User:Koscielny

A belated response to questions about Krystyna Skarbek Christine Granville) raised over the past several years.

1. Budapest has been the capital of Hungary for many years and Bucharest has been the capital of Romania.

2. To Jerzy: Christine was arrested twice and both times concocted ruses to manage her escape. She was never released because she was presumed to be 'innocent.' Christine was never rescued by the Resistance. These statements can be verified by a look at Christine's file (HS 9 series) at the National Archive in Kew (UK, for those not familiar with this archive).

3. Christine WAS  a double agent of sorts, in 1943 in Cairo. But not working for the Germans. See also the same file. Some of the facts of her pre-war life are now known.

4. Polish records and archives are in fact available. Many survived the war, especially those outside of  Warsaw.

5. The ID of the Polish intelligence officer who spread rumours about Christine is known. See also the National Archives.

6. Christine was not born in Mlodziesyn and the Skarbek family did not own it. The estate of Mlodziesyn was owned by another Polish family at the turn of the 20th century. Her birthplace has now been verified as Zielna street in Warsaw. Several people have made this discovery.

7. Christine was not a countess in the eyes of Polish genealogists. At the death of her father, her older brother would have inherited the title. But it matters little because Count Skarbek's title was of dubious provenance. Too complicated to explain here.

Ron Nowicki