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On the night of September 29th - 30th 1940, a flying boat took off from
Nazi-occupied Stavanger in Norway. Its mission was to drop three German
agents. This operation was part of a larger German plan - code-named Operation
Hummer Nord I - to send spies to Britain. The scheme was masterminded by
Lieutenant-General Erwin von Lahousen. Originally four agents were to be
sent. However, on 2nd September, the day before the original departure date, the
leader of the expedition was apparently killed in a car accident. Consequently, the
operation was delayed.
The flying boat landed successfully at Gollachy, between Buckie and Port
Gordon, where the three agents, Robert Petter, Karl Drucke and Vera Erikson
(also known as Vera von Schalburg, Vera von Stein or Vera de Cottani de
Chalbur) were placed into a dinghy. The trio rowed ashore at the mouth of the
Burn of Gollachy with their luggage containing radio transmitters. From here the
trio had been instructed (ludicrously) to cycle to London but due to the choppy
seas the bicycles accompanying them had been swept overboard. Perhaps
because of this the three decided to split up. Vera Erikson, who was supposed to
be a Danish exile living at 18 Sussex Place, London, W11, and Karl Drucke
playing the part of a French refugee from Belgium, named Francois de Deeker,
living at 15 Sussex Gardens, headed towards Port Gordon. The third agent,
Robert Petter who used the name Werner Heinrich Walti, a Swiss national, living
at 23 Sussex Gardens, went to Buckie.
Please note: there are many interpretations of Vera's story and many different
versions of her life as a cursory search on Google will testify.
Portgordon.org is simply concerned with providing the definitive account of what
happened in the village on 30 September 1940.
An outline of some of theories about Vera is given afterwards but this site does
offers no comment on the validity or otherwise of these.
Vera Erikson appeared to be the leader of the operation and was apparently to
assume the role of the long-lost niece of an elderly Italian Countess living in
Kensington. The Germans thought this would be excellent cover for her to meet
prominent people because the Countess had a reputation for lavish entertaining.
This would explain the Mediterranean name, Vera de Cottani de Chalbur, she
gave when asked by Inspector John Simpson to write it down after her arrest. It is
unclear whether there actually was an Italian Countess and if so, whether she was
also a foreign agent. It has been speculated that this was the "Duchesse de
Chateau-Thierry".
Drucke and Erikson arrived at Port Gordon railway station at about 7.30am
intending to catch the train. It is known that they went along Lennox Place on the
way there because someone remembers hearing their 'guttural accents'. The
porter John Geddes and the stationmaster John Donald observed the two
strangers, arriving at the station. It was Vera who spoke first to ask the name of
the station, which aroused the suspicion of the staff. Drucke then pointed to
Forres on the timetable and asked for tickets to "Forrest". As Drucke opened his
wallet, crammed full of banknotes and laid far too much money on the counter,
the stationmaster noticed that the bottom of the stranger's trousers were soaking
wet as were Erikson's stockings and shoes. The stationmaster told John Geddes to
keep the pair talking while he telephoned the local policeman Constable Grieve.
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