Harold Cole
| Harold Cole | |
|---|---|
| Allegiance | Nazi Germany |
| Service | Sicherheitsdienst |
| Active | 1941-45 |
| Rank | Hauptscharführer |
| Codename(s) | Paul Cole |
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|
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| Born | 24 January 1906 |
| Died | 8 January 1946 (aged 39) Paris, France |
| Cause of death |
shot by French police while evading capture |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | petty criminal |
Harold Cole (24 January 1906 – 8 January 1946), also known as Harry Cole or Paul Cole, was a British soldier, who assisted then betrayed many in the French Resistance to the Gestapo during World War II. His actions caused significant damage to the Allied cause and he has been described as "the worst traitor of the war". Cole was killed while resisting arrest by French police in Paris in January 1946.
Cole was born in an East London slum. By the time he was a teenager he was petty criminal committing burglary, embezzlement and cheque fraud. He had served several sentences in British gaols before the start of the Second World War. In September 1939, after recently being released early from prison, he lied about his criminal past to enlist in the British Army (Serial No. 1877989RE). He was assigned to the 18th Field Park Company part of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, a unit in the 4th Infantry Division. It was sent to France in late 1939 as a part of the British Expeditionary Force and was stationed in Loison-sous-Lens, where Cole was promoted to sergeant. In May 1940 he was arrested for stealing money from his own Sergeants' Mess and placed in a guardhouse. Cole became a prisoner of war because he was left behind when his unit pulled out during the Fall of France.
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