Mata Hari: A Life From Beginning to End

by Hourly History

The original international woman of mystery, Mata Hari is maligned as a spy and a traitor. Having seduced a number of the most powerful men in Europe, she was accused of spying for both Allied and Central Powers during the First World War. Mata Hari’s biography tells a different story. From her remarkable transformation from a captain’s wife and mother in the Dutch East Indies to the most celebrated stage presence in Europe, Mata Hari fought for what she believed in. Yet what she believed in was neither France’s independence, nor Germany’s superiority, but her own personal quest for luxury, adventure, and love.

✓ A Wife and Mother
✓ The Night of Horror
✓ Code Name H21
✓ Becoming a Spy
✓ The Trial and Execution of Mata Hari
And much more!

Genres: History, Biography, Nonfiction, Biography Memoir, War, World War I, Ebooks

51 pages, Paperback

Published February 5, 2019

About the author

At Hourly History, we focus on publishing history books that are concise, straightforward and take no longer than one hour to read.

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Reviews

[Stephanie (Bookfever) · Rating 4 out of 5]

"A harlot? Yes, but a traitress, never!"
— Mata Hari

There are certain figures in history that I feel really drawn to and where I can just never get tired of reading more books and learning more about. Mata Hari is one of them. I've read quite a few books about her life, historical fiction as well as nonfiction. So when I saw that Hourly History had published a book about her it really kind of made my day. I didn't hesitate and started reading it on my Kindle right away. I've read my fair share of Hourly History books by now but I gotta say this one has definitely made it in my list of favorites. I would actually count it to be in my top three even.

I don't know what it is about Mata Hari but her life has intrigued me for quite some time now, which is why I always jump on the chance to read about her. Maybe it's because she was a Dutch woman and as a Belgian I've always enjoyed reading about Dutch people from history but even more than that she led a pretty fascinating life and she made things happen for herself and her career by sheer willpower, which was unconvential at the time. This makes her ending even more tragic, in my opinion. I truly believe she was injustly imprisoned and executed, whether or not she really was a spy for the Germans or the French.

So if you're looking for a short but at the same time informative and interesting book about the life of Mata Hari, this is definitely one I would highly recommend. It covered the life she led before her marriage, during her marriage, the start of her career as a dancer and courtesan all the way through the first world war and to her untimely death. You can absolutely pick it up and finish it in the same day, just like I did, even in just an hour. I took my time and still finished it really quickly. I enjoyed it immensely!

5 interesting facts I learned:

•Mata Hari also went by the names of Margaretha "Margreet" Zelle, Gretha MacLeod and Madame Rouseau
•She was born on August 7, 1876 in Leeuwarden, the Netherlands.
•She was the eldest child and only girl in the family.
•She married Rudolf MacLeod on March 1, 1856 who was 20 years older than her. The marriage didn't last and they ended up divorcing eventually.
•Her codename was H21 (given to her by Karl Kroemer, the German consul in Amsterdam)

[Tania · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mara Hari is an intriguing character who I knew very little about, just the bare bones of the story. This fills in some of the blanks, but as the author acknowledges, because of her nature, it's very difficult to separate the facts from myth. It has made me want to read a more in depth biography about her life and that is what I like about these books; they give you the essentials so you can decide whether you want to explore further.

[Young Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well-written book with valuable lessons left for the readers

It is timely to write this review on the Armistice Day, 2021.

Thank you for your service, veterans.

(Hourly History, "Mata Hari," Kindle Ed., 2019, p. 33)
...Europe was at war, but as far as Mata Hari was concerned, it had nothing to do with her...

The book starts and ends nicely with both its fine entr'/ intr'o-duct'ion and con-clos'/ -clus'ion.

This book asks me a critical question: Is the universal suffrage to give every single grown-up (simply based on physical age) a vote really safe for our society and future? It certainly feels good about ourselves with that vote in our hands, but what if it's the way we destroy the society and future with our own hands after all?

Shouldn’t it be granted only to those men and women who understand the world affairs in big picture for long-run effects, so that they are capable of making tough decisions to vote for the right representatives even though they give you some “unpopular” hardships for now?

Are you one of these cap’able voters with “real” grown-up patience and insight?

“Certainly this life suits me. I can satisfy all my caprices; tonight I dine with Count A and tomorrow with Duke B. If I don’t have to dance, I make a trip with Marquis C. I avoid serious liaisons.” —Mata Hari

While millions of people were being slaughtered every year during those four years...Staying in a safe city dating military officers (as long as they were legally available) is not a problem at all of course. It is her mentality and lifestyle.

Of course this spoiled woman always had to live with debt. I'm not saying her end was meant to be that way, but I am somehow feeling satisfied with her end, honestly.

History of WWI only tells the war. Even the pandemic that killed millions world-wide at the time was not properly spotlighted. Of course, these scenes and "wartime" lifestyle among the brain-damaged people like Mata Hari are not usually in historical movies or anything for the students and the people, and it tells the value of this book.

It is a very well-written book with nice choices of voc'abul-ary, definitely worth reading as, by the time you close the book, you will have learned some valuable lessons from a typical example of a “selfish life” and its consequences clearly described in this fine work in detail.

