| Michel Hollard | |
|---|---|
WWII portrait |
|
| Born | June 10, 1898 Épinay-sur-Seine, Eure, France |
| Died | July 16, 1993 (aged 95) Ganges, Hérault, France |
| Resting place | Gorniès, Hérault, France |
| Nationality | France |
| Education | Engineer |
| Occupation | French wartime resister |
| Organization | Réseau AGIR, French Resistance |
| Known for | Investigation of the V-1 flying bomb facilities in Northern France during WWII |
| Spouse | Yvonne Gounelle |
| Children | Francine, Florian ( former conductor of the Orchestre symphonique de la région Centre) and Vincent |
| Parents | Auguste Hollard Pauline Monod |
| Awards | |
| Website | |
| www.michel-hollard.com | |
Michel Hollard is a French wartime resister and engineer who founded[1] the espionage group Réseau AGIR during World War II.
His contribution was recognised by the British with the award of the Distinguished Service Order having "reconnoitered a number of heavily guarded V1 sites and reported on them". Hollard's efforts included 49 trips smuggling reports to a British attache in Switzerland.
Initially serving in World War I, Hollard subsequently became an engineer[2] and was employed by Maison Gazogène Autobloc, a manufacturer of wood gas generators. Hollard founded the AGIR in 1941.
Following his capture in February 1944, he was tortured and imprisoned first at Fresnes Prison and in June 1944 as a forced laborer at the main Neuengamme concentration camp (prisoner "F 33,948").[3] In 1945, as a result of Swedish intervention Hollard had been one of a group of prisoners transferred to the ship Magdalena after being evacuated on April 20 via the prison ship Thielbek. The Thielbek was sunk on May 3 by a Royal Air Force attack on German shipping.
Post-war, Hollard "was given the rank of Colonel"[1][4] and, despite the V-1's destruction of over 800,000 London houses through September 1944, Sir Brian Horrocks called him "the man who literally saved London".[5]
A highspeed train that operates Eurostar's high-speed rail service between Britain, France and Belgium via the Channel Tunnel was named after him.[6]