The Spanish Civil War, by Chris Hall ..... and the Chorlton Two

Today I got a message from Chris Hall who has written extensively about the Spanish Civil War.

"Hello Andrew, my new book British Volunteers and the Spanish Civil War: ‘The Passionate Cause’, 1936-39 is available now at a reduced price. For more details about the book see below:

Ninety years ago, a Civil War broke out in a then little-known country. For thousands of British, Irish and Commonwealth people, the Spanish Civil War was their main focus for three years.

Over 2,500 “British” (including Irish and Commonwealth) men and women fought in the International Brigades or served in the medical services of the Spanish Republic. Over 500 volunteers were to die in Spain.

Other “British” volunteers served as mercenary pilots and in the revolutionary militias (including George Orwell); some even served on the side of the rebel forces.

At home, thousands participated in ‘Spanish Aid’ activities, raising funds for food ships and medical supplies for Republican Spain. During the Civil War, 4000 Basque refugee children were supported by public donations. Picasso’s Guernica painting toured England to raise funds.

This is the story of ordinary men and women, told in their own words and reflecting the whole gamut of emotions from ecstasy to despair.

Many volunteers would go on to fight in the Second World War, and some became leading figures in post-War Britain. But for many volunteers, the Spanish Civil War was the “Passionate Cause” and the outstanding episode of their lives. This is their story.

The book can be purchased from the publishers or via Amazon”.

To which I can add, it will be published on January 30th, 2026, and costs £29.99, but there is a pre order introductory offer which allows you to buy the book for £23.99 by following the link.*

This is his second book, the first was on The Nurse Who became a Spy Madge Addy's war Against Fascism, and came out in 2022.  Madge Addy lived in Chorlton.  She was a shadowy figure, who worked as a nurse on the Republican side during the Spanish Civil War and went on to work for the SOE during the last World War.

All of which leaves me to write that along with Madge Addy, Chris Hall’s new book includes the story of Bernard McKenna who lived at Egerton Road North for many years and was also associated with the Civil War.

*Pre order https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/British-Volunteers-and-the-Spanish-Civil-War-The-Passionate-Cause-1936-39-Hardback/p/57241

**Madge Addy, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/Madge%20Addy

On the trail of a bullet holed ambulance ........ somewhere in Stalybridge

Now the connection between a bullet holed ambulance in Stalybridge, and a British nurse caught up in the Spanish Civil War is intriguing. 

Miss Addy in Spain, 1938

I first came across the presence of the ambulance while writing about Madge Addy who in her early 30s went out to Spain and served as a nurse on the Republican side in the Civil War which had begun with an army insurrection against the democratically elected legitimate Government.*

She was the last British nurse out of Spain just before the Government was defeated by General Franco and his allies.

She then went on to serve as a secret agent in the S.O.E in occupied France smuggling vital information across Europe and was awarded the OBE, for her work.

Miss Addy, 1938

But history hasn’t been kind to this remarkable women and it has taken  a few of us to begin to bring her out of the shadows.

It began with an approach to help research the early years of her life as a part of a campaign to get a plaque installed in a house in Chorlton where she had worked a hair dresser in the 1930s.

That campaign was co-ordinated by Chris Hall and I am pleased to say was successful and that in turn has led to the idea that there should be a book about Ms Addy.

It is in its very early stages, and will involve Chris, myself and her grandson who lives in Norway.

And that brings me back to the ambulance, which was seen by a very young Margaret Riley who told me, “I saw her bullet holed ambulance when she returned from Spain. Always remembered it.

The only ambulances I’d seen were the Disney printed ones, which would pick children up for tonsillectomies in the morning and bring them back in the afternoon.  I couldn’t see why this one had holes in it, and I can’t remember where I saw it, as I was taken to Stalybridge via Dukinfield and Ashton”.

Unveiling the plaque in Chorlton, 2018

Now we know that Ms Addy had both written about her experiences while still in Spain and that she also took part in tours across Britain, highlighting the plight of the Spanish people and the atrocities committed by the Nationalist forces of Franco.

So the Stalybridge ambulance story is a find which must be followed up.

