Little is known of Maurice Southgate's early life, but it is understood he was educated in Paris, attending a technical college, which later allowed him to start his own upholstery business. With the coming of World War II, Southgate was part of the British Expeditionary Force, and in June 1940 was evacuated from Saint-Nazaire on the, which was later sunk by German aircraft. Fortunately, Southgate was able to swim away, being picked up by another vessel which later docked in Falmouth, Cornwall. In England he was posted by the RAF to the Air Ministry, where notably, he became reacquainted with his childhood friendPearl Witherington. In May 1942 his name was passed through to SOE's French Section, where he was accepted for training in July. His superiors were impressed with his serious and thorough approach, resulting in him being readied for the job of organiser for the newly established STATIONER circuit. In January 1943, after parachuting near Clermont-Ferrand with his wireless operatorJacqueline Nearne, Southgate began establishing communication networks around Vierzon, Châteauroux and Limoges, and also in the far south-west, around Tarbes. Towards the end of the summer STATIONER began to attack railway targets, power stations and aircraft works, in the hope that more adventurous sabotage was possible. In September a courier, Pearl Witherington, arrived to assist, and a month later Southgate was flown back to London to report on his progress. Returning to France to help with the incoming Allied invasion, Southgate landed near Toulouse in January 1944. Burdened with a considerable workload, including assisting a 2,500 man resistance group, on 1 May 1944, a weary Southgate was caught by a Gestapo trap in Montlucon, where he missed the secret signal. After interrogation, Southgate was deported to Germany, to the Buchenwald concentration camp, where 16 of his compatriots were hanged. He escaped this fate through feigning illness and was admitted to the camp hospital. Southgate spent several more weeks being genuinely ill. After which he was moved to work in the tailor's shop, where he kept a low profile and remained until American forces liberated Buchenwald on 11 April 1945. Extracts from Southgate's wartime diary have been published online.
