The daring spy who bribed the Gestapo to save her comrades from execution

Cultures · Published 10 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Krystyna Skarbek, a Polish agent for Britain's Special Operations Executive, became a legend for her fearless intelligence work. Her most famous exploit involved securing the release of two captured SOE officers from a French prison just hours before their scheduled execution, using a combination of threats, lies, and bribery.

Born in 1908 to a Polish count and a wealthy Jewish heiress, Krystyna Skarbek lived a life defined by unconventional courage. After the 1939 invasion of Poland, she reached London and became the first female British agent to serve in the field. Known for her resourcefulness, she operated under the alias Christine Granville, navigating Nazi-occupied territories with microfilm and intelligence reports that helped confirm the impending German invasion of the Soviet Union.

Her most audacious mission occurred in August 1944 in Digne-les-Bains, France. After SOE agents Francis Cammaerts and Xan Fielding were captured by the Gestapo, Skarbek cycled 40 kilometres to the town. Posing as the niece of General Bernard Montgomery, she confronted the Gestapo liaison, Captain Albert Schenck, and later negotiated with officer Max Waem. She leveraged the rapid Allied advance and the threat of post-war retribution, bolstered by a two-million-franc bribe, to secure the men's release. The prisoners were driven to safety, with their captor even burying his SS uniform to avoid detection by the approaching Allied forces.

Skarbek’s career was marked by constant suspicion from both the British and the Polish government-in-exile, who often doubted her loyalties due to her independent nature and previous contacts with Polish intelligence groups. Despite these challenges, she remained a highly effective operative. Tragically, her life ended in 1952 in London, where she was stabbed to death by a spurned suitor. Her legacy remains that of a 'loner and a law unto herself' whose intelligence and sheer nerve saved lives in the most perilous conditions of the Second World War.

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