Given that she was from Manchester, there might be a reference to the event in the Manchester Evening News, the Manchester Courier, and Manchester Guardian, but I am betting there will also be something in the newspapers covering Tameside.

So, in the fullness of time I will take the tram from Chorlton up to Ashton to investigate.

That said if there is anyone who want an important walk on part in the project and is happy to while away the time in the library pouring over copies of the local papers from 1937 through to 1938, we would be very happy.

Bath, 1939

And just after the story went live, Chris sent me an extract from a bath newspaper dated January 1939 which described a concert held for Basque children who had been brought to Britain from Catalonia the previous year.  All were orphans and they took part in the non political concert to raise money to support the children and cover the cost of their final settlement in Switzerland.

The concert was part of a national tour involving the children who travelled through Bath in a bullet riddled ambulance.


Location; Stalybridge, Spain, and France

Picture; Nurse Madge Addy giving a blood transfusion; Daily Worker, November 11, 1938 and Madge Addy, 1938, the plaque unveiling ceremony on May 12 2018,  from the collection of Andrew Simpson and the newspaper article supplied by Chris Hall.

*Madge Addy; https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/Madge%20Addy

The remarkable Madge Addy from Chorlton part 2 discovering more

Now yesterday I began the story of Madge Addy f from Chorlton who served in the Spanish Civil War, went on to be an undercover operator in wartime France and was awarded the OBE.*

British nurses on the front line in Spain, date unknown

It is a remarkable story of courage and indeed of modesty because despite facing some very dangerous situations in both Span and France she does not seem to have sought publicity.

To date I can find no obituary from a leading newspaper on her exploits and have uncovered just one photograph.

Aid for the Basque Heroes, circa 1936-39

There will be more.

In the space of a day I found where she was living in 1911 aged seven, a detailed description of role with Special Operations Executive from 1940 and a growing number of the letters she sent back from Spain to raise funds for the Republican cause.

But lots still remain very shadowy.

One newspaper reported that she had been working in Chorlton before she went to Spain and I am hoping that she will be on a trade directory for 1937 which may give us an address.

And that is important given that there are moves to commemorate her work with a plaque and while the library may be a fitting spot so might the building she lived or worked in.

Today I have been helped by the International Brigade Memorial Trust who have promised to put me in touch with the trustees of the Manchester branch and also Angela Jackson who has written about Ms Addy.

And I now know that she married a second time in 1955 and her husband was Thorkold Hansen who she worked with in France which is important because although she is widely known as Madge Addy, it is by Hansen that I have uncovered more about her.

Madge Addy, 1938

Equally it was as Marguerita Holst that I first uncovered a reference to the OBE she was awarded.

There will be more and that just leave me to make an appeal for anyone who can help.

Location; Chorlton, Spain, and beyond




Pictures; British nurses at work on the front line in Spain courtesy of International Brigade Memorial Trust, the poster Aid for the Basque Heroes, S H Prives, from The Palette and the Flame, 1980 

*The remarkable Madge Addy from Chorlton part 1 ....... the Spanish Civil War and secret operations in France,
**International Brigade Memorial Trust,  

The remarkable Madge Addy from Chorlton part 1 ....... the Spanish Civil War and secret operations in France

This is the story of Madge Addy who worked in Chorlton, was a nurse in the Spanish Civil War and was awarded an OBE for her wartime work as an undercover agent in occupied Europe during the last world war.

Ms Addy, 1938

It has been a bit of a challenge to uncover the story because while most of the references give her name as Madge she was actually Marguerite and was married twice, first to a Mr Holst and later a Mr Hansen.

All of which makes trawling the records that bit more difficult.

According to one source, she was “from the Chorlton-cum-Hardy area of Manchester. She arrived in Spain in 1937 and became Head Nurse at a hospital in an old monastery at Uclės in Castile. Like some of the other British nurses, she was also involved with the fund-raising campaigns back home. 

Madge would write detailed letters about the work being done in the 'Manchester Ward' at the hospital in Uclės to the Chairman of the North Manchester Spanish Medical Aid Committee to help with the campaigns for medical supplies. 

She was the last British nurse to leave Spain but what happened to her after that did not come to light until recently. 

