Simone Segouin

Simone Segouin (; 3 October 1925 – 21 February 2023), also known by her nom de guerre Nicole Minet , was a French Resistance fighter who served in the Francs-tireurs et partisans group during World War II. Among her first acts of resistance was stealing a bicycle from a German patrol, which she then used to help carry messages. She went on to take part in large-scale or otherwise dangerous missions, such as capturing German troops, derailing trains, and acts of sabotage.

Early life Segouin was born on 3 October 1925 in Thivars, a French village near Chartres. She grew up alongside three brothers. Her father had been a decorated soldier during World War I. These papers identified her as being from the port of Dunkirk, which had been bombed early in the war, making it difficult for Germans to verify their authenticity.

Segouin began by acting as a messenger and carrying out other small jobs, and later became more actively involved after participating in a successful "train-exploding expedition". Of her role in the Resistance, she said:

I was fighting for the resistance, that's all. If I had to start over, I would, because I have no regrets. The Germans were our enemies, we were French.

Segouin gained international fame when photographs of her by American photographer Robert Capa were published in Life weeks after the capture of 25 German soldiers in which she took part. After the war, Segouin became a pediatric nurse in Chartres. In response to the honour, Segouin said, "I'm very glad to know that people are not indifferent to this period of my life." She was the subject of a French documentary in 2021, broadcast on RMC Découverte. On 14 July 2021, she was appointed a Knight of the Legion of Honour, France's highest order of merit.