Virginia Hall: The Most Dangerous of Allied Spies (Part One)

SPEAKER_1 (0:01)

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Madigan (0:30)

Hi, I'm Madigan, and you're listening to Your Angry Neighborhood Feminist, a podcast that explores the world through a personal feminist perspective.

Hello, everyone. The time has come. I am finally bringing you part 1 of my episode covering the most dangerous of all Allied spies who just happened to be a woman named Virginia Hall. Now, this episode took me forever and a day to put together because it was very, very involved. There's not a lot out there on Virginia as far as just regular websites and biographies go, and there seems to only really be one book out there that really goes into detail about Virginia's life and everything that she accomplished in her life. And that book is A Woman of No Importance, The Untold Story of the American Spy Who Helped Win World War II by Sonia Purnell, which came out in 2019

So that is my main source today, but of course, I looked elsewhere in regards to other aspects of the war and other characters mentioned in the telling of Virginia's story. As I alluded to, I have a hefty bit of notes to get through on this one, so I'd say we better get going. Virginia Hall was born on April 6th, 1906 to Barbara Hall, a young and ambitious woman who worked as a secretary the century before, but who had married her boss, Edwin Lee Hall, known as Ned, who was a wealthy banker from Baltimore as well as a cinema owner. Barbara was definitely a social climber and this marriage catapulted Barbara's social status and she no longer had to worry about whether or not she would go hungry or whether or not she would be able to afford the finer things in life. This was because Ned's father, John W. Hall, ran away to see when he was only nine years old, then went on to marry an heiress and became the president of the first national bank. Man, marriage really worked out for men back in the day.

Barbara felt this sort of life suited her best. Her own family said Barbara became snooty when she married Ned. Unfortunately, Ned wasn't as good with money as his father had been, and he doesn't seem to have been as ambitious either. He failed to maintain his family's fortune, let alone add to it. And so, Virginia was born to a more modest country house, at Boxhorn Farm in Maryland, which didn't have central heating, and you had to pump for water from a stream. It would be up to Virginia and her brother to help raise the Hall's reputation from the ashes. But I don't want to make it seem like Virginia's dad was just a horrible person or a stick in the mud, because he really did seem to be a good father and had a lot of love and care for his children. Especially knowing more about his relationship with Virginia, he very much encouraged her to always be herself when she was growing up, and not necessarily conform to the social standards of her gender.

As Virginia grew into a young woman, she was described as a tall and randy girl with sparkly nut brown eyes and a melting smile, which she rarely wore. Her family took to calling her dindie.

Virginia was also described as being untamable, especially by her future male suitors once she became of age. Virginia seems to have really disliked men in general, and is said to have worn trousers instead of skirts as a way to repulse them. But I could also see Virginia as the kind of gal who just wanted to wear pants. Virginia defied conventions in other ways too, like by hunting with a rifle, riding bareback on a horse, and once wearing a bracelet of live snakes to school. For her 1924 year book quote, she stated, I must have liberty with as large a character as I please. And I think that, honestly, sums her up pretty damn good. She is one independent bitch.

Virginia had also been voted as class president, editor-in-chief of the high school paper, and the captain of sports at her school. Overall, they gave her the title of class prophet, which is something.

She described herself as cantankerous and capricious. When Virginia turned 19, she obeyed her mother's wishes and became engaged. I don't know who this man is, but we were almost in the 1920s here. And while Virginia tried to do what was expected of her, a rebellion was in the air. She also didn't like her fiance's entitlement and his philandering. I don't blame her.