Tag: Rue des Saussaies

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The Tartan Pimpernel

How many of you have read The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy? Probably not many. It’s the story of the wealthy but foppish Sir Percy Blakeney who leads a double life. He is an accomplished swordsman, master of disguises, escape artist and as the “Scarlet Pimpernel,” Sir Percy rescues French aristocrats from the guillotine blade during the French Revolution’s Reign of Terror.

Today, we are going to focus our attention on a Scottish pastor who led the Paris parish for the Church of Scotland. Rev. Dr. Donald Caskie’s wartime exploits for rescuing downed Allied airmen and leading them to safety through the Pat O’Leary escape line earned him the nickname, “The Tartan Pimpernel.”

I will be the guest speaker for Bonjour Paris on 6 December 2023 for a Zoom presentation to their members and others. The topic will be “Walking History: In the Footsteps of Marie Antoinette” and I will take you on a walk along the exact route in Paris that the queen’s tumbrel took to the guillotine. I invite you to join us for the discussion and slide show.

Bonjour Paris (click here to visit the web-site) is a digital website dedicated to bringing its members current news, travel tips, culture, and historical articles on Paris. I have been a member for more than ten years and have found its content to be quite interesting, practical, and entertaining.

 I will have a direct link to sign up for my presentation at a later date. There is no cost to Bonjour Paris members and €10,00 for non-members. The time of the live presentation on 6 December will be 11:30 AM, east coast time.

Did You Know?

Did you know I could probably write enough blogs on World War II traitors to fill an entire year? Today, I decided to call-out a particular British traitor who was quite dastardly and frankly, a lousy human being. Harold Cole (1906−1946) ⏤ a.k.a. Harry Cole, Paul Cole ⏤ began his criminal career as a teenager. Released from prison shortly after the war began, Cole enlisted in the British army and was stationed in France. Considered handsome with an appealing personality and sharp wits, Cole was never without female company. It didn’t take long before he was caught stealing from the army and jailed. Escaping, Cole was apprehended and thrown into jail once again. As the Germans overran France, Cole was released by the military but rather than returning to England, he remained in France. Read More The Tartan Pimpernel

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The Last Train Out of Paris

Five years ago, I wrote a short blog entitled, The Last Train Out of Paris. I never heard from anyone about that blog until 19 June 2020 when Pat V. e-mailed me about her father, Squadron Leader (ret.) Stanley Booker, MBE. While my blog never mentioned any Allied airmen, it seems Stanley enjoyed reading it ⏤ he was one of 168 captured airmen on that last train out of Paris on 15 August 1944.

Flying Officer Stanley Booker. Photo by anonymous (date unknown). Courtesy of Stanley Booker.
Flying Officer Stanley Booker. Photo by anonymous (date unknown). Courtesy of Stanley Booker.
La Gare de Pantin. Original photo by anonymous. Photo scan by Poudou99 (postcard date prior to 1923). PD-Copyright Expired. Wikimedia Commons.
La Gare de Pantin. Original photo by anonymous. Photo scan by Poudou99 (postcard date prior to 1923). PD-Copyright Expired. Wikimedia Commons.
Deportees inside cattle car. Photo by anonymous (date unknown). Courtesy of Stanley Booker.
Deportees inside cattle car. Photo by anonymous (date unknown). Courtesy of Stanley Booker.

This has led to a lot of discussions over the past several months with Pat about her father’s war experiences. They live in the UK and Stanley is ninety-eight years young. The reason the story about these men didn’t make it into the original blog was, frankly, I didn’t know about it ⏤ well, now I do. One of Pat’s questions in her original e-mail was whether I knew about Jacques Désoubrie and who his German superior might have been. Her last words in the e-mail were “Can you help please?” I couldn’t resist and quickly entered yet another rabbit hole. Once I came up for air, I had Désoubrie’s story, an idea who he reported to, and I knew I had to repost the 2015 blog albeit in an expanded manner with an abbreviated story about Stanley’s experiences. Stanley wrote a privately published version of his wartime escapades and Pat is completing the book as well as expanding on his post-war exploits ⏤ Stanley’s interesting life didn’t just end with his eventual retirement from the Royal Air Force.

Stanley Booker (left) and Paul McCue (right). Paul, historian and author of “SAS Operation Bulbasket,” is visiting Stanley in his home. Photo by Carol Brown (August 2020). Courtesy of Paul McCue.
Stanley Booker (left) and Paul McCue (right). Paul, historian and author of “SAS Operation Bulbasket,” is visiting Stanley in his home. Photo by Carol Brown (August 2020). Courtesy of Paul McCue.

Read More The Last Train Out of Paris