Spain Fifgts for Independence, poster, 1936-39

She married the Norwegian she had met in Spain, Wilhelm Holst, and during the Second World War she went on to play a vital role in setting up the famous 'Garrow-Pat O’Leary' escape line, working with MI9. 

She was awarded the OBE for her work in France; her bravery included travelling as a Norwegian subject on German civil flights, carrying secret messages sewn into the lining of her fur coat. 

As an English woman operating in enemy-occupied territory, she would have known what the penalty would be if caught.  Madge Addy died in 1970.”*

But there is much more including some of the letters she sent home from Spain and an article from the Manchester Guardian which she gives a description of the revenge carried out by the victorious forces of Franco on the civil population and those who sided with the defeated democratic government of Spain.

Wilbraham Road,, Chorlton, circa 1930s

Like all good stories I came across it by chance after Cllr Shelia Newman had been asked to look into the possibility of erecting a plaque to the memory of Ms Addy.**

The cost will be met by voluntary subscriptions which just leaves a decision on its location.

Now there is a reference to Ms Addy having a hairdressing business in Chorlton just before she left for Spain, so a search of the trade directories may reveal an address.

Beech Road, Chorlton, circa 1930s

In the meantime I think I have found where was living in 1911 which was 58 Rusholme Grove with her widowed mother and five siblings.  Ms Addy was seven and her mother is described as a “dressmaker.”

The house was on the south side of Rusholme Grove was demolished sometime in the 1970s but that address is a start and over the next few weeks I want explore what I can of her story.

There may even be people who remember her and have more letters, pictures and stories of this remarkable woman.

Location; Chorlton, Spain, and France

Pictures; Ms Addy in 1938 courtesy of Shelia Newman, Chorlton in the 1930s from the Lloyd Collection  and Spain Fights for Independence, For Peace and Solidarity Among All Peoples, G. M. 1936-39, from The Palette and the Flame, 1980 

*From foodships to the front lines: a forgotten Manchester heroine of the Spanish Civil War
By Angela Jackson,

*From Foodships to the front lines: a forgotten Manchester heroine of the Spanish Civil War, Angela Jackson

**Cllr Shelia Newman, cllr.s.newman@manchester.gov.uk  0161 234 1841 (Town Hall)

Madge Addy ....... nurse, and war hero was remembered in Chorlton .... one year ago

Over 50 gathered

The sun shone and over 50 people gathered to watch the unveiling of a plaque to Madge Addy.*

I have written about Madge who was the last British nurse to leave Republican Spain as the legitimate and democratically elected Government was about to be defeated by the forces of a military insurrection led by Franco.

She went on to work as a secret agent in occupied France during the last war and despite being awarded the OBE has slipped into the shadows.

And there are only a few references to Madge Addy.

Cllr Eddy Newman

She appears in newspaper accounts in the Daily Worker and wrote of her own experiences in Spain to raise awareness of the Civil War and the brutal actions of the Franco forces and crops up in books on the International Brigade.

But given that she worked here in Chorlton as a hairdresser in the 1930s it seemed fitting that she should be remembered with a plaque on the place where she worked.

Chris Hall and others dedicated to maintaining the memory of those who went to Spain to fight for democracy have worked hard to raise the money and organise the placing of the plaque at 34 Manchester Road.

Chris had originally asked the late Shelia Newman to help and it was fitting that the plaque was unveiled by her three children, and that amongst the speakers was Cllr Eddy Newman who was Shelia’s husband and the present Lord Mayor.

Chris Hall and Jeff Smith MP

The unveiling was followed by a social event across the road in the Library where there was food, music, and information panels telling the story of the Spanish Civil War, the involvement of the International Brigade and the men and women who went from Greater Manchester.

Anyone wishing to know more about the plaque can contact Chris at, christoff_hall@yahoo.com or on 0161 861 7448





Location; Chorlton

The plaque

Pictures, the plaque unveiling on May12 2018, pictures from the collection of Andrew Simpson
















*Madge Addy, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Madge%20Addy

Madge Addy .... nurse and spy ..... the remarkable story ... online to watch

 Now any one who missed the talk on Madge Addy can catch it online.

