Violette Szabo Memorial in Embankment, London

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Violette Reine Elizabeth Bushell was born on June 26, 1921, in Levallois, Paris, to a British father and French mother. Born to move between Britain and France, she settled with her family at the age of eleven in Stockwell, south London. Petite and attractive, Violette's strong character stood out from her looks. She was spirited, strong-willed, and could outperform her brothers in any athletic pursuit. At fourteen, Violette left school to work as a shop assistant in Brixton when war broke out. In 1940 she met Etienne Szabo, a French Foreign Legion officer from Marseille serving with de Gaulle's Free French forces. They married on August 21 and the following year Violette enlisted with the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS), serving an anti-aircraft battery. In June 1942, she gave birth to daughter Tania but four months later Etienne was killed in action while serving North Africa during the battle of El Alamein. In 2009, Violette Szabo was chosen as the face of the SOE memorial unveiled on London's Albert Embankment. A Violette Szabo museum is located at Wormelow, Herefordshire. This object is part of Scan The World, a non-profit initiative introduced by MyMiniFactory to create a digital archive of fully 3D printable sculptures, artworks and landmarks from across the globe for public access free. Scan The World is an open source community effort where you can contribute interesting items around you by emailing stw@myminifactory.com to find out how you can help.