Short Answer
Early Life and Recruitment
Jack Charles Stanmore Agazarian was born on 27 August 1915 in London [1]. He was the second of six children born to an Armenian father, Berge Rupen Agazarian, and a French mother, Jacqueline Marie-Louise Le Chevalier [1, 2]. Educated at Dulwich College in England as well as schools in France, Agazarian possessed the linguistic and cultural background highly valued by the Special Operations Executive (SOE) [1, 4].
Following the outbreak of the Second World War, Agazarian initially joined the British Army [4]. On 30 May 1942, he joined the SOE, where he was trained as a wireless operator—one of the most dangerous roles in the field due to the ability of German radio-direction finding (RDF) teams to locate transmissions [2]. He held the rank of Honorary Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR) [1, 3].
Deployment and the Physician/Prosper Circuit
Agazarian was parachuted into France on the night of 29 December 1942 [2]. He was assigned to a new network being established in and around Paris, known as the Physician circuit [2]. This network is frequently referred to as Prosper, which was the codename of its circuit leader, Francis Suttill [2, 4]. To avoid confusion in historical records, the network is sometimes designated as Physician/Prosper [2].
Operating under the codename Marcel, Agazarian served as a vital link between the resistance in Paris and SOE headquarters in London [1, 2]. For six months, he maintained constant communication, coordinating the following activities:
- Arranging the parachute drops of weapons and sabotage stores [2].
- Receiving operational orders from London [2].
- Organizing the arrival of subsequent agents via parachute and air landings [2].
His role extended to supporting air movements. He worked alongside air movements officers, such as Henri Déricourt, to ensure that landing fields were suitable for Lysander aircraft, which were used to ferry agents in and out of occupied territory [2, 4].
Security Concerns and Evacuation
During his tenure in France, Agazarian became increasingly concerned about the security of the network. Specifically, he grew suspicious of the loyalty of Henri Déricourt, a former French Air Force pilot who organized receptions for agents [4]. These concerns were reflective of the broader volatility and infiltration risks facing the Prosper network during 1943 [4].
Agazarian was eventually evacuated from France on 16 June 1943 [4].
Capture and Fate
The circumstances surrounding Agazarian’s eventual capture and execution are described as complex and have been the subject of various theories [2]. He was ultimately held by the Germans and died on 29 March 1945 at the Flossenbürg concentration camp [1]. He was 29 years old at the time of his death [1].
Honours and Commemoration
In recognition of his service and sacrifice, Jack Agazarian was posthumously awarded the Legion of Honour in 1946 [1]. He was also Mentioned in Despatches [3]. Because he has no known grave, he is commemorated on Panel 265 of the Runnymede Memorial in the United Kingdom [3].
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