Chris Hall, the plaque and the book

She was a remarkable woman who served as a nurse on the Repbulican side in the Spanish Civil War, went on to be an Allied spy in occuppied France during the Second World War, and for a brief time worked in Chorlton at 34 Manchester Road, where there is a plaque commemorating her life.

Chris has a light engaging style of public speaking, coupled with a deep knowledge of Madge and a deep respect for the woman.

Writing the book was not without its problems, especially in the early stages when information on Mage's life was sparce.

Madge in Marseilles, during the last World War

But sheer solid and painstaking research coupled with a few lucky breaks gave the background, and the result is an excellent biography which places her in the context of the Spanish Civil War and the subsequent conflict with an added bonus of details of the lives and contributions of other woman, some of who have also been ignored by history.

Pictures; Chris Hall, the plaque and the book from the collection of Chris Hall

*Madge Addy, the talk by Chris Hall to Chorlton Good Neighnours, February 3rd, 2021, https://youtu.be/ZF6B0OFvmzQ

A story of a remarkable women ..... Madge Addy ..... nurse and spy ..... today

Now I am looking forward to hearing Chris Hall talk on Madge Addy at Chorlton Good Neighbours today at 1.30pm.

She was a shadowy figure, who worked as a nurse on the Republican side during the Spanish Civil War and went on to work for the SOE during the last World War.

But her story and in particular her time as a spy was barely known, but now thanks to Chris it is out in the open.

Before the last world war she lived in Chorlton and a blue plaque commemmorating her time here was unveiled back in 2018 by the Lord Mayor. 

In July of last year, Chris published his book on this remarkable woman.

All of which leaves me just to post a link to the zoom meeting.

I heard Chris speak on Ms Addy at the Library in September and it was an excellent description of her life, and the fascinating detective story which brought her out of the shadows.

The talk is hosted by Chorlton Good Neighbours and will be available at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88259914720?pwd=WXVwWUFBZERiOWR2QzZOTjU4amtzdz09 Meeting ID: 882 5991 4720 Passcode: 050850 at 1.30pm

*Chorlton Good Neighbours, https://chorltongoodneighbours.org/

Madge Addy .... spy .... nurse and hairdresser ... last night at Chorlton Libray in the company of Chris Hall

 So, last night 70 people gathered in the Library to hear Chris Hall talk about his new book on Madge Addy.

She was a remarkable woman who served as a nurse on the Repbulican side in the Spanish Civil War, went on to be an Allied spy in occuppied France during the Second World War, and for a brief time worked in Chorlton at 34 Manchester Road.

Chris has a light engaging style of public speaking, coupled with a deep knowledge of Madge and a deep respect for the woman.

Writing the book was not without its problems, especially in the early stages when information on Mage's life was sparce.

But sheer solid and painstaking research coupled with a few lucky breaks gave the background, and the result is an excellent biography which places her in the context of the Spanish Civil War and the subsequent conflict with an added bonus of details of the lives and contributions of other woman, some of who have also been ignored by history.

The talk was part of this years Chorlton Book Festival**

Chris tells me that there will be other speaking engagements, so if you missed last night I recommend you look out for when Madge and Chris come together again.

And finally just a thanks to the Library staff, and the organisers and Friends of the Book Festival for making the night go so smoothly.

Pictures, from the collections of Chris Hall and Andrew Simpson

*The book is published by Pen & Sword Books Ltd, Lucy May, 47 Church Street, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, S70 2AS, www.pen-and-sword.co.uk, Email: promotions@pen-and-sword.co.uk and cost £25. And is also available from Chorlton Bookshop.

**Chorlton Book Festival September 17th-25th, https://www.chorltonbookfestival.co.uk/

Chris Hall: The Nurse who Became a Spy......... Tuesday September 21 .... at Chorlton Library

This is a talk I have been looking forward to ever since the publication of Chris Hall's book on Madge Addy.

"On the wall of 34 Manchester Road, there is a plaque dedicated to Madge Addy.

A former hairdresser, she served as a nurse in the Spanish Civil War and became a special agent in France in World War II.

