← Back to the front page

The Night Witches and Other Warrior Women of World War II

Khalid Elhassan December 8, 2019 31 min

Lyudmila Pavlichenko - World War II — WWII Red Army snipers. Pintrest

3. The Girl With a Gun

Members of the French Resistance laying charges to blow up railroad tracks. Pinterest

Simone Segouin learned how to operate a submachine gun, which became her signature weapon. She was also gradually brought up to speed on the activities of the Francs-Tireurs et Partisans, a combat alliance of militant communists and French nationalists. As a courier, Simone needed a bicycle to get about, but not having one, her first mission was to steal one from the Germans.

A derailment caused by the French Resistance. Getty Images

She did, and the liberated bicycle was repainted and became her personal reconnaissance vehicle, which allowed her to more easily deliver messages and stake out targets. After demonstrating that she could take care of herself and not jeopardize others in dangerous situations, Simone was allowed to take part in hazardous combat missions. They included blowing up bridges, derailing trains, and killing or capturing Germans.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.