Honouring an extraordinary wartime hero who ended her days as a recluse in Torquay

SERIES OF SIGNIFICANT PEOPLE who lived in Torbay during the 20th century - not always famous - as researched by Ian L Handford (President - Torbay Civic Society)
EILEEN NEARNE - PART 2

Having survived numerous German concentration camps, Eileen Nearne would finally be incarcerated by the Americans in 1945!
No one had known that liberation day was fast approaching although the Camp Commandante' at Markleberg must have had a vague idea because he chose to move his charges to an alternative camp 80 kilometres distant. During an enforced march Eileen and two other female prisoners were able to slip away from their captors to hide in a forest before returning to Markleberg village. Now a Catholic Priest offered them refuge in his bell tower, safe sanctuary at last.
Within days Eileen was ill in fever and the girls all knew a doctor had to attend and yet their luck held. A doctor was found and never gave them way. On April 15 the girls watched from on high as white flags of Americans marched into Leipzig and in risking leaving their sanctuary they sadly discovered the Americans did not believe Eileens story. They assumed she was in league with Germany and now sent her to an American Prisoner of War camp for Nazi female prisoners.
Her luck returned when a visiting British Major finally contacted the Foreign Office who confirmed that Eileen was one of their British spies.
Back in London her recurring health problems returned bringing a nervous breakdown and now she was given electroconvulsive therapy and recovered.
Once the patient she now chose to nurse others and for the next 30 years worked at the Branch Hill Old People’s Home Hampstead.
Neither Jacqueline or Eileen were ever awarded a George Cross but they did achieve a British MBE and the French Croix de Guerre. Having mourned losing her brother Frederick in 1970 she became desolute on losing Jacqueline 12 years later. The two sisters had lived together in London after the war and neither had married. By now Eileen was a reserved and wary woman and in deciding to visit friends around the world she even went on a pilgrimage to Ravensbrook in 1993 to unveil a plaque there in honour of the many who had died at that camp. In not wishing to spend her final years in London she next set out to find a home in a coastal town, travels which took her to Broadstairs Kent and Lyme Regis in Devon before finally choosing Torquay which she adored.
Torquay had a continental feel much like her beloved South of France. Her only relative was Odile Nearne (distant cousin) then living in Italy and it would be Odile that helped our Society establish a Blue Plaque to her aunt at Torquay.
Odile annually visited her aunt when in Torquay and she knew her favourite place to see was Teignmouth where Eileen would reflect on then poet John Keats while viewing his plaque.
Odile appreciated a plaque at the home of her aunt would be appropriate one day at Lisburne Square. It was in late 2010 a neighbour of Eileen's contacted Torbay Council for the police and they had to break into Eileen's Lisburne Square flat, only to find she lay dead.
Having discovered her British and French medals, the officials knew she was of some importance. She had been dead for some time and with only a few people in the world knowing of Eileen's work, the search for her history was on. It would eventually be the Heir Hunter TV programme who tracked down Odile to put her in touch with us. It was quickly discovered Eileen had a recluse as her only contacts were her cat, her Church in St Marychurch and the few shops and charities she visited.

On her birthdate March 15th in 2011 our Society finally unveiled a Blue Plaque to honour her at the Lisburn Square home when a very large number of people and members of Her Majesty's forces and Odile and her husband from Italy were our special guests.

IAN'S COMMENT - An amazing lady who kept the SOE work secret for over fifty years never wishing to reflect or recall this period of her extra-ordinary life.

NEXT WEEK - COMMANDER EVELYN GEORGE MARTIN OBE RNVR