Chris Hall’s book The Nurse who Became a Spy, tells her remarkable story.

Chris is a historian, trade unionist, librarian and expert on the Spanish Civil War.

He uncovered Madge Addy’s story and led the campaign for the plaque.

He’s the author of books including Disciplina Camaradas and In Spain with Orwell, and a member of the International Brigade Memorial Trust."*

The talk is part of this years Chorlton Book Festival.

Book free tickets here, https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/chorlton-book-festival-madge-addy-the-nurse-who-became-a-spy-tickets-159588971911

Location, Chorlton, Spain, France

Picture; Nurse Madge Addy; Daily Worker, November 11, 1938 the plaque unveiling ceremony on May 12 2018

*Chorlton Book Festival September 17th-25th, https://www.chorltonbookfestival.co.uk/

Madge Addy ....The Nurse who became a Spy……… the Play ....... today

Finally Madge Addy has come out of the shadows.

She lived in Chorlton in the 1930s, went out to practice as a nurse on the Republican side during the Spanish Civil War, and later was an Allied spy in Nazi occupied Europe during the Second World War.

But by the late 1960s she has settled into obscurity, and it has fallen to Chris Hall to place Madge Addy back in the spotlight.

His book on Ms. Addy was published in July, and he will be speaking on the book at the Chorlton Book Festival*

But along side this talk there is the play, which Chris writes, “Chorlton’s Madge Addy a Spanish Civil War nurse and World War II special agent, life will be brought to life in a dramatized play which will be performed at the Chorlton Arts Festival by Return of Los Internacionales and Mad Donnas.

Venue:  Wilbraham St Ninians Church in Chorlton, on Saturday September 18th 7.30- 9PM. Tickets £5 cash payment on the door.

The performance includes songs from the period performed by the Mad Donnas, Madge’s own words from her letters will be spoken, photographs from her life shown and major events from her life will be acted out such as: Aid Spain meeting in Stretford, Madge made a prisoner of war by General Franco’s forces,  Madge delivering secret messages in fur coat to British Intelligence.

Depending on his health a nephew of Madge’s will be attending.

The event is supported by the North West International Brigade Memorial Group”.

Pictures; Nurse Madge Addy; Daily Worker, November 11, 1938, and Chris Hall, 2021

*Chris Hall: The Nurse who Became a Spy, Tuesday 21 September, 7–8.30pm, Chorlton Library, tickets are available from, https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/chorlton-book-festival-madge-addy-the-nurse-who-became-a-spy-tickets-159588971911

The Chorlton Nurse Who Became A Spy ……. the book of Madge Addy’s War against Fascism

Now I am so pleased and more  than a bit excited that Chris Hall’s book on Madge Addy will be published on July30th.

Madge Addy

I first came across Madge Addy back in 2016 and she has appeared in 14 stories on the blog, culminating with the unveiling of a plaque to her, here in Chorlton. 

Chris Hall, 2021

Madge Addy was a shadowy figure, who worked as a nurse on the Republican side during the Spanish Civil War and went on to work for the SOE during the last World War.

But her story and in particular her time as a spy was barely know, but now thanks to Chris it is out in the open.  

He told me today that the book will feature "in the Chorlton Arts and Books Festival, and on  Saturday September 18th 7.30-9 at Wilbraham St Ninians church, Return of Los Internacionales with the Mad Donnas are performing a play about Madge Addy written by me  £5 cash payment on the door, along with an appearance on Tuesday September 21st 7-8.30 at Chorlton Library during the Book Festival talking about discovering the story of Madge Addy, which is a free event".

The press release, 2021

The book is published by Pen & Sword Books Ltd, Lucy May, 47 Church Street, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, S70 2AS, www.pen-and-sword.co.uk, Email: promotions@pen-and-sword.co.uk and cost £25

So there you have it …..more details to follow.

*Madge Addy, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/Madge%20Addy

A bullet holed ambulance, and a shadowing story of a secret agent ....... Madge Addy from Chorlton

The story of Madge Addy is a fascinating one, not least because there is still more to discover.*

Madge Addy, 1938

On Saturday over 50 people gathered in front of number 34 Manchester Road to remember a very remarkable woman who was an active participant in two wars, was awarded the OBE and briefly worked here in Chorlton.

