Builth Wells Town Council was delighted to accept the offer by the artist Janet Fitzpatrick of a painting of Special Operations Executive war hero, Violette Szabo.

The painting is called “Violette & War” and was presented to the town council at the Strand Hall on August 16. Also in attendance was Violette’s daughter, Tania and several invited guests.

Violette Szabo was a British-French Special Operations Executive (SOE) agent during the Second World War. Parachuted into France in the days after D-Day in June 1944, Violette was captured by the Nazis, interrogated and tortured.

Taken to Ravensbrück Concentration Camp, Violette was killed there by the Nazis in February 1945. She was aged just 23.

Violette was awarded the George Cross posthumously following her heroics as a secret agent for the Allied forces.

Violette’s daughter, Tania lives in Cilmeri, a village two and a half miles west of Builth Wells.