The Ministry of Lost Voices : English

Four women.

Four extraordinary acts of courage.

One war that changed everything.

What does resistance look like when you have no army, no weapons and sometimes not even the freedom to speak?

In the first episode of The Forgotten Files, a special collection from The Ministry of Lost Voices, I open four remarkable dossiers from the Second World War.

Meet Sophie Scholl, the 21-year-old German student who dared to challenge the Nazi regime with words.

Discover Andrée de Jongh, the young Belgian woman who helped build a secret escape network guiding Allied servicemen towards freedom.

Follow Violette Szabo, a young mother who volunteered for two dangerous missions in occupied France.

Finally uncover the extraordinary story of Virginia Hall, the American secret agent with a wooden leg who became one of the Gestapo's most wanted women.

As we approach Remembrance Day, we honour the women whose courage, determination and sacrifice helped shape history even when history didn't always remember their names.

Because resistance didn't always wear a uniform and some of its bravest voices belonged to women.

ABOUT THE FORGOTTEN FILES

The Forgotten Files is a special podcast collection from The Ministry of Lost Voices, exploring extraordinary women connected by a shared moment in history, a common struggle or an untold story. Alongside our monthly Case Files, these episodes open new doors into the archives bringing remarkable women and their stories back into the light.

Join the Ministry

Discover our immersive historical storytelling experience, monthly letters, secret Listening Room and growing community of curious minds.

Website: To The Mail Club

Instagram: @theministryoflostvoices

You have a forgotten woman in mind? Send us her name, our archive is always growing.

Ex silentio, vox.

The Woman Who Refused to Be Silent

She was born in 1098. She composed extraordinary music, wrote about medicine and the natural world, described visions of the universe, advised powerful men and founded her own religious communities. She did all this in a world that wasn't particularly interested in women having opinions. Her name was Hildegard of Bingen and the Ministry has opened her file.

In this first public episode of The Ministry of Lost Voices, we travel back to the twelfth century to meet a woman who was, quite frankly, rather difficult to put into a box: A benedictine abbess, a composer, a writer, a visionary, a woman whose correspondence reached popes, emperors and people who had considerably less power than either.

But who was Hildegard beyond the titles? What did it mean to be a woman with such an extraordinary voice in medieval Europe? How did she manage to make herself heard? Why, more than eight centuries after her death, does her story still feel so surprisingly relevant?

This is not a history lecture. It's an invitation to meet a remarkable woman perhaps to discover that history has been keeping some rather interesting things from us.

This episode belongs to CASE LV001, the first recovered voice in The Ministry of Lost Voices.

Every month, the Ministry opens a new case file dedicated to a real woman from history.

Our custodians receive a beautifully crafted physical letter and archival collection through the post, with historical discoveries, visual treasures, a clue to the next Lost Voice, and exclusive access to The Listening Room.

Become a custodian/member here

In the Listening Room, we take the story one step further through an imagined conversation inspired by the woman's documented life and surviving work. The women are real, the research matters, the conversations are imagined.

Ex silentio, vox.

Written, created and presented by Valerie Thys.

© 2026 The Ministry of Lost Voices.

Some stories were never meant to be forgotten and yet somewhere between what actually happened and what history chose to remember, a few voices went missing.

Welcome to The Ministry of Lost Voices, a rather unusual place where history, storytelling and a little imagination meet.

Join Valerie Thys, your newly appointed Archivist, as she follows forgotten trails, opens long-closed doors and uncovers the stories history left behind.

Expect curious discoveries, unexpected twists, a touch of mystery and the occasional administrative irregularity.

The Ministry of Lost Voices is available in both English and Dutch. Two languages, but one Archive.

If you Love history, hidden stories and a good mystery? Join the Ministry's mailing list to be among the first to discover what's coming next on 6 October 2026.

Become a custodian/member here.

History forgot a few things but we're looking into it.