Full Name: Margaretha Geertruida Zelle
Profession: Exotic Dancer, Courtesan and German Spy

Biography: Mata Hari was executed by firing squad for spying for Germany during World War I.

Her guilt was debated for decades, but German documents unsealed in the 1970s proved that Mata Hari was indeed a German agent.

She acquired her stage name "Mata Hari" which means "eye of the day" or "sun" in Malay while living in the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia). It was also in the Dutch East Indies where she learnt the exotic dances that would later make her famous.

Born: August 7, 1876
Birthplace: Leeuwarden, Netherlands
Star Sign: Leo

Died: October 15, 1917 (aged 41)
Cause of Death: Execution by firing squad

Articles and Photos

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  Why Mata Hari Was Not the Spy You Thought She Was

  The controversial life and death of Mata Hari, the glamorous WWI double agent, executed in 1917, has recently been reassessed in the light of new evidence.
  August 7, 1876

Career Highlights

• 1905-03-13 Mata Hari first performs her dance act at the Guimet Museum, Paris
• 1917-02-13 Dutch exotic dancer Mata Hari is arrested in Paris on suspicion that she is a German spy
• 1917-07-24 Trial of Dutch exotic dancer Mata Hari begins in Paris for allegedly spying for Germany and thus causing the deaths of 50,000 soldiers
• 1917-10-15 Dutch exotic dancer Mata Hari is executed by firing squad for spying for Germany during WWI at Vincennes near Paris

Personal Life

• 1895-07-11 Dutch exotic dancer, courtesan and accused spy Mata Hari (18) weds Dutch colonial army Captain Rudolph MacLeod in Amsterdam

References

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