Noor Inayat Khan

WWII spy princess who transmitted crucial intelligence from Nazi-occupied France

Noor Inayat Khan (1914–1944), a Sufi princess of Indian-American heritage, became Britain's first female wireless operator sent into Nazi-occupied France during WWII. Operating under the codename 'Madeleine,' she maintained critical resistance communication networks despite intense Gestapo surveillance.

Her remarkable 1943 resistance work included transmitting intelligence that enabled D-Day preparations and sabotaging German supply lines. Khan survived three months longer than average SOE agents through innovative transmission techniques and safehouse relocation strategies.

Captured and executed at Dachau concentration camp, Khan posthumously received the George Cross and Croix de Guerre. Her legacy redefined perceptions of Asian women in warfare and inspired modern intelligence encryption methods.