You can read the full review here.

[Anil Swarup · Rating 3 out of 5]

Matter of fact narration of another controversial character that appeared during the early part of the 20th century. The author looks at the character of Mata Hari quite objectively and that is the best about Hourly History.

[D. Thrush · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mata Hari is a name that makes you think of a femme fatale spy. She was an exotic dancer and free spirit who claims she only went on one mission after being pressured to do so, yet she was executed for it. She had a fascinating life refusing to be constrained by the conventions of the times and lost custody of her daughter due to her lifestyle. I knew little about her and this short 53-page bio packs in a lot.

[Tracy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think that pretty much everything I knew about Mata Hari came from watching movies. But her really intriguing life was far more interesting and adventurous than any of the movies I ever watched.

So if you're like me and looking for a short but interesting book about Mata Hari, this is defiantly one I would gladly recommend. It covers her life as a child growing up as the spoiled daughter of a business man who lost everything and could no loner support his family. It details her terrible, loveless marriage which helped lead to her life as a dancer and courtesan. I was shocked at now little time she was a supposed spy and why, to see her lover. We will never know but he most likely was the only man she ever truly loved. Her story is so sad, when you think about it, and yet still so very interesting.

It's the story of a alluring woman who used her only real assets, her body and wits, to live the life of luxury she so wanted. She was really so terrible at being a spy. It seemed to me she not for being executed a spy. I feel like it was more because she became involved in wartime politics and was killed for being what they called immoral more than anything else. That and maybe because powerful men where hiding their own secrets. But even as she faced the firing squad she was true to herself. It’s quite a fascinating story, and I truly enjoyed reading about her life!

[Terri · Rating 4 out of 5]

I knew very little about Mata Hari before reading this. I'd heard that she was a spy and that's about all I knew. As it turns out, what I had heard was a misconception. Mata Hari led an astonishing life. Her life at times had wealth, beauty, and fame, and at other times her life had poverty, discrimination, abandonment, betrayal. Her father first doted on her and then abandoned her, her husband cheated on her then claimed she was unfaithful and he ended up taking custody of her daughter, her many lovers used her as much as she used them, her dancing was risque and scandalous and yet it brought her great fame, she was recruited as a spy and yet she had no spy talent and she was quite naive about what being a spy meant, and in the end she was sick and dirty and confined in prison, ultimately executed by a firing squad. Her story is truly a case where truth is stranger than fiction.

[James Crawford · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a rather interesting book in that it deals with a person whose name is synonymous with being a nasty spy yet it turns out this is really about a woman who took advantage of her looks and her free spirit to associate with a variety of men, men who sometimes ended up as enemies in WWI. Yet it doesn't seem like she was really an active spy.

It seems she was condemned more for her free style of living (having sex with lots of different men) then her politics.

She went through a terrible marriage, become a dancer and liked to live the 'high life.' The book discusses the 'trial' she was given where she was found guilty and sentenced to death.

It would have been nice if the book had included some pictures of her.

[Ivy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating!

I never knew anything about Mata Hari. Got curious so i read this ebook. I am glad i chose this ebook. 5 stars for it being a great source of concise info on biographies.

[Tia]

“A harlot? Yes, but a traitress, never!”

[stephanie suh · Rating 4 out of 5]

A paragon of femme fatale with a name meaning Eye of Dawn in Indonesian, Mata Hari has become an unlikely figure of feminism that elevates a famous courtesan into a tragic martyr against male chauvinism. Some even have turned Europe’s first-class exotic dancer into an innovative artist, surpassing the great French-American creative dancer Isadora Duncan. Although Mata Hari expressed her unbridled erotic charge on the influential men in an era when the ideal victorian femininity still reigned in the social consciousness, she was hardly any more creative to the art of dance than Isadora Duncan and less manipulative than Delilah. This concise bioptic narrative about Mata Hari leaves the image of her open to creation on the reader’s perception of her.

Before her rebirth as Mata Hari, Margaretha Geertruida MacLeod was a divorcee from a Scottish-born dutch army officer. Her divorce from her husband was a ticket to her freedom from conventional womanhood whose place was home, tending her family and domestic affairs. Mata Hari used her womanly prowess tinkered with an exotically alluring atmosphere surrounding the sultry appearance that she used for the glamorous life. While reading the book, I found Mata Hari hard to sympathize with her, commiserate with her when she was hoodwinked by the men she fluttered with, and she believed to fall in love with. A life of courtesan she was leading was dangerous and ephemeral, and she didn’t seem to bother making her livelihood without toiling her hands into specks of dirt, as most of the poor women in her time had to earn a living. However, her trust in beauty as a sexual prowess over men is not confused with an unyielding independent spirit and awareness of her self-identity under the pretext of being a divorcee without long-term financial security.

It is not to say that her wayward lifestyle was meted with her unjust execution, which conspired to use her as a political and diplomatic scapegoat during World War One. She was an easy target to put all the misdeeds of the men involved with her and the faux-pas they wanted to conceal in consideration of her reputation as a persona non-grata with a questionable reputation. The trial of Mata Hari was nothing but a Kangaroo court procedure that only showcased the famed woman under an international spotlight behind which the real culprits of the espionage were hiding. However, the spirit of womanhood that evokes a feeling of camaraderie lacks in the figure of Mata Hari.

