During the Second World War, Mrs Rochford of The Old Manor House, Little
Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, took in a number of male lodgers. Exactly
how much she, her family, and other villagers knew about these lodgers
is unknown but local gossip was that that they were spies. Who was in
contact with her about their arrival and departure is unknown, as is how
much she was paid for providing them with full board and lodging. Four
lodgers, all men, arrived and departed by car with curtains over the
rear windows, sometimes driven by an attractive FANY, a young woman from
the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry. Locals might also have noticed men
arriving at the house on bicycles or in cars, staying for much of the
day and then leaving. Several were attracted to the housekeeper's niece
who met them in the Five Horseshoes public house. The lodgers would have
been seen on walks around the village and in the pub. Maybe they went to
the Sunday service in St Andrew's Church. Some would have been seen
shopping in Hertford and Ware. Three of the men were Belgian and spoke
little English. The other was British and acted as their interpreter.
Who were these men? Who were their visitors? Why were they staying at
the Old Manor House in Little Berkhamsted? What did they do there? Where
did they go to, sometimes for several days, sometimes for several weeks
before returning? What had they been doing before they arrived and what
did they do after they left? Bernard O'Connor, author of many books on
the Special Operations Executive, a top-secret clandestine warfare
organisation during the Second World War, has researched the men's
stories and provides a detailed documentary history of three Belgian's
involvement in secret operations.
