Pearl Witherington
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Pearl Witherington was born in Paris on June 24, 1914 to British parents.
[edit] Wartime Exploits
She escaped occupied France with her mother and three sisters. During the Second World War she joined the Special Operations Executive (SOE).
Given the code name "Marie" Witherington was dropped by parachute into occupied France on 22nd September 1943, where she joined Maurice Southgate, leader of the Stationer Network. Over the next eight months she worked as Southgate's courier.
After the Gestapo arrested Southgate in May 1944, she became leader of the new Wrestler Network, under a new code-name "Pauline", in the Valencay-Issoudun-Chateauroux triangle. She reorganised the network with the help of a local man, Henri Cornioley, and organized over 1,500 members of the Maquis and they played an important role fighting the German Army during the D-Day landings. They were so effective, the Nazi regime put a 1 million franc bounty on her head.
In September 1944, Witherington returned to England where she married Henri Cornioley (1910-1999) in Kensington Register Office on 26 October, 1944.
[edit] After the war
After the war, Witherington was recommended for the Military Cross, but as a woman, she was ineligible and instead was awarded the civil MBE. Witherington returned the medal, noting that her service was military, not civil. She was later offered the CBE.
In April 2006, after a six-decade wait, Pearl was awarded her Parachute Wings, insignia of the Parachute Regiment, which she considered a greater honour than either the MBE or the CBE.
She had completed three parachute jumps, with the fourth operational.
"But the chaps did four training jumps, and the fifth was operational - and you only got your wings after a total of five jumps," Witherington said. "So I was not entitled - and for 63 years I have been moaning to anybody who would listen because I thought it was an injustice."
With the help of journalist Hervé Larroque, Witherington's autobiography, Pauline, was published in 1997 (ISBN 978-2-9513746-0-7).
