Behind Enemy Lines: The Untold Stories of Italy’s Female Warriors Who Sabotaged the Nazis
Sometimes history hands us stories so vivid, so charged with courage and sheer grit, that they challenge everything we thought we knew about resistance. Suzanne Cope’s Women at War: The Italian Assassins, Spies, and Couriers Who Fought the Nazis is exactly that kind of revelatory tale—pulled from the shadows of World War II to spotlight women whose bravery rewrote the rules of engagement during the Nazi occupation of Italy. But here’s the kicker: these weren’t just bullet-throwing rebels; they were also network weavers, political thinkers, and underground press maestros who defied the era’s stifling gender norms. So, what happens when the underestimated become the game changers? And further—how do these defiant acts ripple into today’s understanding of resistance?
In this compelling interview by Hillary Moses Mohaupt, Suzanne Cope takes us on a journey beyond bomb-making and bike-riding through mountain passes, delving into the political education and personal trials that forged four extraordinary women into pillars of Italy’s resistance—and ultimately, its rebirth. From hiding in Rome’s bunkers with lipstick on to drafting a constitution before the age of thirty, these stories blur the lines between war and feminist awakening. It’s staggering how much terrain—both geographic and societal—they covered, often unnoticed. Suzanne, herself a self-taught historian with a social science backbone, expertly layers memoirs and testimonies into a narrative that’s as human as it is historic.
If you’ve ever wondered how revolutions are born—through whispered networks, grit, and sometimes sheer survival—this interview is a fascinating blueprint. It asks not only who resists, and how, but why some stories gallop through history unnoticed until someone finally calls them out into the light.
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Interviewed by Hillary Moses Mohaupt
Suzanne Cope’s book, Women at War: The Italian Assassins, Spies, and Couriers Who Fought the Nazis (Dutton; April 2025), gives readers a dramatic account of women in resistance during the Nazi occupation of Italy during World War II. While the title suggests that their efforts were active and and often violent — and certainly much of it was — Suzanne also explores how women gained political educations, created and sustained networks, and produced underground newspapers that kept partisans connected and informed — all while defying gender stereotypes.
