On the Albert embankment path, overlooking the River Thames stands the Violette Szabo bust, also known as the Monument SOE Agents, which commemorates the heroism of Szabo and the women and men who risked their lives serving as secret agents during WW2.
Violette Szabo (1921-1945) was born in Paris, France, and grew up in London. At the outbreak of WW2, she joined the Women’s Land Army and later to the Auxillary Territorial Service. In 1940, she met Étienne Szabo, a decorated French soldier who was 12 years her senior. After 42 days, they got married. In June 1942, she gave birth to their daughter, Tania, and several months later, her husband died in the battle of El Alamein.
The 22 years old Szabo got recruited to the Special Operation Executive, SOE, a secret organization that operated behind enemy lines in occupied Europe. After extensive training as a field agent, she was sent on several missions in France to gather intelligence and organize sabotage operations.
On June 10th, 1944, while on a mission with the local resistance, Szabo’s team got involved in a gun battle with the Germans. In their attempt to flee, she twisted her ankle and had to slow down while covering fire for her teammates and allowing them to escape.
She was captured, interrogated, raped, and tortured by the Nazi Germans and eventually sent to Ravensbrück, a concentration camp in Germany. On February 5th, 1944, she was executed with a shot to the back of her head. She was 23 years old. After her death, she received the George Cross (the second woman), the Croix de Guerre, and the Médaille de la Résistance.
The Violette Szabo bust serves as a memorial to all SOE agents and honors their courage and sacrifice. The sculptress Karen Newman created it, and the Duke of Wellington unveiled it on October 4th, 2009.
Several commemorative plaques are on the plinth.
The front plaque is dedicated to all SOE agents. It states, “[…] This monument is in honour of all the courageous S.O.E. Agents: those who did survive and those who did not survive their perilous missions. Their services were beyond the call of duty. In the pages of history, their names are carved with pride.”
The plaque on the southern side of the plinth is dedicated to the Maquis, the French Resistance Fighters who collaborated with the SOE in the fight to liberate France in 1944, and to Violette Szabo, “[…] who was among the 117 SOE agents who did not survive their missions to France.”
The plaque on the northern side of the plinth is dedicated to the Heroes of Telemark, the Norwegian resistance commandos sponsored by the SOE.
Many nearby landmarks and attractions reside on or nearby the Albert embankment path, including the Florence Nightingale Museum, the Mary Seacole Memorial Statue, the Garden Museum, the London Eye, and many more.
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