WRFH/Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM - Undetected: Jean Moulin

Episode Date: February 14, 2025

Megan and Alessia unfold the courageous, yet tragic tale of French Resistance leader Jean Moulin.

Every inch of his body ached. Never before had he felt pain like this. He slowly looked down at his hands. They were covered in blood. The sound of dripping water rang in his ears as realization set in. He knew he wouldn't be able to hold out for much longer. He could barely get up. Hope for escape was non-existent.

A small ray of sunlight came through the small window across the room. Footsteps pulled the man from his defeated thinking. Keys jingled outside of the door until it finally flew open. The man looked into the eyes of the uniformed soldier who now stood in front of him. Not again. When he re-entered the room, he felt as though he knew his time had come. He could never betray his people. He was no collaborator.

Just then, he noticed a piece of glass lying on the floor. Welcome to Undetected on Radio Free Hillsdale. Go undercover with your hosts, Alessia Sandala and Megan Lee, as they uncover the stories of spies from every country in time. The most thrilling, yet the most secret of lives in his life. history. Hey everyone, it's good to be back for another week of undetected. I'm Megan. And I'm Alessia. If you couldn't tell, this week's spy story is a tragic one. But despite the ending, our spy is one of the most successful French resistance leaders of the Second World War. Jean-Moulon was born in a city

in southern France on June 20th, 1899. As the First World War neared its end, Mulan joined the French army. However, before he could be sent to the front, the war had come to a close on November 11th, 1918. After the war, Mulan returned to studying law, and after earning his degree, he entered civil service. He quickly rose through the ranks becoming a prefect. During this time, he took a break to work as the chief of staff for Air Minister Pierre Cotte during the time of the Spanish Civil War. Mulan helped to send covert assistance to the Republican faction in Spain, primarily aircraft. In January 1939, Mulan became the prefect of Chartres. Things took a dark turn when France declared war on Germany. Milan asked to be transferred to a military school with the hopes of joining the Air Force.

His attempt was put to a stop, though. Apparently his boss found him to be too valuable an employee. As German troops invaded France and drew closer and closer to Milan's home, he grew worried. He even wrote a letter to his parents saying he thought the Germans would make him say things he didn't believe and warned them that whatever it was would be a lie. On June 17, 1940, Milan was arrested for refusing to sign a statement saying Senegalese troops fighting for France, had raped and murdered local civilians. In an effort to try to convince Mulan to sign, the Germans showed him the bodies of the civilians,

but he was in fooled. The civilians were clearly killed by bombing rather than any soldiers. Mulan was tortured, and eventually, as we alluded to at the start of this episode, Mulan attempted to commit suicide using a piece of glass. However, a guard came in and saved his life. Mulan was taken to a hospital

where he recovered and was later released. He was unfortunately fired from his job. This was the moment Mulan completely, dedicated his life to resisting the German occupation. Mulan moved to his parents' hometown where he joined the French Resistance. As he began his dangerous work, he had to wear a scarf around his neck because of the scar his attempted suicide left behind. Mulan quickly rose through the ranks and was eventually assigned the extremely difficult task of unifying the scattered French resistance by Charles de Gaul, leader of the resistance group known as the Free French, who was in exile in Britain.

More conservative members of the resistance refused to work with left-leaning members such as Moulon. This was a major obstacle in fighting back against the Nazis. Despite Mulan's success with the resistance, things continued to get worse. You may remember SS officer Klaus Barby from our episode on Virginia Hall. He was a terrifying man who didn't earn the nickname The Butcher of Leone for no reason. And Barbie was on the hunt for a resistance leader known as Max. A series of arrests eventually led to the capture of a resistance member named Renee Hardy. Suspiciously, Hardy was released by the Gestapo the day after his arrest.

Alessia, this definitely should have been a red flag. It would have been, but Hardy kept his arrest to himself, and shortly after, Hardy was brought to a high-level resistance meeting. That was when the unthinkable happened. On June 21st, the Gestapo stormed into the house where the meeting was happening. Hardy escaped being grazed by a bullet on the way out. Mulan and the other resistance leaders were arrested. Barbie personally questioned the men.

He knew Max was one of the men at the meeting, however no one admitted to it. decided to turn to torture. Despite being subjected to absolutely terrifying torture, Milan never gave any information to the Gestapo. Mulan paid for his silence with his life. Hardy, suspected of betraying Mulan, was put on trial after the war. However, he was acquitted. The identity of the man who betrayed Milan was never discovered. Despite Mulan's eventual capture, he truly proved to be an excellent spy who was willing to give everything for the cause. Mulan's story reveals the ever-present problem with any intelligence or espionage operation. No matter how careful you are, you can't run an operation alone.

Someone is bound to be caught, and when faced with horrifying torture and the threat of death, very few people can resist giving up their comrades. I'm Megan. And I'm Alessia. We hope you enjoy this episode of Undetected. Tune in next week for the story of the CIA's greatest traitor, Aldrich Ames, on Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM.