Andrée De Jongh

Life & Legacy

Countess Andrée Eugénie Adrienne de Jongh (30 November 1916 – 13 October 2007), called Dédée and Postman, was a member of the Belgian Resistance during the Second World War. She organised and led the Comet Line (Le Réseau Comète) to assist Allied soldiers and airmen to escape from Nazi-occupied Belgium. The airmen were survivors of military airplanes shot down over Belgium or other European countries. Between August 1941 and December 1942, she escorted 118 people, including more than 80 airmen, from Belgium to neutral Spain from where they were transported to the United Kingdom. Arrested by the Nazis in January 1943, she was incarcerated for the remainder of World War II. After the war, she worked in leper hospitals in Africa.
De Jongh was the recipient of the George Medal from the United Kingdom, the Medal of Freedom with golden palms from the United States, and many other medals for her work during World War II. In 1985 she was made a countess by the king of Belgium. Her exploits were described in or inspired several books, movies, and television shows.