Susan Travers was an inspiration in World War II and fought for what she wanted. She supported the army and became the first woman in the French Foreign Legion. It played an important role and effectively assisted people in war. Susan Travers, born in England, was the only woman to join the French Foreign Legion. Like family, they admired the legion and played a key role in its troops' escape from Rommel's siege of the deserted fortress of Bir Hakeim in 1942. When war broke out in 1939, Susan Travers was living in southern France, where she had grown up and joined the Croix Rouge, the French Red Cross. Up until this point she had led a rather unremarkable life as a socialite, but the challenges she now faced gave her purpose for the first time. Although her aversion to blood and disease made her a less than ideal nurse. For her part she was nicknamed "La Miss". With Koenig's career on the rise, colonial Marie-Pierre Koenig later ended a relationship with Susan, much to her grief. By May 1945 “I had become the person I had always wanted to be” and, wanting no other life, I applied to officially join the legion. Susan Travers was born in London on 23 September 1909. Her father, a naval officer, had married her mother for money and the union was not a particularly happy one. Susan's childhood was comfortable but too strict, and she spent her funniest moments away from her parents with her grandmother in Devon. She was sent to school at St Mary's, Wantage, an experience she did not remember fondly, but during the First World War her father had been in charge of shipping to Marseilles (where her father had once been British consul), and in 1921 he decided...... halfway through the paper......d the Ordre du Corps d'Arme for his undertaking. She ended her relationship with the married man, but still remained with the Legion during the fighting in Italy and France until the end of the war, acting as both driver and nurse for the wounded and dying. She took care to omit her gender from the form and her application was accepted. She was appointed an officer in the logistics division, and thus became the only woman to ever serve in the Legion. Works Cited “Susan Travers.” Encyclopedia Britannica Online academic edition. Encyclopedia Britannica Inc., 2013. Web. March 10, 2013. "Susan Travers." Telegraph Media Group. The Telegraph Media Group Limited 2014. 23 December 2003. Web. 04 March 2014. Horse Riding, Alan. “Susan Travers, she was never shy in armor or in war.” The New York Times. The New York Times Company, April 21, 2001. Web. March 10. 2014.