She remains a shadowy figure and until December 2016 I knew nothing about her, and even now the references to her work as a nurse during the Spanish Civil War and then her role as a secret agent in occupied France are fairly limited.

She wrote articles about the Spanish war which appeared along with her photograph in the Daily Worker, and there are fleeting references to her in books on both the Spanish Civil War and the Second World War.

And then like so many war heroes, she fades from the limelight.

But now there is a plaque which was unveiled on Saturday at 34 Manchester Road, which was attended by Cllr Eddy Newman, the Lord Mayor, and Jeff Smith MP for Manchester Withington, along with a representative from the British Legion.

In Marseilles

And interest is building.

Chris Hall, who organised the efforts to get the plaque, received a picture of Ms Addy with Wilhelm Holst during the Second World War, possibly in Marseilles.  Mr Holst was Madge Addy’s second husband and the picture comes from his grandson.

In time I am sure some of the gaps in the story will be filled, and only today I got an email from Margaret Riley who commented that Ms Addy was “Inspirational” and went on to say “I saw her bullet holed ambulance when she returned from Spain. Always remembered it.

The only ambulances I’d seen were the Disney printed ones, which would pick children up for tonsillectomies in the morning and bring them back in the afternoon.  I couldn’t see why this one had holes in it, and I can’t remember where I saw it, as I was taken to Stalybridge via Dukinfield and Ashton”.

The unveiling, 2018

Now I find that memory fascinating.  The news value of that bullet riddled ambulance will have been immensely useful in making the public aware of the war in Spain, and in particular, the illegal act staged by a group of the military against the democratically elected Government of Spain.

So, given that the date must be around 1938, a trawl of the Daily Worker and even the local Manchester papers may turn something up.

We shall see.

Picture; Madge Addy from the Daily Worker, 1938, in the company of Wilhelm Holst, date unknown, courtesy of Mr Host’s grandson and at the unveiling of the plaque, May 12, 2018 from the collection of Andrew Simpson

*Madge Addy, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Madge%20Addy

It has been a long time coming ...... Madge Addy ...... remembered in Chorlton ...... today

It has been a long time coming ...... remembered in Chorlton

You can read more about Madge Addy at https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Madge%20Addy

Coming soon ........ the new historic plaque for Chorlton

Now after some hard work we will soon have a plaque on a wall here in Chorlton to honour Madge Addy.

She was a remarkable woman who not only went out to Spain during the Spanish Civil War but went on to serve as an agent in occupied France.*

It is a story I have been uncovering for a while and was prompted by a request from Cll Shelia Newman to research the life of Madge Addy who lived in Chorlton.

Interest has grown in Ms Addy since Chris Hall suggested that there should be a memorial plaque to this brave woman and there may be some who also have knowledge of Madge please contact Chris by email at christoff_hall@yahoo.com or on 0161 861 7448.

And now the plaque is ready and will soon be installed.

Location; Chorlton

Picture; photograph of the Madge Addy plaque, 2017, courtesy of Chris Hall

*Madge Addy, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Madge%20Addy

Liberty’s Volunteers remembering the Spanish Civil War ...... tomorrow

Now I have returned to the story of Madge Addy who worked in Spain during the Civil War, went on to serve as an agent in occupied France during the Second World War and briefly lived in Chorlton.

Her contribution to both conflicts will be remembered tomorrow at a conference on the Spanish Civil War at which there will be a collection towards financing a blue plaque to commemorate her activities.

Along with a series of short talks, a question and answer session there will be songs from the Civil War, and a showing of the film Voices from a Mountain, which was inspired by the astonishing discovery of an intact memorial to a group of International Brigaders, who were killed during the Battle of the Ebro in the late summer of 1938 and contains interviews with former brigaders, all of whom have now passed.

