First Officer Madeleine Victorine Bayard (21 February 1911 — 1 January 1943), who served as Madeleine Barclay aboard on agent-running operations into

Vichy France Vichy France (; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was a French rump state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II, established as a result of the French capitulation after the Battle of France, ...

, was a French agent of the

Special Operations Executive Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a British organisation formed in 1940 to conduct espionage, sabotage and reconnaissance in German-occupied Europe and to aid local Resistance during World War II, resistance movements during World War II. ...

during World War II. She was lost, with the rest of the crew, when the ship was sunk in 1943.

Biography

Madeleine Victorine Bayard was born in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in 1911, the daughter of Adele Suzanne Bayard (father unknown). There are also references to ''Madeleine Guesclin'', a play on her surname as both du Guesclin and

Bayard Bayard may refer to: People *Bayard (given name) * Bayard (surname) *Pierre Terrail, seigneur de Bayard (1473–1524) French knight Places Antarctica * Bayard Islands, off the coast of Graham Land, Antarctica Canada * Bayard, Saskatch ...

were famous warriors in medieval France. She served on the French merchant vessel ''Le Rhin''. After the

fall of France The Battle of France (; 10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign (), the French Campaign (, ) and the Fall of France, during the Second World War was the German invasion of the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembourg and the Net ...

, in 1940, the ship escaped to Britain and was accepted for service with SOE. The ship was therefore re-commissioned as HMS ''Fidelity'' and the French crew inducted into the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

. Because members of the crew had families in occupied

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

they adopted pseudonyms, thus ''Madeleine Barclay.'' Barclay was the mistress of ''Fidelitys commanding officer, Claude Andre Michel Peri ('' Jack Langlais''). Bayard was commissioned into the "Wrens", the

Women's Royal Naval Service The Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS; popularly and officially known as the Wrens) was the women's branch of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy. First formed in 1917 for the World War I, First World War, it was disbanded in 1919, then revived in ...

, (WRNS) becoming a First Officer (equivalent to a Lieutenant commander). She attended her WRNS Officers' Training Course at the

Royal Naval College, Greenwich The Royal Naval College, Greenwich, was a Royal Navy training establishment between 1873 and 1998, providing courses for naval officers. It was the home of the Royal Navy's staff college, which provided advanced training for officers. The equi ...

in January 1941, before rejoining her ship on operations for SOE. At the time, it was extremely rare for a Wren, whether rating or officer, to serve afloat. In November 1942, the Allies landed in

French North Africa French North Africa (, sometimes abbreviated to ANF) is a term often applied to the three territories that were controlled by France in the North African Maghreb during the colonial era, namely Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. In contrast to French ...

and the Germans occupied

as a precaution. It was no longer appropriate to continue the operations to this part of

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 ...

. However, a new role was considered for HMS ''Fidelity'' in the Far East. Large enough to carry her own motor torpedo boats (MTBs) and spotter aircraft, she was ideal as an offshore base to mount Commando operations on Japanese-held coasts in

South-East Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Australian mainland, which is part of Oceania. Southeast Asia i ...

. A company (in reality, more a Troop) of 40(RM) Commando was embarked and ''Fidelity'' set off on her new mission, joining a convoy for the dangerous initial part of the voyage through the

North Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for ...

. Off the

Azores The Azores ( , , ; , ), officially the Autonomous Region of the Azores (), is one of the two autonomous regions of Portugal (along with Madeira). It is an archipelago composed of nine volcanic islands in the Macaronesia region of the North Atl ...

, ''Fidelity'' was damaged by an attack from , then sunk by around 1 January 1943. There were reports of survivors of the sinking, but ''Fidelity'' had herself been rescuing other survivors and was far behind the convoy. A detached Motor Torpedo Boat reached safety, but otherwise all hands were lost. A biography ''Claude and Madeleine: A True Story of War, Espionage and Passion'' by Edward Marriott was published in 2005.

Awards

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barclay, Madeleine 1911 births 1943 deaths Military personnel from Paris Women's Royal Naval Service officers French Special Operations Executive personnel Special Operations Executive personnel killed in World War II Graduates of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich Royal Navy officers of World War II Royal Navy personnel killed in World War II