced higher-ups at SOE not to send her to France). There’s a moment in her story where she plans to set off a bomb that would destroy Nazi technology with an ally. It never happens, but is it surprising that she would plan this at all? The bomb could have hurt people, after all, and she was trying to complete her mission with as little violence as possible (she didn’t even carry a gun). Was planning the bombing just a ploy of some sort, or would Noor really have set off that bomb?
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The Big Questions: Noor Inayat Khan
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Hey folks,
Welcome to a new section that I’m thinking of as ‘The Big Questions.’ In every biography, there are unanswered questions, details that elude us even when we have tons of historical documentation about a subject. So after every episode, I’ll ask those big questions and give us room to discuss them in the comments below.
This week, let’s chat about Noor-un-nissa Inayat Khan. Her story is well-documented, but there are still lingering questions about her time as an agent in France.
#40: Noor Inayat Khan
During Noor’s time in France, she met two Nazis posing as Canadian agents. What followed was a massive fumble of basic spycraft by the Nazis. No one followed her after their meeting, and they didn’t arrest her for weeks. Why? Was it something Noor did right? Was the SS getting sloppy?
Why did Renée Garry turn in Noor to the Nazis? People have always believed that it was out of jealousy that her crush was pursuing Noor, but at her trial, Renée said it was for money. Was she lying at her trial? Or did she really not realize how much “Madeleine” would be worth to the Nazis?
Noor’s stance against violence influenced her mission (and almost convinced higher-ups at SOE not to send her to France). There’s a moment in her story where she plans to set off a bomb that would destroy Nazi technology with an ally. It never happens, but is it surprising that she would plan this at all? The bomb could have hurt people, after all, and she was trying to complete her mission with as little violence as possible (she didn’t even carry a gun). Was planning the bombing just a ploy of some sort, or would Noor really have set off that bomb?
Did the SOE’s efforts shorten the war?
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In the future, The Big Questions will be a feature for paying subscribers, but I wanted this first one to be free so everyone could get a peek at it.