Location Manchester

The Manchester Conference Centre

& Pendulum Hotel

Sackville Street Manchester M1 3BB

Tel: 0161 955 8000

www.manchesterconferencecentre.co.uk

£10 entrance only

(payment on the day)

Payment to IBMT by cheque/PayPal/bank transfer to:

Charles Jepson

Aysgaard, Beardwood Brow, Blackburn, Lancs, BB2 7AT

Tel: 01254 51302 

Email:clarioncc@yahoo.co.uk

(please note no receipts will be sent out)

For further information on the conference:

Dolores Long: 0161 2262013 doloreslong@fastmail.fm

Charles Jepson: 01254 51302 clarioncc@yahoo.co.uk

Hilary Jones: 01625 527540 hilary.m.jones@btinternet.com

Another piece in the story of Madge Addy ...... secret agent, Civil War nurse and resident of Chorlton

Madge Addy was a remarkable woman who not only went out to Spain during the Spanish Civil War but went onto serve as an agent in occupied France.*

It is a story I have been uncovering for a while and was prompted by a request from Cll Shelia Newman to research the life of Madge Addy who lived in Chorlton.**

Interest has grown in Ms Addy since Chris Hall suggested that there should be a memorial plaque to this brave woman and there may be some who also have knowledge of Madge or would like to make a contribution to the cost of the plaque and if so please contact Chris by email at christoff_hall@yahoo.com or on 0161 861 7448.

The campaign for the blue plaque is fully supported by Chorlton's three councillors.

And as part of that campaign I wrote a short article in the Chorlton edition of Open Up and here the story takes a twist.***

My old friend Ida read the story and  was in the process of reading Silk and Cyanide by Leo Markes about  the operations of the British Special Operations Executive.

In a previous conversation Ida had suggested that this was the book which might offer up a clue about MS Addy

And sure enough in a one line sentence there is a reference to an unnamed agent who carried secret documents from Denmark to Sweden on a German civilian aircraft.  It might not be Madge but we know she did travel this route during 1940.

So perhaps a little bit more has come to light.

Location; Chorlton, Spain, France


Picture; Nurse Madge Addy giving a blood transfusion; Daily Worker, November 11, 1938 and Madge Addy, 1938

*Madge Addy, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Madge%20Addy

**Cllr Shelia Newman, cllr.s.newman@manchester.gov.uk  0161 234 1841 (Town Hall)

***Open Up, http://openupmagazines.co.uk/chorlton/

Remembering Madge Addy at the Town Hall this Sunday

Now Miss Madge Addy was a remarkable women.

She went off to Spain at the beginning of the Spanish Civil War, served as a nurse on the side of democratically elected Government who were fighting a Nationalist insurrection and was the last British nurse to leave the country the war zone.

She then went on to work as an agent in occupied France during the Second World War, assisted escaping allied prisoners of war and smuggled secret documents on German civilian aircraft.

But despite these achievements few people have heard of her.

And so this Sunday there be is an event to raise money for a plaque to commemorate her work, which it is hoped will go up on the wall of the house she lived in on Manchester Road in Chorlton.

The campaign to bring Miss Addy out of the shadows has been led by Christoper Hall who writes, that Madge is to be honoured as part of the "annual Jarama  commemoration and this year we are concentrating the on the lives of two local Spanish Civil War volunteers Madge Addy and George Brown. 

I am doing the talk on Madge. The Clarion choir will be singing song from the period and wreaths will be laid at the memorial in the Town Hall to those Greater Manchester men who died fighting Fascism in the Spanish Civil War. There will be a bucket collection at the event to raise money towards Madge's blue plaque.

I have also on our website setup a fund raising page for Madge Addy see http://www.international-brigades.org.uk/catalog/conferencestalks “

So it would be good to see you all at Manchester Town Hall on Sunday February 26.

The event will last from 10.30 through to 11.30.

Location; Manchester

Picture; Madge Addy, 1938

Madge Addy ........ nurse and secret agent comes out of the shadows

Now the remarkable story of Madge Addy is about to reach a much wider audience and with that I hope we are one step nearer commemorating her achievements in two of the major armed conflicts of the 20th century.*

Ms Addy was born in Rusholme, lived in Chorlton and volunteered to serve as a nurse during the Spanish Civil War.

She wrote regular letters home highlighting the bravery and the hardships endured by the supporters of the democratically elected Government of Spain which was fighting a rebellion of Nationalist army officers.

