A former British spy who saved thousands of Jews from death in Nazi Germany will be honored with a statue in his memory on Tuesday.
Frank Foley, a former officer with the Secret Intelligence Service, or MI6, who served in both World Wars, saved more than 10,000 people from the Nazis during his time working in Berlin.
Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, will unveil the statue in Stourbridge, the West Midlands English town where Foley died in 1958.
Working under cover as a passport control officer, Foley provided visas to Jews who were being persecuted by the Nazis. His work led MI6 to declare him a “true British hero.”
“Frank Foley did not carry out his work for personal gain; he did not do it for national recognition. Indeed, many of those he saved knew nothing of the quiet, unassuming British man at the consulate who saved them,” a January statement from the spy agency said.
“Amongst the many thousands he saved were the grandparents of an SIS/MI6 officer who is serving today.”
Born in 1884, Foley was stationed in Berlin from 1922 to 1939. In his role as passport control officer he managed to obtain visas for an increasing number of Jews to travel to Palestine.
According to Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Museum in Jerusalem, Foley issued the visas as he became more and more aware of the persecution Jews were facing.
Despite not holding diplomatic immunity, Foley continued to take risks to ensure members of the German Jewish community could escape.
MI6 head Alex Younger described Foley in the January statement as a “modest man” whose “dignity, compassion and bravery are in no doubt.”
He added: “While many condemned and criticized the Nazis’ discriminative laws, Frank took action. With little regard for his personal safety, he took a stance against evil. Despite exposing himself to significant personal risk, Frank made a decision to help. He knew the dire consequences were he to get caught.”
Karen Pollock, chief executive of the UK Holocaust Educational Trust, also paid tribute to Foley earlier this year.
“Frank Foley’s courageous actions saved 10,000 Jewish people from almost certain death at the hands of the Nazis – he is an example to all of us about the importance of standing up to be counted even in the most difficult of circumstances,” she said in a statement.
“As we educate the next generation about the darkness and destruction of the Holocaust, we are fortunate to be able to point to the few who risked their own lives to save others. We are delighted that his actions will be honored in this permanent way.”