Guide Note

Dutch exotic dancer and courtesan Mata Hari was an alleged double agent, working for German military intelligence, during World War I. Born in the Netherlands as Margaretha Geertruida Zelle, she was able to traverse borders easily as her native country had remained neutral at the outset of the war. Her travels and her high-profile military lovers made French and British intelligence officers suspicious of her movements.

In early 1917, a German military attache in Madrid transmitted coded radio messages to Berlin about the activities of German spy H-21. French intelligence officials intercepted and decoded the messages. They identified H-21 as Mata Hari and had her arrested, tried and executed for espionage.

Fast Facts

1. Born: August 7, 1876 in Leeuwarden, The Netherlands
2. Birth Name: Margaretha Geertruida Zelle
3. Famous Portrayals: Greta Garbo in the 1931 film Mata Hari, Lene Lovich in 1982 stage play Mata Hari, Jeanne Moreau in 1964 film Mata-Hari
4. Died: October 15, 1917 in Vincennes, France

1. August 7, 1876: Born
2. 1894-1895: Marries Rudolph MacLeod
3. 1902-1905: Separates from husband, moves to Paris and takes stage name "Mata Hari"
4. 1916: Has affair with Major Arnold Kalle
5. Feb. 13, 1917: Arrested in Paris for espionage
6. Oct. 15, 1917: Executed
7. 1931: Greta Garbo stars in film Mata Hari

There is great debate as to whether or not Mata Hari was actually a spy, and if she was, for whom. Some historians believe the intercepted German messages revealing her identity were intentionally sent in a code the Germans knew the French had already broken. Biographers Pat Shipman suggests that Mata Hari was working for French intelligence, and that she was scapegoated by the head of French counter-espionage Georges Ladoux, who was later revealed to be a double agent himself.