Stanley, John Thornton "Yanni"
- Date of birth:
- May 9th, 1916 (Cambridge, United Kingdom)
- Date of death:
- August 2000
- Service number:
- 180841
- Nationality:
- British
Biography
John Stanley was raised in a strict Christadelphian household, though he later forged his own path. A gifted athlete at the Perse School, he joined the Prudential in 1935 before volunteering for WWII, defying his family's pacifist beliefs.
Initially trained as a wireless operator, Stanley served in the Sudan Defence Force before being recruited in Cairo by school friend Ralph Stockbridge for covert operations in Crete under MI6 cover. Known as "Yanni" to locals, he worked with guerrilla fighters near Rethymno, overseeing resistance efforts west of Canea. He was awarded the Military Cross in 1944.
In Crete, he met Lilli Malandraki, a resistance runner, whom he married in 1945. After the war, Stanley served briefly in Greece during its civil unrest, then returned to the Prudential, later working as a life insurance underwriter at Lloyd’s.
Five British nationals (including Stanley) were arrested in 1956 in Cairo, Egypt and accused for belonging to a espionage ring. He was held captive for ten months.
After Lilli’s death in 1990, he married Joan Rodway in 1994. She survived him, along with his four sons.
Do you have more information about this person? Inform us!
Military Cross (MC)
- Period:
- Second World War (1939-1945)
- Rank:
- Temporary Captain
- Unit:
- Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), British Government
- Awarded on:
- August 3rd, 1944
During this period he has been hunted by parties of the enemy and has had to do at least one last-minute escape - but never without taking or hiding his W/T equipment, in the absence of which his usefulness would have been greatly impaired. Throughout the whole time he has never been out of touch with his headquarters, except for mechanical defects.
It will be realised that it is not always easy to "tell a story" for an agent, especially when he is a British officer. He does not use his precious W/T batteries to embellish intelligence signals with the dangers and difficulties he has surmounted. But there are a few episodes that become known as incidental to the work. Of these, there is the fight with a large pursuing patrol, when Captain STANLEY with his British commander was instrumental in killing five of the enemy. Again there was the occasion when he and his friend were confronted in a lonely hiding place with two German agents-provocateurs who had to be tackled and "liquidated."
At another time Captain STANLEY, being a W/T expert, had to make a long journey on foot with only native guides, through country well patrolled by Germans, in order to mend the W/T set of another party and to encourage them. This he successfully did, although the mission took several weeks.
All this is typical of the constant dangers and strain which Captain STANLEY has quietly borne for more than a year without complaint. Recently he was offered a respite but asked to stay on and agreed to take up another lonely mission where he would be the sole Britisher. Such steady courage deserves the highest admiration."
Recommended for M.C.
Sources
Looking for reliable information or news facts about WW2? Do you want to create your own battlefield tour to sights of wars from the past? Or are you interested in war medals and their recipients? TracesOfWar.com tells you more!
More information
© STIWOT, 1999-2025. All rights reserved. Privacy statement, cookies, disclaimer and copyright