Memorial for World War Two secret courier Nicola Trahan held

Nicola Pauline Marie Trahan died at the age of 97

A memorial service has been being held for a woman who was part of a secret army during World War Two.

Nicola Trahan was only 16 when she worked as a courier conveying sensitive messages for the Resistance on her bicycle.

After the war she was highly decorated by the French government for her brave contribution.

She died, aged 97, at home in Salisbury in January. A service was held at St Mary's Church in Orcheston.

Canon Eleanor Rance, who is leading the memorial service, said: "Nicola was so unassuming in life that many of her neighbours and fellow parishioners knew little of her wartime experiences until she died."

Ms Trahan was told by her resistance leaders that if she was ever caught she should say she was cycling to visit an ill relative

Born in Pas-de-Calais in France in 1926, she grew up in both France and the UK and was bilingual in English and French.

Her French military record, held at the French military archives at Vincennes, states that while still a schoolgirl she was part of the Forces françaises de l'Intérieur (French Forces of the Interior), the resistance organisation run by the Gaullist French authorities in London.

Ms Trahan received many awards during her life, including the Croix de Guerre

In spite of the fact that Ms Trahan said she was given parachute training, was code named Teddy and was dropped into France on a number of occasions as a courier, no records currently exist which corroborate Ms Trahan's account of being recruited, trained and working directly for the Special Operations Executive (SOE) - a secret group established in 1940 with the purpose of conducting espionage, sabotage, and other covert operations behind enemy lines.

In 1989, she was awarded an MBE for dedicating 50 years to the Soldiers' Sailors' and Airmen's Families Association (SSAFA) as a midwife and volunteer helping serving personnel and veterans.

Ms Trahan eventually settled in Wiltshire and volunteered at her local church and at Salisbury Cathedral, where she spent almost 28 years working in the gift shop every Friday.