[Susann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brief, To the Point, Basic

I am not sure how much research this author did and how much material was available to look at. It is a serviceable biography but not particularly exciting or well written. I think the famed femme fatale and spy deserves better. It is a shame she was executed on trumped up charges by her beloved French. I wish there had been some photos of her and some of her paramours.

[V. Ananya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short but Detailed Exposé

Not only have I majored in History, but I'm always looking to read new things of the past that I've never known before. Reading about Mata Hari by Hourly History was a short but refreshing read that indirectly contributes to feminist history. She stirred some form of feminist revolution that people make an example of to-day. She is who every woman should strive to be – in my opinion.

[Neera Kapahi · Rating 4 out of 5]

The name Mata Hari brings up images of an exotic dancer, seductress and spy. I was curious to read more about her and this book did not disappoint.

The book covers everything from her childhood in the Netherlands to her transformation as Mata Hari. It appears that she was conned into spying even though she did not have the wherewithal to be a spy and had little interest in it. If anything she was made a scapegoat. This is a fascinating look at her life.

[Victor Raul · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Cualquier cosa que ella hubiera hecho, no merecia ese fin"
Una excelente historia magnificamente sintetizada de un personaje unico y seductor que "solo queria brillar como las mariposas" y que lucho por sobrevivir como sabia hacerlo.
Sometida a un injusto juicio por traicion con el deliberado proposito de condenarla, considerando su conducta sexual. Algo muy similar como lo que le ocurrio a Mersault en el extranjero de Albert Camus.

[Yashovardhan Sinha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I grew up hearing Mata Hari's name but knew nothing of her except that she was a spy, infamous for her honey-traps. This interesting book briefly describes her life and thereby gives flesh to the name.

But probably because it's restrained by its "hourly history" label, it's too hurried. Before one could grasp what espionage work she was charged with, she was pronounced guilty and executed!

Hence only 3 stars from me.

[Mary Irvine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like the concept behind this series of books. Each book gives a flavour of its subject and encourages the reader to read further/deeper. Most people will know little beyond the name of Mata Hari and maybe she had 'something to do with spying'. This easy to read book gives a very good overview of her story. I hope people will be intrigued enough to read more of what is a fascinating character.

[Kasia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Engaging topic but an overly repulsive person.
Mata Hari can be compared to Giacomo Casanova as a self-serving, selfish person who chose to live her life in a manner dictated by maintaining by any means a luxurious lifestyle (mostly the easiest and oldest known way for an attractive woman).
She was to dump to be a spy and paid for her intellectual shortcomings with her own life by being punished by a bunch of misogynists not for spying but for living her life in a way ahead of her times.

[Stu · Rating 5 out of 5]

An explanation of Mata Harris life.

I had heard of, but didn't know Mata Hari's true nature. It's hard to think that she, who was cunning and inventive, could have been so naive about such serious events and potential results.
The Hourly History series allows us to learn about many people and events in an easy format that takes only about an hour's time for each read.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

A woman who lived and loved well, only to be executed in war.

An interesting read that briefly glimpses the life of a very beautiful woman who danced her way through the military hearts of both Germans and Allies alike. Accused of spying by both sides her fate was sealed.

[suzie pay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy and informative excellent shame no pics that's all

It was full of easy to digest facts even tho the amount of names got confusing still great easy book good quick read... and now I know more.

[David Parker · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I wanted to live like a colorful butterfly in the sun.

A young imaginative exotic beauty she lived a bounty full life meeting wealthy men in the major cities of Europe and never made excuses.

[Maria do Socorro Baptista · Rating 5 out of 5]

Surpreendente bom

Pequeno - apenas 38 páginas - mas muito bom. Eu nada sabia da vida de Mata Hari, fiquei encantada com sua ousadia e triste com seu fim. Mas com poderia ser diferente, né?

[M P Thurber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting woman, totally out of her time.

While I had heard of Mata Hair I was not aware of her story. She had grown up in a different world and society. The First World War brought that world and society to an end which she could not accept.

[Linda Goss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mata Hari

It is to bad that parents bring their children up to be so selfish. Mata Hair was doomed before she even got started. From what I read of her life, the end was not fair. If she hadn't been so greedy, things probably would have ended much better for her.

[Magners · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting but choppy

I do enjoy Hourly History books, however, this one was hard to follow. Interesting because I never heard or Mata Hari, but bouncing around from lover to lover became confusing.

[Linda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mata Hari: A Life From Beginning to End

This was a quick read. I read it in one afternoon, so it was not an in depth story. It was interesting.

[Daniel Patitz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting story as it would be told by someone that loved Mata Hari.

[Jim Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a interesting biography about a free spirit caught up
the wrong time and place.

[Nicole Flynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy Informative read

Very interesting life Mari Mari had this book fills in much not commonly known. Reads quickly and never found it boring.