Hey friends, welcome to the fifth episode in our series, How Women What World War Two.

I've talked about a number of ways women influence the war effort from controlling the

Calutron machines in the secret city of Oak Ridge, Tennessee to spying for the friendship

contributing to the science that led to the creation of the atomic bomb.

Today, I want to tell you about an organization of British women who were instrumental in

winning World War Two, there were thousands of them.

You might even call them a flock.

I'm Sharon McNam.

And here's where it gets interesting.

Beginning in the 20th century in Great Britain, there was a military organization called

the Women's Royal Navy Service.

Shortened to its acronym, it spells WRNS, but it's pronounced like the bird, RENZ.

We're here to talk about World War Two, but the history of the RENZ actually begins in

World War One.

When World War One broke out in 1914, thousands of men across the United Kingdom entered the

military in service of their country.

The war effort needed more help, and then needed to utilize the population that was still

at home, the women.

If women could step in, more men would be available to fight.

The initial idea was that women would take on duties like cooking of secretarial work,

but they ended up doing far more than that.

In 1917, the Women's Royal Naval Service was formed, making the British Royal Navy the

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