Frantxia Haltzuet (Francia Usandizanga) was a

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

resistance fighter and member of the

Comet line The Comet Line (; 1941–1944) was a Resistance organization in occupied Belgium and France in the Second World War. The Comet Line helped Allied soldiers and airmen shot down over occupied Belgium evade capture by Germans and return to Great ...

Life before the war

Frantxia was born in Bera, Navarre,

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

on August 29, 1908 she married her husband, Filipe Usandizaga in 1930 and had three children. Her husband Filipe died in 1939.

World War 2

During

World War 2 World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilisin ...

Frantxia joined the

Comet Line The Comet Line (; 1941–1944) was a Resistance organization in occupied Belgium and France in the Second World War. The Comet Line helped Allied soldiers and airmen shot down over occupied Belgium evade capture by Germans and return to Great ...

, a Resistance organization that help smuggle allied troops from

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

. Frantxia used her farmhouse in

Urrugne Urrugne (; )URRUÑA

where her three children lived and a Spanish refugee Juan Larburu. On January 13 1943 Frantxia was arrested alongside three British

airmen An airman is a member of an air force or air arm of a nation's armed forces. In certain air forces, it can also refer to a specific enlisted rank. An airman can also be referred to as a soldier in other definitions. As a military rank designat ...

in her farmhouse by the

Gestapo The (, ), Syllabic abbreviation, abbreviated Gestapo (), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of F ...

she was deported to

Ravensbrück concentration camp Ravensbrück () was a Nazi concentration camp exclusively for women from 1939 to 1945, located in northern Germany, north of Berlin at a site near the village of Ravensbrück (part of Fürstenberg/Havel). The camp memorial's estimated figure of 1 ...

. She died on April, 12, 1945 from a beating by Nazi guards.

Legacy

On April 12 2025, the 80th anniversary of her death, a school in

Bera Bera may refer to: Acronyms * Bioelectric recognition assay, a method in electrophysiology * Botswana Energy Regulatory Authority, an energy regulatory body in Botswana * Brainstem evoked response audiometry, a screening test to monitor for heari ...

and the

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

of the town payed tribute to her and placed a plaque on

lectern A lectern is a standing reading desk with a slanted top, on which documents or books are placed as support for reading aloud, as in a scripture reading, lecture, or sermon. A lectern is usually attached to a stand or affixed to some other form of ...

in honer of her and renamed Altzate square after her.

References

{{reflist 1908 births 1945 deaths Female resistance members of World War II Female guerrillas Basque rebels Basque women Ravensbrück concentration camp prisoners People who died in Ravensbrück concentration camp French Resistance members Women in World War II