The war marked the fault line between the progressive and democratic forces of Europe who were pitched against the conservative and far right groups which included Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy.

After the defeat of the Republican Government by the Nationalist Ms Addy went on to serve as an agent for the British in occupied France during the Second World assisting escaping allied POWs and carrying secret documents on commercial German airliners.

Her activities have been largely forgotten and neither the Guardian or the Times carried an obituary when she died in 1970.

But this is now being rectified by Chris Hall who has not only been researching her life but is working towards the erection of a blue plaque.

And now after four stories on the blog Ms Addy has featured in the Manchester Evening News, will be in the next edition of Chorlton’s Open Up magazine and will appear on Granada News and Nursing Standard.

It is only as it should be for a woman who risked much but never seems to have wanted to publicise her achievements.

There may be some who also have knowledge of Madge or would like to make a contribution to the cost of the plaque and if so please contact Chris by email at christoff_hall@yahoo.com or on 0161 861 7448.

The campaign for the blue plaque is fully supported by Chorlton's three councillors.**

Location; Chorlton, Spain, France


Picture; Nurse Madge Addy giving a blood transfusion; Daily Worker, November 11, 1938 and Madge Addy, 1938

*Madge Addy, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Madge%20Addy

**Cllr Shelia Newman, cllr.s.newman@manchester.gov.uk  0161 234 1841 (Town Hall)

Looking for Madge Addy from Chorlton ........ a new development

This is the continuing story of Madge Addy who worked in Chorlton, was a nurse in the Spanish Civil War and was awarded an OBE for her wartime work as an undercover agent in occupied Europe during the last world war.

Ms Addy, 1938

It is a story I keep coming back to but one made difficult because while most of the references give her name as Madge she was actually Marguerite and was married three times, first to an Arthur Wilson Lightfoot later a Mr Holst finally Mr Hansen.

All of which makes trawling the records that bit more difficult.

But bit by bit that story is coming to light and here I have to declare that most of the hard research has been done by Chis Hall.

It was he who discovered that she had been married three times and not the twice as cited  by many sources.

And it was discovery that led Chris to an address in Chorlton where she was living in the mid 1930s.

This was 34 Manchester Road, which is still there and is the third house down from Selbourne Road.

In time we may also find where she was working as a hairdresser/masseur now that we have her married name.  A previous trawl of the directories using Addy failed to locate the business, but of course she may not have owned the shop only worked there.

Wilbraham Road, Chorlton, 1938

Still we now have her home address and this will help the move to erect a blue plaque to commemorate this courageous woman.

The cost of the blue plaque will be met by voluntary subscriptions and anyone who would like to make a contribution or share memories of Ms Addy should contact Chris by emailing him at christoff_hall@yahoo.com or on 0161 861 7448.

Location; Chorlton, Spain, & France

Pictures; Ms Addy in 1938 Chorlton in the 1930s from the Lloyd Collection

*Madge Addy;  https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Madge%20Addy

Looking for Madge Addy from Chorlton

Now the search for Madge Addy has got just that bit more complicated and that is problem.

Madge Addy, 1938

In 1938 she was working in Chorlton cum Hardy before she left for Spain and a hospital ward where she tended the sick and wounded during the Civil War.

Later she went on to work for the Special Operations Executive in occupied France risking her life aiding escaping allied soldiers and carrying secret documents even travelling on German commercial flights.

For these brave exploits she was awarded the OBE.

She died in 1970 but her passing appears to have gone unrecorded by the media and so because of this and her remarkable work in Spain and France there is moves to place a blue plaque here in Chorlton.

And here is the rub because so far all attempts to locate where she lived in Chorlton have drawn a blank.

Ms Addy doesn’t appear in the directories for 1938 or the 1939 Register, leaving just an appeal for anyone who might know her and there are no references to her address on the newspaper article of the time.

And all this matters because there are moves to commemorate her with that blue plaque which it is hoped could be fixed to the house she lived in.

So at present that leaves the appeal for anyone who may have known her.

Location; Chorlton-cum-Hardy

Picture; Miss Addy, 1938