Editing Kay Summersby (section)

==World War II==

When Britain entered [[World War II]] in 1939, Kay Summersby joined the British [[Mechanised Transport Corps]] (MTC). She drove an ambulance throughout the [[The Blitz|London Blitz]] in 1940 and 1941,<ref name="Wyden" /> and was reportedly excellent at navigating London streets during blackouts and fog.<ref name="mulligan19950528">{{cite news | url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/19950528/2123420/when-gunfire-ended-so-did-ikes-war-romance | title=When Gunfire Ended, So Did Ike's War Romance | newspaper=[[The Seattle Times]] | date=1995-05-28 | agency=Associated Press | access-date=20 October 2012 | author=Mulligan, Hugh A.}}</ref> When the United States joined the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]] after the German declaration of war in December 1941, Summersby was one of many MTC drivers assigned as chauffeurs to high-ranking American military officers.

Summersby was assigned to drive then Major General Dwight Eisenhower when he arrived in London in May 1942. Though there was a brief interruption of several weeks due to Eisenhower's short return to the US, Summersby chauffeured Eisenhower and later became his secretary until November 1945, based at his home ''Telegraph Cottage'' in Warren Road, [[Coombe, Kingston upon Thames]]. During this time Eisenhower rose in rank to a [[five-star rank|five-star]] [[General of the Army (United States)|General of the Army]] and Commander of the European Theatre, and Kay, with his help, became a US citizen and a commissioned officer in the US [[Women's Army Corps]] (WACs), ultimately leaving the service as a captain in 1947.

Captain Summersby's military awards included the [[Bronze Star Medal]],<ref>In the photo linked above, Captain Summersby is wearing the ribbon of the Bronze Star Medal</ref> [[Women's Army Corps Service Medal]], [[European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal|European Campaign Medal]], [[World War II Victory Medal]] and the [[Army of Occupation Medal]] with "Germany" clasp.  Although several online sources{{who|date=January 2025}} state that Summersby received the Legion of Merit, there is no known documentary evidence that she was awarded it.  The Legion of Merit was normally awarded to senior officers in the rank of colonel and above.